Dangerous Music: S&M
reviewed by Mike Caffrey
In a world where 1073 is not only a model number, but also the number of clones said model has inspired, the Dangerous Music S&M is a standout for its originality. While Chris Muth (the S&M's...
Gear Reviews
The means contribute to the end. Usually.
Ridge Farm Industries: Gas Cooker mic preamp & DI
reviewed by Allen Farmelo
The Gas Cooker is a dual-channel, all-valve mic preamp and DI from Ridge Farm Industries in England (formerly of Ridge Farm Studios, the rather famous and beautiful countryside residential studio, now...
Native Instruments: KORE, KOMPLETE 3
reviewed by Dana Gumbiner
Native Instruments, known for their unique, high-quality software instruments and virtual studio solutions, have just introduced a distinctive hardware controller/software host called KORE, which they...
Blue: Snowball USB mic
reviewed by John Baccigaluppi, Caitlin Gutenberger
For all of you audiophiles out there, let me begin this brief review with a disclaimer: I am not, nor will I ever, be a recording engineer. But, as Tape Op's Copy Editor, John seemed to think I would...
Mercedes: 1981 300TD Wagon B-99.9 biodiesel fuel
reviewed by John Baccigaluppi
Yes, I realize that cars are not recording gear. But since buying this 25-year-old car last spring, it's the piece of gear I'm most excited about lately. Give me a few paragraphs, and I'll do my best...
Waves: Tune & DeBreath plug-ins
reviewed by Andy Hong
Tune is a pitch-correction plug-in that's so easy to use, even a non-musician can get "perfect" takes. Why the quotes around perfect? Because I find that most pitch correction schemes kill the life of...
Chandler Limited: TG Channel MKII
reviewed by Mike Caffrey
The original TG Channel (Tape Op #43) was a TG2 preamp (Tape Op #39) combined with a 3-band EQ. The TG Channel MKII Abbey Road Special Edition incorporates a number of enhancements. In a way, cosmetic...
3D Audio: Preamps in Paradise DVD-ROM
reviewed by Garrett Haines
When Lynn Fuston, publisher and coordinator of the 3D Audio comparison series, walked up to the Tape Op booth at the New York AES, I immediately started railing on him. "Oh, look, it's Lynn Fuston....
Wizoo: WizooVerb W2 Room Emulator
reviewed by Andy Hong
If I had to pick one desert island reverb, this would be it. Either as a plug-in if I had a DAW in my luggage, or as a standalone application running on a laptop if I somehow salvaged a great console...
TAPCO: Link.USB audio interface w/ Tracktion 2, S?5 active monitor, SW?10 subwoofer
reviewed by Andy Hong
About six months ago, the fine folks at TAPCO (um... Mackie), sent me an awesome computer recording bundle that consisted of the Link.USB two-channel audio interface; Tracktion 2 software for...
Seventh Circle Audio: A12, C84, J99, N72 preamp modules, CH01 chassis, PS03 power supply
reviewed by Andy Hong
In his review of the J99 and C84 preamps from Seventh Circle Audio, Chuck Hanning touches on the design and assembly of SCA's preamp kits. The first time I met SCA founder Tim Ryan at TapeOpCon a few...
Seventh Circle Audio: J99 preamp kit, C84 preamp kit
reviewed by Chuck Hanning
I have a confession to make. David Royer got me started on something. After performing his tube upgrade to the MXL 2001 mic (Tape Op #25), I became thoroughly hooked on all things DIY. Later, I...