Waves are introducing a new plugin, the H-EQ. It’s a uniquely powerful hybrid equalizer, featuring vintage and modern EQ inspired by the finest British and American consoles; seven different filter types per band, including a newly-developed, one-of-a-kind asymmetrical bell filter; an intuitive keyboard graphic that lets you choose frequencies by clicking on notes; an exclusive MS Mode so you can apply different EQ to Mid and Side content; and a flexible real-time frequency spectrum analyzer with multiple display options.

Main Features

• Seven filter types per band: US Vintage, UK Vintage 1, UK Vintage 2, US Modern, UK Modern, Digital 1 and Digital 2
• Newly-developed asymmetrical bell filter
• Exclusive MS matrix mode: Apply different EQ to Mid and Side content
• Keyboard graphic: Choose frequencies by clicking on notes
• Real-time frequency spectrum analyzer

Controls

• Input Fader controls the signal input level.
• EQ Modes Stereo/Linked, Dual/Unlinked, MS Mode
• EQ Filters: HP, LF, LMF, MF, HMF, HF, LP
• Analog Type toggles between analog characteristic types.
• Analog Level controls the level of the combined noise and hum.
• THD Level controls the level of harmonic distortion added to the signal
• Keyboard lets you choose frequencies by clicking on notes.
• Analyzer presents a real-time graphical display of your input signal, output signal or both, as well as the EQ curve.
• Analyzer In displays the input signal, post-input fader.
• Analyzer Out displays the output signal, post-output fader.
• L/M turns on the display of the left side only in Stereo mode, or the M in M/S mode.
• R/S turns on the display of the right side only in Stereo mode, or the S in M/S mode.
• Freeze stops the frequency graph.
• Peak Hold stops the frequency graph at its highest peak point.
• Analyzer Scale displays the energy level measured by the analyzer.
• EQ Scale displays the EQ curve being applied to the signal.
• Band Markers allow you to manipulate the EQ bands using the band markers.
• Output fader controls signal output level.
• Phase flips the phase of the signal by 180 degrees.
• Trim displays the maximum peak level of the output signal and its distance from 0 dBFS.

Berlin is mind-blowing! What better city to hold a festival! As well as seeing all the amazing artist performing, travellers coming to this years Berlin Festival will have the chance to check out an overwhelming and seemingly endless plethora of venues and events: concert halls, galleries, street art, clubs and sights as far as the eye can see. Even long-time city dwellers are prone to losing track more than once during their stay. With the Art Village, the Design and Record Label Market, the Mobile Disko (with Berlin resident DJs Los Massieras, Steve Morell and others) and a variety of Berlin sightseeing discounts, Berlin Festival brings the city’s art and culture to Tempelhof Airport .

Art Village
Berlin and Germany’s up and coming art scene finds its equivalent in Berlin Festival’s Art Village. 20+ invited artists of various genres will present unique urban and fine art. Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the construction of the Berlin Wall, 50 “pieces of the Wall” will be individually designed, sprayed and plastered by such artists as Poet, Nomad, 44Flavours and others. Post-apocalyptic performances will be staged (Crystal Mafia), smashing sculptures will be made with chainsaws (Maike Gräf), and robots will be built (Stohead) on location.

An art bazaar, installations and photo exhibitions add to the extravagant and unique atmosphere at our Art Village. About 600 galleries and 8,000 artists living and working in Berlin will be represented at Berlin Festival 2011 with tangible art for everyone to enjoy. Curator Jan “Yaneq” Kage (Party Arty, Radio Arty on 100.6 Flux FM, Galerie Schau Fenster), one of the scene’s leading figures, will introduce all Berlin artists – Berlin Festival’s Art Village presenting Berlin’s young and vibrant urban art scene at Tempelhof Airport. Other confirmed artists are Czarnobyl, Paul Snowden, DAG, Gogoplata, Just, and KLUB7.

Design and Record Label Market
Besides the in-house Berlin Festival merch stand, the Design and Record Label Market will be on location again bringing local music and fashion into the mix. While Berlin Festival takes place at Tempelhof Airport, Preview Berlin – The Emerging Art Fair also resides at one of the airport’s hangars. With a festival wristband, visitors get entry for a reduced price of 6 EUR.

Mobile Disko
Finally we also have the legendary Mobile Disko’s line-up ready: bigger, faster, louder – taking over Tempelhof on a motorised luggage van once again. From 5pm to midnight, residents of Berlin’s club scene will be keen to bring you smashing beats and indietronic tunes. On Friday, Dada Disco, Hugo C + Maxximus, Pony Pop, MILCH and Steve Morell will spin records behind our moving turntables. On Saturday, Los Massieras, Menage a Trois, Mine & Hers, Olivier Tabillion as well as A-Team + Marlon Beat will introduce proper bass and disco dance floor fillers to the crowd on the airfield.

Sightseeing discounts
We also have sightseeing discounts and special offers all around the city of Berlin! Just show your festival wristband at the partners mentioned below and receive 20-25% off the usual prices. It’s worth keeping on your wristbands after the festival as the discounts last until September 18th! Partners at a glance: Fahrradstation, Velotaxi, Berlin Rikscha Tours, Fat Tire Bike Tours – Berlin, City Segway Tours – Berlin, City-Circle Sightseeing, Erlebnis-Tour “Alter-Fritz”, German Kinemathek – Museum für Film und Fernsehen, DDR-Museum, Jochen Schweizer – Base Flying, Exclusiv Yachtcharter, BWSG, Asin Restaurant-Cafe-Cocktailbar.

Festival Line Up

Berlin Festival – Friday
James Blake, Austra, Waters, Alex Winston, Dry The River, Yelle, The Rapture, Rainbow Arabia, Oh Land, The Drums, HEALTH, CSS, Battles, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Hercules & Love Affair, Primal Scream present Screamadelica, Apparat Band, Santigold, Suede, Wire, LFO

Berlin Festival – Saturday
Florrie, Last Days Of 1984, Retro Stefson, Tune-Yards, Firefox AK, The Naked And Famous, Mound Kimbie, Kraftklub, Aloe Blacc, The Black Angels, Yuksek, Beirut, Pantha Du Prince, Buraka Som Sistema, Boys Noize, dEUS, Casper, Beginner, Mogwai, The Bloody Beetroots Death Crew 77

Club Xberg – Friday
Discodromo, Headman pres. Relish Special w/ Headman, JR Seaton, Andrea ESU; Boysnoize Records Special w/ Strip Steve vs Das Glow, Djedjotronic, Jan Driver, Audionite;Kruder & Dorfmeister; Daniel Wang; Diplo; Andy Butler DJ Set; Berlin Battery w/ Shir Khan, Jack Tennis; A-Trak; Boy George & Marc Vedo DJ Set; DJ Hell

Club Xberg – Saturday
Remmidemmi; G.I. Disco; Greco-Roman Special w/ Hackman, En Chante, Full Nelson, Greco-Roman Soundsystem; Modular Special w/ Bag Raiders DJ Set, Sneaky Sound System, Bumblebeez, Modular Djs Public Enemy; Housse De Racket; Skrillex; Bag Raiders; Brodinski; Mr. Oizo; Gesaffelstein live; Freadz; Jimmy Edgar

Tickets

Limited number of tickets still available at www.berlinfestival.de/tickets

Berlin Music Week Ticket Valid for Friday AND Saturday @ Tempelhof Airport, incl. Berlin Festival, Club Xberg, Berlin Music Week Clubnacht, BVG ticket (public transport) and further discounts EUR 89 + booking fees

Berlin Festival 2-day ticket Valid for Friday AND Saturday at Tempelhof Airport until midnight, incl. Berlin Music Week Clubnacht and BVG ticket (public transport)?EUR 74 + booking fees

Berlin Festival day ticket Valid for Friday OR Saturday @ Tempelhof Airport until midnight, incl. BVG ticket (public transport)?EUR 44 + booking fees.

Club Xberg day ticket (limited) – Valid for Club Xberg @ Arena Berlin on Friday OR Saturday EUR 24 + booking fees

Revolution-808 by Sounds Outside the Lines, boasts over 3,600 unique samples that cover every possible tonal variation of the original TR-808 unit, providing you with a host of useable drums that you can drag and drop into Kontakt, EXS24, and all hardware and software samplers that support WAV format.

Revolution-808 Main Features

• Intuitive user interface that mimics that actual hardware (Kontakt format)
• 7 Layers of Round Robin sampling for variations between individual drum hits
• Available for Kontakt, EXS24, and all hardware and software samplers that support WAV format
• Extremely Long sample lengths which preserve the natural sustain of the drums without truncation
• Sampled at 24-bit, 96 kHz resolution
• Over 3,600 unique samples that cover every possible tonal variation of the original TR-808

Sounds Outside the Lines outlines what made the original TR-808 so cool: “Introduced in 1980 by a popular japanese manufacturer of electronic instruments, the TR-808 was one of the first fully programmable drum machines that featured a sequencer and completely analog generated sounds.”

Originally intended as a way for musicians to provide rhythm tracks to home demos, the TR-808 was far from the marketing success it was hope to be when launched. Due to its analog circuitry it couldn’t compete against the realism of digital drum machines of the time and was seen by many as inferior. Even by the standards of other now vintage drum machines the TR-808 contains no standard MIDI support and all programming had to be done with the internal 16-step sequencer.

What was seen as a limitation in the early eighties is now thought of as the TR-808′s greatest strength. The fact that it is a fully analog drum machine means their is a character and depth to the sound which, unlike digital drum machines, evolves as the machine is played and has an unmistakable low end punch and snap.

Although production of the TR-808 stopped in 1983, and only 12,000 were ever produced, by the time hip-hop had reached popularity a few short years later, the 808 – and especially its bass drum – became the defining sound of the genre. The TR-808 is now considered to be the most recorded electronic drum machine of the last 30 years and is still used on countless songs and productions today. From classic R&B and hip-hop to rock and pop music, the TR-808 has been used by artists ranging from Marvin Gaye and Tupac to Pink and Phoenix. Although the TR-808 sounds are still widely used, most producers and artists are forced to arrange individual recordings from the original unit as the rarity, price, and inability to fully integrate the machine into modern production environments have kept it out of reach.

Pricing & Availability

The new drum machine collection, Revolution-808, is now available from Sounds Outside the Lines for approximately $72. The sample pack version (with no sampler patches) is about $41, while the LE version (16-bit, 44 kHz) is available for approximately $30.

A bundle with Revolution-909 is also available, and a free Revolution-808 demo pack can be downloaded from the product page at soundsoutsidethelines.com

Cockos have updated REAPER to version 4.02. This improves on 4.0′s mouse modifier support, adding more scrub/jog customization and marquee zoom support. REAPER now has a stack of zoom/scroll states, so you can easily cycle through recent views.

The project settings dialog has also been reorganized slightly, offering a cleaner arrangement of project specific configuration. This version also offers the usual assortment of small behavior and stability fixes – see below.

Changes in 4.02:

Mouse modifiers:

• Support draw/edit/ramp CC events when starting the edit over a CC event.
• Added contexts for arrange view middle-click, middle-drag, edit cursor handle.
• Many new options for marquee zoom, restore zoom, browser scroll, scrub/jog behaviors.
• Better preservation of pre-existing user customizations.
• Behaviors to move item edge without changing fade-in end or fade-out start time.
• Better behavior when assigning mouse click to actions like “move item to cursor”.
• Control+right-click creates a time selection by default (as in 3.x).

MIDI editor:

• Fixed bad behavior when drawing over existing CC events with snap enabled.
• Fixed horizontal zoom with mouse cursor center, when using project-synced timebase.
• Avoid accidental time selections in ruler.
• Support negative swing quantize.
• Fixed possible oddness when editing CC with auto-select CC enabled.

Project bay:

• Use file resolving when loading retained items.
• Show error message when move/copy file fails because the target file already exists.
• List tracks by name.
• Fixed drag/render-drag of multiple items on OSX.

Envelopes:

• Allow editing initial envelope point regardless of editing preferences.
• Option to add transition point when recording automation while playback is stopped.
• Clicking on an envelope point no longer seeks playback.

MIDI:

• Fixed stuck notes when looping.
• Renaming one pooled take renames all pooled takes.

Project settings:

• Reorganization, more sensible layout hopefully.
• Added track mixing bit depth configuration.
• Count-in: follow tempo and time signature at play start position, not prior to it.
• Directory cleanup: ignore files that are retained in project bays.
• Media explorer: added action to close media explorer.
• Nudge: actions to nudge item contents apply only to the active take (similar to slip editing).
• ReaSurround: continue to increase FX IO count when dragging IO from tracks.
• Render queue: fixed display of time-selection renders.
• Samplitude EDL: support for offsets/lengths greater than 2 billion samples.
• Scrub: avoid senseless jogs after edit cursor moves.
• Slip editing: fix for possible hang.
• Stem rendering: faster, does not process irrelevant tracks, option in prefs/rendering for old behavior.
• Volume displays: fixed display of certain gain values in default theme.
• VST: fixed preset selection when there are multiple factory presets with the same name.
• Windows Aero: keep always on top pins out of window list when REAPER non-responsive.
• Zoom: fixed display of item backgrounds with very zoomed in and long project times.
• Zoom/scroll: now has a stack of recent zoom/scrolls, added actions to restore previous/next.

The TRAKTOR team is excited to announce TRAKTOR KONTROL S2 – the 2-deck, all-in-one DJ controller system with serious pro credentials. Its “2.1” design rewrites the rule book – featuring 2 decks and a mixer, plus a third channel for adding additional loops and sounds via powerful Sample Decks. Built in the image of its hugely popular big brother TRAKTOR KONTROL S4, the highly compact S2 also contains the full version TRAKTOR PRO 2.

Rugged and highly portable, TRAKTOR KONTROL S2 is the only controller of its size to come with the full version of TRAKTOR PRO 2 included – the same software that pro DJs of all genres use. With TRAKTOR 2 Technology Inside, the S2 is tuned for maximum intuitiveness and creativity – resulting in an intensely fluid and fun mixing experience.

Tech Specs

Supported Audio Formats: MP3, WAV, AIFF, Audio-CD, FLAC, Ogg Vorbis, non-DRM WMA**, non-DRM AAC

System Requirements:

Windows® XP (latest Service Pack, 32 Bit), Windows Vista®/Windows® 7 (latest Service Pack, 32/64 Bit),
Intel® Pentium 4® 2.4 GHz or Intel® Core™ Duo or AMD Athlon™ 64, 2 GB RAM

Mac OS® X 10.5 or 10.6 (latest update), Intel® Core™ Duo, 2 GB RAM
500 MB free disk space required (minimum), DVD drive

Audio Inputs (A/D)
Channels 2 (plus 1 sample deck channel)
Sample Rate 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96 kHz
Bit Resolution 16, 24-bit
Converter Cirrus Logic

Line Inputs
Input Impedance 47 KOhm
Cross Talk -83 dBu
Full Scale Level + 16 dBu
SNR (weighted) 98,5 dBu
THD+N 0,01%
Frequency Response +/-1 dBu 20 Hz-40 kHz
Dynamic Range codec 105 dBu

Mic Input
Input Impedance 5,2 KOhm
Full Scale Level @ 1 kHz -32 dBu
SNR (weighted) @ 1 kHz 92 dBu
THD+N @ 1KHz 0,01%
Frequency response +/- 1 dBu 20 Hz-40 kHz
Dynamic Range Codec 105 dBu

Audio Outputs (D/A)
Channels 4
Sample Rate 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96 kHz
Bit Resolution 16, 24-bit
Converter Cirrus Logic

Line Outputs (balanced 1/4″ TRS)
Output Impedance 164 Ohms
Maximum Output Level 13 dBu
SNR (weighted) 99.5 dBu
THD+N 0,01%
Frequency Response +/- 1 dBu 20 Hz-40 kHz
Dynamic Range codec 105 dBu

Line Outputs (unbalanced RCA)
Output Impedance 82 Ohms
Maximum Output Level 13 dBu
SNR (weighted) 99.5 dBu
THD+N 0,01%
Frequency Response +/- 1 dBu 20 Hz-40 kHz
Dynamic Range codec 105 dBu

Headphone Output
Load Impedance 16 Ohms – 600 Ohms
Maximum Output Level (100 Ohm load) 7dBu
SNR (weighted) under load condition 93 dBu
THD+N (100 Ohms) 0,02%
Frequency Response +/- 1 dBu 20 Hz-40 kHz

Note: A feature comparison chart between S2 and S4 is available here.

Pricing & Availability

Traktor Kontrol S2 will be available in October and it will cost $669 / 599 €, but meanwhile you can see it in action now – controllerism guru Ean Golden remixes Depeche Mode’s classic “Enjoy The Silence” in this hot performance video… (watch the video here!)

Tribal & Tech House serves up an exciting selection of tribal infused tech house rhythms and authentic percussive ensembles. Here you will find over 600MB of finely crafted tribal house grooves, tech house tops, groove layering tools and live percussive workouts!

All included mixed percussion loops and live performances have been captured using high end recording equipment, pre-amps and microphones. Raw recordings have been carefully edited, creatively mixed, intricately processed and layered to provide an up-to-date and current sounding collection…

In addition to the percussive loops are a wealth of groovy tech house tops and add-on loops, intelligently produced vocal cuts, dusty groove assist tools, floor-filling kicks and much more!

What’s included in the pack?

• 610MB of sample content (1.6GB inc additional formats)
• 577 24-bit, 100% royalty free wav loops & samples
• WAV, REX 2 and Apple Loops formats included
• 132 top loops – intricately programmed kick free add-ons including tech house tops, jackin percussive rhythms and organic house grooves
• 125 mixed percussion and tribal house loops – creatively mixed live percussion jams, tribal stomps and full African drum ensembles…all produced to perfection
• 128 raw percussion loops – unprocessed live percussion loops including hand drums, conga, sabar and djembe
• 77 groove assist loops & layering tools – enhance existing loops or add extra movement to a full groove. Including tempo-synced and heavily processed field recordings, warped vocals, ambience loops and organic sound effects
• 75 shakers & stick loops – featuring a wealth of both African and Latin shakers, sticks and heavily layered loops, perfect for mixing under your beats to add a little movement!
• 40 bonus kick grooves & processed drum loops
• All loops have been recorded at a tempo of 127 BPM

Kit List:

• Empirical Labs Fatso & Distressor
• Thermionic Culture Vulture
• Spectra Sonics 610
• Valley People 610
• A Designs EM-PEQ
• Elysia X-Pressor 500
• API 512c Preamp
• Neve 1073 preamp
• Purple Audio Action
• SSL EQs & Compressors
• Oto Machines Biscuit
• Eventide DSP-7000
• Future Retro XS
• Various drum machines
• Various acoustic percussion and microphones

As deadmau5 embarks upon the Meowingtons Hax North American tour alongside a host of the Mau5trap stable, the label head leads the charge with a brand new compilation. The Meowingtons Hax tour trax album—released today, Thursday, August 25 via Mau5trap Recordings—features new and exclusive tracks from deadmau5 and a host of artists featured on the tour, as well as a selection of tracks from new additions to the label that you can expect to hear a lot more from in the coming months. With contributions from Skrillex, Feed Me, Tommy Lee & Aero, Excision & Datsik, Zedd, Moguai featuring SOFI, Al Bizarre and James Njie, this compilation is set to be the soundtrack to the tour carnage that will undoubtedly ensue.

Opening with the insistent, driving powerhouse that is “Where My Keys,” an exclusive deadmau5 track, the compilation goes straight for the jugular. It then moves onto the jarring “Cott’s Face” by Feed Me which fuses together glitchy drums and erratic synth lines. The tour’s Tommy Lee & Aero deliver two fidgety electro house, party-starting tracks with “Static” and “LFO Tool.”

Excision & Datsik turn up the heat with “Deviance” as grinding beats and growling basslines meet extra-terrestrial synth lines, proving once again why their star is most definitely in the ascendant. Zedd’s remix of the Skrillex smash “Scary Monsters & Nice Sprites” channels the power of the original into a filthy 4×4 monster, while Moguai featuring SOFI’s “Beat of The Drum” surges forward on the elastic synths and rolling bassline with SOFI, the voice of deadmau5 smash “Sofi Needs A Ladder,” delivering her vocals with attitude.

Upcoming Mau5trap artist Al Bizarre brings “Blast Wave” to the table, a many-headed beast that switches up glistening synths and swelling bass and is in turns both euphoric and gritty. Rising talent James Njie rounds off the compilation in style, introducing himself with “U Turn” and “Anti Crisis,” two futuristic progressive house tracks that are at once delicately nuanced and full of impact, speaking volumes of his talent.

Mau5trap has grown exponentially since its inception in 2007 and has become home to some of the most exciting electronic artists in the world. This new compilation features just some of the talent that the label champions and offers up a decisive musical statement for those holding tickets to the tour or not. To celebrate the release of the Meowingtons Hax tour trax compilation, the Beatport version will come with selected track parts available for digital DJs, giving them the chance to get creative.
To celebrate the release of the compilation, the Beatport version will come with selected track parts available for digital DJs giving them the chance to get creative.

*The Meowingtons Hax tour runs from 11th August to 5th November, starting in Vancouver and ending in Toronto.

Waves Linear Phase EQ is a transparent equalizer, designed especially for maintaining phase relations in mixing and mastering situations.

When we do regular equalization, we tend to think that we’re manipulating only a certain frequency range. While that’s true to some extent, what actually happens is that different amounts of processing delay take place on different frequencies. This is called phase distortion, which smears transients, happening most often with extreme gain changes and narrow Q values. The end result is that drums lose their punch, acoustic guitar strums lose definition, and overall sound quality suffers from unwanted artifacts. Linear Phase EQ is perfect for those times where you have to equalize, but want your sources to sound “unprocessed.”

Since linear phase equalization adds latency, it’s not usually a first choice for live sound mixing. However, there are many situations where using a regular EQ can be less than ideal, and that’s where Linear Phase EQ excels:

Acoustic instruments: Even at extreme settings, the sound of harmonically-rich acoustic instruments such as guitars and piano remains much more transparent with Linear Phase EQ as opposed to regular EQ.

Stereo sources: Linear Phase EQ is ideal for stereo-correlated sources such as left and right overheads, or stereo-mic’d piano. With regular EQ, adjusting the frequency response on one of the stereo correlated sources will introduce phase differences over parts of the frequency spectrum, which can cause the stereo coherence to collapse. This effect does not happen with Linear Phase EQ.

Transient-heavy tracks: Material with strong transients such as drums benefit from linear phase equalization, since regular EQ can cause the phase distortion which can result in smearing. When mixing drums or drum-heavy material, boosting high frequencies can lead to reduced punch and thin sound. Linear Phase Equalizer maintains phase coherence and therefore does not smear transients, allowing you to retain the transients as they were before equalization.

Mastering: Linear Phase EQ is perfect for “colorless” matching of sonic character between different songs on an album, without adding the artifacts that non-linear phase EQs can add.

Waves Linear Phase Equalizer is a professional precision equalization tool that delivers different results than non-linear phase equalizers. When you’re looking to color your mixes, use a regular EQ. But when pure, clean equalization is your goal, Linear Phase EQ is the way to go.