As we approach the fourth quarter of the year, keyboard manufacturers are jostling for position as we head towards the all-important holiday season, when parents of would-be players – and adult newbies, due to that matter – start to ask themselves what the best digital pianos for beginners are at the moment.
In 2024, Casio hopes to be part of the conversation with two new Celviano models – the AP-300 and AP-S200 – both of which are described as ‘entry-level’.
Despite their lower price tags, both are designed to deliver the ‘immersive grand piano experience’ of the more expensive models in the Celviano range – though not to quite the same extent, obviously. So that means high-quality sounds, decent speaker systems and playable keyboards.
The AP-300 is the pricier of the two, and is said to adhere to “the same core principles” as Casio’s high-end Grandphonic Sound System example, as used in the recent AP-750. So, the sound is designed to disperse from the speakers and reflect off the materials within the cabinet. The AP-S200 is based on a similar concept but has an open design and slimmer profile.
The grand piano tones themselves are generated by the Multi-Dimensional Morphing AiR Sound Source, and are said to change according to your playing style and as notes sustain.
Similarly, the Smart Scaled Hammer Action Keyboard adapts its touch sensitivity depending on how strongly the keys are played.
The AP-300 (£1,249) and AP-S200 (£999) are available now in black, brown and white color options, and both come with the WU-BT10 Bluetooth adapter for wireless MIDI and audio streaming. Find out more on the Casio website.
Developer Igor Vasiliev has introduced LoopMangler, a multi-effect glitch sequencer for iOS and Mac.
Igor Vasiliev says that LoopMangler “is designed to manipulate rhythmic samples, external input, or output from other applications. This powerful tool operates based on the effect sequence patterns, allowing you to transform ordinary loops into unusual glitchy and noisy textures.”
Features:
Advanced Sound Design: LoopMangler provides “an exciting playground for sonic exploration and sound design”.
Random Pattern Generation: Make patterns and individual bars randomly or according to specific rules, offering a quick start or a source of inspiration for your projects.
Multi-Effect Sequencing: Assign up to six distortion and filter effects to each step of the sequencer.
Envelope Modulation: Each effect is modulated with its own envelope generator, so every step can be unique and dynamic.
Intuitive Editor: The editor allows you to easily copy, move, and delete individual cells and bars within the sequence.
Real-Time Processing: Process audio in real-time, allowing you to hear the effects of your adjustments immediately.
Flexible Integration: Seamlessly integrates with other audio applications.
LoopMangler is a universal application for iOS and macOS. It can work on iPhone and iPad as well as Mac / MacBook with M1 chip (and later).
LoopMangler works on iPhone and iPad standalone, as an Audio Unit or Inter-App Audio module, and supports Audiobus and Ableton Link. On MacOS, LoopMangler can works both as a standalone application and as an Audio unit (AUv3) with DAWs and other hosts that support AUv3 plugins.
As DAWs get more powerful and easier to use, an increasing number of people are looking for tools that enable them to jam and record without one. Perhaps this is driven by a desire to have a more tactile music-making experience, or maybe it’s as simple as wanting to do things a bit differently to everyone else.
Either way, the DAWless music-making community is certainly getting bigger, and Zoom is now offering members of it a compact and portable 10-channel mixer and recorder that looks particularly suitable for those who want to jam with multiple synths.
The LiveTrak L6 has two combo mic/line inputs and four stereo pairs of 1/4-inch line inputs, plus four sound pads (for triggering samples), two aux sends and five internal send effects. You can record up to 12 tracks simultaneously, and there’s MIDI I/O for mixer control and USB MIDI interfacing.
To save on space, channels 1 to 6 have knobs rather than faders for level adjustment, while other controls for each channel include pan, aux send levels and a 3-band EQ. As well as offering 32-bit float multitrack recording to microSD card, you can also stream audio to your computer or iOS device via USB (the LiveTrak L6 can function as a 12/in/4-out audio interface).
Eurorack compatibility adds another string to the L6’s bow, and power can come either over USB or from four AA batteries.
As things stand, the only official information on the LiveTrak L6 seems to be the quick tour video above, but we’re assuming that more details will soon be added to the Zoom website. We’re expecting a price of $299.
