“Legendary tone”: Behringer has officially released Vintage, its free VST synth plugin (yes, really this time) By Ben Rogerson published 26 April 24 The company says it’s worth $99, but you can have it for nothing
“Two glowing hot 12AX7 preamp tubes, running at the proper high voltage, are this pedal’s beating heart”: Friedman unleashes the IR-D, a twin-channel boutique fire-breather inspired by a modded JTM45 By Jonathan Horsley published 25 April 24 The IR-D preamp pedal takes those Friedman's high-end amp sounds and puts them in a tube-driven pedal, with dual boosts, onboard IRs, MIDI control and effects loop
“If you think your addiction to synths and studio gear is out of control, imagine being in Depeche Mode”: We'd forgotten quite how much of the band's gear Alan Wilder shifted in his legendary auction, and just how many bargains were up for grabs By Andy Jones published 25 April 24 An Oberheim and Minimoog went for a song, but it was a Martin Gore guitar and E-mu sampler that stole the show
"After a hefty drugs overdose, he died for two minutes, complete with a near death experience. Sure you want to be in a rock band?": The story of Depeche Mode's Songs of Faith and Devotion album and tour is the most rock 'n' roll ever By Andy Jones published 25 April 24 Near-death experiences, breakdowns, talking puppets, heart attacks, sleeping in coffins… Just another Depeche Mode album, then
No longer just a software upgrade, Roland’s Fantom EX is a “supercharged” version of the acclaimed synth workstation By Ben Rogerson published 25 April 24 Now new users can get their EX kicks right out of the box
UK firm AudioStrip receives share of £1 million in government funding to “elevate music source separation technology beyond industry benchmarks” By Ben Rogerson published 24 April 24 Company plans to develop advanced machine learning algorithms that can automatically detect musical instruments
“Upgrade and expand any size pedalboard with the power of AI modelling”: IK Multimedia unveils the ToneX One, an entire guitar rig in a mini-pedal By Jonathan Horsley published 24 April 24 IK Multimedia's amp, cab and effects modelling power has never been so portable, with the ToneX One capable of storing 20 presets, and accessing thousands of sounds from ToneNET
"Like one of those novice chefs who puts steak, fries and spaghetti bolognese all on the same plate": Is Casio's 'recording studio in a boombox' the most bizarre music-making product of all time? By Andy Jones published 23 April 24 Synth workstation? Karaoke machine? Recording studio in a ghetto blaster? Answer: all - and none - of the above…
“It actually gave me more Hendrix vibes than Stevie vibes”: Watch what happens when you play a Strat through a cranked Super Reverb in an empty warehouse By Jonathan Horsley published 23 April 24 Pedal Pawn’s Chris King Robinson conducts an experiment that shows how strange and magical things happen when you dime old tube amps in large, empty spaces
Walrus Audio’s feature-packed Monumental lets guitarists blend standard and harmonic tremolo in stereo for sonic adventures in “rich, luscious, warm pulsating modulation” By Jonathan Horsley published 23 April 24 A tremolo pedal even John Ford would have been proud to have on his 'board. Inspired by Monument Valley, it has six waveforms, five tap divisions, and quite possibly all the features you need
