Akai Announces Fatbody Acoustic Guitar Modeling FX Processor

Akai Musical Instrument Corporation is proud to announce the FATBODY guitar effects processor. The FATBODY is a multi-effects processor that uses advanced acoustic guitar modeling to create the rich, resonant sound quality of the real acoustic instrument from the output of a Piezo pickup.

While Piezo pickup systems have provided a number of advantages, including freedom of movement and consistent sound levels, the disadvantage has been that Piezo systems typically suffer in sound quality.

The usual method for simulating the sound of an acoustic guitar is based on sophisticated equalizations of the Piezo sound, boosting frequencies dominantly present in the acoustic sound, but missing from the Piezo signal. However, the result is still far from the intended goal. The FATBODY method uses a Fourier transformation to predict not only the amplitudes of the frequency components of the desired acoustic signal, but also their phase relations, resulting in a fully accurate reproduction of both the spectral and the attack shape of the sound.

The FATBODY is an effect box that goes far beyond the primary goal of acoustical modeling; it is a complex programmable device containing all the important effects for the performing acoustic guitarist in a single unit.

In addition to acoustic modeling, the FATBODY features a built-in guitar tuner, plus reverb, a low-shelf and high-Shelf filter, a compressor, noise gate, and chorus/flanger/slapback echo/rotor effects. Effects can be easily combined, and 50 presets can be built up from the programmable parameters of the effects.

For more information, visit their web site at www.akaipro.com.