6th October 2010: Togu Audio Line has released version 2.0 of TAL-NoiseMaker (now v2.10) which features some big changes, such as an envelope editor, a resizable GUI, a vintage noise control and several bugfixes. TAL…
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Togu Audio Line releases TAL-NoiseMaker v2.10 and TAL-Reverb-2 64-bit AU
Gretsch’s Contoured Wood snares are part of the company’s Taiwanese built Full Range snare series. The two models both feature laminated wooden hoops, with one drum also incorporating – in a neat twist – an additional metal hoop insert within the batter hoop.
Some of Gretsch’s earliest drums from the late 19th century were made with wooden hoops, and the company continued manufacturing wooden-hooped marching snares until 1971. The hoops on drums of such vintage were thinner and taller than the examples seen here, and this type of wide hoop design has evolved relatively recently.
Both drums are built around 14″x6.5″ 10-ply, all-maple shells, which appear elsewhere in the Full Range snare drum series, shod with conventional metal hoops. The shells are finished in a clear high gloss, which contrasts with the satin finish of the hoops. Inside, Gretsch’s famous Silver Sealer coating has been applied, while the bearing edges are cut at the company’s regular 30 degrees.
Ten double-ended lugs encircle each drum, and Evans heads are fitted as standard on both sides. The snare release is a chunky new Gretsch model, with a chrome-plated clasp that hinges away from the drum. Tension adjustments of the snare wires can be dialled in from both the snare release and the butt end, making it possible to place the wires dead centre of the head.
The wooden hoops are made from laminated strips of maple. Rather than being finished flat with a right-angled edge in the manner of many wooden-hoop drums, they have been shaped to fall away in a smooth curve. The profile is reminiscent of a regular metal hoop, though understandably wider.
Two cutaways with integrated slots are built into the resonant hoops at the points where the snare release and butt end are located. These allow for any movement of the snare release mechanism, and the unimpeded travel of the connecting strip on the snare wires. A single smaller notch for accessing the lever is recessed into the underside of the batter hoop above the snare release.
Though holes have been drilled for them to slot through, the tops of the tension rods stand slightly proud of the outer edge, due to the curved shape of the hoops. However, the inner playing edge of the hoops is higher, so there is no possibility of catching a finger on any of the tension rods.
The single component that separates the drums is a metal insert glued into the batter hoop of the S-6514WMH-MPL model. It is 12mm deep and rises by a couple of millimetres above the edge of the wooden hoop in order to be engaged for rimshots and cross sticking. Wooden hoops make for a noticeable increase in the overall diameter of a drum, making each example here the best part of 16″ wide.
When we played the snares in a kit setting it took me a moment to get used to having a larger drum in front of me. The small difference in construction between the snares instils them with different playing characteristics, at times subtle and at others obvious.
Both drums are capable of producing throaty, woody tones that line the pocket of any beat snugly. Their depth means that there is always plenty of body beneath the note, even when cranked up to biscuit tin tunings. This is evident when playing fills, where the power available keeps flowing.
The all-wooden drum is a fraction blunter in its response, so sounds a little fatter and more open. Any overtones it produces are more colourful in nature as well.
In contrast, the metal insert drum’s woody punch is framed with a metallic glint. Here, the overtones have a cleaner, slightly more focused feel. Cross sticking the drum highlights this in particular, as the sound is harder and more urgent alongside the warmer and deeper response of its sister.
Variations in rimshot are discernible as well, with the all-wood model delivering a thicker clonk in comparison to its counterpart, which possesses more of a snappy ring. Brushes come up a treat on both drums, no doubt aided by the excellent Evans heads.
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Gretsch Full Range Snare Drums
Canadian giants Sabian have taken cymbal production firmly into the 21st century with a mind-blowing catalogue featuring every conceivable type of model, and always look to improve and expand on their previous creations. Cymbals aside, they also offer further sound options with their impressive Performers Accessories.
The usually unsung triangle or bar chime is regarded as a guilty pleasure among many drummers. but used in the right place at the right time they could certainly elevate your performance, whether you are a drummer or percussionist.
Sabian triangles are hand-crafted from B8 Bronze, which is the magical formula utilised in a lot of great cymbals, and is a mix of 92 percent copper, 8 percent tin and even traces of silver. Sabian offer two full ranges of triangles in sizes from 4” all the way up to 10” and you can choose any of those sizes in a regular smooth B8 finish, or a tactile and rather attractive hand-hammered version.
The bar chimes that Sabian offer are available in two distinct models. They both feature 24 chimes with each securely tied to an attractive solid wooden bar that mounts easily onto any cymbal stand. But it’s the chimes themselves that make the difference.
One are a set of sensitive ultra lightweight aluminium chimes, the other the surprisingly heavyweight bad boy B8 Bronze chimes.
All of the triangles were comfortable to play and responded well to being played with different types of beater. This gives you many sound options while utilising the same model, and it’s the size of each model that greatly impacts on their playability, as well as their sound.
By and large we found the bigger models easier to play, and as you might expect, they were sonorous and full-sounding when compared to their smaller brothers. The hand hammering, much like its effect on cymbals, seems to dry out the sound slightly, resulting in a less shrill tone, whereas the standard finish models, while in the traditional-sounding ballpark, do benefit greatly from the warm sounding B8.
The weighty B8 barchimes are formidable and might be too overpowering in lower volume situations, but if you’re Neil Peart they’d be perfect! The aluminium set is much more our cup of tea and provides a subtle, shimmering tone the B8 doesn’t have that would blend well in many musical situations.
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Sabian B8 Triangles and Bar Chimes
6th October 2010: MellowMuse recently released SATV Vintage Saturator, a new analogue-modelled saturation plug-in with four preset models, perfect for adding harmonic depth and richness to any material. It’s available…
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MellowMuse releases "SATV Vintage Saturator" and "Vintage Series Bundle"
Sure, we spend a lot of time looking at far-out gear and high technology, but you have to tip your hat to practicality. Tascam’s TC-1S is a compact, portable tuner that you can take anywhere. Solar and USB power mean you never have to worry about powering it, either.
Features:
Shipping this month, street price “under US$40.”
It’s a cute little design, and with the economic squeeze continuing, I think smart design wins out. Tascam could use a lesson in “environmentally-friendly,” however. The press release I received called this “planet-friendly tuning” and claimed “every planet-conscious musician” will need one.
I can’t verify whether this is indeed the “world’s first solar-powered tuner” – if anyone knows for sure, let us know. But nothing about this design suggests that it’s especially ecological, beyond the solar panel. Avoiding battery waste is a very good thing, so in that sense, sure, this is environmentally friendly. But you have to then weigh that against power draw from conventional tuners and the impact of manufacturing the panel.
Presumably, the major environmental impact of all the gadgets we love has to do with their materials. The silicone in the case may well be low-impact, but it depends on the particular silicone Tascam used, to say nothing of the other ingredients of this device.
On the other hand, good design means you consume less, save longer, and get more use out of a device. So in the long run, it could be the practicality of a device like this tuner that helps the planet – because you love and use it for a long time.
I’m hardly an expert in environmental design; I’m just pointing out the obvious. But since Tascam raised the issue, let us know what you think. A discussion of what music gear really is planet-friendly is an important one for another day. And as for the tuner, let us know if it’ll go in your bag.
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Take a Solar-Powered Tuner Wherever You Go, Says Tascam … But Environmental?
6th October 2010: HairerSoft recently updated Amadeus Pro to v1.5.2. Changes: Improved launch speed. Improved waveform display. Improved handling of Mp3 settings. Clicking time display toggles between elapsed and …
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HairerSoft updates Amadeus Pro to v1.5.2
Avid should announce soon the release of the new Pro Tools HD Native Core. Details have already leaked, and here’s the more or less official press release (and no, it’s not REALLY native, it’s a PCIe-based solution without TDM, but it’s getting closer)…
“Avid Pro Tools HD Native takes full advantage of today’s high-power computers by offering you some of the top features of Pro Tools HD at an incredible low price. Pro Tools HD Native gives you blazing fast I/O, near-zero latency, automatic delay compensation, and full integration with Avid’s HD line of interfaces, leaving your CPU to handle plug-ins and mixing. If you’re budget minded but still demand results from your DAW, have one of these high-power computers, and prefer to track with outboard signal processors (rather than plug-ins), then Pro Tools HD Native is perfect for you.
As a basic system, Pro Tools HD Native consists of an Avid Pro Tools HD Native Core PCIe card card, Pro Tools HD software, and an Avid HD interface. These interfaces include the HD I/O, HD Omni I/O, and HD MADI I/O, as well as the legacy 192 I/O, and 96 I/O. DigiLink Mini inputs on the Pro Tools HD Native Core card provide I/O for up to two separate interface connections and up to 64 channels of ultra-low-latency I/O.
Other than TDM plug-in support (which requires DSP), Pro Tools HD software runs the same with a Pro Tools HD Native Core system is it does with a Pro Tools HD Accel system. You get 192 channels of audio (64 at 192kHz), as well as 7.1 surround sound support, Copy to Send, complete multitrack Beat Detective, and other great functions previously unavailable for a native Pro Tools system. And if you’re stepping up from a Pro Tools LE system, you’ll get all of the plug-ins you already know and love.”
Avid Pro Tools HD Native Core Card Features at a Glance:
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Pro Tools HD Native Core: PCIe solution, no TDM
With the help of UK luthier Joe White, Mark Dorsett set about designing an acoustic guitar that would work for his own performance requirements. He then approached the Ayers factory in Vietnam (who produce guitars under the Ayers brand as well as for others, notably Baden) to create what we see here: the DRL Thinline CT09.
The concept of a stage-friendly electro is far from new and here the CT09′s body is cut from a solid, one-piece mahogany slab. It’s completely hollowed out, leaving quite thick sides and a thick back (approx 13mm). The top is more conventional acoustic: centre-joined European spruce with scalloped X-bracing.
“By design and in execution, this is a rather good onstage guitar, provided you have an outboard preamp.”
In basic construction it’s not dissimilar to Taylor’s T5; likewise in size and shape – the CT09 is a little trimmed across its lower bout, with a broader waist and squarer curve to its base.
It’s less contoured in depth too, a pretty much uniform 60mm rim thickness giving it more apparent girth than a T5, albeit with a similar overall weight. The neck is glued to the body (it joins at the 14th fret), although the joint lines are hidden by dark sunbursting in this area. But the heel is well chamfered and it’s not overly bulky, although you will struggle to get to the 24th fret – if indeed you want to.
The neck, however, has a big rounded profile that’s not overly wide but lacks a little finesse in its shaping – slight ‘V’-ing to the shoulders would reduce the apparent bulk. No complaints though from the tidy fingerboard and fretting, not to mention the quite opulent and richly coloured abalone inlays and posh ebony-buttoned Gotoh 510 tuners.
Powering comes from an LR Baggs transducer under the intonated saddle on the well-shaped and comfortable ebony pin bridge. Mounted on the bass side, below the waist, are three rotaries (volume, treble and bass) rather than a preamp panel – there are no extras, but the MiSi active preamp is battery free, simply charged up via the endpin socket.
We’ve left a major feature of the CT09 out: as you can see, it has no soundhole on its top – instead we get three small soundholes on the bass side above the waist.
This, combined with the thin-depth design, creates a bass-light acoustic voice that feels and sounds a little tight, but certainly has more than enough volume. It’s on a par with, for example, a Taylor T5 although to us it sounds, acoustically, a little more strident and pushy in the midrange.
But the CT09 is designed for onstage use, and although the MiSi system provides a fairly low output and might well need a little external lift, the centre-notched rotaries are all smooth in use. The treble control deals with the zingy highs and the bass control boosts or trims quite a low frequency.
While some players might feel they’re short changed on the preamp control front, the actual tone is nicely even and balanced (aside from a slightly forward low E) and the lows we found lacking acoustically, sound full and quite rich.
There’s an appealing dryness and clarity to the tone with little piezo ‘cluck’ and the sound is endearingly natural; the EQs are very usable, especially the treble, which can round out the zing for an even jazzier attack.
Background high-end hiss isn’t excessive; feedback is well-tamed. By design and in execution, this is a rather good onstage guitar, provided you have an outboard preamp and tuner.
Nicely designed and competently made, this DRL Thinline is an attractive proposition for players who need an effective stage instrument without any fuss or over-fancy features.
Acoustically it’s limited, by design, but those limitations work in its favour when plugged in and feedback should be much less of an issue compared to a standard flattop.
Its amp’d tone is more than acceptable – especially if you use an external preamp to bring out its best. However, despite the tidy price the DRL has some heavyweight competition. Yet it holds its own and the battery-free MiSi preamp could well swing it over less green and more expensive, power-hungry electros.
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DRL Thinline CT09
Apex Web Media, a company offering video-based training for audio, graphics, and professional software, has got in touch with ANR and told us about their latest audio-related courses: Pro Tools 8 and a Logic Pro 9 tutorials. And we’ve got also a discount code for our readers, so that you can get these courses with a 10% off the regular price.
The Pro Tools 8 Tutorial Video, geared toward beginners, features over 13 hours of instruction, these introductory lessons cover set up, navigation, HD and LE hardware configurations, recording and editing all the way to export and burning.
In their words “The Pro Tools 8 training has been designed to bridge the gap between tips and tricks available online and complete classroom-based certification courses costing thousands of dollars. As added assistance, work files are included to correspond with examples in the course.
All 22 lessons are narrated by Adam Olson, a professional Pro Tools and Logic Studio instructor who has worked with Grammy winning producers and major production studios throughout the U.S.
Some of the topics and techniques covered in the course include I/O Setup, Tracking Audio, Loop Recording, Beat Detective, Elastic Audio, Compressor and EQ Plug-ins, Working with MIDI, Aliasing, iLok, Exporting to Other DAWs and more.
The course retails for $99.95 (or €79.95 + Vat for EU Sales) on DVD or is instantly viewable through a $30 monthly subscription plan. Free demo videos and a full index of lessons can be found on the product page.
The Logic Pro 9 Tutorial Video, narrated by Sam McGuire, is also geared towards beginners and it covers all the most important topics, from the Setup to the included plug-ins, Flex Mode, Automation, etc.
The course retails for $99.95 (or €79.95 + Vat for EU Sales) on DVD or is instantly viewable through a $30 monthly subscription plan. Free demo videos and a full index of lessons can be found on the product page.
How to get the discount? Easy, add the product(s) to your shopping cart and then fill in your shipping information. In the field marked “Returning Customer Discount Code” near the bottom of the page, enter A3459 and 10% will be deducted from your order.
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Pro Tools 8 and Logic 9 tutorial video courses
There are just a handful of bass drum pedals that can claim to be classics. Unlike kits and cymbals, kick pedals that have proved themselves worthy of legendary status are few and far between.
Camco, DW and Ludwig have all produced such beasts, as has Japanese drum giant Tama. Its Iron Cobra pedal is truly a drum world icon, having been relied on by countless big-name artists on the world’s biggest stages over many years.
But now comes a new pretender in the form of the Speed Cobra, with features borrowed from its well-regarded older sibling and a host of innovative design tweaks to boot.
Tama’s tagline for the Speed Cobra is ‘Extreme Velocity, Serious Power’. That is a pretty well-defined raison d’etre, and as such the Speed Cobra’s new features have two simple goals in common – to increase speed and to increase aggressive response.
Tama points out that these two aims have traditionally been mutually exclusive, with fast pedals losing some power, and powerful models reacting slower than some would like. So what solutions do Tama offer?
Well to start with, a quick overview of the features which the Speed Cobra shares with the Iron Cobra. Such things include the Oiles bearing hinge (as used in the aerospace industry no less), the patented Cobra Coil spring – which is located beneath the footboard to quickly return it to its default position after each stroke – and the Vari-Pitch beater holder that enables adjustment of the footboard link angle independently of the beater angle.
To that already impressive mix, the Japanese company has added several significant new features. The first and most obvious of these is the ‘Fast Foot’ footboard. Longer than on the Iron Cobra, the Fast Foot board is designed to increase speed of response but at the same time require less effort than previous designs.
In addition, the face of the board is smooth to reduce friction, which Tama reckon will improve control. On top of this there’s an impressive new bearing assembly in the shape of the Fastball bearing on the end of the drive shaft, a true round sprocket (which Tama have named, brilliantly, ‘LiteSprocket’) that’s evidently 40 percent lighter than the Iron Cobra’s, and the new Projector Beater.
The beater allows the choice of narrow or wide ‘striking surfaces’ simply by changing the head angle – go for punchy, defined attack with the former or a fatter, fuller response with the latter.
All this talk of new features (and we haven’t touched on the chain drive’s new Recessed Setting which increases the angle of attack for super speed and light action, nor the new ‘Super Spring’, designed to offer less resistance at the beginning of the pedal stroke) has left us little space to discuss the actual build quality of the Speed Cobra.
Fortunately, little space is required for this, as it is stunningly good. The Speed Cobra is beautifully engineered and does the Cobra name proud.
If your eyebrows headed skyward at the number of clever feature names Tama has bestowed on the Speed Cobra, a word of warning. For sure, it’s easy to dismiss ‘Speed Spring’ or ‘LiteSprocket’ as marketing waffle, but when pressed into action the Speed Cobra does a fantastic job of silencing the cynical.
For starters it’s an incredibly smooth-rolling pedal. An objective appraisal of the impact of the new bearing mechanisms, for example, is well out of the scope of a review like this, but subjectively it feels wonderful.
As far as we’re concerned, hardware that so closely unites player with kit as to almost disappear is the Holy Grail, and such is the sweetness and slickness of the Speed Cobra that it gets very close. We’re not Derek Roddy, but even we appreciated the discernible ease with which fast strokes translated from bodily movement to bass drum response.
For metal drummers dishing out high-bpm double bass battery, the Speed Cobra could be your new best friend. But that’s not to say Tama’s newbie is a one-trick pony. It’s so well-conceived and built – with the kind of near-endless adjustment that high-end pedals offer these days – that it could be pressed into service in any genre with aplomb.
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Tama Speed Cobra