Line 6 (“believe”) have launched the TonePort range of USB audio interfaces. Well, there are two — does that make a range? Anyway, The TonePort is an interface between your guitar, bass and microphone on one hand, and your computer on the other. The included software works with the hardware to emulate a half-dozen different mic preamps, more than 20 guitar and bass preamps and more than 20 guitar and bass effects. Great for those who can actually play real instruments instead of just program computers.

Full details are on the website. Here is the high-level blurb: TonePort is like a rack full of premium tube recording equipment, plus a perfectly engineered recording room for guitar and bass, thanks to our acclaimed guitar/bass direct tone with mic and cab modeling.

TonePort hardware features studio-grade microphone preamps that make getting a truly professional-grade vocal tone easy. The exclusive GearBox tone software gives you models of the most sought after preamps in the recording world. GearBox even lets you run a completely different signal path for your microphone input with models of vintage preamps, compressors, and reverbs while still giving you the ultimate direct recording sound for your guitar or bass. In minutes, you’ll be creating sounds that typically take an entire studio, an expert engineer, and a huge hourly rate to pull off!

The included GearBox software controls TonePort and gives you a premium tone front end for all your recordings. Includes meticulously crafted models of premium tube studio preamps, vintage guitar and bass rigs, and sought after, personality-rich effects. This is the tone that pros rely on and only Line 6 provides. Now it comes to your desktop with TonePort.

GearBox’s meticulously crafted recreations of a dream collection of 16 classic and modern guitar amplifiers, 5 must-have bass amp models, and 24 stompbox and studio effects capture the range of tone found on the best tracks ever recorded. You can mix and match PODXT-based amp and cab models based on Marshall, Fender, Mesa/Boogie, Vox, Roland, Soldano and more, with realistic looking controls that make any guitarist feel right at home

TonePort also comes with a “lite” edition of Ableton Live so you can start playing straight away.

Studio Reviews gave a top rating to the Tranzport wireless DAW remote controller — in fact, they gave it their 2005 Product of the Year award. They applaud everything about it — the functionality, responsiveness, build quality, even the customer support on the website forums. They love the way it simplifies everything about the recording process: “All the main controls needed to operate a DAW are at your fingertips, and the kicker is that you can walk around and work with the remote anywhere within about a 10-meter range. Even a simple task like listening back to tracks can now be done from sitting in the back of the room on the studio couch, instead of having to run up and tap on the computer keyboard.”

Even setting up this studio Nirvana was apparently painless: “Everything worked right off the bat without a hitch.” Good to see that the reviewers can mix their metaphors as well as their music.

They close on an even higher note, with their enthusiasm running to fever pitch: “Believe the hype. This is the shizzle. If you have a DAW, you should run, not walk, and order a TranzPort. The TranzPort is too cool for school. This is a no-brainer, must-have for anyone with a DAW, and an indispensable tool for the 21st-century studio.”

How portable can you get? A full-size three-octave keyboard that fits in your pocket. The iSmart “Soft USB MIDI Keyboard Controller” from Taiwanese manufacturer Ta Horng is flexible enough to roll up into a tube, and weighs less than a kilogram. It connects to a computer with USB, which also supplies power.

The iSmart has a minimal but complete set of controls: 37 keys, octave shift, program change, MIDI channel and bank switches. There’s also a velocity switch — presumably the keyboard is not itself velocity sensitive. But who cares when it looks so bizarre?

The August issue of Computer Music reviews the TranzPort, the wireless DAW controller from the Frontier Design Group. They give a good review, starting right at the beginning: “It’s an attractive piece of kit and looks worth the asking price.” They note that it’s a sturdy device, too.

They say that installing the TranzPort is “a breeze,” but this is true only if you are using one of the supported DAWs. Most of the big names are supported, but the obvious omission for me is Ableton Live. For these ones, you have to dig into MIDI to get the appropriate messages to the box. The TranzPort documentation does provide instructions on how to do this.

Other than this, they are full of praise for this nifty box. They think the LCD screen is a bit small bit well-laid out, and the choice of function buttons is logical and useful. Overall they rate it as 9 out of 10 and say: “TranzPort is compact, well built, easy to to configure and works a treat. It’s incredibly useful when you’r recording yourself playing, and as such is an ideal companion for the solo engineer or musician.”

Do I really need to explain why I’m writing about this? The Big Knob is a controller from Mackie that features, well, a big knob. It looks more geared to the pro user that to people like me, but I want one anyway just so I can invite people over to my house to see my Big Knob. Oh, the hilarity.

More details from Mackie’s website: The Big Knob is a simple yet powerful desktop audio control center that lets musicians and engineers get right to the business of making music in four major ways: Level Control, Studio Monitor Selection, Input Source Selection and Talkback & Headphone Control.

Precise Level Control
Using a big, convenient volume knob, Big Knob lets you adjust volume levels the way our ancient audio ancestors (Analogus Engineerus) did – with a simple, intuitive knob, not with a mouse and screen. The end result is a higher degree of precision and much quicker level adjustments.

Monitor Selection
When it comes to mixing, pros know it’s best to get a second, and third, opinion. So Big Knob lets you quickly switch between 3 pairs of studio monitors, or 2 studio monitors and a subwoofer, or studio monitors and a home stereo, or any other combination of powered speakers.

Source Selection
On the input side, Big Knob lets you connect up to 4 stereo input sources at once. This means you can simultaneously connect to your computer/DAW outputs, CD player, cassette deck and even a turntable using the premium onboard RIAA preamp. You can even connect keyboards, guitars, drum machines, samplers – anything you’d like to hear – through your monitors. This makes Big Knob great for comparing your mixes-in-progress to your favorite CDs, for archiving your old LPs, jamming along to your favorite tune, and lots more.

Talkback Section & Headphone Control
With its built-in Talkback mic and spring-loaded activation switches, Big Knob lets you quickly communicate with musicians in both the studio and tracking room – no more hand signals through the glass! Big Knob also sports two high-powered headphone outputs with a discrete headphone mix bus, solving the communications needs of most computer-based studios.

All the Right Connections
Although its shiny silver knob is a head-turning feature, Big Knob’s rear panel is equally impressive. There you’ll find three distinct Monitor outputs with individual level control; 2-Track A and 2-Track B stereo outputs with level selection switches; a DAW stereo output for your computer; a Studio output with level control; a Phones Mix input with level selection switch; 2-Track A and 2-Track B Stereo Source inputs with level control; a DAW Mix input from your computer with level control; and even a Phono input with level control for direct connection to your turntable.

Sound Quality
Because Big Knob plays a crucial link between recording output(s) and studio monitors, we placed the utmost importance on pristine, no-compromise sound quality. For this reason, Big Knob features ultra low-noise op amps, extremely low-tolerance components and state-of-the-art surface mount technology. All of this ensures superb sound in critical listening environments and long-term reliability – even under daily, and nightly, studio use.

The TranzPort wireless DAW from Frontier Design Group allows you to control your music software from anywhere in the room. (Or in another room, but that would be silly.) It’s a nifty-looking piece of plastic with a jog wheel, transport controls and a whole bunch of buttons, and it’s completely wireless.

The TranzPort works with a number of DAWs right out of the box. They list Adobe Audition, Digital Performer, Cubase, Guitar Tracks Pro, Logic, Nuendo, Pro Tools, Reason, SAWStudio and SONAR on the website, with more to come, though it should be possible to do it yourself if you’re brave.

The website has more, much more. They say: Frontier Design Group’s new TranzPort represents a revolutionary way to interact with your Windows or Mac digital audio workstation (DAW). Instead of being stuck in front of your computer to compose, record, and produce music/audio, TranzPort gives you the freedom to control DAW functions from anywhere in your studio.

TranzPort is easy to set up and use. Right out of the box, it’s compatible with popular DAW software such as Pro Tools, Sonar, Logic, Cubase, Digital Performer and others. You can arm tracks, use transport controls, set markers, control pans, punch in/out, start loops, and more from TranzPort’s simple and intuitive interface. TranzPort is a bi-directional controller, so it also provides feedback to you on signal levels, timecode position, track names and more, via a backlit LCD display and LED indicators.

Unlike infrared remotes, you don’t need line-of-sight between the TranzPort and your computer. TranzPort uses high frequency radio waves (RF) to send and receive control data, and uses advanced coding and frequency-hopping techniques to operate without causing interference, even in the presence of other wireless devices.

Using TranzPort, you can:

• Adjust monitor mix settings from inside an iso booth, or easily record instruments that are physically incompatible with your workspace (piano, drums, etc.)
• Get creative in an environment away from the computer (living room, lounge, etc.) without having to run back and forth to the workstation
• Control your recording while physically removing yourself from unwanted computer noise and monitor hum
• Add a set of basic DAW controls to a second location in a studio (producer’s desk, separate room, etc.)
• Remotely control your computer from onstage in live performance without messy cable runs
• And much more!

TranzPort is small and lightweight, runs on standard AA batteries, is mountable to a mic stand (using optional adaptor), and even has a footswitch input. As a very affordable alternative to keyboard/mouse DAW control, TranzPort offers control tools that will speed up your workflow.

Compatible with Windows 2000/XP and Mac OS X (10.2.8 and above), and requiring only one USB port for the small receiver, TranzPort is the remote DAW control solution for everyone from personal/project studios to large commercial recording facilities.

This is neat — it’s a microphone that connects directly to your computer’s USB port. Samson Audio’s C01U is probably not the high-end professional choice, but it sounds pretty convenient, especially for those impromptu laptop gigs. It’s a good alternative to either a poor-quality 3.5mm microphone jack or a separate audio interface.

There are more details on their website. They say: The C01U USB Studio Condenser Mic is the first affordable studio condenser mic with a direct USB output. For the first time ever, musicians who record music on computers have a simple, affordable way to capture high-quality vocal and acoustic instrument performances.

Seamless integration was the idea, and it was obtained by creating a studio condenser microphone that can be plugged into any computer with no in/out boxes, no expensive computer pre-amps, just a USB cable.

The C01U condenser microphone is based on our wildly successful C01. It features a 19mm internal shock mounted diaphragm with a cardioid pick up pattern ensuring pristine studio quality recordings.

The C01U works perfectly on any computer, Mac or PC, and with any DAW software program. It immediately solves a huge problem for users of many laptops, many of which have no other input method for audio devices.

It’s a must for any musician on the road or in the project studio, but the C01U is going to offer solutions to more than just musicians. The mic opens up possibilities for anyone who records audio — from Podcasters, journalists, students, and business people adding audio files to websites and multimedia presentations.

Keyboard magazine calls the Nostromo SpeedPad n52 game controller from Belkin “the hottest new secret weapon at laptop gigs — on both sides of the Atlantic.” This gadget is just a video game controller — but a very fancy, programmable, ergonomic game controller. It has rows of keys, a few buttons, a joystick and a click wheel literally at your fingertips. (Your left fingertips, that is. If you want to wear it on your right hand then you’re out of luck.)

The programmability extends right through to a macro facility — you could probably use this device to control 90% of your computer use, even apart from your highly-acclaimed laptop music performances. You can program different key assignments to different computer applications. This could lead to Byzantine complexity if you’re not careful. But if you are careful it could open up new worlds of intuitiveness (intuitivity?).

Belkin’s own blurb from the Nostromo Speedpad website makes the device sound exciting — maybe a little too exciting. They say it “puts keyboard and gamepad functionality into one small and easy-to-use device, delivering more tools for customizing your game than ever. Using feedback from hundreds of gamers, our engineers designed the n52’s intuitive nature and stylish versatility to give you easy access to your arsenal of deadly maneuvers. So start programming up to 104 functions now-and watch how dangerous you become.”

Back to the review itself. It raves about the Nostromo Speedpad’s “sexy sci-fi design” and its “truly intuitive functionality”. It sprinkles around words like “brilliant”, “breathless”, “amazing”, and even “wow”. Yes, they love it: “Despite the lack of marketing outside the game universe, the n52 is so flexible that it’s making waves far beyond the gaming, music, and media scenes and breaking through into the medical and rehabilitation industries for use by differently-abled folks. Yeah, it’s that cool.”

Well, that’s enough from me. Time for a bit of shopping, I think.

The Minimax ASB (Authentic Sound Box) is a Minimoog synth in a retro box. Apparently the emulation is really very accurate, and Creamware, the manufacturer, has added a few modern extras like polyphony, a USB interface and a software patch editor in case you’re overwhelmed by all the knobs. And it sounds as if they had fun making it: “when the eye candy met the excellent tone, they decided to setup a family and are expecting offspring already in autumn”. The last time I heard wonderful English like that was when I was living in Tokyo.

I usually don’t talk much about hardware synths on Laptop Studio, but I just like this one for some reason. It’s a nice mix of old and new, and I like Creamware’s attitude. “We had a lot of fun developing this product and we are sure you will sense when you experience the Minimax ASB.”

The Creamware website has more details of the MinimaxASB. They write: You will know at first sight the synth legend that inspired the creation of the Minimax. It is one of the most famous and most popular synthesizers ever. Its sound is matchless – the powerful oscillators, the punchy filters, and the ultra-fast envelopes. The fully storable 12-voice Minimax is the perfect companion for rock and pop as well as for producing cult sounds for sound cult!

Specifications and Prices
Virtual-analog synthesizer (desktop unit),
6 voices, 128 factory presets and 128 user presets,
analog stereo input and outputs, MIDI In/Out/Thru,
USB-to-Host/MIDI interface, external power-supply unit
(12 VAC), plug-in like Windows remote control software

They also will be releasing the “Profit-5 ASB” (presumably a Prophet clone) in the next month or so. Soon you too will be able to produce cult sounds for your own sound cult.

Korg are releasing a teeny tiny recording studio in a box. The D4 records onto CompactFlash cards and features 32 virtual tracks, a whole bunch of onboard effects, built in microphone as well as inputs, USB interface and other goodies. And the whole thing is the size of a VHS videotape.

The Korg website has details. Here’s their overview: Welcome a new member to Korg’s lineup of D-series recorders – acclaimed for their superb audio quality and intuitive ease-of-use. About the same size as a VHS video tape, the D4 Digital Recorder contains built-in effects, rhythms, and a tuner, everything needed to plug in a guitar or mic and start recording right away. Five real-time knobs provide immediate control over numerous functions, including a full array of Korg’s proprietary “REMS” modeling effects. These same knobs perform double duty as Pan knobs and Record Select buttons; an informative backlit LCD screen keeps it all together. Inside, you’ll find powerful recording and sophisticated editing functions that rival high level models. There’s even a USB connector that makes it easy to transfer song data to a computer. With enormous potential packed into its small size, the D4 is the ideal partner for your creative music life.

Main features

• 4-Track digital recorder features 8 virtual tracks per track, for a total of 32 tracks.
• Two tracks of simultaneous recording.
• High audio quality with extended recording times using MPEG1 Layer 2 compressed recording format.
• XLR and 1/4 inch inputs accommodate both a microphone and/or guitar.
• Intuitive user interface provides plenty of knobs for easy operation.
• Instantly recall frequently-used effect settings, including custom-tailored settings, using the Favorites knob.
• Five knobs (with push-button function) allow for easy effect editing and pan control.
• Full suite of non-destructive editing tools includes punch-in/out, bounce, copy/paste, delete – even pro-level functions such as time compression/expansion are provided.
• Korg’s proprietary “REMS” modeling technology delivers 93 effect types that can be used for guitar, insert, master, or final effect processing. There are 100 preset effect programs ready for immediate use, and 100 user program locations.
• High-capacity CompactFlash data storage.
• Transfer data to a computer quickly and easily via the USB connector.
• Built-in mic allows immediate recording on the go.
• 87 Rhythm / metronome patterns and a chromatic tuner are built-in.
• The custom LCD display is backlit for easy visibility – even in dark locations.
• AC adaptor and 64 MB CompactFlash media are included.