There's soft synths and there's soft synths... and when Rob Papen releases a virtual instrument you can be sure it'll create cutting edge sounds. GW Childs cuts to the chase in this review of Blade.
It's that time of year - your wallet rinsed by the holiday season, and nothing inspirational under the tree. So, find yourself a bargain or two, and maybe reinvigorate your inner composer...
When it comes to ravaging your audio, reach for FXpansion's Maul multiband distortion plug-in. As well as excellent tone shaping abilities, Maul is capable of masterful modulation madness.
Some software synths rely on endless LFOs and complex filters, but don't get close to creating a wonderful sound... not so for Kilohearts' ONE! G. W. Childs discovers more.
If you're looking for a versatile, yet easy to use, soft synth... U-he's Zebra 2 deserves your attention. In this quick tutorial, Toby Pitman shows how to use Zebra 2's wavetable feature.
The original Cinematic Guitars by Sample Logic gained lots of fans, and rightly so... it's an excellent library. Toby Pitman delves deep into its successor and puts it to the test.
Iris, by iZotope, can do a whole lot more than you might think. Sure, it's great for atmospheres and effects... but you can also create stunning pads and even Dubstep Wobble basses! GW shows you how.
Sibilance can be a major problem when recording vocals, regardless of your studio setup. Hollin Jones puts Fabfilter's Pro-DS de-esser to the test on some suitably hissy sounds in this review.
Looking for a way to breathe new life into any sound? Grab hold of FXpansion's Etch (or Etch Red for Reason 6.5) and go wild. G. W. Childs explores the finer points of this filter-tastic plug-in.
There seems to be a growing trend by audio plug-in developers to focus on minimal interfaces with quality sound. GW Childs discovers KiloHearts' Faturator is an excellent distortion unit for all!
When Arturia's Wurlitzer V software instrument became available, G.W. Childs took it for a spin. Find out in this review why he gives it the big thumbs up!
With musicians demanding more and more hardware analog emulations in software format, Mo Volans tried u-he's Diva on for size. To say he was impressed would be an understatement! Read more...
With a number of existing software amp simulation plug-ins already available, Toby Pitman plug-ins to Scuffham Amps S-Gear latest offering and discovers some very pleasing tones for just $75!
Every digital musician has a tool box of plug-ins they depend on. Could iZotope's Alloy 2 be the go-to dynamics and sound shaping plug-in you'll reach for no matter what? Hollin Jones sizes it up.
Many DAWs come with a bundled Multi-band compressor'¦ David Earl puts the McDSP ML4000 ML4 through its paces and discovers there's more to this plug-in than meets the eye.
Is Native Instruments Guitar Rig designed only for guitarists? Simple answer: No! Mo Volans discovers just how useful a tool GR is for processing guitars as it is for a wide variety of other sources.
MPVHub was fortunate enough to get hold of the first copy of FXpansion's new DCAM Dynamics pack. Find out why Hollin Jones finds this to be an excellent suite for the studio musician.
Although drum synths & samplers have become standard fare within most modern DAWs there's still a huge appetite for 3rd party offerings. Hollin Jones trembles not and puts Tremor through its paces.
Twisted Tool create some tasty Reaktor ensembles'¦ so you can imagine our excitement when we received an early copy of their new S-Layer to review! Did it live up to our high expectations? Read on...
Adobe Audition CS6 now supports all 3rd party VST and AU plug-ins and comes bundles with some nifty effects of its own. Hollin Jones gets under the hood and puts them to the test.
To celebrate World Music Day (June 21st, 2012) Arturia are offering their Minimoog-V Original as a free download (TODAY ONLY!) Read on for instructions on how to grab it...