Digital Music Reviews

Korg has announced the microSTATION, described as a Micro Synthesizer with Sequencer. Designed to satisfy the beginning musician or the accomplished keyboardist, the microSTATION offers portability, the sound of Korg's EDS-i synth engine, effects, plus new and easy-to-use sequencing tools. Audition riffs make finding just the right sound a breeze. Features: Lightweight, compact, and equipped with 61 mini-keys, the microSTATION travels easily and fits into any home, stage, or studio workspace. EDS-i (Enhanced Definition Synthesis-integrated) sound engine delivers high-quality sound in the tradition of KORG's flagship synthesizers. Enjoy 480 ready-to-use sounds - including keyboard sounds, synth sounds, drums, leads, basses, etc. Tweak, edit, create and save up to 512 sound Programs. 256 dynamic Combinations place different sounds on different areas of the keyboard, or layer multiple sounds together for exciting performances - right out of the box. Find the right sound fast with ...

Summary of changes from v6.0.8 to v6.0.9: New nVocal plugin. Support (with ready made preset) for Behringer BCF2000 hardware control surface. Support for Waves v7 VST and VST3 plugins. Support for MMC transport commands in Settings/MIDI Control box. Improved disk write buffering during recording, enabled by default in Settings/Buffering box. Fixed part not updating when holding Shift and selecting. Many bug fixes.

Soniccouture has teamed up with Mikael Jorgensen of the band Wilco for the release of RMI Rocksichord, a full Kontakt-format rendering of the 1960s 'electric harpsichord'. Mikael started sampling his ancient Rocksichord keyboard, but hadn't the time to finish the looping and programming. Soniccouture asked him how he would feel if they finished the job and offered it as a free download from the Soniccouture site (he said yes, obviously). The Rocksichord is a big, blue, chunky sounding beast that has been used by a huge number of musicians over the years, including The Beach Boys (on Sunflower), Genesis, Dr. John, John Lennon, Stereolab (on Sound-Dust), Sun Ra, Terry Riley (on A Rainbow in Curved Air), Rick Wakeman (solo and with Yes), and Wilco (on A Ghost is Born). RMI Rocksichord is currently only available in Kontakt format (3 or 4), and is a free download from www.soniccouture.com

Blue Cat Audio has released new versions of Blue Cat's Freeware Pack and Blue Cat's Analysis Pack. These are maintenance releases that fix several issues and also improves the demo version of commercial plug-ins. What's new: Fixes random crashes with "Multi" series user interfaces. Demo versions improvement: demo popup window now only appears once per session, and only when opening the user interface. Mac: fixes a crash with demo versions in Ableton Live 8.1. Mac: fixes multiple screens issues with free plugins. Win x64: fixes issues with several hosts not recognizing plug-ins or not showing the settings window properly. Misc other bug fixes (more details available in the release logs for each plug-in). MORE INFO

algoriddim has announced the release of version 3.1 of djay. This update offers a range of new features, enhancements to existing tools and plug-and-play support for some of the most popular DJ controllers on the market. Users can apply a new set of features, including Auto-Saving cue points and automatically aligning cue points and precise beats with Quantized Cue Points. In addition, djay 3.1 includes keyboard shortcuts based on key position instead of letters, making djay's powerful shortcuts more accessible to international users. djay 3.1 also has the ability to integrate with some of the most popular available MIDI controllers. "We've dramatically expanded djay's capabilities by offering new features and integration with existing hardware," said Karim Morsy, CEO of algoriddim. "djay is already known for its precision and ease of use, but with this update we wanted to bring the quality of the user's musical experience to a new level. Fans that prefer...

Semerika has announced the release of FlangerHand, a new free VST effect plug-in for Windows. FlangerHandThe FlangerHand plug-in is based on the idea of the early flanging effect realised on a setup of up to 4 tape machines (1 source, 3 recorders) in the '60s. The playback-head output from two recorders was mixed together onto a third recorder. The "flange" effect originated when an engineer would literally put a finger on the flange, or rim of one of the tape reels so that the machine was slowed down, slipping out of sync by tiny degrees. A listener would hear a "drainpipe" sweeping effect as shifting sum-and-difference harmonics were created. When the operator removed his finger the tape sped up again, making the effect sweep back in the other direction. MORE INFO

T he updates address issues reported when using inTone in Windows 7. Also, new features have been added, especially significantly extended MIDI control - now it is possible to control not only effect parameters and virtual instruments, but all the racks as well. The second important addition to the functionality of inTone is the chain management. Copying whole effect chains between programs and naming them makes organizing your banks and programs even simpler.