macOS Catalina will be incompatible with much of your music software; here’s what to know

macOS Catalina, the next Mac release, dramatically tightens security and removes 32-bit compatibility. That will cause incompatibilities with music software, requiring updates. Here’s what you need to know.

Loraine James’ sound is intense, mixed up, and essential

The newest release for Hyperdub, in its untethered torrent of distorted rhythm, feels personal and liberated – and today, gets one of the more significant recent video releases, to boot.

Erica’s Black System II is a full-featured modular

Erica Synths have made a strength out of building a full catalog of modules – and their systems show off how complete that is, at a price that compares favorably.

KORG are making Pokémon metronomes and tuners

If there was any doubt that KORG wants to be the Nintendo of music brands, here’s yet another partnership with the iconic game maker – but it’s sadly only skin deep. Yes, it’s true, you get insanely cute Pokémon metronomes and clip-on pitch tuners. But there’s a missed opportunity here – whereas Teenage Engineering recently […]

Revisit the 90s Roland MC grooveboxes with these cringe-worthy videos

90s techno is back, 90s trance is back, 90s Roland is … back. With Roland releasing MC series grooveboxes again, let’s flash back to the oddly entertaining demo videos they produced for the 90s models. Whatever Roland did to differentiate the MC hardware models, they sure did differentiate the videos – using an oddball selection […]

Roland brings back the MC groovebox: MC-707, pint-sized MC-101 [Deep Dive]

The move back to hardware jams is in full force. And what better sign than Roland re-introducing the MC groovebox line – with the full-sized MC-707 and pint-sized MC-101. The reason you know it’s not the 1990s? They advertise them as replacing your laptop.

Roland’s Boutique JU-06A JUNO is insanely fun [Review]

It doesn’t look like much. The latest Roland Boutique might even give you a sense of deja vu – because Roland did a tiny JUNO before. The difference: this time they got it right.

The Sega Genesis gets a bit-accurate, FM synth remake: chipsynth MD

The Sega Genesis, aka Mega Drive, was more than just a beloved game console. It was also a powerful FM synth – seriously. And now you get an accurate, powerful version as a plug-in, in chipsynth MD from Plogue. If you’re a Sega fan, you know the sound of this instrument from the sunny, sparkling, […]

KORG NTS-1 is here: A pocket ‘logue voice as $99 DIY kit

KORG is kicking off a new product line – the DIY-focused Nu:Tekt – with a $99 screw-together instrument. And it has the same programmable guts as you find in the prologue and minilogue xd, complete with SDK.

Where is NI headed? Some official and unofficial answers

Native Instruments has responded to our request for more clarity on recent layoffs and how this impacts their future plans. Other sources tell us there have been deep cuts into teams managing products, marketing, and design.