Weekly round-up Musikmesse 2010 special: March 22nd to March 28th
| Posted in Music Technology, News
YOUR ONE-CLICK INDEX OF MUSIKMESSE 2010 NEWS
Roland GAIA SH-01 debuts at Musikmesse
Fender American Deluxe Series updated
Numark M6 USB Mixer and X5 DJ mixer
Lexicon LXP Native Reverb Bundle
Pioneer CDJ-350 and DJM-350 launch
Bugera Magician and Trirec amps
JazzMutant Mu Ableton Live plug-in
SE Electronics announces monitors
TC Electronic BG500 115 and BG500 210
Godin ACS-SA nylon adds USB port
PreSonus Studio One version 1.5
Tanglewood by Overwater to debut
DigiTech JamMan Delay Looper arrives
Roland R-05 debuts at Musikmesse 2010
Boss BR-800 debuts at Musikmesse 2010
Korg PS60 keyboard arrives in Frankfurt
QSC KW Series loudspeakers launch
Yamaha BR-Series at Musikmesse 2010
Korg Electribe MX and Electribe SX update
Steinberg HALion Sonic unveiled
Universal Audio 4-710D Twin-Finity
Yamaha acoustic guitars add SRT
VoiceLive 2 gets FirmWare update
Line 6 reveals James Tyler Variax range
Musikmesse 2010 Yamaha guitar news
Musikmesse 2010 Ibanez guitar news
Focal CMS 40 Monitor announced
Pod Farm 2 Plug In and Pod X3 V2.0
SPL Transpressor and M/S Master
Line 6 XD-Series wireless mic systems
Line 6 MIDI Mobilizer launched
Alesis iO2 Express 24-bit interface
Omnisphere v1.3 and Trilian v1.3
Gibson ES-355 and ES-359 revealed
Metric Halo LIO-8 A/D/A converter
SE Electronics and Waves collaborate
Allen & Heath partners with IK
Musikmesse 2010 Primacoustic news
Presonus StudioLive 24:4:2 debuts
And there’s still more to read! Click the link to read the rest of this DV247 Blog weekly round-up for exclusive reviews, breaking news and the best in expert opinion!
THE BEST OF THE BLOG
Roland GAIA SH-01 debuts at Musikmesse 2010
On the opening day of Musikmesse 2010, news broke that Roland had returned to its roots with a new synthesiser named the Gaia, and the internet subsequently went wild for the new three-oscillator synth. “This is as much a gateway into the world of synthesis techniques as it is a fearsome, formidable instrument”, wrote Rob Sandall. It appeared that the internet agreed.
Fender American Deluxe series updated at Musikmesse 2010
Breaking news of updates to the Fender American Deluxe series of Stratocasters and Telecasters captured the attention of guitarists on Tuesday, just hours before the Musikmesse opened its doors. The new guitars were reported as using N3 Noiseless pickups.
Numark M6 USB Mixer and X5 DJ Mixer launched at Musikmesse 2010
DJs found themselves eager to find out more about the Numark M6 and X5 mixers as they were announced on Wednesday, with Paul Dakeyne analysing the news to check out what the new models really offered. The X5, he decided, looked like a perfect fit with Numark’s Serato Itch controllers.
Here at DV247 Blog we’d already taken an educated guess at what the Babyface might be, following an online teaser campaign. As it turned out, we were right, and the pcket-sized audio interface didn’t disappoint us. “From the limited info we have available right now, the design of the product certainly looks awesome…” wrote Paul Dakeyne.
Lexicon LXP Native Reverb Bundle
Musikmesse 2010 was upon us, and starting the busiest ever day on the DV247 Blog was this breaking news from Lexicon. The LXP Reverb Bundle had already been speculated about online, but here we brought you the facts.
THE BEST OF THE REST
TC Electronic BG500 115 and BG500 210 bass combos launch
The week began as it was set to continue, with news breaking ahead Musikmesse 2010 opening of the TC Electronic BG500 115 and BG500 210 bass combos. Taking the same technology that has proved successful in its award-winning RH450 combo, the new amps were billed as ushering in “The bass amp 2.0 revolution”.
Allen & Heath partners with IK Multimedia for ZED mixers
a pre-show announcement from British mixer manufacturer Allen & Heath revealed a deal with IK Multimedia on Monday afternoon that will place a copy of AmpliTube X-Gear in the hands of anyone buying a ZED-10 or ZED-10FX small format USB mixer. The company described the pairing as “an incredible combination”.
Godin ACS-SA nylon adds USB port
The recording lives of classical guitarists got a little easier late on Monday as Godin revealed its big Musikmesse 2010 surprise – a version of the ACS-SA nylon-strung guitar with its own built-in USB port. Marc Noel Johnson broke the news, speculating that “Musikmesse may have found a guitar-hall hit”.
Presonus StudioLive 24:4:2 Debuts at DV
Tuesday morning began with a rare break from Musikmesse, as Paul Dakeyne reported from the UK debut of the Presonus StudioLive 24:4:2 desk at DV’s East London superstore. Paul premiered a video in which Presonus expert Mark Williams describing the StudioLive range’s features.
Pioneer CDJ-350 and DJM-350 launch
Musikmesse 2010 returned as Pioneer announced its CDJ-350 deck and DJM-350 mixer ahead of the show’s opening. Paul Dakeyne quickly pounced on the story – one of the week’s biggest – and decided that the mass market would love the new products.
PreSonus Studio One version 1.5 announced at Musikmesse 2010
Following the report of our Presonus launch earlier in the day, news swiftly arrived that version 1.5 of the company’s DAW Studio One was being released. The timing couldn’t have been better, with Paul Dakeyne having already compiled a series of exclusive Studio One videos that are set to appear on DV247 Blog in the coming days.
Tanglewood by Overwater to debut at Musikmesse
The next big announcement emerged on Tuesday afternoon when Tanglewood declared a new working relationship with bass specialist Overwater. Marc Noel Johnson reported that Chris May would be designed a series of bass guitars for the Tanglewood brand, introduced Overwater-style quality to a new legion of players.
JazzMutant Mu Ableton Live plug-in
Concluding a busy day on DV247 Blog, Paul Dakeyne broke the news of Jazzmutant’s Mu Ableton Max For Live plug-in for the Lemur. Jazzmutant claimed that the release would mean “ultimate integration between the Lemur controller and Ableton Live”, and the internet subsequently lit up.
DigiTech JamMan Delay Looper arrives
No sooner had one story arrived, however, than another landed in the shape of the DigiTech JamMan Delay Looper, which followed the launch of the JamMan Solo and JamMan Stereo Looper at NAMM earlier this year. The manufacturer was claiming that the Delay Looper could deliver “ultimate control over each effect”, we reported.
Next was the first of a fleet of Roland, Boss and Cakewalk product launches, starting with the Cakewalk 
V-Studio 20, which the manufacturer introduced as “the ideal recording solution for guitar players who want to start making music with a PC”. Rob Sandall looked at the specs and cautiously agreed, writing: “If you’ve yet to make the leap to recording your guitar and would prefer to work with controls that you’ve long been used to, then it makes a lot of sense”.
Roland R-05 debuts at Musikmesse 2010
The Roland R-05 WAVE/MP3 recorder caught Rob Sandall’s attention in the early hours of Musikmesse 2010, with the SD-equipped compact hand-held field recorder boasting 16 hours of recording time with just one battery charge. “The R-05 will doubtlessly be receiving interest at Musikmesse”, wrote Rob.
Roland Lucina AX-09 launches at Musikmesse 2010
Readers who thought that shoulder-synths were a retro thing of the past were in for a pleasant surprise with the announcement of Roland’s Lucina AX-09, which the manufacturer had decided to pitch to “music hobbyists and 
children”. Rob Sandall saw another potential market, writing: “It couldn’t come at a more savvy time, as the likes of La Roux, Datarock and Fenech Soler storm the charts…”
Boss BR-800 debuts at Musikmesse 2010
Finally, it was Boss’ turn to take the limelight, with the BR-800 multi-track recorder catching our attention. “The unit can be used as a truly portable, battery powered multi-tracker, but can also function as a controller for DAW via the USB connection”, we explained.
Korg PS60 keyboard arrives in Frankfurt
The Korg PS60 performance synthesiser immediately grabbed the imagination of Synth fan Rob Sandall when it was launched early on Wednesday morning. Designed for “the gigging muso, or anyone who aspires to be one”, the keyboard boasts “fast access to sound banks, especially those that are most likely to be called upon in band compositions”.
Korg Microstation launches at Musikmesse 2010
Striking a very different note to its bigger sibling meanwhile was the Korg Microstation, upon which “61-mini-keys take pride of place on a small, compact design that nevertheless holds enough power to work hard and effectively in studios and on stages”.
Musikmesse 2010 Korg newsIn our first round-up of manufacturer-specific Musikmesse 2010 news, we added to our Korg coverage so far with a detailed breakdown of everything else that the company was launching at the show, including the Monotron ribbon synthesiser, which quickly became a hit in the Musikmesse’s halls.
Musikmesse 2010 Vox newsWith a fleet of guitars, new amplifiers and a shredder-inspired pedal to exhibit, Vox arrived in the DV247 Blog Frankfurt coverage packing a wealth of stories. Two standouts were the 4W, Class A Vox AC4TVmini amplifier, which boasted “suitably old-school” styling, and the Ice 9 Joe Satriani overdrive pedal.
Shure Beta 27 instrument mic unveiled
The first microphone news story of Musikmesse 
2010 broke as Wednesday morning continued, when the Shure Beta 27 was unveiled to the world. Described as a large diaphragm supercardioid condenser” that had been designed for use by “discerning live sound professionals”, the mic is set to arrive in April.
QSC KW Series loudspeakers launch
Following last year’s launch of its K-Series loudspeaker range, QSC debuted the KW-Series, which boasted many of the same features but this time with wooden rather than ABS plastic cabinets. The manufacturer introduced the cabs as “more compact and substantially lighter”.
Yamaha BR-Series at Musikmesse 2010
More loudspeakers quickly followed, as Yamaha announced the BR-Series of “super-affordable passive PA and floor monitor speakers”. Live sound veteran Marc Noel Johnson gave the range’s specification a close study, eventually deciding the speakers are “designed to appeal to everyone looking for a high performance speaker while operating on a limited budget”.
Korg Electribe MX and Electribe SX update
Following the flood of Korg news from earlier in the day, Rob Sandall returned with another breaking Korg story – the Electribe MX and SX. “The major addition to the units, which have proved formidable production tools for blippers and bloopers the world over, is a new SD card storage system,” he wrote.
Steinberg HALion Sonic unveiled
Steinberg was next to announce its catalogue of Musikmesse 2010 releases, with the big news being the launch of HALion Sonic, the “long anticipated successor to Hypersonic 2″, as Paul Dakeyne reported. Steinberg claimed the software was breaking new ground in terms of “performance, versatility and ease of use”. Also announced was Wavelab 7, Cubase 5.5 and new content sets for Sequel 2.
Universal Audio 4-710D Twin-Finity
One of the biggest stories of Musikmesse 2010 arrived when Universal Audio revealed the 4-710 Twin-Finity mic preamp. UA President Matt Ward described it as proof that UA was “not content to live in the past”, and producers around the world quickly jumped on the news.
Yamaha acoustic guitars add Studio Response Technology
Another huge Messe story followed for guitarists, as Yamaha revealed its new Studio Response Technology-equipped acoustic six strings, which are capable of reproducing the audio characteristics of some of the world’s greatest recording microphones and studios. Yamaha described the technology as “the Holy Grail of acoustic guitar tone”, and Barney Jameson promised a full review as soon as possible.
VoiceLive 2 gets FirmWare version 1.2 update
As Wednesday morning gave way to the afternoon, Marc Noel Johnson revealed that TC Helicon’s VoiceLive 2 system was receiving a version 1.2 update to coincide with the Frankfurt exhibition. Among the improvements are new rhythmic effects, a dual mono output function, new expression pedal parameters, increased output volume, and a reduction in lead voice latency.
Behringer DX2000USB launchedAn unexpected DJ story was next in line, as Marc Noel Johnson described the features of the seven channel Behringer DX2000USB mixer. “With the range of features on offer and the generous amount of inputs and outputs, the DX2000USB is going to have wider appeal than just the DJ market”, he wrote, pointing out that conference organisers, multi-media presenters and pre-production facilities would also be interested.
Line 6 reveals James Tyler designed Variax range
Wednesday afternoon again saw the internet erupt as another of Musikmesse 2010′s biggest stories arrived in the shape of James Tyler designed Variax guitars. Though the announcement itself saw only pre-production models on the manufacturer’s stand, enough tantalising details were announced to whet the appetites of players everywhere – most notably the presence of physical pickups.
Bugera Magician and Trirec amps
Breaking guitar news began pouring into DV247 Blog as the afternoon continued, with Marc Noel Johnson introducing Bugera Magician and Trirec boutique-style amplifiers with a feature set many high-cost amps would envy but a price-tag within the reach of average players.
Musikmesse 2010 Yamaha guitar news
Following the internet-rousing announcement of its SRT technology, Yamaha returned to introduce its fleet of electric and acoustic guitars, including models boasting the Studio Response Technology. Also included were new Pacifica guitars.
Musikmesse 2010 Ibanez guitar news
Not to be outdone, Ibanez swiftly declared its new Musikmesse 2010 products, leaving guitarists around the world astonished at the manga-style paint-jobs each model had been given. Ranging from superhero style colour-clashes to a shark-attack bass, the range was among the most eye-catching of the show.
Focal CMS 40 Monitor announced
The studio monitor theme of the show continued with the release of the Focal CMS 40 
on Wednesday afternoon, bringing high-end monitor technology within the grasp of project studio owners. It quickly attracted serious attention.
Pod Farm 2 Plug In and Pod X3 V2.0
As the Musikmesse’s opening day drew to a close, news continued to flood in, including the announcement from Line 6 of Pod Farm 2 alongside a version 2.0 update for the Pod X3.
SPL Transpressor and M/S Master at Musikmesse 2010
The launch of the SPL Transpressor may have arrived late in the day on Wednesday, but it garnered no less enthusiasm from studio owners when Paul Dakeyne described it as surpassing “the limitations of normal studio compressors by combining the two most important dynamic processing techniques: level-independent compression and treatment of transients”.
Line 6 XD-Series wireless mic systems
Line 6 XD-Series digital wireless microphones were announced late on Wednesday, boasting modelling technology capable of replicating the sound of “many of the world’s most sought after live sound microphones”. Expect a full DV247 Blog review very soon…
Line 6 MIDI Mobilizer launched
Thursday began with Rob Sandall puzzling over the Line 6 MIDI Mobilizer, decided that it would certainly “mobilise your MIDI”…
Alesis iO2 Express 24-bit interface announced
Kickstarting another busy day on Thursday morning meanwhile was the Alesis i02 Express audio interface, news of which quickly sparked an excited reaction from DV247 Blog’s Facebook community. Competitively priced and compact enough to fit into the average laptop case or backpack, the i02 Express’ popularity was no surprise.
Omnisphere v1.3 and Trilian v1.3 announced
Among the software update announcements that were timed to coincide with Musikmesse 2010 was Spectrasonics’ reveal that Omnisphere and Trilian had both been upgraded to version 1.3 status, with benefits available to users of both including a special unlockable VIP set of electric and acoustic bass sounds.
Elektron OctaTrack and +Drive launched
The internet was already buzzing with anticipation for the Elektron OctaTrack by the time official news of the sampler arrived. Indeed, public demand for information was so strong that it even briefly crashed the Elektron website. Paul Dakeyne unveiled the full details on one of Musikmesse’s biggest releases, as well as introducing the +Drive.
Adam Audio SX Series expandsAnother studio monitor story arrived with the Adam Audio SX-Series, with three new models having been launched, all incorporating X-ART technology.
Gibson ES-355 and ES-359 revealed at Musikmesse 2010
One of the biggest guitar stories of Musikmesse 2010 broke late on Thursday as we brought you news of Gibson’s ES-355 and ES-359 launches. Details were few, but guitar guru Marc Noel Johnson explained the appointments that players should expect from the guitars.
Metric Halo LIO-8 A/D/A Converter released
Paul Dakeyne delivered “great news for pro-audio, post-production and broadcast users” late on Thursday when he introduced the Metric Halo LIO-8 A/D/A Converter, based on the technology found in same company’s ULN-8 high-end interface, but without the latter’s preamps. It was, said Paul, and example of the manufacturer “listening to its user-base”.
Musikmesse 2010 ESP newsThursday evening concluded here on DV247 Blog with news of ESP’s Musikmesse guitar and bass releases, comprising an impressive 11 new models. Marc Noel Johnson penned a round-up of everything player needed to know, including the EC1000T, Phoenix II guitars and basses, and a signature model for Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Gus G.
Musikmesse 2010 Primacoustic news
Acoustic solutions specialist Primacoustic offered details of its latest products on Friday morning including a filter for recording vocalists who suffer from reflection troubles, and a stand for performing iPhone owners.
Takamine EF300PS and EF300NCS launched
With Musikmesse gradually drawing to a close, Takamine released two new acoustic guitars in the shape of the limited edition EF300PS and the EF300NCS. Marc Noel Johnson explored the spec of both models, concluding that the Pro Series instruments merited a full review very soon.
So that was Musikmesse…Though the regular Writer’s Block columns had been suspended for the week to allow for Musikmesse news, Barney Jameson concluded a week of heavy reporting with his thoughts on the show. But as he hinted in his column, the breaking news wasn’t finished yet…
SE Electronics announces partnership with Andy Munro
And true to Barney’s promise, Saturday morning saw DV247 Blog reveal a new working relationship between SE Electronics and acoustic design legend Andy Munro. The deal sees Munro working with Rupert Neve on, you guessed it, a series of studio monitors…
American Deluxe bass guitarsOn Saturday morning Marc Noel Johnson filed a last minute report on new Fender American Deluxe bass guitars, writing “there’s no doubt that even though these basses have been around for what seems like forever, Fender can still find ways of improving them”.
SE Electronics and Waves collaborate
Following the blockbuster news of SE, Rupert Neve and Andy Munro working together, the manufacturer revealed a second partnership, this time with software developer Waves.
Guitar maintenance part three – Intonation
Finally, with the Musikmesse officially closed, Marc Noel Johnson ended a busy and exciting week with part three of his ongoing tutorial on guitar maintenance, this time focusing on intonation.
About Barney Jameson
A contributor, editor and in some cases creator of more music and pro audio magazines than he cares to remember, Barney Jameson is a veteran of writing about gear, and a pretty keen singer songwriter to boot.
Having started his musical education reading old copies of the Melody Maker while riding the tube to University in the mid-nineties, Barney once sang in a band called Sugarstone, troubling record company chequebooks not quite enough to make it a career option. Instead, he achieved his goal of starting a music magazine of his own when he founded Playmusic in the early noughties. Later on, having exploited VIP access to as many festivals as possible, he wrote about the pro audio industry throughout Europe and the Middle East, travelling to far-flung destinations such as Dubai, Doha and Muscat (nice mountains).
As the latest addition to the DV247 team, Barney has big plans. But when he’s not plotting online domination of the musical instrument world, he keeps himself busy writing songs on a battered old acoustic guitar and playing them to audiences in his home town.
Tags: Frankfurt Musikmesse, Musikmesse 2010, Weekly Round-up
That’s… quite a lot of announcements!
Nick Moore
We like to keep busy Nick!
Barney Jameson