Why on earth there's a button marked 'microscope' on the front panel of the new Roland MC-500 Micro Composer will remain one of life's mysteries, well at least until they're in the country and we can get hold of one for review. In the meantime, information is sparse. Apparently, the MC-500 is an upgraded MSQ-700 MIDI sequencer equipped with a 3.5 inch floppy disk drive for data storage of up to 100,000 notes (40,000 internally).

The main parameter controls are the ten number keys and what is rapidly becoming standard to many Roland products - an alpha dial, which allows for fast data entry and editing. Although the literature doesn't give too many details it would appear from the front panel that there are in fact four individual tracks each of which can memorise several MIDI channel messages. Overdubbing in real-time, step-time or by the ten keys is possible and a merge function allows mixdown between tracks. The MC-500's extensive editing facilities mean that you can amend any MIDI data message including system exclusive, as well as rewrite velocity and gate times, delete and insert notes and bars, and punch in or out at any point you like. All this and up to 999 bars and 90 rhythm patterns.

Also from Roland is the RPQ-10 Preamp/Parametric Equaliser which compliments the existing Boss Micro Rack effects range. The RPQ-10 features a two-band parametric with slider controls for frequency, Q and level.

For details on both products contact: (Contact Details)

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If power amps are your speciality, then the new range from Soundcraft should create some excitement for you.

There are four amplifiers in the range which starts with the small SA150 giving 2x85 watts power output, the SA600 at 150 watts per channel, the SA1000 at 300 watts and the massive SA2000 which offers a mighty 430 watts per channel.

Soundcraft point out that due to the advanced design and technology employed, the amplifiers are all capable of what they term 'Pulse Power' operation - which means that the amp can deliver a huge amount of power for a very short duration. The SA2000, for example, is rated at 430 watts output though it's able to reproduce up to 3000 watt transients when the dynamics of the music so require. The result of this pulse power design is a much louder sounding amplifier that retains low distortion.

(Contact Details)

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Well it's finally happened.

A stereo digital reverb for under £400! The new Alesis MIDIVERB will be released very soon and offers quality digital reverb to the budget studio. At £395 inc VAT, sacrifices have surely been made, but not in the quality we are told. The major point is that the MIDIVERB is not programmable but gives you 64 preset room programs at a 10kHz bandwidth and includes full MIDI program selection, but if you're just into straightforward button pushing, you can select the programs manually.

(Contact Details)

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Our brief mention of MIDI mixers in last month's Edits page has resulted in several phone calls and details of products.

The Studiomaster Series II is perhaps the most comprehensive of the new breed of mixers to incorporate MIDI and will be launched at the Frankfurt Music Fair in February. It's available in 16.8.2, 16.16.2 and 16.4.2 formats with two further expander modules offering either 8 input channels or 8-track monitoring. This places it very firmly in the 8- and 16-track studio market and will definitely appeal to those who are already using MIDI equipped synthesizers and effects.

The mixer itself has 4-band semi-parametric EQ on all inputs, 6 auxiliary busses, phantom powering, fader reverse, solo, insert points and all the usual tape returns and monitoring facilities.

What is new and exciting on the Series II, is the MIDI control section of the mixer which RSD claim to be the first of its kind, for it will enable the on/off status of input channels and auxiliary returns in the remix mode to be programmed into the memory of a home computer. These muting patches, programmed whilst listening to the final recording, are triggered via a sync pulse recorded onto the edge track of your tape machine. Different patch sequences can be stored on disk or cassette and loaded up prior to a mixdown ready to control the signal routing.

The MIDI control software will initially be available for the Commodore 64 and Sinclair Spectrum only, with other computers being catered for by market demand and readers' opinions. No price has been announced yet, but whatever it costs, the Series II is certainly going to open up new applications in MIDI control, both in signal routing and effects. We wait patiently!

Specification from (Contact Details)

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As the Frankfurt Music Trade Fair approaches, many of the synthesizer manufacturers are releasing brief information about their forthcoming products.

Casio will have several new items including the SK-1 Sampling Keyboard which is the world's first polyphonic sampling keyboard for under £100. There's a preset synth, the CZ-230S with 100 voices, and a new range for Casio in the shape of a Digital Drum Kit comprising five pads and a MIDI translator box for connection to either drum machines or synthesizers. The drum machine could be the new RZ-1 which offers full MIDI control, 12 PCM sounds and storage of 20 songs and 100 patterns. The RZ-1 also has four sample locations where you can sample your own sounds into the unit.

A new 5 octave keyboard the CT-6500 uses 'Phase Distortion' sounds and includes auto-rhythm, bass and chord sounds. (Contact Details)

There are lots of new developments from Korg as well.

With sampling all the rage, Korg are releasing the DSS-1 which features built-in sounds that may be combined with sampled sounds. An integral disk drive is also included. The original Poly 800 created a lot of interest in Korg products at the time of its release, and here again Korg hope to ride on that success with the updated Poly 800II which is very similar to the original but includes a built-in digital delay, extended sequencer capacity and improved envelope generators.

With the existence of the DW 8000 keyboard, the release of the EX 8000 rack-mounting expander offers you similar features to the DW 8000 and gives 64 programs. And if you require more memory, the MEX 8000 can cope with four banks of 64 sounds. (Contact Details)

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From Yamaha come even more goodies with the updated electric pianos PF70 and PF80 looking very interesting. On the rhythm front, the RX21L is the Latin Percussion companion of the established RX21 and features 16 PCM voices. Yamaha have also decided to move into electronic drum pads.

For the CX5 owners come a host of software like the SFG05 sound module which is effectively a DX21 in a small box and replaces the current SFG01. On the processor front, there are three units due, a MIDI Event Processor, MIDI Control Station and MIDI Junction Controller. A budget sequencer is also rumoured as well as a rack-mounted multieffects unit which we think will probably contain a reverb, compressor, gate combination or something similar and probably all MIDI controllable. For studio or PA use there's a new power amp, the P2075, generating 75 watts a side.

Finally, a new Multitrack Cassette Recorder, the MT1X. This is a budget machine aimed at the home market and features four channels with dbx, 2-band EQ and MIDI sync in/out. It runs off batteries and will retail for around £450. (Contact Details)

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The second of this month's MIDI mixers is the D-4 Electronic Music Mixer from TOA. This 2U rack-mounting box provides a 4 input system which is expandable to 10 inputs and terminates in a stereo output. Balanced mic and phantom powering are available on each in put together with pre or post effects send and direct outputs.

On the MIDI side, the D-4 provides MIDI Thru patching but further details are not available at the moment. (Contact Details)