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SoundForce SFC-8 MIDI controller might make you believe that you own a real Jupiter-8.

You may never be able to afford a real Jupiter-8, but if you have got a plugin version of Roland’s classic synth and you are prepared to suspend a little disbelief, then SoundForce’s new SFC-8 might make you believe that you do.

SFC-8 is designed specifically to be used with Jupiter-8 emulations – particularly Arturia or Togu Audio Line’s – this MIDI-mappable device draws power and transmits MIDI over USB, but also has a standard 5-pin MIDI port.

And, you can also use it with hardware synths if you wish. MIDI maps can be created and CC numbers changed in the companion control panel app.

The SFC-8 contains five banks of four presets and offers three modes (jump- pick-up and scale). It is assembled in The Netherlands and made from a combination of sheet metal and wood, so it is rather durable.

The SFC-8 joins the company’s MIDI Controllers line-up – the SFC-60 and SFC-5 – and is available now priced at €499 and €412.40 for customers outside the EU.  In the US, it is available via Perfect Circuit for $449.

Find out more on the SoundForce website.

Can Adobe’s free online tool make your low-quality spoken word recordings sound like they were made in a pro studio?

Adobe has pre-launched Adobe Podcast (previously known as Project Shasta), a new set of online tools for audio processing. Currently free to those who request and are granted access, at the moment this offers two usable elements: an AI-powered speech enhancer that automatically cleans up your audio, and a Mic Check feature that tells you how well you have your recording rig set up.

It is the Enhance Speech tool that’s generating the most interest, as it promises to make voices sound as if they were “recorded in a professional studio,” even if the audio that you give it was captured using a cheap mic or less-than-ideal environment.

The process is similar to the one used by many AI auto-mastering platforms – simply drag an audio file onto the web page and Enhance Speech will go to work.

PiXimperfect provides a good overview of the kinds of results you can expect from Enhance Speech in the video above, and we have to say that they are rather impressive. Adobe’s technology appears to do a good job of removing audio artefacts, harshness and background noise, and makes a reasonable fist of cutting mic handling, plosive and sibilant sounds, as well. Speech Enhance is a tool that’s mainly used when recordings are particularly bad.

The other usable Adobe Podcast tool is Mic Check, which will analyse a sample recording from your mic and tell you how well it scores for proximity, gain, background noise and echo.

Other options in the pipeline include the ability to edit spoken audio from an automatically generated transcript, a Remote Recording feature that captures group discussions made in multiple locations and then assembles them in the cloud, and project templates to speed up your workflow.

It is worth emphasising that Adobe Podcast is specifically designed to handle speech at the moment, and so, as its name suggests, will likely be of most use to podcasters and creators of other content that features spoken words. However, there may well be scope to use it on recordings of sung vocals in the future, as well.

You can find out more about Adobe Podcast and request access on the Adobe website.

Erica Synths has announced the availability of their SYNTRX II.

Introduced at Superbooth 2022, the Syntrx II is an update to their Syntrx synth that takes the EMS Synthi AKS concept into the future.

While the Syntrx II is inspired by the classic EMS Synthi AKS design, it features stable oscillators, new synthesis options, a digital patch matrix, patch recall, a built-in sequencer, effects and more.

An in-depth overview from Loopop‘s Ziv Eliraz:

Features:

• Two stable main oscillators with CV controlled waveforms
• Modulation oscillator with variable waveforms
• Highpass and Lowpass filters in series
• Free running or gate synced sample and hold circuit
• Multi-colour noise generator
• DC coupled instrument inputs with signal inversion and envelope follower
• Ringmodulator of unique design
• Looping trapezoid envelope generator and VCA
• Two output VCAs
• Signal meter with a dedicated audio/CV output
• FX section with great sounding Delay and Reverb
• Recordable Joystick Analogue patch matrix with 3 attenuation levels in each patch point
• 254 patch memory
• Piano roll sequencer
• Two CV inputs
• Gate input
• DIN5 MIDI Input (CV and Gate) and MIDI Thru
• Two assignable outputs
• Headphone output

Erica Synths Syntrx II available now, priced at € 1800.00 (VAT excl.)/ $2179.