Erica Synths and Sonic Potions have cooked up the LXR-02

Digital drum synth combines subtractive and FM sounds, plus a host of sequencing tricks

Enter the Abyss with Tracktion’s colourful new ‘visual’ synth

> There’s always been a strong relationship between

Steinberg’s SpectraLayers 8 audio editor promises ‘AI processing with a human touch’

> Steinberg have taken the wraps off version

Pro Tools now has M1 Mac support, and lets you create bigger projects than ever

> Avid have released Pro Tools 2021.6, a

Revelator io24: a USB interface for live streaming, podcasting and recording

> It’s a sign of the times that

Traktor Pro 3.5: new integration for your DJing needs

> It’s update time for Native Instruments’ Traktor

KV331 Audio bring full fat SynthMaster 2, one of the best VST plugin synths, to the iPad

> Having previously brought their SynthMaster One and

Generate new musical ideas in Ableton Live

PROBLEM: Creating new ideas for chords and melodies can be challenging. How do I find new ideas when I’m stuck for inspiration?

Holy Ghost! Holy Ghost!

DFA, 2011

Track by track with Alex Frankel and Nicholas Millhiser

Do It, Again Alex Frankel: “I started to

D.K. Eighteen Movements

Abstrakce Records

Biome

Mesh

The ultimate guide to digital synthesis

From wavetable to FM, additive to granular; digital synth engines are having a resurgence in both hardware and plugin form. But how do all these complex-sounding setups work, and when should you reach for each variety? This issue, let’s explore all that digital synths have to offer

ESSENTIAL ADDITIVE SYNTHS

Unlike FM or wavetable synthesis, additive synths haven’t

What is additive synthesis?

>Unlike subtractive synthesis – ie, that found on

What is FM synthesis?

>Frequency modulation synthesis is notoriously complicated, and for

The basics of FM

Let’s run through the basic elements of FM sound generation. We’ll use Tracktion’s dedicated FM plugin F.’em! But these principles are shared by any FM synth, including free DX7 emulation Dexed

What is granular synthesis?

>Like wavetable synthesis, granular has samples at its

GREAT GRANULAR SYNTHS

> Granular synthesis has found particular popularity with

What is wavetable synthesis?

>Wavetable synthesis is nothing new; it first appeared

Modulating wavetables

Morphing and modulating wavetable oscillators is key to adding movement and variety to sounds. Let’s see how a few different synths approach this…

The hybrid approach

Although, in this feature, we’ve been discussing different

Mano Le Tough

For his third Mano Le Tough album, Niall Mannion revisited his band-playing days, recording live instruments at his home studio. Danny Turner found out more

MORE UNMISSABLE VIDEO TRAINING FROM FUTURE MUSIC

Discover our line-up of exclusive YouTube goodness. Head online for all this and more!

Dancehall

We investigate how Jamaica’s dancehall became an important part of modern pop and hip-hop

Three classic dancehall riddims

Real Rock 1 Arguably the first reggae riddim

“We’d love a Waterphone… they create these horrible but beautiful screeches”

Scalping

TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS…

“…and record everything. Often the first time you

Rhode & Brown Wave 200

© Benjamin Herchet Permanent Vacation, 2021 VIDEO ON

Creating Wave 200’s ’80s hardware bounce

Friedrich and Stephan use the Juno-106 alongside contemporary software effects

NI Guitar Rig Pro 6

Discover the new gear and sonic possibilities in Native Instruments’ one-stop shop for amp and pedal simulation

Using Guitar Rig’s modifiers and tools

1 Guitar Rig’s modifiers give you extra sound

Changing the strength of an effect based on input level

For rip-roaring solos that Clapton himself would be

Recreating Clapton’s Layla guitar tone

1 Add a Tweedman amp to the rack

Guitar Rig’s new effects rundown

As mentioned, Guitar Rig 6 is a multieffects

Creating a phasey, modulating effects rack

1 Driver is a filter unit, and we’re

Creating a split processing patch

1 Using the Crossover tool we can split

THREE GREAT NEW FX

Freak 1 Frequency shifting, ring modulation and radio

Preset reset

Even if you’re a staunch original, using presets

Running other instruments through Guitar Rig

1 You can use Guitar Rig to beef

Japanese Breakfast

Moving beyond the grief-stricken narrative woven into Michelle Zauner’s past Japanese Breakfast records, new album Jubilee strikes a more celebratory tone. Danny Turner speaks to Zauner about her artistic growth

Korg Modwave £699

Korg’s latest digital revival is a wavetable synth loosely inspired by the DW-8000. Si Truss rides the wave

Bitwig Studio 4 €399

The modular-inspired DAW hits version 4, but is it still at the cutting-edge of music software? Si Truss finds out

M-Audio Oxygen Mk V 49 £135

With many of v5’s new features coming via its ‘Pro’ sibling, Jono Buchanan thought it time to do a quick spec-check

EXCITERS

Thrill yourself silly with these toasty signal warmers – but which is the most exciting?

Arturia FX Collection 2 €399

The second iteration of Arturia’s effects package adds modulation and bus processors. Si Truss discovers what’s special about these FX

Wavefonix R2R DAC £35 and 8-Step Sequencer £179

Rob Redman asks if you’re only eight steps away from heaven with this set of deceptively simple modules

Lewitt LCT 140 Air stereo pair £259

Want to mic things in stereo? Jon Musgrave sees if this new pencil mic bundle is what you need

Audient iD4 Audio Interface £138

Audiophile design on a budget is a tricky goal. Jon Musgrave sizes up this popular and newly updated interface

Fab Filter Timeless 3

> The innovating Dutch plugin developers are back

Tracktion F.’em!

$180

Antelope Zen Go Synergy Core €416

checks out this new affordable USB powered and DSP equipped audio interface

UVI – Quadra €149

>Most FM reviews for UVI soundware focus on

Soundiron – UFO Tone $29

>This Kontakt-based instrument library is based around a

Spitfire Audio – Hainbach – Landfill Totems £29

>As you’d expect from Hainbach, this is no

Singomakers – Back To The Funk £29.95

>Great Scott! A Back To The Future-riffing sample

Sample Diggers – Vol. 3: Sugar Breaks £14.95

>Drums, please! Sample pack veteran, Mark Fletcher, steps

Splice Originals – Fire and Ice From $7.99/mth

>The Splice crew fire up their in-house synth,

Audiotent – Perception £17

>Got a wall of Eurorack synth modules? Those

Sample Magic – Piano House From $7.99/mth

>Hundreds of tinkled ivory loops, ready and willing

AFFORDABLE SYNTHS

Novation Circuit Tracks £360 Full Review: FM369 With

DAWS

Bitwig Studio 4 $399 Full Review: FM373 On

DIGITAL POLYSYNTHS

NEW ENTRY Korg Modwave £699 Full Review: FM373

HARDWARE SEQUENCERS

Arturia KeyStep Pro £319 Full Review: FM359 For

AFFORDABLE MONITORS

Kali Audio LP-6 £147 These two-way speakers from

STANDALONE MUSIC MAKERS

Roland Verselab MV-1 £599 Review: FM349 It lags behind

SEMI-MODULAR SYNTHS

Moog Matriarch £1,979 Full Review: FM355 The Matriarch