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Understanding Those Magic Boxes of Doom By Jon Chappell Most outboard effects behave in predictable ways as you move from manufacturer to manufacturer. For example, you can pick up any brand of digital delay, set at the delay time to 125 ms, the feedback to one repeat and the level to 50\%, and get essentially the same, expected sound. Quality issues aside, you can also get predictable results from an EQ. This is a good thing, as it helps you set up the sound you hear in your head on different rigs. But guitar distortion pedals are the “black boxes” of the effects world; they are all unique, inscrutable, and adhere to no known standards for parameter definition. You don’t know how the Tone control is voiced, which harmonics are emphasized as the Distortion knob is cranked, or even what effect the Level control has (such as whether it works dynamically with the other controls or just boosts the existing signal to a louder level). Often the manuals are no help either, preferring not to reveal the mystery of what goes on inside their magic boxes. So the bad news is, it’s virtually impossible to tell what the distortion pedal sounds like without auditioning it personally. There are no shortcuts, like reading reviews or scanning spec sheets. You just gotta drag yourself down to the local emporium and plug in. The good news is, it gives you an excuse to go shopping! And you can evaluate these disparate mystical contraptions—and even compare and contrast them— by using some basic common sense. What’s in a Name Fig. 1: Behringer’s Blues Overdrive BO100 and the Boss Super OverDrive SD-1. Both feature similarly named controls. The key to t he pedals’ tonal character lies in their model names. If you’re seeking a warm bluesy overdrive, you can pretty much a eliminate anything with the word “metal” in the title. Conversely, if you’re trying to make Slipknot’s James Root look like a tone wimp, don’t limit yourself to mere “overdrive” pedals or effects with the word blue or tube in them. Often the best clue to pedals’ sounds are in their names, even if they feature controls that are similarly named, as shown in Fig. 1. You’ll find it’s tough to get any hard information from ads, because companies try to outdo each other with descriptive superlatives. Also compounding the confusion is that some companies name their controls in a completely nonscientific way. Witness one company that released a pedal with controls called “Butt” and “Face.” The Ibanez Tube King’s Void control (Fig. 2) is perhaps not as flip, but it’s equally mystifying. Remember though, as odd as these names might strike you, it doesn’t mean the sound is necessarily worse (or better) than a pedal with more conventional named controls. Again, you can’t determine the quality of a pedal sound by looking at it, but you can get clues to its category. Overdrive, Distortion, and Fuzz Fig. 2. It’s pretty clear what you’d use the Ibanez Tube King for. And many of the controls are intuitive. But what’s “Void”? These terms are all used loosely to describe distortion, but discriminating tone freaks will make distinctions between them. Overdrive is what happens as a signal is pushed beyond the limits of the circuitry’s ability to reproduce the sound faithfully. A slight overdrive has a warm, smooth, and somewhat dull sound that is musically pleasing on a guitar signal. The next category, distortion, covers the widest tonal area, because it includes everything from “just beyond tube warmth” to the brittle buzz saw effect of System of a Down. Within this range is all manner of metal, alternative, hardcore, and industrial timbres. Fuzz is almost a caricature distortion effect, producing a nasally, buzz saw tone that is generally useful only on single node lead lines. It was made famous by Jimi Hendrix (who played a Fuzz Face), and is now called for by name, though many producers use the word generically described any distortion beyond the warm blues furriness. There’s no accepted category for “beyond fuzz,” but certain hardcore adjectives are making their way into the nomenclature, notable metal (see Fig. 3). Fig. 3. Though the DigiTech Death Metal has conventionally named controls—Level, Low, Mid, High—the name (not to mention the color scheme!) tells you its tone will be anything but conventional. Once you have narrowed the sonic field to blues, metal, or subterranean death knell, and are fairly clear on the naming conventions of distortion’s controls, it’s time to check out some pedals. You can do this by going to friends’ houses or visiting the local music shop. But you must be systematic when using your “testing instruments.” You can’t go into a store and try Seymour Duncan’s Lava Box with a Les Paul through the Marshall and expect the unit to behave the same way when you try it in Store B’s Strat and Fender Vibrolux. The best way would be to bring your own rig to the shop. But if that’s not practical, work to get the closest setup at the store to the one you have at home. Hint: approach the store during their downtime so the salespeople will be in a better position to set you up. Bench Test Once you have the prospective pedal set up and under your feet, the first thing you should do is establish the pedal’s unity gain setting. That’s the point that produces the same volume level when the pedal is active as when it’s bypassed. This will let you hear the pedal’s effect without the influence of psychoacoustics—that is, the ear responding differently to the same frequencies at varying loudness levels. Typically, your starting levels will look like those in Fig. 4. Kick the panel on and off a couple of times to hear what the pedal does to your tone in its most neutral state. Then slowly crank the distortion control from leftmost to rightmost position, noting not only the differences but how the unit is calibrated—how drastically the unit changes from low to high. Make sure to play real-world examples: lead lines, rhythm figures, arpeggios, percussive, and sustained passages. Then try touching up the sound with the pedal’s tone control. That’s part of the pedal’s character too—how its E.Q interacts with the distortion. Using EQ with distortion is an important element in tailoring your sound. Generally, the higher the distortion setting, the more treble you’ll need to add. The reason is that the more distorted your signal, the more compressed it becomes, and compression rolls off high frequencies. But should you use the pedal’s EQ or your amp’s? Or an outboard EQ? And if you use an outboard EQ, should it come before or after the distortion? Only your ear can decide. Just remember this paraphrase from Woody Allen: If it’s not done dirty, it’s not done right. He was talking about guitar tone, right? Jon Chappell is a guitarist and the Senior Editor of Harmony Central. He has contributed numerous musical pieces to film and TV, including Northern Exposure, Walker, Texas Ranger, All My Children, and the feature film Bleeding Hearts, directed by actor-dancer Gregory Hines. He is the author of The Recording Guitarist: A Guide for Home and Studio (Hal Leonard), Essential Scales & Modes (Backbeat Books), and Build Your Own PC Recording Studio (McGraw-Hill), and has written six books in the popular For Dummies series (Wiley Publishing).

Using Reverse Polarity Adaptors on Your Mix By Jon Chappell A phase switch on a mixer is actually a polarity switch: it changes the positive voltage to negative and the negative voltage to positive. The reason it's called a phase switch is that that's how people use it: to eliminate phase cancellations in signals coming into the mixer. Reversing the polarity of a signal (and the waveform produced by that signal) is the same thing as having the signal 180 degrees--the maximum--out of phase. That's why in this one situation you can use the terms "out of phase" and "reverse polarity" interchangeably, even though it's not quite correct: because it produces the same results. To Phase or Not Switching the phase--er, polarity--of a channel is often a good test to perform on elements in a mix, especially where a lot of mics are used, and where more than one mic is used to capture a source. For example, if your guitar or bass blends a mic with a pickup (as is often the case with a plugged-in acoustic guitars), you may want to do a quick polarity check to make sure the mic and pickup are in phase. And if not, reversing the polarity of one of those signals may improve things. How do you know if you've improved it? If it gets louder or fuller. If the sound becomes hollower, boxier, or softer when you switch, chances are it was okay as is. You may even want to go with the "incorrect" configuration if it helps eliminate feedback, helps to balance a boomy instrument, or otherwise offers a more desirable sonic character. In the final analysis, you must use your ears to decide. But what if your little stage mixer doesn't sport one of these handy switches? Well, you can create a simple XLR adaptor, consisting of: a male-to-female connector, where pins 2 and 3 are switched at one end. This goes inline between the mic cable and the mixer. You'll also hear this device referred to as a "polarity transposition lead," but it describes the same thing--a short inline (male to female) XLR adaptor cable with the positive and negative wires crossed at one end only. You can make your own, if you're handy with a soldering iron, or you can buy one of the many available pre-made ones online or at your favorite brick-and-mortar emporium. Home Brewed vs. Store Bought To make your own, you just swap the wires going to pins 2 and 3 on one end only of a male-to-female XLR cable. Figure 1 shows the schematic. Fig. 1: In making your own polarity reverse adaptor, just switch the leads of pins 2 and 3 at one end (leave pin 1, the ground, connected). Note that since this is a three-wire system (positive, negative, and ground), you do need to know which wire is the ground--and to leave that one alone. If you don't want to bother with disassembling a connector and breaking out the soldering gun, just buy a ready-made connector that does the job for you. I found several on the web, including models from Shure, Hosa, Whirlwind, and Pro Co, but the Hosa gets a mention here because it is the least expensive (see Fig. 2). Fig. 2: Hosa has a no-frills adaptor (the GXX-195) for only about $8. You could buy two at that price for less than one from many other brands. Whirlwind has one called the IMPHR ($16, street), which has the letters boldly displayed on the barrel housing, making it easy to identify when rummaging through your toolbox (see Fig. 3). Fig. 3: Whirlwind's Phase Reverse is another way to deal with a miswired mic or cable. Guerrilla Tip I don't advocate doing this except in an emergency, but you can actually make an inline splice, which doesn't require soldering tools or even disassembling the connectors. If you cut a mic cable with scissors or a carpet knife, you can more easily strip the insulation of off the wires coming from pins 2 and 3 and reverse them than if your were working with the lugs at the connectors. Use a volt-ohm meter to check the continuity of the pins and the corresponding wires to make sure you're making the right hook-ups. You can re-connect the cut wires by simply twisting them together and knotting or taping the cord such that there's no strain on the connections themselves. It ruins a cable, of course, and it's not the most secure way to make an electrical connection, but in an emergency it can be done (and I've done it). And here's another tip: if you do go this route, make the cut close to the connector so that you lose only a couple of inches of cable when you have time to do the connection the right way (i.e., with a soldering iron and onto the lugs of the connector). Alligator clips will also help hold the wire-to-wire connection together, but be careful not to bump them. Jon Chappell is a guitarist and Associate Editor at Harmony Central. He has contributed numerous musical pieces to film and TV, including Northern Exposure, Walker, Texas Ranger, All My Children, and the feature film Bleeding Hearts, directed by actor-dancer Gregory Hines. He is the author of The Recording Guitarist: A Guide for Home and Studio (Hal Leonard), Essential Scales & Modes (Backbeat Books), and Build Your Own PC Recording Studio (McGraw-Hill), and has written six books in the popular For Dummies series (Wiley Publishing).

Use Your DAW to Create Arpeggios, Tremolo, and Other Delay-Based Effects More Effectively Than Your DDL By Jon Chappell There are tons of ways guitarists and keyboardists can use timed delays to enhance their recorded parts. From arpeggios to rapid-fire drones to tremolo, timed delays can add a new rhythmic dimension to a percussive or staccato figure. But setting up an outboard delay (or using the plug-in variety) is often clunky, and it won’t move with the music if the tempo changes (between sections, with intentional accelerandos and ritards, or just naturally shifting over time). Tap tempo addresses some of those problems, but that’s yet another thing to do with your body. And for the repeated sounds, an outboard DDL’s feedback parameter offers very poor control. So instead of trying to sync up your delay to create rhythmic subdivisions, you can use your DAW and copy tracks to perform the same function. Any timed-delay operation works best on staccato or steady-stream rhythms, such as a continuous line of eighth notes. Record your part on Track 1, and then simply “clone it” by copying and pasting it to an adjacent track. (A better way is to use the shortcut keystroke by holding down a modifier key and dragging the part; on Pro Tools, it’s the shift key.) Make sure you’ve done all your trimming first, so that you can more easily align and offset clips by having the event start point line up with the note’s initial attack. Repeat this cloning process as often as you need discrete repetitions of your part. More track copies means more repeats, which is analogous to a higher feedback setting on your DDL. The longer you space the tracks apart in time (or the greater the horizontal distance on the timeline between start points), the higher the delay-time setting. Then you have to snap your cloned tracks to predetermined time intervals. Obviously, you should know the rhythmic scheme of your part before setting out. Know your tempo, have a calculator handy, and set up the grid to show minutes and seconds rather than bars and beats. The red circles in Fig. 1 shows Pro Tools set up to show the grid and counter in minutes/seconds, the tempo, and the start time of the clone track (at 200ms). DELAY BY THE NUMBERS For easy math, let’s say I’m doing a slow tune at q = 60. That equates to one beat per second or one quarter note every 1,000ms. To do subdivisions of the quarter note from there, I simply take a fraction of 1,000ms. For example, eighth notes will come at 500ms intervals, 16th notes at 250ms intervals, and eighth-note triplets every 333ms. Once you figure out what your subdivisions are, the next step is to drop markers at the appointed intervals. Use the snap-to-grid function to get your cursor to quickly go to the right grid point. Then when you drag-copy the part from the original to the new track, the audio segment should snap right to the pre-set markers. POOR MAN’S TREMOLO Fig. 2: Click for full image and description. In Fig. 2, I have set up a five-note subdivision for my quarter note, which will yield what I call “poor man’s tremolo.” This means that I am either too lazy or too unskilled (or both) to play a proper picked tremolo for any length of time. If you’ve ever had to play Italian-style mandolin or plectrum banjo (as I have, as a pit guitarist), you can feel my pain. And have you ever tried to create a tremolo with a delay unit? It’s exceedingly difficult, even with a multitap delay. But on a DAW, you can create rock-solid tremolos by simply copying your principal track and spacing it evenly, according to the time-converted subdivision of the tempo. So in our example of q = 60, you can create a five-note-per-beat tremolo by simply copying the original track every 200ms (principal note = 1:000 ; 2nd note = 1:200; 3rd note = 1:400; 4th note = 1:600; 5th note = 1:800; new downbeat = 2:000). Too bad I can’t transport this technique into the orchestra pit, but it did get me thinking about “manufactured tremolo.” Five notes seems to work well here, as four notes per beat are 16th notes (which is not quite fast enough for a tremolo) and six notes is 16th-note triplets, which sounds a little “virtuosic”—especially when repeated with the machine precision of a DAW and not a human picking hand. Speaking of humanization, one trick I’ve learned is to vary the volume of the subsequent, delayed tracks. The highest track (Track 1) should be the loudest, and you can simply lower the volume of the other tracks to make the principal note speak better. I often soften the very last track (or trem note) before the downbeat to set up the new principal note. POWER MOD And you say you miss the modulation function of your DDL? No problem. Just introduce chorus, flanger, or reverb into the repeated tracks with a plug-in. The possibilities are endless here, because you can apply a different effect (or different amount of the same effect) to each repetition. This is a lot of processing power to be gobbled up by a single part, so watch your CPU load. Or bounce to disk and re-import when you think you’ve got it. Using track copy this way—to add a post-production delay—makes a lot of sense. You shouldn’t record a time-based effect in line, anyway, the way you would, say, distortion, and wah. Using a separate track in a DAW for the time-delay effect works just like a parallel effects loop: it leaves the straight signal un-modulated and blends in only the effected sound. Plus, you get really good at converting musical time (tempo) to real time (seconds), and you understand better how subdivisions and small-unit rhythms work. And if you’re really, really good, you can re-create these live, on the fly. But I’m still working on that!

No More Math! Use This Excellent Excel Solution for All Your Impedance Calculations By Jon Chappell One of the great things about doing research on the Web is that you often find out stuff you weren’t necessarily looking for in the first place, but is valuable in another application. Case in point: I was researching the best way to hook up some lithium-polymer batteries to drive a high-powered motor for my radio-controlled airplane (a 60" P-51 Mustang), and I happened to stumble across a familiar, but out-of-context website: www.duncanamps.com. This was linked from one of the aeromodeling forums I frequent, and touted as “one of the best sources for software-based electrical-circuit calculators”— little apps that people make on Excel that provide easy answers to life’s little calculation problems. Wait a minute. duncanamps.com for electric motors? Of course, the site in question was for amp info! They wouldn’t be talking about batteries, I thought. And sure enough, they weren’t. But what the site was talking about was the way to calculate the resistance in series and parallel circuits. You see, combining the source of power (batteries) follows the same principles as the receivers of power (the speakers); it’s just from the other end. And that’s how I discovered this fantastic app. for calculating speaker hookup impedances. Since we guitarists never have to think about the power side (smart guys like Duncan Munro do that for us), we’re on the load side of the equation—usually in the form of hooking up speakers. The app. that Duncan amps offers is the most useful calculator (in the form of an Excel spreadsheet that you can download for free) for calculating power and impedance ratings for common amp hookups. Let’s look at the theory, and then you can forget all that and bookmark www.duncanamps.com for the easy way! Ways to Hook Speakers Up There are two ways to hook up speakers: in series and in parallel. At the most basic level, with two speakers, equal impedances in series doubles the total. Equal impedances in parallel halves the total. So when you have two speakers at 8 ohms apiece (guitar speakers are usually 4 or 8 ohms), hooking them in series (the positive terminal of the first speaker after the amp goes to the negative terminal of the second speaker) creates a circuit with 16 ohms. Hooking them in parallel (with their positive terminals all connected to each other and their negative terminals all connected to each other) creates a 4-ohm impedance. The problems come with more than two speakers, or when the impedances are mismatched, or both. Then you need some math chops. So let’s look again at the nature of series and parallel. Get Serial Series is easier, from both a conceptual standpoint as well as a mathematical one. A series circuit is where everything is in a daisy chain, like the battery configuration in a long-handled flashlight. All the terminals are wired end to end, so that you have a positive connecting to a negative connecting to a positive, etc. (By the way, most small electronic devices have their batteries connected in series, so even if you see an arrangement of eight double-AAs in two rows of four each, they’re configured electrically like in our long-handled flashlight example.) Schematically, here’s how a series circuit looks, with simple flashlight batteries, and with two speakers. Fig. 1. A series circuit for batteries and speakers. Each has a positive and negative terminal, which can be wired together. When working with speakers, you hook up the positive and negative terminals the same way as batteries. Don’t be confused by the geometry. Electrically, the flashlight and the speaker cabs are wired the same—in series. This is similar to the way you daisy-chain pedals, with the output of one pedal feeding the input of the next one in line. And just as in a pedalboard, the outer most connections, are the ones that go somewhere else. In an amp, it’s a circuit, like “circle,” so the first-in-line negative terminal and the last-in-line positive terminal are both connected to the speaker output jack on the amp’s back panel. When you want to compute the total resistance of the speakers in your chain (whether that’s a cabinet with its speaker terminals wired in series or a succession of separate speaker cabinets in a daisy chain), you simply add up the resistance, presented as ohms, and (usually) stamped on the back of the speaker. So if you have three 8-ohm speakers, your total resistance is 24 ohms. Mathematically that’s represented by this formula: Series R total = R1 + R2 + R3 + … Parallel Paroxysms Parallel connections hook all the positive terminals together and all the negative ones to each other, except for the first negative and last positive ones, which go to the source. Fig. 2 shows what this looks like with batteries and speakers. Fig. 2. In a parallel circuit, all the like terminals are ganged to each other. You can think of parallel as the “opposite” of series in one sense: the resistance decreases as you add more components. But it’s not simple subtraction (which would be the true opposite). In fact the formula is kind of complicated: Parallel R total = 1/(1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3 + …) So let’s take the normal ohm values for speakers, which are 4 and 8. If you tackle the parentheses first, you realize right away that you can’t add denominators that aren’t the same, like 1/4 + 1/8. You have to convert them to the lowest common denominator (2/8 + 1/8 = 3/8). Okay so, we solve for the parentheses, and then we invert the results, creating the reciprocal, because that’s what the front of the equation, 1/(…), tells us to do. We’re left with 8/3. That isn’t just a fraction, it’s a term that has to be solved. So we divide 8 by 3 and we get 2.67 ohms. That’s the impedance of a 4-ohm and 8-ohm speaker hooked up in parallel. And it’s not easy to intuit that number. Whew. That’s a lot of work. Is there an easier way than the equation above? Yes! Easier, but not as elegant, as it requires more steps. The way to re-jigger that complex, fraction-laden formula is to do this: Parallel R1*R2/R1+R2 So plugging in the numbers 8 and 4, we get 32/12. That equals 2.67. You still have to divide as your last step, but most people find this: Parallel XY/X+Y is easier to deal with than 1/(1/X + 1/Y) Deeper into the Parallel Universe Things get even weirder with parallel when we combine speakers of differing impedances. And that is when, dear readers, we stop thinking and start surfing! Though the math still holds true, you can go to this fantastic calculator at www.duncanamps.com/technical/impedance.html You can download and then use this calculator for several different speaker configurations, including series-parallel, which will give you different impedance values according to the way you hook up more than two speakers. Check out the following four screen shots, taken from the separate sheets of the Duncan amps Excel application, and you’ll see why this is a cool program—simple but clever. Fig. 3: Here is how a simple two-speaker hookup looks in series in the Excel program offered at www.duncanamps.com. Notice that I’ve highlighted the cell located at E8 (Column E, Row 8). Whenever you select a cell in Excel, it shows you the formula used in that cell in the formula bar (also highlighted). Here, no surprise, it just adds the values of the cells (indicated by the column/row locations E6 and E7). The great thing about this spreadsheet is that it will show you the power distribution to each speaker (see E10 and E11) in addition to the load the speaker produces on the circuit. This can come in handy later on with more complex arrangements. Fig. 4. This is a simple parallel circuit, again, with the key cell selected, which shows the formula (Excel-style) in the formula bar. This is where the calculator starts to earn its money, if you’re plugging in numbers that are not the same values for the speakers. The trick of taking half of the value of two speakers of equal impedance works only with that scenario. The more complex formula for parallel will work for all parallel scenarios (different numbers of speakers, differing impedances among speakers). Fig. 5. Here’s the spreadsheet configured with three speakers in parallel. For easy math, I’ve left the speakers with the same impedance (all 8 ohms). But if I changed one of the speakers to 4 ohms, the value would be 2 ohms. Change two of the speakers to 4 ohms (leaving one at 8) and the value would be 1.6 ohms. Complex Arrangements The next two screenshots show complex arrangements: more than two speakers and in the arrangement called series/parallel, which combines aspects of both serial and parallel circuits. Note that in these next two examples, we still have not used speakers of differing impedances. This not only keeps the math more intuitive, but it’s the most likely scenario you find yourself working with speakers of the same values. Fig. 6. A series-parallel hook-up with Speaker A in parallel with B, and AB in series with C. The arrangement above mixes serial and parallel by putting the A speaker in parallel, while leaving the B and C speakers in series. The result in the above series/parallel configuration is 12 ohms, which is less than 24 and closer to 16, or a two-speaker cabinet in series. Fig. 7. A series parallel configuration with Speaker B in series with A, and AB in parallel with C. The above arrangement is a slightly different series-parallel configuration than the one shown in Fig. 6. Here, the B speaker is placed in parallel, and the A and C speakers are in series. This produces a total impedance that is closer to the all-parallel hookup of 2.67 ohms, but higher than that dangerously low rating, and closer to the 8-ohm rating of a single-speaker cabinet or the 4-ohm rating of two speakers in parallel. In both arrangement of the series/parallel configurations above, the range is closer to the original 8 ohms of the speakers used than if the circuit were entirely series (24 ohms) or entirely parallel (2.67 ohms). This gives us much more flexibility when trying to maximize the power of the amp, and run it safely. Better Living Through Excel The calculator takes you up to four speakers in series, parallel, and series/parallel with two configurations each. This should give you plenty of options to think about, and be sure to run numbers of different impedances to see what the results will bear. You really shouldn’t be running more than four speakers on one amp, because it creates power-management problems, but with this handy calculator, you can “run the numbers” of any likely scenario you’re likely to encounter—and learn about speaker hookups in the process. \_\_ Jon Chappell is a guitarist and the Senior Editor of Harmony Central. He has contributed numerous musical pieces to film and TV, including Northern Exposure, Walker, Texas Ranger, All My Children, and the feature film Bleeding Hearts, directed by actor-dancer Gregory Hines. He is the author of The Recording Guitarist: A Guide for Home and Studio (Hal Leonard), Essential Scales & Modes (Backbeat Books), and Build Your Own PC Recording Studio (McGraw-Hill), and has written six books in the popular Dummies series (Wiley Publishing).

Direct boxes aren't just for recording bass - check out these tips for guitar By Jon Chappell Here are two different scenarios involving guitar amps and recording, both with a common problem that can be solved with direct-box technology. We don't normally think of direct boxes for recording guitars (that's an onstage bass thing!), but it does come up, especially in the following two situations. Scenario 1: You have a great vintage guitar and amp, but the amp has no master volume, so you really need to crank it to get the quality you want. The sound is so flippin' loud that it overwhelms your monitoring system, so you decide to put the amp in another room (down the hall, in the basement, etc.) and mic it, running the mic cable back to the recorder (where you are). You use headphones to monitor the miked sound, and the speaker volume doesn't shake you out of your chair. Scenario 2: You're in a proper recording studio, with a separate live and control room, and you'd like to sit in the control room with the amp beyond the glass, because it's easier to run the session and talk to the engineer (you're doing a bunch of guitar overdubs). "No problem," says the engineer, "we'll put some close and ambient mics in the live room, and monitor you through these giant control-room monitors so you'll hear a full sound." In both these situations, the guitar is separated from the amp by a considerable distance, and that means running an inadvisably long patch cord (greater than 30 feet) between the guitar and the amp. This isn't a good idea under any circumstance, but especially if you have passive or low-output pickups (as most vintage models are). A neat way around the limitation of recording from the control room with a combo in the studio is to use Radial Engineering’s SGI (Studio Guitar Interface) system. These relatively inexpensive, no-frills, passive (non-powered) gizmos convert your guitar’s high impedance signal to low impedance and transports it to another box that converts it back to high impedance. Here's how it works. The guitarist plugs a cable from the guitar into the first direct box, the SGI-TX (tx is the symbol for "transmitter"). Then the low-Z (three-pin) out is connected via a mic cable of whatever length (say 40 feet) is necessary to a second direct box. (Radial guarantees tone integrity up to 100 meters or 328 feet.) Because the signal has been converted to low impedance, it can travel a long distance without suffering degradation. The signal meets up and connects with to the low-Z input of the second Radial box, the SGI-RX (receiver). The second box should be placed right near the amp. Fig. 1: Covering long distances with Radial Engineering’s SGI system--essentially two complementary-function direct boxes. The image in the foreground middle is a schematic showing the connections. Then the high-Z, 1/4" output is used — along with a normal patch cord — to connect the second direct box to the amp, so that the amp's input gets the high-Z signal it's looking for. Fig. 1 shows the direct-box schematic in the foreground with a scale-looking illustration of how the setup looks in the recording studio. Many studios have "tie lines" or wired jack plates on the walls that can get you into and out of the room you're in, but if you're at home, or in any other improvised environment where separating the guitar from the amp is advantageous, just the two boxes will do the trick. Jon Chappell is a guitarist and Associate Editor at Harmony Central. He has contributed numerous musical pieces to film and TV, including Northern Exposure, Walker, Texas Ranger, All My Children, and the feature film Bleeding Hearts, directed by actor-dancer Gregory Hines. He is the author of The Recording Guitarist: A Guide for Home and Studio (Hal Leonard), Essential Scales & Modes (Backbeat Books), and Build Your Own PC Recording Studio (McGraw-Hill), and has written six books in the popular For Dummies series (Wiley Publishing).

USB Mics Are for Real, and the C01U Does the Basics By Craig Anderton At first, I thought the idea of a USB mic was a joke. Then when I actually saw the C01U I thought that it couldn't be any good, given the price (list is $234.99, but that seems pretty fictional—average street price hovers around $80). However, after using it for a while, I've gotten to the point where I don't want take my laptop on the road without it. The C01U is a USB version of the C01, but replaces the XLR out with a USB out (it would be nice to have both options, though I'm not sure where you'd put the extra jack). There are a lot of surprises: It feels more substantial than expected and has a real manual; it also comes with a mic holder, pouch, and 10' USB cable. Although it will install into Windows XP and Mac OS X without any extra software, if you go to www.samsontech.com, you can download a nifty driver applet (Mac OS X, Windows XP SP2) for extra functionality. (Note: Support in Windows 98 is limited; it works, but the gain range is restricted). The site also has detailed instructions on installing, deinstalling, and updating drivers. However, the installation instructions are needed only if you want to get an idea of what to expect, as the installation procedure itself takes you through the process in detail. Installation was simple: I plugged the mic in to a USB port. With either USB 1.1 or 2.0 Windows installs the drivers automatically, and once I set the volume properly using Windows' Sound and Audio Devices applet (very important—just because it's plug and play doesn't mean gain-staging doesn't matter), I was set. I tested the C01U with Windows XP in Cakewalk Sonar, Ableton Live, and also with Windows' built-in sound recorder, all using standard Windows sound drivers (MME, DirectX, DirectSound); everything worked perfectly. Suitably impressed, I installed the applet. It too was painless to install. Having the low cut filter was helpful, as was the ability to set gain more precisely…and a flashing clip indicator never hurts, either. Note that the C01U doesn't work with ASIO; also, the WDM drivers don't work with Sonar's ultra-low latency kernel streaming version of WDM. However, the C01U works fine with Sonar's MME drivers, and with "standard" WDM-compatible programs. As to the Mac, all is well as long as you're not using ASIO and you do proper gain-staging. Bottom line is that you shouldn't expect to plug the C01U into your favorite multitrack ASIO host. Otherwise the mic works fine, but of course, overall performance depends on how well the host itself works with compatible drivers. Note that the C01U also supports all common sample rates between 8 and 48kHz, with 16-bit resolution. But the sound was perhaps the biggest surprise: It's far better than I expected. This is no little "here's a mic for your laptop to take dictation," but a serious hypercardioid mic with a 19 mm diaphragm that gives a good account of itself with whatever you throw at it. You need to be a little careful about noise, but this relates to the usual mic issues—get a good level, set gain for the highest possible short of distortion, and noise won't be a significant factor. If I caught the sample of a lifetime on my laptop using this mic, I wouldn't think twice about transferring it over to my desktop and using it. The applet allows for some degree of computer control. THE BOTTOM LINE ASIO issues aside, this mic performs well for mobile audio applications. It's easy to understand intellectually that you don't need an audio interface, but that doesn't really hit home until the first time you plug a USB mic into your laptop, and lay down a scratch vocal in a moment of inspiration without missing a beat. What's more, although you're limited in the cable length you can use, you don't have to worry about balanced lines, low level signals, or other mic-centric issues. And for plug-and-play Podcasting, it's ideal. In a desktop situation, it's likely that if you're doing serious musical work you already have an audio interface with at least a mic preamp or two. Yet the C01U does add another mic to your arsenal, and when you're in a hurry, I can't emphasize enough how easy it is to just plug into a USB port and start recording. If you've been limping by with the (shudder) teeny little mic built into your laptop, or some $30 mic designed to grab sound rather than record it, the C01U will be a major step up. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

Not Enough MIDI Ports? Here's Your Solution www.tapcoworld.com by Craig Anderton I've noticed a disturbing trend lately in computer interfaces: No MIDI ports, or at best, one MIDI port (or something on the end of a bizarro world breakout cable). Granted, a lot of what MIDI used to do outside of the computer now occurs inside the computer, thanks to virtual instruments and other plug-ins. Yet there are still a lot of great MIDI hardware synthesizers, pedals, effects, footswitches, fader controllers, and other goodies that aren't happy unless they see that little 5-pin DIN connector. So what are you gonna do if you need more MIDI? Well, you know I wouldn't pose a question like that without an answer, and the answer is Tapco's LINK.midi 4X4 interface. It's been out for a while, but during that time it has become a workhorse in my studio, providing MIDI for Mac (PPC and Intel) and Windows computers. In fact, the main reason I'm reviewing this is for any other readers who suffer from lack-of-MIDIitis, because this little box has proven itself over and over again - and its four ports let it handle up to 64 channels of MIDI data. As usual, we won't dwell on the specs because you can get that from the web. So, let's just dive in to explaining why the LINK.midi 4X4 has filled a need in my studio, and why it might in yours as well. THE USB CONNECTION MIDI data uses a fraction of the bandwidth of digital audio, so it has no problem running 4 discrete ports with a USB 1.1 (or USB 2.0, for that matter) connection. Because it's not card-based, it's transportable among computers - any Mac with a native USB port and runs OS X 10.3 or better (except Macs with G3 or G4 accelerator cards), and any Windows XP machine running SP1 or better, will work with the LINK.midi 4X4. It also works with Vista if you update to the latest firmware; the Tapco site has the full story on updating. What's more, the LINK.midi 4X4 doesn't need a wall wart, because it's bus-powered. And, it's nowhere near as picky as a FireWire peripheral: It has worked with anything I've thrown at it. UPFRONT Looking at the front panel, you have three MIDI inputs and one MIDI output - very convenient for easy, front-panel access to gear (the other MIDI outs and MIDI in are on the rear panel). The front also has eight activity lights - green for input activity, red for output activity - and a MIDI switch thru so you can drive several sound modules from asingle master controller. That's pretty much it, except for two little handles. Given that the thing doesn't weigh much, these aren't for picking the unit up but provide protection from anything that might want to smash into its front - although the front panel is slightly recessed, so it already has a bit of an advantage in that respect. BRINGING UP THE REAR The rear panel is an equally simple affair, with the aforementioned MIDI outs and MIDI in, as well as the USB connector and a Kensington lock. It doesn't get much simpler than that. PHYSICAL CONSTRUCTION At less than 2 inches high and 7 inches square, the LINK.midi 4X4 isn't exactly Lilliputian but it's not going to get in the way, either. However, there are a couple other cool aspects to the packaging. First, the top and bottom have a rubbery, slight raised surface that makes it virtually impossible for this box to scratch your desktop. Second, it can lie horizontally, or you can pull out and swivel a little crossbrace that makes a "leg," allowing for space-saving vertical mounting. PLUG AND PLAY Indeed, it is. With Windows, LINK.midi 4X4 is USB class-compliant so it doesn't need any special drivers. I just ran the wizard and clicked mindlessly on "Next" until it was installed, whereupon it showed up in any program I had that dealt with MIDI. On the Mac, I just plugged it in and it worked (one of those times where the Mac's "It just works" slogan is actually 100\% true). I think the only way the installation process could be easier is if the LINK.midi 4X4 walked up to your computer and plugged itself in. CONCLUSIONS If you don't do MIDI, you don't need this. But if you use MIDI hardware, and your interface thinks you don't, LINK.midi 4X4 is a simple, relatively inexpensive solution that adds that extra MIDI you've been craving to pretty much any modern computer. It has never burped, acted anti-social, crashed, complained, or lost its mind. If only everything I used had the same qualities, life would be much, much simpler. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

Cross-platform guitar amp/cabinet/effects simulation software www.ikmultimedia.com www.native-instruments.com www.waves.com By Craig Anderton I've basically come to the conclusion that amp simulation software is like amps themselves: They're all different. I use all three of these sims for different reasons, as each one has different sound qualities and functionality. So, I'll be presenting some objective and subjective views on each one, and hopefully, they'll be helpful in deciding which one is right for you. FIRST THINGS FIRST Whenever I boot up an amp sim for the first time, my reaction is "This sounds awful!" That's because I call up a few presets, and there's the first problem: The presets were designed by people who weren't playing my guitar or using my pickups. Furthermore, many times presets are designed to show off what a device can do, rather than be part of an ensemble of instruments. But a little tweaking gets me where I want to go. Usually this involves adjusting any input gain or drive control to match my levels, then experimenting with different pickup settings to determine which one sounds best with the preset. Then I'll often scale back some of the settings, or disable some effects altogether, to clean up the sound. Think of presets as more of a point of departure than a final destination. Another issue is whether an amp model sounds exactly like an amp. Many guitarists report that playing through a sim doesn't give the same experience as playing through an amp, but when recording and playing back, it's very difficult (and in some cases impossible) to determine whether what you're hearing is a "real" amp or a simulation. Furthermore, there's the question of which amp you're simulating. Different production runs of amps had different sounds, and even the same amp could change over time as tubes age. But I'm not even sure if "precise duplication" should be the goal of an amp sim, as what they also offer is the ability to make sounds you can't get in any other way. So with these basics out of the way, let's dig a little deeper. SOUND QUALITY All these sims can make some great sounds, but each has their specialty. For example, in addition to the expected overdrive and crunch sounds, GTR has a sterling repertoire of clean and slightly dirty amp sounds. These are exceptional at giving straight guitar sounds some real character and presence. AmpliTube 2's special talent is that it simulates the transition from "clean" to "breakup" very faithfully. This is extremely difficult to simulate, and while GTR also does a good job, I'd have to give AT2 the edge on this one. Guitar Rig's strength is that all its amp models are very faithful (with a little tweaking, of course!) to the originals; I've heard some clips from Nashville guitarist Jerry McPherson where he recorded a miked amp and the same sound from Guitar Rig, and you really can't tell the difference. (Note that both GR and AT2 have "high resolution" modes that tax your CPU, but give a smoother, sweeter distortion effect.) FLEXIBILITY Guitar Rig is definitely the most flexible of three, as it uses a "rack-based" paradigm where you can throw modules in wherever and whenever you want. It also has unique signal splitting and crossover modules that really open up options for parallel and series/parallel effects routing. If you're a "tweak freak," GR can pretty much do whatever you want it to. Guitar Rig 2 uses a rack-based paradigm. You drag modules from the left side (the different distortion options are shown) into the rack on the right. Note the "Tweedman" amp module's "advanced" parameters along the bottom of that module. AT2 takes a different approach. Its setup is fixed: Stomp boxes always go before amps, and a complement of "studio effects" always follow amps—but within those limitations, there are eight distinct routing options that put the two stomp box "pedalboards" in series, in parallel, routed through amps that can be in series and parallel, etc. You can have one amp go through two cabs, two amps through two cabs in parallel, and the like. This strikes a good compromise for people who want some degree of flexibility, but don't want to be overwhelmed with options. GTR lies between these two. It has separate plug-ins for "pedalboards" and amps, so you can put the effects pre- or post-amp, stack one amp after another, and so on. If you want effects before an amp, followed by more effects, followed by an amp, followed by yet more effects, go right ahead. The one drawback is that with the current version of GTR, you can't save the entire combination as one preset: You need to save the pedalboard setups as presets, and the amp sounds as their own presets. I think the odds are good this will be addressed in a future version, so that you have the option to save complete presets. THE ROSTER OF EFFECTS Guitar Rig has the lead in sheer number, as several updates have occurred since it was first introduced, and each one added more effects. It also has many modulation options, such as a step sequencer, analog sequencer, and envelope follower. Additional effects you won't find in competing products are a JamMan-type looping device, eight different distortion stomp boxes, and a rich roster of dynamics control (two different compressors, limiter, noise gate, and noise reduction). There are 35 effects total, as well as two "tape recorders" that can record your riffs, or play back riffs. Another interesting feature is that most effects have an "advanced" mode, so that the main interface is familiar and non-threatening—but if you want to go deeper, you can do so by revealing additional parameters. This shows the AmpliTube amp window toward the top, and one of the stomp box "pedalboard" windows at the bottom. Each of the two pedalboards can hold a maximum of six effects. A sixth one is being selected here. AT2 has 21 stomp box effects, and these lean more toward vintage simulations. For example, their "EchoMan" nails the E-H Memory Man sound, and their Envelope Filter sounds deliciously vintage. But the "special sauce" here is a bunch of decidedly non-vintage post-amp "rack effects," which provide the higher-quality plug-ins you'd expect to find in a studio. You'll find 11 more effects, including digital delay, reverb, tube compressor, parametric EQ, stereo enhancer, etc. These add a bit of a "finished" sound to patches. GTR has 23 effects—and these are all derived from Waves' roster of effects, so they exhibit that "detailed" sound for which Waves is justifiably famous. They cover all the bases (distortion, dynamics, pitch-shifting, reverb, way, modulation, gating, etc.), and are an interesting combination of vintage meets precision. I find them very "musical" and like GR, being able to put effects pre- or post-amp adds a significant degree of flexibility. USEABILITY GTR is probably the least "user-friendly" in terms of creating sounds fast, because of the need to load separate stomp box and amps. However, that can also turn into an advantage once you've had the program for a while. I've built up a nice collection of stomps for specific purposes (a very useful compressor/EQ combination, for example, and a tempo-synched delay/chorusing effects that sounds just plain beautiful), so you end up with a bit of a "Chinese restaurant" effect: One from column A, one from column B, load up amp—done. This GTR setup shows the amp module in the upper left, and two different stomp box pedalboard setups. Unlike AT2, you can have an unlimited amount of pedalboards, with 2, 4, or 6 effects per pedalboard. For instant gratification, AT2 comes out ahead. It has a bunch of useful presets that show the range of the product, but are also very useful. It's simple to operate and tweak. GR2 is somewhere between the two. It comes with a ton of presets, and while many of them are excellent and useable "right out of the box," there are also quite a few "educational" presets that show off specific techniques. These are ideal for veteran tweakers, as they provide excellent starting points for truly innovative sounds; but you'd be less inclined to just "punch 'em up and go" on a session. THE BOTTOM LINE I'd characterize GTR as having the sweetest, least "computer-like" sound, but it's also the most expensive. AT2 has a similar sound quality, although it exhibits a somewhat more "aggressive" edge (notwithstanding that superb clean-to-breakup transition). GR is without a doubt the most versatile of the three, and while some feel the amp sounds aren't as rich, I think those are probably people who haven't switched to high resolution mode—it makes a huge difference and is worth the CPU hit (AT2 also has oversampling and high-resolution modes that are worth enabling). It's almost like the difference between a tube and solid-state amp. For sonic explorers who want to get guitar sounds no one has gotten before, GR is by far the best option. It can do standard guitar amp sounds, but also delivers some exceptionally esoteric and synthetic sounds. Neither GTR nor AT2 offer that kind of versatility. If sound quality is of paramount concern, GTR has the edge. Whether that edge is worth the extra dollars (and iLok authorization) is something only you can decide, but the clean amps are in a class by themselves—and the dirty ones are almost like "high definition" dirt. If your priority is instant gratification and an authentically vintage sound, then AT2 is probably your best bet. It may not be as flexible as the others in some respects, but IK has done a fine job of deciding which functions are most crucial to make sounds, and made them accessible. So now you see why I use them all! Each has its own set of talents and occupies its own unique niche. While that may make purchasing decisions difficult, the good news is that each one is intelligently designed, and regardless of which one you end up with, you'll be able to make some exceptionally cool sounds. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

Gibson Gambles...Let's Check Out the Payoff By Craig Anderton When Gibson announced it would be introducing a digital Les Paul, people didn't quite know what to make of it. Initially, Gibson's "digital guitar" was mostly defined by what it was not: It wasn't going to be a modeling guitar like the Line 6 Variax, or a Roland-style guitar synthesizer. Some people even thought it wasn't that great an idea, that the price was out of line, and that guitarists wouldn't "get it." Despite the naysayers, though, I was intrigued. Sure, the idea of providing a separate audio output for each string wasn't new, but it seemed like an idea whose time had come. Thanks to better technology that could be applied to the pickups, multi-input audio interfaces, computer-based hosts, and plug-ins, putting together a sophisticated hex processing system for guitar could be done with a few judicious mouse clicks - not endless re-patching of costly outboard gear. Being able to apply different processing to different strings, or groups of strings, as well as explore a variety of panning options (including full-blown 5.1 surround; maybe it's not just coincidence that 5.1 accommodates six strings!) seemed pretty cool. I was curious to get my hands on "the Les Paul Digital Guitar" and check it out. So I waited as the release date kept getting pushed back, and pushed back, and pushed back some more. Apparently the task of making something that plays like a Les Paul, looks like a Les Paul, and feels like a Les Paul?but is equally at home in a hybrid analog/digital direction?is not a trivial undertaking. For starters, the hex pickup is very different from a standard pickup; it achieves 90dB of dynamic range, and provides surprisingly good freedom from crosstalk between strings. Furthermore, the performance is highly dependent on the relationship of the pickup to the strings, so Gibson had to add a computer-controlled assembly step to make these fine adjustments. (Interestingly, the string set is also unique, as the gauge and tension are chosen specifically to produce a uniform output level for each string). The HD.6X-PRO looks and feels like a Les Paul, but there's a lot going on "under the hood." And, not only was a guitar being developed, but a digital network to go along with it. And something like this has to be right the first time, because you're not going to get a second chance. In fact, some people said the digital guitar was just too complex, and would never come out . . . but they were wrong. It's here, and it's real. And it works. Really works. Let's get the price out the way first: At $4,999 list, it's expensive. Granted, it looks gorgeous (love that metallic blue look), and the package is classy: Spiffy case with roller wheels, the inclusion of Sonar Producer Edition version (the full version, not a lite or limited variety), a Hosa eight-cable snake to handle the multiple outputs, ethernet cable, and a breakout box. But given the cost, you can pretty much bet that you won't see it being cradled in the hands of the rhythm guitarist in your local bar band at the Holiday Inn. Nonetheless, if you have any interest in guitar, it's well worth delving into what this all about. Like so much technology, it wouldn't surprise me if the underlying concepts work their way into lower-cost models in the years ahead. But here's the real bottom line: I predict that pretty soon, you'll be hearing some outrageous guitar sound on some recording, and go "What the...?!?" And it will be the HD.6X-PRO. IT'S A LES PAUL... If you want, you can ignore the electronics entirely and treat the HD.6X-PRO as a standard Les Paul guitar. (There are a couple differences that help playability, though: The guitar fret board is wider than a stock Les Paul?equivalent to the width of a bound fret board?and the frets are a shade lower.) It has a mono output jack for "Classic Mode," two humbuckers, and the usual complement of controls. This is also good news if your breakout box with the electronics (more on this later) gets run over by a PA stack: The show can still go on. Having this option also brings up the possibility of layering the standard sound with what we'll cover next. ...IT'S NOT A LES PAUL Well it is, but I've never seen a Les Paul with a hex pickup, CAT-5 cable jack, a headphone out, a mic input, or outputs for each string. This is all made possible by the "MAGIC" network, which exists on an ethernet-type cable that patches to the guitar (although it's the same type of cable used for ethernet connections, technically the protocol is not the same as ethernet). The jackplate has (from left to right) a volume control for the headphone jack, headphone jack, MAGIC network port, mic in jack, and standard mono out for "classic mode." Not only does it carry the individual outputs from the strings, but it also carries the output from the guitar's mic jack, and sends monitor signals to the guitar, which ultimately end up at the headphone jack. The idea of having a headphone and mic jack on a Les Paul might be off-putting to purists, but those who use in-ear monitors and headset mics will likely find this addition a real plus. Note that the headphone jack is most emphatically not there to let you listen to your guitar through headphones as you practice; it has a much loftier goal. The cable terminates at BoB, the Breakout Box. This has jacks for the standard mono output, six separate jacks for each string, and two jacks for stereo groups of strings (1-2-3 and 4-5-6; these use the same jacks for the top two strings, so these jacks serve double duty). You'll also find a jack that carries the mic out, and another jack pair to receive the monitor signal of your choice. The Breakout Box takes the signals from the MAGIC network, and breaks it out into various analog outputs. It also has two ins for monitoring, and a mic out. Surprisingly, there's no way to connect BoB to your computer digitally: It's all done via analog connections. This is to be expected for live use, where you may want to feed six separate processors, or go to a mixer for concert hall surround effects. But given the digital nature of computers, it's unfortunate there's no way to bypass the analog electronics. However, a company representative has said that Gibson is working on ways to add a USB interface, which would address the digital interfacing issue. That said, if you want to take full advantage of all the guitar's outs, you need an analog interface with at least seven inputs to handle the "classic" out and six individual outs. Of course, you're not obligated to use all these; you could use two inputs for the two string pairs, or three for the two string pairs and the mono out. If you're expecting perfect isolation between strings, it's simply not possible. At first I thought it was a limitation with the pickups, but eventually realized that guitars are resonant little suckers, and hitting one string will, by nature, make the other ones vibrate a bit. With lots of gain (e.g., distortion plug-ins), you can pick up a bit of crosstalk but in some ways, I like this because it makes for a less "clinical" sound. In any event, the crosstalk is much lower than I would have expected, so kudos to Gibson for that; they clearly put some serious effort into the pickup design. OKAY... SO WHAT? I'll tell you what: Guitarists can now do sonic techniques very similar to what keyboard players do with splits and layering, as well as surround effects. Of course, the first thing I tried to do was pan all the strings across the stereo field from left to right, but it sounded overly-gimmicky. It's when I started thinking things through a bit more than things really started to pop. The hex pickup, placed unobtrusively between the bridge and bridge pickup, provides the six individual outputs. For example, one very cool sound was running the guitar outputs into Sonar and inserting the Waves GTR octave divider on strings 5 and 6. With a little tweaking, I got a bass sound that was very much like that tough, distorted bass sound for which Nine Inch Nails is justly famous. Meanwhile, I distorted the top four strings (but remember, there's hardly any intermodulation distortion), chorused them independently with Waves choruses, and spread them a bit across the stereo field. The combination of the rich, shimmering high end, coupled with the raunchy bass, was dramatic to say the least. When I played this against a drum loop (see later for links to audio examples), it sounded like I really didn't need any other instruments?the guitar just took over the soundstage, and wouldn't let go. Nor did I want it to... I then tried envelope filters on the strings, as well as flangers, amp simulators...you name it. One of the effects that surprised me most was delay. I'm so used to hearing delay on the entire guitar that it was very different to hear it just on the top two strings, with the other strings providing a clear, direct sound. I'd go so far as to say that where the HD.6X-PRO really shines is for rhythm guitar parts (power trios, take note). Lead parts tend to be single-note lines anyway, so breaking those leads into individual strings has less to offer than being able to turn a rhythm guitar into a "symphony" of guitar sounds. The "split" approach makes it easy to play leads on the upper strings, while hitting chords on the lower ones with entirely different tonal characteristics. Then I brought out the "big gun": Multiple instances of Native Instruments' Guitar Rig 2. Once you start applying effects like tempo-synched, step-sequenced filters to the guitar, you cross over from rock into a much more "techno" kind of zone. It's compelling, to say the least, and a fertile field for experimentation. Bottom line is you can do synth tricks, but retain the guitar's characteristic organic sound...think "polyphonic AdrenaLinn" (come to think of it, processing each string through an AdrenaLinn would probably be pretty astonishing). Layering is another "killer app." Take the mono output, feed it into a guitar amp, dial in a great guitar sound, and layer it with the other strings. At this point, it sounds like you have an army of guitar sounds, and you can imagine the possibilities. Surround? Well, I haven't gone there yet, because I don't have my studio set up for surround. But I have heard several surround demos at trade shows, and it's clear this represents a whole other world. (Perhaps this is one of the reason why the HD.6X-PRO includes Sonar Producer Edition, as it has a really good surround implementation.) BUT WHAT WE REALLY NEED ARE AUDIO EXAMPLES! Words ultimately fail in describing this guitar, because you can't imagine what it does if you haven't heard it in action. So take a listen; here's the story on the clips. This is the "NIN bass meets Andy Summers chorus" I alluded to earlier. It's a tough, gritty sound that shows some of the guitar's "split" capabilities. This reminds me a lot of the old Roland GR-300 sound. This was obtained simply by plugging in AudioDamage's FuzzPlus 2.2. into Sonar's FX bin for each string. This is just a pretty sound with chorus on each string, as well as delay. This is variation on the above, with a little more resonance added to the modulation. A little synchronized delay can really add "animation" and interest to the sound. This is a fairly complex patch. All six strings feed into an aux bus that terminates in a Guitar Rig 2 distortion sound. The bottom three strings feed a second aux bus that terminates in another instance of Guitar Rig 2, loaded with a synth-type filter and an "analog," tempo-synched step generator. Finally, a little bit of the straight sound of the bottom three strings is mixed in for a little more definition. This is actually just a simple hex power chord, but processed within Sonar to add enveloping/synched effects. Each string has a resonant filter with slow LFO, and they're all summed together to make a big, moving, animated filter sound. Now is my enthusiasm starting to make sense? (Drum loops courtesy of Discrete Drums.) THE BOTTOM LINE The HD.6X-PRO isn't for everyone. First, you have to afford it. Then, you need a pretty sophisticated setup if you want to exploit the guitar to its fullest potential, regardless of whether you plan to use it with a computer as the centerpiece of your studio, or live as a multichannel guitar. And that's still not enough: You have to work with it enough to adapt its potential to your playing style. It's one thing to slap on a bunch of processors, pan the strings all over the place, and create something pretty garish. It's another thing to tame the beast and make it do your bidding in a musically appropriate way. But when you do, I think you'll discover - as I have - that this is not an instrument to be underestimated. You can go places you've never gone before, and they're fun places; perhaps more importantly, they range from beautiful, tranquil spaces to regions filled with snarling dogs and erupting volcanoes. I was delighted. And if you get a chance to play the HD.6X-PRO into some presets that exploit this instrument to the fullest, I predict you will be too. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

Vintage sounds and modern hardware hit the stage 73-key MSRP $2,700, street $1,999; 88-key MSRP $3,000, street $2,199 www.korg.com By Craig Anderton I’m glad the days of the “race to the bottom” in keyboards is over. Companies like Korg, Yamaha, Roland, Nord, etc. are building serious, stage/recording-worthy keyboards with excellent build quality and generous feature sets. They’re priced accordingly, but these are products with “legs” that aren’t designed to be flipped every six months for some shiny new plastic thingy. Which brings us to the SV-1 Vintage Stage piano. It’s almost anti-climactic to do a review because if you were at AES, it was obvious that everyone playing the SV-1 loved it for one reason or another. Having now had a chance to use it in my own studio, I can confirm that those initial impressions were on the mark. Still, it’s worth covering the SV-1 in depth because with all the keyboards out there, it’s important to know whether the SV-1 is for you or not. THE BASIC CONCEPT Main view of the keyboard. It's not as heavy as it looks! The SV-1 is all about future retro. Retro, in the sense that it re-creates the sounds of piano, tine pianos, organ, clav, string synths, etc. – 36 sounds altogether, with additional variations. Future, because it uses today’s technology to the fullest, adding amp modeling, reverb that’s way better than that funky Danelectro spring unit I used back in the day, programmability, and a keybed with Korg’s excellent, weighted RH3 action (with 8 velocity curves). Both 73- and 88-key models are available, and while not exactly lightweight, they aren’t too hard to carry around at 38.5 and 45.3 lbs., respectively. The 73-key model has a sort of muted red color scheme with black trim, while the 88-key model is black with copper trim. The front panel has a logical layout, with different functions separated into obvious blocks of controls. I get the impression that Korg’s engineers were forced to design the interface while in a darkened club with bad stage lighting, because you can be semi-conscious and still work the controls. Operationally, the Big Deal here is that there are very few hidden functions; the front panel is always “live” and available for tweaking. (There’s also a cross-platform editor/librarian that reveals many more parameters, and provides more details on certain parameters; we’ll get into that later.) The few functions that are less intuitive to access involve setup-oriented aspects, like choosing velocity curves or tunings. The knobs have LEDs around them, but these aren’t high-resolution “rings” like you see on some gear. Rather, they indicate various switched positions. When you call up new sounds, all the LEDs indicate current control settings, which you can of course change. However, even though only a subset of settings is shown in the front panel, several of these spread values across a full 128 value range, which you can access with the editing software. CHECKING OUT THE SOUNDS Before getting into the details, I’m sure you want to hear what it sounds like. Normally I’d record some audio examples, but Korg has been very diligent about posting audio examples on their web site. Several of them are played by Greg Phillinganes, who’s a - uh - slightly better keyboard player than I am; if you want to hear the sounds, he does a fine job of presenting them. There are another 36 examples from the built-in demos (one for each sound), and Korg has indicated they plan to add more examples in the future. SOUND SELECTION Choosing among the 36 basic sounds is easy: You select one of six main sounds, and one of six variations on that main sound. There are six main sound categories – two electric pianos, clav, piano, organ, and “other,” each of which offers six sounds within that category. For example, one electric piano variation might include modulation, another one have strings layered along, etc. The “Other” category is one of my faves: There are three string synth sounds, choir with subtle strings, analog brass, and the analog type of synth sound that powered Van Halen’s “Jump” (with the latter two, it sounds like the SV-1 captured the soul of an Oberhim OB-8). But what’s most important is that the sounds are gorgeous: Clean, well-defined, rich, and lush. I don’t think anyone could find fault with them. Korg definitely got it right (which probably isn’t too surprising to anyone who’s checked out their latest instruments). As one friend said when I clamped headphones on her, “It’s so clear! Also in the sound selection area, you can transpose plus or minus 12 semitones by engaging the transpose function and hitting a key that corresponds to the amount of transposition you want, referenced to C4. Simple. This is also where you can choose from one of 8 tunings (including stretch tunings), one of 8 velocity curves, and whether to turn Local Off if you want to drive an external MIDI tone module from the keyboard. THE EQUALIZER The EQ offers three bands of boost/cut. The equalizer is not about surgical sound-sculpting: There are three bands (bass, mid, treble) that provide gentle (low resonance) tone-shaping, which given the sound quality is really all you need. If you do need more, the editor software provides access to the Mid frequency. Like all other processing sections, there’s an on/off switch to enable/disable the effect. PRE FX The Pre FX section adds effects prior to the amp section. This section includes six effects that Korg considers as “stompbox” effects: Compression, boost, “Univibe,” vibrato, tremolo, and Vox Wah (which can follow the amplitude envelope, or a pedal plugged into one of the rear panel pedal jacks). Boost is a lot of fun; it’s not just a gain boost, but adds a sort of “hardness” to the signal. All PreFX are mono, except for the Tremolo; however, you can often restore stereo image with the Modulation and Reverb effects, which are “downstream” in the signal path). I feel the Wah works best with the pedal, because there’s not enough release time on the decay for my taste. As a result, if you hit complex chords, the wah effect “flutters” as it decays rather than having a smooth decay. Having designed envelope-controlled filters, I know this is a design choice where you have to choose the “sweet spot” between having too fast a decay (where there’s excessive fluttering), and too slow a decay, where there’s a sort of lag and lack of “tightness” to the sound. That said, I would have lengthened the release time a bit. This doesn’t apply to when you’re using the pedal. These effects all have speed and intensity controls, but they’re set-and-forget – there’s no mod wheel for changing the intensity of the vibrato or tremolo in real time. I’d like to see a future software update that allows tying these in with the pedal. AMP MODEL When you want to grittify your sound, the amp model section is glad to oblige. This section has six amp models, and is where the Real Tube comes into play (aha! so that’s why they sound like tube amps!). You can see the tube, glowing away to the left of the Master Volume control. Controls are minimal: choice of amps, and Drive. Drive is the one place where I wish the control had more than 10 front panel steps of resolution, but it’s not a major drawback at all, as between the amp and Drive options you can pretty much dial in any degree of grit you want. And if you can’t, there’s always the software editor (I detect a pattern here…). FAVORITES Store custom variations on the included presets in the 8 memory slots. The Favorites buttons are all about saving variations on sounds that are easy to punch up on stage, or storing some of the 36 sounds in a particular order for fastest access. The buttons are big, with big number labels (come to think of it, the whole front panel is quite readable), once again emphasizing that Korg expects you to be in a club with bad lighting when you rev up this puppy. MODULATION EFFECTS The Modulation FX section adds those swirling, liquid sounds that are such a good match to so many vintage keyboards. This section has two phasers, two choruses, flanger, and rotary. The flanger doesn’t go “through zero” like real tape flanging, but has a good modulation curve that gives a smooth flanging effect. The Rotary Speaker includes a slow/fast switch that speeds up and slows down when you change positions, just like the real thing. As with the Pre FX, you have Speed and Intensity controls but as mentioned previously, no mod wheel to which you can tie Intensity. The two choruses and rotary effects are stereo; the others are mono. REVERB/DELAY Add some final ambience to the sound with the reverb or delay. There are four reverb choices (Hall, Plate, Room, and Spring), along with Tape Echo and Stereo Delay. The natural reverbs are excellent, so much so you won’t be wishing for an outboard reverb; the Spring is little too periodic for my taste out of the box (springs weren’t always that periodic), but there’s always the editor. The Stereo Delay has a tap tempo option, but curiously, it doesn’t affect the Tape Echo. I’d vote for Korg to make the tap tempo apply to whichever delay is selected. The only front panel control here is Depth, which varies the mix of the processed sound with the straight sound. INS AND OUTS USB, pedal connections, and physical MIDI connectors are all available. The I/O is pretty comprehensive. There’s a USB connection for interfacing with the editing software that also provides a virtual MIDI interface (e.g., for driving the SV-1 from a sequencer), and jacks for three pedals. A damper pedal is included with the SV-1; the other two jacks handle a footswitch and expression pedal that can work either the volume or wah. The footswitch and pedals are optional at extra cost. Output options are balanced XLR or unbalanced 1/4”. As for audio, there are stereo inputs designed for feeding in the output from a CD or MP3 player for jamming or accompaniment. There’s no volume control for this on the SV-1, so you’ll need to use controls on the devices themselves. This signal is fed in post-effects, so it passes unmodified to the output. There are two unbalanced 1/4” outs (use one for mono), and two parallel, balanced XLR outputs. The XLR outs aren’t combo jacks, which makes sense – you could send the balanced outs to a mixer, and the unbalanced to something like a miked amp for extra “character.” SV-1 EDITOR The SV-1 Editor software not only performs backup and similar functions, but can access a wealth of parameters that aren’t available from the front panel. The SV-1 Editor is a really useful add-on that works on both Mac (PPC or Intel) and Windows XP or Vista. It looks very cool, and is just as easy to figure out as the SV-1 itself. It also allows modifying the 36 presets and Favorites, which you can then save to build up a collection of patches, or to swap patches with other SV-1 users. Perhaps the most important element of the software is that you can access several parameters that you can’t tweak from the front panel. As you can see from the screen shot, the Compressor reveals Attack, Level, and Sensitivity controls, and the Reverb offers four additional parameters. Furthermore, amps and cabs can be chosen independently, and each has more descriptive names so you can get a better idea of what Korg chose as the source for their models. Another very useful feature is that there are controls for taming any “noise” elements included in a patch, like the noise found with string synthesizers, or the key clicks of an organ. This gives you the option of going for the most authentic sound, or cleaning it up somewhat. If you’re not a tweakhead, you don’t really need to use the SV-1 editor; but those who want to get the most out of the SV-1 will find the editor not only very useful, but exceptionally easy to navigate. CONCLUSIONS The SV-1 is a truly solid performer. I would like to have a mod wheel, and some of the knobs wobble a bit so I was careful not to abuse them, but those are relatively minor complaints. Some people will want more than 8 favorites (it would be nice to double that by using a “shift” key, like holding down Tap Tempo while selecting to get another eight sounds), although the 36 included sounds pretty much hit the mark as is, and are easy to dial up. However, remember that the SV-1 is not targeting synth nerds, but gigging musicians who want really great sound quality, portability, ease of use, piano-type keyboard action, a transparent user interface, and the ability to re-create the sounds of the vintage keyboards of yesteryear – albeit with a more delicious, polished sound. The detail of these sounds is really quite remarkable; for example, it’s always difficult to get the dynamics right on electric piano sounds, but the SV-1 pulls it off whether doing tine, reed, or electronic-based types. The editor/librarian software is a nice touch, as it lets you create a pool of patches that you can blast over as favorites (for example, you might load in a different set of sounds when you’re doing that wedding gig than you would if you’re opening for Herbie Hancock). If I had to choose one word to describe the SV-1, it would be “satisfying.” The look, feel, and sound all add up to a playing situation where you really feel connected with the keyboard – something that was common in the days of vintage instruments, but which sometimes gets lost in instruments with tons of menus and options. Playing it compares to having a really great meal at a restaurant as opposed to just whipping up a frozen dinner at home, even though both fall under the category of “food.” There’s an experience of playing the SV-1 that goes beyond just hitting keys to trigger sounds. The SV-1 doesn’t replace a digital audio workstation/synth like the Korg M3; this is all about a real-time, stage-worthy instrument that’s fun to play and hear. In terms of accomplishing that goal, the SV-1 hits a bulls-eye. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

Want to get into MIDI guitar? Now you can do it without breaking your budget www.sonuus.com By Craig Anderton The G2M is compact and battery-powered. Back in the 80s, MIDI guitar was supposed to be the Next Big Thing: What guitar player wouldn’t want to be able to play anything from pianos to trumpets to ambient pads from that familiar six-string interface? Unfortunately, the question that wasn’t asked was “What guitar player wants to give up the expressiveness of a guitar and modify their technique in order to hear sounds with delays and glitching?” The answer was “Not as many as the industry hoped, by a long shot.” However, lots of guitarists did embrace the options MIDI gave them; and while MIDI guitar never broke through on a huge level, Roland kept the flame alive with a series of products that made continuous, incremental improvements in tracking, sound quality, and flexibility. Quite a few studio musicians also took advantage of MIDI so that when the producer said “Sure wish I could put a cello part here,” they’d whip out their MIDI guitar and synth, and deliver the goods. MIDI guitar isn’t about replacing guitar, but supplementing it with new choices. And now Sonuus, a small company out of the UK, has delivered MIDI for the masses: The G2M costs under $100 street, but provides true guitar-to-MIDI conversion. The catch? It’s monophonic, not polyphonic, so forget about chords. However, many would argue that where guitar excels as a MIDI controller is indeed single-note lines. Trying to play piano from a guitar can be awkward; playing a sax sound from a solo line makes a lot more sense. Just remember that MIDI is constantly butting up against the laws of physics. Keyboards are controlled by switches, and a guitar string is anything but a switch – trying to convince it to be one is not easy. Yes, you do have to play cleanly; yes, you may have to modify your technique (although there are MIDI guitarists who say that working with MIDI guitar has made them better, more accurate guitar players). But can a box smaller than a pack of cigarettes give a satisfying guitar-meets-synth experience? Let’s find out. THE BASICS You can get the specs from the web, so as usual, we’ll concentrate more on what it’s like to actually use the G2M. The first thing you’ll notice on the front panel (Fig. 1) is that the input is a standard, 1/4” phone jack - you don’t need any kind of special pickup or cable. A standard 9V battery powers the G2M, which is switched on when you plug into the input (so remember to unplug it when not in use). Battery consumption is about 10mA – on a par with medium-power guitar effects. The company quotes an estimated 70 hour battery life, which is a good thing because there are no provisions for adding an AC adapter. There’s also a front panel boost switch, but in practice, I found that that I didn’t need it. Fig. 1: The front panel is pretty minimalist: Input jack, and a boost switch to accommodate low-level pickups. Fig. 2: The rear panel has a 5-pin MIDI out connector and a Thru 1/4” phone jack that carries the guitar’s audio signal. Looking at the rear panel (Fig. 2), there’s a MIDI DIN connector and a Thru jack. The latter is helpful, as one of the common uses for MIDI guitar is to layer standard guitar sounds with synthesized sounds. This does two things: Gives a bigger sound, but also, the “real” guitar signal can help mask any glitching that may be in the MIDI synth sound. However, you may need to reduce the guitar’s level and pull back on the tone control, which limits the Thru’s usefulness; more on this later. The MIDI out works with standard synths and any interface with a 5-pin MIDI jack input, but bear in mind that some interfaces don’t have physical MIDI in jacks any more, as they assume you’ll hook up USB-based MIDI devices. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Sonuus’s next product turns out to be G2M USB, where the MIDI connector gets replaced with a USB port. That would also allow the unit to be powered by USB so you could ditch the battery. On the top of the unit, there are several LEDs (blinky lights are always welcome!). These indicate: Power on and tuner function Low battery indicator Clip indicator MIDI activity indicator HOOKING IT UP I booted up Sonar 8, enabled the MIDI in on the V-Studio I/O interface, patched it to the G2M MIDI out, and plugged a Peavey Milano guitar into the G2M. First step is tuning, but you can use the G2M to help in the process: Play an open string, and the Tuner LED pulses. The slower it pulses, the closer you are to being in tune. Of course there’s no kind of sharp/flat display and the tuner is very basic; it’s not as easy to parse the display compared to a dedicated tuner, but it does the job. Next step is setting up a synth. There’s one crucial point: The G2M recognizes pitch bending, but the synth needs to have its pitch bend range set to plus/minus two semitones for the bending to work accurately. This range is pretty much standard, although some synths default to plus/minus one octave, and some vary it per preset. In any event, most synths let you save the pitch bend range as part of a preset, so you can edit it as needed. I chose Arturia’s Minimoog V as the target soft synth because I could set it for a mono (single-note) response, as well as turn off pitch-bending – if the part you’re playing doesn’t need pitch bend, you’ll get more accurate tracking if you turn it off. I chose mono response for two reasons: It allows getting glide effects with the Minimoog V, and as the G2M produces only one note at a time, I figured it was a better match. PLAY TIME! I recorded several parts into Sonar: Bass lines, leads, percussion, etc. Of these, I thought the lead was where the G2M was most appropriate, so let’s look at that in more detail. Fig. 3: The MIDI note was recorded about 20ms after plucking the note itself. The screen shot in Fig. 3 shows the delay between playing the guitar into a track and the MIDI note it produces. The latency is about 20ms, which is actually pretty good. Interestingly, this seemed relatively constant over the guitar’s note range; I expected it to get longer on low strings, and shorter on high strings. The fact that it didn’t likely indicates that Sonuus is using a different type of pitch detection technology than other MIDI guitars. Fig. 4: Screen shot of the original solo, as played, without any editing. To work with a “real-world” situation, I tried to play cleanly but not ridiculously so. Fig. 4 shows the results: Most of the part is relatively clean, but there are some little glitchy notes. Listen to the audio example “Original Lead” below to hear the part as recorded. Fig. 5: Screen shot of the original solo after editing. Audio Example Here's the way a lead guitar part played back originally from the MIDI data, prior to editing it and cleaning up the glitches. OriginalLead.mp3 If there’s one thing I’ve learned about MIDI guitar over the years, it’s that you better get ready to do some MIDI editing. I didn’t want to go overboard, but Fig. 5 shows the result of spending a few minutes editing the part. You’ll note it’s cleaner, and if you listen to the audio example “Edited Lead,” you’ll hear that the part is considerably tighter and less glitchy. Audio Example Here's what it sounded like after doing some MIDI editing. EditedLead.mp3 CONCLUSIONS MIDI guitar takes effort, no doubt about it. But don’t make it any harder than it needs to be: Use the neck pickup and pull back the tone control to reduce highs, as this emphasizes the fundamental and makes tracking easier. Be careful that you’re not standing too close to transformers and other sources of interference that can get into your pickups, as this can confuse the tracking – even if you don’t use the audio Thru out, use it to audition the guitar sound and make sure all is well. Also, some synth patches work better than others; it’s almost impossible get pads to screw up, but highly percussive patches are quite sensitive to little glitches. Finally, I found that resting the heel of my hand against the bridge to deaden the strings somewhat helped tracking considerably. When I get a chance, I’m going to try using flatwound strings to see if that helps even further. Speaking of the audio Thru, I didn’t really find it that useful because I needed to turn the level down on the guitar to avoid clipping, and the bassy tone wasn’t always what I wanted anyway. I got very good results by splitting the guitar signal with one split going to an amp, and the other to a DigiTech RP250, whose output went to the G2M. I created an RP250 preset that pulled back the highs and added a tiny bit of compression, which helped the tracking. I don’t want to paint a rosier picture than is justified; every MIDI guitar I’ve played takes some effort to get good results, and the G2M is no exception. In fact, it’s a little tougher than, say, a typical Roland GR-series device because it’s monophonic. You need to play carefully and deliberately; there will likely be some mistracking, and if you try to do some fast shredding, the G2M probably won’t be able to keep up. On the other hand, we’re dealing with a true guitar-to-MIDI converter that does a credible job of opening up the synth world – and at a bargain price. As long as you don’t expect to play with the same level of abandon as a standard guitar, you’ll be fine. Best of all, you’ll be able to add textures to your music that would normally require having keyboard technique. If you’ve ever wanted to try out MIDI guitar, the G2M is a fine place to start. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

A Space-Age Approach To An Age-Old Need by Rick Van Horn KEY NOTES Innovative design and functional features Extremely durable construction Cases are heavy Hardware case had fit problems A lot of thought has been given to the design of Stagg's new Advanced Concept molded hard-shell plastic drum cases. You need only glance at their unusual shape and distinctive molded contours to get the impression that somebody planned these cases as more than just "containers." They're meant to be functional pieces of equipment in their own right. The Shape Most drum cases are essentially cylindrical, in order to conform to the cylindrical shape of the drums inside them. There's generally a flat section on the side that allows the case to be placed edgewise on the floor—"standing up," as it were. Stagg cases are much more triangular, combining the cylindrical portion with two extended "corners." These corners provide the flatted edge for standing, and also reinforce the overall structural integrity of the case. That's the upside of the cases' design. The downside is that it makes the cases larger and bulkier than traditional models, which may become an issue in the trunk of a Corolla. The Window Sticker A list of the features offered by the Stagg cases reads like the options shown on the window sticker of a high-tech car. Let's take a look. "Eminently stackable and stable due to Stagg's X-centric design." All Stagg drum cases, no matter what their size, have molded circular protuberances that mate with recesses on all other cases, locking the cases together when they're stacked. Also, instead of stacking each case in the center of the one below it, the cases stack in such a way that their "bottoms" (the more or less flat area opposite the handles when the cases are carried) are all flush. This puts the weight of the stack over the strongest part of each case, and also allows you to back the entire stack of cases up against a wall for further support. Cool idea. "All drum cases are lined top and bottom. The Basic Snare case is fully lined." The lining is a sheet of fabric over a slight amount of padding. This is a nice feature, as far as it goes. My problem is that the cases are of the "telescoping" variety, meaning that each case of a given diameter can expand to accommodate drums of different depths. With any drum that's deeper than the completely compressed case, the lid of the case rests on the top of the drumshell. That shell is actually providing the structural support for the case. I'm not a fan of this design, even though it does help keep manufacturing costs—and purchase price—down, since the manufacturer only has to create one model for each drum diameter. But if a case is going to be a telescoping model, I'd like to see a lot more padding or other protection against top and bottom impact for the drum inside. "Convex-shaped top shell to protect against compressive force from above." Most hard-shell cases simply stretch some material across the top of the drum in a flat fashion to create the lid. Any impact immediately bows the lid down, risking damage to the head of the drum inside. The Stagg cases can't totally eliminate that risk, but the convex shape does "dome" the lids a little to absorb impact before the lid would come in contact with the head below. "Shock-absorbent support zones to disperse external shock to the case and drums." This is a more important structural feature—and a nice one. The shape and molded contours of the case help "spread" any impact around the drum, instead of allowing a localized blow. This should provide much more side-impact protection than that afforded by a traditional cylindrical case. "Case tops feature Water Transport Channels to avoid liquid pooling on the top." You may have seen the recent MD ad with a photo depicting rain beating down on—and pouring off of—a Stagg case. The way I see it, hard-shell plastic cases should be impervious to rain anyway. But at least there won't be a pool of water on the top of the case to dump on your shoes when you pick the case up. "Adjustable large format buckles at the end of each strap for flexibility of shell depth." These molded composite squeeze-type buckles are easy to operate, but it'll take you some time to get used to having to open two buckles on every strap in order to raise the lid on the case. This is another aspect of the "telescoping" design. "All drum cases feature sturdy "D" rings that allow the owner to pass a cable through for locking with a padlock, or to secure the cases to the inside of a truck for transport." This seems like a minor feature, but it could mean the difference between going home with or without your drums after a gig. The D-rings are riveted to each case on a nylon strap, and would not pose much of an obstacle to a determined and prepared thief. But they certainly would help prevent an impulsive "grab and go" heist. "Bass drum and large floor tom cases are fitted with recessed transport wheels." Wheels are great for pulling a case on level ground, going up a ramp, or moving from a dock-level truck into the backstage area of a major venue. But they don't help when it comes time to lift that puppy into the bed of a pickup or the trunk of a car after a gig at the local Elk's Club. With that in mind, this may be a good time to mention the fact that the durability of a thick molded plastic case comes with a downside: weight. For example, the 10" Stagg tom case weighed about 71/2 pounds—exactly the weight of the 8x10 maple tom we carried in it. The 22" bass drum case weighed 221/2 pounds—only a few pounds less than the drum we put in it. By contrast, most drum bags add very little weight to the drums they contain. But, of course, neither do they offer the protection factor of the hard case. I'm just saying that you should make an informed choice. "Hardware cases feature recessed wheels, and are designed with I-beam and triangle construction for maximum horizontal and vertical strength." In general, I liked the 40" hardware case that we tested. It was a very practical, open-topped rectangular container that easily accommodated a fair amount of stuff. The metal reinforcement inside gave it the structural integrity necessary to remain secure and rigid while being rolled or carried. "Height Extension and Stacking Tray Extensions are available for the 40" hardware case." The idea here is that if you need more vertical space for additional hardware, or you want a shelf section for cables, mic' stands, and so forth, you can add them to the basic case. The various sections lock together with rotating ATA-style clamps. And this was where I encountered some problems. To begin with, the clamps didn't seem to lock down very securely. In some cases, the upper and lower halves of the clamps didn't align properly for optimum grip. In others, the amount of "play" that remained after the clamps were closed allowed the various case sections to slide a bit. I never got the sense that the case was going to come apart, but neither did it feel like one solid unit. Also, while I was able to fit the vertical-space section onto the base unit easily, I was completely unable to do the same with the shelf unit. The molded countour of its plastic body did not conform to the contour of the base unit, so there was no way to mate the two. These two problems reflect a need for more attention to quality control and proper fit between the components of the hardware case system. "Address tag and STAGGCase model number designed into the fastening strap." This is another thoughtful touch—although the address tag is a little hard to get out of its holder. Also, the tag is completely removable. So in terms of true security, it doesn't replace the age-old practice of painting one's name on the side of the case. "The air is free." Stagg says that their cases are designed with just enough space between the top and bottom sections to provide the airflow necessary for opening or closing the cases quickly. I've used some drum cases in which a certain amount of "vacuum hold" between the sections was, indeed, a minor inconvenience, and it's thoughtful of Stagg to take this problem into consideration. However, the spacing between case sections in our test group became more pronounced as the sizes increased, to the point where the 16" floor tom and 22" bass drum case lids literally "rattled around" on top of the lower sections. A slight reduction of the space would provide a more solid-feeling case assembly in these instances. Not On The List A feature of Stagg cases not mentioned in their promotional material is their strap-type handles with rubber comfort-grips. Each case has a pair of these—one attached to the bottom section and one attached to the lid section. (There's a single additional handle between the wheels on the bass drum and large floor tom cases, for two-person carrying.) The two straps come together closely when a case is fully compressed. But they'd be spread further apart if the case contained a deep-shelled drum, which might cause a carrying problem. A different carrying problem was created (at least for me) by the rubber grips on the straps. They're fairly large, ostensibly for gripping comfort. However, I have a small hand, and I found it difficult to comfortably grasp both of the grips in such a way as to balance the weight of the case evenly between the straps. I have drum bags with strap handles that fit within a wrap-around cover, thus creating a single grip position. I'd suggest this sort of approach for the Stagg grips. Case Closed I'm impressed with Stagg's innovative approach to the design of what have, heretofore, been pretty unromantic pieces of drum gear. True, some of the positive design aspects create corresponding negative ones that must be considered. And there are some significant quality-control issues that need to be addressed (particularly on the hardware case). But based on the effort that obviously went into the initial design process, I'm confident that those issues will be dealt with in short order. All in all, I'd say that Stagg's foray into the professional drum-case market is a pretty auspicious debut. THE NUMBERS 8" tom case $71.99 10" snare case $79.99 10" tom case $99.99 12" snare case $89.99 12" tom case $99.99 13" piccolo snare case $91.99 13" snare case $99.99 13" tom case $119.99 14" regular and free-floating snare case $99.99 14" piccolo snare case $92.49 14" snare case $99.99 14" tom case $129.99 16" floor tom case $169.99 18" floor tom case $219.99 18" bass drum case with wheels $219.99 20" bass drum case with wheels $269.99 22" bass drum case with wheels $289.99 40" hardware case with wheels $259.99 40" height extension module $119.99 40" level extension module (shelf) $129.99 48" hardware case with wheels $269.99 (877) 231-6653, www.staggmusic.com

Like A Fine Vintage Wine by Norman Arnol KEY NOTES Exceptional construction quality Hybrid rims combine comfort curve and Cuban designs Outstanding sound, especially for recording Wide range of finish options The Gon Bops company was founded by Mariano Bobadilla in 1954, and the Bobadilla family made high-quality drums in their Los Angeles factory until the early 1990s. The brand then went dormant for a while. Now revived by Drum Workshop and overseen by Akbar Moghaddam (formerly of the legendary Valje Company and his own Sol Percussion), Gon Bops is once again offering top-quality Latin percussion instruments. Conga Details Gon Bops California Series congas are hand-made from quarter-sawn North American oak. The shells are 30" high, and they feature gently contoured bodies in the Cuban style. The hoops and lugs are well crafted and solid. The drums all have custom-sized grade-A cowskin heads. These are held in place by hybrid hoops that combine the playability elements of the "comfort curve" style and the more traditional look of the flat Cuban style. This makes the drums extremely comfortable to play. Gon Bops offers two finish options. Lacquer Custom drums are available in six hand-painted lacquer finishes, including Aztec Gold, Candy Apple Red, Natural, Regal Blue, Solid Black, and Solid White. Lacquer Specialty finishes include virtually any color, along with multiple-step processes including stains, transparents, bursts, fades, sparkles, metallics, mirras, and graphics. Check out the Gon Bops Web site for all the details on that. The models we reviewed featured an Ebony Stain Lacquer Specialty finish, and they looked great. Conga Sound I get a chance to swat a lot of hand drums, and I can honestly say that in terms of pure conga tone and playability, Gon Bops are the top of the line. The drums embody that warm and inviting skin-on-skin sound that brings people into the world of percussion and keeps them there. The quinto and conga were a great matched pair that sounded very tight and well balanced together. The tumba was a really nice addition to that pair, with a very warm yet crisp sound that made it inspiring to play. Gon Bops also offers a super tumba that we did not get to review, but that I would guess would round out a great set of four drums. I take all the drums that I review into my studio to record them. For the purpose of recording, Gon Bops drums are exceptional. The shells produce a very woody tonality, and that skin-on-skin effect creates an almost cracking sound. It's warm and...well...percussive at the same time. These are also the easiest drums on which to get a warm and perfect popping slap that I've ever encountered. Put a mic' in front of them and you'll sound like a star. The Bongos The California Series bongos are made with the same quality as are the congas, and they sound as good. The North American Red Oak used for the shells, as well as the hoop style and design, match that of the congas. However, the drums differ in the selection of heads. The 7" macho has a horsehide head; the 81/2" hembra has a cowhide head. This head selection, along with what Gon Bops describes as "a special beveled bearing edge," makes both of the drums piercing and crisp, with an underlying rich woodiness. The sound and looks of these drums are the result of excellent craftsmanship and attention to detail. Claw hooks are widely spaced on either side to make the drums more comfortable to play in a seated position. Optional BPAD1 Bongo Pads are available to make things even easier. The Bottom Line The bottom line is that the only issue with these drums is the bottom line. They are exceptional drums, and they carry an exceptionally high price. I wish there were some magic way to make these drums accessible to beginners, because they are so easy to play, and the joy created by their sound is immediate. Gon Bops' tag line is: "What percussion should be." I completely agree. Entry-level drums usually sound like entry-level drums. If you're a beginner shopping for drums, at least go and play a set of these drums so that you'll know what you're aspiring to sound like. If you want a fine wine, you have to pay fine-wine prices. Gon Bops drums follow that same principle. But to that I say: Don't throw your money away on junk. Save twice as long and purchase only once. It'll be worth the wait. THE NUMBERS 103/4x30 quinto $1,259 101/2x30 conga $1,299 121/4x30 tumba $1,399 131/4x30 super tumba $1,379 7x81/2 bongos $499 (805) 485-6999, www.gonbops.com © 2006 MODERN DRUMMER Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the permission of the publisher is prohibited.

This definitive book is the Holy Grail for Beatles fans and recording enthusiasts $100 MSRP www.recordingthebeatles.com by Craig Anderton The Beatles are passing into the Ancient History phase; after all, it was over 50 years ago they made their debut. While today’s generation may be wearing Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd t-shirts – two other acts from the 60s that have managed to maintain their authority through the decades – the Beatles’ influence continues to be felt, and represents a touchstone for an entire generation. The Beatles-based Love show at Cirque de Soleil, the back catalog that continues to sell, the elements of soap opera (from John Lennon being cut down by a deranged madman to the continuing controversies surrounding Paul McCartney), and above all, the songs – innovative, crisp, and timeless – have insured the Beatles a unique place in musical history. For those into recording, though, there’s another angle to the story. The Beatles utilized the studio with a degree of innovation that was unheard of at the time. Although they started out with the usual “bang out an album in a few days” ethos of that era, in conjunction with producer George Martin, they ended up using the studio as a musical instrument and songwriting vehicle. Wherever they went, others followed: When they released Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, which many consider to be their finest album, megagroups like the Beach Boys, Rolling Stones, Byrds, Jefferson Airplane, and many others knew the bar had been raised big-time, and responded with their own attempts to do their ultimate “concept” album. Fig. 1: The complete package, with book, hard slipcover, and some of the extra material scattered around. It’s hard to appreciate the impact the Beatles had on society, because they indeed impacted society, not just the music scene – and the days when that type of thing could happen seem long past. Yet at the heart of it all was their recordings, and the process of making those groundbreaking recordings has now been treated lovingly, comprehensively, and definitively in Recording the Beatles, by Brian Kehew and Kevin Ryan (Curvebender Publishing). It costs $100, which seems excessive until you actually hold the book in your hands (which you might want to put on a table in fairly short order, because it weighs a lot) and open it up. This is a class act all the way, from the text, to the “Where the hell did they ever find those?!” pictures, to a separate envelope of “bonus materials” including the rough lyric sheet for “Day in The Life,” a take sheet, poster, some photographs, and more. Fig. 2: A piece of the front cover. Why just a piece? Because the entire cover is too big to fit in my scanner! The book itself is an 11” by 11” format, hardcover, with 540 pages and over 500 illustrations. Chapters include material on personnel, outboard gear, mics, mixers, effects, production, EMI’s Abbey Road studio, other studios, tape machines, speakers and amplifiers, and much more. As someone who has written over 20 books myself, I know very well what goes into producing one. And after seeing Recording the Beatles, all I can say is that the task that was undertaken is almost inconceivable in its scope. How they managed to convince Ken Scott to part with exclusive photos of the Beatles, and how they managed to track down the people involved – let alone find the gear shots – could probably justify a book of its own, titled How to Write an Impossible-to-Write Book. The authors have certainly earned my admiration and respect, and I’m sure any reader would feel the same way. But this isn’t just about the “dustbin of history.” The insights and techniques that fueled the Beatles art is, in many cases, just as applicable today as it was four decades ago. You’ll not only enjoy this book, you’ll learn a lot from it as well. We don’t review books too often on Harmony Central, preferring instead to concentrate on gear. But this is something special, different, and inspiring. If you have the $100, I can think of few better ways to spend it…and if you don’t, I can think of few better reasons to forego Starbucks for a while and save your pennies. I guess that saying “highly recommended” is sort of superfluous, but it’s as good a way to close out this review as any. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

Definitely NOT Off The Assembly Line by Rick Van Horn photos by Jim Esposito KEY NOTES Outstanding craftsmanship Different bearing edges on differently sized drums for maximum shell-to-head contact Exceptionally full tom sounds Cast Iron snare not as heavy as it looks Ford is certainly a familiar name in American manufacturing—just not for drums. Nevertheless, Ford drums do exist, and they're touted as nothing less than "the Ferrari of drums" by their builders. One of those builders is company namesake Jimmy Ford. Jimmy played with Lionel Hampton for six years, entertains guests at Disneyland Park regularly, and plays throughout Southern California with big bands, trios, and quartets. He's also a perennial favorite at custom & vintage drum shows, where he impresses audiences with his tribute to Buddy Rich. The other builder, Jay Gaylen, has been drumming since the age of seven. But for most of his adult life he's been involved with the creation of award-winning advertising campaigns for some of the biggest brands in the country—including Gretsch and Legend drums, and Toca percussion. Jimmy and Jay believe that they know what it takes to build drums that sing together harmoniously within a set. They also believe that no drum is right for every drummer or for every gig. So they build drums to meet each customer's needs. Drumset choices include maple or birch shells in five to ten or more plies, with or without sound reinforcement rings. Drums are available with round-peaked bearing edges cut at 30° or 45°, and with either solid brass or cast lugs. They're finished in eight coats of high-gloss or satin hand-buffed lacquer, in any color the customer can imagine. Fades and other special finishes are available, as are classic wraps. Custom snare drums are another specialty at Ford. In addition to a wide variety of wood-shell models, they also offer drums that feature Potyondi metal shells. For this review Ford sent us a five-piece kit that was built for a customer who wanted to honor his father, a fallen firefighter. We were also sent a 10/5/10-mil 51/2x14 cast iron snare drum, and a 51/2x13 maple snare finished in olive ash burl veneer. Between calling themselves "the Ferrari of drums" and using a slogan like "Have you driven a band lately," Ford lays the automotive analogies on a little thick. But what the heck...I'll play. So let's take these Fords for a spin. The Firehouse Kit This isn't Ford's name for the kit; it's mine. What with the fire-company logo badge on each drum, and the fiery look of the finish, the set visually captures the intensity that goes along with firefighting. As such, I'm sure the drummer who ordered it to honor his father will be pleased. The finish itself is described by Jay Gaylen as "Inferno-Cinder Red Fade." It features a gold metal flake within a translucent-fade finish, as opposed to metal flake over an opaque finish. It's artfully done, and it reflects Ford's claim that "If you can dream it, we can do it." The kit featured 8x10 and 9x12 rack toms and a 12x14 floor tom (with legs), all of which featured 8-ply maple shells. All of the toms and were mounted via suspension systems. The legs on the floor-tom were adjusted by drumkey bolts, which we found to be an inconvenience. Hand-operated wing bolts would be more user-friendly. The 18x20 kick had a 10-ply maple shell. The 6x14 snare featured an 8-ply maple shell with 10-ply reinforcement hoops. It came finished with a bird'seye veneer, with die-cast hoops. Ford cuts different bearing edges for different-sized drums. Jay Gaylen explains, "As drumshell size increases, the collar of the drumhead also increases, so one edge does not work for all. The bigger the collar, the rounder the edge, the more head-to-shell contact that's required. On toms and bass drums we tend to cut an inner 45° with a 3/8" round-over, depending on the ply configuration of the shell. On snare drums we cut a sharper edge and move it toward the outer perimeter of the shell to bring out the highs, increase the sensitivity, and boost the overall projection." The snare and toms came fitted with Aquarian Satin Finish Texture Coated single-ply batter heads and clear bottom heads. The bass drum was equipped with an Aquarian Super-Kick batter and a black logo front head. Workmanship on the drums was excellent, helping to make tuning a breeze. I'm normally not a fan of the sound of coated single-ply heads on toms. But I was pleasantly surprised by the full-bodied sound of the Ford toms with the Aquarian heads. The drums had all the attack, clarity, and sustain that you'd expect to get with single-ply heads. But they also had excellent depth, punch, and warmth. And, just as Jimmy Ford and Jay Gaylen said they would, they sang, individually and as a trio. It was a truly sweet sound. The bass drum had a more controlled character than did the toms. But that was to be expected, given the fact that Aquarian Super-Kick batter and Force II resonant heads each have built-in muffling properties. Don't get me wrong; the kick had a deep, solid, contemporary bass drum sound that would serve well in most situations (and this with no hole in the front head and nothing inside the drum). I just didn't think that that sound matched the liveliness of the toms. But that liveliness could easily be obtained from the kick drum by altering the head selection. I was also impressed by the sensitivity of the 6x14 maple snare drum, given its shell depth. With the batter head at a medium tension, I got outstanding snare response, even at very low volume levels. The die-cast hoops helped keep that response even across the entire surface of the head, and also helped to "dry out" some of the overring. When I increased the striking force, the depth of the shell came more into play, giving an underlying warmth and fatness to the sound—but without losing the crispness. I wasn't fond of this snare's sound when I cranked the top head up. The drum seemed to sacrifice some of its body in an attempt to achieve a "cracking" sound. But if you want a bullet-through-the-brain drum sound, you'd more likely opt for a shallower drum, and/or one made of metal. Why waste the earthy, warm characteristics of a deep-shelled maple drum? Cast Iron Snare Drum I've played drums made from a variety of metals, but cast iron is a new one for me. The 51/2x14 cast iron Ford drum featured a shell made to Ford's specs by Peter Potyondi, who specializes in "exotic" metal shells. The shell starts out at 10 mils thick, then is machined in its center to create a 5-mil shell with 10-mil "reinforcement hoops" top and bottom. The bearing edges machined into those hoops are slightly rounded to promote head-to-shell contact. The goal of this design is to provide "clarity without distortion, and far less weight than a shell that was all 10 mils thick." At 16 lbs., the drum was no lightweight, but it was considerably lighter than some thick-shelled cast-metal snares we've tested. The iron shell was given a brushed natural finish, with the "brush strokes" clearly visible in the metal surface. This slightly rough-hewn look was offset by the gleam of chrome-over-brass tube lugs and 2.3-mm chromed-steel Superhoops. Trick's high-tech GS007 machined-aluminum snare throw-off finished the assembly. The drum came fitted with an Aquarian Studio X Texture Coated batter head (which features a lightweight muffle ring on the underside). This was likely done as a way of harnessing some of the iron shell's overtones. And it worked: The drum had depth, power, and a reasonably wide tuning range, but it also had a surprising "dryness." There was some overring, to be sure, but not nearly as much as with a traditional chromed steel or brass snare. And that ring could be controlled easily (if desired) with the slightest amount of additional muffling applied to the drumhead. Olive Ash Maple Snare Drum This 51/2x13 drum featured a 10-ply North American maple shell fitted with brass tube lugs and rims and the GS007 throw-off. It, too, had an Aquarian Studio X Texture Coated batter. Its olive ash outer veneer provided a "natural wood" look with a distinctive grain pattern. Jay Gaylen told me that this drum's shell was designed to provide "a dirtier, woodier" sound than that of the iron drum. Well, "woody" isn't much of a stretch (compared to a cast-iron drum). And I might use the term "earthy" rather than "dirty" to describe the warm, fat character of the Olive Ash drum. With its steel hoops and single-ply head, it projected a quintessential high-end maple snare drum sound, with a crispness and cut that was abetted by its 13" diameter. I wouldn't say that sound was anything new, but it sure was satisfying. Conclusions Jimmy Ford and Jay Gaylen don't lack for confidence in their products. Their Web site modestly states: "Why let a drum company's sound dictate yours? Don't settle. The drumkit of your dreams is a phone call or email away." Jimmy and Jay also aren't shy in saying that dreams (like Ferraris) don't come cheap. Their informational brochure states, "Ford drumkits will not be found at chain stores or sold at discount. However, Ford is competitive with other high-end manufacturers who don't offer nearly as many options." Given the quality of workmanship and acoustic performance represented by our review drums, Ford's claims may be justified. Just how valuable Ford's "custom options" are would, of course, be up to the individual. But then again, individuality is the whole point. THE NUMBERS "Firehouse" Drumkit 18x20 bass drum $1,610 12x14 floor tom $970 9x12 rack tom $850 8x10 rack tom $825 6x14 snare drum $825 Exotic veneer adds $800 to cost of kit, making total retail price $5,880 51/2x13 Olive Ash maple snare drum $825 51/2x14 Cast Iron snare drum $1,395 (714) 744-2467, www.forddrums.com

The Gospel According To Ronn by Rick Van Horn photos by Jim Esposito KEY NOTES Unique construction methods and design elements Outstanding construction quality Stainless Steel drum offered surprising tuning range Milkwood drum combined vintage and contemporary characteristics North America has a plethora of custom drum builders, and Canada alone has a sizeable number. Among these builders, Vancouver, Canada's Ronn Dunnett has managed to establish a pretty high profile. He's a tireless supporter of live drumming events, and he's a major force behind the popular drumsmith.com Web site. These activities undoubtedly contribute to his recognition factor. But amid all the hoopla, he also manages to create some pretty spiffy drums. Although Ronn does build drumkits, his bread and butter comes from distinctive snare drums made of titanium, stainless steel, brass, bronze, copper, composites, and a wide variety of domestic and exotic woods. Ronn machines the shells to his own specifications and fits them with hardware of his own design. Many of Ronn's theories about shell design, bearing edges, and what makes a drum sound a certain way fly in the face of conventional wisdom. But that's just fine with him, since it helps to set his drums apart from those of other custom manufacturers. General Characteristics For this review we were sent a 51/2x14 Stainless Steel drum, a 61/2x13 Titanium drum, and a 51/2x14 Milkwood MonoPly drum. All came fitted with R Class chrome-over-brass tube lugs, R Class throw-offs, Hypervent I adjustable air vents, 2.3-mm triple-flange hoops, Remo coated batter heads and hyper-clear snare side heads (exclusive to Dunnett), and 42-strand snappy snare wires. Each drum bears Ronn's signature, an individual serial name, and the date of manufacture written inside the shell. And, as befits the work of a noted custom drum builder, every construction element of our three review drums was outstanding. Earlier, I mentioned Ronn's theories of manufacture. According to Ronn, variables of weight and mass determine the voice of a drum as much as do that drum's dimensions. More specifically, he believes that heavier drums do not produce greater volume. So his designs focus on shell thickness (or more accurately, thinness) and weight, combined with low-mass/minimal-contact hardware, the efficient use of lugs (eight maximum, as on all of our review drums), and undersized diameters. Dunnett drums also feature what Ronn calls "soft" snare beds. These beds are contoured quite deeply, and are cut to run just past the lugs on either side of the snare throw-off or butt. This design is intended to eliminate snare buzz and to accommodate the use of 42-strand snares. R Class Throw-Offs Ronn Dunnett designed the R Class Throw-Off to be durable, functional, and convenient—and it's all three. It's an all-metal unit that features excellent machining, fit, and finish. It operates smoothly, with a lever that's big enough to grasp easily but that isn't cumbersome. Best of all, the entire throw-off mechanism can be rotated 180°. That means that you can select the direction in which you want the throw-off lever to move—toward you, away from you, straight out from the side of the drum, whatever—no matter how you have the drum positioned on the stand. (Lefties take note!) Our review drums all came with original R Class throw-offs. However, by the time you read this, all Dunnett drums will be supplied with the upgraded R2 throw-off and butt end. This unit offers the features of the R Class, but adds a coupling system that allows the snare wires to be removed from the throw-off and butt without the use of a drumkey. This quick-release feature reduces the amount of time and effort involved when changing the snare-side head. Hypervent I The Hypervent I is an adjustable valve that allows you to determine how much air you want to escape from the drum when it's struck. You turn a small knurled knob to fully open or fully close the vent, or put it anywhere in between. Ronn created this option because he believes that the air inside a non-vented drum acts as a pneumatic transducer, carrying the vibration of the top head to the bottom on a 1:1 ratio. Thus a drum without a vent is likely to be more sensitive and more responsive. Under conditions of more aggressive playing, where sensitivity is not an issue but sheer volume is, venting a drum will prevent the drum from "choking," and will allow it to project to its fullest capacity. Classic Titanium The 61/2x13 Titanium drum we received certainly supported Ronn's claim that his Titanium drums feature "the lightest metal shell available—period." It weighed only eight pounds (as compared to the Stainless Steel drum's ten pounds). It featured a raw titanium finish, with no lacquer coating. The edges on Dunnett metal-shell drums are distinctly different from those found on virtually all other metal snares. They're pretty much just the smoothed-over edge of the thin shell itself, with no added contour. Ronn Dunnett puts it this way: "What makes a crash cymbal and a China type sound so different? The flange. When you bend something, you alter the way it resonates. That principle also applies to a metal drumshell. Virtually all metal snare drums have a flange that serves as a blunt bearing edge. Dunnett Classic drums do not have a flange. As a result, they resonate clear and clean, with full sustain. A non-flanged edge also provides for easy and precise tuning." In this instance, I have to disagree with Ronn about the easy tuning. It took us a quite while to find the optimum combination of top and bottom head tension for this drum. The issue seemed to be the drum's depth. It wanted to be a fatback drum, and as soon as we tightened the batter head beyond a medium tension, it started to choke up. When we finally found the right tension combo, though, the Titanium drum had a distinctive quality: full, yet fairly warm—and very dry (once the drumhead ring was taken out of the equation). The Hypervent didn't have much effect on this drum—until we found that optimum head-tension combo. After that, we heard (and felt) a much more dramatic difference between the vented and unvented response of the drum. It was very crisp and even dryer when unvented. When vented, it was brighter, and it spoke with more authority. Stainless Steel With its mirror-smooth finish, the 51/2x14 Stainless Steel drum was the very definition of "gleaming." I almost hated to handle it, owing to the fingerprints I left on the shell. (White gloves, anyone?) But that reluctance was reduced by the enjoyment I received from playing the drum. Steel is a heavier, denser metal than titanium, so it wasn't surprising that the Stainless Steel drum produced a crisper, brighter, and more powerful sound than that of the Titanium model. Our review drum's shallower depth also contributed to this acoustic character. Surprisingly, though, the Stainless Steel drum had a wider effective tuning range than did the Titanium model. With the batter tensioned just a little tighter than medium, it could easily be a fine symphonic drum, with excellent snare response (made even more prominent when the Hypervent was closed). On the other hand, if you wanted a bullet-through-the-brain rock crack, you'd just need to crank this baby up and open the vent. The resonant character of the Stainless Steel shell gave this drum an almost timbale-like over-ring when it was played close to the rim. Actual rimshots rang for days. But this could be easily eliminated with a minimal amount of batter-head muffling if so desired. Milkwood MonoPly Dunnett is best known for metal-shell drums, but the 51/2x14 Milkwood MonoPly drum we tested was pretty impressive in its own right. "Milkwood" is Ronn Dunnett's proprietary name for the exceptionally lightweight wood used to make this drum. I'm partial to solid-wood drums, because they generally provide the best acoustic characteristics of wood while also offering reflectivity and projection that approaches that of metal. Depending on the type of wood and its thickness, solid-shell drums can sometimes be unexpectedly bright. But Dunnett solids are substantially thinner than other drums I've seen. They also feature reinforcement rings that are reduced in depth and diameter. The result, according to Ronn Dunnett, is that his solid-shell drums are the lightest on the market. The Milkwood drum, with its thin shell finished in clear matte lacquer, produced a sound that was exceptionally warm and rich. It was neither too ringy nor too dry, and it responded dramatically to Hypervent adjustments. Its maple reinforcement hoops helped to focus stick attack before the sound "spread out" within the main shell body. Overall, I'd describe this drum as an outstanding hybrid of vintage and contemporary characteristics. In spite of what was said earlier about deep snare beds, at first I didn't think the Milkwood snare even had a snare bed. It did, but that bed was very wide and much shallower than that of the metal drums. The resulting amount of "flatted" bearing edge that came into contact with the snare-side drumhead was likely a contributing factor to the drum's controlled sound. Ronn Dunnett informed me that this bed was cut on this drum only, by special customer request. The same drum with a "standard" deep Dunnett snare bed might be a little brighter. You Get What You Pay For I could end this review with the typical "custom drums command a custom price" comment. But to be honest, Dunnett prices are surprisingly affordable, considering the drums' unique design, construction quality, and acoustic performance. Ronn Dunnett spares no expense in the creation of his drums, but neither does he inflate his prices unrealistically to capitalize on the "custom" mantra. Just like his design concepts, this sales philosophy is an original—and very refreshing—approach. THE NUMBERS 61/2x13 Titanium snare drum $995 51/2x14 Stainless Steel snare drum $595 51/2x14 Exotic Monoply Milkwood snare drum $695 (604) 643-9939, www.dunnett.com © 2006 MODERN DRUMMER Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the permission of the publisher is prohibited.

This ReFill Brings Muscular Acoustic Drums to Reason http://www.propellerheads.se By Craig Anderton If I say "Propellerheads," you probably think "Reason"... or "ReCycle" if you're into looping, or "ReBirth" if you remember the first of the virtual instruments. But you probably don't think "bitchin' great drum kits that absolutely leap through the speakers and kick butt big-time." Well, that's the deal with their Reason Drum Kits refill, designed to work with Reason's NN-XT sampler. I've been working on a song I'll be performing at the NAMM convention, and I just wasn't happy with the drums. I have a bunch of drum sound samples, but I remembered a couple people telling me that the Reason Drum Kits were really special. Well, they are. This isn't to say they're better than everything else that's out there; I haven't tried everything else that's out there. But when I loaded one of the refill's rock kits into the song, I knew I needn't go any further because the sound was perfect: Lively, realistic, articulated drums that raised the energy level and sound quality several notches. What It Is Reason Drum Kits comes on a DVD-ROM. With the original 1.0 version, the main attraction is 17 drum kits (four rock, four pop, seven soul/funk, and four three miscellaneous: brushes, mallets, and no snares). These are big kits that take quite a while to load, but what's way cool is that they're available as stereo mixes – great for quick auditioning -- or as kits with multiple outs. Of these, you can choose close mics, all mics (including overhead and ambience), and no ambience. Yes, you can adjust the ambience any way you like. There are other goodies, too: sets for ReDrum (a nice thought, but no match for the mondo NN-XT multisampled versions), patches for the RV7000 reverb and Scream distortion, style templates saved as Reason song files, MIDI files with various grooves, individual instrument patches, individual drum samples, some really great demo songs to show you what's possible with this refill (or make you feel bad yours don't sound as good)…you get the picture. This is a very complete package. And now Propellerheads has just released Reason Drum Kits 2.0, which is designed specifically for Reason 3.0 and includes Combinator patches, more kits, and the like. The price is still $129 list, which as far as I'm concerned qualifies as a great deal. One of the standout additions is 13 producer kits, which feature the Reason Drum Kits 2 sounds combined with effects and other sound-shaping options from name producers. Good stuff. As soon as I get a hold of Version 2, I'll do an update here. The Secret Weapon What makes the drum kits stand out is serious multisampling – Propellerheads calls the process "hypersampling." Even drum hits with the same velocity play subtly different samples. Rolls don't sound like machine gun fire, instead you hear a real drummer using two hands. But hey, a sound bite is worth a thousand words, so check out this audio example to play a song loop featuring the "Jimmy" rock kit from version 1.0. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

Quality Sound For The Working Drummer by Mark Parsons KEY NOTES All models offer excellent value Opus 99/ST 99 mic'-and-stand combination is compact and practical Opus 53 performs much better than its price would indicate Beyerdynamic has long been known as a purveyor of quality instrument microphones. (Their M-88 has been considered one of the classic bass drum mic's for over thirty years, with good reason.) Now the manufacturer has introduced their Opus series of microphones. And while these mics were designed for the working musician and are therefore built with cost in mind, I hesitate to use the term "budget" or "value-priced" when describing them. That's because after I used them for a while it became clear they were also built with quality and reliability in mind. The Opus series includes several drum-specific models. These drum mic's are available individually, or in four pre-packaged kits (designated Small, Medium, Large, and Extra-Large). The Test Drum-Mic' Kit We were sent the "large" drum-miking kit for review (official designation: Opus Drumset L). This consists of one Opus 99 kick mic' (and ST 99 stand), four Opus 88 clip-on snare/tom mic's, and a pair of Opus 53 small condensers for overheads. The whole kit comes in a foam-lined plastic case with cut-outs for additional mic's, should you wish to expand the miking configuration on your kit. For the purpose of our review, we set up a drumkit in the studio and equipped it with fairly standard mic's (from familiar brands) for each application. To test the Beyer mic's, we'd replace one of the "usual suspects" with the appropriate review model. This would not only give us a quick comparison with a known standard, but also provide a reference with which the reader is likely to be familiar. We also evaluated the mic's on their own merits, without regard to what was previously on the stand, because "different" is not always "worse." Here we go, from the bottom up. Opus 99 Bass Drum Mic' A nearsighted sound engineer could identify the Opus 99 as a kick mic' from a mile away. It's a beefy cylinder, 2" in diameter and approximately 5" long (including tailpiece). The aluminum and cast-zinc body is nicely finished in matte black. The stand mount incorporates a small elastic suspension, which should help reduce any mechanically transmitted sounds. The Opus 99 is a hypercardioid dynamic mic', and it has what the manufacturer calls an "optimized frequency response." This means that it's not designed to be flat, but rather to have a pre-equalized response tailored for the intended application (bass drum). A quick glance at the response chart confirms this: There's a small boost around 125 Hz, a slight reduction in the lower mids (centered at maybe 400 Hz), and a good boost of 6 to 8 dB up around 5 kHz. Looking at the polar chart also reveals that while this mic' does, indeed, have a tight pattern, it's tighter in the upper ranges as opposed to the bottom end. This should result in any shell ring picked up by the mic' being warm in character rather than harsh. But would the microphone sound like the chart looks? We ran the Opus 99 alongside popular kick mic's from AKG and Audix (the D112 and D-6, respectively), both of which are also in the "Pre-Q'd" category. We started outside the kick drum, which gave us a chance to use the ST 99 stand. This is a simple yet clever little device. The base is a T, with a short arm extending vertically from the base. (All three arms are approximately 7" in length.) The upright arm unscrews so that the whole thing goes into the case flat. The resulting mic' height is fixed at about 8", but that's a good, functional height for the intended application. The ST 99's stability is increased by the fact that the arms are all solid (rather than pipe), with the result that the stand—though small—is heavier than it looks. When we placed the Opus 99 a few inches in front of the resonant head of a 22" maple kick drum, it yielded a solid and clear representation of the drum's sound. The response was slightly more linear than that of the D112. The D112 had more mid-bass bloom to the sound, but it wasn't as articulate as the Opus 99 on top. Also, the Opus 99 didn't have quite as much lower-mid attenuation built into it. Subjectively, the D112 was a little "beefier," but with a little less clarity on top, while the Opus 99 was "punchier" with better attack characteristics. It took a few moments of puzzle-solving to get the ST-99 stand through a 5" port in the front head, but we managed to get it inside the drum and sitting on a small muffling pad. This placed the mic' in a useful position in the middle of the drum. (You could, of course, also mount the Opus on a regular low boom stand and place it wherever you liked.) Inside the drum, the characteristic traits of the Opus 99 were similar to those exhibited outside: a nice punchy sound, tight on the bottom with good beater attack on top. When compared to the Audix D-6, the Opus 99 was in the same ballpark. But again, it was more linear than the model it replaced, with the pre-equalization effect being a bit more subdued (not quite as massive on the bottom or snappy on top). The Opus 99 produced a tight, punchy, articulate sound from a variety of positions, which left us with a good overall impression. It generally needed no additional equalization, but it responded well when EQ was added to modify the tone. If you like the modern, pre-curved sound but you want something that's still somewhat universal in application, the Opus 99 is definitely worth a listen. Opus 88 Snare/Tom Mic' The Opus 88 is a small-diaphragm electret condenser, with a cardioid polar pattern. If the Opus 99 is obvious as to its purpose, the Opus 88 is more of an enigma, at least at first glance. The business end at least looks like a mic'—it's a small cylinder about 1/2" in diameter and 1/2" long. This is attached by a small gooseneck to an interesting-looking clamping arrangement, which also houses the mic's electronics. The clamp has two springs—one on either side of the mic' amp/XLR tailpiece—which put pressure on a pair of rubberized jaws. The jaws will open from 3/8" up to 11/2" to clamp onto your drum hoop. In practice this worked well, enabling us to mount the Opus 88 on drums with and without suspension mounts, using both flanged and die-cast hoops. Additionally, the short arm that holds the mic' pivots through a 300° arc. This, along with the gooseneck, allows you to place the mic' pretty much anywhere you want (within reason). The microphones that the Opus 88 replaced on the drumset were typical dynamics frequently used for snares and toms: Shure SM 57s and Sennheiser MD-504s and e-604s. Condensers and dynamics are different animals, so this wasn't meant to be an apples-to-apples comparison. But it does serve to illustrate the inherent differences between the two. (The dynamics were more like each other than any of them were like the condenser, so anything said about one of the dynamics used in this comparison pretty much applied to all of them.) When the Opus 88 was used over a snare drum in a typical close-miking location (a few inches over the hoop, looking down at an angle), it exhibited an extended range and better transient response (to pick up snare rattle, for instance) than did the dynamics. There was slightly less upper bass to the condenser—the sound was a tad less thick—but the articulation was great. Additionally, it had a higher output, which is typical of condensers versus dynamics. Next we tried the Opus 88 over a small tom, where the results were similar: More transient information was present and perceptible with the Opus 88, it was slightly less thick-sounding, and it captured the stick attack better. After that, we tried the 88 on a large tom, where we discovered something new: With the lower frequencies available from the source instrument, the Opus 88 actually had better extension into the low end. (It could reproduce lower frequencies.) It just didn't have the upper bass boost possessed by the dynamics. Overall, the Opus 88 sounded more "hi-fi" and clear than any of the dynamics. Yet it didn't sound so thin and clinical that it couldn't capture the beef of a tom or deep snare. Additionally, the clamping operation was not only clever in design but useful in operation. Very cool. Opus 53 The Opus 53 looks nothing like the Opus 88, but the two models have some fundamental characteristics in common. The diaphragm housings look the same on both mic's, and judging by their sounds and response graphs, I'd venture to guess that their mic' amps are also very similar—if not identical. Like the Opus 88, the Opus 53 is a small-diaphragm electret condenser with a cardioid polar pattern. But this model looks like a typical small-diaphragm "pencil type" condenser microphone. At 1/2" diameter and just under 4" long, it's compact when compared to other models of its type. Additionally, its plastic/carbon fiber case keeps the weight down to under an ounce and a half—and also likely helps to keep the cost reasonable. We replaced Audio Technica AT-33Rs (older small electrets of a similar type) with Opus 53s for use as overheads. The Opus 53 has better extension in the high end. It could better pick out a hi-hat played with the foot within a dense tom pattern, for example. Yet it wasn't unduly harsh. When we used it to close-mike hi-hats, it again had a good transient response. It even worked on loud, bashing hats from a close distance, without getting overly brittle. Just for grins we ran the Opus 53 against a similar-sized small condenser that costs seven or eight times as much, comparing them in use as overheads and on a snare drum. This was a moral victory for the $139 Opus 53. True, the high-dollar Euro-mic' might have been a hair silkier on top, and it had a larger, rounder bottom end. But the Opus 53 acquitted itself well, yielding a very nice, musical sound in both applications. The sonic differences were nowhere near as great as the price difference. Conclusions All of the Opus drum mic's were winners, and all provided good value for the dollar spent. But the Opus 53 was the real sleeper here. With a street price that Beyer estimates at $99 and a sound quality that's well into the triple digits, this mic' is a real bargain for anyone looking for a small condenser for either stage or studio. THE NUMBERS Opus 53 overhead condenser $139 Opus 88 snare/tom clip-on condenser $209 Opus 99 dynamic kick mic' $379 Opus Drumset L drum-miking kit $1,399 (631) 293-3200, www.beyerdynamic.com © 2006 MODERN DRUMMER Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the permission of the publisher is prohibited.

Portable Guitar/Bass Tuner $19.99 list www.planetwaves.com By Craig Anderton It's hard not to like something that's inexpensive, tiny, accurate, and very useful. Which is probably why I like the Planet Waves S. O. S. ("strobe on string") tuner a whole lot. If you're wondering why I included a shot of the package and not just the product, that's because it's small. Really small. As in, about the size of an oversized pick. Yet this is a functional, useable guitar tuner that weighs next to nothing and fits in your axe's case. Actually, you could fit dozens of these in a case, but I think you get the idea. Of course, it's not a top-of-the-line Peterson strobe tuner: It's not chromatic, and only tunes E-A-D-G-B-E so if you're into alternate tunings, this is not the droid you're looking for. Still, the S. O. S. fulfills almost all of a guitarist's tuning needs, and despite the copy on the package that says it's only for guitar, I've had no trouble tuning 4-string electric bass as well (however, a version designed specifically for bass is also available for the same price). HOW IT WORKS S. O. S. gets its name because it's a strobe-based tuner with two red LEDs. It has a thumbwheel on the top that selects among "off" and which of the six strings you want to tune. You choose the string, then pick it with the S. O. S. "pick" so that its two LEDs shine on the string. Unless your string is totally in tune, the reflection on your string from the two LEDs will pulsate—in other words, first you see the reflection from one LED, and then the other. This is because the LED frequencies are basically "beating" with the string. As you tune the string, the LED reflections come closer to appearing to shine in unison. When they're 100\% stabilized and don't appear to be moving at all, that means your string is in tune. You then tune successive strings until your entire guitar is in tune. It's a little hard to see the reflections on the top E string because the string itself is thin, but it's still not hard to tune. One surprising aspect of the tuner is that tuning is very easy, as there's not the "jitter" you sometimes associate with tuners. Tuning in broad daylight is a little tough—you may need to shade the string in direct sunlight—but conversely, you can tune in a darkened room, and do so in total silence (aside from the sound of a vibrating string). The S. O. S. tuner uses a single CR1620 battery; there's an auto-shutoff circuit so that if you forget to turn it off, it turns off anyway in about a minute. As to accuracy, Planet waves quotes ±0.4 cents and while I have no way of measuring that, suffice it to say that your guitar will sound in tune after you're done. The only caveat I can think of is that the thumbwheel feels a little flimsy, and the S. O. S. is made out of plastic so you certainly wouldn't want to run over it with a PA stack. However, I would think that if you're even remotely careful, this little sucker will last quite some time. Overall, this is a totally cool tuner that definitely delivers value for money. It's never far from my guitar, and as a result, my guitar is never far from a tuning touchup. Two thumbs up. Craig Anderton is Editor Emeritus of Harmony Central. He has played on, mixed, or produced over 20 major label releases (as well as mastered over a hundred tracks for various musicians), and written over a thousand articles for magazines like Guitar Player, Keyboard, Sound on Sound (UK), and Sound + Recording (Germany). He has also lectured on technology and the arts in 38 states, 10 countries, and three languages.

High Bells, No Bells, And A "Chick, Chick, Chick" by Martin Patmos KEY NOTES Hi-Bell design increases frequency range Unique lathing adds tonal colors 22" flat ride felt great to play 13" hi-hats have higher-than expected pitch and projection Not long after their release, Zildjian's K Constantinople cymbals established a reputation. Perhaps the highest of high-end Zildjians, these traditional-styled cymbals generated a good deal of enthusiasm among jazz drummers, including notable artists like Brian Blade. Recently, a certain turn of events and a little experimentation led Zildjian to expand the K Constantinople line of ride cymbals. And with a total of nine new rides joining the series, it seemed like a good time to add a set of 13" hi-hats too. The Hi-Bell Concept When I heard that the bell on the new Hi-Bell ride model was based on a 100-year-old cymbal, I inquired for details, which Zildjian R&D specialist Paul Francis was kind enough to share with me. According to Paul, Joe Adato of the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra was seeking a new pair of orchestral cymbals that were like his old pair. "The unique thing about his old Ks was that they had really high bells," Paul said. "In order to recreate his old cymbals, I had to build a die with that bell shape. As I was making the orchestral cymbals, I decided to try that same shape in some K Constantinople drumset cymbals." Paul found that the new bell design—which was significantly higher than that on existing K Constantinople models—gave drumset rides a wider frequency range. He then employed different lathing techniques to see how the sound would be affected with the new cup. The resulting half-and-half lathing creates a wealth of sound possibilities and a striking appearance, and is said to keep the rides controllable while still maintaining crashability and wash. Hi-Bell Design The Hi-Bell rides come in 20" and 22" sizes, in thin-low, thin-high, and medium-thin-low designations. On each, the bell measures about 43/4" in diameter and 1" high from where it meets the body of the cymbal (resulting in a steeper angle to the overall bell than might normally be found). The bow of the cymbal is also noticeably pronounced. On the top and the bottom, spiral lathing radiates out from the center to a 10" diameter on 20" rides and an 11" diameter on the 22" rides. Full lathing covers the outer half. Hi-Bell Sound The different Hi-Bell rides are variations on a theme. The thin-high models are roughly a whole step up from the thin-lows in pitch, and the 20" cymbals are around a third higher than their respective 22" counterparts. The medium-thin-low cymbals lie somewhere between the thin-low and thin-high models in pitch. All this said, these cymbals have such colorful harmonic spectrums that various tones and pitches may come to the fore in playing, making these pitch comparisons somewhat tenuous. When I struck each cymbal with my finger and put my ear near the edge, a remarkably low hum tone could be heard—with a wide range of overtones ringing above. When I played the cymbals normally with a stick, they had a classic ride sound that was warm, dark, and musical, with a touch of trashiness. Riding toward the edge created the most wash, while playing towards the spiral lathing heightened stick definition. Crashes were full and robust, creating a wash of sound from which the ride pattern could emerge. The bell sound was fairly isolated and rich. Each Hi-Bell ride had a wide dynamic range. Even when the volume built up, it was easy to bring things back under control. The medium-thin rides produced a little less wash than the thin models did, and they had a little less "give" under the stick. The thin models, meanwhile, had a softer feel. Each of the Hi-Bell rides offered opportunities for great expression, with a multi-dimensional sound. Each cymbal had notable depth and tonal color. Choosing one ride from this group would be a matter of taste and musical style, but the 22" thin-low was my favorite. Hi-Bell Dry Ride The 22" Hi-Bell Dry ride features spiral lathing across the entire body of the cymbal. In all other physical respects it's identical to the 22" medium-thin Hi-Bell ride. Aside from giving the cymbal a cool look, the spiral lathing also gives this model a great sound: dry, with great stick definition and control. I could build up or maintain a sound cushion as I saw fit. The articulate definition was especially noticeable when I played rapid and complex figures. The ride also produced a full, dry crash that was effective for accents and for bringing forth the harmonic range. Meanwhile, the bell sound was more integrated with the overall cymbal sound when compared to the other Hi-Bells. Playing this cymbal was inspiring; I loved its response, feel, and sound. Flat Rides Having seemingly exhausted the possibilities for bell design, Zildjian has gone the other way, offering K Constantinople Flat rides in 20" and 22" sizes. The 22" flat was actually the first cymbal I played of all the new rides, and while I switched rides in and out on three other stands, that 22" flat stayed in place practically the whole time. I was captivated by its sound. The 22" flat had a slightly sizzly, smokey, dark sound that seeped forth into the overall rhythm. It sounded neither above nor below, but rather through the music. While I was playing it I could see the edge wobbling—to the point where it looked like a rippling pool of water. The flat ride was soft and warm to play on, and very easy to control. It had minimal buildup, and it possessed a great "tick" sound with an attractive cushion that spread forth once the sound got going. Even when I crashed an accent, excellent stick definition was maintained. Obviously I really liked the 22" flat ride. The 20" model was about a third higher in pitch and comparably effective. (But it didn't quite evoke a pool of water when played.) 13" Hi-Hats Zildjian added a 13" set of hi-hats to the K Constantinople line as an alternative to the existing 14" size. The hats were a bit heavier than I expected, despite the thin/medium pairing. However, this helped them to produce a solid, warm "chick" that cut through when played with the foot. When played with a stick, the hats were high in pitch, with a fairly wet, dark sizzle. They sounded very precise when played tightly closed, and they offered increasing sloshiness as they were opened. Foot splashes were particularly effective with these cymbals, with enough body to stand up against the various rides. The relatively high pitch of the 13" K Constantinople hi-hats may not suit every player. But once I got accustomed to it, they proved quite effective. Conclusion Whether it's the organic, full sound and versatile ride surface of a Hi-Bell ride, or the smokey warmth of a flat ride, all these cymbals would do well in a jazz setting. In fact, they'd do well in any situation where a dark, dynamic, and colorful ride cymbal is demanded to shape the music. The Hi-Bell Dry ride in particular ought to find fans beyond jazz players. There's no denying that these cymbals are quite expensive. They're lathed by hand and are therefore not easily mass produced. So while many of us may desire the quality of a K Constantinople, it's likely going to take a bit of saving to pay for one. THE NUMBERS 20" Hi-Bell and flat rides $612 22" Hi-Bell and flat rides $723 13" hi-hats (pair) $648 (781) 871-2200, www.zildjian.com © 2006 MODERN DRUMMER Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the permission of the publisher is prohibited.

An Affordable Way To Get In The Game by Rick Mattingly KEY NOTES 12" djembe offers full range of tones 9" djembe has doumbek-like qualities 9" doumbek sounds toy-like In a 1995 Percussive Notes article, drum-circle guru Arthur Hull referred to hand drums as the "folk guitars of the '90s." But what Arlo Guthrie once described as "the great folk music scare" of the 1960s only lasted a couple of years, being quickly replaced by electrified garage bands in the aftermath of the "British Invasion" spearheaded by the Beatles. The drum circle movement, by comparison, has endured into a second decade, finding its way into all sorts of community gatherings as well as nursing homes, business conferences, and school curriculums. Having lived through both eras, I can tell you that it was a lot easier to find a decent, inexpensive folk guitar in the 1960s than it has been to find a decent, inexpensive djembe or doumbek over the past several years. Wood instruments with skin heads tend to be fairly expensive, and even the synthetic hand drums are not cheap—plus the plastic heads just don't feel the same, which is a bigger issue when you're playing with your hands. Toca has addressed the price and the feel issues with its new line of Synergy Freestyle drums. The shells are made of PVC material, which is inexpensive, consistent, sturdy, and lightweight. The heads are natural goatskin, giving the drums the feel of traditional instruments. In another nod to tradition, Synergy Freestyle djembe heads are attached with a rope-tensioning system. Changing a head on one requires more time than changing a key-tensioned synthetic head. But it's not as bad as it might be. Because traditional wood drums are hand carved, their shell diameters can vary widely. As a result, one has to purchase a flat skin head, soak it in water, mount it by hand around a metal ring, and then fit it over the drum's rim to create a collar. Having done it, I can attest that it's quite a job. However, because Synergy Freestyle shells are absolutely consistent, pre-mounted goatskin replacement heads are available from Toca. So even with the rope-tension system, head changes are relatively painless. 9" And 12" Djembes Synergy Freestyle djembes are available with 9", 10", and 12" heads. (The 10" model was unavailable for this review.) The head on the 12" drum is large enough to allow for deep bass tones, rich open tones, and bright slaps. The synthetic shell gives the drum a slightly brighter sound than that of a traditional wood djembe, falling somewhere between a djembe and a doumbek. But the Synergy Freestyle djembe also sounds warmer and more traditional than djembes I've played that were fitted with synthetic heads. This is a good alternative to a traditional djembe for a beginner, a "hobbyist" hand drummer, or even for a serious djembe player who wants a sturdy, lightweight instrument for settings in which a heavier, expensive wood drum would not be appropriate. Whereas the 12" Synergy Freestyle djembe sounded somewhat like a doumbek, the 9" djembe sounded almost exactly like one. It had a rich, doumbek-like bass tone in the middle of the head, while at the edge it produced the very bright, almost metallic ring of a traditional doumbek. Its light weight made it perfect for tucking under the arm and playing with a combination of hand and finger techniques. 9" Doumbek By contrast, the 9" Synergy Freestyle doumbek sounded more like a toy drum. It had a decent bass tone, but the high tone was not all that high, and it had very little ring. The main problem with this drum is its tacked-on head. If you get a tight, high-pitched one, the drum might compare favorably with the 9" djembe mentioned above. But the doumbek we received was pitched too low, and there is no easy way to tension the tacked-on head. This drum would be good for children who want a small, lightweight drum to play with, but it won't do for someone who wants to play doumbek rhythms with traditional techniques. (Again, the 9" djembe could be used for that purpose.) Conclusion Synergy Freestyle drums are available in two finishes: Snake and Bali Red. The drums we received for review had the Snake covering, which looked very nice. At trade shows and local shops I've seen some Bali Red finishes that looked great, but I've also seen a couple in which the finish's seams didn't line up properly. Be careful mail-ordering a drum in that finish if you can't see it first. Perhaps the best aspect of Synergy Freestyle drums is their affordability. When quality, lightweight, affordable drums such as these are available, I daresay that even more people will be enticed to get involved with hand drums and drum circles. THE NUMBERS 12" djembe $149 10" djembe $99 9" djembe $74 9" doumbek $59 (860) 509-8888, www.tocapercussion.com © 2006 MODERN DRUMMER Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the permission of the publisher is prohibited.

See-Through Sound by Rick Van Horn, photo by Jim Esposito Say what you will about exotic woods and custom paint jobs, there's just something cool about the look of a clear drumset. And forget about "retro." That coolness knows no time period. When you (and your audience) can see through the drums, it adds a whole new dimension to the performance. Sonor's X-Ray acrylic drumkit—a new offering within the high-end Designer series—takes special advantage of this added visual dimension. The linear design of the Designer series lugs gives the kit an absolutely skeletal appearance. The shells seem to disappear entirely, leaving you sitting behind a metallic framework that seems magically suspended in the shape of a drumkit. Like I said...really cool. Specifications You may have seen photos of Thomas Lang doing clinics on a massive multi-piece X-Ray kit. Our review kit was a bit more modest. It featured an 18x22 bass drum, 9x10 and 10x12 rack toms, a 14x14 floor tom, and a 5x14 snare drum. All of the drumshells featured bearing edges that were cut very precisely. The toms had steel hoops, while the snare drum was fitted with a die-cast hoop. The hoops on the bass drum were made of the same acrylic material as the shells. The toms were equipped with Sonor's own Clear Medium single-ply heads top and bottom. The snare had the same head for its batter. The bass drum was fitted (front and back) with Sonor's Clear Power heads, which are single-ply medium heads with edge rings for control. The kit came with a 600 series high-end hardware package that included two combination cymbal/tom stands, a hi-hat, a snare stand, and a bass drum pedal. Sound As much as I gushed about the cool look of clear drums, all the coolness in the world doesn't matter if those drums don't sound good. With that in mind, let me first say that acrylic shells have gotten a bad rap over the years. Because they're made of a hard, clear material, many drummers automatically assume that they will produce an ultra-bright and "brittle" sound. But this has proved not to be true with acrylic drums we've reviewed in the past, and it's certainly not true with the X-Ray drums The density and reflective nature of the acrylic shells certainly do make the drums very resonant, and also gives them excellent projection. But far from sounding brittle, our review drums sounded warm and full—much closer to a wood-shell sound than one might imagine. We were particularly impressed with the tom sound, which was bigger and more powerful than the sizes of the drums might indicate. The 14x14 floor tom particularly stood out in this regard. The bass drum had an interesting idiosyncrasy. When played at a low volume, it had a very pleasing low-end boom that would sound great in an acoustic situation. But the sound seem to be "trapped" when we really laid into the drum—as though the sound waves were being reflected back within the shell and canceling each other out. As a result, the drum didn't generate the sonic output that we thought it should. So we tried an experiment. Cutting a hole in a bass drum's front head usually reduces overall resonance somewhat (even while adding punch). But in this case, replacing the solid head on the X-Ray bass drum with a ported model let the resonance, depth, and power of the drum escape, to excellent effect. The X-Ray snare drum bore more sonic resemblance to a high-quality metal-shelled drum than to a wood model. It had plenty of crack and loads of volume potential, but it also had a pretty substantial amount of overring. A large part of this might be attributable to the clear batter head, which, while it makes the look of the snare consistent with that of the other drums, really doesn't serve well as a snare batter. Unless you want to pile on the muffling rings, a switch to a coated batter will likely be necessary. The "bigness" of the toms was also reflected in the snare. Even when the head was cranked up, the drum sounded deeper than its 5" actual depth. If the X-Ray kit has any acoustic limitation, it might be one of excess. One of my editorial colleagues said that it just had too much volume to be used in an acoustic jazz setting. But he couldn't wait to try it on his next rock gig. Drum Hardware While the X-Ray kit's acrylic shells are new for Sonor, the Designer series drum hardware isn't. But for those who may not be familiar with it, let me say that it's undoubtedly the most engineered drum hardware on the market. It's simply unlike anybody else's...which could be interpreted as good or bad. To begin with, Designer series snare and tom tension rods feature the slotted-head design that has set Sonor apart (to the aggravation of some) for many years. The bass drum rods are fitted with small round knobs instead of key heads. All lug-mounting screws are isolated from the shells by special insulators, in what Sonor calls the APS Advanced Projection System. All of the lugs are fitted with Tune-Safe tension-rod locking devices that squeeze the threads of the rods. That's good for maintaining established tuning, but annoying when it comes time to adjust that tuning or change heads. The APS system is also used on the floor-tom leg holders. These holders have large, easy-grip round knobs rather than traditional wing bolts. They're also spring-loaded and rotatable, to hold the legs (even when the knob is loosened) and allow them to be folded up on the drum for transport. Very convenient. But this system requires the legs to be shorter than some drummers would like. And the gripping nature of the leg holders makes quick leg-height adjustments very difficult, since the legs won't slide through the loosened holders. The Designer bass drum spurs also feature the APS system and large round knobs. Plus they offer an angle adjustment gauge with a memory lock, push-button adjustment of spur length, and a slick-looking rubber sleeve over the extension portion of the spur. It all seems pretty sophisticated just to hold a bass drum in place, but it does work very well. There was no tom mount on the bass drum of our review kit. Instead, the two rack toms were "flown" from combination cymbal/tom stands on either side. They were mounted on Sonor's Designer tom holders, which feature ball-shaped four-piece Segment-Clamps for infinite angle adjustment. The L-shaped arms fit into TAR (Total Acoustic Resonance) suspension mounts on the toms. These feature a small knob below the tom fitting that applies tension to the mount, thereby reducing or increasing the overall resonance of the drum. This, not surprisingly, is called the AcoustiGate Resonance Fine Adjustment. All of these innovations are intended to provide the maximum in sonic and functional performance. Whether or not they appeal to you would be a personal choice. However, one thing is certain: Sonor's hardware tends toward the heavy side. And when it's mounted on shells made of acrylic (which is denser and heavier than wood), it makes for some heavy drums. The bass drum, for example, weighs 37 lbs., as opposed to 23 lbs. for a birch bass drum of similar size that we compared it to. Stand Package The various 600 series stands that accompanied the kit are Sonor's top models. They're all heavy-duty, double-braced models that would stand up to anything. They also have one nifty feature that I really appreciate: one leg of the tripod can be rotated independently from the other two. This makes it possible to pull the stands in closer to the bass drum than standard tripods can go, and also allows for easier arrangement of multiple stands. The P 693 bass drum pedal is a high-performance model based on Sonor's Giant Step design. It comes with Sonor's unique Docking Station, which is a mount that permanently attaches to the bass drum hoop. Instead of clamping to the hoop itself, the pedal is fitted with a Smart Connect System that attaches to the Docking Station. This makes attaching and detaching the pedal a very simple operation. Conclusion First and foremost, you'd need to dig the look of the X-Ray kit before even considering it. Not everybody will. But if you do, you need have no reservations about its quality or its acoustic potential. It meets Sonor's reputation for outstanding construction and engineering detail, and it has a full and powerful sound. The weight of the drums might be daunting to some, and the purchase price will be daunting to many. But for those to whom these drums appeal, I say again: really cool. THE NUMBERS 18x22 bass drum $2,999 9x10 tom $1,099 10x12 tom $1,199 5x14 snare $1,199 14x14 floor tom $1,699 CTS 659AX-4 cymbal/tom stand $319 P 693 bass drum pedal $319 HH 654 hi-hat stand $379 SS 657 snare drum stand $259 (804) 515-1900, www.hohnerusa.com © 2006 MODERN DRUMMER Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the permission of the publisher is prohibited.