The non-musician has taken a lot of stick from his educated counterparts, yet he's contributed a lot to musical progress. What separates musicians and non-musicians?

It comes by post, by fax, by phone and by word of mouth. Someone, somewhere is anxious to keep you informed of what's happening in the world of hi-tech music.

Letters of complaint, letters of appreciation - Communique is your chance to have your say in the world's leading music technology magazine.

Hands up if you've ever had to go MIDI troubleshooting - and if you'd like it to be easier next time. Gordon Reid examines the logical solution to sorting out MIDI problems.

What's impressive, essential to any multikeyboard setup and normally costs a fortune? Answer: a mixing desk. Tim Goodyer looks at a budget desk with a more-than-budget spec.

You hear so much about (and from) the Atari ST that it's tempting to believe it's the only computer used for making music. Michael Brooke takes a look at a powerful alternative - Commodore's Amiga.

E-mu's Proteus sample player has been one of the stars of recent trade shows, yet it's been in desperately short supply in the UK. Vic Lennard finds it's been worth the wait.

In the '70s, Can paved the way for a generation of experimental electronic musicians. Simon Trask talks to Holger Czukay and Michael Karoli amidst the CD rerelease of their entire back-catalogue and a new LP for '89.

With the novelty wearing off dedicated software synth editors, the race is on to come up with the definitive generic editor. Ian Waugh test-drives Dr T's entry.

As well as creating sound, digital technology can be used to rescue old or damaged recordings. Gordon Reid looks at a British system that's leading the world in audio restoration.

Taking the Multiverb as their starting point, ART have a new multi-effects processor with which to enhance your music. Ian Waugh says the verb is "to want".

England's North has consistently produced some of the most innovative electronic music. Simon Trask talks to a band set to take their place alongside New Order and Heaven 17.

In its day the Fender Rhodes changed the course of musical progress; now Roland have resurrected and improved Harold Rhodes' classic electric piano. Simon Trask plays on...

More experiments with accents form the basis of this episode of Ml's rhythmic soap opera. Nigel Lord beats a path for your drum machine.

Readers' own synth patches for Yamaha's CS40M and DX7S make up this month's Patchwork. If you've a favourite synth, why not submit a patch of your own and make it a star in Patchwork?

Aimed at the professional scorewriter, this scorewriting program for the Atari ST goes a long way towards making complex scores easy to handle. Ian Waugh goes public.