Compare the best MIDI keyboards for small home studios by keys, pads, DAW control, desk space, price and connections before you buy.

Logic Pro 13 adds a unified Browser, individual drum stems, Play Surface and a subscription-only Assistant. See the changes, price and requirements.

UAD Capitol Studios brings Studios A and B, vintage mics, Decca Tree setups and four echo chambers to your DAW. See modes, formats and price.

Cubase 16 adds Instrument Stacks, better stem separation, new MIDI tools and faster setup. See what changed, which editions get it, and when.

iZotope Photon uses 12 local AI models to split music, drums and speakers, clean noisy dialogue, and work in ARA2 hosts. See price and specs.

Learn how to connect a hardware synth to a DAW with USB, MIDI DIN and audio, then set levels, monitoring, clock and recording step by step.

Polyend just pulled the cover off something odd. The Polyend Keys is a mechanical QWERTY keyboard with a MIDI controller built into it, and the Polish company behind the Tracker and the Play showed it publicly for the first time this week at gamescom in Cologne. The number row and the function row together form a three-octave piano layout. The same keys you type an email with will play a chord into your DAW. If that idea sounds familiar, it should. Creative sold something lik

FL Studio 2026 landed in early July, and if you already own a license, it is sitting in your account right now for free. Image-Line has kept its long-running Lifetime Free Updates promise going, so every current owner gets the new version without paying again. This one is a big release. FL Studio 2026 rebuilds FLEX from the ground up, adds a new plugin called Transmitter, bakes cloud backup straight into the save dialog, and hands its Gopher assistant a much longer to-do list

Every year, the Plugin Boutique Awards put a spotlight on the tools that actually moved the needle — not just the ones with the biggest marketing budget, but the ones that producers voted for, used, and kept coming back to. The 2025 edition, now in its fourth year, is no different. Fifteen categories, thousands of votes, and a field more competitive than ever. Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to buy through them, I'll get a small kickback - at no extra

Thirteen years is a long time in music technology. The last proper KAOSS PAD dropped in 2013, and since then, Korg’s been experimenting with the concept in different forms: the portable KAOSS Replay and the buildable NTS-3 kit. But the real deal, the flagship touch-based effects unit that made the series famous, has been sitting on the sidelines. Until now. Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to buy through them, I'll get a small kickback - at no extra cos

The Ultimate Plugin Collection brings together the entire Soundtoys ecosystem: 23 plugins including SuperPlate, Decapitator, EchoBoy, Crystallizer, SpaceBlender, and many others. If you’ve ever wondered why so many professionals swear by Soundtoys, this bundle answers the question in one install. And yes: you don’t need an iLok USB stick. A free iLok account is enough. Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to buy through them, I'll get a small kickback - at

Black Friday is creeping up fast, but the good news? You don’t have to wait until the big day to score killer deals, because Plugin Boutique isn’t slowing down and is already spoiling us with Black Friday discounts. Right now is already a golden moment to scoop up some serious savings on the plugins you’ve had your eye on. We’ve pulled together the strongest deals happening right now across amp modelling, bass synthesis, compression, creative effects, and more. Note: This pos

Plugin sales move quickly. One day there’s an 84% discount on something that’s been sitting on your wishlist, and the next, it’s gone. We’ve rounded up the best deals available right now, covering amp simulation, drum production, dynamic EQ, vocal processing, and more. If you’ve been waiting to update your plugin library, now’s a smart time to do it. Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to buy through them, I'll get a small kickback - at no extra cost to yo

iZotope just released Ozone 12, and it’s one of the biggest updates the mastering plugin has seen in a long time. For years, Ozone has been the choice for producers who want a polished, professional sound without needing a studio full of gear or a complicated chain of plugins. With version 12, iZotope isn’t just refining what’s already there, it’s adding tools that actually change how you approach mastering. Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to buy throu

Ableton is ending the summer with a meaty point release. Live 12.3 is in public beta and it’s the kind of update that changes day-to-day workflow more than flashy feature lists might suggest. The headline is built-in stem separation for Live 12 Suite and Push 3 Standalone. Drop in a track and split it into vocals, drums, bass, and “other” directly from Session or Arrangement view, or even from the Browser. It runs on tech from Music AI (the team behind Moises), so you can car

Serum 2 is full of small features that are easy to miss. Some of them are hidden behind right-click menus, while others are tucked away in corners of the interface. If you know where to look, you can unlock new ways of shaping your sounds. Here are five Serum 2 tips that show both what the feature does and exactly where you can find it. Xfer Serum 2 Also check: 17 Advanced Tips for Serum 2 | FREE E-BOOK Learn Serum 2 in 10 Minutes: A Quickstart Guide for Beginners Introduci

[Sponsored] How many times have you stopped working on a soundtrack just because programming articulations or setting up keyswitches was eating up all your time? Or maybe you had a great violin melody in mind but didn’t know how to make it sound real? I’ve been there myself. Now there’s a tool that might help: the AI Violin from ACE Studio. ACE Studio Also check: What Is MIDI and What Is It Used For? AI in Music: Threat or Tool? Mastering Shortcuts in Ableton Live for Enhance

In the last few years, artificial intelligence has started to step more boldly into the world of music. It creates samples, composes, and even analyzes listener preferences. For some, this is a worrying automation of art. For others, it’s a powerful tool that supports creativity. So what does the reality of AI in music production look like? How I Used AI to Design Instruments and Beats in Ableton Live Also check: Mastering Shortcuts in Ableton Live for Enhanced Efficiency How

MPE, or MIDI Polyphonic Expression, is one of those things that completely changes how you interact with your instruments—especially if you care about detail, dynamics, and realism in your sound. It’s not just a fancy buzzword. MPE fixes some of MIDI’s oldest limitations and gives you way more control over what your playing actually feels like. ROLI Seaboard Also check: What Is MIDI and What Is It Used For? Mastering Shortcuts in Ableton Live for Enhanced Efficiency How to Qu

MIDI — short for Musical Instrument Digital Interface — is one of the most important technologies in music production. But here’s the catch: MIDI doesn’t create sound. Instead, it sends digital instructions that tell instruments and software what to play and how to play it. It’s basically the language that allows electronic instruments, synthesizers, DAWs, and other gear to send information and talk to each other. Midi notes Also check: What is MPE? A Simple Guide to MIDI P