Buying an Audio Interface - Part 2 - Help Picking the Best Audio Interface
LearningPart 1 looked at how to interpret the specs you see in ads and listings for audio interfaces. This time around, we offer info to help you figure out the audio interface that best fits your needs, pre…
Ableton’s Jesse Terry Talks Live, Push, and What’s Next - Pushing the Envelope
LearningAfter its introduction in 2001, Ableton Live grew rapidly into a major force in the world of music production software. While many of its major competitors at the time were bogged down with legacy fe…
Buying an Audio Interface - Part 1 - Demystifying the Specs and Features of an Audio Interface
LearningShopping for an audio interface can be daunting, due to the countless models on the market and the variations in inputs, outputs, formats, maximum sampling rates, and numerous other specifications. T…
Mastering at Home - Part 5 - How to Use EQ when Mastering — In Practice
LearningThe latest installment of our Mastering at Home series deals with some common situations when using an equalizer.
Mixed In Key Flow Review - Prepare Your Sets Easily
Written testThe creators of key-detection software Mixed In Key and Platinum Notes continue their crusade to offer new tools for DJs. Here's their last baby: Flow. This Mac/PC-compatible application is designed …
Tips for Better Soloing - Make Your Solos More Interesting and Musical
LearningWhether you play guitar, keyboard, saxophone or any other lead instrument, there’s more to being a good soloist than just having chops and knowing riffs. Playing fast is great, but speed by itself do…
EastWest Steven Wilson's Ghostwriter Review - The Ghost of Wilson
Written testEastWest's latest production, Ghostwriter, is a virtual instrument that's the result of a collaboration with Steven Wilson, a key figure in the prog and ambient music scenes in recent years. Is Wilso…
A Review of Toontrack's Classic Amps EZmix Pack - Classic Amps the EZ Way
LearningToontrack recently released a new collection of amp models with effects called the Classic Amps EZmix Pack, which can be opened as presets in the company's EZmix 2 software. How do these emulations s…
Why Headroom is Important - Keep Your Levels Down and Your Headroom Up, and Your Music Will Sound Better
LearningYou’ve probably heard the term “headroom” thrown around a lot. What it is, essentially, is a margin of safety between the loudest peaks of your track — or tracks, in the case of a mix — and 0 dB on y…
Mastering at Home - Part 4 - How to Use EQ In Mastering — The Theory
LearningIn mastering, EQing could be your best friend or your worst enemy. Which of the two depends on your grasp of the word: subtlety!
Mixing: A 12-Step Program - A Helpful Approach for Efficiently Mixing Music
LearningHere at Audiofanzine, we’ve covered many individual aspects of mixing, and offered detailed information on what to do in preparation for a mix. But we've also gotten requests for an overview of the e…
SoundToys MicroShift Review - Depth of Voice
Written testAlmost a year after releasing the free Little MicroShift, SoundToys has finally introduced its bigger sibling, a plug-in designed to add space and depth to a wide variety of sources. MicroShift is al…
Learn From Other Mixes - How to Analyze a Mix
LearningJust like painting, photography and, obviously, music — mixing is an art in itself. And, as such, it also requires some training.
Protect Your Hearing - Don't let your ears get damaged by high sound levels onstage
LearningDid your ears ever ring after you played a gig, and not stop for a day or two? Now imagine that same scenario, but the ringing never stops. Pretty scary, right? And that's not an uncommon circumstanc…
Ashdown Pibass -240 and Mi 12 Speaker Review - π = 240 Watts
Written testAshdown Engineering's PiBass head is the signature model of Polish bass legend Wojtek Pilichowski. I tested it along with the Mi12, a cabinet featuring a 12" speaker. The two products combine to make…