PreSonus artist Avery Watts recently unleashed  “The Takeover,” a dynamic, strikingly produced record that serves as a sort of rally cry to all things Watts. High-volume rock and shouted vocals are all tempered by lush arrangements, staggering track counts, and orchestral (!) elements that place the record a standing broad jump forward from its Rapcore origins. Further cementing the hardworking DIY mindset of its creator, “The Takeover” is also a solo record in the truest sense—Avery played nearly every instrument represented here!

It’s hard to imagine anything that could sound simply bigger than this amalgam of stadium rock grandiosity and lion-hearted hip-hop bombast, but on first listen one realizes: here it is. If the intended effect is to make the listener feel a little closer to Watt’s stature, (6″5′ of hard-working, resistance-training, clean-living alpha male rock stardom) than The Takeover’s mission is accomplished.

Regarding Avery’s choice of PreSonus gear in the studio, he says:

“In studio, I’ve found the Studio Channel, BlueTube DP, TubePre and HP4 to all be invaluable tools. The simplicity and warmth of the tube preamps makes for an excellent source signal that is compact, easy to use and won’t break the bank – not to mention they’re as reliable and constant as any device could possibly be. I end up using them for vocals, tracking guitars and even mic’ing auxiliary percussion. I tend to use the Studio Channel primarily as a DI for strings such as the Violin, Viola and Electric Cello. I even keep a TubePre and an HP4 with me wherever I go for recording on the run; you never know when inspiration is going to hit!”

Find “The Takeover” on Amazon and iTunes.

Parts Express put together a nice little demo of the PreSonus Faderport! The Faderport seeks to bring all the major functions used during mixing and recording sessions into a single, small-footprint interface. The result is an intuitive, hands-on experience that makes the computer recording process feel more like music creation—as opposed to the way a mouse and keyboard can make the process feel closer to using spreadsheet software.

At first glance, track organization may not sound like the most glamorous feature a DAW can offer. Fact is that cleanliness is next to good-producer-liness, and an orderly, easy-to-read workflow is just about as important as astute microphone placement.

Our good buds at Obedia are back again! Already! Today they bring us an in-depth look at Transient Beat Detection in Studio One 2. This technology allows the astute producer to correct timing inaccuracies in recorded audio. Snapping lazy snare hits to the grid is only the beginning; prepare yourself for the miracle of audio bending!

Tech Talk Not Really Live

No, it’s not the zombie video again. Something we’ve been hyping lately is our Tech Talk Live series, which airs every Tuesday at 2pm CDT (19:00 GMT), broadcasting whatever cool ‘Sonus stuff is happening. It’s a stupendous opportunity to bask in the wisdom of luminaries like Brad Zell, Rick Naqvi, Justin Spence, and the occasional guest as they proffer up the shiniest dirt on all things PreSonus. Tune in and learn.

For those of you in Timmbucktwoistan or wherever, it’s possible that anytime PST isn’t exactly convenient. Know that all the past TTL videos are thoughtfully archived, and their Tzar’s wealth of knowledge can be accessed by you at any time. http://www.presonus.com/community/presonuslive/

Segundo: Our livecasts don’t quiiiite have the viewership we would like just now, and we want to up our view count! So, phone your dad and wake the neighbors! Tweet it out, Facebook message, rig up two-cans-and-a-string and pleasepleaseplease tell everyone you know to watch the next PreSonus Tech Talk Live. We will happily indulge your comments and questions, on-the-fly! Criticisms will be addressed begrudgingly.

Rick and Justin and Quality

No, it’s not the zombie video again. Something we’ve been hyping lately is our Tech Talk Live series, which airs every Tuesday at 2pm CDT (19:00 GMT), broadcasting whatever (and from wherever)  cool ‘Sonus stuff is happening. It’s a stupendous opportunity to bask in the wisdom of luminaries like Brad Zell, Rick Naqvi, Justin Spence, and the occasional guest as they proffer up the shiniest dirt on all things PreSonus. Tune in and learn.

For those of you in Timmbucktwoistan or wherever, it’s possible that anytime PST isn’t exactly convenient. Know that all the past TTL videos are thoughtfully archived, and their Tzar’s wealth of knowledge can be accessed by you at any time.

Segundo: Our livecasts don’t quiiiite have the viewership we would like just now, and we want to up our view count! So, phone your dad and wake the neighbors! Tweet it out, Facebook message, rig up two-cans-and-a-string and pleasepleaseplease tell everyone you know to watch the next PreSonus Tech Talk Live. We will happily indulge your comments and questions, on-the-fly! Criticisms will be addressed begrudgingly.

RRRRRAAAAAAH!

Ok ok ok. We’re sorry to have kept you waiting. Lion taming takes time.

Good news Mac lovah: if you’re reading this, you shouldn’t be. You should instead be over at http://www.presonus.com/technical-support/downloads/drivers-software/ merrily downloading the latest releases of FireControl 2626 and Universal Control 1.5.2!

Please note that the FireControl 2626 update is ONLY for Lion users. FireStudio users who are running earlier versions of Mac OS X, or who are using Microsoft Windows do not need and should not install this release. With this release, all FireStudio-series interfaces, including discontinued models, are compatible with OS X Lion.

PreSonus encourages you to rejoice responsibly.

It’s a shame our guard alligator program was cut from the budget this year; we may have stood a chance against the oncoming zombie horde. Now that we’re all dead we know better. Fortunately Studio One 2 survived!