STEPP TO IT

Stepp's new DG 1 guitar is reportedly the world's first electronic guitar with an integrated, dedicated sound generation source.

The idea behind the guitar was to create an instrument that incorporated synthesised sounds, and that could also be manipulated by conventional guitar playing technique.

Stepp has achieved this goal by the application of four guitar algorithms to the synthesised sound generation process, coupled with an ADSM envelope. This, says Stepp, ensures that their are no triggering delays when the guitar is played — in fact Stepp states that the DG 1 is actually faster than plucking a string to producing a sound than an ordinary electric guitar.

Although the instrument can be linked via MIDI to synthesisers, (to act as a controller or expander), its essential 'step' forward, is the fact that the guitar envelopes allow the player to apply them to any of the integral synthesiser sounds. Alternatively, the guitar can be used to create conventional acoustic and electric guitar sounds — these in turn can be modulated, synced and routed to produce totally new guitar sounds.

The synth section of the guitar is fully programmable and features APS (Active Performance Software) that enables the guitarist to structure synth sounds or patches in performance — according to the way he plays.

Also, as the guitar is software based it allows the user to control values, so that he may bend resonance, or strum filter cut off. The wammy bar, for instance, could be assigned to volume, so enabling the guitarist to create dramatic bowing effects.

The guitar can never go out of tune, and guitarists will have a range of eight octaves at their disposal. Tunings can be stored as part of a patch and placed in any one of the guitar's 100 memory locations. The unit's MIDI In facility, when used with a sequencer, allows multi timbral recording and instant playback, editing, revoicing and auto correct quantization. It becomes possible to put down a bass part, assign it to one string play and then to play it back while playing rhythm, and play the two parts back and solo over the top.

The Stepp DG 1 comes in two parts, the guitar itself and the LSU (Life Support Unit) which contains the synthesiser voice boards, power supply, communications interface. It also doubles as a guitar stand.

The guitar will sell for around £3,500.

SOUNDTRACS' MIDI FIRST

Soundtracs has announced a new series of mixing consoles that it believes offers a first in that they are MIDI intelligent.

The MIDI Series is an 'in line' format with either 16 or 24 input/output module mainframe with 16 track monitoring and 16 sub groups.

The units are designed primarily for keyboard workshops and have 32 or 48 MIDI controlled inputs with additional MIDI control on four auxiliaries, plus an additional eight optional MIDI controlled effects returns.

The Series does not require an external computer to function, and has been designed to be easy to operate. Its built-in microprocessor allows straightforward programming of the console to any of the 16 MIDI channels currently available. Additionally, control of external MIDI effects may be programmed from the console.

ADVISION'S DIGITAL TRIO

Advision Studios recently completed Britain's largest ever digital recording session — using three Sony PCM-3324 multi track recorders.

Although Sony had demonstrated such a configuration at this year's Montreux AES it admitted that such a link-up would be difficult to achieve in a practical situation.

Advision's Senior Engineer David Jacob, obviously felt it was possible and used such a set up on a recent session for the motion picture division of Warner Brothers.

The 72 track DASH facility was employed for the forthcoming musical feature The Little Shop Of Horrors.

Jacob and his team had the job of matching the 48 track master to pictures. This involved synching two 3324s and then doing a pre-dub down to seven tracks on a third machine — with all three machines running in sync with video.

'We had a room full of different masters from both sides of the Atlantic', explained Jacob. There was no way we could afford to suffer generation loss. Matching a master tape with a slave edit can be a nightmare. With digital you just match the numbers and off you go.'

Advision Director Doug Hopkins confirmed that at one point during the session the three DASH multi tracks were augmented by an Otari MTR-90 24 track analog machine — taking the total briefly to 96 tracks.

NEW NEXO

Sound reinforcement company NEXO has introduced a new range of loudspeaker units.

The PC line consists of three main cabinets; PC115, PC212 and PCSub. Both the main units have horn loaded bass and highs with direct radiated mids, while the sub unit has been computer optimised to give area reduction and low frequency response.

The cabinets require on amplifier channel per unit used in tandem with a PC Processor which enables two way operation incorporating the sub unit.

The PC line can handle 700w and give 133dB SPL at 1w/1m.

MCPS LIBRARY RATES

MCPS is introducing minimum royalty rates covering the recording of its members' library music made into commercials for cable TV exposure.

The laid down rates apply to airings on Sky Channel (£35 per 30 seconds), Music Box (£100 per 30 seconds) and other cable channels received only in the UK such as Arts Channel, Lifestyle and Childrens Channel (£30 per 30 seconds per channel).

Minimum rates have also been established for audio only productions, or 'sound recordings'. These include: audio recordings made for distribution, free of charge, for private listening; audio recordings made for retail sale where music is incidental to spoken commentary, audio recordings made for playing to non-paying audiences as part of a presentation or as interval music and audio recordings made for in-store advertising.

Library music used for radio exposure will fetch an average minimum royalty increase of nine per cent.

All rate increases are now in effect.

MTR MIX IT

MTR has introduced a line level stereo mixer designed specifically to cope with eight output drum machines, banks of synthesiser modules, and multi keyboard set ups and the like.

On the 3U 19 inch rackmounting unit, each of the eight channels has gain and pan, an auxiliary post-fade send to an overall processor (eg reverb), a stereo insert jack for connection to an individual processor, and a PBI overload LED.

The output section includes a stereo master volume, a stereo aux return and pan, and power on/off switch with LED indication.

The unit costs £233 (incl VAT).

AIR PIONEER

AIRtv facilities recently pioneered the use of Nagra-recorded sound as a direct input during a Betacam edit.

The sound for the production was recorded onto quarter inch tape, and also played into the edit from two Nagra T audiotape recorders. The first time the audio and video were joined was on the resulting one inch master video tape.

The session was technically supervised by AIRtv Managing Editor Tony Walters. He organised the location recording using Nagra 4-S Timecode audiotape recorders and Betacam video equipment for the two part educational series, 16 Plus.

'Although people have used audiotape recorders for Betacam work before, no one to my knowledge has used them at a post-production stage,' he revealed.

Since Media Director Felicity Grant commented; 'By using this method you obtain first generation sound and first generation video during editing which is crucial for quality. It allows greater flexibility during production as well, because video and sound recording are separate and can be in different places at the same time.'

Walters intends to improve the system further by introducing a radio transmitter link between the video camera and sound recorder so that during shooting the camera's timecode is being sent to the sound recorder the whole time.

REVOX MIXER

Revox is introducing a mixing console — its first ever.

Developed from the technology and experience of Studer consoles, the C279 is designed for both the full time professional and leisure musician.

The console has six unbalanced stereo or six balanced mono inputs and two balanced and two unbalanced outputs via stereo master faders.

Each input is equipped with mic/line switching, bass and treble equaliser and hi-pass filter. Both fader start facility and integrated DBX noise reduction are offered as options, while the unit is equipped with a 400Hz test generator for calibration purposes.

Revox has also announced the B203 Timer Controller — an interactive interface designed for the current Revox range.

Up to eight Revox units can be operated by their serial ports while a further three connections are available for the B206 transceiver.

Both FWO Bauch distributed products should be available now.

AUDIO TECHNICA MICROPHONES

Two new Audio Technica mikes have been introduced — both geared to recording vocals.

The AT814A unidirectional mic has been designed for close-up vocal use. Hence, bass is rolled off, while a moderate rise that starts at 2KHz is designed to give presence so that the vocalist can cut through instrument accompaniment and noise.

The AT836 is again intended for close miking vocals and instruments, and for hand held use in noisy environments.

GET YOUR HANDS ON

The Hands On Show, organised by Turnkey/Bandive, is aimed at giving recording musicians the chance to get to grips with pieces of equipment they may be interested in purchasing.

Now in its eighth year, the show will feature the full range of equipment distributed by the organisers, plus live recording sessions, seminars, workshops and personalities talking about their recording and playing experiences.

Seminar topics include; home acoustics, getting the most from portastudios and stretching multi track with MIDI.

The show is being held at the Strand Palace Hotel, the Strand, London, WC2. (nearest tube is Charing Cross), on November 22 and 23 from 10 am till 6 pm. Entrance to the hail is free of charge, but a £4 registration fee is necessary for seminars.

R-DAT CONCERN

Under the initiative of the International Federation of Phonogram and Videogram Producers, leading members of the European music and consumer electronics industry recently met to discuss the possible impact of the introduction of Digital Audio Tape (DAT).

Taking part in the discussions were representatives from EACEM (European Association of Consumer Electronics Manufacturers) including experts from Bang and Olufsen, Blaupunkt, Philips, Thompson and Thorn-EMI and of ETIC (European Tape Industry Council).

The IFPI delegation was led by Director General Ian Thomas and included PolyGram International President Jan Timmer, EMI Music President Ken East and IFPI Council Chairman Rob Stuyt.

During the meeting a demonstration was given of the CBS Copycode System, a copyright protection device which might be incorporated into digital audio equipment to prevent unauthorised copying of music software on digital audio tape.

The meeting was the first between representatives of the music recording industry and the hardware industry. Both sides recognised that as DAT can make perfect copies of copyright material (such as compact discs) it was a threat to 'intellectual property rights.'

TURBOSOUND OFFICIAL OPENING

Turbosound Sales recently had its new purpose built manufacturing unit at Capel, Surrey, officially opened by local MP the Rt Hon Kenneth Baker, Secretary of State for Education and Science.

The event formed part of Turbosound's first International Distributor Convention which was attended by representatives from more than 20 countries.

ROLAND ROUND-UP

Roland's new DEP-5 Stereo Digital Multi Effects Processor can produce four different, and programmable effects simultaneously — reverb, delay, chorus and parametric EQ.

Using 16 and 28 bit processing technology, four basic types of reverb are offered with 17 basic settings; digital chorus and EQ are controlled through three dual function controls, which control all parameters (+4dBM to -20dBM excepted) and are fully programmable.

The DEP-5 can store up to 99 effects programs and, if required, assign them to 128 MIDI programs. All programs stored in memory can be recalled via the front panel increment/decrement button, remote footswitch, or via MIDI.

Roland has also announced its outline plans for a one week Roland Roadshow, to take place at the end of November. It will feature vocalist/drummer/multi instrumentalist Tommy Snyder plus Mark Wood and Robbie Burns.

The venus have yet to be finalised but will probably take place in Edinburgh, Newcastle, Manchester, Birmingham and two venues in London.

Contact: Alan Townsend at Roland for more information. (Contact Details).

MARTIN APPOINTMENT

Martin Audio has appointed John Grumbridge as General Manager.

John has been in the music industry for 20 years, and has previously worked with the likes of Audio Kinetics and Simms Watts.

The PA design company is at present kitting out what is believed to be the largest disco in the world — the Cineram Club in Tel Aviv — with 15kW of power.

RAMSA POWER AMPS

Ramsa has introduced two new power amps that share similar features and circuitry.

The WP-9110 and WP-9220 have a total power output of 100W and 200W RMS per channel into eight ohms. If bridged mono mode is used their power output can be trebled to 300W and 600W respectively.

The amps have been designed to withstand high input levels, while reliability is ensured by Ramsa's two stage temperature controlled cooled fan system where fan speed is automatically selected.

The units will retail for £575.99 and £799.95 respectively.

A STUDIO OF NOTE

Nobody bats an eyelid when a new studio opens but Tone Deaf has attracted considerable attention in its first few months of operation. Surrounded by several thousand acres of farmland, Tone Deaf aims to provide a luxury facility that would cost no more per day than a medium level 24 track studio.

At the design stage it was decided that the studio should not impose undue limitations on the way it could be used. Thus there is a large recording area, a dead vocal booth and a 300 square foot control room that would accommodate most keyboard setups with ease.

Ultimate quality starts right at the front end, with Neumann TLM 170 and Sanken CU41 mics. After much comparison, Tone Deaf chose to use the AMR 24 DDA desk — an option shared by producer Steve Levine. Multi track is MCI 24 track, with a choice of Studer or Sony F1 mastering. A full range of outboard gear includes units from BEL, Drawmer, BSS, Klark Teknik, Yamaha, Alesis and Roland. There are also guitars, amps, synths and drum machines included in the rental price.

As an electronics engineer, director Arpad Toth was well aware of the less visible attributes of a top studio. He emphasised that every piece of equipment is 'impeccably maintained and calibrated'. It was also his decision to go for an in-house design on the monitors — allowing them to be matched to the control room in a way that would be hard to achieve with normal production units.

Despite Tone Deaf's rural setting it is easily approached by the M4 from London or Reading and Cholsey Station is also nearby.

KLARK TEKNIK GETS QUEEN'S AWARD

Klark Teknik recently won its first Queen's Award for Export Achievement and follows three successful years of trading.

The Lord Lieutenant of Worcester presented the Award, which was received on behalf of the company by Gaston Goossens, the company's Marketing Manager.

The success of the company can be measured in its acquisition of console manufacturers DDA, and more recently its expansion into the studio monitor business with the development of Klark Acoustic. Its first monitors should be available soon.

Fast Takes

• AHB has won the British Design Centre Award for its CMC 24 computer assisted mixing system. The CMC was put through a series of tests performed by an independent laboratory for the Design Council. David Bowie has recently bought one of the units for his home studio.

• John 'Bruno' Wayte has joined Paul Farrah Sound as Sales Manager. Bruno was previously Head Of Sound at Entec, and will be in charge of developing the company's audio hire business using the NEXO sound system that Paul Farrah Sound distributes in the UK. The company has also been appointed as sole distributors for the Cambridge based C AUDIO range of amplifiers.

• Unit 3 Studios and Surrey Sound have both had Audio Kinetics' Mastermix automation fitted to their DDA AMR24 consoles. Both 60 channel desks were fitted with AK's own VCA fader. DDA is developing its own version of the fader to be compatible with Mastermix. DDA has also recently delivered desks to Oxfordshire's new Tone Deaf studios, London's Unit 3, Paul Hardcastle and Dave Gilmour.

• A 24 channel Soundcraft Series 800B console is being used at the Theatre Royal in Sydney, Australia for the Oz version of Lloyd Webber's Cats.

• Mitsubishi is to supply an order worth $1.25 million in equipment to a new Hollywood based film post-production studio being built by Cannon Films. The order is for Westrex magnetic film recorders and preproducers, and a custom bulit film recording console with Compumix IV automation and intelligent digital faders.

• Amek has recently supplied the BBC with two post production consoles based on the BC11 console, tailored to meet BBC specifications. Green Street Recording of New York has also placed an order for the new APC1000 assignable production console.

• ZZ Top recently received Ampex Golden Reel Awards for the album Afterburner, certified double platinum. The album was produced by Bill Ham (and recorded at Ardent Recordings in Memphis USA by Joe Hardy). The album achieved double platinum status faster than any other in music industry history.

• Kodak has recently published ElectroMedia 86/87, a book that gives extensive coverage of the facilities available in the UK to producers working in film, television and audio — including recent developments in cable and satellite. The 270 page guide also features articles on North American production, financial aspects and raising venture capital. It is available for £6.95 (perfect bound) or a £14.50 spiral bound professional edition from: CMP London, (Contact Details).

• Andre Perman has joined Meyer Sound to head a new research division into the development of SIMCAD measurement instrumentation for SIM analysis and equalisation of reinforcement systems. The first of a planned series of developmental SIMCAD analysis systems will be delivered to the Jubilee Auditorium in Calgary, Alberta.