Future Music

Editor-In-Chief Si Truss, simon.truss@futurenet.com Reviews Editor, Music Technology

New dynamics

There has been a lot of talk in

Yamaha’s Seqtrak is an all-inone synth, drum machine, sampler and sequencer

Yamaha has released a run of impressive high-end workstation keyboards in recent years, but it’s been a while since we’ve seen the Japanese giant dip its toes into the more affordable ends of the synth market. However, its latest release, Seqtrak, is the most exciting Yamaha product we’ve seen in a while

Sonicware’s new synth captures the gloriously retro sound of the Sega Genesis

>Sonicware, the Japanese manufacturer behind the LIVEN Texture

Korg Gadget adds new instruments, effects and AUv3 support

>Launched in 2014, Korg’s Gadget was initially a

Akai introduces stem separation for its MPC range

>We suspect that, sooner rather than later, stem

Korg unveils a stacked synth line-up for 2024

microKorg 2, KingKorg Neo, a DIY Kaoss Pad and NTS-1 mkII lead an impressive deck of upcoming instruments

Arturia releases Pigments 5

>Arturia has released version 5 of its flagship

Erica Synths’ Megarack is a beast of a modular case

>Latvian brand Erica Synths has announced its biggest

Dubreq’s latest Stylophone is a modular drone synth

>Who said a Stylophone needs a stylus? Stylophone

iZotope unveils AI-powered Vocal Enhancement Assistant

>More and more people are recording their voices

CLASSIC ALBUM

Speedy J Ginger Warp Records, 1993 Originally released

RELEASES

© CarloPanuncialman ALBUM OF THE MONTH Loukeman, Sd-2

THE FUTURE OF EQ & DYNAMICS

While vintage studio effects are beloved for their ‘character’, modern tools offer precision, transparency and convenience at a level never possible in the analogue realm. Let’s explore the modern mixing tools you need to know about…

Dynamic EQ

Dynamic EQ is a powerful processing tool. We look at what it is and how it works

5 QUICK EQ AND DYNAMICS TIPS

Eventide Split EQ is one of a few

Using mid/side EQ in Ableton Live

Take control of your stereo sources with Live’s EQ Eight and Utility

Modern dynamics

Get to grips with the latest compression, gating and hitherto uncategorisable dynamics processors with our guide

Auburn Sounds Lens’ spectral processing

>Originally designed to be a master bus compressor,

Modern ‘analogue’ compression

>However far technology marches onwards and upwards, one

IS AI THE FUTURE OF MASTERING?

We put several popular ‘auto-mastering’ services head-to-head to see if they really have a chance of replacing a real mastering engineer

The Pultec low-end trick

The manual says you should never use the EQP-1A’s boost and cut at the same time. We disagree!

HIGH-END ANALOGUE SYNTHS

NEW ENTRY Groove Synthesis 3rd Wave from £3,279

AUDIO INTERFACES

Universal Audio Apollo Twin X £880 As with

SEMI-MODULAR SYNTHS

Intellijel Cascadia £2,025 Full Review: FM401 A bit

ABLETON LIVE CONTROLLERS

Ableton Push From $999 Review: FM397 | Push

HARDWARE SEQUENCERS

Korg SQ-64 £269 Full Review: FM367 | An

COMPACT MONITORS

IK Multimedia iLoud Micro £250 IK’s Micro monitors

STUDIO HEADPHONES

NEW ENTRY Sennheiser HD 490 Pro from £349

Hannah Thurlow

The producer/sound designer discusses modular synths and the gear she can’t live without

MAYA SHENFELD

An existential ode to climate change, Berlinbased composer Maya Shenfeld talks to Danny Turner about her evocative second album, Under the Sun

MACHINE WOMAN

Beyond her eccentric track titles and comical cover art, sound artist Anastasia Vtorova is on a mission to inspire. Danny Turner finds out more

Pultec EQP-1

This 1950s EQ is still one of the most in-demand processors around, so much so that you can find many (many) hardware and software emulations. But just why is the Pultec EQP-1 such a revered EQ? As it turns out, it’s all about not reading the manual…

Pultec EQP-1 and 1A background and use

The history, the emulations, modern versions, and great Pultec EQ techniques

MGMT

A decade and a half on from their early success, MGMT tell Danny Turner how they’ve got their mojo back on latest LP, Loss of Life

Sophie

We celebrate a producer who embraced a dizzying, daring approach that made plenty of friends but took no prisoners

SOPHIE IN FOUR TRACKS

Sophie, BIPP 2013 One of Sophie’s earliest releases,

Waldorf Iridium Core Desktop £1,555

Waldorf’s latest desktop synthesiser shrinks the groundbreaking Iridium to its Core element. Dave Gale pushes the button

Groove Synthesis 3rd Wave from £3,499

It may be a tribute to the first wavetable synth, but 3rd Wave could well be a landmark in its own right, says Andy Jones

Boss Delay Machine DM-101 £449

As Si Truss discovers, DM-101 is a musthave BBD-powered analogue delay

Sennheiser HD 490 Pro from £349

Jon Musgrave enjoys the surprisingly rare treat of headphones designed specifically for mixing and mastering

ASUS Zenbook Pro 16X OLED £2,999

Looking for a high-end Windows-based laptop to handle all your music and video needs? Simon Arblaster goes PC

L-Acoustics L-ISA Studio From free

L-Acoustics look to shape the future of mixing for total immersion. Rob Redman tests the latest version

SR Studio 2-Channel Classic Mic Preamp $600

Charlotte Sterland investigates an affordable ‘1073-style’ preamp

Austrian Audio MiCreator Studio £189+

Simon Arblaster asks if this is an ideal allin-one solution for producers on the go?

Minimal Audio Swarm Reverb $49

Si Truss discovers Minimal Audio’s new reverb is at its best when pushed to the weirder ends of its capabilities

Endorphin.es Ghost £399

Rob Redman discovers a near-perfect multi-effect, created in collaboration with musician and YouTuber Andrew Huang

Native Instruments – Playbox £179

[or £8.99/month as part of Komplete Now subscription]

Audiotent – Clocked

£45 [Standard] /£55 [Deluxe]

Sidechains

Get to grips with the infamous, endlessly useful and often misunderstood world of sidechaining