CATEGORIES
15 questions with…ISHMAEL ENSEMBLE
Ishmael Ensemble is a collective of Bristolian musicians, throwing elements of that city’s rich and varied history into a melting pot of styles and fusions. ‘Experimental jazz’ is one label, only the results are much better than that sounds, and have already drawn praise from the national press and landed the band two BBC sessions…
Audio Imperia Solo $299 PC MAC
With many orchestral libraries offering music en masse, Audio Imperia distill things to a singularity, going for virtuoso with Solo
15 questions with…BOMBA ESTÉREO
As one of the biggest bands in South America, Bomba Estéreo have notched up more views on YouTube than most bands can dream of and have built up a huge audience with five acclaimed album releases and half a dozen Grammy nominations. The band’s founder Simon Mejía shares his refreshing production ethos: “Don’t let your brain lead you…”
4 funk ‘n' disco packs!
We’ve gone deep into the mighty Vault this month to grab three classic funk packs and one disco one to maintain the happy dance summer vibes…
SANDUNES AGAINST THE TIDE
With live performances that ‘reveal an appetite for integrating the worlds of studio and stage’, Sandunes was on something of a roll pre-pandemic, having made a mark at many high profile festivals including Blue Dot, WOMAD, Roskilde and more. However she’s used the enforced time and studio world to come up with her best EP yet, and continue an upward momentum that has brought her sound to the attention of everyone from Ableton to Warp, Bonobo to Red Bull…
ROOM ACOUSTICS IN DEPTH
We’ve just looked at some DIY acoustic solutions. Now some simpler and more ‘pro’ routes to turn your abode into a studio
Toontrack Cinematic Pads - EZ Keys Expansion pack £129 PC MAC
With sound design running through its core, Toontrack’s latest visit to the flicks brings complex pads to a DAW near you!
XILS-lab KaoX €179 PC MAC
FM synthesis is associated with certain typical sounds, but maybe this new synth can expand that palette. Will you order some Kaox?
How To Build A Home Studio
We show you how to turn your humble abode into a recording studio, complete with control room
Koozali SME Server 10
Mayank Sharma has a particular fondness for point-and-click server distributions that roll out in a jiffy and don’t eat into his leisure time.
MakuluLinux LinDoz
Always on the hunt for distros that can help him reel in users to Linux, Mayank Sharma finds one that matches his sensibilities.
RESCUE & REPAIR
Fixit-bot Jonni Bidwell reveals how rescue distros can quickly diagnose and cure diverse Linux problems.
GeForce RTX 3070 Ti
Nvidia’s latest Ti takes aim at AMD’s RX 6800, reveals Jacob Ridley.
BEHIND THE VPN VEIL
If you take your privacy seriously you need to take VPNs seriously. David Rutland goes off the record, on the QT and very hush-hush.
RASPBERRY Pi STREAMING
Camera-shy Jonni Bidwell conquers his fears as he harnesses the power of OBS Studio to stream live to his, er, three followers.
Venom Linux 2.1
Trying to punch above his weight, Mayank Sharma finally finds a source-based distro that’ll satiate his need to run a source-based distro.
Tribblix Milestone 25
Poking his nose where he’s not supposed to, Mayank Sharma finds himself inside a Solaris variant that he just can’t seem to shake off.
WilderMyth
Management doesn’t much like epic storytelling of heroic deeds – even if it is around the watercooler – so Sin Vega is in a lot of trouble.
Apple Pencil
How Apple’s superb stylus does the write thing
Amazon eero 6
Another great mesh router from Amazon
Yoga apps
Down Dog offers 11 yoga styles, and these can be augmented with Boosts that focus on one area of your body.
ViewSonic VP2768a ColorPro
A QHD 2K display boasting good colour and connections
Rapoo 9500M Multi-Mode Desktop Set
A keyboard and mouse combo for Mac, PC and mobile devices
Sony WF-1000XM4
Meet the new boss of the true wireless earbud set
Fantasian
A flawed adventure story
F-Secure TOTAL
Can this Finnish security product compete with the big boys?
Carbon Copy Cloner 6
Backup and disk copying utility
Random Apple Memory The PowerBook Family
Charlotte Henry looks back at the groundbreaking product that launched Apple into the laptop market
Ultimate Guide To iPhone Photography
Discover how to master the controls and settings in your iPhone (and Photos app) to capture well-composed, correctly exposed and artefact-free shots
ARP Odyssey v GForce Oddity v ARP Odyssei
Our second mono to take on its equivalent desktop and iOS software is the ‘other’ 70s classic, the ARP Odyssey. This not only went toe to toe with the Minimoog in that decade, but featured in many a synth pop classic (thanks to just one man), and its forefathers even took on a bunch of aliens, twice… and won!