Why did Netflix back down from its deal to acquire Warner Bros.?Netflix's co-CEO reportedly told Trump, "I took your advice."

Running a Desktop PC off AA Alkaline CellsEveryone is probably familiar with the concept of battery-powered devices, but generally, this involves a laptop with a beefy battery pack and hardware optimized for low power draw. You could also do the complete opposite and try to run a desktop PC off alkaline AA cells, as [ScuffedBits] recently did out of morbid curiosity. Exactly how many alkaline cells does it take to run a desktop PC for any reasonable amount of time?
One nice thing about using batteries with a desktop PC is that you can ditch the entire AC-DC power conversion step and instead use a DC-DC adapter like the well-known PicoATX and its many clones. These just take in 12 VDC and tend to have a fairly wide input voltage range, which is useful when your batteries begin to run out of juice. In this case, just above 10 VDC seemed to be the cut-off point for the used DC-DC adapter.
In the end, [ScuffedBits] used what looks like 56 alkaline AA cells connected in both parallel and series, along with two series-connected 6,800 µF, 40V electrolytic capacitors to buffer the spikes in power demand, after early experiments showed that the cells just cannot provide power that quickly. Although admittedly, the initial thin wiring didn’t help either. With alkaline rather than carbon AA cells, improved wiring, and some buffer capacitors, it turns out that you can indeed run a desktop PC off AA cells, if only just about long enough for a small game of Minesweeper.
Amusingly, the small LCD monitor used in the experiment drew so little power that it happily ran on eight NiMH cells for much longer, highlighting just how important power conservation is for battery-powered devices. We wonder if you could marry this project to a battery project we saw and end up with something practically portable?

Tracktion introduce Dawsome’s Love 2 The latest version of Dawesome’s acclaimed sound-shaping instrument has just been added to the Tracktion line-up, offering a new and improved way to turn any sound source into “shimmer, texture and atmosphere”. 

How Jeff Waye and Patrick Curley built Third Side Music into an indie publishing powerhouse with USD $25M in annual revenuesMBW's Trailblazers meets Jeff Waye, Co-Founder and COO, and Patrick Curley, Co-Founder, President and CEO, of independent publisher Third Side Music
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Bitcoin price slump versus gold’s gains highlights evolving crypto marketInvestors’ risk appetite for Bitcoin and crypto fragmented as AI, tech stocks and gold took center stage. Will increasing global money supply put wind in BTC’s sails?

Mixed Notes March 2026: Hotel Fiction, Holly Humberstone, Katie Tupper, and MoreHOTEL FICTION RELEASE DELUXE VERSION OF 2024 ALBUM STARING AT THE SUN 

Hotel Fiction, the indie project of Athens, GA-based duo Jade Ireland Long and Jess Thompson, released their sophomore album Staring at the Sunin 2024, and now, the band has shared the album’s deluxe version, featuring four never before heard tracks. On the deluxe version, Hotel Fiction pulls back the curtain on the early years of their singular creative partnership, crystallizing the first phase of their music as they prepare to move into the next.

ADRIATIQUE JOINS FORCES WITH YUBIK AND VINCENT VOSSEN ON MELODIC HOUSE/TECHNO TRACK “NEVER ALONE”

Adriatique explores fresh artistic territory for their latest club record “Never Alone,” a three-way production with rising melodic maestro Yubik, and emotional genre-blender Vincent Vossen. “Never Alone” is the first of many new tracks to come from the pair moving into 2026.

POP STAR NAÏKA RELEASES HIGHLY ANTICIPATED DEBUT ALBUM ECLESIA 

French-Haitian singer and global pop artist Naïka returns with her highly anticipated debut album ECLESIA, a project deeply rooted in community, self-reflection, identity, and spiritual clarity. In support of the album, Naïka is bringing ECLESIA to the stage on an almost sold-outinternationaltour across Europe and North America, marking her largest global run to date.

GEN Z ALT POWERHOUSE LIA PAPPAS-KEMPS SET TO RELEASE DEBUT ALBUM WINGED

Following the release of her single “Towers,” alt singer-songwriter Lia Pappas-Kemps is set to release her debutalbumWinged on March 13. Acting as a continuation of the Toronto-basedmusician’s intimate, emotionally textured sound, it’s the kind of close-to-the-bone storytelling that makes her a new voice to watch in 2026.

KATIE TUPPER RELEASES DEBUT ALBUM, GREYHOUND, ANNOUNCES HEADLINE TOUR DATES IN NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE

Katie Tupper has released her debut album Greyhound via Arts&Crafts. The record is about the instinct to chase—fleeting desires, guaranteed mistakes, the feeling of home, love in all its shapes and forms. Born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Greyhound will bring the prairie roots of Tupper’s past to meet the blended and expanded worldview of her present. Kicking off in May, Tupper will embark on a headline world tour. Making stops across the U.S., Canada, and Europe, Greyhound will take on a new form for audiences across the globe.

GIRL TONES JOIN AMAZON MUSIC'S LIST OF ARTISTS TO WATCH, FORGE AHEAD INTO 2026

After releasing their first single of the year titled “Volcano,” Girl Tones, the high-energy rock duo brought to life by sisters Kenzie and Laila, are currently on the road with supporting Peter McPoland on tour before stepping up as a Showcasting Artist at SXSW. The duo was also has also joined Amazon Music’s list of Artists to Watch in 2026, joining peers like Fcukers, Florence Road, Folk Bitch Trio, and NewDad.

HOLLY HUMBERSTONE SET TO RELEASE SECOND STUDIO ALBUM CRUEL WORLD ON APRIL 10 VIA INTERSCOPE RECORDS

HollyHumberstone’s forthcoming release of her highly anticipated sophomore album, Cruel World, is due on April 10via Interscope Records. Cruel World was written with a new discipline through daily studio sessions with collaborator RobMilton and draws deeply on love (romantic, platonic, and feminine). Looking ahead, Humberstone will perform in Europe for a run of intimate headline dates, tour in the U.K. this spring, and is set to make major festival appearances at Coachella, Governors Ball, and Bonnaroo.The post Mixed Notes March 2026: Hotel Fiction, Holly Humberstone, Katie Tupper, and More first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Pentagon moves to designate Anthropic as a supply-chain risk"We don't need it, we don't want it, and will not do business with them again," the president wrote in the post.

Vessel Audio Seismic Engine VSTShatter the Ground with Seismic Engine. By Vessel Audio. Stop settling for thin, lifeless low-end. Seismic Engine is a precision-engineered bass. workstation designed to deliver the raw power and tectonic weight your tracks deserve. Whether. you need a subtle foundational layer or an aggressive, floor-shaking lead, Seismic Engine gives. you the tools to mold the perfect low-end. With an intuitive interface and a legendary sound library, this isn't just another Bass VST Plugin. —it's the heartbeat of your production. Master Your Low-End. Total control is at your fingertips. Seismic Engine bypasses the "menu diving" of complex synths, giving you high-performance knobs for the parameters that actually matter: • Precision ADSR: Sculpt the perfect "thump". Tighten up your 808s for fast-paced drill or let. them breathe with long, cinematic decays. • Tune: Effortlessly lock you're bass into the key of your track for maximum harmonic impact. • Stereo Panning: Create movement and space without losing the core power of your mono. compatibility. Included: The "All Trap Legends" (ATL) Expansion. We didn't just give you a plugin; we gave you the blueprint for the modern Trap sound. The ATL. Expansion Pack is pre-loaded with 35+ high-octane presets inspired by the titans of the. Atlanta sound: • Southside (808 Mafia) & Metro Boomin: Dark, cinematic, and menacing 808's. • Shawty Redd & D. Rich: The gritty, classic "Trap God" foundations. • DJ Spinz: Iconic, punchy 808s that cut through any mix. Why Seismic Engine? "In modern production, the bass isn't just an instrument—it's the energy. Seismic Engine was. built to ensure that energy is never lost in translation." • 35+ Professional Presets: From distorted monsters to smooth sub-basses. • CPU Efficient: Run multiple instances without lagging your session. • Instant Inspiration: Designed for producers who want to spend less time tweaking and more. time creating. Ready to move the earth? Add Seismic Engine to your toolkit and bring the sound of the. legends to your DAW. Read More

What is MIDI in music (and how do you use it)?
Learn about what MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is, its unique history, and how to use it as a powerful tool for making music.

Video Game Archive Myrient to Shut Down on March 31Recently the Myrient game video archive announced that they’re shutting down on March 31st of this year, for a couple of reasons, but primarily the skyrocketing financial costs of hosting the archive. One advantage of Myrient over e.g. Archive.org is that – per the FAQ – every game on the site is curated and checked against a checksum of a known good copy. The site also focuses on fast downloads, making it a good resource if you’re trying to find ROMs of some more obscure old gaming system.
Amidst the mourning it seems also pertinent to address the reasons behind this shutdown. Although finances are the main reason for this hobby project to be shut down, it’s due to (paywalled) download managers that  have recently appeared, and which completely bypass the donation requests and similar on the website. Despite use of Myrient for commercial, for-profit purposes having always been explicitly forbidden, this has been ignored to the point where the owner of Myrient had to shell out over $6,000 per month to cover the difference after donations.
Along with the rising costs of hosting due to rising storage and RAM prices courtesy of AI datacenter buildouts, this has meant that a hobby archive like this has become completely unsustainable. Barring good ways to block illegal traffic like these download tools and/or a surge in donations, it would seem that all archives like this are at risk of shutting down, along with other sites that contain commercially interesting content.

Reservoir receives unsolicited $1.2B bid from activist investor Irenic Capital (report)Reservoir's shares jumped as much as 15% on Thursday (February 26) following the report.
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Lewitt reveal the MTP 5 The latest mic to join the Lewitt line-up is said to offer exceptional sound quality, enhanced durability and high feedback resistance, all without breaking the bank. 

“If you look at Prince and Nile Rodgers, a lot of their playing is direct into the console”: Why Cory Wong doesn’t need a complex setup to create great recordingsCory Wong has built his reputation primarily as a formidable guitar player – both as a solo artist and alongside others like Vulfpeck. But as he tells MusicTech in a new interview, his latest album, Lost In The Wonder arrives to showcase, primarily, his production chops.
“A lot of people know me as a guitar player – and rightfully so – because I’m a guitar guy!” he says. “But with this album, I wanted to really showcase a lot more of my songwriting, my production and my arranging.”
Lost In The Wonder was recorded mostly at Minneapolis facility Creation Audio alongside producer John Fields – and as he explains, his philosophy towards gear was kept basic.

READ MORE: The best free and paid-for plugins you need to know about this week

“I don’t need them to have fancy outboard gear,” he says. “I track into a Universal Audio Apollo, just using the internal preamps, you know, just one rack space. I don’t need a whole rack of extra gear. If you have that, cool! But just get me the good sounds. I don’t care as long as the sounds are good.”
He continues: “Because the musician and the decisions that they make is going to be the most compelling thing. How can you capture the essence of that? How can you capture that in the most pure way?
“A lot of times, for my guitar, it’s just plugging directly into the console. If you listen to a lot of the early Prince rhythm guitar stuff, or a lot of the Nile Rodgers guitar stuff, that’s what a lot of that is. Direct into the console.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Wong notes the meticulous process of perfecting his signature Archetype plugin with leading guitar modelling brand Neural DSP.
“I was like, ‘The only way this thing goes out is if I am 100% satisfied, and if you are 100% satisfied,” Wong recalls telling Neural.
“They sent me version one, and it was pretty good. And we made revisions. By version five, I was still like, not yet. It is great, but I don’t plug into it right now and think, ‘I have to use this for everything’. So we got to, like, version nine!”
You can read the full interview with Cory Wong via MusicTech. And check out Lost in the Wonder’s title track – with Benny Sings – below:

The post “If you look at Prince and Nile Rodgers, a lot of their playing is direct into the console”: Why Cory Wong doesn’t need a complex setup to create great recordings appeared first on MusicTech.

Get Octapus by CARP Audio for FREE this weekend only
CARP Audio is offering Octapus, its octave effect plugin, for free for a limited time. The offer expires in 48 hours, and the exact expiry time depends on your timezone, so download it as soon as possible if you want to grab it for free. It normally retails at €29.95. Octapus is an octaver with [...]
View post: Get Octapus by CARP Audio for FREE this weekend only

Final continues to challenge the limitations of closed-back headphone design with its new DX4000CL modelThough ubiquitous, closed-back headphones present a number of limitations, including a heavier emphasis on the low-end and limited sound staging due to more sound waves bouncing off the closed-cup design.
Final’s DX series challenges these drawbacks of closed-back headphones, and with its new DX4000CL model, the Japanese audiophile brand continues its philosophy to provide a more “open and resolving presentation” while offering a closed-back design.

READ MORE: Arturia’s KeyStep 37 mk2 brings new generative tools to assist with forming musical ideas

Sitting between the series’ existing DX3000CL and flagship DX6000CL models, the DX4000CL features an all-new dynamic driver and refined acoustic design, meaning “cleaner, clearer presentation”, with “exceptional control across the entire frequency range”.
“Bass is articulate and disciplined, supporting the music without overshadowing it,” Final says.
This new dynamic driver is engineered for precise diaphragm movement and optimised airflow control, resulting in more accurate low-frequency reproduction and an overall balance which is “natural and refined”.
Credit: Final
Their refined internal acoustic design has been “meticulously tuned” for the suppression of undesired resonance, while preserving clarity and ensuring complex musical passages remain “well separated”.
“This refined engineering underpins the DX4000CL’s richly textured presentation and its ability to maintain neutrality without sacrificing emotional engagement,” Final says.
Elsewhere, the DX4000CL features a silver-coated cable, which is designed to aid signal transmission for “greater clarity and texture”.
The headphones are on the heavier end of the scale, coming in at 375g, but they should feel quite comfortable thanks to its resin housing and memory foam earpads, cased in synthetic leather. And they’re built to last – Final has ensured the earpads are easily replaceable if they wear down.
The DX4000CL headphones are available now for £949. For more information, head to Final.
Credit: Final
The post Final continues to challenge the limitations of closed-back headphone design with its new DX4000CL model appeared first on MusicTech.