Novation update FL Key firmware The latest FLkey firmware delivers improved plug-in and virtual instrument control in FL Studio as well as introducing some general functionality improvements.

Mining company TeraWulf pays off outstanding debt earlyThe payment will allow the company to focus on scaling operations rather than keeping up with debt obligations in the post-halving environment.

NovoNutrients tweaks its bugs to turn CO2 into protein for people and petsNovoNutrients has raised a $18 million Series A round from investors to build a pilot-scale facility to prove that its fermentation process works at scale.
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Building A Cassette Deck Controller To Save a Locked Out Car StereoCars have had DRM-like measures for longer than you might think. Go back to the 1990s, and coded cassette decks were a common way to stop thieves being able to use stolen stereos. Sadly, they became useless if you ever lost the code. [Simon] had found a deck in great condition that was locked out, so he set about building his own controller for it. 
The build relies on the cassette transport of a car stereo and a VFD display, but everything else was laced together by Simon. It’s a play-only setup, with no record, seeing as its based on an automotive unit. [Simon]’s write up explains how he reverse engineered the transport, figuring out how the motors and position sensors worked to control the playback of a cassette.
[Simon] used an Atmega microcontroller as the brains of the operation, which reads the buttons of the original deck via an ADC pin to save I/O for other tasks. The chip also drives the VFD display for user feedback, and handles auto reverse too. The latter is thanks to the transport’s inbuilt light barriers, which detect the tape’s current status. On the audio side, [Simon] whipped up his own head amplifier to process the signal from the tape head itself.
Fundamentally, it’s a basic build, but it does work. We’ve seen other DIY tape decks before, too. There’s something about this format that simply refuses to die. The fans just won’t let Compact Cassette go down without a fight. Video after the break.

ASCAP Empowers Music Creators to Vote in Major Election YearThe American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) today announces the launch of the 2024 ASCAP Citizen campaign. Powered by nonpartisan, nonprofit voter registration organization HeadCount, ASCAP Citizen encourages ASCAP’s more than one million songwriter, composer and music publisher members and their communities to make their voices heard in this year’s elections.

As the congressional debate around artificial intelligence regulation intensifies, the 2024 ASCAP Citizen campaign focuses on why voting is important for ASCAP members, emphasizing the direct impact policy can have on a music creators’ ability to make a living. This year’s campaign kicks off earlier than ever, on July 9, and will run through Election Day on November 5.

The campaign launches with a video featuring ASCAP members Leon Thomas (“Snooze,” SZA), Madison Love ("Bad Things,” Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello), Jimmy Jam (“What Have You Done for Me Lately,” Janet Jackson), Marcus Miller (“Jump to It,” Aretha Franklin), Siddhartha Khosla (Only Murders in the Building), Joe Ragosta ("Need a Favor,” Jelly Roll), Akil “worldwidefresh” King (“BLACK PARADE,” Beyoncé), Amanda “Kiddo A.I.” Ibanez (“Calm Down,” Rema & Selena Gomez), René G. Boscio (The Watchful Eye), Amanda Jones (Moving On), Jaren Johnston (“Take Me to the Bottom,” The Cadillac Three)and Georgia Middleman (“I’m In,” Keith Urban)sharing why it’s critical for music creators to participate in the democratic process, and sending the message to elected officials that music creators vote. 

Throughout the campaign, @ASCAP social media channels will feature educational content and personal messages about the importance of voting from ASCAP members across every genre. The initial list includes LENA ("Tu Corazón”), Blu June (“CUFF IT,” Beyoncé), Pinar Toprak (Captain Marvel), 310babii (“Soak City (Do It)”) and more. ASCAP will also amplify “get out the vote” messages from other top ASCAP creators partnered with HeadCount including Olivia Rodrigo, Alicia Keys and Kehlani.

“Whether it is protecting creators’ rights through copyright law or new artificial intelligence regulations, policy directly impacts our members’ livelihoods. It’s vital for music creators to stay engaged with democracy and that starts with voting,” explained ASCAP CEO Elizabeth Matthews. “It’s time to show elected officials that they should listen to more than just our members’ songs, because music creators vote.”

"We're thrilled to continue our partnership with ASCAP to empower music creators and their communities to vote in the upcoming elections. ASCAP Citizen embraces music’s power to bring people together – and music creators’ power as advocates for making our voices heard," said Lucille Wenegieme, Executive Director of HeadCount.

For the third election year in a row, ASCAP is an official partner of National Voter Registration Day on September 17. ASCAP Citizen will engage in online and on-the-ground grassroots voter registration mobilization throughout the summer and fall, and will shift to get-out-the-vote efforts in the days leading up to Election Day, including early voting efforts for Vote Early Day on October 29.

Starting today, anyone can visit www.headcount.org/ascap to register to vote, verify or update their voter registration status and view their local ballot.

More information about ASCAP Citizen can be found at www.ascap.com/citizen.The post ASCAP Empowers Music Creators to Vote in Major Election Year first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Hackable Ham Radio Gives Up Its Mechanical SecretsReverse-engineered schematics are de rigeur around these parts, largely because they’re often the key to very cool hardware hacks. We don’t get to see many mechanical reverse-engineering efforts, though, which is a pity because electronic hacks often literally don’t stand on their own. That’s why these reverse-engineered mechanical diagrams of the Quansheng UV-K5 portable amateur radio transceiver really caught our eye.
Part of the reason for the dearth of mechanical diagrams for devices, even one as electrically and computationally hackable as the UV-K5, is that mechanical diagrams are a lot less abstract than a schematic or even firmware. Luckily, this fact didn’t daunt [mdlougheed] from putting a stripped-down UV-K5 under a camera for a series of images to gather the raw data needed by photogrammetry package RealityCapture. The point cloud was thoughtfully scaled to match the dimensions of the radio’s reverse-engineered PC board, so the two models can work together.
The results are pretty impressive, especially for a first effort, and should make electromechanical modifications to the radio all the easier to accomplish. Hats off to [mdlougheed] for the good work, and let the mechanical hacks begin.

Techivation's free T-De-Esser 2 plug-in Techivation's latest free plug-in provides users with a simple and intuitive de-esser that promises to maintain a natural, musical sound. 

Streaming fraud costs the global music industry $2bn a year, according to Beatdapp. Now it’s partnering with Beatport to combat the trend“Suspicious activity has been on the rise in recent months," Beatport's Chief Revenue Officer says
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FL Studio 2024 welcomes new plugins, AI tools and expands FL Cloud libraryFL Studio 2024 is here. Image-Line’s latest FL upgrade is rammed with new features, both for FL Cloud subscribers and non-members alike. With new AI tools, synth plugins, and an increased library of instruments and effects, FL Studio 2024 is pretty mega.

READ MORE: Best plugins for music producers in all genres, styles and workflows

Firstly, FL Studio has embraced the current trend of AI-powered tool. The latest update introduces an AI-based Chord Progression Tool, allowing both musical novices and masters to produce versatile chord progressions. The tool can create unique progressions from genre or mood prompts, or users can provide a melody to work from.
AI will also be assisting the Edison Declipper tool, allowing it to remove noise and vocals from a track with more accuracy. FL Cloud Mastering has also had an AI makeover, allowing more user customisation thanks to AI-powered tools. Users will benefit from enhanced bass and EQ control, to optional compression switches, to low and high frequency exciters, and more.
Alongside the AI tools, FL Studio 2024 will also introduce a shiny new synth. Kepler Exo is heavily inspired by the sound of the 80s, inspired by the Roland Juno-6 and Jupiter-8. However, with its dual-oscillators and 16-slot modulation matrix, the synth adds a futuristic twist to bring it into the here and now. It also comes with five built in effects, including a vintage chorus effect.
In terms of effects, FL Studio 2024 welcomes two new effects plugins. The Low Lifter plugin creates harmonics from sub and low frequencies, while the Spreader plugin will allow stereo widening.
The update will also introduce support the CLAP plugin format (Clever Audio Plug-in).
Elsewhere, paying FL Clouds members will have access to a whole new selection of virtual instruments and plugins. Subscribers on FL Studio’s top tier Plus plan will be able to access a total of 69 plugins from the likes of Native Instruments, Minimal Audio, UVI and more.
“It’s incredibly exciting to see more people than ever before experimenting with audio and getting into music making,” says Constantin Koehncke, CEO of Image-Line. “With the release of FL Studio 2024, we continue to build on our mission to provide all music makers at all stages of experience with everything they need to be creative.”
FL Studio 2024 is available now as a free update for existing FL Studio customers. FL Cloud is available for free, but can be upgraded to Pro and Plus levels. New customers can take advantage of an introductory offer of $99.99 for 12 months of FL Cloud Pro.
The post FL Studio 2024 welcomes new plugins, AI tools and expands FL Cloud library appeared first on MusicTech.

ONErpm has 550 employees and 40 offices globally… and it’s still 100% owned by its founderThe founder of ONErpm is aiming to build the world's fifth largest music company – without the help of outside investors
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Sign letter to Congress supporting today’s Fix The Tix Day of Action!Today, Tuesday, July 9, is the Fix The Tix coalition's official Day Of Action harnessing the voices of artists and fans to push Congress to fight ticket scalpers and finally pass comprehensive ticketing reform.
The post Sign letter to Congress supporting today’s Fix The Tix Day of Action! appeared first on Hypebot.

Understanding 3 Sizes of CD Cover Art + Tips to create Great CoversThis guide teaches the various dimensions and guidelines for creating CD album covers that meet industry standards.
The post Understanding 3 Sizes of CD Cover Art + Tips to create Great Covers appeared first on Hypebot.

Cardi B sued for $50 million over copyright infringementCardi B is being sued by production duo Kemika1956, who allege copyright infringement on her recent track Enough (Miami).
According to court documents accessed by TMZ Hip Hop, Joshua Frausto and Miguel Aguilar of Kemika1956 believe Cardi B’s latest single features stolen samples from their track Greasy Frybread, which featured in the FX series Reservation Dogs back in 2021.

READ MORE: Travis Scott lawyers file to dismiss uncleared sample lawsuit

Enough (Miami) peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was named one of Rolling Stone‘s Best Songs of 2024 So Far. However, Kemika1956 are arguing that the track’s magic and success is thanks to their own work.

The duo filed the $50 million lawsuit in a Texas federal court on Wednesday. Elsewhere in the documents, Frausto and Aguilar also name producers OG Parker and DJ SwanQo. The companies Atlantic Records and Warner Music Group are also named.
According to Billboard, attorneys claim Cardi B’s sampling has resulted in ‘substantial damages’ in terms of economic impact and their artistic reputation.
“This civil action seeks damages and injunctive relief for multiple claims including copyright infringement, vicarious infringement, contributory infringement, unfair competition, and misappropriation,” the suit reads.
Fraustro and Aguilar are also seeking a temporary restraining order on the track. The suit also aims to destroy all physical copies of the track, which would impact Cardi B’s upcoming release of the single as a 7 inch vinyl at the end of July.
This isn’t the first time Cardi B has been taken to the courts over such claims. Back in 2023, Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion beat a copyright lawsuit over lyrics in their global hit WAP.
“The lyrics over which plaintiff asserts copyright protection are no more than common phrases, employed frequently in popular culture and other hip-hop songs,” U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter wrote at the time [via Bilboard].

The post Cardi B sued for $50 million over copyright infringement appeared first on MusicTech.

How every musician can be more eco-friendly and sustainableExplore effective strategies and practical tips for independent musicians who want to adopt eco-friendly and sustainable practices, including sustainable touring, green studio setups, and more.
The post How every musician can be more eco-friendly and sustainable appeared first on Hypebot.

GForce launch Oberheim OB-1 soft synth GForce Software’s latest software instrument recreates the world’s first programmable monophonic synthesizer, the Oberheim OB-1.