Among pro audio/M.I. events, Frankfurt's Musikmesse/Pro Light+Sound (March 28-31, 2007) takes the prize, with 15 exhibit halls showing gear from 2,400 companies. Coming on the heels of NAMM and NSCA, one could assume this European expo might lose its attraction as a launchpad for new gear, but there were many interesting debuts. Listed alphabetically, here are a few that caught my attention.

The iMultiMix 8 USB from Alesis (www.alesis.com) lets users mix stereo WAV files (16-bit/44.1 kHz) directly to an iPod. Priced at $449, the Mac/Win system includes a dock that supports second- through fifth-generation iPods. The mixer has eight analog inputs (four of which are phantom-powered mic preamps), two instrument inputs, digital effects and 3-band EQ on each channel. Steinberg Cubase LE is included.

Designer John Bowen (www.johnbowen.com), whose past projects include working on Korg's Wavestation and OASYS, as well as classics from Sequential Circuits, teamed with SonicCore GmbH to produce Solaris. This keyboard synth offers an array of sound generators (analog modeling, wavetable and sample playback, among others) and various popular filter types. A pair of vector-synthesis mixers, a host of envelopes and LFOs, an effects section and a knob-filled front panel complete the scene. It's slated for October release, and pricing is estimated around $3,500. Solaris could be a formidable synth once it hits the streets. Keep your eyes (and ears) on this one.

Chandler/EMI (www.chandlerlimited.com) offered more interesting units based on vintage designs found at Abbey Road Studios. The TG12345 Curve Bender ($5,000, plus $160 for the power supply) is a stereo 4-band EQ with highpass and lowpass shelving, a Hold function, a stepped gain control (±10 dB) and a germanium-based line driver you can use with the EQ circuit bypassed.

Digidesign (www.digidesign.com) drew crowds with its next generation of analog and digital I/O recording interfaces bundled with Pro Tools LE software and various instrument/effects plug-ins. Priced at $2,495, the 003 Factory has eight touch-sensitive moving faders, eight motion-sensitive rotary encoders and a jog/shuttle wheel, and it comes with the premium collection of Digidesign and Bomb Factory plug-ins. Two rackmount versions are also offered: The 003 Rack ($1,295) includes the Pro Tools Ignition Pack 2; the 003 Rack Factory ($1,695) ships with the same extended software bundle as the desktop 003 Factory.

Makers of the alpha compressor, elysia (www.elysia.com) introduced the Mpressor ($4,500), a compressor designed for recording and offering settings for extreme dynamics control. The stereo device has balanced analog I/O and sidechain I/O, and includes an Auto-Fast function, an AntiLog release feature and a Max-Reduction function.

The newly launched Equator Audio Research (www.equatoraudio.com) announced its Q Series of powered coaxial reference monitors. Available with 10/12/15-inch woofers, all include software for tuning the system to your room, including Secondary Reflection Correction, which is said to compensate for acoustical obstructions such as consoles and computer monitors. The main monitor connects to your computer via USB, and Cat-5 connections are used between monitors. The Q line is designed to provide accurate playback, no matter what the room conditions, with high-SPL capabilities when needed. I heard the Q12s, and they sounded great.

A new addition to Meyer Sound's (www.meyersound.com) popular UltraSeries, the UPJunior VariO^™ loudspeaker brings the sonic signature, flexible mounting/rigging options and high power-to-size ratio of the award-winning UPJ-1P to a smaller package. The 28-pound, self-powered, two-way enclosure is capable of 126dB peak SPLs from its 8-inch neodymium magnet woofer and 0.75-inch exit/2-inch diaphragm HF compression driver, providing a 65 to 20k Hz response.

Native Instruments (www.native-instruments.com) announced Kore 2, which includes a redesigned interface/controller, a library of 500 KoreSounds and the ability to have eight variations of a sound and morph between them. It's due to ship in June.

Orpheus from Prism Sound (www.prismsound.com) is a FireWire interface with eight analog inputs and outputs, and S/PDIF co-ax/Toslink ports for a total of 18 I/O channels. The interface features four digitally controlled mic preamps, two instrument inputs, two headphone outputs and a Mac/Win application for routing signals and controlling the built-in mixer. ASIO, WDM and Core Audio drivers are supported, as is 5.1 and 7.1 surround capability. It is priced around $5,000.

SPL (www.spl-usa.com) and Tonehunter (www.tonehunter.de) teamed up to create Transducer Model 2601 ($1,500), an analog speaker simulator for recording guitar amps up to 200 watts. The front panel has switches for selecting parameters such as open/closed speaker cabinet, dynamic or condenser mic simulation, speaker voicing and mic distance. The rear panel has a mic preamp output, a pair of line outs and a speaker-thru jack for sending a signal back into your speaker cabinet.

Europe's favorite music/pro audio show returns to Frankfurt next year, March 12-15, 2008. For more coverage of Musikmesse/ProLight+Sound 2007, see Mix's extensive show report at www.mixonline.com.