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Boing Boing Gadgets Barely Scratches the Surface of V-Studio 100

Gadget Reviewer Rob Beschizza spent the weekend with Cakewalk’s SONAR V-Studio 100.  After hooking up the portable device to his computer via USB and plugging in his guitar through the Hi-Z input,  Rob discovered that he did not need an amp to produce great sounds. In a matter of minutes, Rob was blown away by the device’s ‘triple play’ of powerful features:

“The key point is that it’s a unique box, combining MIDI controller, portable multi-track recorder, and mixer, all in a case the size of a Harry Potter hardback.”

Rob also liked the unit’s SD Recorder function (or as he called it ‘screw software’ mode) for recording on the go; saying that it gives the SONAR V-Studio 100 an ‘aura of awesomeness’.

Read the rest of Rob’s short & sweet review and see close-up shots of the V-Studio 100 at Boing Boing.net

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Home Recording Connection Impressed by New Version of Guitar Tracks Pro

Packed with an arsenal of tools for the guitarist and singer-songwriter, Cakewalk’s latest release, Guitar Tracks Pro USB, offers high-quality recording and ease of use – without the hassle. In a recent review by Home Recording Connection, Guitar Tracks Pro provides ‘great tracking and editing tools and is packaged with enough virtual instruments to build a complete backing band.’

It also includes a myriad of effects suitable for all genres of music including the award-winning virtual guitar amp Native Instruments Guitar Rig 3 LE. To complete this powerful package, Guitar Tracks Pro comes bundled with Cakewalk’s new USB audio interface, the UA-1G. This handheld, compact device features multiple connection options with stereo I/O and a Hi-Z option for recording and playback of high-impedance instruments like electric guitar and bass.

Take a look at the full review at Home Recording Connection.com

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V-Studio 700 Earns Future Music Magazine's Platinum Award

Future Music Magazine honors SONAR V-Studio 700 with a Platinum Award and a lengthy review in their latest edition.

Grab the August 2009 issue to read what happened when Future Music’s Greg Scarth tested the SONAR V-Studio 700 system in a variety of ways- by recording a few tracks with an acoustic guitar and vocals, calling up the included Fantom VS Synth, controlling SONAR 8 with it’s touch-sensitive knobs and ACT capabilities and even hooking up the system to a MAC run rig. In short, Scarth calls SONAR V-Studio 700 ‘a virtual studio for the 21st century’ and ‘a control surface that offers a level of DAW control that puts others to shame.’

Visit Future Music Magazine on the web for the latest news in technique and technology for making music.

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EM Magazine Hosts SONAR 8 Masterclass On Groove Tool, Beatscape

If you haven’t seen Electronic Musician’s master-class on SONAR 8’s new loop instrument, Beatscape, this would be a great time to check it out!

Via basic, easy to follow instructions, EM takes you through the process of importing and organizing audio files into Beatscape’s library and more. A brand new feature to the SONAR platform, Beatscape offers 16 pads to load and trigger your loops or samples for sequencing your music and beats. It also includes a massive 4GB REX library with preloaded material (beats, breaks, phrases in many genres). With drag and drop capabilities, Beatscape brings a new level of entertainment to remixing tracks!

Take a look at the masterclass in full at EMusician.com

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Computer Music Magazine Review Gives V-Studio 700 High Marks

According to the UK-based magazine, Computer Music, we’ve rendered the mouse useless with the SONAR V-Studio 700. Computer Music was especially excited about the VS-700C control surface, stating “the console is smooth, responsive and professional… the (SONAR) V-Studio 700 is a dream machine that vastly enhances the SONAR experience.”

You can read the full review at MusicRadar.com or see the August Edition of Computer Music, available at news stands everywhere.

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The UA-1G Is 'A JamGasmic Must-Have'

Long-time gadget enthusiast and avid audiophile, David Flowers wants you to know that Cakewalk’s UA-1G is no joke! With it’s simple design and many capabilities, the UA-1G has captured David’s attention. Check out his review to see why the UA-1G is a perfect companion for your home studio.

Click here for David’s review at The-Gadgeteer.com

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MIX Magazine: V-Studio 700 Brings Pro-Level DAW Control to Musicians

Pick up the latest issue of MIX Magazine to see an extensive review of the complete SONAR V-Studio 700 system. Engineer and MIX contributor, Tony Nunes, tests the SONAR V-Studio 700 in his home studio and during a commercial studio tracking session.

For testing purposes, Nunes interfaced the SONAR V-Studio 700 with a machine running a 32-bit Windows Vista Ultimate operating system powered by 3GHz Intel Core Extreme CPU Q6850 with 4GB of RAM. He also installed the latest software and firmware updates to ensure that the system’s various parts would work at the greatest potential in each environment.

Read the full review to get a closer look at SONAR V-Studio 700’s control surface (V-700C), the I/O and Roland Fantom VS Synth (V-700R), and digital audio workstation (SONAR 8 Producer). Here’s a few of our favorite quotes from Nunes’ stellar review:

“The V-700C is a full blooded control surface that’s tightly integrated with SONAR. Top features include EQ and plug-in manipulation… The V-700C’s faders are a step above the rest with unique features such as Channel Branch mode and locking faders.”

“The V-700R is a solid 24-bit/192 kHz USB interface with a plethora of inputs and outputs that sound clean, detailed and unbiased… the expandable Roland Fantom VS Synth is attractive to keyboardists and saves CPU load.”

“Plug-in manipulation was a breeze with ACT, which brilliantly mapped SONAR’s TL-64 and VC-64 plug-ins to the Channel Strip control section. I also appreciated how quickly I could access all the different SONAR views from the Access Panel, while the T-Bar combined with SONAR’s X-Ray kept my plug-ins from cluttering up my screen’s real estate.”

ALSO Check out this cool interactive SONAR V-Studio 700 graphic!

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Future Music Captures Demo of V-Studio 100

Future Music Magazine met up with Cakewalk’s Brandon Ryan in Frankfurt, Germany at Musikmesse 2009 in March. Brandon was demonstrating the many functions of SONAR V-Studio 100, giving them a tour of all the knobs, buttons and controls. Watch the video below to get a close up look at Cakewalk’s own Swiss Army Knife:

Sonar Studio VS100 demo at Musikmesse from will seelig on Vimeo.

Please see our latest post about SONAR V-Studio 100 for more information on this product.

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The How-to Geek.com Awards Music Creator 5 Four Stars

Cakewalk’s Music Creator 5 gets 4 stars and an excellent review at The How-to Geek.com!

Judged in five categories – Installation, Ease of Use, Features, Performance and Product Support – Music Creator 5 scored 8s across the board as ‘the affordable and powerful multitrack recording program perfect for beginners.’

The program’s help guides, simplified project views, and professional quality virtual instruments garnered much attention from the reviewer as he states:

”There is a bit of a learning curve to begin using Music Creator 5 and they offer a detailed user guide in the software and also videos on their site.  Once you start getting the hang of it everything falls into place.”

“While geared at beginners, there is a large amount of professional and studio quality features included in this package… there is a complete set of virtual instruments you can program to make the sound of your song huge.”

The How-To Geek.com features ‘how to’ articles on all things computers from operating systems and internet browsers to computer games and Microsoft Office™ tools. Need advice on running a certain program?  Just ask for help from a fellow geek on the site’s forums and wiki pages.

Get the full review, complete with installation instructions and screenshots, at the How-To Geek.com.

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Angels & Airwaves Cover Featuring Studio Instruments – Drums

A Studio Instruments fan, who goes by the name of Tadqim on Youtube, posted this video late last week and we wanted to pass it along. Using the Drum kit, included in Cakewalk’s Studio Instruments, Tadqim added his own beats to the Angels & Airwaves hit ‘Call to Arms’.

Cakewalk’s Studio Instruments-Drums allows users to make backing tracks with a realistically animated interface that looks just like a drum set! Now included in the latest recording and editing software for beginners, Music Creator 5.