Noneric brings us news of Reason 4, Nuendo 4, we talk of Tenori-On, then move on to the massive slump in Rap sales, the Struggling Musicians Toolkit and associated resources including Jamstudio.com, East Wests Fab Four sample library, then I get some group therapy for my mid-life crisis - thanks guys - group hug!

First we get excited about the new synthesizer from Dave Smith Instruments - the Prophet 08, then Noneric gives us some second-hand but reliable information on the new Logic Pro imminent update, then we're off to the world of quad core laptops, OS upgrades ain't what they used to be, and as Jazz Mutant demo their first mulit-touch PC, how do we feel about using that as an interface?

Sonic TALK 056 - Festival Memories

As well as the breaking Waves software police story, passing through our collective consciousness is also the upcoming Yamaha Tenori-on release, a massive musical Tesla coil instrument, a 404 thats a TB-303 and new Dells and new iMacs.

Topics this week include, the recent Summer NAMM show in Austin TX, the demise of analog tape and associated plug-ins aiming to recapture it's glorious past, Ken Macbeth's band of synthesists and celebs, iTunes reach the 3 billion downloads and much more.

This week talk ranges from the iPhone and what it means, to the Roadbag - a device for those caught short, what are we all using to record the podcast, the FM3 Buddha Box, Stevie Wonder drum solo and finally - how to ruin a mix or how to approach one.

Topics for discussion range from The Weather (of course), Dave goes sailing with a bunch of sound engineers, to Morphine - a new additive synthesis plug-in, FireWire is history?, Prince and his latest CD giveaway and what it means for music distribution, Rolling Stones to leave the band, A concept piece from Godfried Willem-Raes leaves us pondering - but is it art?

This week we discuss Marks new laptop and the lost plugins, Broken Drum Machine, how come there aren't many women in the studio or in technical roles? Let your keyring open the door and keep you germ free, Nick enjoys Punkdisco and the Whilte Stripes, Mark finds a man on a jet-powered shopping bike.

Dave Spiers, PJ Tracy, John Musgrave, Mark Tinley and Nick Batt discuss:

This weeks topics include: the Top 10 Star Wars sound effects and how to make them generally, Mark edits Timbaland's multitrack sessions, Lara Crofts motorbike, what you can find on an old multi-track tape, talking paper, build your own Edison player, Roger Linn on the BBC, mythical tales from on the road.

Mark Tinley, Dave Spiers, Noneric, PJ Tracy.

This week discussion ranges from Marks new binaural mics, new multitouch screens from Microsoft and C-Base, a pixelated Stratocaster, Roland System 100 on Youtube, EMI and Youtube cut a deal, iTunes up bit rate and custom built PC's from Rain et al sparks the usual Mac/PC debate.