Reviews
Flaus Electric Flosser Review: The Perfect Flosser For People Who Loathe Flossing
Derek Oswald
Welcome to our Home & Wellness section. In 2026, the ALT in Altwire becomes Audio, Living & Tech. I must say, I never expected I’d be reviewing an electronic flosser on Altwire. But honestly, ...
Groove Synthesis 3rd Wave 8M Review: All That You Loved About The OG PPG, Plus A Whole Lot More
Derek Oswald
When Bob Coover first pitched me on the 3rd Wave 8M in mid-September 2025, he said something I probably filed under sales optimism at first: “You can make any sound you want with this ...
Blipblox myTRACKS Review: A $349 Groovebox That Helps Children’s Music Creation Feel Like Magic
Derek Oswald
Fifteen minutes after the Blipblox myTRACKS arrived at my doorstep, I had it sitting on the desk with the built-in speaker pointed toward the ceiling. Then I hit the RNDM button for the first ...
I Bought My First Moog for $550. Kulshan Studios Turned It Into an Electronic Music Gem
Derek Oswald
Disclaimer: Kulshan Studios sent me the preset packs for this review, but had no editorial control over the final piece. A clean Subsequent 25 popped up on Facebook Marketplace for $550. Honestly, I probably ...
Hardstyle Producers, Stop Fighting Generic Plugins: Lussive Audio Builds Tools for Brutal Kicks and Basslines
Derek Oswald
Most music software companies don’t pay much attention to hardstyle. They might add a few hard dance presets, throw some distortion on a sound, call it “raw,” and move on. But that’s not the ...
‘Mirrors and Smoke’ (2026): Nicole Alexis’ Immersive, Mournfully Comforting EP
Iceis Augustino
On April 17th, 2026, Nashville’s DIY Alt-Singer-Songwriter Nicole Alexis made listeners aware of her multi-faceted skills, versatility, and rich inner artist world when she released her latest heartfelt, relatable Alt-Acoustic EP, Mirrors and Smoke. ...
Shed Skin’s Hypnotic Techno Ableton Racks Review: Perfect Techno in Ableton Live 12
Derek Oswald
Format: Ableton Live 12 Instrument Racks (Max for Live required). Racks are priced individually on Shed Skin’s Bandcamp Requires: Ableton Live 12 Suite (12.2.1 minimum; newest racks require 12.3.2) LIMITED TIME DISCOUNT: ALTWIRE30 for 30% Off ...
Outerverse.fm – Complete Psytrance Ableton Rack Bundle Review: A 5 Rack Inspiration Machine
Derek Oswald
Developer: outerverse.fm Price (as of 04/20/2026): $103 Format: Direct download, Ableton Live Suite 12.2.1+ required, native devices only It started with FeelYourSound’s Trance Engine. I was working through its options and landed on the dedicated psytrance section, ...
Tentij Instruments ORB MK1 Review: Heavenly Wurlitzer Charm In A Much Smaller Package
Derek Oswald
Unit provided by Tentij Instruments for review. The Tentij Instruments ORB MK1 weighs under 7 pounds and sounds like a 56-pound 1960s Wurlitzer. That sentence shouldn’t make sense, but by God, they’ve done it. ...
Erica Synths x 112db Xenodrive: A Great Effects Box for Industrial and Acid Producers
Derek Oswald
If you want a one sentence takeaway from this review, go no further than this: Erica Synths‘ new Xenodrive can make your synths an industrial workhorse. Xenodrive: Bringing a Synth From a Whimper To ...
Studiologic Numa X Piano GT Review (2026): Studiologic’s Top of The Line Studio Essential
Derek Oswald
I’ve spent the last few weeks learning what it’s like to play a true studio workhorse. American Music & Sound sent this to me on loan, and the experience was fun, if not an ...
Cheerful Electronic OPL Studio Review: A Full OPL3 MIDI Studio In The Palm of Your Hand
Derek Oswald
The moment I pulled the OPL Studio by Cheerful Electronic out of its box, I was hit with a wave of nostalgia. It looks like a handheld toy straight out of the 1990s, a ...
Gamechanger Audio Motor Pedal Review: 2025’s Most Creative Pedal Release
Derek Oswald
A glass window sits on top of the enclosure, revealing a brushed DC motor. Feed in a note, and the pedal’s pitch-tracking system uses that note to drive the motor oscillator. An A4 at ...
No Work On Monday Toolkit Review: A No-Brainer Ableton Rack Collection, That Shouldn’t Be Just $39
Derek Oswald
A significant part of my job involves scrolling Instagram’s explore tab to find products worth covering. A few months back, I kept seeing informative tutorials from the same account. These were short clips about ...
Death By Audio: The Destroyer Series – 3 Small But Mighty Pedals
Derek Oswald
Death By Audio has been hand-building noisy pedals in New York for over twenty years. The Fuzz War is standard-issue in noise rock. The Rooms is one of the most unhinged stereo reverbs you ...
Heavys H1H Review: Finally, Headphones That Respect Rock
Derek Oswald
Full disclosure, I am aware these have been out for several years. However, I kept seeing these pop up on my feed during the holidays, with Instagram videos of people listening at trade shows, ...
Audima Labs The Sway Review: An Entertaining New Take on DJing
Derek Oswald
The Birth of The Sway If you live in Australia, your first introduction to The Sway or Audima Labs may have been on Shark Tank Australia, where many startups get their first spotlight. However, ...
EDMProd Superknobs Ultimate Collection Review: 230+ One Knob Tweaks That Make Your Music Suck Less
Derek Oswald
We received this product from EDMProd complimentary after contacting them to do a review; however, we received no financial compensation for writing this piece. I wanted Superknobs Ultimate for the last stretch. I can ...
Think Like a Synth: 31 Lessons That Finally Made Synthesis Click
Derek Oswald
We received the Think Like a Synth course complimentary from Anthony Marinelli’s team after contacting them to inquire about a review. We have received no financial compensation for this review. I’ve spent years “using” ...
this.is.NOISE.inc Gamma Mini Synth: 90’s 8-Bit Nostaglia In An Always In Tune Synth
Derek Oswald
We received this review unit from this.is.NOISE.inc, however, we have received no financial compensation for this review. Having been a big fan of their MIDI controllers, and the team behind this.is.NOISE in general (they’re ...
