Wavefonix W614 modular synth

Wafefonix has announced its W614 modular synth is available for build orders, with a 1-2 month lead time.

The W614 Modular Synthesizer is an excellent, compact system for the studio; offering a good balance between versatility and portability. It features the essential modules that you would expect from a small studio setup, but with a broader range of modulation and sonic possibilities over the smaller W314, along with sequencing capabilities from our 8-Step Sequencer.

The system is housed in an elegant, solid walnut 6U, 104HP case. Also included is a premium integrated PSU from Konstant Lab.

Included in the system are the following modules:

• 1 x MIDI Interface (MIDI)
• 2 x 3340 Dual Voltage-Controlled Oscillator (VCO)
• 1 x 1847 Wavetable VCDO
• 1 x 6-Channel Linear Mixer or 6-Channel Audio Mixer
• 1 x 2140 Low-Pass Filter (LPF), 2144 Low-Pass Filter (LPF) or 3320 Low-Pass Filter (LPF)
• 1 x 3310 Envelope Generator (EG)
• 1 x 3310 VC Envelope Generator (VCEG)
• 1 x Noise Generator (NG)
• 1 x 3360 Quad Linear VCA
• 1 x 2710 Envelope Follower (EF)
• 1 x Ring Modulator (RM)
• 1 x Dual Sample & Hold (S&H)
• 1 x Clock Divider (CD)
• 1 x 8-Step Sequencer
• 1 x Linear Attenuator (AT)
• 1 x Dual Switch (SW)
• 1 x 4×4 Passive Multiple (PM)
• 2 x Dual Low-Frequency Oscillator (LFO)
• 1 x VCD Low-Frequency Oscillator (VCDLFO)
• 1 x 3-Channel Stereo Panning Mixer
• 1 x Audio Out (AO)

Specifications

• Format: Eurorack
• Height: 6U
• Width: 104HP

Included

• Premium solid walnut case
• Modules and ribbon cables
• Premium Konstant Lab PSU
• 36 x patch cables

Priced at £2,299.99 ex. VAT. Product page

Vintage Vault 4 synth collection

UVI has announced its latest incarnation of Vintage Vault, claiming it “the ultimate vintage synth collection” and featuring 36 UVI products, over 14,000 presets and over 800,000 samples, taken from 255 hardware instruments.

“Explore your own personal dream studio packed with over 5 decades of synthesizers and drum machines from analog to digital, classic to obscure, all recorded in professional studios through class-A signal chains just like they were for countless hit records.

Now you can experience the raw grit, character and texture of dozens of real hardware instruments with all the simplicity of software. Vintage Vault is easy to use, completely portable, instantly recallable, and never out of sync or out of tune (unless you want it to be!) – it’s all the sounds you want, when and wherever you need them.”

VV4 includes:

• BeatBox Anthology 2
• Bit Zone
• Cameo
• CS-M
• Darklight IIx
• Digital Synsations
• Digital Synsations Vol. 2
• Emulation II+
• Energy
• FM Suite
• Hybrid 6000
• JP Legacy
• Kroma
• Mello
• OB Legacy
• Prime 8+
• Program 24
• PX Apollo
• PX Memories
• PX P10
• PX SunBox
• PX V8
• String Machines 2
• Super-7
• Synthox
• The Beast
• U1250
• UltraMini
• USQ-1
• UVS-3200
• UVX670
• UVX80
• UVX-3P
• UVX-10P
• Vector Pro
• WaveRunner

Product page

Alien Tripod sound effects released

Bluezone releases ‘Alien Tripod Sound Effects’, a new sound library with 174 sound effects, inspired by the science fiction novel “War of the Worlds”. Created from numerous high-resolution recordings, this sample pack provides an arsenal of ready-to-use audio elements for film editors and video game developers, but also for any sound designers looking to increase their originality and production capabilities. This collection has been built to provide a solid foundation for all science fiction and fantasy projects requiring the highest quality material.

Fighting machines, post apocalyptic worlds and extra-terrestrial environments.

Carefully constructed with great attention to detail, this sound library contains an impressive number of dark and disturbing atmospheres, both metallic and organic, but also atmospheres suggesting the calm before the storm, like the rustling of leaves in the trees, preceding the impending arrival of a hostile alien race on our planet.

In order to create the mechanical movements of these gigantic machines controlled by tentacular creatures, we not only made a large number of recordings of both metal objects and industrial machines, but we also captured synthetic and organic sound. The pneumatic sounds come from a train recorded in a railway maintenance workshop, in order to reproduce the sounds of steam release or toxic black smoke.

Perfect for creating tension in a peaceful city, this collection contains sounds of earthquakes cracking underground, collapsing buildings or structures and outdoor emergency sirens. These combat machines invade and destroy infrastructures with their heat-rays and attack our world with their chemical weapons. We have added many sounds in this pack to amplify the rendering, such as synthetic electrical storm textures, but also explosions, which can be used for combat scenes to illustrate the explosions of fiery gas or rockets fired by crippled military units, or meteorites from the red planet crashing onto the Earth’s surface.

This collection would not be complete without textures of strange organic monsters : Intimidating, terrifying invaders seeking to ravage the world with their multiple tentacles and jointed arms.

The sound effects found in this sample pack are incredibly versatile :

• Pneumatic sounds can be used to reproduce steam locomotives in an alternative world or in a Steampunk universe.
• Synthetic explosions are perfect for projects that need sounds of energy dischage, electrostatic, lightening or giant sparks.
• Metal sound effects as well as recordings of mechanical elements can be used in projects requiring sounds of large industrial machines.
• Dark atmospheres will find their place in depicting abandoned factory settings or murky underground environments.
• Rockslides and shattering glass will make natural disasters both spectacular and immersive, house collapses dramatic and enhance scenes of relentless battles.

Being both extremely flexible and carefully edited, ‘Alien Tripod Sound Effects’ contains 174 soundscapes and effects in WAV format. All samples in this sound library are royalty-free and can be used in commercial projects without additional licensing fees.

Product page

Neo Piano Chapters: Horowitz Steinway

Horowitz Steinway is the Piano the legendary pianist Vladimir Horowitz loved most, this Steinway D boasts a rich sound and dynamic, full resonance performance that can last more than two minutes. It’s a breathtaking experience you’ll never forget! This piano also appear in Thor, which has one more set with different microphone perspectives.

The dynamic of a piano is the most decisive aspects of its sound quality. Around 10 years ago, Sound Magic had already applied a True Piano Dynamic system which can represent piano dynamic in the most efficient way. And in years, we keep improving the performance. A True Piano Dynamic means the piano will have different dynamics from low notes to high notes; usually, high notes will have more dynamic range. Now, our True Piano dynamic system enables every note to have its unique dynamic range, and it can be fully controlled by knobs.

Neo Piano Chapters is powered by Hybrid Modeling technology and HD Velocity Layer 3 with HDR (High Dynamic Range) technology (support up to 65,536 velocity layers) providing a natural boost to expressive power that can be felt with every strike of the keys. Along with the new Neo Piano Engine, which achieves 400 times more variations than a traditional sample engine, every note played is unique, creates vivid sound representation, and strikes a rich, accurate tone even with small movement. In essence, it’s an instrument with a musical soul instead of a machine feel. What is more, in this new version we allow you to experience this in a system which only supports 127 velocity layers by applying HDR. This makes this technology can be used without any cost upgrading your MIDI system.

Resonances play an important role in a piano’s sound. It adds extra beauty to the overall sound. Reality dictates that every grand piano’s sizeable soundboard reflects sound that resonates in conjunction with the wooden body of the instrument itself. Indeed, it is this continuous process that makes every note played sound so unique.

Ultimately, in order to simulate this behavior, Sound Magic captured multi-angled IRs (Impulse Responses) from the soundboard, and then used modelling technology to convert those IRs into Multi-Dimensional Resonance algorithms. The result? An amazingly true-to-life concert hall sound readily available at anyone’s fingertips!

Sympathetic Resonance happens when Harmonics are heard in keys related to keys that are struck. It is an interaction between different strings and adds extra color to every note’s sound. It makes them sound unique so that the audience can enjoy listening.

Sustain Resonance and String Resonance can be heard when sustain pedals are pressed. Although they are subtle sometimes, as a part of Piano resonance, Our Neo Piano Engine has the ability to represent different resonances in the right way, and provide controls on their amount and behavior.

Neo Piano Engine also modelled the behavior of the damper, which controls when the sound should stop. With damper controls, musicians can choose whether it is a newly built piano, or a piano that’s 20 years old. Also, it is interesting that users can try to change the material of the damper from soft to hard; they can experience the differences in sound.

Product page

The Monster Bass Synth Soviet Children Played

The Faemi (sometimes Formanta Faemi Mini) is a cheap Soviet toy synthesizer that is often ignored, because it frankly sounds garish through its internal speaker. But if you mod it for a regular line output, it reveals its hidden qualities. Who knew Soviet kids had potential access to such deep bass?

A Korg Museum in Japan’s Countryside

“It’s not every day that you step inside a Japanese house that’s more than 120 years old. It’s even more special when that house contains a museum. And not even a museum of old woodblock prints or farm equipment or textiles, as you might expect in the Japanese countryside.

No, this remodeled home contains a museum to Korg, complete with almost 200 instruments and accessories on display. Located in Nakatsugawa, a small town in the mountains of Gifu Prefecture, Musée Korg Design and History is a private museum dedicated to Korg synthesizers, drum machines, and other products.”

Read more at Reverb.

Synths On Film – Arturia PolyBrute

Billy (@mattypaxton) sits down with one of his favourite poly synths in recent years, Arturia’s Morphing Analog Powerhouse – the PolyBrute. The PolyBrute is nothing shorter than a modern classic with 6 voices that fuel creativity, form factor that is deep yet intuitive and a build quality that will outlast time.

The effects in Reason you didn’t even know existed!

There are so many different Rack devices in Reason and so many ways to accomplish a sound design or musical task that it’s easy to overlook some of the options. In this video, Ryan reminds us or maybe surprises us with some options for effects in Reason that everyone might be overlooking.

How we made Toto’s Rosanna synth solo

Interesting piece from Steve Porcaro and David Paich on how they created their famous synth break, on Music Radar.

For a huge daily dose of synth, you really need to check out Matrixsynth, online since 2005 and posting daily almost without fail, finding the cool news, videos and auctions any synth-head needs to know about.