gear giveaway

Violence plug in – deconstructing the violin

It is really amazing what audio plug ins manufacturers are doing these days to recreate the original sound of acoustic instruments (for a fun article about this, see "The Invasion of the Sound Snatchers" here). Vir2's Violence is the latest attempt to emulate the sound of a (real) violin through…Click on the title for more

Violence plug in – deconstructing the violin

Maxon OD-820 Overdrive

The Maxon OD-820’s color—vibrant pea green—announces right off the bat that this pedal is from the same neighborhood as the classic Tube Screamer. But the DNA runs even deeper than that. Maxon pedals come from the same factory that made the original Tube Screamers, which Maxon sometimes built for Ibanez.…Click on the title for more

Maxon OD-820 Overdrive

Octant and the “Unmanned Backup Band”

Octant can be described as a one-man band featuring mainly acoustic robotic musical instruments that back up front man, Matthew Steinke, like a player piano as he sings, shouts, and plays various home brew instrumentation. For the upcoming performance at The Tank (NYC), Octant will perform an initial set of…Click on the title for more

Octant and the “Unmanned Backup Band”

Tube Saturator – Tube Amp Simulation Plugin from Wave Arts

You know how sometimes your amp simulation plugin doesn't really sound like your awesome tube amp? Even though a lot of software can be pretty cool with options and built-in effects, they sometimes don't quite get the job done. And then you end up recording your real amp anyway. That…Click on the title for more

Tube Saturator – Tube Amp Simulation Plugin from Wave Arts

A treat for bass fx fanatics: Q&A with Hank & Cupcakes

Hank and Cupcakes are a NYC duo that plays sweaty and groovy indie pop. If Cupcakes (the girl) provides driven drumming and soulful vocals, Hank’s bass is in charge of everything else – a role that the 4 string instrument rarely takes upon itself. You wouldn’t call Hank’s style “minimalistic”:…Click on the title for more

A treat for bass fx fanatics: Q&A with Hank & Cupcakes

Looping bliss: Akai Headrush E2

My first awareness of looping pedals happened at a rock show back in the ‘90’s. The acclaimed band Don Caballero, an instrumental math rock tour-de-force, had released a new album after losing their second guitarist. Curiosity was high among the indie dweebs pushing to the front at this, their first…Click on the title for more

Looping bliss: Akai Headrush E2

DAW Review: PreSonus’ Studio One + Crossgrade offer

Every now and again, a product sneaks up on the audio public in a way that makes discovering its graces all the more significant. Studio One Pro from PreSonus is one such product. A virtual powerhouse audio editor, Studio One Pro delivers and outshines its competition by leaps and bounds…Click on the title for more

DAW Review: PreSonus’ Studio One + Crossgrade offer

Mic Review: Shure SM7B, a secret dynamic weapon

Engineers and recording studios have certain favorite pieces of gear that are referred to as “secret weapons.” What’s a “secret weapon,” you ask? It’s an inexpensive, but super high-quality piece of gear that people generally either don’t know about or disregard because of its low price tag. Without a doubt…Click on the title for more

Mic Review: Shure SM7B, a secret dynamic weapon

Electro Harmonix Deluxe Memory Boy

The classic Electro Harmonix Memory Man series pedals are simply some of the best sounding analog delays ever made. The only problem is that they are HUGE, occupying about a third of the space of an average pedal board! The Memory Boy took a step back by removing level/gain knob,…Click on the title for more

Electro Harmonix Deluxe Memory Boy

Softube’s Trident A-Range Equalizer Plug-in Review

Last night I was working on mastering a song and I was struggling to get the mix brighter without making it harsh - a common dilemma in mastering a track. I'm not a mastering engineer, so this was more of a rough master for the artist to get an idea…Click on the title for more

Softube’s Trident A-Range Equalizer Plug-in Review

OktavaMod Tube Mic Upgrade Review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xftXh05dig So you’re sitting at home recording a vocal track and you think, “Gee, this vocal sounds kind of harsh. And when I try to EQ it, it ends up sounding dull and unnatural. I wonder if it’s this affordable Chinese-made microphone that I’m using that’s causing the problem. Boy,…Click on the title for more

OktavaMod Tube Mic Upgrade Review

Pigtronix Philosopher’s Tone & Aria Disnortion Reviews

Obsessed with extending the expressive range of the guitar, I compulsively investigate gear that claims it can. I put Pigtronix, a company obsessed with ensuring a future of enhanced guitar expressiveness, to the test with their budget conscious Aria Disnortion overdrive+3 band EQ, and the Philosopher's Tone compression/sustain synthesizer pedals.…Click on the title for more

Pigtronix Philosopher’s Tone & Aria Disnortion Reviews