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The Syntakt has been one of the worst kept secrets in the music world. But it wasn't until today that the world finally got to see what Elektron's latest groovebox is capable of. It combines the company's legendary sequencer with four analog four analog synth tracks and 10 digital tracks. While the Syntakt is focused primarily on percussion, it's capable of handling bass and melody as well. And, if you're not happy with the internal synth sounds, you can control external gear by switching any of the 12 tracks to be MIDI. Those MIDI tracks by the way are four-note polyphonic

The Syntakt takes an everything and the kitchen sink approach, and borrows a bit of its sound design workflow from previous Elektron instruments like the Machinedrum and Model:Cycles. It starts by selecting a "machine," of which there are 37 spread across the three different core types of synthesis. There are 10 digital synths, 15 analog drum, and 12 analog cymbal machines. Each one is designed to do a specific thing, just like on the Cycles, but the level of control offered here is far greater. 

Each engine also has a specific set of effects and parameters associated with it. The digital tracks each have a digital overdrive, a digital multimode filter and a digital base width filter, in addition to a pair of LFOs. While the analog tracks each have an analog overdrive, an analog multimode filter and a pair of LFOs. There's also an FX track where you can automate an analog overdrive, an analog multimode filter, as well as digital reverb and delay. 

In addition to controlling external gear with the Syntakt's MIDI channels, you can also feed external audio through its master effects, allowing you to treat it as both a master sequencer and a mixer — it can be the brains of an entire performance setup.

The entire thing lives inside the same chassis Elektron uses for its Digitakt and Digitone instruments, which means it's small and portable(ish), but also quite rugged. It weighs just 3.6lbs, but is housed in steel casing.

Of course, all that power and roadworthiness doesn't come cheap. The Syntakt is available now in limited quantities from Elektron and to preorder from select retailers for $999.

Meta is reportedly investigating whether Sheryl Sandberg broke company rules in her dealings with a publication that was reporting on Activision CEO Bobby Kotick, who she was dating at the time. According to a new report in The Wall Street Journal, the Meta COO used company resources to help kill negative reporting about Kotick. Meta is now reportedly conducting a "review" of her actions and “whether she violated the company’s rules.”

According to the report, the British tabloid MailOnline was pursuing a story based on allegations made by a former girlfriend of Kotick’s, and a temporary restraining order she had received against him. But Sandberg and Kotick worked together on two separate occasions, in 2016 and in 2019, to strategize on how to “persuade the Daily Mail not to report on the restraining order.”

The report states that Facebook and Activision staff were both directly involved in the effort, and that there was concern internally at Facebook that the story would “reflect negatively on her reputation as an advocate for women.”

The Wall Street Journal report also questions whether Sandberg inappropriately wielded her influence as Facebook COO in her dealings with the MailOnline management. One of the paper’s unnamed sources states that Kotick “told people that Ms. Sandberg threatened the Mail in 2016 by saying that such an article, if published, could damage the news organization’s business relationship with Facebook.”

In a statement, a Meta spokesperson denied Sandberg had “threatened” MailOnline. “Sheryl Sandberg never threatened the MailOnline’s business relationship with Facebook in order to influence an editorial decision,” the spokesperson said. “This story attempts to make connections that don’t exist.” Kotick told The Journal he “never said anything like that.”

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On November 21st, Trevor Jacob's single-engine airplane fell out of the sky — a harrowing experience that the YouTuber just so happened to catch on film and upload to social media. In January, aviation experts began investigating the incident (as they are wont to do in the event of most every aviation crash) and, on Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration formally accused Jacob of staging the entire incident and intentionally crashing his 1940 Taylorcraft for online clout.

At the time, Jacob, a former Olympic snowboarder, claimed that his plane had malfunctioned, forcing him to bail out and parachute to safely while the aircraft crashed into the Los Padres National Forest in Southern California. However, in a letter dated April 11th, the FAA informed him that he had operated his plane in a “careless or reckless manner so as to endanger the life or property of another,” a violation of aviation regulations. The FAA also revoked his pilot's license effective immediately.

When reached by the New York Times this week, Jacob claimed to not be aware of the April 11 letter but declined to comment, on advice of his attorney. Although the FAA can't actually prosecute anybody for violating regulations, should Jacob fail to surrender his pilot's license he can be held liable for "further legal enforcement action" and fined up to $1,644 a day until he does.

If you thought it was just a matter of time before Psyonix synced up with its parent company Epic Games by adding battle royale to Rocket League... your beliefs were well-founded. Psyonix is introducing a limited-time Knockout Bash mode that drops the usual vehicular soccer in favor of battle royale's familiar last-one-standing mechanic. Eight players try to survive by attacking each other and staying inside an ever-shrinking "Safezone." That will sound more than a little familiar to Fortnite fans, but Rocket League's take includes a few important twists.

Players only leave after they've been knocked out three times, for instance. And don't worry, you won't pick up guns — you instead ram them, block attacks or even toss them across the arena. Hazards like spikes and an underlying laser grid lead to instant knockouts, and the six-minute mark activates a "Sudden KO" phase where attacks are more powerful and leaving the Safezone results in instant death.

Your abilities change, too. You now lock the camera on to rivals rather than the (non-existent) ball. You can jump much faster and for longer, and you'll have both a stronger boost and more dodges at your disposal.

Knockout Bash will be available between April 27th and May 10th, with three maps devoted solely to this free-for-all combat. Twitch viewers will also receive a special player banner if they watch certain Rocket League streamers when the mode launches. It's not certain that Psyonix will revive battle royale at a later date, but we wouldn't be surprised to see a comeback if this event proves successful.

Sennheiser has revealed a set of true wireless earbuds geared toward fitness enthusiasts. It says the Sport True Wireless buds include an Aware EQ passthrough setting that can reduce distracting noises from your own body, such as your heartbeat or footsteps, while helping you stay aware of your surroundings. That could be a handy option for runners.

There's an intriguing system called Adaptable Acoustic that allows you to choose between open and closed ear adapters and tweak equalizer settings to find your ideal sound for workouts. The Focus EQ setting, combined with the closed ear adapter, is designed to block out external audio. 

You'll be able to adjust how much external sound you hear and create custom EQ presets in the Sennheiser Smart Control app. There are three sizes of ear adapters and four fins to help you find the ideal fit.

Sennheiser says the earbuds have a 7mm dynamic driver that offers "full bass and superior clarity without distortion." They have touch controls and voice assistant support. The buds are compatible with Bluetooth 5.2 and audio codecs such as SBC, AAC and aptX, which will help users connect them to a wide range of devices.

The earbuds have an IP54 rating, meaning they're resistant to dust, splashes and sweat. Sennheiser says the battery will run for up to nine hours. The charging case will add up to 18 hours of listening time.

Pre-orders for Sennheiser's Sport True Wireless earbuds open today. The buds cost $130 and will ship on May 3rd.

Sennheiser

Just three weeks after the streaming service launched, Warner Bros. Discovery is reportedly set to shut down CNN+. The news-focused service will cease operations on April 30th, according to multiplereports. Variety broke the news. 

CNBCreported last week that CNN+ was pulling in just 10,000 daily users who were willing to pay $6 per month for exclusive live, on-demand and interactive news-driven programming. New CNN president Chris Licht, who was appointed after WarnerMedia and Discovery merged earlier this month, reportedly made the recommendation to wind down CNN+. 

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Teenage Engineering has a reputation for surprising and whimsical devices, and that apparently extends to music creation on the go. The company has introduced a TX-6 mixer that's not only tiny enough to fit in your hand, but includes more than you might expect from some decidedly larger counterparts. It includes an instrument tuner, for a start, along with built-in synth, digital effect, drum machine and sequencer functions. It's billed as the portable 32-bit, 48kHz pro mixer with this level of capability — a niche claim, to be sure, but worth noting if you like to take your studio with you.

You can control the the TX-6 over USB-C through external MIDI devices or iOS hardware. You'll also find six stereo inputs, two outputs, a headphone jack and Bluetooth. While the display is unsurprisingly a very small 48x64 monochrome panel, that sacrifice might be worthwhile when Teenage Engineering claims you'll eke out eight hours of battery life. You can even use the TX-6 as an ultra-compact DJ mixer by turning it on its side.

The TX-6 is available now for $199. That's not a casual purchase in this category, and it's not too hard to find mini-mixers from Behringer, Yamaha and others with control and port combos that may be more to your liking. The sheer variety of features might prove alluring, though, and it's hard to deny that Teenage Engineering's signature design could make a difference.

Uber has announced some Earth Week initiatives and while some of the measures won't be around for the long haul, it's making a permanent change to Uber Green rides. Those will now cost the same as UberX rides, no matter the level of demand.

Uber Green allows users to request a more environmentally friendly car, such as a hybrid or electric vehicle. When Uber brought the feature to the US and Canada in 2020, it said those requesting an Uber Green ride would need to pay a $1 surcharge. That's no longer the case.

Elsewhere, Uber is offering a $1-per-journey discount on Uber Green, Lime e-bike and Lime e-scooter trips booked through its app until April 30th. You'll need to use the promo code GoGreen22. The company says it will change the Uber Green icon and add green routes to the app as well.

In addition, Uber says users in Los Angeles, Miami and Washington DC who request an Uber Green ride on Earth Day (Friday) will have the opportunity to take in an "impromptu adventure" on their journey. "The Uber Green rides will give the illusion of adventuring in some of the planet’s most precious places – from the Arctic to the Serengeti or the Great Barrier Reef," Uber wrote in a blog post. 

It's not entirely clear what that means. The company shared an image depicting an underwater scene on the underside of a car's roof, so these experiences could temporarily make trips slightly more relaxing while offering a reminder of the natural world's beauty.

Uber

Razer has increasingly gone from a specialized gaming accessory maker to more of a lifestyle brand. In addition to keyboards, mice, headsets and controllers, you can buy chairs, backpacks and even a wearable air purifier. But with this recent expansion into various aspects of the “gamer lifestyle,” there’s always been one obvious omission: home theater. Namely, speakers — an absence that’s especially annoying given that Razer released a soundbar way back in 2014. Now, the company’s back in that space with its new souped-up $250 Leviathan V2.

The original Leviathan was a small 5.1 Dolby Digital soundbar with 5.1 channels: two full-range drivers, two tweeters and a subwoofer. The somewhat diminutive V2 ups the ante with THX spatial audio and 7.1 channels. That’s two full-range drivers, two passive radiators, two tweeters and a downward subwoofer. The Bluetooth has been appropriately upgraded from v4.0 to 5.2, and it’s even easier to switch between multiple devices. In fact, in my hands-on time with the speaker it was basically seamless, only requiring the touch of a button.

Razer

The most noticeable change to the Leviathan is the addition of Chroma RGB lighting, so the soundbar’s look can be made to match the rest of a user’s Razer setup using the same software as its keyboards, headsets and mice. The nice thing about it is that the device itself isn’t adorned with a glowing logo or edges; the colors are restricted to underneath the speaker so it’s more like mood lighting.

The big thing about the Leviathan V2 is the spatial audio, which makes it possible for gamers to track movement by listening for it, something that headsets do well and soundbars usually can’t. But many players don’t like wearing headsets, and for a number of reasons — maybe they find headsets uncomfortable no matter how much padding the manufacturer adds, or maybe they prefer keeping their ears free so they can listen for real-world sounds like the doorbell or a baby crying.

Kris Naudus / Engadget

Razer also acknowledges that people are generally spending a lot more time in front of their computers, even watching their favorite TV shows and movies on a monitor but not having the sound system to back it up. And that’s where I noticed the most difference with the Leviathan V2. I got to watch some game footage and a few movie trailers with it, which was nice and loud with booming bass. It certainly made the idea of making my computer a home entertainment hub a lot more appealing, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it at home so I can give it a more comprehensive run-through with my preferred PC titles and find out if it really is a better way to game.

Get ready for a Dynamite workout. Apple has a few updates for Fitness+ timed with International Dance Day, which is coming up on April 29th, and arguably the most interesting are the new Dance workouts set to Korean pop sensation BTS' music. Through its existing relationship with BTS, Apple will be teaching users the actual choreography from videos for songs like "Dynamite," "Mic Drop" and, very aptly, "Permission to Dance." 

The first of the BTS dance workouts will arrive next week, but Apple is also bringing new content to its Artist Spotlight series. In addition to music from BTS, Fitness+ is also getting playlists from ABBA and Queen. Every Monday over the next four weeks, there will be new workouts featuring each artist across categories like Strength, HIIT, Treadmill, Cycling, Yoga, Pilates and Dance. 

There will be new dance workouts featuring music from other musicians too, including sessions led by trainer Jhon Gonzalez set to genres like cumbia, tango and Indian pop. While the Fitness+ team generally comes up with their own choreography, for the BTS videos they will be teaching the band's own smooth-like-Butter moves. 

Those who work hard enough and shed some Blood, Sweat and Tears (okay, hopefully no blood) on April 29th will be eligible to earn limited-edition awards and animated Messages stickers. You'll have to be On the workout for at least 20 minutes, and Fitness+ will highlight six sessions of that duration to help you Go get those rewards.

On April 25, which by the way is the perfect date for a Spring Day, Apple will also release a new collection of workouts to ease beginners into dancing with three 20-minute guides. There will also be three 30-minute options that focus more on performance, and span categories like 80's classics, Latin music and hip hop. That last one is great for Hip Hop Lovers.

If BTS is your Idol, this news is probably Dope. Or Fire. Apple may add more workouts based on the band's music so Stay tuned for more. And if BTS or dance are not your thing, then Life Goes On.