January 15 - 11:55pm EST   Roland has introduced a wide variety of digital music products at the NAMM show. For keyboard players, the company displayed several devices including an upright grand, two digital pianos, a few entry-level products and a 320-watt stereo amplifier. The TD-4S offers drummers a compact package with new sounds, while the DT-HD1 software teaches basic drum patterns and technique. A new 80-watt guitar amp and bass processor have also been unveiled, along with new synthesizers, an expansion board and a system update for the V-Synth GT. [full story]

July 2 - 5:50am EDT   IK Multimedia has launched the Total Guitar & Bass Gear Bundle, featuring a collection of 5 analog-modeled Amp and FX plug-ins. Aimed at both studio and live use, the package includes Amplitube 2, Ampeg SVX, Amplitube Jimi Hendrix, Amplitube Metal and Amplitube X-GEAR. All plug-ins conform to AU, VST and RTAS standards. The complete bundle translates to over 150 'ultra realistic' gear models, 51 stomp boxes, 26 Preamp models, 11 Power amps, 11 mics, 33 cabinets and 23 rack effects. [full story]

May 12 - 1:20am EDT   Optek Music Systems on Monday announced M-Player for the Mac, its Fretlight guitar companion software title. Developed to work in conjunction with a Mac and a Fretlight 400 Series guitar, M-Player enables beginner- and advanced-level guitar players to shave weeks off the time it historically takes to learn to play a new song. Described as the world's first real computer-powered teaching guitar, the company says the software is ideal for Guitar Hero or Rock Band video gamers who want to learn to play their favorite songs on a real guitar. M-Player for Mac works by lighting up the chords and scales on the Fretlight guitar, showing correct finger placement. [full story]

May 7 - 2:05pm EDT   Native Instruments on Wednesday introduced Guitar Rig Session, a new recording solution for guitarists, bass players and songwriters that provides studio-quality results at an entry-level price as well as announced Guitar Rig 3 XE, a new version of its entry-level software for computer-based guitar recording. Equipped with a specially designed audio interface and additional recording software, Guitar Rig Session is a versatile toolkit that can be used to create guitar-driven music of any style. The solution features the new Guitar Rig 3 XE software -- also available as a standalone solution -- which delivers a selection of five true-to-life tube amplifier models and ... [full story]

March 19 - 9:15pm EDT   IK Multimedia today unveiled AmpliTube 2 Duo, a version of its AmpliTube 2 software that is bundled with Notion Music's Progression – an application for creating, learning, and distributing music. When combined, IK claims the pair allows users to create custom sounds using "ultra-accurate" sound models. IK Multimedia and Notion are offering AmpliTube 2 Duo from IK's website, but pricing is not readily available. Existing IK customers can crossgrade for $270. [full story]