After releasing Cubase 5 and Cubase Studio 5 in the first half of this year, Steinberg now is also introducing the fifth version of Cubase Essential.

Offering a streamlined feature set that offers newcomers to Cubase a comprehensive set of composing, recording, editing, and mixing capabilities, the new version includes a range of functions from its sibling, Cubase 5.

Supporting Mac OS X 10.5, Windows Vista, and Windows XP, Cubase Essential 5 ($195.99/€149.75) will be shipping to European dealers and international Steinberg distributors, so availability may vary regionally. Cubase Essential 5 may also be purchased through the Steinberg online stores.

Novation is now proudly shipping the new SL Mk II range of Controller Keyboards featuring Automap 3 technology.

The SL Mk II features over 70 controls including touch-sensitive faders and ringlet rotaries, backlit switches, and pads all tightly linked to the DAW/Plugin/Instruments via Novation's exclusive Automap 3 Pro software. The SL Mk II lineup includes the 61, 49, and 25-key versions as well as a control surface only ZeRO SL Mk II with touch sensitive 60mm faders optimized for controlling DAW mixers in addition to plugins and software instruments.

QuikQuak has updated its "crowd simulator" plug-in Crowd Chamber to version 2.0.
New features :

• New algorithm.
• The complex feedback system has now been replaced by simple global parameters.
• Global Spread dial stretches out each voice over time, used to create large crowds, or weird individual effects.
• Overall spectral shift control, for creating large global pitch effects.
• Huge reduction in CPU usage for large crowd simulations.
• Reduced initial delay for large crowds.
• Increased basic population value.
• Extra presets demonstrating new capabilities.
• Simplified GUI and clearer labeling.
• PDF manual added.

Available now for both Mac (AU/VST) and PC (VST) at a price of £15.

Apple has announced that Mac OS X v10.6, aka Snow Leopard, will go on sale Friday, August 28 at Apple's retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers, and that Apple's online store is now accepting pre-orders.

Snow Leopard builds on a decade of OS X innovation and success with hundreds of refinements, new core technologies and out of the box support for Microsoft Exchange. Snow Leopard will be available as an upgrade for Mac OS X Leopard users for $29.

AcousticsampleS and Lance Herring are announcing the upcoming release of the Kawai-EX sample library. It's a Kawai-EX concert grand piano that used to be in the Kennedy center in Washington DC. The product is already in an advanced state.

Here are some features of the final product :

- 5 "pedal up" layers, 5 "pedal down" layers, and 15 release samples per note (5 only for the light version).
- Thumps samples.
- Automatic Pedal noises samples.
- Multiple mic position and mixing from the interface (in PRO version).
- Ability to save polyphony by enabling / disabling each position.
- Sympathetic resonance (pedal down samples).
- Multiple releases. They have been carefully picked up for each note to really reproduce the real mechanical behaviour of a note.
- As always, a custom ...