APG is a French loudspeaker manufacturer and designer of sound reinforcement systems for immersive live sound. Seeing its competitors selling expensive sound spatialization solutions for big productions, APG took up the challenge to develop some affordable software that would allow every artist, sound designer and producer the tools to try their hand at immersive sound and be part of this new exciting world. And by “affordable”, APG went all the way and made it free.

That’s NESS, which stands for New Experience of Sound Spatialization.

Put it on any computer with a low latency sound card, and within minutes you’re mixing live immersive sound.

NESS offers a reliable sound spatialization solution based on established, proven audio algorithms. It works on PC and Mac with any kind of sound card and allows managing up to 16 audio objects on 32 output channels. The software has been optimized to work on scalable configurations, from small home studio setups to big live venues.

If you work with any audio software that handles multitrack projects, you can route all those signals to NESS to render each track in a dedicated position in your room.

You can configure your loudspeaker setups directly in the software or work with headphones thanks to its binaural engine.

Unlock your creativity with the automation features, create synchronized movements, and realistic spaces with the reverb engine.

NESS comes with some convenient tools:

Plugins to control the audio object’s position from your DAW

A TouchOSC patch for remote control of NESS features.

A full OSC API for interactive sound art installations, or synchronization with light and video.

Resources such as tutorials, demo projects and documentation are also available online: https://ness-apg.com/

With the latest updates of Bitwig Studio and TouchDesigner, the two applications now connect the audio and visual world in a very powerful way. Both applications can control and listen to each other, thanks to TDBitwig — a set of components in TouchDesigner — and the newly added TouchDesigner extension in Bitwig Studio.

What is TouchDesigner?
TouchDesigner is a visual programming language for realtime interactive multimedia content developed by the Toronto-based company Derivative. It is used by artists, programmers, creative coders, software designers, and performers to create performance visuals, installations, and fixed media works.

What is TDBitwig?
TDBitwig is a set of components now available in TouchDesigner. With TDBitwig, it’s possible to control Bitwig Studio parameters (such as tempo, track properties and clip launching), as well as every device parameter (including The Grid) and mapped modulators. And Bitwig Studio can also control TouchDesigner parameters.

Availability
TDBitwig is available in TouchDesigner 2022 official.
Load the new TouchDesigner Extension which is included in Bitwig Studio 5.0.10 and later. It is required for TDBitwig to work.

IK Multimedia releases Pianoverse, combining the world’s finest concert-grade pianos with inspiring, cinematic effects to create an incredibly versatile virtual piano instrument that excels wherever a world-class piano sound is needed, from classical concerts to blockbuster movie soundtracks to live jazz performances.

Pianoverse lets users explore a breathtaking sonic range, from the most true-to-life acoustic piano experience to the wildest atmospheric and interactive creative textures, all in a single plug-in — and all with ease of use and an inspiring workflow.

Capturing Treasured Pianos

IK’s team spent years sourcing treasured pianos from the most prestigious manufacturers. Each instrument is hand-tuned and prepared by a master tuner and then sampled using multiple microphone setups and IK’s custom-built robotic system.

Using a mix of hardware technology, software and the right dose of craftsmanship in-between, IK designed a sampling robot comprised of an extremely precise and silent linear motor with an elastic actuator on top made to perform exactly like a human finger. All is connected to a control room computer where proprietary recording software handles the whole process achieving the degree of velocity measurement, sampling precision and repeatability necessary to capture each piano’s true sonic DNA.

The result is unprecedented realism across the entire dynamics of each Pianoverse piano without flattening it or simplifying it too much, which regularly happens with traditional sampling.

A Powerful New Engine

The IK sound design team then used subtle techniques perfected over 2 decades of virtual instrument programming to bring these thousands of samples to life. Pianoverse’s groundbreaking new engine uses completely redesigned round robin, voice management and other techniques to deliver a seamlessly authentic experience.

Beyond Accuracy & Sound

Pianoverse also shines with a unique combination of performance controls for both stage and studio work. To customise each piano’s sound, Pianoverse offers adjustable lid position, harp resonance, pedal noise or even the noise of the piano mallets, all things that are usually only available in modelled instruments.

For live use, all three pedals offer continuous control, including half- and catch-pedalling and una corda, to deliver an unmatched performance experience. Whether for classical, jazz, pop, Latin or any other genre, Pianoverse always offers truly superior piano sound and feel.

Must-have Studio Processing

Pianoverse provides two sets of microphones per piano so the user can choose if they prefer a more modern and in-the-face sound or a more classical sound. On top of that, for traditional sound-shaping and mixing, the Pianoverse engine also offers a comprehensive suite of must-have effects tools.

There’s selectable EQ and compression, each with multiple modes, for both instrument and room stereo microphone pairs. A dedicated master channel offers EQ and a VCA-style limiter for final mastering polish, while a Stereo Width control quickly sets the width of the image – and even reverses it from the player’s to the audience’s perspective.

Generative Spaces to Explore

Where most piano instruments end, Pianoverse is only getting started. Using a new generative reverberation engine, Pianoverse transports any of its concert-grade pianos to 30 sonic destinations. These go from traditional concert halls and studio spaces to less traditional ones like a warehouse or vault, and otherworldly cinematic environments like an iceberg, desert or even Mars.

Each space uses different sound generative techniques to create incredibly evocative soundscapes, inspiring creativity at each step. Plus each space includes flexible controls to further shape and create never-heard-before cinematic sounds and textures. These immersive, inspiring sound design options deliver the most complete ambient sound-sculpting piano instrument ever.

Unique Creative Effects

In addition to custom-created Spaces, Pianoverse also offers 12 new creative effects to design sounds. These effects range from new cinematic spatial effects to must-have studio effects and can be inserted on 3 simultaneous slots: the first slot being a parallel send effect, while slots 2 and 3 are insert effects.

Then, unique to Pianoverse, users will find four modulation sources — two envelopes and two LFOs — that may be assigned to various parameters in these three effects slots to further animate and move the sound and create extreme effects when desired. Together these effects offer an arsenal of sound-sculpting tools that cannot be found in any other piano instrument.

A Series of 8 Pianos

Pianoverse offers the widest sonic palette available in a single virtual instrument with an initial series of 8 remarkable instruments slated for release. The first pianos available now are based on a Yamaha CFIII Concert Grand, a Yamaha U5 Professional Upright, a Bösendorfer 280 Vienna Concert and a Steinway & Sons New York D-274. With more coming soon on a recurring release schedule, featuring models based on a Bösendorfer 200, a Steinway & Sons Hamburg D-274, a Fazioli F278 and a Koch & Korselt Upright, users can discover new inspiration as they need it.

Options, Pricing & Availability

Pianoverse is available now as individual pianos from the IK Multimedia online store and from IK authorised dealers worldwide at a special introductory price (excluding taxes) of US$€99.99 (instead of US$129.99) per piano. All-access monthly and yearly plans are also available starting at US$14.99/month or US$149.99/year giving access to current and newly released pianos without limitation.

Silen Audio has introduced Infinite Flow, a ground-breaking software synthesizer that blends the iconic depth and warmth of vintage synthesizers with the dynamic pulse and grit of contemporary sound. Infinite Flow is not just another synth; it’s an innovative sound-crafting tool designed for musicians seeking analog imperfection in a digital age.

Infinite Flow stands out with its unique per-voice detuning, lending the lush warmth and distinctive edge to sounds that made classic polyphonic synthesizers legendary. Its design celebrates the beautiful imperfections of vintage synths, providing musicians with a modern, modulatable package that is rich in features and possibilities.

Features:

• Eight voices, seven oscillators, and five effects
• Extensive preset bank
• Deep modulability, including inherent per-voice modulation

Early Users Endorse Infinite Flow

“The voice engine of Infinite Flow produces a thick, immersive sound unlike any other synth I’ve used. Its precision allows me to dial in the exact sound I envision,” says an early user, encapsulating the excitement and approval from our community of initial users.

Exclusive Pre-Order Offer

Customers who act now and pre-order Infinite Flow will receive a complimentary Infinite Flow ADSR t-shirt. Be among the first to experience the unrivalled sound of Infinite Flow on its global release date: Wednesday, October 11th, 2023.

Adamson has released the latest version of its loudspeaker design and deploy software, ArrayIntelligence V1.1. The update reflects the Adamson development team’s focus on encouraging user-generated feedback and quickly including it in the available software. Brian Fraser, Head of Product and Technology says, “We sincerely appreciate the feedback generously shared by our dedicated user community. It plays a pivotal role in refining our software.”

ArrayIntelligence V1.1 revolves around an overarching goal: enhancing the user experience and optimising software performance.

Streamlined Interface: The new Header Bar graphical layout brings clarity to the user interface, indicating which pages are available online, simplifying navigation and enhancing workflow.

Revamped Global Assign Feature: Our Global Assign feature, a cornerstone of system management, has undergone a comprehensive update. This redesign offers users a more robust and efficient tool for managing their entire systems of networked Adamson Speakers, Bridges and Gateways. ArrayIntelligence V1.1 ensures detected items are ordered accurately by switch port, streamlining system setup, and minimising complexity.

Addition of IS5c, IS7c, IS213 and IS219: Introducing the newest family members of the IS-Series to ArrayIntelligence V1.1 allows users to include and predict these in their projects.

Enhanced 3D dB SPL Scale: Improved accuracy with better labelling, users will benefit from an upgraded 3D dB SPL scale that displays the absolute maximum SPL value, offering critical insights for audio system optimisation.

In addition to these improvements, ArrayIntelligence V1.1 includes a comprehensive set of bug fixes aimed at enhancing software stability and reliability.