Mapex Black Panther Cherry Bomb Snare
 The name Black Panther, conjuring up speed and power allied to velvety sleekness, has been a winner for Mapex over the past decade. Now Mapex has given the entire range an overhaul with 14 brand new models. You can read every Black Panther snare drum review here. Each drum has either single-ended shield-design cast lugs, or elegantly sculpted twin-point mounted tube lugs. The patented 'Sonic Saver' hoops lie between flanged and die-cast hoops. Recalling the classic Slingerland 'Stick Saver' concept, the top lip of each pressed stainless steel hoop bends over and in, not out as on standard hoops. The handsome throw-off is a smoothly operating pull-away lever with adjustable strainers at both ends. Micro lock knobs click silently as you turn them for sensitive adjustment of the stainless steel wires. There are several new bearing edge profiles, and capping it all a new die-cast, chrome-plated Black Panther badge. You can watch a video overview of the new range with Craig Blundell and Steve White below. Scroll down for the full review. Black Panther Cherry BombBuildAs its name implies, the Cherry Bomb is made from cherry wood - and to emphasise the connection the shell is finished in a dark red cherry stain and gloss lacquer. The inside is left a natural warm ruddy brown. The cherry has a pleasingly striated dark grain, offset by the chrome hardware, making this a pretty drum. The thin 5.1mm shell is a compact 13"x5 1/2" and has well-cut, sharp bearing edges. Hands onDropping the diameter by an inch makes quite a dramatic difference to your snare. The sound becomes tubbier and more compact. The cherry imparts a full, plump, right-in-the-middle sort of sound, which is extremely pleasing, both warm and precise. The 1:9 bearing edges with the sharp edge right on the outside of the drum means the sensitivity extends right to the rim. We were impressed by the way the full bodied centre sweet spot extended almost two thirds of the way towards the edge of the shell. It's aided by the single ply Remo Coated Ambassador batter which is ideal for this small drum.  
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Palmer PDI-03 Speaker Simulator
 While computer-based amp simulation and POD-style hardware units are convenient to use and provide a huge range of sounds, there are still many guitarists who'd prefer to use their own amp for recording but can't use the traditional microphone-in-front-of-a-speaker-cab method because of lack of space or noise restrictions. All is not lost, though, as a combined power soak and speaker simulator unit such as the Palmer PDI-03 can take a signal from an amp's speaker output and simulate the sound of a mic'd cab without damaging the amp. The original Palmer Speaker Simulator first appeared on the scene in the late eighties and was an immediate success with some – Keith Richards and EVH were apparently keen users. This new PDI-03 is a re-issue of that original model, which hasn't been available for a while now. It's a single-space rackmount unit that combines a signal splitter, DI box and power soak with an eight-ohm load circuit. Special filters within the PDI-03 are designed to provide carefully contoured equalisation to the amp signal, simulating the sound of a guitar amp through a cabinet. Usable with or without a speaker cabinet, the signal is taken from your amp's speaker output into a rear jack and can be passed out unattenuated to a cab via an adjacent thru jack. A further four line out jacks, with output controlled from a front panel knob, are available on the rear panel to send an unfiltered (non speaker-emulated) signal to effects units or elsewhere. The speaker-emulated signal exits either via a balanced XLR socket or an unbalanced jack and is tailored by three front panel controls: a volume knob and two three-way switches, which used together provide a range of speaker-emulated tones. One offers variations on low-end tone – deep, which represents a 4 x 12 closed-back cab, and flat, a 2 x 12 open-backed combo-style speaker. The other offers high-end tonal variations with normal, mellow and bright options. In UseWe used the PDI-03 first with a Fender combo – routing the amp's speaker output through it to the combo's speakers. The DI'd sound from the Palmer compares well to the combo speakers, producing a natural sound that accurately apes a close-mic'd cab. Although there's no power attenuation for connected speakers, the PDI-03 could be used connected in line between amp and speakers and feeding the DI'd signal to the PA as a consistent alternative to mic'ing the cab. While live use is a possibility, the PDI-03 really comes into its own for recording – and not just for doing things quietly. The sound of the PDI-03 speaker simulation could be a valid alternative choice in a studio with plenty of cabs and mics – one more colour on the palette with the switches giving you useful tonal variation, particularly in the top-end. In an A/B test with a 20-year-old original, the tonal contouring of the new model is more extreme, but provides similar functionality – normal sounding pretty natural, mellow dulling the edges and bright adding top-end fizz. One thing to be aware of is that there isn't the 'air' that you might get when using a mic some distance from a cabinet – this sound is dry, but that's no bad thing as it gives you plenty of options for adding whatever ambience you want in the mix. (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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Jobeky Prestige electronic drum kit
 It's ironic, isn't it? The better and more complex electronic drum technology gets, the closer we get to being able to enjoy the simplest of joys - really good acoustic drum emulations. Of course, in technological terms these 'simplest' sounds are the hardest to recreate; the complexities of tonal nuance and response have been testing engineers' talents for years. But they're getting there - the current crop of the best modules provide fabulously playable acoustic kits. "We were really surprised by the way we took to the physical sensation of playing the Jobeky. We didn't expect it to impress us in quite the way it did" Drummers are, unsurprisingly, wedded to the sound and feel of a 'real' acoustic set-up. So it's predictable that a good number of those who have embraced electronics harbour a desire to access their sounds with something closer to a traditional set-up than is offered by the big hi-tech manufacturers. There's no arguing that Yamaha, Roland et al have done a fantastic job with their kits in recent years; mesh heads, virtual hi-hats and nice bass drums have all improved the playing experience no end. But there's still clear blue water between these sets and the physical feel of traditionally-sized kits. Which is where Jobeky's new Prestige set comes in – a kit with triggers built in for easy hook-up to the module of your choice. BuildJobeky offers a flexible, custom-built approach, so ranges are less delineated than with bigger outfits. The Prestige line allows punters to choose from a wide array of sizes, finishes, lugs and so on for a very personalised kit; the kit here runs a 13"x5" snare, 12"x10" rack tom, 14"x14" floor tom and 20"x16" kick with a set of Alesis Surge cymbal triggers (12" hats, 14" crash, 16" ride).
The drums have birch shells and, were they not replete with resonance-beating foam and trigger assemblies, would function completely as normal. The only giveaways as to their real nature are neat and discreet 1/4" jack sockets, mesh heads and the fact that they're all fairly weighty. The weight is down to the aforementioned damping and trigger set-ups, but it's a price worth paying, because the kit works extremely well. Removing the head of the floor tom (for example) reveals a pair of circular steel plates which sandwich a thick layer of foam to kill acoustic noise, and the trigger is mounted on this platform. It's a much more developed set-up than simply attaching a trigger to an acoustic drum head, and one that pays dividends in use. The diminutive size and slightly brash appearance of the Alesis Surge cymbals at first had me wondering whether they were little more than a stylistic gimmick. In fact, they're a great addition to the kit. The 'cymbals' are brass, with a clear plastic damping ring installed on their underside; the ring is touch-sensitive to allow for grabbing and choking and, while the hi-hat is a single pad affair, it works very well with Jobeky's own hi-hat controller (which mounts on a standard hi-hat stand). (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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Behringer T-47 and T-1
 There's a certain mystique about valve mics that has ensured that they remain objects of desire among recordists. From the giddy heights of vintage classics like the Neumann U47 and AKG C12 on down, there are a slew of less expensive options to whet the appetite. None, though, less expensive than the two just released by those Teutonic touters of affordable audio gear, Behringer. If you have about £150 to spend (less if you shop around) you too can be the proud owner of one of its two new valve mics. But are they any good? Behringer's two models are the T-47 (£148) and the T-1 (£160), the difference between the two being their cosmetic design (the T-47 is black with a grille design that bears a passing resemblance to a U47 while the T-1 is silver, fatter and heavier) and that the T-1 adds a 20dB pad switch to the equation. Both have a cardioid pickup pattern and come packed in a large aluminium case containing the microphone, power supply and 7-pin multicore connecting lead, IEC power lead, suspension cradle and windshield. In useAlthough looking a little flimsy at first glance, the suspension mount is a practical design and does hold the mic firmly in the desired position once the tightening knob is finger tight. There's about 30 feet (10m) of cable connecting the mic to its power supply allowing you, if you find it more convenient, to keep the power supply in the control room and run the cable through to the vocal booth or live room. The power supply houses the low cut filter switch and a ground lift switch in case you do run into any hum problems and, obviously, an XLR output to connect to mixing desk or preamp. "These mics could certainly be described as having a warm sound - smooth with plenty of body but not over-endowed with top end." With power on you can see the 12AX7 valve glowing through a tinted window in the mic body and, given time to warm up, it is ready to use. These mics could certainly be described as having a warm sound - smooth with plenty of body but not over-endowed with top end. Compared in an A/B test to a more expensive AKG SolidTube, the Behringers lacked some of the top end zing but still turned in decent results recording an acoustic guitar. On a guitar cab, the sound was captured with great accuracy and male vocals were recorded with a flattering sound, rich in low end. While there was little sonic difference between the T-47 and T-1, the pad switch on the T-1's body does make it a more useful all-rounder in that it can handle higher SPLs. Behringer see it as being a good kick drum mic and the bottom end response is solid so there is no reason, with the pad engaged, that it couldn't take its place in front of the kit. SummaryOK, the naming is a bit cheeky - these are not Neumann U47 clones but neither are they rubbish. If you are looking to expand your mic collection by adding a valve mic, these two offer that option without breaking the bank. Both are capable of producing good results on a variety of studio tasks, but the pad switch on the T-1 gives it the edge in versatility.  
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Toontrack Custom & Vintage SDX
 Hot on the heels of its well received Metal Foundry and Lost New York Studios releases, Toontrack offer a huge new Custom & Vintage expansion pack for its Superior Drummer 2.0 virtual instrument. The first few Superior SDX packs focused mainly on samples of classic drums and cymbals from well-known manufacturers, but the drum selection here is noticeably more esoteric, featuring a huge variety of rare and interesting drums to add to your Superior collection. In detailDiving straight into Superior's kit construction window, a thorough investigation of the choices on offer reveals a huge arsenal of positively drool-worthy percussive instruments. Big names like Ludwig, Gretsch, Noble & Cooley and Slingerland are represented, along with high-end boutique manufacturers such as Camco, Craviotto, Noonan and Canopus. Cymbals are mainly K Zildjian, with a variety of Turkish-made crashes and rides on offer. Paiste provides a handful of further cymbal options, including 16-, 17- and 18-inch fast crashes plus bell, mellow and dark rides in various sizes. The final selection is the Steve Hubback Cymbal Sculpture, an unusual 24-inch handmade ride which offers a wide variety of unique tones. One of the most exciting features of the Custom & Vintage pack is the signal chain used in the recording process. All of the drums were recorded at London's 2KHz Studios and the list of equipment used in the sessions will make any gear nerd green with envy: an ex-Abbey Road EMI TG console with Germanium mic pres, a variety of classic Neumann, AKG and Sennheiser mics and the legendary Helios F760 compressor on one of the room mic channels. Soloing individual mic channels in Superior's mixer window reveals the outstanding clarity and character on offer. It's also worth mentioning that the pack includes library of MIDI patterns played by highly-experienced session drummer Chris Whitten. Depending on the style of music you're making, these may come in handy. SummaryTrying to add up the value of the sounds here is practically impossible. A drum like the Craviotto Timeless Timber snare alone would cost a couple of thousand pounds, putting the sounds in this expansion pack out of the reach of all but the most well-heeled drummers. For most of us, this is as close as we'll get to some of these rare and highly sought-after instruments. The sound of the samples in this pack is perhaps best described as being less American than previous releases, with a less polished sound which might work better for British music than some of the slick, super-clean kits already available. Overall, the Custom & Vintage SDX is highly flexible, providing the professional results we've come to expect from Superior Drummer. Listen to the Custom & Vintage SDX in action:Our audio demos of the Custom & Vintage SDX feature a selection of drums including the 18x24" Camco Oaklawn kick (wood beater), 5.5x14" Craviotto Timeless Timber snare, 16x16" Gretsch round badge floor tom, 1970s 14" Zildjian New Beat hi-hats and K Zildjian cymbals. Basic drum track using default mixer settings. Example of same track but with simplified mixer setting using KD-In, SD-T and OH mics only. The result is a simpler mix which fits nicely into less polished productions. Example of the sounds which can be achieved by adding increasing amounts of heavily compressed room mic to the mixer setting from the previous clip. The compressed room mic fades in over the course of the first 15 or so seconds, then is left at this level for the remainder of the demo.  
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Mapex Black Panther Retrosonic Snare
 The name Black Panther, conjuring up speed and power allied to velvety sleekness, has been a winner for Mapex over the past decade. Now Mapex has given the entire range an overhaul with 14 brand new models. You can read every Black Panther snare drum review here. Each drum has either single-ended shield-design cast lugs, or elegantly sculpted twin-point mounted tube lugs. The patented 'Sonic Saver' hoops lie between flanged and die-cast hoops. Recalling the classic Slingerland 'Stick Saver' concept, the top lip of each pressed stainless steel hoop bends over and in, not out as on standard hoops. The handsome throw-off is a smoothly operating pull-away lever with adjustable strainers at both ends. Micro lock knobs click silently as you turn them for sensitive adjustment of the stainless steel wires. There are several new bearing edge profiles, and capping it all a new die-cast, chrome-plated Black Panther badge. You can watch a video overview of the new range with Craig Blundell and Steve White below. Scroll down for the full review. Black Panther RetrosonicBuildThe 14"x5 1/2" Retrosonic is a real looker, perhaps the most gorgeous of all with the glorious swirling grain of rich walnut finished to a satin-smooth sheen. It's a relatively hefty 8.1mm all-walnut shell and has Mapex's so-called 1:9 bearing edges where there is a 45 degree slope right up to the sharp outer edge. Extremely shallow snare beds are cut almost imperceptibly, but this seems to be enough for them to work just fine. The micro sensitive new strainer plays its part in this. Chrome hardware and tube lugs compliment the dark wood perfectly. Hands onRather like the Velvetone, this drum has a sophisticated flavour with a dusky undercurrent. There is a good balance of bright and dark. Attack-wise, rim shots and cross-sticks cut the mustard with a tasty balance of woody and metallic tones. It's easy to be led on by the dark hue of the wood, but the drum does feel deeper than maple or birch, somehow a bit richer and thicker.  
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Sample Logic Morphestra
 Sample Logic's Morphestra is a sound library of cinematic textures, rhythms and atmospheres. If you think about the nature of modern movie and television soundtracks several things spring instantly to mind: the sound-designed layers of creepy textures for horror movies; the driving rhythms for chase sequences; and the deep percussive hits and exotic wind instruments which underscore scenes from far-flung destinations. These are all just as much a part of the fabric of modern scoring as the more traditionally 'musical' elements of an orchestral or synthesised soundtrack. Morphestra is designed to provide you with just such an array of otherworldly noises to create atmosphere, which should make it an essential choice for anyone working in this field or with aspirations to do so. InstallationFirst things first – the all-important install. Large sound libraries almost always arrive on multiple DVDs, giving us time to kill as we feed one DVD in after another. So imagine our surprise and delight to discover that Morphestra arrives on a compact 160GB Glyph hard drive, ready to connect up and go. This certainly sweetens that price quite a bit, given that the library uses 27GB of the drive, leaving 133GB for your own use. The library runs through NI's Kontakt sampler or the free-to-download Kontakt Player; Simply press click on the Add Library tab in the top left hand corner of Kontakt's GUI and point the browser at the Morphestra Library on your Glyph. You're then automatically routed online to NI's Service Centre, where you can enter your serial number to authorise. Easy. If you don't want to travel everywhere with Morphestra's precious Glyph drive, you can simply copy the Library across to your hard drive of choice before activation. All of which means that rather than the hours installing and authorising you'll be up and running in less than five minutes. A highly promising start. In detailEase of install would be worth nothing unless the library was worth having and fortunately, this is where excitement ramps up another few notches: Morphestra is phenomenal. "The whole library is effortlessly and excitingly playable, as the raw sample content is impressively enhanced by the Kontakt engine." At their best, libraries shouldn't simply provide you with what you're expecting but should offer genuine surprises too, and this one delivers in spades. Sounds are organised into two categories, namely Instruments and Multis, which are pretty self-explanatory. Instruments are single sounds, while Multis are combinations of several Instruments which are usually stacked up via the same MIDI channel, producing pre-mixed multi-timbral layers of sound, on which more later. The Instruments are sorted into folders by 'type', with categories such as Blurred Emotions, Dark 'n' Scary, Nature and Sci-Fi, which makes narrowing your search straightforward. Within any folder, you'll then find a list of instruments that load into your version of Kontakt ready to play. (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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Progress Audio Kinisis
 If you've ever tinkered with 3D or Flash animation software, you'll be familiar with the concept of key frames. They're markers on a timeline that are used to define a specific value (or values) for an object at that particular point. It could be its X or Y position, for example, or perhaps its size. Once you've defined your key frames, the software will calculate a smooth transition between these values, thus creating a seamless impression of movement without the need to 'hand draw' each frame. It's exactly this system of movement that Kinisis has attempted to bring to synthesis. Each parameter, in what is a fairly regular synth engine, can be given a specific value at any point along a timeline. After a note is triggered, Kinisis starts playback of the sound while updating parameter values according to the key frames along the timeline. Set a start filter cutoff value to zero, for instance, and a max value a few seconds later, and the filter will open smoothly over the duration of the note. It's a little like creating fastidiously automated synth tracks in your DAW, only Kinisis is far more spontaneous and much more fun. In detailThe GUI can take some getting used to, especially when your first instinct is to play with the various knobs and sliders. Trying this while playing notes reveals that most will refuse to budge. This is because the timeline is active and you first need to create a 'point' on it that relates to a particular parameter panel - that done, you can twiddle away, which will actually define the settings of those parameters for a specific point in time. The parameter panels are colour-coded to match their timeline counterparts. "The GUI can take some getting used to, especially when your first instinct is to play with the various knobs and sliders." Despite this initially unintuitive behaviour, the big bonus is that creating moving and evolving sounds is far easier than manually automating such changes in your DAW. This means you can pull off neat tricks, such as adjusting the waveform mix as the sound evolves. Up to four waveforms can be blended using a circular mixer - it's just like the vector synthesis pioneered by Sequential Circuits in the '80s and further developed by Korg's Wavestation in the '90s. The waveforms are selected from menus that appear on the four compass points of the mixer. There are standard saw, square and sine shapes, as well as a small library of waveforms from other sources. However, the real power comes from the integrated waveform editor, with which you can add harmonics, adjust their phase and set their amplitudes. This is powerful stuff, and the results of this decidedly digital form of synthesis typically sound harder, edgier and more cutting than classic analogue designs. 
(2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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Mapex Black Panther Blade Snare
 The name Black Panther, conjuring up speed and power allied to velvety sleekness, has been a winner for Mapex over the past decade. Now Mapex has given the entire range an overhaul with 14 brand new models. You can read every Black Panther snare drum review here. Each drum has either single-ended shield-design cast lugs, or elegantly sculpted twin-point mounted tube lugs. The patented 'Sonic Saver' hoops lie between flanged and die-cast hoops. Recalling the classic Slingerland 'Stick Saver' concept, the top lip of each pressed stainless steel hoop bends over and in, not out as on standard hoops. The handsome throw-off is a smoothly operating pull-away lever with adjustable strainers at both ends. Micro lock knobs click silently as you turn them for sensitive adjustment of the stainless steel wires. There are several new bearing edge profiles, and capping it all a new die-cast, chrome-plated Black Panther badge. You can watch a video overview of the new range with Craig Blundell and Steve White below. Scroll down for the full review. Black Panther BladeBuildThe cheapest Panther, the Blade is no more shabby for that. The 14"x5 1/2", 1mm steel shell has a just-visible internal vertical join and turned-over traditional 45 degree bearing edges. The shell and all the hardware are finished in a brushed metallic grey, giving the drum a more expensive image. It was also exactly round by our measurements. Hands onSteel may be the low-cost option but it is a splendid material for snare drum shells. At medium tension you get a dry, dark, thick and parchment-like tone in the centre, but when you catch the rim it rings out like a - well, like a steel drum. The timbre is not as varied or complex as maple, say, but crunchier, so your double strokes are distinct and keen. The shell matches perfectly with the new Sonic Saver hoops and rim shots and cross-sticks are a joy, cutting through with ease. That distinctive steel ping is what you need to power just about any band.  
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Intelligent Gadgets MIDI Recorder
 MIDI Recorder takes audio input from either the built-in mic of your iPhone or an external mic on the iPod Touch and attempts to turn it into MIDI note data. It works with monophonic input only and is capable of detecting up to 20 notes a second. From the moment you launch the application, a colourful matrix of dots in the centre of the screen updates in real time to display exactly what notes would be generated. Tap the matrix and this changes to a spectrogram. A sole slider is used to restrict the converter to any three octaves between C2 and C7. Hit the Record button and the notes are placed in a buffer - these can then be previewed using an in-built synth, emailed or shared across the local network. Unfortunately. the detection algorithm simply isn't accurate enough to be useful - most captures resulted in a mess of notes, and it also crashed on us a couple of times. MIDI Recorder can be used creatively, but only if you're in a quiet room and you're very good at whistling.  
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Agile Partners Star6
 Star6 is an iPhone/iPod touch real-time effects processing tool for loops. You can upload your own to the device (with a 2MB limit on each sample) or use one of the bundled collections. The effects and loops are triggered by holding down the triangles in the top half of the screen - you then tilt the iPhone/Touch back and forth to manipulate whichever effect you're holding down. This gives a surprisingly fine degree of control. The sound the effects make is dependent on the Sync/Grain button at the lower left. This either locks sample playback to a tempo defined by their length, or enables each effect to run free. The best example of the difference between the two is found in the Gate effect. If Sync is enabled, it pulses the audio on or off at an interval related to the tempo of the loop. The following note values are selectable: whole beat, half beat, quarter beat, and setting under which the gate on time is gradually reduced until it's off completely. With Grain enabled, the gate is disconnected from the tempo of the loop, and the interval becomes random and glitchy. The other effects include Pitch and Speed shifters, along with Jitter and Random effects that play slices in a variable order or at random pitches. Finally, the Size effect offers a somewhat unpredictable parameter that alters the length of each slice. A further three effects – delay, filter and distortion – can be added to the audio stream, but these aren't controllable via the accelerometer. The GUI could do with a bit of a reshuffle and some might feel that the application is a little overpriced for what it offers. We'd also like the ability to sequence loops, so that one can start after another finishes.  
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Presonus FireStudio Mobile
 PreSonus's FireStudio audio interface has become a popular choice for many a studio, as it combines a generous 26 channels of I/O with FireWire operation, 24-bit/96kHz quality, digital options, software control and even a 4GB bundle of instruments and audio loops to get going. For some users, though, this has proved to be an over-specified system, so PreSonus has responded with FireStudio Mobile, a super-compact interface that manages to pack a serious amount of its big brother's features into a portable package. In detailThe first thing that strikes you about this interface is that it's built like a tank. It has a rugged, brushed aluminium finish which immediately gives the reassuring impression that the box won't be bullied by the inside of your laptop bag. The front panel offers a pair of line/XLR inputs, with gain controls for each channel, a headphone port and level dial and master output knob. Round the back, you'll find twin FireWire 400 ports (new MacBook users take note of this compatibility issue), while further I/O is supplied in the form of six additional 1/4-inch inputs and a stereo pair for the main outs.
By now space has almost run out, so PreSonus has neatly provided a combined solution for the interface's S/PDIF and MIDI capabilities - a breakout cable. In and Out ports are provided for both types of data. Factoring in the headphone output, this equates to 10 inputs and six outputs in total - an impressive number for such a compact device. The interface is bus-powered via its FireWire port (though the box also includes a separate 12V power supply) and features switchable sample rates, with 44.1, 48, 88.2 and 96kHz all offered. In useThe preamps for inputs 1 and 2 are PreSonus's own XMAX designs, as featured on the FireStudio, which ooze quality. The sound produced is warm without being coloured and much more detailed from that captured from several rival devices of this size. Couple this with JetPLL 'jitter elimination technology', zero-latency monitoring and the aforementioned solidity of construction, and this becomes a true 'go anywhere, record anything' interface which should appeal as much to field recordists as it will laptop musicians looking to sling an interface in a bag for gigging or mobile recording. That said, do bear in mind that, for outdoor recordings, the bus-powered interface will eat your battery life for breakfast. In the unlikely event that you don't have software which you already use for recording, FireStudio Mobile even ships with PreSonus's own 64-bit DAW called Studio One, which can be upgraded to StudioOne Pro if you like its approach. This expands the feature set with additional plug-ins, a dedicated Kore soundpack, lots of audio loops and other assorted goodies. SummaryWe've seen many portable interfaces pass through our studio but few feature this amount of I/O and mic preamps of this quality. If you're one of the many people looking for a mobile interface and place these things high on a list of requirements, FireStudio Mobile is worth your serious consideration.  
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Mapex Black Panther Velvetone Snare
 The name Black Panther, conjuring up speed and power allied to velvety sleekness, has been a winner for Mapex over the past decade. Now Mapex has given the entire range an overhaul with 14 brand new models. You can read every Black Panther snare drum review here. Each drum has either single-ended shield-design cast lugs, or elegantly sculpted twin-point mounted tube lugs. The patented 'Sonic Saver' hoops lie between flanged and die-cast hoops. Recalling the classic Slingerland 'Stick Saver' concept, the top lip of each pressed stainless steel hoop bends over and in, not out as on standard hoops. The handsome throw-off is a smoothly operating pull-away lever with adjustable strainers at both ends. Micro lock knobs click silently as you turn them for sensitive adjustment of the stainless steel wires. There are several new bearing edge profiles, and capping it all a new die-cast, chrome-plated Black Panther badge. You can watch a video overview of the new range with Craig Blundell and Steve White below. Scroll down for the full review. Black Panther VelvetoneBuildMapex has gone to town on the Velvetone, with its 8.1mm hybrid shell which is made up from a 3mm exterior of burl maple, enclosing 3.4mm walnut in the middle and 1.7mm of maple on the interior. The inner maple should boost the brightness and projection, while the walnut core adds a tiny bit more depth. It's a standard 14"x5 1/2" shell with 45 degree bearing edges cut sharp to the exterior. Hands onVelvetone is a good name. Although it has quite a thick shell, our first impression was it was deeper and softer, less crunchy and crisp than the all-walnut Retrosonic. The centre backbeat is thicker, deeper and softer. Unlike many snares it is happy tuned high or low. When tuned down and struck in the centre sweet spot it can feel like your stick has sunk in a half inch, it's so cushion-like. Yet it's still distinct and musical. You also get the best pressed roll, absolutely buttery at the edges, a seamless razzle. To top it off, when tuned down like this the cross-stick produces a thick, deep and woody timbre.  
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Eventide PitchFactor
 The Pitch Factor is a stereo-capable FX box that utilises Eventide's high-end effect algorithms, coupled with MIDI (for program changes, clock/tempo sync and control of many front panel parameters) and USB (for software upgrades). It has a simple, clear and uncluttered interface and is built into the same sturdy enclosure as the rest of the Eventide pedal range. The Pitch Factor can operate at line or amp level and it's a breeze to use. Plus, the display is large enough to read from a distance, very handy when you're on stage. The general feeling here is high quality throughout. A quick tour round the interface shows that there's plenty of hands on and foot control available, with 11 dials in total, plus three tough-metal stomp switches for active/bypass, tap tempo and bank/preset selection. Further to this, the middle footswitch labelled Flex/Learn adds control over key parameters depending on the mode selected. Most of the main parameters within each effect can also be expression- or switch-controlled by foot using the expression pedal and aux switch inputs. This enables you to keep both hands on your instrument while tweaking/switching the effects and saves your back too! This is a very versatile box indeed. There's a huge number of tweakable parameters onboard, ranging from wet/dry mix, pitch for left and right channels, keys/scales/modes and effect depth, to fuzz/octave blend for the octaver, filter cutoff and resonance, delay times, feedback, wave shapes, arpeggiator modes/patterns, beat divisions and speeds, reverb depth for the synthonizer - the list goes on. SummaryBut it's truly a great pleasure getting lost in the sounds this box can provide - you'll soon be transforming a mundane single note into an ethereal and trippy soundscape. Or you can simply beef up and twist monophonic sounds with some of the best harmony/octave/rhythmic-based effects available in a stompbox. Importantly, the note-tracking is spot on with no glitching or delay between instrument and effect and the effects are as smooth as you like, with none of that awful wobble you sometimes get with inferior pitch-shifting effects. All the effect modes are very impressive sonically, but it's the octaver/ synth and harmodulator/arpeggiator modes that really do it for us. In particular, the octaver is one of the best we've heard and also doubles as a mean bass guitar synth with a great fuzz built in too. We recommend that any bassists/guitarists check this box out for this feature alone! Rest assured, though, that there is something to inspire everyone here - there's much more than meets the ear (and the eye) crammed into this box. Eventide has done it once again. Hear what Pitch Factor can do to a bass sound:Synthonizer
Harmodulator
Octaver
Quadravox
Diatonic
 
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Mackie Onyx 1220i
 The Mackie Onyx 1220i combines an analogue mixer and a computer audio interface, which makes complete sense. It gives you the familiar hands-on layout of a mixer while feeding audio directly to your computer with convenience and speed. To give you some further details, what you get is a 12-channel analogue mixer combined with a 16 x 2 FireWire interface. What's more, it can be used with Pro Tools (a first for a non-Avid product). Extremely robust and powered via an IEC lead, the 1220i features four mono mic input channels plus another four stereo line inputs that can be used in mono by connecting the left input only. The four mono channels are equipped with insert points and sport both an XLR mic input with individually switchable phantom power and a 1/4-inch jack input, which, in the case of the first two channels, can be switched to Hi-Z operation for plugging guitars and instruments in directly. Each channel has a switchable high-pass filter (18dB/octave below 75Hz), plus a three-band EQ offering up to 15dB of cut and boost for high- and low-shelving EQs (at 12kHz and 80Hz respectively) and a swept midrange (100Hz to 8kHz) EQ. The stereo channels each have the same low and high EQ with a single midrange knob centred on 2.5kHz. All channels feature two auxiliary sends, each globally switchable between pre- and post-fader operation. Each also has a panpot, a 60mm fader, a solo switch and a mute switch that has a secondary function of routing the audio to an alternative (alt 3/4) rear panel hardware output. 
Routing audio from any channel to the equivalent FireWire input on the computer is automatic - a FireWire switch nestled just above the EQ section will determine if it is sent pre or post-EQ. Aux sends 1 and 2 are automatically sent on FireWire channels 13 and 14 and the main mix on 15 and 16. The stereo output of the computer can be routed back to the mixer through stereo channel 11-12 for monitoring or for integration into the mix, it can also be directly assigned to the main mix. A compact master section offers volume controls for the control room outputs and headphone outs plus options for setting the sources. Rotary knobs control the volume of the stereo auxiliary returns and there's a talkback mic built-in with level control and routing to the headphone output and the auxes. In useThe 1220i is very easy to operate. All the physical controls are neatly and logically laid out, while integration with all the major DAWs is instant. Mac software works via Core Audio, drivers for PC are supplied and quickly installed, while Pro Tools M-Powered 8 users need to buy a Mackie Universal Driver upgrade (this costs $50). (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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Mapex Black Panther Sledgehammer Snare
 The name Black Panther, conjuring up speed and power allied to velvety sleekness, has been a winner for Mapex over the past decade. Now Mapex has given the entire range an overhaul with 14 brand new models. You can read every Black Panther snare drum review here. Each drum has either single-ended shield-design cast lugs, or elegantly sculpted twin-point mounted tube lugs. The patented 'Sonic Saver' hoops lie between flanged and die-cast hoops. Recalling the classic Slingerland 'Stick Saver' concept, the top lip of each pressed stainless steel hoop bends over and in, not out as on standard hoops. The handsome throw-off is a smoothly operating pull-away lever with adjustable strainers at both ends. Micro lock knobs click silently as you turn them for sensitive adjustment of the stainless steel wires. There are several new bearing edge profiles, and capping it all a new die-cast, chrome-plated Black Panther badge. You can watch a video overview of the new range with Craig Blundell and Steve White below. Scroll down for the full review. Black Panther SledgehammerBuildThe Sledgehammer is one of the biggest bruisers of the bunch, with a 14"x6 1/2" shell of 1.2mm gauge brass, hammered with large dimpled craters for a more complex tone. The finish is dark-ish antiqued brass and the shell has a vertical weld join which is invisible from the outside. The bearing edges have the traditional 45 degree turnover and all the hardware again has the antique brass finish for a unified, imposing look. Hands onBrass is seen as the tasteful option when it comes to metal snares. We therefore feel Sledgehammer is a rather crude title for this drum, since, while it will undoubtedly give you plenty of clout when you need it, it is also capable of sensitive playing and the tone is refined. Sure, it will power the rocking-est of situations, but the tone is dark and fat with the extra depth that you expect from a 6 1/2" shell. And rim shots have a musical, bell-like ring to them. So while all you metal hammers out there might reasonably gravitate towards this beast, it certainly won't let you down on musical tone.  
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Boss eBand JS-8
 There are several elements that come together to make a practical practice tool/phrase trainer for guitarists. You need amp simulation, playback and looping of sound files with tempo control, together with some form of recording facility. All of these have been available in the Boss BR range of multi-trackers for some time, but the company has now taken that technology and put it all together in a dedicated unit complete with speakers, describing the resulting eBand JS-8 as, "the ultimate jam-along companion for guitarists." Basically, the eBand is an audio player with guitar effects built-in. It can play back audio files in MP3 and WAV format for you to play along with and has a recording facility, which allows you to record your playing (with or without backing track) onto the unit with the audio stored on an SD card. A 1GB card is supplied with the unit, but you can use cards up to 32GB in capacity. A USB connection to computer allows transfer of files, but also means that you can use the eBand as an audio interface for recording (with or without amp sims) and also as an external stereo speaker for your computer. The eBand sits nicely on a table top, with the front face angled so the speakers are pointing directly at your ears. All the controls are clearly laid-out and easily accessible, plus there's a large blue backlit display which lets you see exactly what's going on. "You can store thousands of your favourite songs, call them up and play along at will, making the eBand a fully loaded guitar karaoke jukebox." Your guitar plugs into the front of the unit next to a pair of knobs that control the guitar volume and the overall level coming out of the speakers (or headphones if you choose to plug those into the front panel, conveniently muting the speakers). All other connections are around the back, including stereo aux input and line outputs, a socket for external expression or control pedals, the USB connection to computer and a USB socket for a memory stick. Roland's COSM modelling provides the guitar sounds. These are arranged in 130 ready-to-use factory preset patches with a further 100 memory locations to store your own patches. Derived from the GT-10, each patch is made up from a signal chain of seven modules – amp model, a choice of single effect, EQ, noise suppressor, delay, chorus and reverb. Patches can be chosen quickly by scrolling through the list and you get instant front panel switching between two of them via the 'solo' button. There's plenty of adjustment available for editing presets and creating your own sounds, with a practical choice of amp models and loads of parameters that can be tweaked. One innovation is the EZ Tone Sound Wizard, which provides an intuitive approach to tone creation by moving a cursor up or down, left or right on a graph where the four points of the compass represent a different aspect of the tone – the 'drive' graph offers solo to backing and soft to hard, while the 'EFX' graph has wet to dry and short to long as its options. (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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Akai LPK25 and LPD8
 Since its launch in 2008, it's fair to say that Korg's nanoSeries of mini controllers has taken the world by storm. This duo of Akai controllers will inevitably draw comparisons with Korg's models: the devices are designed to offer DAW/DJ software control in a tiny package. The LPD8 Laptop Pad Controller slots in somewhere between Korg's nanoPad and NanoKontrol, with eight MPC-style pads and eight rotary pots, all of which have a 270-degree sweep rather than being infinitely adjustable 360-degree rotary encoders. The LPD doesn't have the XY touchpad of the nanoPad or the faders of the nanoKontrol, meaning that a lot of the decision here will come down to personal choice in terms of what you need to improve your workflow. We can say, though, that the versatility of the LPD will make it suitable for controlling a wide variety of software. The LPK25 Laptop Performance Keyboard is slightly larger than the NanoKey but offers the significant advantage of having much more realistic piano-style keys with a nicer feel than the Korg's flattened low-profile keys. Other than that, the overall idea is pretty similar, but the LPK's 25-key velocity sensitive keyboard does have another trick up its sleeve in the form of a built-in arpeggiator. Like the LPD8, it sends MIDI over USB and requires no external power or batteries. In useAkai is supplying the software for both units on 80mm mini CDs. Obviously this is in keeping with the miniaturisation theme, but it means that anyone with a slot-loading CD drive will need to make a trip to the Akai website to download the files. The software isn't actually required to use the controllers but comes in handy for programming and recalling setups. The build quality of both units appears to be quite a bit higher than that of the Korg equivalents, with a sturdier, more stable feel. The LPD's pads are almost identical in use to those of the MPC range, with a sensitive touch that makes it easy to trigger hits at a range of velocities. Although the keys are small and may be fiddly if you have big hands, the LPK is perfectly acceptable for coming up with ideas or playing simple parts. The arpeggiator is simple but effective, enabling you to create a variety of melodic patterns with minimal effort. Our only major gripe with either unit is that the knobs on the LPD's rotary pots are too short, meaning that they're difficult to grab hold of. It's understandable that Akai has tried to keep the overall size of the unit down, but when you combine the knobs' size with their lack of knurled sides, it makes them much more fiddly to turn than they really need to be. SummaryThere are dozens of potential uses for the LPK25 and LPD8. The LPD8 in particular offers a handy combination of pads and rotaries which make it ideally suited for use alongside controllers such as Akai's own APC40 or Novation's Launchpad. A further use would be to line the LPD8 up alongside a DJ software controller like the Vestax VCI-100, controlling effects, cueing, adjusting BPM or whatever you choose to map it to. In fact, the versatility that the LPD8 brings to the table makes it the pick of this pair for our money. There are probably various minor improvements that Akai could make but ultimately at this price it's hard to argue. Those seeking more features should look elsewhere, but the convenience, build quality and value for money on offer here make the Akai mini controllers seriously attractive. 
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Akai LPK25 and LPD8
Since its launch in 2008, it's fair to say that Korg's nanoSeries of mini controllers has taken the world by storm. This duo of Akai controllers will inevitably draw comparisons with Korg's models: the devices are designed to offer DAW/DJ software control in a tiny package. The LPD8 Laptop Pad Controller slots in somewhere between Korg's nanoPad and NanoKontrol, with eight MPC-style pads and eight rotary pots, all of which have a 270-degree sweep rather than being infinitely adjustable 360-degree rotary encoders. The LPD doesn't have the XY touchpad of the nanoPad or the faders of the nanoKontrol, meaning that a lot of the decision here will come down to personal choice in terms of what you need to improve your workflow. We can say, though, that the versatility of the LPD will make it suitable for controlling a wide variety of software. The LPK25 Laptop Performance Keyboard is slightly larger than the NanoKey but offers the significant advantage of having much more realistic piano-style keys with a nicer feel than the Korg's flattened low-profile keys. Other than that, the overall idea is pretty similar, but the LPK's 25-key velocity sensitive keyboard does have another trick up its sleeve in the form of a built-in arpeggiator. Like the LPD8, it sends MIDI over USB and requires no external power or batteries. In useAkai is supplying the software for both units on 80mm mini CDs. Obviously this is in keeping with the miniaturisation theme, but it means that anyone with a slot-loading CD drive will need to make a trip to the Akai website to download the files. The software isn't actually required to use the controllers but comes in handy for programming and recalling setups. The build quality of both units appears to be quite a bit higher than that of the Korg equivalents, with a sturdier, more stable feel. The LPD's pads are almost identical in use to those of the MPC range, with a sensitive touch that makes it easy to trigger hits at a range of velocities. Although the keys are small and may be fiddly if you have big hands, the LPK is perfectly acceptable for coming up with ideas or playing simple parts. The arpeggiator is simple but effective, enabling you to create a variety of melodic patterns with minimal effort. Our only major gripe with either unit is that the knobs on the LPD's rotary pots are too short, meaning that they're difficult to grab hold of. It's understandable that Akai has tried to keep the overall size of the unit down, but when you combine the knobs' size with their lack of knurled sides, it makes them much more fiddly to turn than they really need to be. SummaryThere are dozens of potential uses for the LPK25 and LPD8. The LPD8 in particular offers a handy combination of pads and rotaries which make it ideally suited for use alongside controllers such as Akai's own APC40 or Novation's Launchpad. A further use would be to line the LPD8 up alongside a DJ software controller like the Vestax VCI-100, controlling effects, cueing, adjusting BPM or whatever you choose to map it to. In fact, the versatility that the LPD8 brings to the table makes it the pick of this pair for our money. There are probably various minor improvements that Akai could make but ultimately at this price it's hard to argue. Those seeking more features should look elsewhere, but the convenience, build quality and value for money on offer here make the Akai mini controllers seriously attractive.  
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Mapex Drum Masterclass iPhone app
 At the turn of the Millennium, mobile phones were used exclusively for playing Snake and staying in touch, while the Mini Disc player looked like it was becoming the mobile music standard. These days, Apple has cornered both markets with the iPhone and iPod Touch. Mapex's Drum Masterclass application takes advantage of this technology, and seeks to bring drum notation to the text-speak generation. Let's get reading, innit. BuildAt the core of the program are 32 lessons designed to take you through the basics of reading minims, through to more advanced semiquaver patterns, complete with rests. There's also a randomized Drill mode for improving sight-reading skills, and a Tuning screen which allows you to select one of two (upgradable to six) sampled Mapex Black Panther snare sounds. Each can be tuned, dampened, or have the snares released. The Crib Sheets menu recaps the theoretical aspects, and the options menu offers some customisations to the user interface. Hands onWe got started with the first lessons, and then progressively worked through to the end. Each lesson begins with a demonstration of the exercise, explaining the value of each note used, and giving an interactive example of the lesson before you play through it alone. This is a useful function for reading newbies, but if you are more experienced it can be turned off in the Options panel, allowing you to jump straight into each lesson. The speed of each exercise can be adjusted between 40-179bpm and the included lessons are more than enough to keep absolute beginners going, It's not just for novices, however - intermediate users will find the more advanced lessons and Drill mode tricky when played at higher tempos. As well as sticking patterns, the notation also displays accents (performed by tapping toward the edges of the drum) which, while important when playing the exercises on a real drum, seem a little redundant considering the aim of the application.  
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Cableguys FilterShaper 2
 Modulation, movement and all things wobbly are en vogue right now, with LFO-heavy genres like dubstep showing no sign of bowing out any time soon. So it seems that Cableguys' FilterShaper 2 has arrived right on time. FilterShaper 2 is a filter plug-in that enables you to draw complex curves that can be used as waveforms for the LFOs. You can design up to ten custom waveforms (per patch) using breakpoints (similar to drawing automation curves in a DAW), and select one of these for each of the four LFOs. The latter can then be made to modulate the cutoff, resonance, volume and/or panning of the two onboard filters. The two filters in FilterShaper 2 are identical. They boast ten filter modes, spanning low-pass, high-pass, band-pass, notch and peak filter types, and three octave slopes. The response from each is pretty standard, although they can sound shrill when the resonance is cranked up - we'd prefer a throatier, fatter sound. The LFOs each have independent speed settings, in beats/bars or Hz. This is standard fare, but you can set the LFOs to go very fast indeed, giving vocal/ring mod sounds as you push it into the audible range. Check out the first half of our dubstep bass example to hear this in action: FilterShaper 2 has two filter chain modes: serial (one after the other) and parallel (side-by-side). The fact that you can assign the same complex filter curve to both filters makes the two modes really useful. Check out dubstep bass example above again for an example of serial use - we employed a complex waveform to modulate the cutoff of filter 1 in 12dB LP mode for a standard wobbly bass, then sent that same waveform to filter 2 in 12dB peak mode to accentuate the sweep even more. In parallel mode, the two filters run alongside each other and you get individual volume and pan controls for each one - check out this filtered drum loop where we've used the same curve to modulate a LP filter panned left and an HP filter panned right: You can, of course, send different curves to each filter, if you like, or simply use one filter on its own. (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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Softube Passive-Active Pack
 Swedish software designers Softube made their mark a couple of years ago with Vintage Amp Room, a guitar amp modelling plug-in. Since then, it's applied its DSP mastery to various designs, including the Abbey Road Brilliance Pack. The Passive-Active Pack continues on the EQ tip, containing three plug-ins, each with a specific angle. One is based on active circuitry (modelled on the Filtek Labo Mk5 desk EQ) and one on a passive design (modelled on the Neumann PEV 930 desk EQ). The third, Focusing Equalizer, combines both circuitry types in a variable frequency design. OverviewIt may seem a little odd releasing a three-plug-in bundle when you could simply combine all options in one interface. Softube is upfront about this, saying that it aimed to recreate not just the sound but also the simplicity of classic analogue designs. This certainly applies to the Passive and Active Equalizers. The former is the simplest, with three bands: low shelf, high shelf and mid-range presence. The two shelves are fixed (60Hz and 10kHz) and the mid-range offers seven fixed frequencies (700Hz to 5.6kHz). Both shelves have stepped 3dB cut and boost, with the presence boost only in 2dB gradations. "Softube says that it aimed to recreate not just the sound but also the simplicity of classic analogue designs." The Active Equalizer is more flexible, offering three slightly overlapping parametric bands and high- and low-cut filters (18dB/octave). Once again, the controls adjust the gain in steps (2dB this time), with up to 16dB boost or cut. To round things off, each parametric band has two Q settings: sharp and wide. The Focusing Equalizer is more complex and can operate in either passive or active mode (based on the same modelled units). However, the three bands work differently. The upper and lower shelving bands are boost-only, with cut or boost for the mid-range. These work in conjunction with the high- and low-cut filters, and moving the cutoff points of these actually affects the EQ frequencies of the three bands. The plug-in is rounded off with a three-flavour variable saturation control. In useThe Passive EQ has a real point-and-shoot simplicity to it. We found this particularly effective on acoustic guitar, with boosts on the low and high bands scooping out the mids. In typical passive style, you'll also find that there's interplay between the bands, and a sharpening Q on the presence band as you reach maximum boost. 
Obviously, it's no good for surgical tasks, but it's a great choice for sweetening your masters or making broad tonal changes. The Active EQ sounds completely different, emphasising the difference in the underlying (virtual) circuits. The dual Q options per band enable much more accurate EQing, and with 16dB to play with, we were easily able to completely reshape some test drum loops. The narrow Q option gives particularly sharp results and is great for adding punch to lifeless kicks and snares. 
This plug-in temporarily indicates currently selected values above the meters - something that the Passive EQ doesn't do. Finally, you'll find that if you boost like frequencies using two different bands, you won't get a crazy doubling up of gain, and this helps keep overloads at bay. With the same underlying passive and active algorithms as the other plug-ins, the Focusing Equalizer's point of interest has to be its variable frequency system. Softube advises you to use the high/low-cut filter sliders to set upper and lower limits for your sound, and this in turn dictates where the EQ bands operate - as you narrow the range, the low/mid/high bands move to target that area. The sound of the cut filters also follows the global active/passive setting, with the passive ones being much gentler (6dB/octave) than those of the active mode. The 'sliding' display (which looks just like an old-school radio tuner) depicts only the cutoff frequencies here - there are no other frequency indicators, and with no markings on the controls and no feedback above the meters, you really have to rely on your ears. Indeed, to further investigate, we even loaded up a frequency analyser. 
In practice, however, we found it best to treat these units like old-school hardware, tweaking until the sound is good, rather than obsessing over frequency values. Used in this way, the Focusing EQ offers all the flavour of the other two plug-ins, with greater flexibility. Its saturation effect is also a winner, with the Keep Low and Keep High settings helping you avoid damage to low and high frequencies. It's only a shame that there's no saturation bypass switch, for easy A/B comparison. Overall, the Passive-Active Pack is a great piece of work from Softube, designed with vision but also with full regard for the sound of some pretty rare kit. What's more, the price tag is considerably more modest than comparable top-flight analogue emulations. (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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DDRUM Vinnie Paul Snare Drums
 Vinnie Paul turned heads in 2008 when he announced his switch from long-time collaborators Pearl to relative new kid on the block, ddrum. The Pantera/Damageplan/Hellyeah powerhouse used to play a snakeskin-finished Pearl signature snare, and it was a fair bet that ddrum would cater to Vinnie's unique snare drum needs before long. Resplendent in carbon-effect wrap with pearlescent dragon inlays, and gloss black with spiked lugs (although these face-off lugs allow the spikes to be unscrewed and changed for other, more subtle options), Vinnie's ddrum signature snares aren't for the shy and retiring, but are they all 'biker jacket and no knickers'? Let's take a look… BuildBoth snare drums share the same fundamentals: a six-ply USA maple shell that's 14" in diameter and a gargantuan 8" deep; both have the revised metal version of the much-maligned Nickelworks snare strainer and Remo UT heads. But that's about all they have in common. 
Though we hesitate to characterise the black drum as the less visually arresting of the pair, it's clear that the carbon-effect wrapped drum grabs your eye. Ringed by flames top and bottom beneath the matt/satin finish die-cast hoops, the wrap features Japanese-style dragons that look like pearl inlays, but are in fact photo-quality prints, modelled after Vinnie's famous hat. Twenty double-point 'bullet' lugs complete the ensemble. The other drum has a gloss black wrap and triple-flanged hoops, preferring instead to let its 20 large spiked lugs do the talking. Hands onBoth of these bad boys weigh in at the heavyweight end of things, the die-casts and spiked lugs increasing mass on each maple shell. Somewhat curiously for drums meant to rock, ddrum has specced single-ply Ambassador equivalent heads, which are found wanting when you begin to lay into the drums - the single-ply heads producing overtones which distract from the fundamental tone. An Emperor X would no doubt cure this, however. 
As expected, the die-casts add a controlling influence to the one drum, but perhaps because they're thinner than some hoops they never choke the drum's resonance. More interestingly, the mass of the spiked lugs appears to calm the other drum somewhat - perhaps spikes and die-casts would be the ideal combination? The Nickelworks throw is functional, if not as smooth as the Dunnett or Trick equivalents. The sharp bearing edges allow for a reasonably wide tuning range - although, let's face it, you're going to crank these beasts!  
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Lexicon PCM Native Reverb Plug-in Bundle
 Lexicon hardware units take pride of place in many pro studios, and over the company's 39-year history it's become the gold standard in digital reverberation. Indeed, whenever a reverb plug-in is reviewed, if it's very lucky, it might draw comparison with that lush Lexicon-esque sound'. The company has made tentative forays into software over the years, notably with the Lexiverb back in 1999 - a major complaint with that one being that it simply didn't sound much like their mega-priced hardware boxes. More than a decade on and Lexicon has finally caved in and released the self-descriptive PCM Native Reverb Plug-in Bundle (let's call it the PCM Bundle from here onwards). Could this be the Holy Grail of digital reverberation for computer musicians? Let's take it for a spin… OverviewThe PCM Bundle utilises the algorithms and presets from the Lexicon PCM96 hardware reverb (the exception being the Bundle's Vintage Plate, which is an amalgam of unspecified Lexicon 'verbs). Buying one of these units will set you back over £2000, so thinking logically, the PCM Bundle offers better value for money at around half that. And an obvious boon of the software format is you can run as many plug-in instances as your system can handle, rather than being limited by the restrictions of the hardware - you can only run two stereo reverbs at once using the PCM96 in FireWire plug-in mode, and just one standard stereo configured effect using its analogue connections. For those who can see the value in Lexicon hardware, the PCM Bundle makes a great deal of sense. It should be noted that the PCM Bundle doesn't offer all the effects of the PCM96 - while the reverbs are very much present, the other effects (delays, pitch, modulation, etc) are nowhere to be found. This is no massive loss in the great scheme of things, as most people will want to buy the PCM Bundle for one thing only. The PCM Bundle comes in VST, AU and RTAS formats, uses iLok dongle protection, and has a straightforward installation procedure. As its name implies, this isn't a single reverb plug-in, but a suite of seven visually identical ones, all using the same clean GUI, which resembles a Lexicon PCM96. Each plug-in's name denotes the Lexicon reverb algorithm that it uses, these being LexVintagePlate, LexPlate, LexHall, LexRandomHall, LexConcertHall, LexChamber and LexRoom. The PCM Bundle plug-ins are easy to get a handle on, taking a direct and professional approach to the controls, with functionality being the key. From left to right, there's the customary in/out metering, a real-time display and finally an EQ display. These are underscored by a set of nine faders collectively termed the Soft Row, and these react in a pretty 'realistic' way when manipulated, with some pleasing inertia to their movement. 
The Soft Row offers up the most commonly adjusted reverb parameters, such as predelay, decay time and the obligatory dry/wet mix. Click the Edit button at the bottom left and a submenu appears, revealing more detailed settings and advanced parameters for the particular plug-in you're using. Plumb in the plug-ins on auxiliary channels and top-drawer reverb sounds are had immediately, all without delving into the more detailed edit menus, which is testament to the design of the presets and, of course, the sound quality. The 950 presets built into the Bundle impress right away - each named preset has five sub-types, which can really speed up a session when the dreaded "the same… but a bit different" request arises. The sub-presets typically offer EQ changes or other tonal tweaks and are named accordingly - eg, Dark (high-end roll-off), Notch (midrange 'V' cut) and so on. (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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Lexicon PCM96
Lexicon hardware units take pride of place in many pro studios, and over the company's 39-year history it's become the gold standard in digital reverberation. Indeed, whenever a reverb plug-in is reviewed, if it's very lucky, it might draw comparison with that lush Lexicon-esque sound'. The company has made tentative forays into software over the years, notably with the Lexiverb back in 1999 - a major complaint with that one being that it simply didn't sound much like their mega-priced hardware boxes. More than a decade on and Lexicon has finally caved in and released the self-descriptive PCM Native Reverb Plug-in Bundle (let's call it the PCM Bundle from here onwards). Could this be the Holy Grail of digital reverberation for computer musicians? Let's take it for a spin… OverviewThe PCM Bundle utilises the algorithms and presets from the Lexicon PCM96 hardware reverb (the exception being the Bundle's Vintage Plate, which is an amalgam of unspecified Lexicon 'verbs). Buying one of these units will set you back over £2000, so thinking logically, the PCM Bundle offers better value for money at around half that. And an obvious boon of the software format is you can run as many plug-in instances as your system can handle, rather than being limited by the restrictions of the hardware - you can only run two stereo reverbs at once using the PCM96 in FireWire plug-in mode, and just one standard stereo configured effect using its analogue connections. For those who can see the value in Lexicon hardware, the PCM Bundle makes a great deal of sense. It should be noted that the PCM Bundle doesn't offer all the effects of the PCM96 - while the reverbs are very much present, the other effects (delays, pitch, modulation, etc) are nowhere to be found. This is no massive loss in the great scheme of things, as most people will want to buy the PCM Bundle for one thing only. The PCM Bundle comes in VST, AU and RTAS formats, uses iLok dongle protection, and has a straightforward installation procedure. As its name implies, this isn't a single reverb plug-in, but a suite of seven visually identical ones, all using the same clean GUI, which resembles a Lexicon PCM96. Each plug-in's name denotes the Lexicon reverb algorithm that it uses, these being LexVintagePlate, LexPlate, LexHall, LexRandomHall, LexConcertHall, LexChamber and LexRoom. The PCM Bundle plug-ins are easy to get a handle on, taking a direct and professional approach to the controls, with functionality being the key. From left to right, there's the customary in/out metering, a real-time display and finally an EQ display. These are underscored by a set of nine faders collectively termed the Soft Row, and these react in a pretty 'realistic' way when manipulated, with some pleasing inertia to their movement.
The Soft Row offers up the most commonly adjusted reverb parameters, such as predelay, decay time and the obligatory dry/wet mix. Click the Edit button at the bottom left and a submenu appears, revealing more detailed settings and advanced parameters for the particular plug-in you're using. Plumb in the plug-ins on auxiliary channels and top-drawer reverb sounds are had immediately, all without delving into the more detailed edit menus, which is testament to the design of the presets and, of course, the sound quality. The 950 presets built into the Bundle impress right away - each named preset has five sub-types, which can really speed up a session when the dreaded "the same… but a bit different" request arises. The sub-presets typically offer EQ changes or other tonal tweaks and are named accordingly - eg, Dark (high-end roll-off), Notch (midrange 'V' cut) and so on. (2 pages; go to page: 2)  
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