In a recent review, Computer Music gave the V-Studio 100 5.5 out 6 stars. Impressed with the units flexbility, the reviewer exclaims:

“It’s hard to deny the value of the VS-100. The audio interface alone is a winner for its great preamps and rock-solid Mac and Windows drivers, especially when combined with the utility of a flying fader and transport buttons. Throw in a basic mixer with real hardware controls and a fine software bundle, combined with the ability to mix and record even without the computer and the VS-100 is a near-perfect, do-everything box.”

Get a better look at the V-Studio 100,  take our brand new V-Studio Interactive Tour

Read the full review at Music Radar.com

The latest version of our software for guitarists and singer-songwriters, Guitar Tracks Pro USB, includes all the tools you need to take your music from riff to hit (without the confusion of learning of whole new DAW). Based on our award-winning SONAR engine, you get a virtual guitar amp, a backing band of virtual instruments, precise editing tools, mixing console, numerous effects, an online music publisher and more – all for less than the cost of a few hours of studio time.

Recently, the Mystic Geek (of HowtoGeek.com) spent some time with GT Pro USB in his home studio. He tested the installation process using Windows 7, hooked up his guitar with the included USB audio interface, and took the new built-in effects for a spin. Stop by HowToGeek.com to see the full review.

A few months ago, we sent over a review copy of Music Creator 5 to the IHR team. Dave immediately gave his first impressions. In their latest episode, Derek conducted an extensive review on the program- running it on a Windows 7 test candidate.

Click on the links above to hear their thoughts.
Visit IHR.com for more home recording news!

Click here to watch more of MixMkr’s videos on XtraNormal.com

The first video displays SONAR’s sheer power hosting Shawn Clement’s remix of Cori Yarckin’s “Everything You Said” with 140 tracks, 50 plug-ins and a high-res 800 MB AVI video file – all running simultaneously on a PC AudioLabs Intel Core i7 desktop machine. The second video focuses on the new compositional features added to SONAR 8.5 Producer such as the Matrix view, the VX-64 vocal processor plug-in, the powerful arpeggiator and the time-stretching tool, AudioSnap 2.0. Lastly, Brandon gives a brief overview of the new percussion instruments, Session Drummer 3 and the PX-64 percussion strip.

Watch these videos now on the MIX TV page!

Visit Into Tomorrow’s website to listen to the clip (labeled Hour 1, you’ll find it half way down the page on the right hand side). Starting at 00:35:30, you’ll hear how award-winning producer Shawn Clement mixes 140 live tracks in real time using the new processor and Cakewalk’s SONAR 8.5 Producer. You’ll also learn more about Cakewalk and Intel’s new songwriting contest being held throughout the fall at Ourstage.com.

The new version packs a wealth of plug-ins including two seven-stage processors for treating drums and vocals, a non-linear cell based Matrix view and a fully-loaded Arpeggiator (based off of tools in the now extinct Project5) plus a Media Browser that supports a variety of files (REX, anyone?) which can be used natively in SONAR’s track view. Also available in SONAR 8.5 is a tool called Bitbridge, allowing SONAR to use 32-bit plug ins in a 64-bit environment and guaranteed compatibility with Windows 7 (release date: Oct 22, 2009).

SONAR 8.5 is available for purchase as a download and as a boxed copy with a variety of pricing and upgrades options to fit every musician’s budget.

Pick up the latest issue of Computer Music to see the news article

“Through the Mackie Control Support you can use (the V-Studio 100 with) other DAW software to handle the load. When you are in Active Controller Technology (ACT) mode you will have more advanced control with the SONAR software. All you have to do is press the ACT button and you will be able to control the parameters of plug-ins that support the ACT function.”

Testi also points out that because of its compact size and robust package, the V-Studio has everything you need to create music, whether in studio or on the road.

“It is a really fun product and I like both the simplicity and the quality. They have put together a complete production package that has recording, high quality vocal processing, along with a whole host of add-ons for instrumentation. What really makes this nice is the compact, out of the box package that you can either interface with your computer and favorite DAW, or you can use it in the studio, in the garage, or on the road.”

Read T. Michael Testi’s V-Studio 100 Review at Blog Critics.com

Among his favorite features are the argpeggiator and step-sequencer included on every track, the audio manipulation tool (AudioSnap 2.0), the strips for percussion and vocals (PX-84 and VX-64, respectively), and SONAR’s compatibility with x64 and Windows 7!  Here are some of our favorite quotes. Click the link below to read Peter’s full review.

“Even with its competitors packing in features, SONAR 8.5 is a tool that really loves MIDI, just as other software focuses on audio. And it’s one of the best-performing tools around. Because it’s so well-tuned for Windows, that means you can drop it onto a wide variety of PC hardware without spending a lot of cash. Most importantly, it could be the first software on any platform that convinces you to try a 64-bit OS – just at about the time you may be doing a fresh install of Windows 7.”

“You get strips for working with vocals and drums. For vocals, the VX-64 is a combination tube-emulation mic pre + de-esser + compressor/expander + tube EQ + doubler + delay + output strip, which I already loved after seeing it bundled with the VS-100 hardware. For drums, the PX-64 is a combination pre + transient shaper + compressor + expander + contour EQ + delay + output strip – so, roughly the same thing, with some drum-specific tweaks. Cakewalk has done a lovely job with these strips, and they could be the sort of thing that justifies SONAR’s investment. I can’t imagine not liking the PX-64 having enjoyed the VX-64, both for its audio quality and the ease of drag-and-drop routings.”

Create Digital Music covers SONAR 8.5 Release