Archive for April, 2023

Teenage Engineering announces the CM-15 Field Condenser Microphone


Teenage Engineering CM-15, a portable microphone that promises great sound whatever the recording situation.

Teenage Engineering has unveiled the CM-15, a predictably lovely-looking portable microphone that forms the latest part of the company’s Field system. This already contains the second-generation OP-1 synth and the TX-6 mixer.

It might be small, but the CM-15 contains a 1-inch large-diaphragm capsule – something that TE says you don’t often find in portable recording gear. Features with its ESS sabre analogue-to-digital converter, this is designed to “preserve high-fidelity sound and capture exceptional detail in any recording situation. “We’re told that you can expect “clean, rich, transparent and natural sound. Period.”

You can adjust the gain switch on the back of the mic to suit the source you are recording, and TE reckons that the CM-15 can record pretty much anything. Vocals, instruments and podcasts are all said to be within its remit, or you could take the 3.5mm line out to a video camera for perfectly synced audio for your visuals.

Other outputs include mini XLR (a mini XLR-to-XLR cable comes supplied) and USB-C, and these can all be used simultaneously. There are three powering options, too – phantom power, the built-in 10-hour rechargeable battery or USB-C.

CM-15 ships with a 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch tiltable adapter, which enables it attached to any mic stand or tripod. Teenage Engineering’s mini tripod, however, isn’t supplied. There is a built-in table stand, though, which can be used to rest and angle the mic on a flat surface.

CM-15 integrates with the OP-1 and TX-6, and is also compatible with your PC, Mac and iOS device.

Overall, Teenage Engineering has created a versatile microphone for the modern recording artist or content creator. The mind truly boggles with so many ways and possibilities to put the CM-15 into action.

The CM-15 will be available this Summer directly from the Teenage Engineering online store at a price of $1199/£1,049. Find out more on Teenage Engineering website.

 

Arturia launches Augmented BRASS Plugin


Arturia blows its own trumpet as it launches Augmented Brass plugin.

Are you ready to “discover a new era of cinematic sound”?

Arturia’s Augmented series of plugins takes a fresh approach to emulating acoustic instruments in software, blending sampling, synthesis and expression control. Rather than attempting to be totally accurate, they are designed for creating modern-day sounds that are suitable for today’s producers.

Augmented Brass, the latest addition to the range, sticks to this formula, blending brass samples and synth engines and enabling you to morph between them. Orchestral brass, chamber horns and trumpets are all included, and you can marry these sounds to the likes of virtual analogue bass, impacts and noise textures.

Plenty of presets are supplied, while sound designers can fine-tune sample and synth layers and add custom modulation, arpeggiation, effects and macros.

The Augmented interface has also been updated, with an improved modulation workflow, visual feedback and new features such as part panning and keyboard offset. These updates are available in all the other Augmented instruments, as well (Strings, Voices and Grand Piano).

Augmented Brass is available now at the discounted intro price of €69 (regular price will be €99). Depending on what other Arturia products you own, you might get an even better discount when you sign-in to your account.

Arturia has also launched the Cinematic Trio, a bundle of three soundbanks of film-scoring presets for the Augmented range. These are currently available at a one-time discounted price for owners of Augmented Strings, Voices, and Grand Piano, or free for new buyers of these instruments.

Find out more on the Arturia website.

Tiptop Audio & Buchla release 292t Quad LoPass Gate for Eurorack Systems


Tiptop Audio and Buchla have announced the availability of the 292t Quad LoPass Gate, a reissue of the classic 200 series module in Eurorack-compatible format.

With the release of the 292t Quad LoPass Gate, all of the Buchla 200 series designs that have been announced in Eurorack format have been released.

The 292t Quad LoPass Gate is a faithful recreation of Buchla’s classic lopass gate, but in Euro-compatible format. It features four independent channels, with vactrols to capture the capture the sound of the original design. Each of the 292t’s channels can be used in three modes – acting as either a low pass filter with a variable cutoff, a VCA with controllable gain, or a combination of both to create Buchla’s low pass gate effect.

The four channels can also be used together to as a simple mixer, as a voltage processor and more.

Features:

  • Quad low pass gate module
  • Eurorack revival of Buchla’s 292C
  • Four independently controlled signals (A, B, C, D)
  • Each channel has a signal input, a CV input, and a signal output
  • Additional “all” output for summed signal
  • Each channel can act in one of three modes:
  • lopass – acts as a lowpass filter
  • gate – acts as a typical VCA
  • combo – combines the other two to form the classic Buchla low pass gate
  • Attenuators per channel to control CV bias or general gain

Tiptop Audio has not announced what’s next in the 200t series, but it seems likely that more Euro format Buchla modules will be on the way, since each of the modules released so far has quickly sold out.

The 292t Quad Lopass Gate Model is available now for $350