KoreAudio

No new articles for a while

Federico Bersano Begey — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 17:11:00 +0100

Ok, this blog has not seen many updates recently.
Truth is, we have too much going on organizing the courses for the coming year.

You can expect the odd article every now and then but I guess regular posting will be put on hold for at least a few more months.

If you are interested in working with us providing content for the website and blog (tutorials, reviews etc) get in touch by emailing jobs@londonschoolofsound.co.uk – if you are incredibly good at what you do we might need your help.

Chnages to the way PRS pays music on TV to hit composers

Federico Bersano Begey — Fri, 11 May 2007 09:38:00 +0100

A proposal has been put through which will cause music on TV to pay less than it does today unless it's broadcasted during prime-time. If you are a PRS member (or if you see yourself composing music for TV at some point in the future) you ought to read a little more about it.

Quoting from the website (http://www.composersforafairdeal.com)

"This website has been set up in response to the PRS board's proposal to slash the per-minute royalty payout for most television broadcasts. The proposal also includes vastly increasing the royalty payment for any music used during a so-called 'primetime' slot of 6pm until midnight.

We feel these proposals are insane, badly thought through and will be disastrous to the vast majority of composers and publishers whose work is broadcast on British television - just to make a very few top flight composers (the ones who get most of the primetime) a lot richer than they already are.

What's in your Reason Rack?

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 16:49:00 +0000

The Reason Rack offers electronic musicians endless possibilities when it comes to tailoring instrument selections, but if you fancy taking a sneak peak at how the pros have theirs check out the new section on the Propellerhead's website 'What's in your Reason Rack'. Showcasing some very different ways of using the famous Rack, the mini-site contains user-stories and Reason tips from the likes of DJ Babu of Dilated Peoples and Arabian Prince, and offers plenty by way of inspiration.

Why we've given up teaching NI's Traktor

Federico Bersano Begey — Sun, 04 Mar 2007 00:47:00 +0000

Everywhere you look these days there is a new DJ control surface which supposedly allows you to get 'hands-on' control on your favourite DJ software. We have tried almost everything on the market and many of those control surfaces are available to our students: from the humble Hercules DJ console (actually quite good) to the luxurious Allen & Heat Xone 3D (very good) there is something for everyone.

All these controller come with a layout or a preset for Native Instruments' Traktor, and actually some of these controllers come even bundled together with a 'lite' version of Traktor.
You will be then forgiven for assuming that Traktor is, you know, like.. a software that can be used to ...err ... mix records. Like a DJ. It certainly is the world's best known product claiming to be a DJ software.
Why otherwise would every manufacturer worry about reassuring the world about Traktor compatibility?
Maybe, I dare suggest, because they all wanted so desperately to see the emperor's new clothes.

Native Instruments has over the years created great and greater products, fantastic synthesizers and samplers: thanks to the sound quality, reliability, stilish graphic interface of their instruments they have grown in to quite a big company, and their marketing skills have grown likewise. When two or three years ago no one cared about guitars and DJs were the new big thing, everyone rushed in to this market. Native Instruments did so too, allowing their Traktor 2 (which wasn't too bad) to be developed in to the monster it is today: obviously they never felt like asking a real DJ about the new user interface.

When the new software was released, ambitiously named 'Traktor 3 DJ Studio' I must admit I fell for it like everyone else: the new interface looked glorious, maybe a bit complicated but you always assume it will all become obvious as soon as you familiarize yourself with the controls. There is a built-in online record store, great! Software emulations of 4 different mixers, Wow! and 4 turntables! and support for time code vynil, and effects, and more effects, and the ability to assign midi controllers to everything, and more and more and more.
But can you find the first beat of a track and set a CUE point? no. It creates automatically a temporary CUE point which is lost as soon as you stop again. Or you can go to extreme lenghts to create a permanent cue point, but you have to go to a special panel, choose from a list of different markers, give it a name (!) and then there is no single button to recall it.
Can you assing a midi controller to the pitch control? Yes, but it won't work as you expect it to work (this would require a lengthy explanation, just try yourself to assign a fader control, like that of a technics turntable. In fact try to assign any controller to anything and enjoy the experience!).
These little details, together with the general mess that is the interface, make Traktor simply impossible to use. For one year I have tried and tried again, I have read the manual twice and I have asked everyone I could find. And the only people I found using Traktor, when questioned about mixing, admitted they don't use it 'like that' – they use it as a juke-box, or just with time-coded vinyl (therefore essentially bypassing the stupid interface), or they claim they can mix but actually do not attempt more than three consecutive (pre-prepared) tracks. In fact the more I asked the more it became difficult to find a single DJ in the world that actually uses Traktor. In the meantime Native Instruments has introduced a few fixes, dramatically dropped the price and dropped the pretentious 'Studio' part of the name. Is it better now? No.

How bad is Traktor 3 becomes even more obvious as soon as you try a different solution. Virtual DJ is exactly everything that Traktor is not, it does pretty much the same stuff, actually it does more because it allows mixing and scratching with video files too, and is so far the best DJ software I have tried. The problem with Virtual DJ as far as we are concerned is that it works only on Windows. I can always reboot my macbook in Windows and use it, but we'd like to be able to have a software that we can teach for our DJ courses that is compatible with both platforms.

Now good news might be coming from Numark: thety have adopted Virtual Dj and renamed it Cue (ironically naming it with the main feature broken in Traktor), and apparently a Mac version is on the way. If everything goes well we will be trying it soon and we will include it in our DJ classes.

There are a few other options available out there, Serato Scratch is probably the best but also the most expensive and it only makes sense when used with time-coded vinyl, and M-Audio Torq is new on the market, we'll see. If any one out there has a suggestion for which system we should adopt we'd like to hear it. As long as you don't mention Traktor.

Sounds Expo 2007, Olympia 1-3 March

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 15:20:00 +0000

Now in its sixth year, Sounds Expo is a crucial date in the electronic musicians diary. You'll get the chance to see all the major manufacturers latest gear, and attend seminars given by the team behind Sound on Sound magazine. We’ll be there – which is reason enough to attend – but if you want to check out who else will be, go to www.sounds-expo.co.uk.

Born to Rock, Harrods 1 February - 3 March

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 15:15:00 +0000

Guitar fetishists best head down to Harrods to see the only UK leg of the Born to Rock electric exhibition. Some of the world's most collectable electric guitars will be on show, including Gibson's, Fenders and Rickenbackers owned by the likes of Hendrix, Van Morrison and Muddy Waters. Apple will also be there to demonstrate the latest guitar recording technology, so it's well worth a visit.

One for the armchair clubbers out there

Tue, 30 Jan 2007 17:54:00 +0000

There's something about graphic equalisers that brings the geek out in all of us. Those little multi-coloured flashing lights reminiscent of Knightrider do it for us ever time, so you can imagine our excitement when we saw this cushion with little dancing figures jumping and flashing up and down to the beat!

Coined the I-Cushion (presumably on account of the fact the dancers seem to have been imported direct from an iPod ad), each one comes with its own built-in power unit and sound sensor to get the party started. You can get your hands on one for just £20 from Boystuff.co.uk.

Mixing Masterclass – new date announced!

Thu, 25 Jan 2007 18:28:00 +0000

Ok, time has now officially run out to book your place on 24 February's Mixing Masterclass…but the good news is following huge popular demand we've managed to talk Matt Foster into running another session the following day (Sunday 25 February). The cost of the day remains £80 (£50 for ex LSS students), and interested parties should get in touch soon by emailing info@londonschoolofsound.co.uk.

Remix Black Strobe and win an official release!

Thu, 25 Jan 2007 15:42:00 +0000

If electro's your thing then this is a perfect opportunity to get your foot in the revolving door of dance. The Black Strobe boys have kindly offered up the parts to their track Shining Bright Star to download as part of a remix competition. All you have to do is create something that stands out from the rest and you could win the chance to get your remix released (along with commanding a remix fee), and you may even get to play with Black Strobe on their next tour. Click here for more details and the parts.

Cakewalk's SONAR gets free Vista support upgrade

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:42:00 +0000

Cakewalk has been quick of the mark, making SONAR the first DAW to provide native support for Windows Vista in both 32-bit and 64-bit modes. Not only that, it's offering it as a free upgrade (6.2) and throwing in a host of other goodies for good measure. New to 6.2 are MIDI Input Quantize, enhancements to AudioSnap for smoother audio quantize and improvements to the ACT (Active Controller Technology) features – not to mention a curious feature allowing you to see through plugins. For the full spec sheet click here.

SONAR 6.2 will be available late January as a free download from www.cakewalk.com for all registered SONAR 6 Producer and Studio Edition customers.

Propellerhead announce new Reggaeton Reason ReFill

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:11:00 +0000

Three-time Grammy winners The Salazar Brothers have kindly offered their services for the latest Reason ReFill – Reggeaton. For those of you not down with the kids, Reggeaton blends Jamaican music influences of reggae and dancehall with those of Latin America and hip hop. The ReFill contains over 360MB of samples and loops, with 220 drum and percussion REX files, 75 NN-XT sampler patches, vocals and 20 starter demo tracks. Due first quarter 2007, check out the Propellerhead's online store for more.

Numark preview NuVJ video controller

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 15:38:00 +0000

Fresh from taking on the iPod mixer market, Numark has branched out and teamed up with ArKaos to launch the NuVJ video controller. Targeted at DJs wanting to synchronize video with their set, the NuVJ is a hardware/software solution that allows the user to trigger images and clips, add effects, and mix them to music using a crossfader in much the same way as they would do normally. But if all that sounds too much like hard work, you could always set the NuVJ to Auto and let it sort itself out to the beat of the music.

From the looks of it, the NuVJ is aimed at the budget market – relying on your computer's graphics card when it comes to video duties rather than the hardware itself. Compatible with both Macs and PCs, the NuVJ can be used on both laptops and rack-mounted servers.

No word yet on availability or pricing, but if you fancy the sound of VJing keep your eyes peeled on the LSS site for details on our up-coming VJ course.

Riot: Can New Music change the world?

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 15:03:00 +0000

Riot as celebration/Riot as protest:
Part of spnm’s Second Sight series, spnm presents a riotous concert and discussion of theatrical and political new music. Loré Lixenberg and BackBeat perform works for voice and percussion quartet in events designed by multimedia artist Julia Bardsley. Venue: London LSO St Luke’s, Friday 9 February 7pm

D-Fuse VJ Showcase at Apple’s London Regent Street store

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 15:01:00 +0000

VJ experts and authors of VJ: Audiovisual Art + VJ Culture D-Fuse will be giving a talk at the Apple Store Regent Street on Thursday 1 February. They’ll be sharing some of their secrets to creating a successful live performance, so anyone interested in taking our up-coming VJ course should attend to get a head start.

Malcolm MacLaren documentary screening

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 14:58:00 +0000

Former Sex Pistols’ manager talks about the good old days in the comfort of LSS’s studio, in this one-off documentary shot late last year. Check it out at London’s avantgarde arts centre, The Horse Hospital, on Thursday 1st of February, 7.30pm. Horses optional.

Transcend launch T.sonic 820 DAP player with A-B repeat

Mon, 22 Jan 2007 13:25:00 +0000

Guitarists having problems training their fingers to master that fiddly lead part could find salvation in Transcend’s new flash audio player. The T.sonic 820 comes complete with an A-B track section repeat feature, which combined with its track speed control should prove an invaluable practice aide.

The mini flash player comes in two flavours – a 2GB white player and a 4GB black number. It's not quite as appealing as the nano, admittedly, and bears more resemblance to a cheap mobile phone than a cutting-edge music player. That said, if you're the kind of person to buy a DAP purely for a section-repeat feature you probably don't care!

Pricing and availability have yet to be announced, but for more specs go to the Transcend official site.

Mixing Masterclass – time running out!

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 16:29:00 +0000

There’s still time if you’re quick to book a place on our exclusive one-day Mixing Masterclass taking place on Saturday 24 February. Experienced engineer Matt Foster will take you through a typical professional mixing session from start to finish, demonstrating the techniques that will get your demos sounding polished. The Masterclass costs £80 (£50 for ex-students), and booking details can be found here. Remember, this is an advanced session so no newbies please.

Allen & Heath launch Xone:2D add-on MIDI controller

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 16:15:00 +0000

Top marks to Allen & Heath for listening to the mutterings of all those Xone-owning Ableton fanatics, rueing their mixer's lack of MIDI. The company has decided to take a saw to its Xone:3D and is now offering the controller section as an add-on to your existing analogue mixer for compatibility with must-have software of the moment Ableton Live and Traktor.

The Xone:2D is compatible with most DJ setups (although will look a whole load better next to a fellow Xone family member), and combines a 4 stereo channel USB soundcard and MIDI controller. Imported from the Xone:3D is the LED display BPM counter and MIDI clock generator, complete with nudge facility – not to mention plenty of MIDI controls to map.

You want it, I know, but you'll have to part with more than £500 to get it. Why is life so unfair…

Shipping March 2007, £499 (excluding VAT).

Is that a Kaoss Pad in your pocket…

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 13:11:00 +0000

Fresh from releasing quite possibly the coolest piece of kit ever in the form of the KP3, Korg has expanded the Kaoss Pad family with a mini version of everyone's favourite DJ tool. The mini-KP, previewed at NAMM, comes with the standard XY controller and still packs a punch in the features department with 100 effects, tap tempo/auto-detect tempo and two memory keys.

As ever, size comes at a cost. Those looking to use the mini-KP as a MIDI controller will be sorely disappointed by the lack of a MIDI jack, and being battery powered it will only stand up to five hours of use so no marathon sets.

Serious users may well turn their noses up, but the mini-KP still looks like a great toy to have a bit of fun with.
Due out in the US in March with a list price of $250.

So there you have it, another blog!

Federico Bersano Begey — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 09:59:00 +0000

We're starting this blog to have a quick way to inform LSS students and fellow music-makers at large about musical and technological stuff that would otherwise go unnoticed. It will also be a place to express opinions that wouldn't have a place anywhere on the official website of the London School of Sound, and to entertain open-minded discussions on the craft of music-making, the music industry etc. Comments, questions and contributions are welcome, and hopefully we'll find a place in your bookmarks.

One day we'll all be doing this...

Federico Bersano Begey — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 15:44:00 +0000