downloads / contents <

cm/downloads
Get this m onth’s content from filesilo.co.uk - see p81

cm/ free plugin

PU LSA R S M A S H E R
Go 'all buttons in’ for the classic British
Mode sound with this amazing free
compressor. On the DVD or File Silo (p81)

, r >
A C O U S TIC
t i
□RUM
M A C H IN E cm /free samples
DRUMS
BEAT, LO O PS & B LEE P S
Two all-new beat sample packs, plus
incredible loops and vintage blips. On the
DVD or download via File Silo (p81)

cm /free videos
M A S T E R C L A S S E S ON FILM
Two masterclass videos on synth filters and
80s music production Download from
File Silo (see p81)

c m / plugin suite
TH E CM PLUGIN SUITE
An all-new PDF detailing the complete
I ;
Plugin Suite of instruments and effects
DOWNLOAD Download from File Silo (see p81)
September 2020 / CO M PU TER MUSIC / 5
 > news

n e w releases I c o m m e n t I in d u s t r y h a p p e n in g s
/news
Cherry Audio Voltage Modular 2
Get your Eurorack-style fix on your Mac/PC with Voltage Modular 2
Version 2 of Cherry Audio’s Voltage
Modular has landed, introducing a raft
of profound changes and new features to
one of the most expansive and powerful
software modular synthesis systems on
the market.
First - and, fo r some, forem ost - w ill be
the addition o f a num ber o f new m odules to
the Voltage M odular Core package,
including the Poly Vintage and Poly Super
Oscillators, Poly Ladder Filter and Poly
Super Envelope Generator, Spectrum
Analyzer, MIDI File Player, Octal Switch and
Micro Mult. Many o f the incum bent m odules
have been redesigned and im proved as well,
w ith linear FM being w orked into the
Oscillator, resonance m odulation added to
the Filter, and the Delay m odule offering
tem po sync, fo r example.
The biggest changes, however, are to
Voltage M odular 2’s patching capabilities
and w orkflow . For starters, the re ’s now no
lim it to the num ber o f cables tha t can be The new and improved modules are exciting enough, but it’s the patching that sees most improvement
connected to any patch point (up from the
previous m axim um o f six), and all cables them m anually o r via CV input fo r com plex tha t we can’t w ait to get into. And the best
connected to a jack can now be dragged generative perform ances. Modules can now news fo r existing users is tha t the Voltage
collectively to another jack - careful w ith be tagged fo r organisation in the library, too, M odular 2 update is com pletely free!
tha t one! Then there are the new signal and the built-in recorder captures your Newcomers, meanwhile, can get the full
busses fo r grouping jacks, the a bility to hide perform ances as 32-bit audio. Voltage M odular 2 Core + Electro Drums
all cables at a click, random isation o f We’re huge Voltage M odular fans bundle (featuring over 9 0 m odules) for
m odule parameters, and patch variations, - indeed, the Nucleus version is a hig hligh t o f $150, o r Voltage M odular 2 Ignite (over 4 0
the last letting you store m u ltiple param eter o u r cm Plugins suite - and version 2, w hich is m odules) fo r $100.
states w ith in a patch, then switch between available now, looks to be a massive upgrade |j^^j cherryaudio.com

.* >.«► Q • tfM tru « » to H Cl

Synapse Audio Obsession
Hot on the heels of Arturia's OB-Xa V (see review on
» 4 UMSON -T ■ 1 *1 p68), Obsession is another Oberheim OB-Xa synth
05C* OK t TU*«*-5 VOlUMf

emulation, modelled on the original polyphonic

hardware. Promising to recreate the “organic, lively
W f W lU M IX kb O K I O K I R.TW

sound” of the real thing, it boasts two oscillators, a

12/24dB/octave low-pass filter, two LFOs and two ADSR
Obsession’s
step FAFOI.AXCY • i i i v w n r h W O I * t * C M * M C Y fffV AMT ATT AC* nfCAV <(i«7AN If
envelopes, as well as a step sequencing mode for the
sequencing,
effects and
LFOs, and delay, reverb and chorus effects. It's out now
SAW M H SYNC f CSV SAW *UU C OSC I O K I M S I S> lA O c I 7WAOC

more take it
ATT AC* fttCAY 5ll«TA»N • C lf A V
for Mac and PC, priced £79.
to the next
OB level synapse-audio.com

6 / CO M PU TER MUSIC / September 2020

 news <

MONASTERY
GRAND
App watch
ANATOMY MIKES We report on the latest
N _
RELEASE SIZE AMBIENCE » B C
developments in phone
and tablet music making

HIGH KEYS
i iA N ~ rA-'.F O U TPU T

This ecclesiastic-
tastic plugin
HARMONY showcases what the
SoundFactory
platform can do Cubasis 3
We rarely talk about a major Android
music-making app release in these pages,
MeldaProduction the entirely separate M onastery Grand but Steinberg’s Cubasis 3 is precisely that.
Monastery Grand Creative instrum ent, w hich constantly loops Seemingly a pretty comprehensive port of
The prolific M eldaProduction have released the samples fo r processing w ith its onboard the mobile DAW that’s already proven a hit
M onastery Grand, a free sample-based resonators and filter. on iOS, this lets you use as many audio and
virtu a l piano. As the name suggests, the Perhaps the m ost interesting thing about MIDI tracks as your device can handle, and
3.5GB sample library was captured in a M onastery Grand, though, is th a t it was built offers both realtime timestretching and
m onastery near “Czech beer capital” Pilsen, using Melda’s SoundFactory m odular virtual pitchshifting facilities. There are several
using over a dozen stereo m icrophones; and instrum ent platform , w hich lets anyone built-in instruments, too. All of this doesn’t
sound-shaping param eters include three co nstru ct and sell th e ir own instrum ents, come cheap, though: Cubasis 3 for Android
mic positions, Tone and W idth controls, and enjoy a grow ing range o f user creations. will set you back €55.
Am bience and more. There’s a handy a u to ­ Find o ut m ore about SoundFactory at the new.steinberg.net
harm onisation system fo r chord generation, M eldaProduction site.
and as well as the main piano, you also get I = - meldaproduction.com

iZotope Stutter Edit 2

The second generation o f electronic music
legend BT and plugin developm ent
powerhouse iZotope’s ’playable’ m ulti-effect Neural Mix
claims to bring “ m ovem ent to yo ur mix, Algoriddim’s djay has always been an
faster and w ith m ore ve rsa tility than ever”. easy-to-use DJing app, but now it’s added a
The central premise o f S tutter Edit 2 is feature that’s genuinely state of the art.
tha t banks o f ‘gestures’ are m apped to the Their new Neural Mix tech lets you break
keys on yo ur MIDI keyboard, each one a tracks apart in realtime, with separate
distinct rh ythm ic audio slicing, processing level faders for drums, instrumentation
and ‘g litch in g ’ setup, and the new Auto and vocals. As well as offering new ways of
m ode lets you hear yo ur gestures instantly mixing, you can also create live remixes
w ith no MIDI routing required. The effects and mash-ups. Neural Mix works best on
rack has been greatly expanded, too, w ith oscillations, v2’s Time Variant M odifiers devices that contain Apple’s A12Z Bionic
new Chorus, Comb, Reverb and Lim iter allow fo r com plex ‘designed’ movem ent, Chip, which currently means the iPad Pro,
effects; and the m ultiband D istort m odule program m ed in a breakpoint curve editor. but also other iOS devices. It’s included in
has been upgraded to take in 18 distortion And naturally, a ton o f new BT-made preset the djay subs fee.
types. Whereas m ovem ent o f effects gestures have been throw n in as well. algoriddim.com
param eters w ith in gestures in the original S tutter Edit 2 is o u t now, priced $199.
S tutter Edit com prised sim ple to-and-fro ) - - izotope.com

Novation Launchkey Mk3 o f the full-sized Launchkey can at last get

The Mk3 iteration o f Novation’s Launchkey th e ir hands on the same new features
Mini Ableton Live (other DAWs are also offered by its dim in u tive counterpart.
supported) co ntro lle r keyboard has been P rom oting tig h te r integration w ith Live than Eventide Crystals
around since Novem ber 2019, but now fans ever, Launchkey Mk3 includes dedicated Eventide’s iOS market spree continues
buttons fo r track arm, loop, click, quantise with Crystals, another effect from their
and the Capture MIDI function, and a Drum H3000 Harmonizer. Blending twin reverse
5 _ _ Mode fo r w orking w ith Drum Racks. That pitchshifters with reverse delays and
= a s •! • • ■ ■ ■ • ■ ■ • said, the new Scale and Chord modes, and reverb, this lets you create a range of
A rpeggiator can be used w ith external MIDI shimmering, unique effects. There’s plenty
gear thanks to the 5-pin DIN MIDI O ut port. of tweakability - each of the two
Launchkey Mini Mk3 is in shops now, in pitchshifters has a four-octave range and
25- (£160), 37- (£180), 49- (£210) and 61-key the two delays can be adjusted
(£260) versions. independently, for example. £15/$15.
Launchkey Mk3 brings ever closer Live integration novationmusic.com eventideaudio.com

September 2020 / CO M PU TER MUSIC / 7