We can’t really understand why the Swiss would develop the SofaBox, since their cars are usually cargo challenged, and there’s plenty of available public places to park your butt, but for some reason EDAK has chosen to develop a cross between a coffin, a couch and an aircraft-safe enclosure.

Now we can definitely see this product at a tailgate party, prior to kickoff of an American football game, where some fans relish in one-upping each other with ludicrous products for lounging and cooking. But in Switzerland? Who knew??

The SofaBox costs about $2500 bucks. More information on the SofaBox.

Stanton DJ has announced a partnership with Dubspot to provide Stanton’s new 680.V3 cartridges for use in the school’s curriculum, seminars and demonstrations. With Dubspot’s reputation as New York’s best DJ and electronic music production institute, this collaboration ensures that the next generation of DJ’s will be exposed to the most technologically advanced turntable cartridges in the world.

“By collaborating with Dubspot, we have the ability to teach up and coming DJ’s about our line of Stanton products and introduce one of the best cartridges on the planet for mixing, club use, and scratching,” commented Tony Rodrigues, Vice President of Stanton Technology. “The 680.V3’s suspension is designed to be very stable for those less than perfect club setups. The suspension is so robust that the 680.V3 functions just as good as a scratch needle as it does as a club needle.”

“At Dubspot we offer an innovative and creative educational approach in a relaxed atmosphere. An essential part of our approach is to provide students with superior and high-quality gear - creating the quintessential environment for students to learn how to DJ,” commented Dan Giove, President of Dubspot. “I am delighted to be partnering with Stanton due to their excellent reputation as a pioneer in the field of cartridge technology.”

More information on Dubspot and Stanton DJ.

Auralex Acoustics has announced SonicPrint, a new series of custom-printed acoustical panels. SonicPrint’s custom-printed ProPanels feature “The Art of Sound” theme which blends unlimited design and style options for any room with the company’s acoustically proven technology of its ProPanel product line.

SonicPrint custom-printed ProPanels are fabric-covered acoustic absorptive panels designed as artwork. For the project studio or home theater enthusiast, this exclusive offering opens the door to numerous home theater decor options, as the acoustical panels are camouflaged under the design of the customer's choice. Users are no longer limited to single color fabric choices, and can now outfit any space with paintings and drawings of any kind. Auralex is also currently negotiating several licensed properties to provide additional graphic options.

No pricing or availability has been announced. More information on the Auralex SonicPrint acoustical panels.

Geoffrey Daking and Company, Inc. have announced the Daking Mic-Pre One, a single-channel microphone/instrument preamplifier. Sharing the gain structure and Class A, fully discrete transistor circuitry design of the Daking Mic Pre IV, the Mic Pre One additionally features a unique variable high-pass filter and ships in a freestanding ‘DI-style’ steel enclosure, ensuring both strength and noise immunity.

Essentially a single channel of the Mic Pre IV, the Mic Pre One features switchable phase, 20dB mic input pad and +48V phantom power, plus a selectable 1/4-inch line/hi-z instrument input, all utilizing relays with gold bi-furcated contacts. Two large knurled aluminum knobs control the variable high-pass filter (0-200Hz) and continuously variable input gain, which is complemented by a full-width, twenty-segment bi-color LED meter. The rear of the unit offers a Jensen transformer-isolated mic input and fully-balanced XLR output, plus a 1/4-inch line output. A fourth connector introduces DC power from the external power supply to the unit.

The Daking Mic Pre One is expected to sell for $850. More information on the Daking Mic Pre One.

Etón has released the Porsche Design P’9120, a new table-top, iPod stereo system. The new device features an AM/FM radio, which is XM Satellite radio ready, and a Shortwave receiver. It is also capable of receiving RDS (Radio Data System) transmissions.

Features:
» Three full range speakers and a subwoofer
» Double wall construction for superior acoustics
» OLED alphanumeric display
» AM/FM/Shortwave
» Made for iPod dock
» Metal remote control with torch (torch?? –Ed.)
» Manual tuning

The Etón Porsche Design P’9120 retails for $800 and is available now. More information on the Etón Porsche Design P’9120.

Steinberg has updated the Cubase and Cubase Studio digital audio workstations to version 4.5. The 4.5 versions are available now as a download for all US registered Cubase 4 and Cubase Studio 4 customers.

The 4.5 update offers many new integrative technologies, with full support for the upcoming Steinberg MR816 CSX/X Advanced Integration DSP Studios and the CC121 Advanced Integration Controller. Steinberg claims: “Software and hardware are melded together with a FireWire I/O, a tactile controller and Steinberg’s Cubase Music Production System forming an exciting new system that pushes back the boundaries of what’s possible in digital audio.” Cubase 4.5 also offers enhanced support for the Yamaha MOTIF XS series as well as the KX USB Music Studio series.

Cubase 4.5 also introduces VST Sound, a new and improved universal media management format that is a fundamental part of Steinberg’s VST3 standard. To celebrate the launch of VST Sound, Cubase 4.5 includes the VST Sound Collection Vol. 1, offering 1.6 GB of first-class new sounds and instruments for Cubase. Among the 45 new instruments for HALion One is the famed S90ES Grand by Yamaha. Cubase 4.5 also includes drums, basses, guitars and other instruments by Sonic Reality, as well as 250 loops by Big Fish Audio.

The update also offers full compatibility with Steinberg’s entry-level Sequel 2 Music Creation and Performance Software as well as the new Rock, Hip Hop and Industrial Content Sets.

The Cubase 4.5 update is free to all registered users. More information on Cubase 4.5.

Tascam has upgraded their 24-track / 24-bit 2488 workstation to the 2488neo. The neo incorporates a new color scheme and new mastering effects. Like its predecessor, the 2488neo has eight microphone inputs, seven effects processors, a 80GB hard drive and the simple user interface common to all Tascam Portastudios.

The 2488neo features eight microphone inputs, four with XLR and phantom power, which can be assigned to any track for recording large ensembles. A reverb effect, multi effect with guitar amp simulation, and up to 9 compressors are also included. The new mastering effect includes multi-band EQ, compression and limiting. The final mixes which can be burned to CD or transferred to computer through the USB 2.0 jack.

Tascam’s 2488neo costs $649 and will be available shortly. More information on the Tascam 2488neo.

Image Line Software, the Belgium developer of FL Studio, has released Sounds of India, a new library containing over 835 samples. This new library features 36 instruments and 2 vocals for 1.5GB of sample action.

The collection covers the foundations of the classic Indian sound - Tabla, Sitar, Shenai, Harmonium and Bamboo Flute, but what makes it really unique is the collection of South Indian instruments as Veena, Ganjira, Maddalam, and rare Indian folk instruments such as, Edakka, Udukku, Darbuka, etc. The diverse Indian spirit is further enhanced by sampling sounds from many different temple bells and ethnic percussions.

“The gem of the Sounds of India is the Sitar. Its sound came out more wonderful than expected” said the manager of the project, Indian Music Producer and Audio Engineer Vipin Venugopalan.

Every sound was captured without alteration in pitch so sample mapping gives a unique sample for every key. Pitches were recorded in Chromatic Order and sounds from the finger board and the frets were not altered in order to preserve the instruments natural essence.

Image Line Software plans more Asian Instrument sample collections are planned for the near future.

Image Line Software’s The Sounds of India is available now and costs $89. More information on Image Line Software The Sounds of India.

Native Instruments has released Kore Electronic Experience, a library of material aimed at electronic music production. Drawing on the combined sonic power of Native Instruments’ excellent software instruments, Kore Electronic Experience merges seven Kore Soundpacks into a single package for a more affordable price point.

With 800 distinctive instrument sounds, 150 powerful multi-effects and ten unique drum kits, Kore Electronic Experience offers a deep selection of inspiring studio-quality sounds, specifically designed for contemporary electronic music styles as well as for movie and game scoring. The bundle includes Best Of Absynth, Best Of Reaktor Vol. 1, Deep Transformations, Fm8 Transient Attacks, Massive Expansion Vol. 1 And Synthetic Drums Reloaded, as well as an online voucher for the download of an additional sound pack of the user’s choice from the remaining Kore Soundpack arsenal.

With the included Kore Player software, Kore Electronic Experience is ready to play both as a standalone instrument as well as within any music sequencer application. By taking full advantage of advanced Kore features like Sound Variations and preset morphing, sound categorization and unified controller assignments, Kore Electronic Experience is ideally suited to bring inspiration and convenience to contemporary electronic music production.

NI’s Kore Electronic Experience is available now for $229 / €199. Both boxed and download versions are available. More information on Native Instruments Kore Electronic Experience.

We7, an ad-supported music site backed by Peter Gabriel, has licensed EMI Music’s catalog. The deal grants We7 access to 400,000 tracks for on-demand and ad-funded audio streaming, including Gabriel’s own catalog. The site also offers an MP3 download store.

The addition of EMI gives We7 another major under their roof, which already includes Warner Music Group and Sony BMG. We7’s founder and chief executive, Steve Purdham, revealed that the EMI catalog will be available in the fourth quarter and the company is set to announce more developments. “We7 is making phenomenal progress ahead of our full launch later in the year, there’s real momentum in the industry right now and ad-funded streaming is becoming more widely accepted as a legal alternative to piracy.”