Sound On Sound UK March 2023

Machine learning is a ticking time bomb underneath the arts. Tools such as DALL-E and Stable Diffusion create visual artwork that is sometimes uncanny and often frighteningly convincing. ChatGPT will generate short-form text that is distinguishable from real human writing only by its perfect spelling. It can even code. The challenges are greater with audio and video content, but they’re not fundamentally different. It’s only a matter of time before AI can produce music that ‘passes’. And it won’t be created using layers of overdubs, by mucking about with MIDI, or in any other way we can observe and make sense of. It will simply emerge fully formed in response to our polite inquiries. Does this mean the end for music as a human career? No. Music differs from writing, painting and…

Microphones with the same operating principle tend to share the same form factor. Thus, whereas large-diaphragm mics are typically addressed from the side, moving-coil dynamic and small-diaphragm capacitor mics are usually end-address types. But it’s not impossible to do things differently, and side-address designs like the Sennheiser e906, Shure Beta 181 and Josephson e22s have practical advantages, especially on live stages where space is an issue. With the OC7 and OD5, Austrian Audio have gone further down this road. In essence, they’ve taken the small-diaphragm capacitor capsule from their CC8 pencil mic and the active moving-coil element from their OD505 stage vocal mic, tweaked the tuning for instrument applications, and adapted them to work in a side-address format. The really clever part, though, is that these side-address housings are swivel-mounted, allowing…

A once‑fashionable dance outfit cited that you need to put ‘Bass In The Place’, but if your synth or bass line lacks that low‑end grunt, S‑CAT have a bespoke solution that could fill your frequency void. Along with other products from the S‑CAT line‑up, the Bass‑Synth is made to order. The less‑than‑oversized device sits neatly on the desktop, with an uncluttered panel that slopes toward you. It’s got that Moog‑style feel, with chunky knobs, pots and switches that ooze quality. Complete this picture with a chunky pair of wooden end cheeks, and you’ve got a beautiful piece of analogue synth design. What You See Is What You Get Switching it on, the Bass‑Synth emitted a very low series of pulses before I clambered to plug in a keyboard, to control pitch and gate.…

Icon mics are manufactured in Latvia, which is already well-known for other high-quality microphone brands. The Martian mic reviewed here is part of Icon’s Space series of microphones. While the two alien ‘eyes’ mounted on this mic’s spherical basket might lead you to believe that it is some type of stereo microphone, it is in fact a fixed cardioid-pattern, mono mic. Like those employed by compatriots JZ Microphones, the handbuilt capsule uses Golden Drop technology, which aims to allow the diaphragm to move more rapidly in response to transients and thus deliver a precise HF response. The capsule is shockmounted internally, and the bespoke cradle provides further shock isolation as well as support for the included metal pop filter. An elegant two-part aluminium storage case for the microphone itself is…

Two notes are well known for their digital amp and cab simulators, but several years ago they released the analogue LE preamp series, and in many ways the new ReVolt amp and speaker emulation pedals can be regarded as their successors. The ReVolt pedals not only feature analogue drive and tone circuits, but also all-analogue speaker emulation. It’s a path that’s already been trodden successfully by Tech 21’s SansAmp range, and a refreshing change from the myriad digital emulations now available. There are two separate models, one intended for electric guitar, the other for bass guitar. ReVolt Guitar The Revolt Guitar is a three-channel pedal that incorporates a 12AX7/ECC83 valve in the signal path, and this runs on high-voltage power rails, with a view to ensuring that the pedal delivers an authentic…

You may not be familiar with the brand name Isuzi, as their main output appears to be stringed instruments and their accessories, but they’ve recently branched into the pro audio sector with the I‑M1S stage microphone. Built in China to reduce costs, it may not bring anything particularly new to the table but it does offer a very decent level of performance at a low price point. Constructionally there’s nothing unusual here — we have a gently tapered cast‑alloy body with a thread machined into it at the upper end to receive the screw‑on capsule basket. Both the body and basket are finished in satin black, and the foam insert inside the basket can easily be removed for washing. The cardioid‑pattern dynamic capsule uses a neodymium magnet, and sits in a…