Author: George Robinson

[the_ad_placement id=”top-content-300×250″] Austrian developers Sonible released their first plugin in 2015, the well-regarded frei:raum. frei:raum incorporated a number of different equalizer-based features and algorithms, all brought together to essentially semi-automate certain key mixing tasks and help create a faster workflow and fewer mix headaches. Since then, Sonible have continued to develop the various frei:raum features, which can now be had as a series of three separate plugins: proximity:EQ+, entropy:EQ+ and smart:EQ+. The three plugins complement each other well and can still be bought together as the EQ+ Bundle, but it’s the last one, smart:EQ+, that we’ll be taking a closer…

Point Blank and Smirnoff Sound Collective took over fabric’s room 2 for an evening of panel discussions & masterclasses Last month Point Blank curated and hosted a very special event in collaboration with Smirnoff Sound Collective & fabric. This 360 masterclass session – entitled ‘From Dancefloors To Record Stores’ – was designed to help inspire and enable creativity in music production, promotion and performance skills. Part of the ‘Women Shaping Tomorrow’ series, the event was created to help break down barriers for women in electronic music, with the event series announced on International Women’s Day and forming part of the Smirnoff Sound Collective’s…

[the_ad_placement id=”top-content-300×250″] Wave Alchemy have followed up on their respected drum sample packs and previous Kontakt instruments, bringing all of their accumulated expertise and passion for drum sampling to bear on their latest release, the vintage drum machine sample monster Revolution. As this has come out since our recent 25 Best Drum Plugins post and so wasn’t featured there, I thought I’d go a little more in-depth and do a proper review, talking through some of the standout features and workflow, and a little background on the included drum machines. What Is Wave Alchemy’s Revolution? Revolution is Wave Alchemy’s most comprehensive product to…

With the Easter weekend and holiday period upon us, that also means some of the best deals of the year for musicians and producers. Here we’re compiling a selection of the best current promotions on VST instruments, effects plugins, sample and preset packs, and anything else that comes up that we think is worth checking out!

[the_ad_placement id=”top-content-300×250″] Choosing your primary music production software platform is a key decision in every musician and producers development. It’s also worth revisiting the subject every so often, as the technology constantly develops, new versions are released and innovative features are introduced which over time also find their way into rival platforms. Why is your choice of DAW important? The platform that you use for recording, arranging and mixing will significantly inform the creative decisions and paths you take as you develop and shape your musical ideas through each stage of the production process. This is especially true for electronic styles, where the music often…

Reverb is a vital component of every mix, but not all reverb plugins are created equal… so I’ve compiled a rundown of the very best reverb plugins, whatever your price range.

As Black Friday segues into Cyber Monday, we’ve put together a second round of the best deals for musicians and producers of all styles, and for all budgets. (All of the deals in our original Black Friday round-up are also still valid and can be found here). Whether you’re producing electronic music, recording guitars, or working on video and film sound design and composition, and whether you skew towards vintage analogue or sharp and futuristic (or indeed a mix of the two), we’ve highlighted some ridiculous savings and top picks that you should consider checking out: 1. Heavyocity Gravity: 50% OFF 22…

[the_ad_placement id=”top-content-300×250″] Following our recent round up of 25 of the best drum plugins for a variety of genres and production styles, we asked producer Jonny Strinati to take us through some key techniques for programming certain drum sounds, highlighting some of the best regarded plugin tools for particular drum production tasks, and to provide some general drum workflow tips and tricks that everyone should be implementing in their productions. Also feel free to add your own tips and tricks in the comments at the foot of the page! 1. Designing Gritty Tom Perc Basslines For House And Techno With Sylenth1 You can…

[the_ad_placement id=”top-content-300×250″] Having previously covered many of the best synths for bass and modern electronic music, as well as key processors from compressors to saturators to delays, we thought it was about time we provided an in-depth run-down of the very best drum plugin options available right now. There’s a wide-ranging selection, from classic hardware drum machine emulations to cutting-edge drum synths, samplers, step sequencers and all-in-one grooveboxes – as well as ROMplers and virtual studio acoustic drum kits for creating the most authentic-sounding ‘live’ drum tracks. We’ve included the well-known favourites and industry standard drum plugins alongside some of the more…

[adrotate banner=”4″] With the shortcomings of the more established music platforms becoming more apparent in recent months, especially in regard to how they treat and compensate the creators at the heart of their business, it seems the conditions and timing are right for alternatives to come to the fore. Enter Orfium, a fast-developing streaming service that has quietly taken on board all the gripes users have voiced about Soundcloud, uncertainty around Beatport and the rest, and have created a new model that promises to reorient music distribution back around artists, giving them a fairer proportion – a full 80% – of streaming royalties…