Homebrew Music on Nintendo DS, Now Easier with DS-X Update; LEDs Dance to Music

We were already very excited about the DS-Xtreme (“DS-X”) when we first saw it. In brief, why the DS-X makes us drool: DS storage Play media files Run homebrew software Connect directly to a computer via USB No weird hardware sticking out of the back of your DS that could get broken (Previously: DS-Xtreme, Plug-and-Play […]

Phat 101: Ohmforce’s Forces Explain Plug-in Effects Tricks in Free Videos

Music tech videos have begun to infect YouTube (you know, between footage of bunny rabbits opening letters). As the opening moments of wackiness commence, you might think the following videos from cult-success French plug-in developers Ohmforce has plenty in common with the cracked-out Museum of Techno videos we’ve been watching. What these videos have in […]

Akai MPD24 MIDI Pad Controller, Photoblogged in the Wild

Matt writes us to let us know he’s gotten his hands on Akai’s MPD24 MIDI pad controller, which just started shipping. (I know some of you have already purchased one and are still waiting to get it!) He’s got some first impressions up with a series of photos, to give you a better sense of […]

Circuit Bending Gone Mechanical: Gijs Gieskes’ New Casio SK-1 Bend

There are no limits to the new forms the once bargain-priced Casio SK-1 synthesizer can take, transformed by circuit bending. But whereas most circuit-bending involves hacks with wires, bending superstar Gijs Gieskes goes further, by building a large mechanical apperatus to trigger the bent sounds. Gijs sent this link last week and I didn’t get […]

Creative Labs Live! Optia and Class-Compliant Webcams: Driver-Free on Windows … Linux and Mac, too?

A do-all webcam that can float between computers sometimes seems an elusive goal. It’d be just the thing for video installations and live video at VJ/live visualist gigs, but usually you run into annoying driver issues. It’s frustrating that any webcam would even require drivers in the first place. USB webcams are essentially the same, […]

Party People Photos Installation at Walker Takes Automated Snaps of Partygoers; Behind-the-Scenes Details

Forget waiting until tomorrow to see photos of a party on lastnightsparty.com: now, see snapshots of partygoers projected around a space in real-time. That’s the idea behind Party People Photos, an interactive installation at the Walker Art Center in Minnesota. Co-creator Justin Heideman writes to point us to coverage of the installation: The idea for […]

Free Audacity Wave Editor Updates (Intel-PPC Mac, Linux, Windows), Free Windows Plug-ins

Aside from commercial alternatives, the preferred open source audio editor tool is Audacity. Early releases of Audacity were unquestionably rough around the edges, in terms of both stability and features, but thanks to the efforts of the open source community, the software is steadily improving. Version 1.2.5, released this week, is the new stable version, […]