Paul White again, with the first in a new series on ensuring your immaculate recording isn't ruined by a mediocre mix. This month: what not to do with mixing desks and outboard processors.

Multitrack Cassette Recorder

Affordable cassette multitrack with a few unexpectedly sophisticated features.

4-Track Recorder/Mixer

Composer & Drummer

This Sinclair ZX81 add-on will take control of your synth and drum machine.

New products from the recording world.

Combined 12-Channel Mixer/Recorder

The second and final part of our superb professional quality studio mixer project

What's A Gate?

A gadget that only lets certain sounds through — geddit? Deeper analysis on page 20.

Spirit PowerStation User Report

Tech 21 SansAmp Rackmount Tube Amp Emulator

Tech 21 have taken their popular SansAmp foot pedal guitar preamp and repackaged it in studio, rack-mount format. Paul White takes a look at what else it has to offer.

a brace of British boxes

MIDI Controller Keyboard

Simon Trask takes command of Orla’s 88-note weighted keyboard, and brings the sensitivity of the concert pianist to this MIDI module interface. Will the C80 respond?

16:4:2 Mixing Console

how they work

Portable DAT Recorder

As the market prepares itself for an influx of DAT recorders from the giants of the hi-fi world, Mark Jenkins takes a brief look at a new portable offering from Technics, the SV260.

powered mixer + HiSys 2 monitors

A PA system you can take anywhere

Four-track Cassette Machine

It's like a Porta One, but bigger, with more input channels, more features, and a correspondingly higher price-tag. Paul White casts a critical eye.

How it Works

Part one of a series on designing and building a digital percussion sampling device.

No project from Tanrak, this month as Paul Williams refuses to leave his R&D lab until next month. The charming and eloquent Dr Simon Bateson steps in to fill the breech with a level matcher that could save civilisation as we know it.

Studiotest

Jim Betteridge finds the Korg SDD-1000 well worth the wait

Atari ST Sampler

If you fancy turning the processing power of your Atari ST to the delicate art of sampling, AVR's Pro-Series 12 could be for you. Vic Lennard soft samples.

An unbelievable digital reverb at an even more unbelievable price.

Are they a viable and cheap alternative to Eqs in the studio. Curtis Schwartz takes a look at a cross section of products available