Today's Top Stories:

  Digidesign Shrinks the Mbox 2 to Micro Size!
At 8:30 p.m. Thursday night, Digidesign dropped a bombshell, officially unveiling the latest member of its award-winning Mbox 2 family: the diminutive Mbox 2 Micro! It truly is small enough to fit in a shirt pocket, or be tucked away in a purse or a guitar case, yet it's still a member of the Pro Tools family that provides users with an ultra-portable sequencing, editing, and mixing solution that's the size of a typical USB flash drive (or "thumb drive" as many call it). Mbox 2 Micro combines high-quality audio output/monitoring capabilities with the power of Pro Tools LE software - plug it into your laptop and turn it into the world's most compact pro-quality studio with 24-bit/48kHz audio quality! The Mbox 2 Micro has a rugged, ultra-compact, anodized aluminum case for ultimate portability. Its 1/8-inch stereo output jack supports up to 24-bit/48kHz audio, allowing for high-quality monitoring, while a convenient volume wheel makes output level adjustments easy. Mbox 2 Micro will ship complete with the award-winning Pro Tools LE software, a collection of over 45 Bomb Factory and DigiRack effects plug-ins, and Digidesign's Xpand! sample-playback/synthesis workstation. Mbox 2 Micro will have a suggested retail price of $279. For additional information or to order one for yourself today, call your Sweetwater Sales Engineer today!

  It's Out!
Just as a reminder, on Friday Apple officially released its latest big cat operating system, code named "Leopard." This takes Mac OS X to version 10.5.

  New in Stock at Sweetwater

• Roland Cube Street - Roland CUBE amps are famous for performance that exceeds their physical size, and the CUBE Street is no exception. With two high-performance neodymium speakers onboard, this amp sounds incredible, and is capable of high-volume output that defies its svelte physical dimensions. Best of all, it can run for up to 15 hours on just six AA alkaline batteries. What's more, the CUBE Street is actually eight different amps in one via its built-in COSM amp models. From tube-driven blues classics to modern metal stacks, you get it all plus a built-in chromatic tuner and two digital effects processors!
• SKB SKB-R1400 Gig Safe - The Gig Safe is a part of a multiple section rolling rackmount system that will fit in the back of your car. It features a 14U+ top rackmount that will accommodate deeper analog and digital mixers, plus a cover designed to fit over connected XLR cables. The SKB-R1400 will attach to the SKB19-REX6 Expander case and the SKB-3224 Rotomolded GigDolly to give the same convenience and rack spaces as the SKB19-R1406 Mighty GigRig - only in multiple sections for easy transporting.
• Alesis MultiMix 8 USB 2.0 - Now you can have USB 2.0 speed in an affordable mixer! The Alesis MultiMix 8 USB 2.0 compact tabletop mixer gives you low-noise analog electronics, 100 studio-grade, 28-bit digital effects, and rock-solid construction. USB 2.0 technology provides for high-bandwidth recording of multiple 24-bit audio channels (up to 96kHz) from the mixer to your computer (PC/Windows or Mac OS X). The MultiMix 8 USB 2.0 features high-gain mic/line preamps, 48-volt phantom power, auxiliary sends/returns, and an onboard effects engine with reverb, delay, chorus, and flanging. Each channel provides 3-band EQ with high/low shelving and mid/band pass/reject on the MultiMix 8 USB 2.0.

  Guitar of the Day
For only the third time ever, we're featuring a guitar amp as our Guitar of the Day. We've gotten the first batch of Line 6 Spider Valve amplifiers that combine Line 6 modeling with a real tube amplifier that was designed in cooperation with Reinhold Bogner, thus guitarists get the absolute "best of both worlds!" For those who are unfamiliar with Bogner amplifiers, these are highly respected "boutique" amps. So when you're getting the 40-watt 2x12 Spider Valve 212 for just over $800, you're getting a bargain! And don't think guitarists everywhere are unaware of just how awesome this combo amp will be - we already have tons of orders and the first 2x12s haven't even arrived yet! The 1x12 version, dubbed the Spider Valve 112 is now in stock, so we urge you to call your Sweetwater Sales Engineer to get one of those or to reserve a Spider Valve 212 for yourself. Imagine all the variations you'll have access to! Want a '50s tweed? A '60s British Invasion amp? How about the latest in dual rectifiers? The Spider Valve 212 has the very latest, very best models of 12 modern and vintage amps that offer up everything from crystal clear twang to insane grind and everything in between. To get you started, Line 6 has included a whopping 300+ presets created by some of the most respected names in the industry, including many of today's best session players, who have to be able to dial in sounds to match every style of music. How long do you think it will take to go through over 300 presets? Naturally, you can tweak each of them to taste, add any of the seven Smart Control effects (which include tape echo, sweep echo, standard delay with tap tempo, chorus/flanger, phaser, tremolo, and reverb, with up to three simultaneously). There's even a genuine POD XLR direct out for those times when you need to record direct. But the real story is the 40-watt class AB tube amplifier designed by Bogner, which comes stocked with 12AX7 preamp and 6L6 power tubes. The net result? The best of today's sophisticated digital voicings with the buttery smooth output you expect from a true tube amplifier.