music production

Is Avid Pro Tools DAW worth buying these days?

Audiomodern updated Soundbox to v1.0.4, which lets you use the platform as a Player for any Soundbox Instrument, even ones not made by Audiomodern. That's pretty sweet, right? You can load third-party Soundbox Instruments into the player without extra costs - install the platform and load up...

I'm trying to figure out how to add "Play from loop start" to a button on my Faderport.

What do you think about "top-down" mixing?

Plughugger released Quantum State, a new sound pack for Vengeance Avenger 2. Five Elektron groove boxes (Monomachine, Analog Rytm, Syntakt, Model Cycles, and Analog Four) were sampled to create 197 fresh sounds. Plughugger wanted to make sounds like classic Elektron gear but used Avenger's...

Music notes can be made sharp or flat to sound higher or lower, like stepping up or down on a piano keyboard. What is a sharp note? A sharp note is played one-half step higher than the regular note. We show this with a ♯ symbol. When you see F♯, you play the one-half step higher note than F. On...

Most piano students try avoiding the D# major scale when learning scales. With six sharps in the key signature, it's one of the more challenging scales to play and understand. But once you break it down, it's not as scary as it seems. The D# major scale uses these notes: D#, E#, F##, G#, A#...

The C# major scale is a musical scale that consists of seven notes. In order, the notes of the C# major scale are: C# - D# - E# - F# - G# - A# - B# To play a C# major scale on an instrument like a piano, start on the note C#, then play the notes in order, going up in pitch until you reach the...

IK Multimedia's latest release, T-RackS Triad Chorus audio plugin, here are the features: Release notes The Triad Chorus brings back the sound of famous chorus effects from the 1980s. Musicians used these effects in many hit songs from that era. The makers kept old analog gear's warm, rich...

Modartt just released Pianoteq v8.4.0 and a new expansion pack! They teamed up with Kawai to create the first official model of the SK-EX Concert Grand piano. Update notes Version 8.4.0 of Pianoteq brings several new features and fixes. The update adds a new Shigeru Kawai SK-EX grand piano to...

FeelYourSound released a new version of ChordPotion, 2.4.0. ChordPotion is a computer program that makes music. You can use ChordPotion to make new songs. It helps you by making riffs and melodies from the chords you give it. It does this very quickly. ChordPotion works with other music...

ZonderP Productions just dropped VeeSTeeEx 1.4.0. You'll love this free wrapper if you use VST 2 plugins on Microsoft Windows. It takes your plugins to the next level with a slick preset management system and other cool features. Want to speed up your workflow? VeeSTeeEx lets you import presets...

Plugin Alliance just dropped a new audio plugin that rolls three top-tier compressors into one. This audio plugin is the digital twin of Bettermaker's C502V hardware. It combines a British classic, a Bettermaker favorite, and an American legend. Mix them on separate left/right, mid/side, and...

Steinberg just dropped Cubase 14, the newest version of its music production suite. It's packed with cool updates, like six new modulator devices, a brand-new Drum Track type, an improved MixConsole, and a revamped Score Editor. The new Drum Track type is a one-stop shop for crafting complex...

Native Instruments just released Maschine 3, its newest beat-making and sampling software, offering some sweet deals on hardware. The new Maschine 3 lets you split stems, edit MIDI better, change tempo for each scene, and work with Kontrol S-Series MK3. You also get the new Maschine Central with...

The mix must sound good on the phone, and key phrases must be audible through the phone's speakers because 95% of your music will be listened to on that device. Even though you have monitors that cost over $3000, the key control for the mix is actually on the phone speakers.

SampleScience made Organic Padscapes, a free ROMpler. They took 12 field recordings and boosted specific frequencies to make them tonal. Like an experimental pad machine, you can play these long field recordings as chords. The sounds are organic and full of harmonics. Here's what you get in...

The B minor scale is one of the minor scales in music. Like all minor scales, it has three forms: natural, harmonic, and melodic. Each form has a different sound and use in music. B Natural Minor Scale The natural minor scale (also called the Aeolian mode) is the basic form of B minor. It uses...

Process Audio has introduced a creative delay plugin engineered for seamless and intuitive delay effect design with reactive and inspiring visual feedback. The rundown of Ripple creative delay plugin Ripple by Process Audio offers a visual delay feature to enhance mixing. It includes five...

Soundiron has just released Harmonic Tides, a new library for creating ethereal sounds from cello harmonics and double bass strings. It works with the full version of Kontakt (6.2.2+) and the free Decent Sampler. Though Harmonic Tides uses traditional orchestral instruments, its unique...