Sound Check Vol. 2

Welcome to Sound Check. The spec sheet tells you what it does. We tell you if it's any good.

Each month, resident sound guy Cameron Yeh covers AI tools, synths, software, drum machines, headphones, speakers, studio acoustics and whatever else is shaping how producers, DJs and listeners make and hear sound; his experience-led take on what's worth your money, what's overhyped, and what's just genuinely fun.

You'll also come across some tech-related industry news worth being updated on.

Cameron is a Hong Kong-based audio engineer, system integrator and DJ with 15+ years in the industry. He's built audio for everything from professional studios to live venues, worked events and distribution deals with major audio brands, and helped launch one of Greater China's first A/V e-commerce platforms.

He's also been a resident DJ here and there, which means he's had to play on systems he built himself. Sound Check comes from both sides of the booth.

Here's what's on his wavelength this month:

The rapid evolution of AI assisted software development, or ‘vibe coding’, enables developers to more easily create tools to assist music production in ways not possible before.

While AI can’t replace actual developers, with proper utilisation, skilled coders can use AI to write the tedious code which took teams to do by themselves. Their skill will come into play when debugging, improving sound structure, and refining functions, the details which are necessary for the complex plugins used in music production. What becomes accessible is the creation of bespoke plugins for producers that are tailored to their needs.

While AI music creation gets the headlines and controversy, use of AI for production tools which enhance the creative process is going unnoticed and could have a substantial impact on the efficiency of real producers.

Personally not a fan of AI as a replacement for the creative process, but if a producer puts in the time to code an entire piece of software to assist their mixing and mastering, that’s fair game.

The legendary Technics SL1200 celebrates its 55th anniversary next year. Technics have announced a special limited edition release of the famed turntable with only 12,000 units to be made, each engraved with a unique badge and number. These SL1200s are available in seven colourways with gold trimming to create a visually stunning celebratory design for a turntable that revolutionised DJ culture.

The SL1200 caught on with DJs for their pitch control, durability, and resistance to vibration. These attributes gave DJs the ability to beatmatch, scratch, and cue tracks with stability not achievable before. They remain the gold standard of DJ turntables today.

If you’ve been following the conversation around ¥ØU$UK€ ¥UK1MAT$U’s recent all-vinyl set for Technics, you’ll know it stirred up quite a bit of debate (just peek the comments section).

Every artist has their own approach, but a tribute to a DJ culture icon calls for both technical skill and a clear demonstration of what these decks can do. Jeff Mills would’ve been a treat.

Mixmag Asia attended the inaugural Messe Frankfurt ProLight & Sound Bangkok, and I left hopeful that PL&S BKK will grow into something closer to its Guangzhou big sibling.

I’ve been to PL&S Guangzhou, and the scale blew me away: huge, with exhibitors ranging from the big brands to smaller manufacturers across both audio and lighting.

Bangkok was well organised and ran smoothly under Messe Frankfurt. It’s not as big as the GZ show, but the booths were beautifully set up. Exhibitors skewed more towards lighting than audio, which could be an indication of where the focus of the market in this region lies.

There was interesting tech throughout, from interactive visual projections to immersive audio, plus musical instruments to try out. It’s a great snapshot of where the sound and lighting industry is right now, and of the tech being used in premium venues and high-level production.

The quality of the show is high, so I’m keen to see how PL&S BKK grows from here.

The Devious Pocket is a digital vinyl system that strips away the laptop. You connect the units between your turntables and mixer, plug in your USB, slap on a control vinyl and you’re all set! There’s no need for an operating system anywhere in the chain.

Created by a small studio NAP Works from Amsterdam, the project is available from IndieGogo. The Devious Pocket is not crowdfunding for development though and has already passed final testing phases. They’re made to order and ships in about a month.

Each unit has a 4” touchscreen, a HiFiBerry DAC, four USB-A inputs, RCA in/out, and USB-C power. It supports a variety of timecode, allowing flexibility in vinyl choice including Serato 2, Serato CD, Traktor 1, Mixvibes V2 and 7, and Pioneer/rekordbox DVS. It plays mp3, FLAC, wav, aiff, caf, and ogg formats.

The Devious Pocket even has looping, auto-pitching, cue points, and a circular waveform display. Quite an impressive feature set for a small box.

While a bit pricey, I can’t wait to get a set of these. Removing the clunkiness of a laptop while running a DVS seems too good to be true. The only worry: track selection and adjusting functions on a small screen.

Soundcraft have announced a new ‘Signature Plus’ line of analogue mixers aimed at studios, live sound engineers, podcasters, and content creators. Evolved from their Signature series, these mixers come with built-in Lexicon effects and dbx compression. There are 4 models with 12, 16, 22 and 32 channels, all coming with the same feature set, so a smaller setup still comes with full functionality.

The mixers come with all your standard mixer capabilities, including improvements in QOL details like separated input and output sections for intuitive controls, color coded buttons, and ‘squircle’ knobs which help make accurate adjustments in dimly lit, high pressure environments.

The big thing here are the Lexicon effects built in, featuring both preset storage and tap tempo. Available effects include various styles of reverbs, delay, and modulation.

Quality of sound and function at this price isn’t a common occurrence. Worth checking out if you’re in the market for a new desk.

Check out SetRoulette, from the creator who also made the entry to last month's "Something Fun" entry, the YPC. Set your filter and it shoots out a set based on your parameters at random.

Like the YPC, SetRoulette sources its sets from YouTube, scouring over 70 broadcasters/channels for an expansive library of full sets in every genre you can imagine. The available search filters get deep into detail, allowing you to pick subcategories within each larger genre, and even types of venue/environment.

There’s a monthly/annual subscription that enables the extra search parameters, however I found the stock search to be quite sufficient.

As a DJ who loves discovering tracks through live sets and hearing how they work in different contexts, this site is a great resource for digging.

Sound Check considers gear for review. Brands and distributors, get in touch.

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