This Week....Reason 6, Komplete 8, Teenage Engineering - OP-1 and Ion Piano Apprentice.
Reason 6:
So it looks like we have a few new software toys out this week.
Getting started Swedish developer Propellerhead have revealed details of the latest version of Reason.
Propellerhead has decided to ditch Record altogether, replacing it with Reason Essentials, a slimmed-down version of its big brother, Reason 6. The new effects include extreme compressor/distortion unit Pulveriser; an analog tape delay emulation in the form of The Echo; and Alligator, a three-band pattern gate designed for "complex rhythmic texturing."
All the existing Reason effects racks carry over to this latest version as you might expect.
A limited period of public beta testing has just begun, with the full version to be released later this year.
Komplete 8:
27 products, 11,000 presets and over 100 GB of samples.
KOMPLETE 8 includes the brand-new KONTAKT 5 updated and enhanced "to the very pinnacle of state-of-the-art software technology". REAKTOR 5.6 racks up alongside MASSIVE, ABSYNTH, and FM8 for the ultimate synthesizer array. Plus the very latest and greatest NI instruments and effects.
STUDIO DRUMMER the "groove powerhouse" looks one of the most exciting new toy with loads of scope for designing great sounding percussion.
Oh and there is a 240 GB Ultimate Version too (",)
Teenage Engineering - OP-1:
It's a synth, a sampler, a four-track recorder, an effects unit, an FM radio, a microphone, a MIDI keyboard / sequencer, and it wraps it all up in a portable unit with an OLED display.
It's cool, It looks nice and has some cool features like being able to use the mic to trigger the oscillators or moving the whole devise like a Wii controller and the screen IS very pretty but at US$849 the sounds coming out of it are not that great to make it something worth considering for me.
Ion Piano Apprentice:
Another week another ipad toy! This week have your very own piano teacher in your hands.
It's a 25 note keyboard with touch-sensitive keys that light up showing you exactly which ones you should be playing. The Piano Apprentice has an accompanying free app for your iPad, which docks just above the keyboard, showing you how and where you should be placing your hands.
For portability it can be powered by 4 x AA batteries or an optional AC adapter.
It should be available sometime in September for around US$100.
That's it...Enjoy
Mark (",)
