STUDIO
May 1, 2003 12:00 PM, By Markkus Rovito
NOVATION KS4, KS5
ANALOG-EMULATION KEYBOARDS
The blokes and birds at British company Novation have been mad for analog emulation for many years. It comes as no surprise then that two new tasty keyboards build upon the virtual-analog K-Station sound engine: the 49-key KS4 ($999) and the 61-key KS5 ($1,299). The two boards are identical in their feature sets and were designed for fast and intuitive operation. They use semiweighted keys with aftertouch and 33 knobs and sliders that all transmit MIDI. The 16-voice, four-part multitimbral boards also feature a separate effects section and individual audio output for each part. Also onboard are four arpeggiators and a 16-band vocoder. The new Hypersync employs a single rotary knob to instantly edit a sound's time synchronization and effects settings. With enhanced analog-modeled oscillators, the KS-series keyboards are better-equipped to re-create authentic vintage-electric-piano and tonewheel-organ sounds.
Novation; e-mail sales@novationmusic.com; Web www.novationmusic.com
STANTON SMX-401
DJ MIXER
Stanton built the SMX-401 ($399) 3-channel mixer from the ground up to accommodate a cross section of club DJs. The 10-inch frame houses such quality components as a Penny & Giles crossfader. Balanced master outputs distribute the signals from the three phono, six line and two mic inputs. Channels 1 through 3 host gain controls, pan knobs, LED input meters and 3-band EQ. Channels 1 and 3 add low-, mid- and high-frequency kill switches on either side of the crossfader. Within the cue section, DJs will find cue panning, prefader level (PFL) control and dual headphone jacks (¼- and ⅛-inch). In addition to a separate booth output, there is an effects send with ¼-inch send and return jacks. The SMX-401's faders are user-replaceable.
Stanton; e-mail dj@stantonmagnetics.com; Web www.stantonmagnetics.com
VESTAX PDX-2300
TURNTABLE
The Vestax PDX-2000 was one of the first turntables to pose a considerable threat to the perennial reign of the Technics 1200. Now, the PDX-2300 (price TBA) takes the design a step further. With all of the 2000's features, the PDX-2300 adds a digital display showing the pitch adjustment of ±50 percent from a fader and an additional ±10 percent from a fine pitch control. Four settings for momentary pitch bend are also on hand. An upgrade kit is available for PDX-2000 owners.
Vestax (dist. by Korg); e-mail vestaxsupport@korgusa.com; Web www.vestax.com
M-AUDIO RADIUM 49
USB MIDI KEYBOARD
You know 'em; you love 'em: M-Audio's USB MIDI keyboards have lent many a hand to keep unruly music software under control. The four-octave Radium 49 ($249.95) basically replicates M-Audio's Radium 61, except the Radium 49 has one less octave of keys and the added option of battery power. The controller also operates on USB power or a 9V power adapter. All eight knobs and eight sliders are MIDI-assignable, and with five user-definable presets, Radium 49 gives instant access to a total of 80 MIDI parameters. It also acts as a 16-channel USB MIDI interface with two MIDI Outs. The keys double as data entry in MIDI Edit mode, meaning that all important parameters are directly accessible without menu navigation. Remaining controls include pitch and modulation wheels and octave up and down keys with a range of ±3 octaves. Radium 49 weighs 6 pounds.
M-Audio; e-mail info@m-audio.com; Web www.m-audio.com
NATIVE INSTRUMENTS REAKTOR 4.0
SOFTWARE SYNTHESIZER
Native Instruments' Reaktor 4.0 ($499) continues its tradition of supplying a modular environment for musicians and producers to create their own software synths, samplers and effects. Also present are dozens of premade modules encompassing the gamut of classic, modern and percussive synthesizer sounds, samplers and a wide range of effects. Many of these modules are new for the update, and users can make their own modifications to any module. A free online user library also stores hundreds of Reaktor instruments for downloading. For version 4, NI worked to improve Reaktor's sound by adding antialiasing oscillators from its Pro-53 soft synth. The 32-bit audio engine is optimized for the latest Pentium, Athlon and G4 processors and uses sampling rates as high as 768 kHz. A newly designed user interface relies on new tools that assist instrument-panel layout, including easy drag-and-drop importing from an integrated browser. Reaktor 4.0 runs on Windows 98, 2000, ME or XP and Mac OS 9.1 or OS X. It operates as a stand-alone or as a plug-in in the following environments: VST 2.0, DXi, Audio Units, ASIO, Core Audio, Sound Manager and OMS.
Native Instruments; e-mail info@native-instruments.com; Web www.native-instruments.com
OPEN LABS EKO
OPEN-PLATFORM KEYBOARD WORKSTATION
Since the advent of digital technology, the idea of a truly all-in-one composition/recording workstation has haunted musicians. Now, the ambitious Texans at Open Labs hope to realize the dream. Their computer/instrument hybrid, eKo (starts at $1,995), integrates hard-disk recording, editing, mastering, VST Instruments, plug-ins, other software and Internet connectivity (via Ethernet port) — all inside the framework of a traditional keyboard instrument. Its OpenSynth platform allows any hardware or software developer to design products for eKo, which incorporates the Windows XP operating system. Open Labs sells eKo workstations with a build-your-own system that lets buyers choose the components they want with the option to upgrade at any time. The price range is $1,995 to $7,412 for a huge variety of configurations; a CD burner and 128-note polyphony come standard. Users can choose between 61- or 76-key semiweighted keyboards or an 88-key fully weighted keyboard. RAM ranges from 256 MB to 2 GB, and the top processor supported is a Pentium 4/3.06 GHz. The unit has six USB ports, one FireWire port, three PCI slots and five drive bays. Total hard-drive space can range from 20 to 440 GB. All configurations include a software package with Steinberg V-Stack and Cubasis VST, Synapse Audio Orion Pro, IK Multimedia SampleTank and more.
Open Labs; e-mail info@openlabs.com; Web www.openlabs.com
CREAMWARE NOAH
EXPANDABLE SYNTHESIZER PLATFORM
Incorporating software plug-in instruments with a two-rackspace hardware synthesizer, Noah ($2,075) is both a road-worthy stand-alone instrument and a studio powerhouse that interfaces extensively with PC and Mac computers. A USB port connects Noah to the instrument-editing software and sends as many as eight channels of audio, as well as all MIDI information, to the computer. Users can download new synth patches and even new instruments and transfer them directly to Noah. Noah ships with several DSP-modeling soft synths: Minimax is a Moog Minimoog emulator; B-2003 models the Hammond B-3 drawbar organ; Vectron Player uses the vector synthesis of the Sequential Circuits Prophet VS; Lightwave is a wavetable synth with 128 waveforms; and Six-String claims to take the physical modeling of string instruments to new heights of realism. In addition to the USB interface, Noah provides stereo input and output, 8-channel ADAT output, headphone jack, MIDI In/Out/Thru and Compact Flash slot. The standard version of Noah will play two instruments at a time, and Noah EX ($2,525) can play a maximum of four.
Creamware; e-mail info@creamware.de; Web www.creamware.de
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