Doctor Audio News for June 1999.

Greetings!

We are definitely excited about this! 

New from Ego Systems... The Wami Box:  DSP Based 20 Bit 4 Channel
Integrated PCMCIA Digital Audio System with 16 Channel Internal Hardware
Mixing & FX, 64 Voice Sampler / Synth

The Wami box turns notebook computer into a digital recording studio -
literally. Packaged in a palm-sized (rack mountable) case, it contains
everything you need to produce music. Equipped with optical and coaxial
S/PDIF, 2 in 4 out AD/DA, a MIDI interface, 64 voice programmable
sampler/multi-timbral synth, mic preamp, and a 16 channel internal
mixer, about the only thing that isn't self contained is the recording
medium, which your notebook supplies. It even includes professional
quality digital signal processors, which you can use on all audio
channels and MIDI sounds. As amazing as all this may sound, its sound
quality is equally, if not more, amazing.

WaMi Box contains RISC based 50 MIPS DSP engine, which you'll only find
on top quality professional devices. With 16 MB of internal RAM, you can
sample, edit and playback big sound files with ease. It's fully
programmable and through software upgrades. All this for around $400.

Features: 

*20 Bit A/D  D/A convertors, 98dB Dynamic Range
*20 Bit Output resolution and Internal computations on 28 Bits
*2 In / 4 Out unbalanced Analog In / Out, +4dBu unbalanced RCA jack 
*S/PDIF Electrical (Coaxial & Optical) Digital In & Out; up to 20 Bit
*Mic Preamp with effects, Headphone Amp, 1/4" Mic Input  socket and 
1/4" stereo jack
*socket for headphone monitoring
*full LED Display; 9 large Activity Indicators 
*Microsoft DirectX support
*Multiple sample rates - 32kHz, 44.1kHz, 48kHz 
*Full Duplex - 2 Channel Record/ 4 Channel Playback simultaneously
*Uses standard PCMCIA socket - DMA Channel not required 
*High perfomance  Audio DSP based 16 channel Internal Mixer Hardware 
&  professional   Multi-effects Processor
*Simultaneous 16 Mono Track Play plus Stereo Record 
*Multi-band Parametric equalizer 
*13 Delay lines for resonance free stereo reverb (reverb, delay, 
chorus, echo, etc.) 
*Up to 64 voice 16 multi-timbral professional sampler & 
  user-upgradeable GS, XG, GM 
*16 Mb onboard RAM for Synth & Sampler
*32 Channel MIDI Operation ; 16ch internal & 16ch External
*MPU-401(UART)1 In/1 Out MIDI Interface
*Interactive 3D positioning - 4 Channel surround 
*Fully programmable; Firmware downloaded to memory at power-up 
*Easy software upgrade 
*Signal to Noise Ratio (D/A) : 108dB 
*Frequency Response: 20Hz - 20kHz 
*Chip programming available to third party software companies 
*Compatible with all major software ...Cubase, Cakewalk, Logic,  
Saw Pro, Wave Lab, Sound Forge, Rebirth RB-338, etc. 

                                                                                                        
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TerraTec AudioSystem EWS88 MT - The ultimate MultiTracking solution
TerraTec are pleased to announce the latest in their EWS range of
serious audio solutions for the PC:

The EWS88 MT. Ten inputs, Ten outputs, 24-bit resolution and sample
rates up to 96 kHz. Read on for more details. Reinforcing TerraTec's
reputation as Germany's leading manufacturer of PC audio hardware, the
EWS88 MT delivers the ultimate in multitrack audio quality for an S.R.P
of 599.00 USD.

The EWS88 MT comprises a bus mastering PCI card and a 5 1/4" EMI
shielded breakout box. The breakout box, housing the DACs and ADCs, can
either be mounted in a drive bay or can sit externally and has 5 pin DIN
sockets for MIDI IN and OUT as well as 8 pairs of RCA phono connectors
for the analog inputs and outputs. The PCI card has a pair of RCA phono
connectors for S/PDIF IN and OUT, a 3.5mm stereo jack for audio
monitoring and a multiway connector for external connection of the
breakout box.

There is an additional ribbon cable connector on the card for internal
connection of the breakout box. The EWS88 MT will be available in music
stores around the world as of May and will come complete with
DirectSound and MME drivers for Windowsú 95, 98 and NT4.0. The user
interface is a simple routing mixer applet and the EWS88 MT will work
'out of the box' with all standard audio software applications.

In order to cope with the high data rates generated by 24-bit 96 kHz
audio, the EWS88 MT has been designed to transfer audio data 32-bits at
a time instead of the more normal 8-bits at a time method. This means
less processor overhead and optimal PCI bus utilisation.

TerraTec EWS88 MT - the ultimate multitracking solution.
* 10 channels of I/O for simultaneous record and playback 
* 8 analog channels, 24-bit unbalenced selectable +4bB / -10dB
* 2 digital channels, S / PDIF on RCA phono
* Sample rates selectable between 44.1 / 48 / 96kHz
* MIDI IN and OUT using standard 5-pin DIN sockets
* Analog and MIDI I/O in EMI shielded break out box
* Fit up to 4 cards in one PC for a total of 40 channels
* Drivers for Windows 95/98/NT4


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New from SEKD:

Samplitude 2496, winner of the 1999 Editor's Choice award now has
Midi Recording built in. The 5.2 Version of this amazing high
resolution software is now shipping.

Samplitude Studio also recieved the new SEKD midi engine.  Now
musicians that do mostly audio and a little MIDI can have the
perfect program, and not a compromise solution.

Red Roaster 5.2 is also now shipping, and it recieved new optimized
code, allowing more real time performance on Pentium computers.  Red
Roaster is a  faster editing, cleaner audio quality program than any
other 2 track editor/CD Mastering program.  Did you know that Red
Roaster is identical to Samplitude 2496 in every way but two? It has
2 stereo tracks, and it costs less!

The 8 Channel ARC 88 card is now the only 8/8 channel audio card
with 24-Bit digital I/O that also has Mac, NT and 95/98 drivers!
This card has beaten the Event electronics cards in shootouts in
Greece and France!

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BitHeadz Announces Unity DS-1 v.1.2 Sampler

BitHeadz has announced the release of Unity DS-1 v.1.2 Digital Sampler
for Mac and Windows, an application that turns your computer into a
powerful real-time sampling sound module. Unity DS-1 gives you all the
features of hardware samplers, plus a complete integrated Digital Audio
Editor. Unity now supports sampling rates of up to 96 kHz and bit depths
of 8, 16, 24 or 32 bit floating point. With Unity DS-1 you can recreate
the sounds of acoustic instruments, or any other audio source, with
stunning realism and control. Extensive MIDI implementation allows
real-time control of all parameters and easy integration into existing
MIDI setups. Unity DS-1 is designed to play live on stage or use in the
studio. With layers, splits, and full MIDI continuous control, it excels
as a 64-voice multi-timbral sound module running in conjunction with
your favorite MIDI applications. Using the same renowned synthesis
engine as the Retro AS-1 (the analog software synthesizer from
BitHeadz), Unity allows you manipulate sampled instruments and create
new sounds of your own.

Unity DS-1 features include: True phase-locked stereo signal path
throughout, 2 stereo oscillators (multisamples) per voice, 2 assignable
filters per voice with 13 filter types, 6-stage envelope modulators with
extensive routing choices, 6 LFO waveform shapes that can be synced to
MIDI clock, 2 stereo effects processors per voice, 2 stereo global
effects processors, and 'drag & drop' sample handling. Supported sample
formats include: Sound Designer I & II, AIFF, CD-Audio, and WAV files,
plus Unity imports and maps Akai S1000 & S3000, DLS, SoundFont 2.0 and
SampleCell I & II instruments automatically. You can also sample live
from microphone or line inputs.

The full-featured arpeggiator allows you to generate event list
"sequences".  You can even write the sampler's complete multi-timbral
stereo output to disk as an 8, 16, or 24-bit audio file for use in your
favorite digital audio applications. And of course, it's fully
polyphonic and multi-timbral. Unity also includes a complete 16-channel
mixer and 250 MB of sounds for $449.00 SRP. You can find more
information about Unity DS-1 on the BitHeadz web site at
www.bitheadz.com.

Version 1.2 additions include: 96K sample support, Rewire compatibility,
MOTU Audio plug in support, and a bit rate reduction feature for low-fi
effects. A new variable attenuation parameter has also been included to
achieve higher output levels

BitHeadz Retro AS-1 v.1.3 for Mac / v.1.2 for PC Analog Synth

Ever dream of owning all of those fat analog synthesizers from the past?
Well, now you can have the sounds of all of the classic synths at a
fraction of the cost with the Retro AS-1 analog software synthesizer
from BitHeadz. Retro goes way beyond the capabilities of the early
synths with things like complete MIDI and NRPN support (you can control
every parameter via MIDI),virtually unlimited modulation routings, built
in effects and sound quality that has to be heard to be believed!

MOTU Performer & Digital Performer users can select Retro AS-1 as input
sources on the Performer mixer audio channels using MOTU's  MAS 2.0 plug
in format. Retro supports up to 16 individual MIDI channels of audio
plus a main L/R mix of of all channels. Parts that have been assigned to
individual channels are taken out of the Main L/R mix. This integration
allows the use of MAS plug-in effects on Retro sounds, and allows Retro
to play out through an ASIO compatible sound card at the same time
digital audio tracks are playing. Retro presets, along with their names,
can be assigned to individual tracks using pop up menus from within the
Performer track mixer.

Cubase(r) VST(tm) users will be glad to hear that Retro AS-1 supports
ReWire*, which will allow the audio output from individual Retro MIDI
channels to be routed directly into the Cubase audio mixer. Cubase VST
plug-in effects can then be added to each separate track. Emagic users
can find environments already implemented in the most current versions
of Logic. BitHeadz is also working with other sequencer companies to
achieve similar integration.

Retro supports sampling rates up to 96 kHz on a Mac and up to 48 kHz on
a PC for the highest fidelity sound, and the Record to Disk feature
responds to MIDI start/stop commands. Retro AS-1 has a versatile MIDI
processor, an on-screen keyboard, a 16 channel mixer, and over 1000

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Aardvark announces the ADAT option for the Aark20/20+ is shipping.

The ADAT option for the Aark 20/20+ is a daughterboard that fits into
the breakout box of the Aark 20/20+ -- it takes up no extra PCI slots
and no extra IRQ's!!

When the ADAT option is installed in the Aark 20/20+, you will have the
ability to toggle between the 8 Analog Inputs and the 8 track ADAT
lightpipe input via our software control panel.  You may use either 8
track input as your input source, but not both simultaneously.  However,
audio output is simultaneously available at both the ADAT and Analog
outputs (identical sets of 8 track audio will be output at either one).
presets.

We also ship the ADAT Option with a custom ADAT sync cable. This cable
has a MIDI Out and MIDI In on one end and a 9 pin ADAT Sync jack on the
other end.  Plug the MIDI pair into the breakout box of the Aark 20/20+
and the 9 pin jack into the ADAT Sync in of your first ADAT.  This
allows you to slave the transport of your ADAT from your multitrack
software via the Aark 20/20+!  Conversely, you can slave your PC
sequencer to the ADAT via the same connection!

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In our effort to bring our readers the latest innovations, we are 
dedicating the last part ofthis issue to the Be Operating System.
The Be OS will work on both MAC or PC, and is specificaly designed 
for multimedia style applications. We believe that this OS will become
very popular in the audio/mutlimedia world in the near future, and 
already there are a number audio software manufaturers that are 
supporting it.


The Be Operating System Product Datasheet BeOS Release 4:


As the Internet expands, and as electronic media becomes more prevalent,
the high-performance needs of digital content design and the complex,
aging architectures of current mainstream operating systems are coming
into conflict. The BeOS is the first new operating system designed to
unlock the door to much more powerful personal computers, and extract
more performance from the systems we use today.

The BeOS is based on a concept called the Media OS. It's not enough to
add a few features and call an operating system a Media OS, an operating
system needs to be designed to deal natively with digital media. The
engineering team at Be didn't start with an existing OS and transform
it, they started with the Media OS concept and optimized every portion
of a new OS for handling digital media. The BeOS is designed to be the
first, true, Media OS. And the BeOS is here today.

High-Performance

The power of microprocessors continues to advance, but the needs of
digital content creators, and the applications they use, have
outstripped even the speed provided by the latest processors. A
media-oriented operating system can't rely simply on a single processor
to handle the load.

The BeOS is designed for today's new generation of high-performance
processors, and is optimized for the multiprocessor, media-based systems
now emerging. Able to take full advantage of two, four, or more
processors, the BeOS is based on a symmetric multiprocessing
architecture which speeds operations, improves efficiency, and provides
the foundation for a high-performance system.

But the BeOS takes multiprocessing a step further by employing pervasive
multithreading throughout its design. Multithreading takes large tasks,
such as applications, and breaks them down into a myriad of smaller
tasks. Pervasive multithreading means that this approach is used
throughout the BeOS, from the kernel, through the graphics and I/O
systems, and through BeOS applications.

Pervasive multithreading is as fundamental a shift to software design as
the introduction of the graphic user interface was in the early 1980s.
No other current operating system implements pervasive multithreading
throughout the system as completely as the BeOS has, providing the
highest possible performance for media-based applications.

Preemptive multitasking allows the BeOS to work on, and rapidly switch
between, dozens, often hundreds, of smaller tasks. These tasks can be
deployed on a single processor, providing a smooth multitasking
environment, or across any number of processors in a multiprocessor
system.

Media Optimized

The BeOS doesn't stop with symmetric multiprocessing, pervasive
multithreading, and preemptive multitasking. A media-optimized system
must deal with very large data files, provide high performance graphics,
and support high-efficiency, modular I/O capabilities. In each of these
areas, the BeOS is more than up to the task.

The BeOS employs a native, 64-bit file system, allowing extremely large
volumes and files, of terabyte size and more, enough to handle even raw
uncompressed, high-resolution video and audio -- the foundation for
high-quality editing systems. The Be file system goes even further,
providing database capabilities allowing the storage of multiple
attributes and indexes along with files, with a query engine for
performing dynamic searches on those indexes and attributes. And the Be
file system is a journaling file system, providing added levels of
protection against corrupted files and reducing start-up time.

The BeOS provides a fully multithreaded graphics system, providing fast
2D and 3D graphics. Anti-aliased type is standard throughout the system.
3D capabilities are provided through the integrated industry-standard
OpenGL¨ graphics library. And BeOS graphics capabilities are modular,
allowing new hardware and software capabilities to be added by software
developers.

The modular approach to graphics within the BeOS is also reflected in
its I/O system. The BeOS provides a modular, dynamic, multithreaded I/O
system, allowing drivers for new devices such as DVD drives to be
dynamically loaded and unloaded, and allowing for on-the-fly
reconfiguration.

Modern OS Features

The capabilities described above go beyond what you'll find in most
mainstream operating systems today. Of course, the BeOS includes all of
the buzzwords you'll find in articles about "modern" operating systems.
The BeOS provides full preemptive multitasking, necessary for a
multiprocessing and multithreading. Virtual memory capabilities are a
standard part of the system, and are fully integrated with the
multithreading capabilities to provide smooth application switching. And
the design of the BeOS, from the lowest level through applications, uses
object-oriented programming concepts.

To prevent you and your applications from sliding from the cutting-edge
to the bleeding-edge of software, the BeOS provides applications with
full memory protection -- meaning that if one application crashes, other
applications and the rest of the system are protected. The BeOS goes a
step further by using a client-server based internal architecture,
providing even further protection for applications.

Internet Native

The BeOS is designed as an Internet-native system. At its foundation,
the BeOS uses the TCP/IP networking protocols, the basic protocols of
the Internet.

The BeOS provides a wealth of integrated Internet services. Any BeOS
system can act as a file server on the network, using the FTP protocols,
allowing you to share files with any other computer on the net. Mail and
worldwide web client services are built-in, as well as web server
capabilities, allowing you to publish web pages on the Internet or
Intranet from day one. And the BeOS even provides Telnet server
capabilities, allowing you to access your system remotely from anyplace
on the Internet.

And like its graphics and I/O capabilities, the BeOS networking system
is fully multithreaded and modular, allowing you to add new high-speed
network capabilities, and new network protocols and services, as they
are developed.

Works with Your Current System

Most operating systems demand that you give up your current system and
applications when you decide to switch. Not the BeOS. A wide array of
Intel Architecture and PowerPC systems are capable of taking advantage
of the BeOS. Many new systems will even come bundled with the BeOS

The BeOS can run side-by-side with Windows, Linux, the Mac OS, and other
operating systems. You can load several operating systems on your
computer, regardless of platform, and using the BeOS Bootman boot
manager switch between them at startup to access high-performance
applications within the BeOS, and your existing applications from those
other operating systems.

And the BeOS goes further, allowing you to work with your other disk
drives and files from within the BeOS, while retaining the capability of
moving data back and forth between the systems -- and back and forth
with your colleagues. Through the Internet you can exchange even more
information with other users on Mac OS, Windows, and UNIX based systems.
You can even print to any AppleTalk-based laser printers you might have
on your Ethernet network.

BeOS: Creating the First, True Media OS

All of this only scratches the surface of the features you'll find in
the BeOS. You'll also find the Tracker -- the core user interface of the
BeOS -- which gives you access to the power of the Be file system as
well as access to disks used by your other operating systems. You'll
find Unicode support for international-ready applications and the Input
Server to enable alternative methods for entering characters, including
languages like Japanese.

You'll find Be's Replicant technology, which allows applications to
merge parts of themselves into documents and other applications. For the
more technically inclined, the BeOS includes a Unix/Posix compatibility
layer and a fully functional command line with the bash shell. And more.

The BeOS is designed to be the first true Media OS. But the Media OS is
a goal and a philosophy, the definition of a system that will keep
evolving over time as we learn more about software and hardware design.
There are always new applications and new levels of performance.
Inherent in the BeOS is the ability to advance the operating system in a
modular, dynamic manner -- even across the Internet. So as the needs of
digital content design changes and evolves, so will the BeOS.

Note: Next issue we will feature some audio software manufacturers that
are supporting Be OS. In addition we will be checking out TC Electronic's
new 2 track editor called Spark. And... what the heck happened to Sonic
Foundry? Their website disappeared, and someone is trying lease or sell
their domain!                           
                             
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News from the webite:

Doctor audio has expanded our catalog, given the site a face lift, and
upgraded our online order form. We now have a script that generates an
html page confirming the order, and also emails the customer their
confirmation. In addition to upgrading the look of the site, we have
also added several dozen new products to our online catalog, and are
adding a number of special feature to the web site.

Did you miss a newsletter? The Newsletter Archives page has all of the 
'News from Doctor Audio' Newsletters from over the past year.


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'News from Doctor Audio' is presented by Doc Dosco, Professional Audio
Consultant in North Hollywood, California. Doc has handled accounts for
luminaries such as Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Stevie Wonder and The
Rolling Stones, along with many of the world's most renowned film
composers, engineers and record producers.

Doctor Audio wishes to thank you for your continuing support, and we would
like to remind you that most popular MIDI/audio products are available from
our Website.