Belkin’s TuneStudio, another recent introduction at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) as well as at MacWorld Expo, is this wonder gizmo that turns your fifth generation iPod into a full-fledged mixing station.
TuneStudio innovates on one of iPod’s weaknesses - recording music - and proves once over again that with the right kind of accessories the iPod can be used virtually for anything related with music.
Simply plugging your iPod into TuneStudio transforms it into a 4-Channel Audio Mixer allowing you to create and digitally record mixes directly onto your iPod. A four channel mixer means you’ll be able to plug-in & assimilate audio from four sources, whether it be musical instruments or inputs from other iPods or microphones. The recordings are done in 16-bit, 44kHz quality - good enough for most purposes.
Each of the four channels sports a 3-band EQ, pan and level controls. Phantom-power-enabled XLR inputs provide up to 60 dB of microphone gain and the stereo compressor with makeup gain enhances audio dynamic, keeping audio levels within recording limits of the iPod. It’s generously populated with LED’s that indicate master audio level, power status, peak indication, compressor activity, and recording status.
According to Belkin…
TuneStudio is compact, portable, and tough enough to withstand life in a rehearsal room or in a garage. Bands can easily attach instruments and microphones to TuneStudio and record jam sessions directly onto an iPod. Podcasters can also use this device to record their shows either in a studio or on location.
PodCasters were kept in mind while designing the product. It can stream audio through the built-in USB port. It can even act as an external USB sound card, allowing the input of audio from a PC source as well as output to a PC from any of TuneStudio’s connector inputs.
Only flip-side is that it’ll solely work with 5G (Fifth Generation) iPods.
TuneStudio will goes on sale from the Summer of 2007 in Asia, Europe, and Australia and has been priced around $179.99.
For more information visit the TuneStudio Site.
Mark420 said:
As a Professional Digital DJ I must say that the statement “full-fledged mixing station” makes me giggle! I know what a mixer is and I know what a mixing desk is…I have not a clue what a mixing station is!
on the Belkin site they have a nice 3d image of a “proposed” product..like all those fancy “prototype” cars you see in magazines that never get made.
Oh now I look closer maybe see what a mixing station means..looking at the high res image and looking at the actual knobs and the layout..I cant see any sliders! so a mixing station is a mixer without sliders.
Theres knobs on there to basically mimic a set of sliders for the outputs of each channel..anyone who has used a mixer for more than an hour will tell you that is NOT the way to do it!! we use sliders for a reason..and its presice control and being able to use many faders at one time with one hand while you do something with the other hand..with this station you would have to use both hands at all times to mix one tune into another..how are you going to wave to the pretty girls dancing in front? how are you going to have that finger in the air moment as the beat comes crashing in after a break?
So looking at the specs they say its 4 channel - so from left to right on the pic I can see 2 XLR connectors on the channels 1 and 2 it looks like channel 3 and 4 have 3.5 mm jack connectors like on a pc or ipod.
Also because of using knobs and not sliders it would be impossible to mix 3 or 4 tunes together unless you are half octopus and had 4 hands!
I cant see any buttons to switch inputs or such..only a button for phantom power..this is for non powered microphones.
Have I got this ALL wrong but from whats been said about this Tune Station in other press releases I have just read while making this post.. this is ONLY a recorder? you stick mics in and say two CD players or two pc outputs and you can control the volume of each input..change the low, mid, and high tones and change the master output and recording level.
So if thats the case you would have to have all this equipment already and just plug this thing to record mixes onto an Ipod…also no mention of the transport for the medium i.e. is it recorded in WAV? MP3? AAC? FLAK?
I knew this couldn’t be that you could play TWO tunes at once on your Ipod and and the same time record it…there is no way on this earth the HD would stand up to that amount of activity..
So I still don’t understand why someone would have use of this product? why not just get some nice plugins for winamp and then if you have dual channel sound..just record it via the other channel. Then send the MP3 to the Ipod? its the same result and saving you the 180 dollars Belkin are trying to charge for this product.I would never buy an Audio product from a company that has NO track record at all in the audio world..Belkin make cables and accesories.
Or you could use what I use and that is Traktor from Native Instruments.
http://www.native-instruments.com/index.php?traktor3_us
Yes its 200 Euro but it really is the best digital mixing platform on the market..also I have a Midi mixer (with MANY sliders;)) which controls every aspect of the mixing process without having to touch the kb or mouse.
And yes you can record everything, also you can record mixes and literally step them back a few seconds then overdub mistakes when you are recording then write the file out as a Wave file when it’s perfect.
So if you want to do some digital mixing use another product this toy from Belkin is not the answer.
If you want to record to your Ipod, don’t waste 180 dollars on this, there are much better things on the market such as M-Audio’s Podcast factory then of course you could transfer the files you made to the Ipod afterwards..