Today's Top Stories:

  Dual Duende
Need more Duende? You're not alone; being able to use more than one Duende at a time has been by far the most requrested feature improvement for the box. If you find yourself wanting more processing power, you'll be pleased to hear SSL has announced Duende driver 2.1. This new driver supports the use of two Duendes for a maximum of 64 channels of powerful SSL processing. The new driver also improves Duende performance on Intel and PowerPC Macs up to 50%. The driver should be available soon as a free download for registered Duende users.

  Foretelling The Future
We can see it in our crystal ball: It's black with wood end caps. It has white graphics, a red display, and red and amber LEDs. There are slim black knobs with silver caps on them. The wheels are black, and are on the control panel, not next to the 5-octave keyboard. It has two banks of 128 programs. Eight voices of polyphony. Two programs can be layered, which reduces the polyphony to four voices. It has an entirely analog signal path. Wait...the fog is clearing...it's...it's... ...the return of the Prophet! It's the Prophet '08 from Dave Smith Instruments! And what's this we see emerging? It's a vision of a Special Limited Edition Prophet '08 with red lighted wheels, Dave Smith's signature, exotic Leopard-wood end panels, and more! Stay tuned, we'll post more details as the crystal ball reveals them to us...

  UAD Updated
Universal Audio has released version 4.71 of UAD-1 software for both Mac and Windows. New features include support for the UAD-Xpander, system sleep for Windows, improved SONAR compatibility, multiple UAD card support for Magma chassis connected to ExpressCards on Macs, and numerous fixes. This is a free download for UAD-1 users. The download also includes free 14-day trial versions of the Neve 88RS Channel Strip and the LA-3A audio leveler.

  Moogfest 2007
The date has been set: Be in New York City on September 22 for this year's Moogfest, which will take place at B.B. King's Blues Club in Time's Square. A number of artists are already slated to perform, including Thomas Dolby, Jordan Rudess, Adam Holzman, and many others. In addition, Moog Music has released a live DVD of Moogfest 2006, which is available for $17.95 through their site. Artist performances on the disc include Keith Emerson, Jan Hammer, Jordan Rudess, Bernie Worrell, and many others.

  NAMM Returns To Twang Town
The National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) has officially announced that next year's summer tradeshow will return to Nashville, Tennessee after a year in Indianapolis and two years in Austin. Due to scheduling difficulties, the show will be held June 20-22, instead of the traditional dates in late July. We greatly enjoyed the shows in Indy and Austin - and we especially enjoyed the very short drive to the Indianapolis show. But it will be good to get back to Music City....

  Guitar of the Day
Just when we thought we'd seen the best guitars PRS could possibly build, they go and build one that's even better! In this case it's a stunning Modern Eagle Singlecut Trem in Tiger Yellow. Think we're exaggerating? Check out the photos! This is why the guitars crafted by PRS get so much attention. It's got all the "right stuff" including an Artist-quality flame maple top (in case you don't know, an Artist-quality top is actually one step up from the company's famed "10-Tops"). Essentially, you could consider this a Private Stock instrument, but without the 5-figure price tag. Ever since PRS began building Singlecuts again a few years back (after winning a prolonged court battle), it seems they are possessed! And we mean that in a good way. Just about every Singlecut we've gotten lately has been exceptional, and this may well be the best of them all! We've already mentioned the carved, 2-piece flame maple top, but this one has been given the company's new satin finish, which brings out the depth and luster of the wood. It gives the instrument the look of a well cared-for classic. Complementing the maple top is a solid mahogany back and a rare Brazilian rosewood neck with a wide-fat neck carve and 22-fret fingerboard with the trademark PRS rippled abalone bird inlays. If you've never played a guitar with a rosewood neck (and a Brazilian rosewood neck, to boot), you're in for a treat. There's something truly organic about wrapping your hands around a chunk of one of the planet's rarest timbers and that transfers into a playing experience like no other. It doesn't hurt that the Modern Eagle Singlecut has a pair of RP pickups with satin covers, a master volume and master tone control (which includes a push-pull coil tap for access to sounds that are very much like what you'd expect with a single coil pickup). The PRS Tremolo bridge is silky smooth and returns the guitar to pitch effortlessly. Even the headstock has a Brazilian rosewood headstock overlay with an inlaid Modern Eagle. This magnificent instrument ships in a beautiful plush-lined, leather Private Stock hardshell case with a special brass plaque. Truly a masterpiece of fine contemporary guitar building!