technabob » recording

korg nano usb midi controllers let you make beautiful music

technabob — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 12:45:29 +0000

These little USB controllers let you build out a full-fledged recording studio anywhere you go. The Korg nanoSeries of controllers are small enough to throw in a backpack or briefcase, but when connected to your computer let you set up a robust studio on the road.

For starters, there’s the nanoKEY, which offers a 25-key velocity-sensitive piano keyboard, that can control your music creation software. There’s even the ability to quickly switch between octaves, so you can access the entire range of a full-size keyboard if you want.

Next up is the nanoPAD, which is great for playing digital percussion or other sound effects. The nanoPAD has a dozen trigger pads, each of which can send up to eight notes or MIDI control messages. There’s also an X/Y touchpad which can use for pitch-bending or other MIDI control messages. You can even set up individual pads to trigger chords.

Last, but certainly not least is the nanoKONTROL, which lets you easily control your mixing board software, providing 9 faders, 9 knobs, 18 switches, playback and recording controls.

The entire Nano series is available over at ProSound and Stage Lighting, with the nanoKEY selling for $49.99 (USD), and the nanoPAD and nanoKONTROL retailing for $59.99.

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If you have any interest in electronic music, you owe it to yourself to check out these mini-marvels.

jazzmutant lemur multi-touch control for musicians

technabob — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 16:22:56 +0000

The other day, I told you about a tabletop multi-touch interface for creating music sequences. While I was researching that story, I came across an interesting touchscreen interactive music controller device that you can actually get your hands on for yourself.

The Jazzmutant Lemur is a fully-programmable multi-touch input device for controlling music sequencing, mixing, or anything else you’d like to apply a finger-controlled interface to.

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The $3000 Lemur provides a modular interface editor (for MacOSX or Windows) which lets you build your own custom graphical control panels, including sliders, faders, dials, buttons, keyboards and more.

Out of the box, it can control any MIDI recording software (such as Logic, ProTools, Ableton, Cubase, etc.), but is also compatible with the emerging OpenSoundControl standard. Plus, it uses Ethernet to connect with your network, meaning it can handle much more data throughput than traditional MIDI devices.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The device ships with numerous templates to help you get started, but there’s also an active user community that’s cranking out cool new interfaces all the time. If you’re into electronic music or recording, the Lemur is definitely worth a look.

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sound lab teaches kids circuit bending

technabob — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 20:43:50 +0000

Whether your child is an aspiring audio engineer or just likes to make weird noises, this educational toy looks pretty cool.

The GeoSafari Digital Recording Lab lets kids (and kids at heart) experiment and create their own electronic sound effects. There are 59 different projects they can build, creating everything from an alarm clock, to a robotic voice, to an “electronic parrot” that records and plays back whatever they say.

All projects are done by connecting wires to spring-loaded terminals, so no soldering is required. I’m sure if you decide to go “off book” and do some circuit bending, you’ll get some really interesting sounds.

[Order from Amazon]

samson zoom h2: surround sound recording in the palm of your hand

technabob — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 18:38:56 +0000

This nifty device is a self-contained surround sound recording studio. The Samson Zoom H2 Handy Recorder uses a set of three directional microphones to record high quality stereo and surround imaging to its built-in digital recorder.

Thanks to its microphone configuration, the recorder can accurately capture stereo positioning as well as 5.1 surround positioning when you record in 360° 48kHz/24-bit mode. The device can record 16-bit or 24-bit WAV files at up to 96kHz, and MP3 files at up to 320kbps. When equipped with a 4GB SD memory card, it can capture up to 2 hours of the 96kHz WAV files, or up to 138 hours in MP3 format. You can record for about 4 hours on a single set of AA batteries, or plug it into the included AC adapter for longer sessions.

The H2 includes a 512MB SD memory card, USB cable and a handy tripod stand. It should be available later this Spring for around $200.

[via PopSci via OhGizmo!]

belkin tunestudio: ipod recording studio

technabob — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 14:47:06 +0000

Belkin has introduced a new gadget which should be a godsend for musicians on a budget. The Belkin TuneStudion is a four-channel mixing board which features a dock for 5G iPods. The system records directly from the mixing board into the iPod at CD-quality.

Priced at just $179.99, the board features some bells and whistles normally reserved for higher-end audio gear, such as XLR inputs with phantom power. Each of the four mixing channels has a 3-band equalizer, pan and gain controls. LED indicators show input, peaking and compression levels. You can also move tracks from the board directly to your PC using the integrated USB port, if you don’t feel like undocking your iPod. The TuneStudio should hit the streets sometime this Summer.

[via CrunchGear]