James Russell
A former Production Editor of Computer Music and FutureMusic magazines, James has gone on to be a freelance writer and reviewer of music software since 2018, and has also written for many of the biggest brands in music software. His specialties include mixing techniques, DAWs, acoustics and audio analysis, as well as an overall knowledge of the music software industry.
Latest articles by James Russell

IK Multimedia’s ARC System 3 gives you an “all-new listening experience”
By James Russell last updated
Studio calibration package adds new analysis algorithm, quicker measurement process, updated GUI, and the ability to use third-party mics

Convergence is a multi-band compressor with up to 10 bands (or four for free!)
By James Russell published
Mastering-grade plugin offers real flexibility

Elektron Overbridge 2 is “music making made more fluid”
By James Russell published
The long-awaited update to the company’s free computer-integration software

Behringer is teasing another synth and the first person to guess it wins one
By James Russell published
The company has posted a PCB design on Facebook

Pioneer DJ’s Rekordbox 6 adds cloud library management
By James Russell published
v6 on desktop and v3 on iOS unifies your collections and syncs between multiple devices

Klevgrand’s Foley-based instrument samples everyday household objects
By James Russell published
Ting lets you make beats with virtual boxes, cutlery, sofas, keys and more

Can Singdaptive help you sing better?
By James Russell published
Singdaptive tracks your progress and costs $25 per month or $249 per year

Remix the chord progressions behind your favourite songs for free with Ripchord
By James Russell published
Share presets and upload your own with this MIDI plugin for Mac and PC

Build the channel strip of your dreams with PSP’s InfiniStrip plugin
By James Russell published
Mix and match 22 modules including EQs, compressors, preamps, filters and more

RetroVolt is the 'Samplesizer' with easy access to classic synth sounds
By James Russell published
Beatskillz' new plugin samples Roland, Sequential, Oberheim, Waldorf and Yamaha instruments for its sounds

How to make music on an old computer: 4 things you need to consider
By James Russell published
Tune an older system for music production, and choose the right DAW, plugins, OS and settings to keep it running smoothly

What is MIDI 2.0, and what does it mean for musicians and producers?
By James Russell last updated
We chat to Art+Logic’s Brett Porter to find out what makes this new interfacing spec tick

Plugin mogul Steven Slate: "You don’t need external DSP for tracking, you don’t need it for mixing, and it just doesn’t make sense to me"
By James Russell published
Best of 2019: The Slate Digital boss on emulation, motivation and why the future of making music isn’t about audio engineering

The Flash Synth is a 16-voice instrument that's the size of a DIN plug and an audio out jack
By James Russell last updated
Mixtela's tiny, polyphonic FM synth takes its power from a standard MIDI connection

Massive X updated with dynamic envelopes/LFO, new presets and new skins
By James Russell published
Native Instruments make good on some promises for version 1.1, and finally publishes a manual, too

"Fattier than ever" Cheeze Machine synth is back, and the Pro version has an added touch of the Minimoog
By James Russell published
The classic freeware plugin has been envigorated by 2getheraudio for pay-what-you-want pricing

Dubreq’s Stylophone Gen R-8 is ready to ship
By James Russell published
This modern-day Stylophone is higher-tech and patchable, but still stays true to its roots

SoundSpot's new wavetable synth plugin intros at a ludicrous £5.99
By James Russell published
Union (VST/AU/AAX) generates wavetables from analogue-style oscillators, and is on a 95% discount until Jan 1

Infradeep's PVX-800 is a Siberian analogue synth based on the Polyvox circuit design
By James Russell published
The $580 synth has a focus on computer connectivity and a cool sharkfin waveform

This pack of '80s-style presets for Omnisphere 2 was created by electronic pioneer BT
By James Russell published
This $35 pack from Ilio sees the producer/composer take on synthwave, future electro, retrowave, synth pop et al

These 240 patches have been designed with MPE in mind
By James Russell published
Expressive E's new sound banks specialise in bendable, performable MIDI Polyphonic Expression

Apple's AirPods Pro are the high-tech in-ears you never thought you needed
By James Russell published
The $250 liquid-proof headphones tune themselves to your ear canal and feature two noise-cancelling mics

Tracklib Loops lets you audition portions from real songs then legally sample them
By James Russell published
You can try cycling some ready-cut loops from the entire catalogue right now without paying a thing
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