Category Archives: music

IK Multimedia VocaLive App

February 3, 2012 — Leave a Comment

We’ve written about IK Multimedia products in the past and they just continue to set the bar for portable recording software for iOS as well as breaking new ground for DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) software.

As previously mentioned, the iRig interface adapter enables guitarists to plug their guitar into their iPhone and not only apply great sounding effects to their guitar via the FREE Amplitube application, but also record those great sounds.

The VocaLive app for iPad is yet another release, following on from the success of the iPhone version and provides a one stop shop for singers or songwriters. Touted as being the “first professional performing and recording vocal processor for iOS”, the app just oozes ease of use and is packed with essential effects to bring to life your next performance.

newsletter30 gear ik vocalive IK Multimedia VocaLive App

It comes with a suite of 5 dedicated vocal effects (pitch correction, choir hamonizer, voice doubler, vocal morpher and de-esser) that can be applied to your voice in real-time along with a further 7 effects specific to vocal processing (reverb, EQ, compressor, delay, envelope filter, chorus, phazer) that can be combined in a 4 processor chain.

The single-track recorder is expandable to a full 8-track recording studio through an in-app purchase which will give song writers plenty of scope to record new and interesting tracks.

For the novice vocalist, there are enough preset functions to enable you to get up and running quickly leaving plenty of room for more advanced features and effects as you become more familiar with the application and confident with your recording.

VocaLive can be used with the iPads in-built microphone, headphones with a built-in mic or IK Media’s very own iRig mic – the first quality hand-held condenser mic for iOS.

As you will see in the following videos, using VocaLive is both easy and fun to use as well as producing really professional sounding recordings.

With the continuing development of technology and the ability for users to create their own music, VocaLive and applications like it place the tools firmly in the hands of the user to capture their own creativity. There’s little wonder that the internet is bursting with quality user content and there are no signs it will slow down. Have you got yours?

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ab4e2097d32a3cfb2d407817c82c42dd IK Multimedia VocaLive App

Posted by Dan Orr.

Posted in computing, gear, guitar effects / pedals

Marshall Headphones

February 1, 2012 — 1 Comment

If you’ve had your headphones for as long as I have and they’re only just hanging on by a thread, it might be time for a new pair. Now you have a new problem – having to choose a new pair. Well, for the musically minded, Marshall (yes, the same company that make great amps) has come to the party with their own line of ‘cans’ to keep your music moving when you are.

Taking their style inspiration from their amp selection, the Marshall Major Headphones (in a variety of colors – including eye-popping white) are a stylish set of cans that reproduce your music with pronounced bass and crisp treble.

The earcups are soft, comfortable and fit snugly over most ears letting very little, if any sound out, for less disturbance when in the company of strangers. The head band has the same rugged good looks and bears the same Marshall Texture.

True to vintage stylings, they come with a stretch cord which helps considerably with the portability factor, eliminating the need for the unwieldy, tangle prone alternatives. When it comes time to take them, they’ve been designed to be fully collapsible for easy storage and safe travel.

They also come equipped with an in-line microphone and remote for use with cell phones or Skype calls incorporating the 3.4mm standard. A 6.3 mm adapter comes with the Majors for use with your amplifier, stereo or any sound source requiring a 6.3 mm jack.

Admittedly, you are paying a little extra for the Marshall name on the headphones which doesn’t necessarily correspond to much better sound for your dollar, but if you’re willing to shell out a little extra for great looks, you won’t be disappointed.

If you are looking for someone else’s point of view, check out this great review made by Unboxtherapy.

ab4e2097d32a3cfb2d407817c82c42dd Marshall Headphones

Posted by Dan Orr.

Posted in computing, Guitar Tools, recording

Harmonic Capo

January 24, 2012 — Leave a Comment

If you’re into alternate tunings and experimenting with new and interesting sounds on your guitar, then you’ll love the Harmonic Capo created by Bob Kilgore. Unlike a regular capo that presses the strings down at the desired fret effectively changing the placement of the nut, the Harmonic Capo gently rests on the strings.

newsletter26 gear bobkilgore hc Harmonic Capo

The effect is what you would get if you lightly placed your finger over the strings at a harmonic node and struck the strings. The most common and strongest harmonic nodes are at the 5th, 7th and 12th frets (and 17th if you can reach it).

Also, unlike conventional capos that allow you to only play in-front of where the capo is placed, the harmonic capo, allows you to play both in-front and behind the capo opening up a whole range of possibilities worth exploring.

The harmonic capo works in tandem with open tunings such as open C (Low to high: CGCGBE) open G tuning (low to high: DGDGBD) or open D tuning or DADGAD. With an open chord being played with no fingers being placed on the fretboard, this enables you to explore different melodic runs while adding in colorful harmonics throughout.

Of course, if you’re new to open tunings, it’s worth taking some time to familiarize yourself with the different shapes to produce chords of one tuning, before moving onto another. It might be helpful at this point to write down all the notes of the fretboard as they have changed with the tuning to get a better picture of what your working with.

newsletter26 gear harmonicapo Harmonic Capo

With all this in mind, use of a Harmonic Capo really benefits finger style playing but that shouldn’t really stop anyone, who is interested in exploring the possibilities the Harmonic Capo offers from having a go. If you’re intrigued to hear some examples, head over to Bob Kilgore’s site and watch a few of his videos. Check out the video below, a number of excerpts from his latest CD offering.

His playing is sure to inspire you to push your playing in a new direction, even if you return having decided that it’s not the path you wanna take.

Enjoy!

ab4e2097d32a3cfb2d407817c82c42dd Harmonic Capo

Posted by Dan Orr.

Posted in acoustic guitars, art, Artists, fingerpicking, gear, Guitar Tools | Tagged , , , , ,

What do the pros use?

January 19, 2012 — Leave a Comment

If you’ve ever wondered how your favorite artist gets that unique sound you can wonder no more. The guys at GuitarGeek, have dedicated their time and energy to compiling a comprehensive list of the amps, effects and guitars that artists use.

Over time their images of the artist’s setups have changed so that now they are both easy to understand and very nice to look at.

newsletter24 gear pros clapton What do the pros use?

Ever wanted to know just what Clapton was using in his days with the Bluesbreakers? The year is 1966 and Clapton is playing his 1950s Les Paul’s Standard through a Marshall Combo. Wanna know what speakers and tubes were in that model? Those details are all but a few clicks away.

While it might be hard to track down this particular model with a modest price tag, the information provided gives you a decent head start on what to look for and what could be possible.

And if nothing else, this information will add to your ever growing understanding of great tone. You can be pretty sure that the information provided on the site are sound, given that most of the information comes from the artist’s or their guitar tech’s mouths.

And with this type of direct contact you’ll find the occasional gem of behind the scenes takes from the artists themselves on their gear or band members and/or techies on the artist.

A great resource for geek-ing out and putting together the dream set up, should all your stars align and you win the lottery. Take a look.

ab4e2097d32a3cfb2d407817c82c42dd What do the pros use?

Posted by Dan Orr.

Posted in amplifiers / pickups, Artists, buying guitars, Electric Guitars, gear, guitar effects / pedals, Guitar Tools, Rock | Tagged , , ,

Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier Head

January 19, 2012 — Leave a Comment

Since the days of designing and building amps in an old converted dog kennel in the hills of Northern California, Randall Smith and his band of music obsessed, tone junkies have been baking up new designs to push high gain, multi-valve, multi-input guitar amps to the next level.

The Triple Rectifier Head is one more example of this ongoing development of great sounding amps. Following on from the success of the patented Dual Rectifier ® series, they introduced a third channel upping the gain to a massive 150 Watts (switchable) and adding more switchable modes to increase the sonic possibilities.

newsletter23 gear triple rectifier Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier Head

Each channel has a separate 5 way EQ to control the Bass, Mid, Treble, Presence and Master settings as well as a separate gain for each channel. There’s also the option to choose what power setting you want: 150 Watt or 50 Watt, so you can play at a lower level while maintaining the high gain crunch.

In addition to these individual channel settings you have and Output section that allows you to alter, up or down all channels in one go. The Main output allows you, once you’ve locked in each channel to your desired sound, to boost or lower the overall output volume of all channels at once. The Solo switch, gives you another volume setting that is applied (in parallel) over all channels for Solos – which is also foot switchable.

Each channel gives you the choice between two types of rectification to apply; Silicon Diode for tighter low end tracking, more head room and a more articulate sound and Vacuum Tube for less head room, a sweeter and less articulate sound.

And for tuning in silence, they now have a dedicated Tuner output so you can tune without everyone listening in.

Not only is this amp packed with great sound options, you also get a choice of front panel from the iconic diamond plate, black taurus or jute to match the look and feel you best matches you.

There are so many options packed into the Triple Rectifier that you’ll want to spend some serious time experimenting with. Of course, the Mesa guys give you heaps of tips and technical know-how within the user manuals, which are available online and make for easy and informative reading.

I’ll admit, 150 watts is a massive amount of noise potential and not one that I’m accustomed to using. But that wouldn’t stop me from taking a test drive. Check out the video below to hear some of the boundless options the Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier is capable of.

ab4e2097d32a3cfb2d407817c82c42dd Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier Head

Posted by Dan Orr

Posted in amplifiers / pickups, buying guitars, Electric Guitars, gear, Rock | Tagged , , ,
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