Governments grapple with the flood of non-consensual nudity on XFor the past two weeks, X has been flooded with AI-manipulated nude images, created by the Grok AI chatbot — and governments around the world are promising to take action.

Nexo to offer zero-interest crypto lending for BTC and ETH holdersThe offering expands Nexo’s structured lending products to Bitcoin and Ether holders amid a broader recovery in crypto-backed lending.

Electric Snowblower Clears the Way With Hobby PartsIf you live in snow country and own a home, you either have a snowblower or wish you did. The alternatives are either an expensive and potentially unreliable plow service, or back-breaking (and heart-attack inducing) shoveling. [RCLifeOn] was one of those people in the second category, until he decided to do something about it: electrifying a scrap snowblower with a blown engine. 
The usual brushless DC motors and electronic speed controllers [RCLifeOn] has on hand to get his R/C life on with don’t quite have enough oomph to handle both functions of a snowblower. For those of you cursed to live in warmer climes, the modern snowblower is both self-propelled via its twin wheels, and generally has a two-stage powered snow-removal “blower” consisting of an auger to break up the snow and an impeller to blast it out of the machine and many meters off the driveway. On the traditional gas-powered models, these are both powered via belts off the same motor, but that wasn’t going to work.
He kept the belts, and simply used a pair of motors, each with their own ESCs that are controlled via oversized thumb wheels on the handles. The belts couple to the motors with 3D printed pulleys. Belt tension is achieved in the case of the wheels through a simple and sensible shimming arrangement. In the case of the blower motor, he uses a 3D printed adjustable mount to get the appropriate tension. To help it hold long-term (given the issues with creep in 3D prints) he’s got a bearing on a second mount opposite the motor.  It holds up for his demo, which consists of clearing a driveway of 10cm of snow and then plowing through a pile larger than the mouth of the machine. In other words: it works.
The build, as unfortunately common on YouTube, is shy on specific details– but in this case that’s fine. Even if he’d open-sourced everything and posted STEP or STL files, it wouldn’t save much time since you’d pretty well have to re-engineer the build to fit your own snowblower, if you were so inclined. As with many hacks of this nature, the point of sharing it is to show how easy it is and provide the inspiration. As the cartoons used to say, “knowing is half the battle.”
If one was to re-implement this hack, we could not encourage you strongly enough to put in the standard dead-man’s switch, a feature commercial snowblowers share with things like lawnmowers. As annoying as it is to hang onto with frozen fingers, that safety feature is there for a reason.
If your driveway is short, you can save on gas and fuel costs with an extension cord. Or you could just stay inside and do the job by remote control, but that comes with its own pitfalls.

THE JEREMIAH SHOW Featuring GRAMMY® Winning Guitarist Janet RobinIn this episode of The Jeremiah Show, GRAMMY® Award–winning guitarist and composer Janet Robin sits down with Jeremiah for a wide-ranging conversation about the moments—and mentors—that shaped her life in music.

Janet shares how guitar became her “security blanket” as a kid, and how studying one-on-one with Randy Rhoades (as his youngest student and the only girl in his class) gave her both technique and confidence—especially his insistence that students develop their own sound.

From her early years playing clubs in L.A. with the all-female band Precious Metal (and the whirlwind of being discovered and signed young), to being handpicked by Lindsey Buckingham for a demanding “guitar army” tour that sharpened her discipline and pushed her toward solo work, Janet traces a career built on hustle, professionalism, and creativity.

She also discusses coaching Jennifer Jason Leigh for The Hateful Eight, the unforgettable story behind the film’s famously smashed vintage Martin, and the full-circle Grammy win with The String Revolution for their instrumental “Folsom Prison Blues” recorded at Cash Cabin with John Carter Cash and guest guitarist Tommy Emmanuel—plus what’s next, including new releases, touring, and a blues project drawing from Library of Congress recordings.

Join Grammy®-Winning Guitar Trio, The String Revolution, for a night of unmatched guitar magic at Boulevard Music on January 17 at 8:00 PM.

For tickets and more information, log onto: https://www.boulevardmusic.com

JANET ROBIN’S WEBSITE - https://www.janetrobin.com/

THE STRING REVOLUTION - https://www.thestringrevolution.com/

INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | APPLE MUSIC

PHOTO CREDIT: Jeff Insel

LISTEN to the INTERVIEW on APPLE PODCASTS Available January 9, 2026

The post THE JEREMIAH SHOW Featuring GRAMMY® Winning Guitarist Janet Robin first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Troy Carter acquires catalog of influential Pop Art RecordsCarter describes the catalog as 'some of the most important pieces of music in hip-hop history'
Source

What is harmony in music? A guide to triads, chord progressions, and scale degrees
Learn about triads, chord progressions, and the other music theory subtopics that constitute the vast but exciting world of harmony.

Solid State Logic (SSL) autoSeries BundleThe autoSeries Bundle contains autoBUS, autoDYN and autoEQ. SSL autoSeries: Dial in your sound with Profile and Style. Profile tells the AI assistance what source it's working with: kick, snare, vocal, or more, optimising processing for that signal type. Unlike a preset with fixed parameters, a profile adapts intelligently to your input. Style shapes the character of the processing: Neutral, Warm, or Bright, while the Intensity control lets you push processing from subtle to 200% for bold results. Together, Profile and Style give you flexible, editable starting points. Let sonible's AI analyse your audio and deliver real-time recommendations, so you can move fast, stay creative, and achieve musical results with the authentic SSL 4000E sound. Read More

Add this virtual guitar instrument from e-instruments to your arsenal for “warm, emotive and atmospheric” guitar soundsLooking for a virtual guitar pack to add to your production arsenal? German virtual instrument and plugin purveyor e-instruments has unveiled Velvet Guitars, a new instrument designed to explore “warm, emotive and atmospheric” guitar sounds.
The plugin comprises five distinctive instruments, each selected and performed for warmth and character, e-instruments says.

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These are:

Velvet Guitar  – classic semi-hollow guitar, finger-played with subtle vibrato
Mellow Baritone – semi-hollow baritone with a “thick, woody tone”, played with a pick
Shimmer Guitar – ’60s-style solid-body offset with floating tremolo and unmistakable shimmer
Semi Hollow – non-traditional jazz guitar with a rounded, expressive sound
Amped Acoustic – vintage acoustic recorded via magnetic pickup and routed through the same amps as the electrics.

The sounds in Velvet Guitars were captured using a signal path comprising Shure SM57 dynamic and Royer R-121 ribbon microphones, through Rupert Neve Designs Shelford channels.
At its core, the tonal foundation of Velvet Guitars is driven by two classic vintage amplifiers. Each note has also been shaped by a real spring reverb, recorded numerous times through both amps with both wet and dry variations. There’s also a tremolo effect modelled directly from the original amplifiers.
Credit: e-instruments
Designed for “immediate playability”, Velvet Guitars features a streamlined interface with a simplified control panel, “allowing users to focus on expression”.
“Velvet Guitars elevates classic guitar tones with an elegant, velvety character,” says e-instruments. 
“From gentle sustains to imaginative articulations including bowed strings, shimmering harmonics, reversed swells, drifting feedback, and unconventional performances using tools such as violin bows, coins, and toothbrushes, it offers a uniquely emotional palette of sounds. The result is a deeply musical instrument that transforms every idea into a rich and evocative creation.”
Pricing & availability
Velvet Guitars is compatible with Native Instruments Kontakt 8.5.1 or the free Kontakt Player, and also works with NI’s NKS2.
Price-wise, the instrument is available at an introductory price of €99/$99 until 9 February, after which it’ll rise to €149/$149. Customers can also purchase a bundle featuring Velvet Guitars and e-instruments’ Desolate Guitars for an intro price of €229/$229.
For more information, head to e-instruments.
The post Add this virtual guitar instrument from e-instruments to your arsenal for “warm, emotive and atmospheric” guitar sounds appeared first on MusicTech.

GrabTracks ARA Sampler for macOS and Windows is FREE for a limited time
GrabTracks is a fairly new ARA sampler plugin for macOS and Windows that offers a tactile, intuitive way to manipulate audio in your DAW. The plugin usually costs $29, but you can download it for free using the promo code “GRABTRACKSPROMO100.” The promotion could end at any time, so grab it while it’s free. ARA [...]
View post: GrabTracks ARA Sampler for macOS and Windows is FREE for a limited time

Baby Audio update Tekno Just months on from its initial release, Baby Audio’s software drum synth has been treated to its first major update.

ZAK Sound releases Echowaves, a FREE stereo delay plugin
Developer ZAK Sound has released Echowaves, a free stereo delay for macOS, Windows, and Linux. One of the things I like most about ZAK Sound is that we never quite know what’s coming next. The developer has provided us with a diverse collection of freebies over the last few years, including Orange Dreams 2 Lite, [...]
View post: ZAK Sound releases Echowaves, a FREE stereo delay plugin

Dim Mak at 30 🎂 Why Steve Aoki Is the King of the Live DJ StageDim Mak is turning 30 this year, and Steve Aoki is taking his brand on tour in 2026. Here's what has made Aoki one of the most influential, exciting live DJ performers on the scene. (Yes, throwing cake is part of it.)
The post Dim Mak at 30 🎂 Why Steve Aoki Is the King of the Live DJ Stage appeared first on Hypebot.

What the Spotify Data Scrape Means for Independent ArtistsA shadow-library called Anna’s Archive has scraped nearly all of Spotify’s music metadata (almost 300TB of data). Here's what that means.
The post What the Spotify Data Scrape Means for Independent Artists appeared first on Hypebot.

Universal Music Group and NVIDIA’s new partnership aims to be a “direct antidote to generic AI slop”Universal Music Group (UMG) has announced a collaboration with chipmaker giant NVIDIA to pioneer “responsible AI” for music discovery, creation, and fan engagement.
The partnership, which leverages NVIDIA’s Music Flamingo model and UMG’s catalogue of millions of recordings, seeks to “enrich and enhance the music experience of the billions of music consumers worldwide”.
The companies plan to develop AI tools that take music discovery, engagement, and consumption beyond traditional search and personalisation. They will also explore ways to use AI to protect artists’ work and ensure proper attribution of music-based content.

READ MORE: “There’ll be some swings and misses across the industry”: Universal Audio CEO is bullish on his firm’s new LUNA AI features – but says AI in music is broadly “overhyped”

One key focus of the partnership is a new artist incubator, designed to put musicians, songwriters, and producers at the heart of AI music creation. UMG and NVIDIA say the incubator will co-develop tools that empower artists rather than replace them, and calls this a “direct antidote to generic, ‘AI slop’ outputs”.
On the discovery front, the partnership will expand NVIDIA’s Music Flamingo model to transform how fans find and engage with music. Unlike typical algorithms that rely on basic metadata or genre tags, Music Flamingo can analyse full-length tracks, capturing harmony, structure, timbre, lyrics, and even cultural context.
The model uses advanced reasoning to interpret chord progressions, emotional arcs, and other subtle musical details, helping listeners explore music in a more meaningful and personal way.
The collab will also employ both companies’ research capabilities, including the use of UMG’s world-class studio operations such as Abbey Road Studios in London and Capitol Studios in Los Angeles. In addition, UMG will use NVIDIA AI infrastructure in the development of responsibly trained AI-driven business and creative processes.
UMG CEO Sir Lucian Grainge has previously warned against low-quality, mass-produced AI music flooding streaming platforms, calling it “platform pollution”. The new partnership aims to “set new standards for innovation within the industry, while protecting and respecting copyright and human creativity.”
“We’re entering an era where a music catalogue can be explored like an intelligent universe – conversational, contextual, and genuinely interactive”, says NVIDIA’s VP/GM of Media Richard Kerris. “By extending NVIDIA’s Music Flamingo with UMG’s unmatched catalogue and creative ecosystem, we’re going to change how fans discover, understand, and engage with music on a global scale. And we’ll do it the right way: responsibly, with safeguards that protect artists’ work, ensure attribution, and respect copyright.”
The deal follows a series of AI-focused partnerships from Universal, including collaborations with Splice and Udio.
The post Universal Music Group and NVIDIA’s new partnership aims to be a “direct antidote to generic AI slop” appeared first on MusicTech.

Universal Audio Volt 876 review: All the punch of an Apollo but with a friendlier price tag£860, uaudio.com
In addition to its coveted Apollo family of high-end audio interfaces, Universal Audio also makes the Volt series, a key difference being that the Apollo has onboard DSP for running UAD’s plugins with zero latency, whereas the Volt does not. Instead, it relies upon analogue circuitry to add character to your recordings.

READ MORE: Audient’s ORIA Mini review: A giant leap for hardware-hosted room EQ and monitor control

There are seven members of the Volt family, six of which are portable. The 876 is the newest and largest, a 1U rack mount module with 24 ins and 28 outs that, like its siblings, uses USB-C for audio, but requires mains power. At £860, it costs significantly less than the larger Apollo units, which start at £2,200, but it aims to cover all the basic recording needs of a modest studio.
You will need to register the hardware online and download the UA Connect app from where you manage all your UAD hardware and software licenses. It’s compatible with Pads and iPhones and while it’s not clear how many people would be hooking their phone up to a device like this, there are serious DAWs like Cubasis and Logic Pro for iPad, so that’s a more likely use case. Sadly, though, there’s no Console app for iOS. The setup process is pretty straightforward, though the UA Connect app could make things a little clearer by separating your bundled plugins and software from those available in the shop. At present, you have to hunt around to find things sometimes.
Image: Press
Your purchase gets you several software downloads, including LUNA, UA’s own DAW, which does have some features specific to Volt 876, such as Assistive Auto Gain for listening and optimising input levels, and full session recall with the UA Console app, which lets you control and manage the interface from your computer. You also get the UAD Producer Suite of plugins — 12 quality mix processors, including the Teletronix LA-2A Tube Compressor, UA 1176 Classic FET Compressor, and Pultec Passive EQ Collection, as well as the PolyMAX Synth. The plugs that UA throws in are excellent workhorse mix tools that we found ourselves using regularly; the fact they run inside your computer make things more flexible when working on the move, away from the interface.
There are eight physical combo mic/line XLR inputs – two on the front for quick access and six on the rear. Also around back are six line outs, a stereo monitor out with the flexibility to hook up two pairs of speakers for main and alt monitoring, word clock I/O and full-size 5-pin DIN MIDI I/O. Additionally, two separate ADAT optical in/outs add 16 channels of digital audio to or from another audio device and this feature also enables you to chain up to three 876s together or to add the unit’s preamp channels to another interface by connecting them together using standalone ADAT mode. The interface uses 32-bit, 192 kHz converters, and the sample rate can be switched from either the Console app or the hardware front panel. It feels like UA has really thought about the I/O selection here, covering the needs of users from a small home recording setup to a more comprehensive setup with, for example, two pairs of monitors and extra channels coming in over ADAT.
Eight-channel select buttons let you choose your channel, then for each one you can activate phantom power, set gain, invert polarity for multi-mic phase alignment, toggle high-impedance instrument input mode and activate the compressor. To the right, you can activate direct monitoring via the two separate headphone outputs, talkback through the built-in microphone, switch between two pairs of speakers, main and alt, choose clock mode, and monitor levels via the level meters. It’s nice to be able to access the vast majority of these things from the hardware as well as the software control panel, giving you the choice to be more hands-on with your gear or alternatively more attached to your computer. For all its flexibility, the unit manages to be easy to understand.
Image: Press
The 876 is so named because its eight analogue input channels each contain a vintage preamp and a compressor inspired by UA’s iconic 610 tube channel strip and 1176 limiter. Introducing these effects at the recording stage means they are glued onto the sound rather than applied virtually and are more akin to a traditional way of recording through hardware. Integrating them into the circuitry of the interface means it’s an incredibly efficient way to add character to your takes, should you wish.
Vintage mode, when active, adds an analogue tube preamp emulation inspired by UA’s own 610 console, and this creates a subtle richness in anything you pass through it. The 76 compressor, on the other hand, based on the 1176 FET limiting amplifier, has different modes for Vocals, Guitar and Fast, which are all approximately a 6:1 ratio, fixed threshold compressors, with varying attack and release times for each mode.
It seems almost superfluous to say that the recordings I make with the 876 sound good – you’d expect nothing less from UA. I instantly appreciate the subtle yet noticeable character that the vintage and compressor stages add to my sounds, and decide to leave them switched on pretty much all the time. The ‘clean’ takes sound crystal clear, of course, but I particularly like what the processors bring to the table. The colouration is subtle, of course — we’re not talking crazy effects here — but they add a sense of coherence and warmth to recordings in a way that I had hoped they would before I started my tests.
Image: Press
As far as usability is concerned, once you’ve looked around a bit, the UAD system swiftly becomes familiar. If the unit is close at hand, it’s as easy to make settings on the front panel as it is using the software control panel – this will just depend on how your studio is set up. The LUNA DAW, which is included, is a solid system with some handy features specific to UAD’s hardware. In our review, we gave LUNA an 8/10, praising its forward-thinking features. The Console app also features the auto gain capability if you happen to be using a different DAW.
The Volt 876 is an excellent centrepiece for your recording setup. With sufficient physical channels for small to medium-sized studios, it can add more via its dual optical channels, sync via word clock and connect your MIDI gear. Dual sets of headphone and speaker outs mean flexible monitoring options, with easy control of everything from the front panel. The cost is higher than the Focusrite Scarlett 18i20, for example, available at £649 with slightly fewer ins and outs, and the Volt 867 adds UAD’s plugins and unique compressor and preamp models. Its design feels broadly better suited to recording bands and instruments than, say, a bunch of synths – taking advantage of the way its processors shape real instruments and vocals. That said, it will cope with more or less whatever you throw at it.
The built-in vintage and compressor tools add a welcome punch and clarity to your recordings, while the bundled plugins expand your toolset with some genuinely useful processors.
Despite the wealth of features, UAD has kept the workflow manageable and the system easy to learn and use. Clearly, it’s designed to live in a studio — the other Volts are portable if that’s what you need — and though it lacks the DSP of the Apollo family, it’s also significantly more affordable.
For many producers, the 876 will cover all your recording needs without breaking the bank.

Key features

24 in / 28 out USB audio interface
8 mic/line inputs (with instrument option on Inputs 1-2)
8 line outs
2 stereo headphone amplifiers
32-bit / 192 kHz conversion
Vintage 610 mic preamp mode on every channel
UA 76 analogue FET compressor on every channel
Digitally-controlled mic preamps with Assistive Auto-Gain
Dual ADAT I/O ports for digital expansion or linking of up to three Volt 876 interfaces
Onboard talkback mic
Zero-latency direct monitoring
UAD Producer Suite software bundle

The post Universal Audio Volt 876 review: All the punch of an Apollo but with a friendlier price tag appeared first on MusicTech.