Nord Electro 4 SW73 Is Now Available

New model has twice the memory capacity of the Electro 3 and an upgraded organ section

The new Nord Electro 4 SW73 has twice the memory capacity of its predecessor, Nord Electro 3 SeventyThree, letting you fit more sounds from the unique Nord Piano and Sample Libraries. The Organ section has been upgraded to the latest Tone Wheel engine from the dual manual organ Nord C2D, including a new 122 Rotary speaker simulation and Drive.

The Nord Electro 4 SW73 completes the new Electro 4 family, joining the Nord Electro 4 HP and Nord Electro 4D SW61, introduced earlier in 2012.

Key features

• 73 Semi-Weighted Waterfall (F-F)
• Digital LED Drawbars
• 380 MB memory for Nord Piano Library sounds
• 128 MB memory for Nord Sample Library sounds
• C2D Tone wheel engine with 122 Rotary simulation and Drive
• Delay Effect with Tap-Tempo
• 4 Dynamic Response Curves
• Long Release
• 4 Live Locations
• Nord Sound Manager 6.x support for Bundles
• USB MIDI

Pricing and Availability:
Suggested Street Price: 1,999 EURO / US MAP 2,399 USD
Shipping: December 2012. US & Canada: January 2013.

The Nord Electro 4 SW73 ships to UK stores today from UK distributor Sound Technology Ltd and is priced at £1749 RRP inc VAT.

More information:
Nord Electro 4

iOS Amp And Effects App Updated

Sonoma Wire Works releases GuitarTone 2

Sonoma Wire Works has launched a free update to the GuitarTone iOS amp and effects app that includes universal
compatibility on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, double cab and a preset board for iPad and iPhone 5, improved tone for all amps and effects, a noise gate, improved tuner, lower latency on newer devices, additional presets and previews, and more. Below is Sonoma's description of GuitarTone:

GuitarTone is a free iOS App inspired by the ultimate collection of guitar amps and effect pedals. Sonoma created tonal
interpretations of essential vintage and custom amps, pedals and microphones, and assembled them into GuitarTone. GuitarTone includes three free amps ('60 Slant, Custom and Tweed Blues) and three free effects (UltraPhase, Drive+ and Va-Room), with additional tones available for $9.99 per 12-pack. Sonoma's GuitarJack iOS audio interface activates $19.98 worth of GuitarTone amps and effects for free while connected.

GuitarTone 2.0 New Features:

• Double Cab: The ultimate guitar tone with stereo guitar cabinets - two cabinet and/or microphone combinations at the same time create a killer sound (only on iPhone 5 and iPad)
• Preset Board: Quickly jump between favorite presets (only on iPhone 5 and iPad)
• Noise Gate: Reduce unwanted noise, with fast mode for high gain amps to achieve super crunchy metal tones
• Universal App: Use GuitarTone on iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch
• Improved Amp Model and Tone Stack: Cascading tube amp design respond like real amps
• Lower Latency on Newer Devices: Improved audio latency on iPhone 5,iPhone 4S, iPod touch (5th gen), iPad mini, iPad 4, iPad 3, and iPad 2
• More than 60 New Presets
• Improved Tuner

GuitarTone Features:

• 3 free effects: Phaser, Drive+ and Va-Room
• 3 free amps: '60 Slant, Custom and Tweed Blues
• More amps and effects: 12 more amps and 12 more effects are free while a GuitarJack audio interface is connected, or $9.99 per 12-pack
• Each AmpPack includes several amp styles inspired by iconic and boutique gear: See sonomawireworks.com for which amps inspired these tones
• Each PedalPack includes a variety of effects: Modulators, Wahs, Distortions, and more
• Amp and effect presets: Dozens of hand-crafted presets are included, making it easy to find the tone you need
• Every cabinet has four microphone options: Dynamic, Condensor, Ribbon and Precision mics can be used with any amp
• Hundreds of amp, cab, pedal, and mic combinations: Arrange, adjust, and save favorites as unique presets
• Pre and post effects: Drag one or more effects into an effects chain before or after the amp
• GuitarJack control panel: Select the input (1/4 inch instrument and 1/8 inch stereo mic/line) and adjust the input levels (60 dB of continuous level control) for Sonoma's GuitarJack:
• Record using GuitarTone 1.1 in FourTrack and StudioTrack: Amp and effect packs purchased in GuitarTone are activated in FourTrack (iPhone) and StudioTrack (iPad). FourTrack and StudioTrack will be updated to include many new features from GuitarTone 2 soon

Add-On Packs:

• AmpPack 1: 12 amps for $9.99 or free while GuitarJack is connected (55, '60 Straight, Black Deluxe, Boost 30, Brilliant 15, Brit Blues, Closed Back Slant, Deviator, Nickeltone 64, One-off, Pedal Steel and Tweed Twin)- PedalPack 1: 12 effects for $9.99 or free while GuitarJack is connected(12AX7, Autowah, Chorus, Classic Wah, Compressor, Delay, Funk Wah, Reverb, Scoop, Treble+, Uranium Fuzz and Vibrato)
• AmpPack 2: 12 amps for $9.99 (100 Slant, 100 Straight, San Antone, Classic Blues, Closed Back, Gambler, Meister, Nickeltone 84, Rootbeer 30, Snakeskin, Tweed Deluxe and Tweed Prince)
• PedalPack 2: 12 effects for $9.99 (Bass Autowah, BP Sweep, HP Sweep, LP Sweep, Parametric EQ, Pocketavia, Smooth OD, Warped Flange, Tape Delay, Tremelo, Triode and Chrome Wah)

Minimum Requirements: iOS 5, iPhone 4, iPad mini, iPad, and iPod touch (4th
generation)

Pricing and Availability:
Free

More information:
GuitarTone 2
Guitarjack

Rumours Of Logic Pro's Demise

There's nay sayers and yay sayers

According to an article originated on the excellent Pro-Tools-Expert.com site, "Apple's Pro Audio application team has virtually gone" with no plans to replace the lost positions, putting additional workload on to the existing team. They then go on to extrapolate that this does not bode well for the ongoing development of Logic Pro - Apple's flagship DAW which has traditionally been used by many songwriters and producers due to its initial integration of MIDI and audio.

Its true, Logic Pro has not not seen a significant update for more than 1000 days (according to Mactimeline), and frankly has been left behind by a number of competing DAWs. Some might argue that ProTools, once considered deficient in MIDI and virtual instruments integration, has leapfrogged Logic by some way. Although Avid too has recently been suffering from problems of corporate largess itself with the jettisoning of M-Audio and the Air Group.

Interestingly, the lively debate that ensued on the original article throws up a counter rumour.

DP writes:

I have it first hand from a extremely well placed source that Logic X is well in development and that it is taking so long only because Apple really want to blow other DAW's out of the water with it. So worry not Apple audio people, I believed these doom and gloom for Apple pro audio rumours too and happily I was wrong. It may look bad but appearances can be deceptive.

Whatever the truth may be, one thing is certain, Apple really do need to get some focus on Pro Audio pretty soon - Logic Users who are lusting after the features of Cubase 7, Ableton Live 9, Studio One, the soon to be BitWig and others, will be fondling their credit cards and considering their best options going forward. A DAW with a bright future is more attractive in the long run, and once people switch, they probably won't be back.

We must also consider the lack of updates to the Mac Pro Workstation, even though Tim Cook has been on the record as saying it will be back in 2013. Many say, including myself, that without this update, there'll be a big void in the hardware content creators need to deal with audio and video at high resolutions and continue to create.

I suppose that traditionally, as music creators, we've required the higher end of computing power to achieve our results. But on reflection, perhaps the powerful machines we've enjoyed in the past are no longer required, due to the massive advance in CPU and memory power that even the most modest laptops now offer. We have to come to terms with the fact that we're just not that special any more.

However, we do need the software tools to take advantage of this new power - and I really do hope that Apple has plans to maintain its position with Logic and not turn it into a sidelined iOS app. I mean, its not like they have limited resources..

Classic Analog Synthesizer Experience For Reason

Blamsoft releases VK-1 Viking Synthesizer Rack Extension

Propellerhead says that the Blamsoft Viking gives you the authentic classic analog synthesizer experience. A spokesperson told Sonic State, "Viking is a monophonic synth with three oscillators and a 4 pole ladder filter. Add to this plenty of modulation and control voltage capabilities and you get a timeless synth design. All parameters in Viking have been modeled from real analog hardware, from the oscillator wave shapers, to the filter, to the envelopes."

Here's what Blamsoft has to say...

Tired of virtual analog synthesizers with little pretend keyboards and no control voltage? Viking gives you the authentic classic analog synthesizer experience. Everything you would find in a rack mounted hardware synth is here, and realistic, in an actual rack. Every aspect of the synth was carefully modeled after real hardware. Viking is available as a Rack Extension that integrates seamlessly with Propellerhead Reason. Own Reason? Visit the Propellerhead Rack Extensions Shop for a free trial.

Oscillators
At the heart of Viking are three adjustable wave oscillators. The wave shaping circuit gives the oscillators a unique sound that can't be achieved by the fixed choices found in most synths. A noise oscillator provides three types of noise, one specifically modeled after classic hardware.

Modulation
Two modulation busses and and LFO provide flexible modulation capabilities. Numerous CV inputs as well as CV inputs into the modulation busses means that everything in the synth can be controlled with CV from other devices in the rack.

Filter
The filter is a classic transistor ladder filter modeled meticulously. Two DSP varieties are available allowing for either reduced CPU load or soft clipping. The number of poles is adjustable for a wider range of filter sounds.

Compare Viking to the leading brand:

• Viking's oscillators are free running, not sampled, wavetable based, or generated from a zero point
• Viking's oscillators have instability, which is controllable through the tuning drift control
• Viking's oscillators use advanced techniques to avoid aliasing
• Viking's nonlinear filter uses circuit modeling and provides soft clipping

Pricing and Availability:
25% savings through December
Sale price: $59
Regular price: $79

More information:
Viking
Propellerheads Shop

Extreme Sounds For Sculpture

9 Soundware Releases 1.316 Seconds Channel Strip Settings For Logic Pro

Titled after the Guinness World Record for the shortest song ever recorded ("You Suffer" by Napalm Death),1.316 Seconds by 9 Soundware is a collection of Sculpture-based Channel Strip setting files for Apple Logic Pro inspired by extreme music. 9 Soundware tells us that, combining the string/exciter paradigm of Sculpture with the signal-contorting resources of Logic Pro, the sound set is composed of simulations and abstractions of instrumentation associated with stupendously aggressive, challenging works.Here's 9 Soundware's own description of 1.316 Seconds...

1.316 Seconds is composed of 5 categories, "Down-tuned Guitar", "Down-tuned Bass", "Blast Beat", "Death Growl", and "Microsong", each of which consists of 10 Channel Strip settings.

Featuring .cst files designed to simulate machine gun-like mechanical riffs, as well as sustained chords, central to the sound set is "Down-tuned Guitar". When sequenced with consecutive fifths and parallel octaves, using palm mute and sustaining sounds in conjunction, these Channel Strip settings allow for mockups of simple phrases. "Down-tuned Bass" is based on the timbres of grotesquely distorted, droning bass guitars. Similarly, parallel octaves allow for the balance between tonality and cacophony when using these .cst files. The "Blast Beat" Channel Strip settings are abstractions of the blistering noise associated with the drumming technique. While the sound design behind this category is largely conceptual (; not emblematic of drum kits), snare drums can be modeled by layering multiple Channel Strip settings (in particular Blast Beat 08.cst and Down-tuned Bass 09.cst). Comparably nonfigurative, the "Death Growl" noise instruments impressionistically portray guttural vocals. These .cst files are designed for performance in tandem with the modulation wheel. Finally, the "Microsong" Channel Strip settings produce bursts of rhythmic and randomly shifting timbres driven by LFO modulation.

The 1 MB download includes 50 .cst files.

Pricing and Availability:
1.316 Seconds is available now for $14.99

More information:
www.9soundware.com