June 10, 2021 – IK Multimedia releases Cinekinetik, a collection of four unique new SampleTank sound libraries, each created to conjure a sense of wonder, mystery, or suspense in the listener’s mind. Together these libraries offer significant savings over purchasing them separately and a deep well of inspiration to energize any composer’s work with fresh, evocative textures and sounds from over 24 GB of sample content and 250 SampleTank 4 instrument presets.
The story behind the sounds
All Cinekinetik instrument libraries were recorded using experimental techniques with results not found anywhere else. In addition to offering users a collection of unique sound sources, Shipwreck Piano and Malletopia include presets where the original samples were further shaped and transformed using highly sought-after vintage hardware reverbs for even more unique textures, pads, and atmospheres. The 4 libraries are as follows:
Shipwreck Piano is an audiophile-grade SampleTank instrument library that puts players behind an antique upright piano. Imagine this enduring remnant somehow still in tune and invitingly playable with a rich, evocative tone. Atmospheric reverb, recorded from several rare and sought-after vintage digital hardware units, adds dramatic space and dimension that’s sure to inspire. Whether scoring films, TV shows, audiobooks, or podcasts, Shipwreck Piano delivers the perfect haunting atmosphere to any scene.
Fractured Piano is a library of altered and “prepared piano” keyboard sounds. Designed to stir emotion and build tension, it features sci-fi and cosmic sounds, action-driven percussive sounds, and acid keys, along with dystopian harpsichords and other imaginary or futuristic sounds. The library was recorded and produced by Filippo Gaetani and Florian Weixelbaumer in the style of the groundbreaking avant-garde John Cage techniques, performed on a beautiful Bösendorfer grand piano recorded at their studio in Vienna, Austria.
Malletopia is a broad assortment of chromatic percussion instruments. It includes marimba, vibraphone, xylophone, glockenspiel, and orchestra chimes/tubular bells, all played using an expert assortment of mallets (yarn, felt, wood and metals) and then matched with sampled spaces created using the same rare and vintage reverbs as Shipwreck Piano for a massive range of chromatic textures. Deep round-robin sampling ensures the most true-to-life sound for repeated notes, letting this library blend perfectly into any style or genre.
Malletension is the dark companion library to the above. Where Malletopia is beautiful, clean, and ethereal, the Malletension library has been expertly processed to bring out a more aggressive, twisted, and otherworldly character. To do this, Malletension takes the audiophile samples and stretches their natural harmonics, envelope shapes, and transient responses to create futuristic chromatic percussion sounds that go far beyond the real world for fresh and inspiring soundscapes.
Space, the final frontier
In Cinekinetik, users can also explore exotic atmospheres from several vintage hardware reverb units not otherwise available in SampleTank. These sampled spaces come with the Shipwreck Piano and Malletopia libraries and are utterly controllable with all of SampleTank’s filters, envelopes, and other synthesis functions, ready to be easily shaped and contoured to each individual track. Use these atmospheres as drones, effects, or ambient backgrounds in any kind of music, anywhere a deep backdrop or instant mood is required.
The right mood, right on cue
For those looking for funky, unconventional sounds to add energy or tension to any scene, Cinekinetik provides this and more. Combining inspiring instruments with mood-shaping spaces, it will quickly become a secret weapon for everything cheery, eerie, and beyond.
Pricing and availability
Cinekinetik is currently available for purchase from the IK Multimedia online store and from IK authorized dealers worldwide for a limited-time introductory price of $/€99.99* (reg. $/€149.99). The four included individual libraries can be purchased separately for $/€49.99 each.
*All pricing excluding taxes
For more information about Cinekinetik, please visit: www.ikmultimedia.com/
DUESSELDORF, GERMANY: DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) plugin and audio DSP (Digital Signal Processing) developer Fuse Audio Labs is proud to present VREV-666 — available as a plugin freebie based on a rare Sixties-vintage spring reverb originally built for the BBC, bringing back the typically rich, bouncy, and unpredictable vibes of a true electromechanical reverb in an authentic-sounding way — as of June 11…
VREV-666 values character above realism — sending any signal through its springs always results in something vibrant and charismatic, adding edginess to vocals, dirty ambiance to synth, gritty room to guitar and bass, or finishing textures to any instrument… it’s all in there.
Though the original hardware features a single effect gain control, VREV-666 adds an EFFECT MIX stage, a PRE DELAY of up to 150 ms, and a TONE EQ that attenuates the pronounced resonance of the spring system in the bass range, while a musical EFFECT LIMITER built around a light bulb helps to tame peaks that would otherwise cause chirping overloads inside the spring tank!
“When it comes to ambiance, spring reverb is the ultimate playground for creative endeavors — and VREV-666 delivers.” So says Fuse Audio Labs CEO Reimund Dratwa, duly concluding thus: “While the few available hardware units remain cherished gems inside the studios of spirited artists and producers, we’re delighted to make the original vintage character of this juicy reverb available for everybody’s DAW absolutely for free.”
VREV-666 is offered for free — also free from any temporal or functional restrictions, and anyone creating a free account on the Fuse Audio Labs website (https://fuseaudiolabs.com) will find their full license already waiting for them there.
For more in-depth information, please visit the dedicated VREV-666 webpage here: https://fuseaudiolabs.com/vrev666.html
About Fuse Audio Labs (www.fuseaudiolabs.com)
Fuse Audio Labs is a number one source for truly analog-sounding plugins designed for the daily demands of real-world musicians and engineers. As an acclaimed company, it was founded in 2017 by Reimund Dratwa, deeply knowledgeable as an expert in translating complex analog topologies into top-notch DSP code. Creating a huge portfolio of leading modeling titles over the years for brands like ACME, Black Box, Black Rooster, Elysia, Millennia, Neold, Vertigo, and many others available via Plugin Alliance and the UAD-2 platform, Reimund’s own designs remain 100% pure Fuse Audio Labs.
© 2021 Fuse Audio Labs
LONDON, UK: Spitfire Audio is proud to announce the availability of ORIGINALS CINEMATIC PADS — positioned as the eleventh entry in its ongoing ORIGINALS series of inspiring sample libraries making rare and classic instruments accessible to all, this time offering electronic sounds for the first time as a diverse range of classic, broadcast-ready synth textures made entirely from stunning symphonic orchestral recordings originally captured to the highest standard in the hallowed (Lyndhurst) Hall at London’s legendary AIR Studios, skilfully remastered, updated, and presented in the sound-specializing British music technology company’s award-winning, easy-to-use plug-in as a ~2.7GB-sized, NKS (Native Kontrol Standard®) compatible offering with 23 presets made from 45 meticulously treated, processed, and warped pad sounds providing an exceptional sense of depth and timeless feel fit for widescreen settings — as of June 3…
Who better, then, to formally introduce those ORIGINALS CINEMATIC PADS in all their widescreen-suited glory than Spitfire Audio ’composer-in-residence Homay Schmitz, who begins by saying, “These sound absolutely beautiful, epic, and — as the title suggests — cinematic,” before digging deeper: “The team has put together 45 completely unique synth sounds, and partly why I think they sound amazing is because the source sounds are actually symphonic orchestral samples that have been morphed and warped to create these really rich sounds. From these 45 pad sounds we’ve created 23 presets that you can find in the drop-down menu, and each of these presets contain three pad sounds, categorized into three different tones; Mellow, Bright, and Cinematic.”
Those 23 presets — Bowed Glass, Cavernous Bellowing, Celestial Stops, Chatter Organ, Chilling Forest, Deep Churn, Dystopian Ruin, Euphoric Sandstorm, Falling Steam, Fluorescent Corridors, Frosty Exhale, Glacial Marimbium, Halcyon Strings, Midnight Waves, Mountaintop Wind, Nauseous Static, Pulsing Water, Roadside Crosstalk, Slow Reeds, Trembling Tension, Volcanic Beaches, Woodland Wind, and Windswept Vessel — are as inspirational in name as they are in use, while those three pads to which ORIGINALS CINEMATIC PADS (partly) owes its name can be best described as a dulcet pad created from orchestral samples, perfect for creating rich beds (Mellow); an ethereal pad, carefully chosen to pair with the Mellow pad (Bright); and a distant pad created using a range of hardware reverbs with other outboard and effects by Spitfire Audio co-founder and award-winning composer Christian Henson — handy for creating atmospheric, ambient sound worlds (Cinematic). Continues Homay Schmitz: “The combination of those three pad sounds has been carefully curated so you get a really great balance between those sounds, giving you these really organic, lush, and full textures.”
That said, users, of course, can quickly tailor those pads to suit a range of genres — from cinematic scoring through to ambient electronic music stylings — courtesy of a range of carefully curated controls created by a team of experts who have been successfully combining orchestral recordings with electronics for over 12 years, as audibly evidenced when working with the likes of Spitfire Audio’s acclaimed ALBION ONE (https://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/a-z/albion-one/) — a renowned, industry-standard orchestral sample library that provides everything needed to make film music — and ever-popular EDNA EARTH (https://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/a-z/edna-earth/) — an epic collection of synthesized orchestral sounds, created with film, television, and games music in mind.
Moreover, six onboard effects — volume (expression), dynamics (this time controlling the cutoff frequency of a lowpass filter to create a wide spectrum of sounds in itself), REVERB, ATTACK, RELEASE, and DISTORT (adding grit and intensity) — are always available to provide even more control. Concluding on a high note, Homay Schmitz says: “With the dynamics and distortion, you can really create these incredible builds, highlighting certain scenes by adding a lot of tension, but because the sounds are originally derived from orchestral samples they naturally blend incredibly well with the rest of our libraries — especially orchestral libraries.”
By being borne out of stunning symphonic orchestral recordings originally captured to the highest standard in the hallowed (Lyndhurst) Hall at London’s legendary AIR Studios, the resulting sounds of ORIGINALS CINEMATIC PADS provide a sense of depth without taking up too much space, and a timeless, classic feel, fit for widescreen settings. After all, according to Christian Henson himself, “These pads sound huge, which makes them perfect for the cinema.”
ORIGINALS CINEMATIC PADS is available as an AAX-, AU-, VST2-, and VST3-compatible plug-in supporting Native Instruments’ NKS (Native Kontrol Standard®) for Mac (OS X 10.10 or later) and Windows (7, 8, and 10 — latest Service Pack) that loads directly into any compatible DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) for an RRP (Recommended Retail Price) of only £29.00 GBP (inc. VAT)/$29.00 USD/€29.00 EUR (inc. VAT) — from here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/originals/#cinematic-pads/
Spitfire Audio’s namesake Spitfire Audio application allows anyone to buy now and download anytime and is available for free from here: http://www.spitfireaudio.com/info/library-manager/
For more in-depth information, please visit Spitfire Audio’s ORIGINALS Frequently Asked Questions webpage here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/info/faq/spitfire-originals/
Watch Spitfire Audio’s ORIGINALS CINEMATIC PADS premiere with its tantalizing trailer video and also take an informative walk(through) with ‘composer-in-residence Homay Schmitz here:
About Spitfire Audio (www.spitfireaudio.com)
Spitfire Audio is a British music technology company that specializes in sounds—sample libraries, virtual instruments, and other useful software devices. It collaborates with the best composers, artists, and engineers in the world to build musical tools that sound great and are exciting to use.
© 2021 Spitfire Audio Holdings Limited
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, USA: boutique audio company Black Lion Audio is proud to announce the availability of PG-2 — a full-featured peak performance power conditioner with a 120V Power Grid of 14 outlets providing an average of 99.7% of noise filtering, thanks to proprietary PG-99 Filtering Technology, alongside a suite of status and alert capabilities, plus more besides, all housed in an attractive yet robust 2U rack-mountable chassis — as of June 1…
Anyone actively involved in professional music-making — onstage or otherwise — knows that it takes more than a few rack-mounted power outlets to inspire true confidence in a power conditioner. Clearly, acquiring a must-have piece of gear only to find it noisier than expected or missing high-frequency detail — or, worse still, having it fried by an unwanted power surge — are all far from ideal scenarios! Such sorry setbacks need not happen, however; Black Lion Audio is here to help, having long since been trusted to modify the best gear and make it even better, which is what it took to create the PG-2 — taking industry-standard designs and improving them to the point of peak performance.
Power conditioning comes naturally to Black Lion Audio. After creating its original PG-1 POWER GRID 1 (https://www.blacklionaudio.com/store/products/pg-1/) as a confidence-inspiring, rack-mountable power conditioner — also available as the PG-1 TYPE F (https://www.blacklionaudio.com/store/products/pg-1-type-f/) variant with a 230V Power Grid of 10 Europlug-compatible outlets — premiering PG-99 Filtering Technology to improve upon the typical average of 85% found in other power conditioners at the same price point, PG-2 takes things to a higher level as a full-featured peak performance power conditioner.
By being built using premium Panasonic and Wimi capacitors, chosen for their superior execution in
eliminating high-frequency noise that robs equipment of its peak performance, PG-2 provides an average of 99.7% of noise filtering, thanks to PG-99 Filtering Technology. But better still, combining that superior filtration with an impressive power absorption rating of 2,775 joules means that any connected gear — must-have or otherwise — is not only on the receiving end of quality power but protected from any unsafe scenarios, should they unfortunately happen. Having said that, then, PG-2 features a bank of 12 switched, filtered, and surge-protected outlets on its back panel arranged as three groups — DIGITAL AUDIO OUTLETS (x4), ANALOG AUDIO OUTLETS (x4), and HIGH CURRENT OUTLETS (x4). Fortunately for that connected gear, the time-delayed ANALOG AUDIO OUTLETS and HIGH CURRENT OUTLETS always ensure that speakers and power amplifiers are the last to turn on and the first to turn off, thereby preventing the dreaded ‘pop’ that can occur if speakers receive power at the same time as sound sources.
An attractive front panel provides two filtered UNSWITCHED OUTLETS for convenience alongside a (5V 1A) USB CHARGER connection and an all-important suite of status and alert capabilities, courtesy of VOLTAGE MONITOR and AMPERAGE MONITOR metering for real-time analysis, as well as Ground OK, Wiring Fault, Clean Power On, Abnormal Voltage, and Protection On LED (Light Emitting Diode) status. An audio alarm also helps highlight Abnormal Voltage, upping the ante when it comes to providing protection for gear connected to the PG-2 peak performance power conditioner, while front- and back panel-positioned XLR lamp connectors clearly assist in helping shed light on the situation. Ultimately, users can rest easy knowing that the safety of their gear is at the considered core of Black Lion Audio’s latest design.
PG-2 is available to purchase through Black Lion Audio’s growing global network of dealers/distributors (https://www.blacklionaudio.com/dealers)
with a MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) of $399.00 USD and an SSP (Suggested Selling Price) of €399.00 EUR (excluding VAT).
For more in-depth information, please visit the dedicated PG-2 webpage here:
About Black Lion Audio (www.blacklionaudio.com)
Founded in 2006, Black Lion Audio is a boutique audio company based in Chicago. Collectively it takes pride in providing customers with outstanding quality gear for its recording studios at prices that are ridiculously affordable. As such, the company has built a reputation for supplying superior quality sound in a cost-effective manner within the space of a few short years. Yet, given the current economic climate, it is no wonder that major labels, project studios, software companies, and high-profile tracking and mix engineers make up a significant portion of the company’s client base. Indeed, its work can be heard in award-winning major motion picture scores and soundtracks, major television shows and commercials, as well as being utilized by prestigious organizations and major label acts alike.
© 2021 Black Lion Audio
A percussion instrument made from the sounds of tapping, knocking, hitting, and scraping a violin, viola, cello, and bass. Recorded during the Solo Strings Untamed sessions, we captured 40 unique sounds. With a real human feeling behind each one, some of the sounds are more traditional, whilst others are much more experimental.
Included are over 200 drag-and-drop MIDI loops written and performed by percussionists. A brilliant starting point if you need a hit of instant inspiration. Equally helpful if you’re on a tight deadline and just need something that works.
Either way, this is a percussion sample library that’s just a bit different. It’s right at home in a rhythmical string
quartet arrangements as well as full-on action cues when you need something that doesn’t sound like
every other composer’s taiko drums.
Percussion Untamed Features:
Available NOW at the special introductory price of $19 ($29 after June 17)
More details and ordering here: Percussion Untamed
and IK’s industry-leading tape-modeling technology
May 20, 2021 – IK Multimedia releases SampleTron 2, the rebirth of analog tape-based sampling. SampleTron 2 combines the powerful sound engine of IK’s award-winning SampleTank 4 with IK’s industry-leading tape modeling technology to recreate the distinctive, ultra-vibey sounds of tape-based samplers from the ’60s and ’70s, along with quirky early digital sample players and vocoders.
This comprehensive collection features deep sampling of vintage Mellotron® and Chamberlin tapes, a collection of new acoustic “non-Tron” sounds with tape processing, and now enables users to load their own samples and create modern audiophile Tron sounds that are uniquely theirs.
SampleTron 2 comes with a vast library of over 400 “tracks” that users can load into any preset – up to 3 at once – and then individually process with IK’s cutting-edge tape modeling DSP for ultimate tone-shaping flexibility.
A Tron treasure trove
While an extensive collection of new, original samples of vintage Mellotron and Chamberlin are included, SampleTron 2 also shines where it processes IK’s acoustic non-Tron material. Here users gain access to exciting new sounds with the choir, strings, brass, organ, piano, bass, and even synths and vocoders that all come with SampleTron 2.
IK has also added vintage digital sample-based instruments such as the Mattel Optigan, Vako Orchestron, and 360 Systems Digital Keyboard to give users more creative options than any other Tron collection. And to complete the circle, included is the full content of the much-revered original IK SampleTron product to bring legacy users totally up to date.
SANTA MONICA, CA, USA: following hot on the heels of Zen Go Synergy Core, introduced earlier this year to widespread critical acclaim as the high-end professional audio equipment manufacturer’s first bus-powered, truly portable (4 x 8 USB-C) audio interface, Antelope Audio is proud to announce the upcoming availability of its Zen Q Synergy Core bigger brother — effectively empowering small- to mid-sized studio setups with high-end technology to take the next step in their creative quest for high-definition audio as a 14 x 10 desktop bus-powered audio interface with Thunderbolt™ 3 connectivity, combining Antelope Audio’s acclaimed AD/DA converters, Discrete ultra-linear mic pre-amps, and 64-bit AFC™ (Acoustically Focused Clocking) technology with impressive I/O capabilities and an accomplished collection of real-time-processed analog-modeled effects — as of May 20…
Realizing recording, mixing, and playback at up to 24-bit/192kHz, Zen Q Synergy Core clearly combines all the
core performance qualities for which Antelope Audio’s acclaimed audio interfaces are known — class-leading AD/DA converter chips granting (up to) 127dB of headroom with undeniable definition; two ultra-linear pre-amps featuring true console-grade circuitry imparting warmth and capturing the natural details of any recorded instrument or voice; and proprietary 64-bit AFC™ and jitter management algorithm enabling efficient AD/DA conversion with increased sound width, separation, and detail — to achieve a sonically-precise studio sound while reaping the benefits of seamless workflow from any desktop-based setup.
Signature Auraverb (reverb) included, Zen Q Synergy Core comes complete with a virtual library of 37 free effects for its onboard Synergy Core proprietary platform, with real-time effects processing powered by dual DSP (Digital Signal Processing) chips and a single FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) chip to deliver direct hardware monitoring with imperceptible latency. An abundance of analog-modeled compressors, equalizers, and mic pre-amps, as well as guitar cabs and amps for dialing in the perfect guitar tone — everything needed to capture and process audibly rich and dynamic sound — are always available as a result. It is perfectly possible to expand that creative collection courtesy of 50 optional effects — encompassing emulations of classic gear and third-party specialist effects (including Antares’ Auto-Tune Synergy, Grove Hill’s Liverpool, Gyratec’s esteemed EQs, and Inertia Sound Systems’ Instinct Synergy) — from Antelope Audio’s well-stocked Software Store (https://en.antelopeaudio.com/software-store/), starting from only $55.00 USD/€55.00 EUR. Above and beyond that, Zen Q Synergy Core’s modeling engine also allows for pairing with Antelope Audio’s Edge range of microphones for real-time use of vintage microphone emulations.
Equally impressive is Zen Q Synergy Core’s comprehensive connectivity belying its diminutive desktop-friendly footprint. The two Discrete ultra-linear pre-amps with 65dB of gain for studio-quality recordings both work as microphone/line/Hi-Z inputs on rear panel-positioned combo XLR jacks (marked MIC-XLR and LINE / HiZ 1/4” JACK), and supply 48V of phantom power — perfect for those Edge microphones. Moreover, there are two DC-coupled line outputs over TRS (labeled LINE OUT 1 and LINE OUT 2), also allowing the audio interface to transmit CV (Control Voltage) to an analog synthesizer should adventurous users wish to do so. Stereo monitoring comes courtesy of another two TRS outputs (marked MONITOR 1 and MONITOR 2). It is possible to take advantage of (up to) eight additional channels, digitally, thanks to the ADAT IN connection, with further digital connectivity provided by the two-channel S/PDIF IN and OUT connections. Ultimately, ultra-low latency and utmost stability come courtesy of a bus-powered Thunderbolt™ 3 port providing up to 16 input and 16 output channels for any popular DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) with custom macOS and Windows drivers duly installed. Readily record from any location with no need for a dedicated power source since the audio interface itself is powered by that Thunderbolt™ 3 connection — and all without the user ever having to question Zen Q Synergy Core’s rock-solid reliability. And as if that was not enough to be getting on with, there are also two (front panel-positioned) line/Hi-Z inputs, ideally suited for recording (lower than line level) guitars — hence being labeled G1 and G2 (with an associated guitar icon), alongside two stereo headphone outputs (HP1 and HP1) with independent gain control over TRS.
An advanced software control panel for macOS and Windows facilitates further enhancing workflow — with features including I/O routing that is simplified with pre-configured settings to allow for immediate recording and playback; customizable presets with signal routing, level adjustments, mixer, and effects settings; customizable monitoring mixes with adjustable volume, pan, and reverb; loopback capabilities to stream and record playback and interface inputs simultaneously for a convenient online broadcasting setup — while Zen Q Synergy Core’s front panel provides easily accessible controls over input and output levels, plus other settings, bolstered by a multifunctional IPS (In-Plane Switching) display.
Squeezing such an awe-inspiring array of connectivity and operational flexibility out of such a compact-sized audio interface is an appreciable achievement, allowing Zen Q Synergy Core to be easily integrated into any setup or style of workflow. Indeed, its portability effectively enables users to take their studio wherever they need to go, whether recording on location or performing an onstage live set… stream or record and mix with low latency — and no power supply required!
Zen Q Synergy Core will be shipping in Q2 2021 — at a projected price of $899.00 USD/€899.00 EUR — and available through Antelope Audio’s growing global network of authorized dealers (https://en.antelopeaudio.com/dealers/). Or order online directly from Antelope Audio via the dedicated Zen Go Synergy Core webpage (https://en.antelopeaudio.com/products/zen-q-synergy-core/), which also includes more in-depth info.
Explore Zen Q Synergy Core’s included real-time effects here: https://en.antelopeaudio.com/software-store/?device=173889
About Antelope Audio (www.antelopeaudio.com)
Antelope Audio is a leading manufacturer of high-end professional audio equipment. Founded in 2004 and reinventing the industry with its flawless master clock technologies and versatile multi-channel interface solutions, the company has been steadily expanding its portfolio over the years under the guidance of visionary engineer and CEO Igor Levin. Antelope Audio’s products offer the best of both analog and digital technologies. Among its most recent innovations are compact interfaces with Discrete mic preamps, hardware-based effects modeled to the component level running on a Synergy Core of DSP and FPGA processing, and next-generation modeling microphones. These are distributed through Antelope Audio offices in Europe, the Americas, and Asia, and highly acclaimed by users all over the world. The company’s customers include GRAMMY® award-winning sound engineers, top-tier producers, world-class artists, and some of the most renowned recording, mastering, and post-production facilities around the globe.
© 2021 Antelope Audio
LONDON, UK: having successfully cemented a creative partnership with world-famous Abbey Road Studios late last year as ABBEY ROAD ONE: ORCHESTRAL FOUNDATIONS inaugurated its ABBEY ROAD ONE: FILM SCORING SELECTIONS series showcasing the foundational film scoring sound of Studio One by carefully capturing a full symphony-sized (90-plus-piece) orchestra inside the world’s largest purpose-built recording studio, Spitfire Audio is proud to announce the availability of ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES — following hot on the heels of the similarly smaller ABBEY ROAD ONE: SPARKLING WOODWINDS and ABBEY ROAD ONE: LEGENDARY LOW STRINGS sample libraries captured in that same studio as another customizable classic film-inspired addition to sound palettes the world over, offering a flute and piccolo pairing popularised by the likes of American musical maestro John Williams’ Star Wars themes, themselves clearly counting amongst the most widely-known contributions to modern film music — as of May 13, 2021…
As Abbey Road Studios’ Studio One is one of the world’s premier destinations for film scoring, adding the emotion, mood, and magic to the greatest cinematic storytelling of the last 40 years as the world’s largest purpose-built recording studio, it is hardly surprising that it recently found favor with Thomas Newman and Alan Silvestri, to name but two notable American composers who walked through its iconic doors to respectively record their pre-pandemic scores to the Oscar-winning 1917 and box office-busting Avengers: Endgame during 2019, as well as playing host to dynamic duo Stephen Barton and Gordy Haab’s score to the multi-million-selling Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order action-adventure game that same year. Yet arguably less surprising is the fact that ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES found Spitfire Audio at Abbey Road Studios’ Studio One, after which this latest addition to the sound-specializing British music technology company’s classic film-inspired ABBEY ROAD ONE: FILM SCORING SELECTIONS series owes (part of) its notable name.
Working with Abbey Road Studios in a continued creative partnership putting the top-tier, sought-after sound of Studio One itself into the hands of modern-day media composers the world over, ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES facilitates a wondrous — and wonderfully-recorded — pairing of woodwind, with a piccolo sounding an octave higher than the flutes to double the same part, producing a common, classic sound suited to all genres. Its influences clearly come from the likes of John Williams’ widely-known Star Wars themes… think second theme statement by the trumpets in bars 12-17 in the opening of 1977’s game-changing Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, where a piccolo plays sounding an octave above two flutes. Fast-forwarding for another acclaimed example, ‘This Is Berk’ from the Oscar-nominated score to 2010s How to Train Your Dragon by British film composer John Powell features flutes with a piccolo playing the melody an octave above, accompanying the stirring strings between bars 46-49.
Watch Paul Thomson’s ‘traditional’ walkthrough of ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES here:
It is, indeed, a commonly-used musical device, yet one that can quickly and easily be created with ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES. Fortunately, time spent otherwise layering and mixing can be saved since this has been achieved naturally in the spacious surroundings of Studio One’s renowned recording room — measuring impressively in excess of 90ft/28m by 50ft/16m — while also capturing that sought-after studio sound with a stunning-sounding selection of onboard mics and mixes options that are consistent across the whole of the ABBEY ROAD ONE: FILM SCORING SELECTIONS series, with flutes singing so beautifully in the wondrous reverberant acoustics of Studio One.
Perfectly positioned to put ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES into its rightful place in the ABBEY ROAD ONE: FILM SCORING SELECTIONS series, Spitfire Audio co-founder and composer Paul Thomson begins by saying, “Each of these selections is designed to do a particular job incredibly well, and we’ve come up with new techniques for sampling, and for recording the different types of elements that we need to get the performance to be absolutely brilliant,” before diving deeper: “What you’re hearing here is two flutes and a piccolo an octave above them — a common pairing in the orchestral repertoire. It pretty much matches up the range of the piccolo with the range of the flute, so you’re getting a very close-matched timbre between the two instruments. You’ve got the body and fatness of the two flutes, and then you’ve got the kind of extra sparkly, slightly more piercing sound of the piccolo playing the same note but an octave up, which is very useful.”
Ultimately, ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES comprises — self-explanatory— Long, short Staccato, short Marcato, and various short MORDENT articulations, as well as stunning legato performances captured with Spitfire Audio’s newfound approach to offer a realism like never before. Back to the performing Paul Thomson: “You’ll recognize the sound of the MORDENT — a sound that’s featured heavily in the score to E.T. by John Williams… we have minor and major versions of these, and not only 2nds but also the minor and major 3rds, so you’ve pretty much got everything that you need to cover all kinds of different combinations to make exactly the chord that you want to use for those kinds of accent parts. It’s incredibly useful and performed in that style and that way that we recognize and that we hear in film scores. Our WONDROUS LEGATO is designed so that you can play beautiful, lyrical melodies with it, but it also works if you play fast — agile and scurrying for those really great runs when you need to amp up the excitement. There’s a Staccato — nice and tight, and then we have a Marcato — a longer short note, played with much more weight at the front of the note, which gives it more of a weighty, stately kind of feel.”
History has a way of taking care of itself — suffice it to say that Abbey Road Studios has history, having opened the world’s first purpose-built recording studio on November 12, 1931; for its own contribution, Spitfire Audio has been busying itself with writing its own (14-year-and-counting) chapter into recording history as a British music technology company that specializes in making sounds for film composers. While wondrous thematic scoring from film composers past and present are preserved for playback on screen and on record at any time, thanks to the stunning-sounding latest library formed from Spitfire Audio’s continued creative partnership with Abbey Road Studios, future film composition could well be in the hands of anyone inspired by the many mentionable Abbey Road-recorded film scores that inspired ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES.
ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES is available as an AAX-, AU-, VST2-, and VST3-compatible, NKS (Native Kontrol Standard)-ready plug-in that loads directly into a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) at an attractive MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price) of only £49.00 GBP (inc. VAT)/$49.00 USD/€49.00 EUR (inc. VAT) from here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/a-z/abbey-road-one-wondrous-flutes/
The ABBEY ROAD ONE: FILM SCORING SELECTIONS series-inaugurating ABBEY ROAD ONE: ORCHESTRAL FOUNDATIONS is itself available as an AAX-, AU-, VST2-, and VST3-compatible, NKS-ready plug-in that loads directly into a DAW for an MSRP of £399.00 GBP (inc. VAT)/$449.00 USD/€449.00 EUR (inc. VAT) — from here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/a-z/abbey-road-one-orchestral-foundations/
Spitfire Audio’s namesake Spitfire Audio application allows anyone to buy now and download anytime and is available for free from here: http://www.spitfireaudio.com/info/library-manager/
For more in-depth info, including some superb-sounding audio demos, please visit the dedicated ABBEY ROAD ONE: WONDROUS FLUTES webpage here: https://www.spitfireaudio.com/shop/a-z/abbey-road-one-wondrous-flutes/
About Spitfire Audio (www.spitfireaudio.com)
Spitfire Audio is a British music technology company that specializes in sounds — sample libraries, virtual instruments, and other useful software devices. It collaborates with the best composers, artists, and engineers in the world to build musical tools that sound great and are exciting to use.
About Abbey Road Studios (www.abbeyroad.com)
Abbey Road Studios is the most famous recording studio in the world and a global music icon. It was declared an English Heritage Grade II listed site in 2010, but the focus continues to be on the future and helping to spread the expertise and knowledge present within the building to a new generation of musicians, engineers, and producers around the world.
© 2021 Spitfire Audio Holdings Limited
AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands, May 10, 2021. FabFilter is proud to announce the immediate availability of FabFilter Timeless 3, the latest version of its award-winning tape delay plugin. Timeless 3 introduces a streamlined new interface, five feedback circuit effects, more filters, up to 16 delay taps, improved filter, and saturation algorithms, a revised preset library, and more. With its dual-delay architecture and limitless modulation system, it’s the go-to plugin for both bread-and-butter echoes and spectacular creative effects.
Taking Timeless to new sonic heights — with particular attention paid to the temporal response of the feedback circuit, FabFilter has upgraded and optimized its analog-modeling algorithms from top to bottom. The results are its warmest filters and smoothest saturation yet, delivering epic echo-based effects of unrivaled clarity, presence, and character.
Timeless 3 enables users to design even the most intricate delay effects faster and more efficiently than ever. The completely redesigned interface greatly simplifies operation without compromising the feature set in any way and is presented with a new, darker color scheme that’s easier on the eye during long sessions. The all-new delay display provides intuitive visualization and tweaking of delay time, feedback, and mix settings, while the interactive filter display makes shaping the frequency response a snap, and the stunning full-screen mode expands the GUI for maximum focus. Modulation sources and targets now visualize modulation signals with animated collars and tracks, and the new source flow area provides an engaging overview of all active modulations.
Color the sound of the delays with Timeless 3’s five new ‘one-knob feedback effect modules. Add analog-style saturation and digital distortion with Drive and Lo-Fi; soften, smear, and ‘reverb-ify’ the signal with the Diffuse knob; dial-in instant compression or gating with Dynamics; and shift the feedback up to an octave up or down with the Pitch processor. Needless to say, all five are available as modulation targets, too, so it’s easy to get them moving with Timeless 3’s XLFOs, Envelope Followers, XY Controllers, MIDI CCs, and more.
Tripling the number available in version 2, Timeless 3 provides six multimode filters with which to sculpt delays. Each filter is instantiated and adjusted directly in the interactive filter display and offers a choice of high-pass, low-pass, band-pass, bell, shelf, and notch modes. Apply all six in series or parallel, or with three filters on each L/R channel for cross-feedback-enhanced stereo effects. Whether dialed in for precision equalization or modulated for acrobatic feedback manipulation, Timeless 3’s filters put no limits on frequency shaping and sound incredible.
New and improved presets
The factory preset library has been rebuilt from the ground up to maximize its usability, incorporating Timeless 3’s new feedback effects and filters, and reorganized to make it easier to find the effect needed for any situation. From focused instrument-specific treatments, dubbed-out echo-scapes, and spacious reverb to a vast range of complex modulation-based special FX, the Timeless 3 preset library is bursting with inspirational setups for use in their own right, or as jumping-off points for creating original patches.
∙ Fully redesigned, highly-simplified interface, with an easy workflow and new modulation engine
∙ Dual delay lines (5 ms to 5 sec) with host tempo sync and panning
∙ Tape delay or time-stretching behavior when changing the delay time
∙ Feedback, cross-feedback, phase inversion, and ping-pong mode
∙ Up to six analog-style multimode filters with filter panning
∙ All-new interactive delay and filter displays simplify operation by enabling direct editing of delay times, feedback, filter frequencies, panning, and more
∙ Create rhythmic patterns using up to 16 delay taps, which can be controlled and modulated individually
∙ Delay freeze with modulation
∙ Drive, Lo-Fi, Diffuse, Dynamics, and Pitch effects for processing the feedback circuit
∙ Endless modulation options, with as many 16-step XLFOs, XY controllers, envelope generators, envelope followers, and MIDI sources as desired
∙ Full visual feedback of modulation via parameter animation and ‘source flow’
∙ Stereo width control
∙ Mid/side processing
∙ Resizable interface with full-screen mode
∙ Carefully designed and curated factory presets, plus support for earlier Timeless presets
∙ All the usual features FabFilter users have come to expect: perfectly fine-tuned knobs and controllers, interactive MIDI Learn, undo/redo and A/B switch, Smart Parameter Interpolation for smooth parameter transitions, an extensive help file with interactive help hints, sample-accurate automation, SSE optimization, and more
FabFilter Timeless 3 is now available for EUR 109, USD 129, or GBP 94, supporting both Windows and macOS in VST and VST 3, Audio Units, AAX, and AudioSuite plug-in formats. Bundles with FabFilter Timeless 3 and other FabFilter plug-ins are also available at: www.fabfilter.com/shop
Existing FabFilter customers can purchase or upgrade to FabFilter Timeless 3 with very attractive discounts by logging into their online user account: www.fabfilter.com/myaccount
System requirements are either Windows 10, 8, 7, or Vista (32-bit and 64-bit) and a VST 2/3 host or Pro Tools, or macOS 10.10 or higher (64-bit only) with Intel or Apple Silicon processor, and an Audio Units host, VST 2/3 host, or Pro Tools.
To make self-quarantine just a little bit easier during the COVID-19 pandemic, FabFilter offers free 30-day evaluation extensions for all their plug-ins, including Timeless 3.
About FabFilter
Beautiful sound. Fantastic workflow. These are the foundations of FabFilter. Continually challenging and rethinking industry standards, FabFilter creates powerful audio plug-ins with superb sound quality and innovative interfaces. FabFilter was founded in 2002 by Frederik Slijkerman and Floris Klinkert and is based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
© 2021 FabFilter Software Instruments
PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC: independent development teams federation United Plugins is proud to announce the availability of Expanse 3D — the latest plug-in from founding partner JMG Sound, this time taking advantage of the latest developments in psychoacoustic processing, promoting super-massive-sounding music-making by effectively exploding tracks in three different dimensions to make them sound deeper, wider, and bigger — as of May 5…
It is widely accepted, flat-earthers notwithstanding, that the world is not flat — after all, the idea of a spherical Earth was first floated around by ancient Ionian Greek philosopher Pythagoras around 500 BC and validated by ancient Greek philosopher and polymath Aristotle a couple of centuries later, so why settle for flat-sounding music-making when fast-forwarding millennia to today’s DAW-driven production world? Which was exactly the thinking behind Expanse 3D, the latest plug-in from United Plugins founding partner JMG Sound, specializing in making use of complex audio processing techniques but balancing them with easy-to-use controls, as established in its previous products, Hyperspace, Transmutator, and Orbitron. Or, quite literally putting it into words, WIDTH, DEPTH, and HEIGHT (with two, three, and four associated algorithmic modes to respectively choose from), as well as the self-explanatory IN (controls the input gain with a range of -24dB to +24dB) and OUT (controls the output gain with a range of -24dB to +24dB), in the case of Expanse 3D, which applies a liberal dusting of psychoacoustic magic to achieve the three-dimensional feel focused in its appropriate appellation using a combination of analog-type saturation, spectral phase offsetting, re-synthesis, intricate delay networks, and more, making it a perfect candidate for mixing, mastering, and sound design — duly helping to glue sounds together while creating contrast and definition between sounds in a mix.
WIDTH is an advanced spectral phase processor for creating extended width while remaining natural and transparent. Tight bass is achieved by reducing stereo from the sub while widening progressively up to higher frequencies. Furthermore, it is fully mono-compatible while preserving position focus, and can generate stereo from mono. This time there are two modes to choose from — Normal and Alternate, albeit both work in much the same way but with different frequency points, and each mode has a normal and an inverted implementation. In essence, grouping elements in a mix might be better served by sharing the same mode. More commonly, different modes can be used when wishing to separate elements — such as guitar and piano, for example — so that they will not share the same frequency offsets.
See and hear Expanse 3D in action in United Plugins’ illuminating introductory video here:
DEPTH — a complex algorithm of delay networks with channel and phase processing — enhances the perception of depth and adds space. Speaking of which, this can be used to add dynamic contrast between separate sounds and glue multiple elements together for a more cohesive mix. Modes available here have different delay times in the algorithm — namely, Normal, which will work best on the majority of sounds as a default; Tight, which uses shorter delays, so will work better for percussive sounds, such as drums; and Deep, which uses larger delays resulting in a deep effect better suited to sounds with a soft attack, such as pads.
HEIGHT helps make sounds larger than life by extending out the highs and low end. Expanse 3D generates additional harmonics to deliver deeper bass and brighter treble — unlike traditional EQ that boosts existing frequencies. Furthermore, it greatly improves the perception of low frequencies on speakers less able to produce them while adding controlled power and punch to larger systems. Any audio exhibiting little low- or high-frequency content may be relatively unaffected by HEIGHT; however, this can be compensated for by extending the range of the processor with the associated Ext. Lo+Hi algorithmic mode; it stands to reason, therefore, that Ext. Lo assists audio with little bass and Ext. Hi assists audio with little treble, while — for the most part — Normal will be the best choice, especially for full mixes.
Those three-dimension enhancers each implement finely-tuned saturation in their processing. By being modeled on analog distortion, all nuances such as harmonic distribution, dynamic consistency, and non-linear randomness are captured to add beautifully rich and warm color, assisted by anti-aliasing algorithms. All Expanse 3D processes are applied to the appropriate frequency ranges using high-quality filters causing zero phase shift with no latency, making them suitable for mastering.
Indeed, impact and energy can be greatly improved when mastering using Expanse 3D, with up to 8x oversampling providing the highest quality saturation to add analog color, while the additional harmonics help add clarity. As a result, the whole mix gently becomes more cohesive as the parts share a common space, all of which can be perfectly balanced while retaining the original loudness using the right-click-menu-accessed Auto gain function that measures the loudness of the input and adjusts the output to match — useful for avoiding the ‘louder sounds better’ dilemma.
Defining tracks is at Expanse 3D’s core, of course, creating contrast between musical elements by positioning them in the three-dimensional space, whether widening two sounds with one inverted to separate them, creating dynamic depth between deep and shallow sounds, or brightening sounds to make them stand out from the crowd — all helping to further define the individuality of each part that makes up a complete-, dynamic-, and full-sounding mix.
Thanks to the intelligent way all JMG Sound plug-ins manage bypassing while also compensating for latency to ensure that bypass states are perfectly in sync with each other, there is no need to worry about clicks or harmful noises when Expanse 3D’s bypass parameters are automated. And just like its Hyperspace, Transmutator, and Orbitron siblings, Expanse 3D also intelligently detects whether it makes sense to perform processing at all by temporarily turning on sleep mode if no processing is required, reducing CPU (Central Processing Unit) usage to almost nothing, so saving valuable computing resources for other processes.
Promoting massive-sounding music-making with easy-to-use controls through to CPU saving… Expanse 3D does it all (and more) — with a little help from the latest developments in psychoacoustic processing. Put it this way: working with Expanse 3D on any DAW-driven production is an intelligent musical move in itself!
JMG Sound’s Expanse 3D is available to purchase for a time-limited introductory promo price of only €29.00 EUR until May 31, 2021 — rising thereafter to its regular price of €99.00 EUR — as an AAX-, AU-, VST-, and VST3-compatible plug-in (using internal 64-bit audio processing capable of handling any sample rate) directly from United Plugins here: https://unitedplugins.com/Expanse3D/ (A 15-day, fully-functional trial version for macOS 10.10 and newer and Windows 8/10 can be downloaded for free from here: https://unitedplugins.com/download/)
Note that no iLok, dongle, or internet access is required for Expanse 3D activation. (All United Plugins software uses license
files for activation and owners can freely use purchased software on all their computers as long as they are the user.)
About United Plugins (www.unitedplugins.com)
As implied in the carefully chosen wording for an apt appellation that really represents how the Prague-registered Limited Company came about and what it collectively creates, United Plugins is a federation of small, independent development teams comprised of individuals involved in the music industry. Indeed, the founding triad of FireSonic, JMG Sound, and SounDevice Digital can count engineers, producers, and artists amongst their ‘united’ names. Needless to say, all were seeking the freedom to create the tools that they would like to use in their studios and on their projects. And all agreed that this could be better achieved when working together. Though United Plugins’ proliferating product portfolio may not always be for the musical masses, surely someone, somewhere will always find those tools to be a perfect fit for their own music productions… just like those inventive individuals behind United Plugins’ partner brands, the ranks of which have since swelled to include Muramasa Audio and MeldaProduction. Thanks to the latter letting United Plugins utilize its super-easy licensing system, which is why selected MeldaProduction products are also available from the United Plugins website, a thriving future for the federation is assured.
© 2021 United Plugins