answers from top TV experts

A Bacon's eye view of the AMI show

Maybe we should have called it thingz 'n' stringz

More readers' queries are answered by the expert teaching staff of London's Gateway School Of Recording & Music Technology.

A wide selection of sound libraries from Sound Source Unlimited, Roland and Stiletto come under the scrutiny of the Patchwork reviewers.

Read the innermost thoughts of four of the land's most closely followed guitarists — Stephen Fellows (Comsat Angels), Dave Gregory (XTC), Kelly Johnson (Girlschool) and Andy Taylor (Duran Duran).

Bass Guitars

for the Kawai K4

more solo styles

What's to know? You just wipe the rust off the strings, plug it into the desk and bob's your uncle. Don't you? Er... not quite.

A four-section synthesiser complete with breath control, tested by Geoff Twigg.

Patches for the Yamaha DX21, Roland MKS80, Casio CZ101 and Ensoniq ESQ1 make up this month's selection of readers' sounds for you to try for yourself.

An analysis of The Concerts in China double album on Polydor PODV3

Readers send in details of their own synth sounds and how to play them.

Synthcheck

Small, digital and reviewed by Curtis Schwartz

Brian O' Shaughnessy advises on recording acoustic guitar

The 'guitar synthesizer' appears to be going through a new lease of life at present, with many manufacturers releasing guitar-based synth controlling devices that make good use of MIDI's powers of expression. Ian Gilby tries out one such model: the Shadow GTM-6.

The chiming of distant Rickenbackers, the drawl of Peter Buck, the whirr of Chris Maillard's tape recorder, and other sweet Georgia sounds

bass now wholly graphite

DREAM MACHINE: schecter guitar

the utterly marvellous schecter guitar