Mac and Music News

After posting a demo of their software compression "Solera" and EQ "Epure", Flux offer us a freeware called "Bitter Sweeter" which is a dynamic processor who can deal with the transients.

Bitter Sweeter is available in VST, RTAS and UB formats, the Au support is still under development !

VirSyn has just released a new virtual synth called Poseidon. At first sight it looks like a simple structured analog "Oscillator-Filter" synthesizer with all controls visible at once... but the real power is working under the hood : the oscillator is the same as the spectral modelling sound generator of their CUBE and the variable slope Filter is a completely new design based on the unique F-domain synthesis.

Main features :

- Spectral modelling oscillator
- Time machine
- Timbre control
- F-Domain Filter
- Spatializer
- Resynthesis
- Effects
- Arpeggiator
- Standalone and plugin

Poseidon is available now for Mac OS X (UB) in VST, RTAS and AU formats for €199.

Sinevibes has just released the Space Oscillator Audio Unit plug-in for Mac OS X, which is a unique combination of a synthesizer and a sound processor. At its core, it has a unison oscillator with a spacious stereo sound, that can react to incoming audio in many exciting ways and is simultaneously controllable by a flexible step sequencer. Combined with many other interesting audio shaping tools, Space Oscillator allows to create new sonic textures from intergalactic strums to droid speech.

Features :

- Spacious stereo unison oscillator with wide detune range and variable frequency stepping
- Audio-triggered envelope generator
- Advanced step sequencer with lag processor
- Ring modulator, bit reduction and resampling
- Intuitive user interface
- Extensible collection of fa ...

The Amazing Rolo has just released the Wii Loop Machine software. Basically it's a system for using the wireless Wii remote to sync, control, and manipulate loops in real time on your Mac ! And you know what, it's free so if you have a Mac with OSX (10.4.8 or 10.4.9 recommended) and bluetooth and a Wii controller then you should give it a try ;-)

SoundToys has announced the immediate availability of the new V3 upgrade for SoundToys TDM Effects and SoundToys Native Effects. This upgrade includes Universal Binary support, Audio Unit support and feature enhancements.

New features :

- New mono-to-stereo versions of FilterFreak1 and FilterFreak2 for dramatic stereo filtering effects
- A new mono-to-stereo version of Tremolator which can be used to create stereo pulsing effects, as well as the classic Rhodes stereo tremolo effect
- The addition of a front panel low-frequency cut control for EchoBoy, to reduce potential low frequency build-up
- Support for Pro Tools automation key command shortcuts on all plug-ins
- Parameter "locking" function for easier preset browsing. This feature allows users to dial in a specific valu ...

The Vi Series of digital live sound consoles has been extended with the debut of the Soundcraft Vi4. The new model offers all the functionality and facilities of the Soundcraft Vi6 but in a smaller, more compact footprint well suited for theatres, houses of worship, and venues or clubs with tight space constraints in the mix position area.
In just under five feet, the Vi4 offers access to 48 inputs on 24 faders, with a total of 27 output busses available for use as masters, groups, auxes or matrices. All other features of the Vi6, such as the Vistonics II touch-screen user interface and Soundcraft FaderGlow fader function display are inherited by the Vi4.

For more information, please visit Soundcraft's web site.

Pianoteq is pleased to announce that version 2 will be available on April 4. With this new version comes a brand new piano model, the Grand C2, which is developed in response to the many suggestions received from their customers and their beta team. By using a newly adapted soundboard model, the sound is vastly improved throughout all ranges of the keyboard.

New features :

- stand-alone version
- microtuning with scala support
- lid position (open, half-open, closed)
- stereo pan slider
- key release velocity
- smooth adjustment of parameters during play
- and more...

Pianoteq 2.0 will be available on April 4 as a free download to all customers of version 1. A trial version with a 45-day evaluation period will also be available. Note that audio demos are already on-line.