And this month it's in black and yellow black and yellow black and yellow black and yellow...

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store you can buy the issue online here from the 20th Jan. Check out our list of international stockists here, or you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

And DON'T FORGET the magazine part is ALSO available on Apple's Newsstand here (if you're an iPad or iPhone owner) and Zinio here (if you're more of the desktop and Android persuasion). Yours for just £2.99!

PLUS: FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER this issue comes complete with the ENTIRE set of samples that come on the DVD with the physical mag. So feel free to buy on Apple Newsstand or Zinio and follow the instructions on page 7 to download all the samples!

Working faster than the speed of thought is a necessity for producers today and relying on quality sources of new sounds – be it through great sample libraries, or through the acquisition of new gear – is similarly essential. But with ‘the recipes for success’ becoming ever more defined the temptation to lean a little too hard on third parties and go with the flow is increasingly problematic. Fact is, if you really want to define a sound that really is all your own then you’re going to have to make your own sounds.

Making your own samples is an instant route to originality and, rather than grapple with a manual in pursuit of the perfect sound, that amazing new kick drum could be just a swift kick to a cardboard box away.

This month is our Sample Special. Not only have we got our sample experts to dish the tips in the mag (on page 20) but we’ve also captured their tricks on video for our DVD. Plus help yourself to our biggest sample collection ever. There’s an incredible 5239 samples with this issue and all are available via our exciting new online Vault. Check out page 6 for full details of how to download them.

Just space left to thank D’n’B master Nu:Tone for his great feature and video (page 32) and give massive respect to legend Dave Tipper (page 46) and the red hot Calvin Harris (page 58). What an issue! And want a sneak peek at Nu:Tone's video? Check it out below. Remember, the full version is only available with the DVD with issue 249 of Future Music magazine.

And it looks like this. Awesome, non?

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store you can buy the issue online here, check out our list of international stockists here, or you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

And DON'T FORGET the magazine part is ALSO available on Apple's Newsstand here (if you're an iPad or iPhone owner) and Zinio here (if you're more of the desktop and Android persuasion). Yours for just £2.99!

The appeal of analogue gear shows no sign of abating but so far the world of drums and percussion has had scant chance to get involved. After starting out as drum synths trying (and failing) to sound like real drums, today's drum machines and libraries still primarily focus on making the real sound of something really being hit. Which is why it's so refreshing to try out the Dave Smith Instruments & Roger Linn Tempest. (Bit of a mouthful.)

With a full six-voice DSI synth on board it seems positively rude not to swap out familiar-sounding, heard-it-before drum hits in favour of analogue booms and blips of your own creation. It could be just what your samey rhythm tracks have been looking for.

But getting a better sound needn't be all about splashing the cash on new gear. Our Fix Your Studio feature this month shows you a wealth of simple tips and tweaks that'll make every bit of music you make sound better.

Meanwhile the mag is laden with tutorials for the major DAWs, we've a great feature on creating today's pitch-bent synth sounds on page 50 and we even have the audacity to tackle Michael Jackson's Thriller for this month's Get That Sound. Check the videos on the DVD too!

Finally, thanks the amazing Florian Meindl and genius Boys Noize for both inviting us into their studios this month. We're sure you'll love both. Want a sneak peek at Florian's video. Check it out below.Remember, the full version is only available with the DVD with issue 248 of Future Music magazine!

Look out for this decidedly Christmassy front cover:

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store you can buy the issue online here, check out our list of international stockists here, oror you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

And DON'T FORGET the magazine part is ALSO available on Apple's Newsstand here (if you're an iPad or iPhone owner) and Zinio here (if you're more of the desktop and Android persuasion). Yours for just £2.99!

We'd all like a mixing desk the size of a whale and the flexibility to fill countless tracks with limitless sounds but in reality not all studios are made that way. For years expert engineers have routed and grouped their sounds across costly mixing boards to make mixing a faster more efficient business. And the good news is that thanks to the modern DAW you can quickly and easily emulate these great-sounding, time-saving mix tricks in your home studio.

Our great Routing & Grouping feature will soon have you thinking and mixing like a pro. And as ever, be sure to check out the audio examples on the DVD.

Staying with the expert tuition, be sure to check out our Producing Great Vocals feature. It's packed with simple tricks that'll get your vocal tracks up to today's sky high standards. And our regular Logic, Live and Cubase tips give you the latest techniques to keep you one step ahead of the game.

Don't miss our review of Native Instrument's superb Maschine Mikro and there's just space to thank the brilliant and highly entertaining Dada Life for inviting us into their studio and the remarkable Plaid for doing likewise.

Want a cheeky sneak peak of our Dada Life feature. Check out the latest trailer below. Remember the full version is only available with the DVD with issue 247 of Future Music!

It looks like this. Moody, non?

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store you can buy the issue online here, check out our list of international stockists here, oror you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

And DON'T FORGET the magazine part is ALSO available on Apple's Newsstand here (if you're an iPad or iPhone owner) and Zinio here (if you're more of the desktop and Android persuasion). Yours for just £2.99!

Understanding the science of sound and the very atoms that make up your tunes may sound daunting, but a basic understanding of what's going on when you layer and mix will get you to better results faster.

Check out our Producer's Guide To Harmonics and we guarantee you'll be getting bigger and better tunes finished in record time. Elsewhere in the issue, we've our essential guide to Layering Synths, our usual Logic, Live and Cubase series and your Q&As to heap on the valuable tutorials that come in every issue of FM.

There's just room to thank John Dahlbäck for our brilliant In The Studio With session this month and special mention to superstar Carl Cox and legend Gareth Jones too.

Check out our trailer for John's session here. Don't forget: The full 90 minute lesson packed with advice from John is ONLY available on the DVD which comes with Future Music Magazine issue 246. On sale now!

It's MIA award time again! Once a year The Music Industries Association picks the great and the good from the world of music gear and sends an award their way. And they asked you - the Future Music reader - to help choose the all-important 'Hardware of the Year' winner.

We asked for your votes to help select the Music Industry Association's 'Future Music Music Hardware of the Year'. Those votes have now been used to compile a final shortlist, and the ultimate winner will be announced at the MIA Awards ceremony on the evening of 30 November 2011.

Native Instruments Traktor S4
Moog Slim Phatty
Roland Jupiter-80
Korg Kronos
UAD2 Satellite
Nord Stage 2
Teenage Engineering OP-1
Yamaha Mox 6/8

It's on sale now and it looks like this. Blinding!

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store check out our list of international stockists here, or you can buy the issue online here, or you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

Or get a digital edition of the mag (no disc content, but our words and pages delivered instantly to your desktop or iPad) via our digitial zinio edition here.

Sometimes, despite your better judgement and the impending threat of wasting your valuable time, it's good to make music just for the fun of it. And this month's coverstar, the eagerly awaited Teenage Engineering OP-1, is the perfect way to put your more off-the-wall ideas into practice. Portable, different, and fun, it sounds unique, feels superb and makes you smile. But above all, it makes you make music that would otherwise have not existed. Check out our exclusive review on and – as ever – our audio examples of its many features in action on our DVD.

Alongside a wealth of great new gear this month (respect to NI's Komplete 8 Ultimate, the PreSonus Studiolive 16.0.2 and Event's new 20/20BAS) we've a perfect duo of tutorial features this month. We get Fatter, Thicker and Lusher and make Bigger and Better Drums too.

And special thanks to star producer Avicii for his brilliant In The Studio With (don't miss his 60-minute video on DVD) and legend Andy Barlow of Lamb for giving us the story behind their unmistakable sound.

Read, listen and watch FM and we're sure that you'll be ready to make your own great new music. And here's a pair of trailers for our exclusive Avicii session to get you in the mood!

Short and sweet version:

Special extended remix:

It's MIA award time again! Once a year The Music Industries Association picks the great and the good from the world of music gear and sends an award their way. And they want you – the Future Music reader – to chose the all-important 'Hardware of the Year' winner.

Below is a shortlist of 20 bits of kits that made us sit up and take notice. All of the below received rave reviews in Future Music and have been selling like hot cakes in stores around the UK.

So which should win 'Hardware of the Year'? You decide. Vote for your favourite kit below (maybe you own one and love it, maybe it's top of your wishlist) and we'll be announcing the winners live from the MIA Awards 2011 ceremony at London's Grosvenor Hotel on the 30th of November.

Thanks for taking part!

We love it when a new truly innovative product comes along. Don't get us wrong, we're all for the next super-synth packed with 'hit making' presets as much as the next producer in a hurry, but when something appears that genuinely stirs the imagination it makes us truly glad to be making Future Music. The Elektron Octatrack is such a product.

Trust us. Until you've seen and heard what it can do – and do on-the-fly with a few simple controls – then you're missing out. Thankfully our massive review of the Elektron this month in Future Music Magazine and audio examples on the DVD will get you most of the way there. Don't miss them!

Plus, be sure to check out our Pro Producer's Guide To Synth Bass which is an exhaustive guide to making and taming the big bass that today's tracks demand. And with 39 audio examples of the techniques in action waiting for you on the disc, we're certain that you'll be making better music because of it. Likewise, our regular Logic, Live and Cubase sections, Knowledge Base regulars and unique Get That Sound feature. No other mag gives you more tutorials and ammo on DVD, all ready for making great music.

Then there's our star producer this month, Steve Mac. His brilliant session on the disc (and his amazing hardware studio) give an insight to his production techniques and gear choices. Plus, all the stems from the track he created exclusively for Future Music in the In The Studio video are also on our DVD for you to break apart and learn from. It's also worth shouting some respect to Ibiza Space Resident, Mat Playford who's state-of-the art DJ rig including iPads, Moogs and more, is certain to inspire and excite. Enjoy!

On sale now. It looks like this! It's blue! Go get it!

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store check out our list of international stockists here, or you can buy the issue online here, or you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

Or get a digital edition of the mag (no disc content, but our words and pages delivered instantly to your desktop or iPad) via our digitial zinio edition here.

Technology has made it possible for a single producer to make an entire track. We can bypass cajoling the bass player into playing your bass part, or cursing the quirks of your drummer but – just like persuading a wayward bunch of musicians into playing along – getting the parts of your track to work together in a mix can be just as troublesome.

Fortunately, there's a powerful weapon we can use. Our Pro Producer's Guide To EQ this issue is all you need to understand and apply the important gifts that your hardware and DAW have given you. When to tweak a little, when to go overboard and – most importantly – to know when to walk away and let the sound do its thing.

Also this issue, watch out for a brilliant In The Studio With French House hero Fred Falke, as he makes an entire track just for you on DVD. And we get in the company of greatness as Adrian Utley of Portishead and Will Gregory of Goldfrapp show us around Will's studio (with video on the DVD, of course).

Just space left to point you at this month's supersynth review – the vast, powerful and amazing-sounding Jupiter-80 – and the hottest Nord yet – the similarly-sizey Stage 2 – gets tested to death inside.

Check out our Fred Falke in the studio teaser trailer here:

Brand new steel + cable issue out in shops today! It looks like this:

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store check out our list of international stockists here, or you can buy the issue online here, or you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

Or get a digital edition of the mag (no disc content, but our words and pages delivered instantly to your desktop or iPad) via our digitial zinio edition here.

Once you would have popped a postcard in the newsagent's window. Next you might have taken a small ad out in the local press. And then you might have given up looking for a drummer altogether and taken that day job after all…

Fortunately for anyone looking to make it in music today, we have a powerful ally in the shape of the Internet. It's time to Get Connected and our feature starting on page 34 spells out the latest amazing cloud-based DAWs and heaps on the social media tricks you need to get hits and… well… hits!

This month we've three amazing In The Studio With sessions for you too. We check in with prolific remix masters Seamus Haji and Paul Emanuel to learn the secrets of their success on page 44, complete with video on DVD. Check out the preview teaser trailer video below!

Next we get the inside track on producing Lady Gaga with high-flying Fernando Garibay (page 58). Then back to the UK (via Sydney, Australia) to meet with one of Dance music's more elusive and enduring legend's Mark Pritchard on page 72.

Our Get That Sound feature on page 76 show you how to achieve those famous, hit-making sounds and our massive Logic, Live and Cubase tutorials bring you the latest techniques each and every month. And remember – don't miss the accompanying video, audio and more on our DVD.

Watch out for our moody blue new issue. It's in stores now!

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store check out our list of international stockists here, or you can buy the issue online here, or you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

Or get a digital edition of the mag (no disc content, but our words and pages delivered instantly to your desktop or iPad) via our digitial zinio edition here.

Whether it's outboard or plug-in, today's music-makers are well aware that a little compression can go a long way to improving your tracks. What's often misunderstood however is that while it's tempting to fling everything into the crusher, some tracks – and many listeners – simply won't thank you for it. Far better to apply a little science and a lot of common sense to use this potentially destructive tool as an altogether more creative force for good.

Step up our Pro Producer's Guide To Compression. We've pulled out all the stops to explain and demystify the art of compression with a view to inspiring you to get more creative and avoid mistakes.

This month we get In The Studio With Joachim Garraud, this one-time collaborator with David Guetta has crafted an amazing live show alongside a string of hit remixes. Don't dare miss the video on DVD for this one – teaser trailer below!

And we wrap up with a wealth of top-scoring great new gear. Special mention to the Korg Kronos supersynth and the stunning Roland GR-55 guitar synth. Let's go make music!

Inside the latest issue you'll find our exclusive review of Korg's monotribe.

For full details of the issue (and where to buy it) click here.

It's no secret that Future Music loved the Korg monotron. The pocket-sized analogue synth was an instant hit on its release last summer, offering classic MS-20 inspired sounds at an absolute bargain price. At the time, many of us suspected that the Japanese synth giants were testing the waters for bigger and better analogue products – after a three-decade hiatus, it always seemed unlikely that Korg would resume development of analogue technology for the sole purpose of selling a £50 pocket synth.

Nearly a year later, our suspicions were confirmed at the recent Frankfurt Musikmesse with the announcement of the monotribe, a brand new analogue groovebox loosely based on the monotron sound engine.

What is it? As the name suggests, the monotribe falls somewhere in between the monotron and Korg's Electribe range of groove sequencers. Korg describe it as an analogue Electribe or a ribbon station, but you could also think of it as a beefed up monotron with a drum section and a built-in sequencer.

The synth section of the monotribe retains all of the monotron's key features, but adds a few excellent new twists to make the sound more versatile. The rhythm section consists of three fully analogue drum sounds – kick, snare and hi-hat – which can also be programmed using the 808-style push-button sequencer.

Want to know more? Check out the full review in the mag.

And check out our exclusive audio examples of it in action below!

It's in shops today. And it looks like this! Moody, non?

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store check out our list of international stockists here, or you can buy the issue online here, or you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

It's brilliant that after spinning us the same 'too expensive' 'too random' and 'too unreliable' yarn for the past 25 years, that a company as hi-tech and future-focused as Korg can have the balls to deliver a brand new piece of genuinely analogue kit.

What had become the pricey preserve of German and American 'boutique' synthesists is now a mass-market, well-built, easy to use product that deserves to sell by the bucketload. They're delivering what people actually want at a price that they're willing to pay. And how often does that happen? Check out our exclusive review of the Korg monotribe in this month's mag!

But it's so much more than great gear that's got us excited this month. Our incredible Low End Theory feature will make you think more deeply about your bass. We're certain that more toned and pleasing bottom ends are just pages away.

Don't miss all the latest kit from the Frankfurt Musikmesse 2011 all over our Filter section. Go discover!

And finally special thanks to Alex Metric for a superb In The Studio With this month – check out his tips and studio on video on our DVD – and respect to the master, Adrian Sherwood for an insight into his 30-year career at the cutting edge.

Want a flavour of Metric's exclusive video? Check out this issue's trailer below. Remember the full version is only available on this month's DVD with the mag!

It's in shops today. And it looks like this!

Remember, if you have any problem finding in a store check out our list of international stockists here, or you can buy the issue online here, or you can subscribe and take advantage of the latest amazing offer here.

We've all been there. You listen to a new track and pride of place is a sound that blows your brains out. And yet it seems that no matter how much you tweak and which envelopes you push (literally) you can never whistle up a tenth of the same impact and originality.

We're not talking about outright cloning tracks here, or passing off work as you're own, but a little insight into how amazing and distinctive sounds are made can be a great jumping off point. We're here to help you construct your own hit sounds, make good on your investment in hardware and software and finally ditch the safety net of the preset.

Our Get That Synth Sound feature on page 32 takes you through the creation of five, distinctive, modern sounds and – more than ever – we implore you to load up our DVD and watch their creation (with voiceovers) on video too.

In fact, there's a triumvirate of synthery this issue with Chromeo's stunning collection laid bare from page 40 and the incredible return of Roland's Jupiter series on page 10.

Add in some superb tips from Tomy DeClerque and the awesome studio of Aeroplane and you've… Wow… Only about half of what this issue has to offer!

Get a taste of the Chromeo action AND Tomy DeClerque hotness in the mag with this issue's trailers below. Yes! Not one but TWO In The Studio With features this month and remember the full versions are only available on this month's DVD with the mag!