Barry Wood's NAMM Oddities 2008 Edition

 Packrat Barry

Techno Geek Toys

FireWire On Board

Axon has made a name for themselves in the MIDI guitar world. They've now got a FireWire interface that can be built into a guitar.

Since the guitar becomes an audio interface, and because FireWire is bidirectional, they've incorporated a headphone jack on the guitar that is fed from the computer.

Using hex pickups, you can output the audio for each string on a different audio channel. What can you do with that you might ask? Keep reading…

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FireWire On Board

Hexaphonic Plug-Ins

If you've got a guitar equipped with a built-in firewire interface and a software host that supports multi-input plug-ins, you can have some serious fun with these plug-ins. Being able to process each string individually allows for panning, enveloping, and distortion performed in ways that are impossible with a normal guitar.

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Hexaphonc Plug-Ins

Q: Are We Not Men?
A: We Are DSP Engineers

Colin from McDSP was kind enough to give me his finest Devo pose sporting the cool HoloSpex they were passing out. If you look at a bright point-source light, you will see the McDSP logo above and below it.

BTW, he would not confirm nor deny the possible existence of AudioUnit versions of their plug-ins.

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Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are DSP Engineers

Chordstar Guitar Trainer

This device fits over the neck of any guitar. You can punch in a chord on the keypad and it lights up the places you need to place your fingers. The lights are even color-coded for each finger.

It's also got a song mode where it will go through each chord in a song. You can even load new songs into it via USB.

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Chordstar Guitar Trainer

∇w≈0… What, You Didn't Know That?

Physicist Nick Bromer developed this speaker array that, according to theory, can reproduce frequencies as low as a five foot diameter speaker would.

In the product literature it said that he's built a bass cabinet from a plastic bucket and when he was in college he made a woofer out of beer cans and sewer pipe. This is one creative guy.

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What, You Didn't Know That?

The Finger

It would have been nice if they had handed me a free mic so I could say that Violet gave me the Finger, but they didn't. If your sense of humor is as juvenile as mine (and it may be, you're here reading this aren't you?), you can see the comedic potential of having one of these around the studio.

BTW, they have two models, the Black Finger and the Gold Finger. I don't know that I could have come up with more odd names myself.

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The Finger

Keyboard Prophylactics

These are super-thin keyboard overlays for various Mac laptops and desktops. They've got versions for the keyboard commands for many major applications. You can also get them with jumbo letters, foreign languages, and clear. They are, however, not ribbed for her enjoyment.

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Keyboard Prophylactics

Feel The Beat, Literally

While internalizing the beat is generally a good thing, I don't know that you should go that far with this product.

You clip the control unit to your belt and put the actuator in a place where you can readily feel it pulsing. Then you're ready to go.

  • Peterson Strobe Tuners
  • 11601 S. Mayfield Ave.
  • Alsip, IL 60803
  • (708) 388-3311
  • www.bodybeat.net

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Feel The Beat, Literally

I Know The Kitchen Sink Is Here Somewhere

This was a demonstration rig set up to show that Drumagog is able to accurately trigger from just about any source.

I can vouch for this product because I've been using it for a while and it's a breeze to use. Being able to trigger BFD sounds is a great feature, too.

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I Know The Kitchen Sink Is Here Somewhere

Frankenstand

Having done my share of dealing with speakers, I could immediately see what a great product this is.

There's an internal hydraulic mechanism that makes it a piece of cake to elevate your speakers once they're on the stand.

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Frankenstand

GP2 ConnectAll

This is kind of like having a big pile of audio adapters all in one large and somewhat clumsy package.

It actually could be useful around the studio, but for live work, I think a big box of adapters is probably a better option.

  • GP2 Inc.
  • 2 Masonry Court
  • Burlington, Ontario L7T 4A8
  • (877) 472-9777
  • www.gp2inc.com

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GP2 ConnectAll

Your Room is Devaluating Your Investment!

You can add some style while simultaneously avoiding the dreaded "devaluating of your investment" (their words, not mine) caused by putting up with bad acoustics in your studio.

Here we have a domino-inspired bass trap and a camo gobo.

  • Aygo Sound
  • Flt. D1-2, 10/F
  • 99 How Ming St., How Ming Fty. Bld.
  • Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
  • (852) 3105 8791
  • www.aygosound.com

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Your Room is Devaluating Your Investment!

Plectrum

It takes something unique to interest me in a sample library, so I'm very interested in Plectrum. It's comprised of all manner of sounds from plucked, scraped, jangled and otherwise tortured strings and other objects.

This is based on the GigStudio GVI player, so Mac folks are going to have to wait on Tascam to get their Mac GVI player working.

I suggested to Geoffrey that he reformat the 158 instrument library to Kontakt. For some reason, he didn't jump at the idea.

Update: with the demise of Gigastudio it got ported to Kontakt anyway and now I own a copy :)

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Plectrum

Beat Hive

You can either be a worker bee or a consumer of the honey. Beat Hive is essentially a loop swap meet. The content is created by musicians who can sell non-exclusive, royalty-free, Apple or Acid loops. Beat Hive splits the revenue with the loop producer 50/50.

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Beat Hive

Virtual Instruments by Subscription

Pure Magnetik is taking a different approach to selling VIs by utilizing a subscription model. They release at least one instrument a month that all the subscribers can download. These monthly instruments will only be available for download for a month, unless you buy their All Access Pass, which allows you to download anything from the entire previous year.

Most of the instruments are available for Kontakt, Live and EXS24, although some instruments are limited to a certain format.

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Virtual Instruments by Subscription

Feets Don't Fail Me Now

The Pok is a wireless foot switch box that transmits to a USB receiver. On the computer end, you can program each switch to output keystrokes to your favorite software.

My only question is, where'd they come up with a name like "Pok"?

[Trevor from X-Tempo informs me that it's an acronym for "Pedal-Operated Keyboard."]

  • X-Tempo Designs, LLC
  • P.O. Box 351446
  • Los Angeles, CA 90035
  • (323) 655-0512
  • www.x-tempozone.com

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Feets Don't Fail Me Now

Candy Coated Turntables

More than a pretty face, these turntables have class-compliant USB interfaces built in.

You can also use a SMPTE timecode LP with these to control the MixVibes DJ software.

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Candy Coated Turntables

SPL Transducer

I haven't been overly impressed with power-soak devices in the past. Having used several SPL products, I'm thinking that this two-rack-space beast has potential.

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SPL Transducer

ChordSavers

These sure beat the hell out of gaffers tape. They're also a godsend for people putting their studios in rooms with wood floors.

I'm not quite sure why they call them "chordsavers" and not "cordsavers."

  • ChordSavers Products Group U.S.A.
  • 2436 Heritage Parkway
  • Norton, Ohio 44203
  • (866) 921-7610
  • www.chordsaversusa.com

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ChordSavers

Phantom of the Preamp

This end-pin acoustic preamp can be powered by an internal battery or by phantom power. That's pretty useful for situations where hacking into an instrument to add a battery compartment is not an option.

  • Schatten Design
  • 367 Ottawa Street South
  • Kitchener Ontario Canada N2M 3P3
  • (519) 742-3862
  • www.schattendesign.com

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Phantom of the Preamp

Plug and Play

This is another approach to eliminating batteries for active acoustic pickups.

You plug the charger into the instrument for 60 seconds and it gives you 16 hours of playing time.

It looks like there is some sort of capacitor involved so there are no internal batteries that would need replacing.

  • Mi-Si Electronics Design, Inc.
  • 52 Aberdeen Street
  • Newton, Massachusetts 02461
  • (617) 795-2146
  • www.mi-si.com

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Plug and Play

Cyclus 3 Sequencer

This gives you an updated control for vintage-style sequencing. One of the nice features is that each of the tracks can have a different length so your sequence mutates as the individual tracks loop at different points.

  • Spectral Audio
  • Stockeristrasse 1
  • CH-6344 Meierskappel
  • +41 41 790 49 00
  • w.spectralaudio.ch

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Cyclus 3 Sequencer

Hotter Hand

Source Audio has expanded on their product line and made some improvements since I first saw them in 2006. Their transmitter ring is now working wirelessly. They've also introduced several new effects boxes so you're not limited to just filter effects.

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Hotter Hand

For the Person with 28.4 Monitoring

This is one of products that you either don't need or is a total lifesaver.

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For the Person with 28.4 Monitoring
Next Up: You Figure It Out

©2008 Barry Wood