Developed by the Digidesign Advanced Instrument Research (A.I.R.) group, Velvet is a new RTAS instrument plug-in that delivers highly realistic emulations of your favorite electric pianos—from classic to modern—to your Pro Tools system. Velvet accurately emulates the nuances of the original instruments, both in sound quality and playing feel, and is based on four legendary electric pianos—the Fender Rhodes Suitcase, Fender Rhodes MK I and MK II Stage Pianos, and Wurlitzer A200.
Velvet will be available soon for $249 US MSRP.

For more information, visit Digidesign's website.

The latest version of the USB 2.0 Mac OS X Universal Binary drivers for the UA-101 and the UA-1000 audio interfaces are currently available for download on Edirol website.

Native Instruments has announced Guitar Rig 2 Software Edition, a software-only version of its digital guitar studio based on the upcoming 2.2 version of the Guitar Rig software, which will offer three additional components and will also include support for Intel-based Macintosh computers. This version offers the full functionality of the software without any limitations, with only the Rig Kontrol pedal remaining exclusive to the standard Guitar Rig 2 package.
Guitar Rig 2 Software Edition will be available in November 2006 for a suggested retail price of $339 / €299 from authorized dealers and in the NI Online Shop.

Tascam has announced its first condenser microphone, the LD-74. Designed by MXL, the LD-74 features a 1" gold-sputtered diaphragm, FET preamp, brass construction and a heavy-duty mic clip for attaching to a stand. This microphone is going to be available separately, or as part of the new TNT Bundle (a package containing the US-122L audio/MIDI interface, the LD-74 microphone and 48-track Cubase LE software) for a street price under $200.

ReKon audio has released VST Virus A Editor v1.1, a VSTi plug-in that offers advanced control of the Access Virus A hardware synthesizer from directly within your VST host application, including patch management and automation of all parameters.
reKon audio will also be releasing versions for the Virus B and C models, which will also support the Virus Rack and Rack XL models.

VST Virus A Editor is available for Windows and Mac OS X and costs $49.95. Demo versions will be available soon.