19 ways to the top: exclusive

A professional quality mixer for live or studio use at an astounding price. Suitable for 8-track, 4-track and stereo recording.

Guitar Synth

Is it a guitar? Is it a synthesiser? Steve Shepard straps on Casio's combination of hi-tech sounds, MIDI facilities and old-fashioned guitar playability.

The Ideal 24-track Partner?

It may not be a new product, but recent events in the world of 24-track recording look like giving the Soundcraft 6000 console a newfound popularity. David Mellor investigates.

Having fun with digital delays.

Tony Visconti's studio, Good Earth, in the heart of London's West End owes its success to a combination of the right services and good management.

Subharmonic Synthesiser

This subharmonic synthesiser promises to do for your bottom end what an aural exciter does for your top.

Best known for their tape recorders and cassette-based multitrackers, this new generation of mixers from Fostex look like they will make more than a few converts. Dave Lockwood checks them out.

Vesta Kozo Sampler

Another goodie for your overflowing 19" effects ruck, this one offers pitch-controllable sampling and a full-function DDL into the bargain. Dave Simpson grabs a microphone and decides it's worth making room for.

A problem shared is a problem solved

Advice on what to look for in a commercial studio when considering your first recording venture.

No, this is not the rack-mounting version - it's a robust 14-track (at a push) multitrack recorder/mixer and computer-controlled patchbay rolled into one. Find out whether or not studio engineer Gareth Stuart reckons it could be a viable alternative to traditional reel-to-reel 16-track systems...

This exciting project from Paul Williams is capable of making even the most dull recordings come to life - it's a pity it can't do anything about duff songwriting though.

Mixing Desk

If you can't afford to be without a fully-featured mixing desk but can't afford the usual asking price, it could be that you haven't checked out Studiomaster's Pro Line Gold. Tim Goodyer has...

UB40 exclusive... the drums go digital... Plus Dread at the Controls - top producer Mikey Dread dubs it up, and reveals some trade secrets...

Recording Vocals

Part 9: The human voice is the most difficult instrument to record, bar none. David Mellor offers some practical guidance.

From being early Fairlight programmers, Simon Climie and Rob Fisher have pursued their songwriting career into the pop charts. Nicholas Rowland conducts the occasional interview.

A church, a portastudio, and a blue hippopotamus? Well, what do you expect from a band called Sam-I-Am?

Cassette Multitracker

If you're looking for a cost-effective way to add multitrack tape recording to your sequencing setup, it couldn't come much more cheaply than with Fostex' X18. Simon Trask goes back to basics with this new cassette multitrack.

Lexicon LXP1

There can be few effects devices around as prestigious and as desirable as those made by Lexicon. Now, with the release of the LXP1 16-bit processor, the classic Lexicon sound becomes truly affordable. David Hughes tastes the quality...

4 Channel Multitrack Tape Deck

Now it can be told. Martin Sheehan tells reporters of his secret life with a Teac A3440.

Mackie 1202 Compact Mixer

Mackie Designs' 1202 mixer offers supreme flexibility, and the same standard of design and construction that distinguished the 1604. Dave Lockwood finds proof that the best things come in small packages.

Who helped make Climie Fisher's single a hit? And the Pet Shop Boys', and Depeche Mode's, and Bananarama's? David Bradwell investigates the latest action in the Stock, Aitken & Waterman production stable.

Mackie 1604, DOD 1642 Mixers

Mackie's 1604 mixer head to head with DOD's compact 1642. The result may surprise you.