Per-note breath turns MPE into a physical pipe organ
Physical modeling that reacts to how hard you press, and you can overblow it like a flute. That's Airteq, and the demo shows exactly how to set it up for ambient pads that never sound static. Open it, and you'll have a new MPE technique to try.
▶ Per-note airflow turns your MPE controller into a pipe organ
Airteq models pipe physics in 25 MB — no samples, just behavior. The reviewer maps MPE aftertouch to airflow so each note gets independent breath, then stacks a stopped pipe a fifth up for real organ mutation stops.
Elektron Monomachine and Machinedrum are suddenly everywhere — likely thanks to the new community editor releases. Native Instruments also dropped Maschine 3.7 with a stability overhaul; worth the update if you've been holding off.
◢ learn
▶ The 4-1-5 chord trick that appears in four Ben Böhmer tracks
The video breaks down the IV-I-V progression in Ab major with sus2/add9 voicings — the same move Böhmer reuses across 'Best Life', 'Father Ocean', and 'Beyond Beliefs'. It layers guitar samples through EchoBoy and Crystallizer for murky, pad-like feedback.
▶ A tech house groove built from percussion and chopped vox accents
The tutorial extracts swing from a kick loop and applies it to percussion, then pans elements hard left/right to clear the center. Chopped spoken-word slices with delay add character, and raising the bass attack keeps it rolling.
◢ free & gear
Auto-map your own samples in seconds with Soundpaint 5.0
The new Brush editor drags your sample across the keys instantly — no mapping. The 128-step arp subdivides into patterns up to 2000 steps, and 130 world tunings unlock microtonal experiments.
Radio-tuning effect with random search glides and zero latency
DIAL models FM and AM bands with automatic static, crackle, and Morse pips. The Search control jumps randomly across the band and glides back to station — handy for transitions. Normally $50, free for a couple days.
◢ the word
Free tools for width that leave your mono sum untouched
Airy processes only the Side channel and adds per-band width without affecting mono. Ozone Imager 2's Stereoize II mode widens mono sources transparently, and The Double Wide keeps bass centered automatically.
Todd Edwards on sample chops, stage fright, and why house needs fresh ideas
The godfather of UK garage talks about his first UK show, quitting music to work at Verizon, and the Daft Punk collaboration that changed everything. Plus his plea for producers to stop rehashing old sounds.
Kerri Chandler — Rain
the Rhodes stabs that sound like they're falling apart under the rain sample · Pairs with the Ben Böhmer chord voicing section above
| ▼ #11 | Neil Willis — Real (Original) new entry |
| ▲ #10 | Mirko Donnini, Venessa Jackson, Raffaele Ciavolino — Party Town (Raffaele Ciavolino Remix Original Mix) new entry · ▶ hear |
- 1. Drop Arpeggiator before Drift. Set its rate to 16th notes.
- 2. In Drift, set Osc 1 to shark tooth, Octave -1, Shape 0.64.
- 3. Set Drift gain to 2.8 for light overdrive.
- 4. Set filter Slope to 24 dB/oct and cutoff low so the closed tone is dark, then assign pressure to filter cutoff so harder presses open it.
- 5. Assign pressure to Osc 1 shape at -22 so hard presses shift the shape.
- 6. Lower Drift sustain and decay until the arp notes are short and plucky.
🔮 Producer Horoscope (for fun) — Your MIDI keyboard will double-trigger, but the accidental flam might become the hook.
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covered in this issue: thenatan dial · todd edwards