News:  September 18-24, 2000

Sunday, September 24, 2000

An Unofficial Look at Some New Creative Products - Mark @ 21:28 EST

I was going to sit on this feature until tomorrow when I expect some more official information to be released. However, with the ALive article (see below) coming out today, now is as good a time as any. Specifically, over the past couple of weeks we have gathered bits and pieces of information sent in by generous readers with OEM and retail contacts. We subsequently put together a few pages of this info including several images on some as yet to be announced sound cards and speakers from Creative Labs/Cambridge SoundWorks. Thanks to each of you who send along the info that went into making these pages.

Live Articles at ALive - Mark @ 21:04 EST

ALive has posted a couple of Live related articles. The first article is a speculative piece where they consider just what features the soon to be announced Sound Blaster Live 5.1 will offer. Based on the info we got from readers with OEM and retail industry contacts we are pretty sure that at the end of the day what will come out in the wash is a card with 5.1 analog output and Dolby Digital decoding in software (as per WinDVD, PowerDVD, etc.). That is, everthing we have seen before says the 10K1 cannot do Dolby Digital decoding, much less encoding to the SPDIF output. The definative answers should be out very soon.

The other feature they posted is an article titled Sound Blaster Live! in Japan and it covers the history of the special versions of SBLive! products that have appeared in the Japanese market. Based on what I have seen of the two new Live products for the Japanese market I am not sure if ALive is right in stating that they offer 5.1 analog output.

Bose Uses Analog Devices' Signal Processing Technology - Mikael @ 08:58 EST

Analog Devices, Inc. (NYSE: ADI) today announced that Bose Corporation incorporates high performance signal processing components developed by Analog Devices across its entire line of Lifestyle® home theater systems, which includes the innovative Lifestyle 50 home theater system. These Bose systems use two Analog Devices' Melody(TM) decoders, running on the 32-bit SHARC® DSP, to perform 5.1-channel Dolby® Digital decoding and Bose proprietary Videostage® 5 decoding. You can find more details in the press release. For more details about the Melody decoder you can check out Analog Devices press release from Friday this week as well as an earlier press release.

Crimson Skies Demo - Mark @ 08:56 EST

Zipper has released a demo of their new air combat action game for the PC, Crimson Skies. In case you missed it the game has also gone gold and is expected to be available in stores later this month (in fact based on the review link below it sounds like it is in stores). A couple of articles (one preview, one developers journal) have been quite clear in expressing that 3D sound, and sound in general, will play an important role in the game. Unfortunately, there is no option to enable 3D sound in the demo and if it's supposed to autodetect (which I doubt), it's not doing so on the two cards I tried it with so lets hope it was just left out of the demo. The demo still is pretty nice and you can grab the 42 MB demo from 3Dfiles.

For more on the game you can check out a review at PCIGN. Despite there being some bugs (particularly a save game bug) they find that the game offers Crimson Skies a really original concept, is tons of fun and is ridiculously addictive. No mention of 3D audio in this review but they do have lots postive to say about sound. Here's a taste:

And all of this is supported by the wonderful script and voice acting in the game. The guy who plays Nathan Zachary gets my vote for best vocal performance in a game this year. His delivery of the "I'll do more than jump your claim, you monkey! Where's my crew?" line is nothing short of hilarious. And there's all sorts of really natural sounding banter among all the characters in the game. During the mission briefings, you hear Nathan and his crew joke back and forth about the upcoming missions. Once they take to the skies, the constant chatter really gives you a sense that your wingmen and opponents are more than just simple AI routines. They're real characters with real emotions. The chatter also gives you a sense of what's going on around you. Granted, it's all a little tongue in cheek, but that makes it all the more believable. And the swing soundtrack is also really choice.

Boston Acoustics BA4800 Review - Mark @ 08:41 EST

3AG.net has posted a review of the BA400, Boston Acoustic's very good 4.1 multimedia speaker system. While I agree the BA4800 sub does not have a huge range of exaggeration I completely disagree with the comment that it has to be a max to be adequate. For more details on the controls, performance and everything else you can check out our own review.
News Source: Blue's News

Blair Witch Volume 1 : Rustin Parr review and preview - Mikael @ 08:31 EST

GameRush has posted a short but good review of the horror game Blair Witch Volume 1 : Rustin Parr. They think it's a great game for anyone looking for "a good adventure with action and a bit of puzzle solving thrown in". Here's the sound bit:

So is Rustin Parr spooky? Put it this way, with the lights turned off and the sound cranked up, when something happens you'll probably jump a mile, this game is just oozing atmosphere. The sound in the game is superb, from crunching leaves to crashing thunder, it's all been designed to make your skin crawl. The voice acting also deserves a notable mention, it's been very professionally done, there's nothing here that will make you snigger, even Elspeth's English accent is good which makes a change.

Heavy Metal: FAKK2 reviews - Mikael @ 05:58 EST

Time for 2 new and short reviews of Heavy Metal: FAKK2. First up Intelligamer that had the standard complaint of the game being to short but otherwise was impressed and had a lot of fun playing the game. Here's the sound snip:

Sound effects are also top notch, with outstanding weapon effects and environmental sounds used throughout. The musical score is, of course, heavy metal, but so watered down that it sorted of seemed to me to be heavy metal muzak. A contradiction in terms perhaps, and one area of the game that didn't have the same impact as the rest.

Dogs of War review - Mikael @ 05:48 EST

Gameraiders has posted a review of the RTS Dogs of War. Most reviews of this game have complained about the gameplay and Gameraiders is no exception but they still have a slighly less negative impression of the game overall saying it's not a bad game it's just not as good as some other RTS games like Ground Control. Here's the sound bit:

The sounds in the game were pretty good. Most weapon effects were pleasant to listen to, as well as the music and voice overs. Those of you that watch the British sci-fi comedy, Red Dwarf, should be pleased to hear Craig Charles (Lister) providing a lot of the voice overs.

The sound engine supports positional audio, which helped enhance the overall experience. While you won't find any fancy implementations of EAX, you should be pleased by the overall sound experience. It was especially nice to hear battle sounds going off in the distance during large battles, allowing you to get the full battlefield experience.

Midtown Madness 2 review - Mikael @ 05:41 EST

MPOG has posted a short review of the 3D sound supporting Midtown Madness 2. The reviewer is not impressed with the game and that definetely includes the aural aspects:

Sound effects are pretty bad. While the authors claim to have realistic sounds I have to doubt their claims. The cars sound little like their real-life counterparts; at least the vehicles I have heard in person, and the voice and speech will drive you insane. While driving the San Francisco courses you are constantly being annoyed by some surfer-dude with an LA speech impediment talking smack. I'm sure they intentionally did this for humorous reasons, but it is nevertheless, extremely annoying.

CD Music is available but it quickly becomes repetitive and boring as well. Some sounds are quite nice like the bell ringing in Big Ben as you drive through London or the unique sirens of the London cops. You'll often hear some humorous rants from pedestrians and other motorists as you endanger their lives or smash their cars.

Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force FAQ and review - Mikael @ 05:34 EST

Raven recently (a few days ago) updated their Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force FAQ with the following interesting bit:

2) The game freezes or locks up repeatedly during play. I have a Creative Labs Sound Card. Why?

We are investigating this issue right now. We suspect it's driver related. Try a different (older) driver version for your sound card.

New Submarine Titans Map - Mikael @ 05:11 EST

Ellipse Studios has released a new multiplayer map for its 3D sound supporting Submarine Titans.
News Source: Voodoo Extreme

CommCenter 1.0 Released - Mikael @ 05:09 EST

Version 1.0 of Random Software's CommCenter has been released. It's a gaming voice communication program that "lets you play your favorite video games while using your microphone to talk with other people online".
News Source: Voodoo Extreme

Saturday, September 23, 2000

Bargin Priced 5.1 Ready Receiver - Mark @ 23:30 EST

How does a JVC RX-588VBK receiver w/5.1 ch.input for $114 shipped sound? Check out this forum thread for details.

Maxi Sound MUSE Review - Mark @ 17:13 EST

Game Revolution has posted an odd review of the MaxiSound Muse. Odd in that they spend much of their time complaining about Xitel's Storm Platinum and it's compatability issues with their system. I also don't share their subjective impressions with respect to the Muse offering better sound quality than the Vortex 2 chips. They don't even think its a subtle difference stating that the MUSE "completely kicks the crap out of [their] highly-esteemed Vortex 2 processing chipset". Bottom line is they are very happy with the $29 investment that it took to get a Guillemot Maxi Sound MUSE.
News Source: 3D Audio Immersion

The Art of Noise: Game Studio Recording and Foley - Mark @ 13:33 EST

Gamasutra has posted an article titled The Art of Noise: Game Studio Recording and Foley. Here's a snip from the intro that will set the stage for the rest of the article:

I have no doubt you've encountered a situation similar to this: For months you've been eagerly awaiting the next great game from Design Team X, drooling over the ads featuring near-photorealistic screenshots, rereading dozens of times all the flattering previews found in the magazines and web sites, and even more carefully scrutinizing the publisher's glowing copy on how this new game will be the greatest thing ever to grace your computer. Finally the day comes. After a hasty call to the store, you tear off at lunch to plop down your hard-earned money for this holy grail of gaming greatness. You install and begin to play. The graphics are truly phenomenal and the gameplay is starting to look exciting. Vile aliens and brutish dragons are off in the distance descending rapidly on your starting point. Deftly you leap to the closest pillar, grabbing the Mega-LFG and preparing for the initial onslaught. The enemy draws nearer. You raise your weapon. They close in almost revealing their beady little eyes. You wait for the perfect shot pressing the trigger on your trusty mouse, ready to unleash hell incarnate on the infernal foe, when out from your Ultimate Psychoacoustic Dolby X Satellite Speaker Array struggles a puny little "pop." Ugh…The Mega-LFG sounds like little more than a chintzy peashooter.

No matter how heated the ensuing battle in the back of your mind, the game is ruined. It feels fake, not on par with what you expected. Even the weapons seem wimpy, meaning the combat must be unbalanced to give the enemies the edge. Of course that must mean the game design isn't really that solid. And without good game design the latest release from Design Team X lasts only a few days on the hard drive and a lifetime collecting dust on the shelf.

On the increasingly level playing fields of 3D acceleration, elaborate input devices, and broadband capability, game companies are working harder than ever to find ways to differentiate themselves from one another. While design and art play a major role in this process, sound is also an important factor in a game's success or failure. In fact, it's increasingly rare to find top-selling titles that don't also feature top-notch audio design. So if you're having trouble making your game's sound environment bigger and more distinguishable from your competition's, this article is designed to help.

Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force Reviews - Mark @ 13:21 EST

A couple new reviews of Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force. First up is a review from XL Gaming where they are very impressed with the game, including sound. Here's a taste:

One thing to note however is that this game is very dark. Some of the screen shots included with this review have been brightened up to show the action but most of the time it’s half that luminescence. This is to add to the tension and force the player to rely on sound to locate his/her foe. Which leads us neatly onto...

Sound wise things are equally as impressive. The background music is typical ST affair with stirring classical music to reflect the action on screen. Effects wise all is well. The weapons fire with convincing accompanying sounds and directional sound is done superbly. Many were the time I marvelled at how my other team-mate’s voices bounced between my speakers as I looked around the screen.

Gnutella is going down in flames! - Mark @ 13:04 EST

Gnutella is going down in flames is the title of an article over at ZDMusic. Here's a snip from the introduction:

Gnutella is dead.

If you never used Gnutella, you couldn't care less. If you're a Napster user and you've been waiting to switch until the service gets shut down, it may be too late. In fact, too many users may be the basic problem. A few months ago, during the time of Napster's pending demise, a rush of traffic on the Gnutella network overwhelmed the system. Since then, traffic has dropped to pre-scare levels. We've learned a bit from that rush - and it's not good news.

Here's the scoop: Gnutella is a peer-to-peer file-sharing program. It is designed for people to share and trade files across the Internet without using centralized servers. Essentially, it should operate the same way as Napster, but with major advantages. Gnutella has the capacity to transmit any type of file, not just music, and because no one "owns" the program (it is now open-source), it can't be legally scrutinized à la Napster.

Unfortunately, we have found that Gnutella is not as scalable as the centralized Napster network. Translation: the more users, the less efficient. In recent weeks, doing a search or query with the program yielded little or no results. And it often timed out when it looked for files. Something has gone wrong, and a few theories have emerged about what is happening.

Indrema Interview - Mark @ 13:00 EST

WomenGamers.com has posted an interview with John Gildred, Indrema Founder and CEO, where they talk about their L600 and future versions of the system and how they will approach the gaming market. As you may have read before, this Linux based console system will have MP3 and DVD support and will convert 3D audio to Dolby Digital Out. Here's a snip from the interview:

Q: What kind of control devices will the L600 support, and what devices will ship with the unit?

A: There will be a game controller included with the system. (The exact specs and styling of the controller is a surprise that we're saving for nearer to launch-time.) An optional wireless keyboard with pointer will be sold separately, as well as a universal remote control.

In addition to the new standard controller, we are planning to release an enhanced controller later in 2001. The enhanced controller will feature a microphone in it that will allow you to talk to players in a game and with 3D sound will be able to hear them from where they are in the game. For example, when you're playing a game and the person talking to you is behind you, the sound will come from behind you.

Also, since the controllers will use USB 2.0 and standard electrical interfaces, it will be very easy for us (or third parties) to provide alternate peripherals for the system.

Sonic to Support Final Specification of DVD-Audio, Version 1.2 - Mark @ 12:01 EST

Sonic Solutions announced at the Audio Engineering Society (AES) Convention its plans to offer support for the final version of the new DVD-Audio specification, Version 1.2. Using the new capabilities defined by the expanded specification and incorporated in Sonic DVD Creator AV, DVD-Audio producers will now be able to include copy protection and content watermarking in their DVD-Audio titles. Version 1.2 of the specification defines a new copy protection method called CPPM (Copy Protection for Prerecorded Media), developed by 4CEntity, LLC. The CPPM specification defines a renewable cryptographic method for protecting entertainment content when recorded on physical media. Sonic will also integrate Verance watermarking technology as an option with SonicStudio HD for secure content delivery in DVD media. Watermarking DVD-Audio content will allow content providers to invisibly mark, and later identify their content. The new release of DVD Creator AV which supports CPPM and watermarking is scheduled to ship at the end of October. The CPPM technology will be a standard feature within DVD Creator AV, and the Verance watermarking will be available as an option. For more details including a description of DVD Audio you can check out the full press release.

Quake III Arena 1.25 Point Release Patch - Mark @ 10:16 EST

The Win32 1.25 point release is now out. It fixes and adds many new features to Quake 3 Arena. Because iD added so much they are going to call this a "Public Beta". From our perspective on of the potential keys to this patch is they list "Fixed Dropped sounds bug" as one of the fixes. There is no mention as to what dropped sound bug they talk about and whether or not it's a stereo audio or related to using the A3D 2.0 audio with or without a Vortex 2 card (without a Vortex 2 board means using Aureal's A2D drivers with your card). I have done some preliminary testing with two cards. On the Turtle Beach Santa Cruz the A2D option works better than average compared to other cards with A2D and apply the 1.25 patch does not seem to change this.

More importantly, the 1.25 patch does appear to have some impact on A3D 2.0 support for Vortex 2 boards but it still seems quirky. Quirky enough that I am not really confindent that it's not some other factor that has resulted in my what I am hearing so would appreciate your feedback. Specifically, if I enable A3D in the Q3A config menu it still does not work and even if I later do it via the console it won't work. On the other hand, if I restart the program, then enable A3D directly via the console command then I am getting 3D audio on some effects and also the other A3D 2.0 effects including the A3Dverb. I was of course testing with the 2048 drivers with the 312 A3D update. You can grab the 17.7 MB 1.25 patch from 3Dfiles and you can post your feedback to this thread in our forum (no registration necessary). I will also post the console commands there to enalbe A3D and another one to help test how it's working.

Friday, September 22, 2000

Creative's Purchase of Aureal's Assets Approved - Mark @ 18:50 EST

Creative Technology Ltd. has announced that on September 21, 2000, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California, Oakland Division entered the final order approving the sale to Creative of substantially all of the assets of Aureal Semiconductor, Inc., including patents, trademarks and other intellectual property. As we noted this morning, the sale will also include settlement of all outstanding litigation claims between Aureal and Creative. Creative will pay US$28 million in cash, plus two new shares of Creative stock for every 100 outstanding shares of Aureal stock, or 208,079 shares of Creative stock. The Creative shares are valued at approximately US$4.35 million, based on the fair market value of Creative stock on September 21, 2000. The new Creative shares constitute approximately 0.26 percent of the enlarged issued share capital of Creative. Craig McHugh, president of Creative Labs, Inc. had the following to offer:

We're pleased that the court has entered the order approving the sale to Creative. Since Creative would not be able to recover significant damages given Aureal's bankruptcy, there was no upside in continuing this protracted litigation. As a result, we believe that this outcome is the best we could have expected. Without further distraction by the litigation, Creative's management will be able to focus on delivering the digital entertainment experience consumers are demanding.

THX Surround EX, DTS-ES Extended Surround & Dolby Digital on a Chip - Mark @ 18:42 EST

Analog Devices, Inc. has announced the industry's first single-chip decoder/post-processor for THX Surround EX, DTS-ES Extended Surround and Dolby Digital. The new Melody decoder post-processes THX Surround EX on the same chip as it decodes either DTS or Dolby Digital. The Melody decoder/post-processor is based on a 32-bit programmable SHARC DSP. As part of the Melody family, the new decoder will enable future A/V receivers, PC audio cards and set-top boxes to process-in the same product-all of the leading audio algorithms: THX and THX Surround EX, DTS, Dolby Digital, Dolby Headphone and Dolby Pro Logic, HDCD, MPEG1 Audio Layers 1, 2 and 3 (MP3), MPEG2, Surround Sound and Stereo. Shipments of the Melody single-chip THX Surround EX decoder begin in 30 days. For more details check out the full press release as well as well as an earlier press release.

Digital Audio Engines Offer a Fast Track to Multichannel Audio Decoding - Mark @ 18:34 EST

Momentum Data Systems today announced availability of new modules designed to speed time-to-market for manufacturers of consumer audio products using multichannel audio decoding such as Dolby Digital, MPEG, and DTS. Digital Audio Engines are "off the shelf" hardware modules providing all the functions for the heart of multichannel audio decoding. They can be used in surround sound audio or home theatre systems. Digital Audio Engines include digital processing for all the main multichannel audio decoding formats, plus Post Processing Phases such as equalization and sound fields, with the facility for manufacturers to add their own unique post-processing features. They also provide high quality analog output on the same compact module. "Mixed signal" design allows a cost effective, compact final system but demands very careful attention to detail in the design to preserve the analog signal quality: Digital Audio Engines are specially designed to preserve the analog audio quality. A family of modules addresses different needs, from lower cost consumer products to high-end systems where the audio quality and unique features are paramount. For extensive details, check out the full press release.

AudioRaid & AudioRack Storage Systems Qualified for use with PARIS - Mark @ 18:31 EST

Medea Corp. has announced that E-MU/ENSONIQ has qualified Medea's high-speed, low-cost AudioRaid and AudioRack scsi disk arrays for use with PARIS. PARIS is a 24-bit digital audio workstation that provides users with all of the hardware and software needed to record, edit and mix digital audio professionally. Together with a 16 channel control surface, 128-track playback, 64 bands of parametric EQ and a host of I/O options, PARIS gives users the most complete integrated digital audio solution on the market today at an affordable price. Medea's proprietary Audio Stripe Technology (AST) and integrated hardware RAID controller enable 4-drive AudioRaid and AudioRack to support 64-tracks of 24-bit/96KHz audio. The eight-drive versions can be used with a dual-channel SCSI host adapter to support up to 128-tracks. For more details, check out the full press release.

APS and ASIO Drivers on the Live - Mark @ 18:25 EST

Live Center has posted an article about using the APS drivers with the Sound Blaster Live!, and about ASIO support (in Cubase VST and other software). According to Live Center, if you're a serious musician and don't use the APS drivers already, you should definitely read this article to see what you're missing.

Videologic And Samsung Team-Up On Dvd Digital Home Theatre System - Mark @ 18:21 EST

VideoLogic Systems has announced that Samsung's new DVD-811 is now available with VideoLogic's DigiTheatre LC surround sound speaker system to provide amazing Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. This DVD Digital Home Theatre System is available now from Samsung for £399 (RRP inc. VAT). The DVD-811, offers 24-bit, 96kHz audio DAC, 10-bit video DAC, S-Video outputs, twin Scart sockets and playback features such as variable-speed replay and joystick-controlled zoom. It also features a built-in Dolby Digital (AC-3) decoder and its rear panel sports six analogue outputs for direct connection to the DigiTheatre LC speakers (or an AV amplifier). DigiTheatre LC uses the same speakers and integrated amplifiers as VideoLogic's original DigiTheatre speaker system, which has won numerous awards including our own Surge of Approval award. These are the same speakers they are recommending for use with their SonicFury sound card and Turtle Beach's Santa Cruz. For more details check out the full press release. For lots more detail on the quality of the DigiTheatre LC speaker system check out our review of the full DigiTheatre system (the one with the decoder).

Videologic Announces Revolutionary Dab Radio Tuner - Mark @ 18:11 EST

VideoLogic Systems has announces its DAB Digital Radio Tuner DRX-601E. The DRX-601E breaks the price barrier that has kept digital radio from achieving mass-market adoption with a RRP of just £299 (inc. VAT). According to the announcement, that's several hundred pounds less than typical DAB receivers currently available. DAB (Digital Audio Broadcast) technology provides distortion free, high quality digital radio reception, massively improving on the quality of traditional radio services and offers extensive data transmission capabilities which enable new services to be offered by broadcasters. Radio stations currently broadcasting in digital in the UK include the Digital One network (www.digitalone.co.uk), whose stations include Classic fm, talkSPORT, Virgin and seven new digital only national stations, local stations such as Capital Radio and LBC, and BBC Radio 1 - 5. The DRX-601E Digital Radio Tuner will be available from a major High Street retail chain from early-November with volume shipments in the stores for Christmas. THe DRX-601E has high performance 24-bit / 96 kHz delta sigma digital to analogue converters for high-quality stereo digital audio, a low noise toroidal transformer power supply, fast auto-tune and service selection as well as nine station presets operated from the remote control DRX-601E includes a full suite of input and output features for maximum connectivity including: S/P-DIF digital output (48Khz) via Toslink and phono connectors for direct digital recording to MiniDisc or DAT, loop through circuit for external FM/AM tuner, RF connector for DAB antenna connection. An RDI (Receiver Data Interface) optical port is also fitted for future expansion and connectivity. For quite a few more details you can check out the full press release.

Dolby Laboratories Demonstrates Latest Technologies - Mark @ 18:00 EST

Dolby Laboratories will showcase four of its most advanced pro audio technology products at this year's AES show (Sept. 22-25, Los Angeles Convention Center). The featured Dolby professional audio products to be demonstrated, DP570, DM100, DP569, and DP562, are designed to produce the highest-quality digital audio possible. Additionally, Dolby staff will demonstrate Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) technology for secure Internet music delivery. There are lots more details in the full press release.

Iomega Announces Retail Launch of HipZip Digital Audio Player - Mark @ 17:48 EST

Iomega Corporation has announced the retail launch of the HipZip digital audio player, a sleek new device that combines affordable music storage with support for licensed digital downloads of copyrighted music and spoken word content. The player, available across the US on September 24, plays music stored on Iomega's PocketZip 40MB disks which radically lowers the cost of creating portable personal music collections. Additionally, the HipZip player utilizes Microsoft's Windows Media Format (WMA) and digital rights management (DRM) technology and other DRM technologies to secure commercial music content to PocketZip disks, offering artists and publishers protection from the unauthorized distribution of commercial content. You can read lots more about the player and Iomega's PocketZip 40MB disks in the press release. You can also read about their decision to use the Windows Media Player 7.0 as their default player in a second press release.

Daikatana 1.2 Patch - Mark @ 17:40 EST

The 1.2 patch for Daikatana has been released. There is no mention of 3D sound in the list of changes on the 3Dfiles download page so perhaps people are still stuck playing the game in stereo. In July, just before the first patch was released John Romero said the 3D sound should be added "around the time the patch is released". It was not in the first patch so lets just hope it's in this one despite not being listed. I don't have the game so any of you do and check out the patch please let us know.

QSound Labs' 3D Audio Technology Featured in New TVs - Mark @ 17:31 EST

QSound Labs, Inc. has announced that Sharp Electronics, Sanyo Electronics and Toshiba Corporation are incorporating its QXpander and QSurround technologies into their new television lines. There are a number of models of televisions, mini-component systems and DVD players from Sharp incorporating QSound that are available in the US, Europe and Japan. Sanyo has a number of models available throughout Europe and in Japan. Toshiba is offering 12 new models which features QSurround. These models are currently available in Singapore and Asia. For more details check out the full press release.

Microsoft Game Voice Review - Mark @ 12:49 EST

Game Basement has posted a review of Microsoft's Game Voice, a hardware based voice communication/command system. This is a nicely done review that comes to an overall positive conclusion.

Cirrus Logic's New Audio DAC Achieves Industry's Highest Dynamic Range - Mark @ 12:43 EST

Cirrus Logic Inc. has introduced the CS43122, a new Crystal® digital-to-analog (D/A) Converter that achieves the highest dynamic range of any audio D/A Converter in the market (122dB) and THD+N of 0.0007 percent. The CS43122 leverages Cirrus Logic's analog design expertise in an integrated, single-chip D/A Converter with 122dB dynamic range and transparent audio conversion that delivers unprecedented sound quality for high-performance audio systems. Dynamic range is a key audio specification that measures the amount of noise that a converter introduces to a system, which directly impacts sound quality and audio performance. This ability to reproduce the ambience and atmosphere of a live performance is a characteristic that manufacturers strive to deliver in audio systems such as high-end DVD-Audio players (24-bit, 192kHz sample rates), A/V receivers, outboard converters, mixing consoles and effects processors. For lots more detail, check out the full press release.

ESS DVD Chip Shipments Exceed One Million Units in Current Quarter - Mark @ 12:33 EST

ESS Technology, Inc. has announced shipments of its Swan family of DVD chips exceeding one million units in the current quarter. ESS's Swan DVD solutions, the ES4318 and ES4408FD, are designed to offer highly integrated and cost-effective DVD player solutions at the highest level of digital video and audio performance available in the consumer electronics industry today. Based on a production-proven programmable multimedia processor (PMP) core architecture consisting of a 32-bit RISC CPU and a 64-bit DSP video processor engine the solutions offer key features such as a built-in CPU for DVD navigation, MPEG-2 video & Dolby Digital decoding, sub-picture decoding, a content scrambling system (CSS), on screen display (OSD) processing, NTSC disc to PAL display (and vice versa) with SmartScale(TM), and Karaoke Processing. In addition, the Swan DVD solution also offers full DTS decode, HDCD decode, Dolby Prologic backward compatibility, a 7-band digital audio equalizer, and Sensaura speaker virtualization capabilities. For a few additional details and some quotes check out the full press release.

It's official: Creative will buy Aureal's Assets - Mikael @ 09:09 EST

Aureal has finally announced that the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California, Oakland Division entered the final order approving the sale of substantially all of the assets of Aureal to Creative Technology Ltd. The sale will include settlement of all outstanding litigation claims between Aureal and Creative. Creative will pay US$28 million in cash, plus two new shares of Creative stock for every 100 outstanding shares of Aureal stock. You can check the press release if you want more financial details.

There is of course no mention what Creative intends to do with the technology yet. I think a good bet is that they will NOT promote another API but maybe they will integrate some of it in their own API and upcoming drivers/chips. We know for certain that some parts of it (e.g. the HRTF filters) are better than what's in the current Live drivers. Thanks to Wood Powell for the pointer.

I-Jam Multimedia Introduces Latest Digital Audio Distribution Format - Mark @ 08:07 EST

I-Jam Multimedia LLC has announced it will be using the PocketZip disk from Iomega Corp as the basis for the new secure way to distribute pre-recorded music, best-selling books, classic radio shows and digital magazines. Set to launch this fall, the new product, called the License Plate or LP, is a new and improved form of content storage that is about the size and shape of a silver dollar. Leading independent label TVT Records is lending support to the format with five titles being released as LPs, two of which are gold and another platinum. I-Jam has signed an agreement with Christian label, Word Records, to market its artists' albums that have been recorded onto this new format of secure digital music. Random House Entertainment has also agreed to market its best-selling digital audio books. Additionally, I-Jam's spoken audio partner, Media Bay, Inc., will contribute content from its extensive library of spoken audio for this new, secure format of distribution. For more details check out the full press release.

DDX Controller Device Enables True Digital Audio Products - Mark @ 08:02 EST

Apogee Technology, Inc. has announced the availability of the DDX-2000 Controller device that enables audio manufacturers to produce all-digital amplifier products using Apogee's patented high efficiency Direct Digital Amplification (DDX®) technology. Products that can benefit from this design include A/V amplifiers, digital powered speakers and MP3 playback systems. David Meyers, Apogee's Vice President Business Development had the following to offer on the new technology:

With the development of multi-channel home theater audio and the proliferation of digital audio recording and transmission standards, electronic manufacturers are driven towards all-digital high efficiency amplifier designs. The DDX-2000 meets this technical and marketing challenge by enabling 100% digital sound reproduction while at the same time reducing amplifier size and power supply cost

Boston Accoustics BA4800 Review - Mark @ 07:44 EST

Neoseeker has posted a review of Boston Accoustics BA4800 5 piece speaker system. Overall, a very postive review (90/100). For my own impressions and more detailed performance testing check out our full review of the BA4800.

Hollywood Plus DVD Recoder Review - Mark @ 07:34 EST

3DSpotlight has posted a review of the Hollywood Plus DVD decoder. Keep in mind (as they point out) that the screen shots comparing the H+ to the Cinemaster software decoder acually are PowerDVD vs Cinemaster. While the review comments are based on the on the actuall H+ comparisons and not the PowerDVD pictures used to illustrate the point, it seems to me that the comparison using Cinemaster 99 is a worst case difference and would clearly have been less using the latest versions PowerDVD (as they show) and possibly WinDVD. The other thing worth pointing out is unlike some software decoders and the Dxr3/Live combo, the H+ does not offer an option for 4 speaker analog dowmnixing. Overall, a nice review that comes to a positive conclusion about the Hollywood Plus.

Interview with 3D REALMS Music Director - Mikael @ 05:00 EST

Sonik has interviewed APOGEE/3D REALMS Music Director Lee Jackson, who is currently working on the Unreal engine powered Duke Nukem Forever. Here's a taste:

SONIK : What software do you use ?

LEE : For all MIDI chores, I use Cakewalk Pro Audio 9.03 (latest version at this time). I've couldn't do my job without Cakewalk. For multitrack recording and mixing, I use SAW Pro. I usually set SAW Pro to generate SMPTE as master, and by connecting the 2port/SE's SMPTE out directly to the 8port/SE's SMPTE in, I am able to slave Cakewalk to SAW Pro and record as many or as few tracks as I want from each synth/sampler/module.

I also have a lot of DirectX and VST plugins, including the Waves Native Power Pack, both packs from TC Works (Native Essentials and TC Native Bundle), all three Cakewalk CFX packs, and the Sonic Foundry Noise Reduction plugin (DirectX version).

I also have all of the Fxpansion plugins, Opcode's fusion:VOCODE plugin, and several from AnalogX. SAW Pro works natively with my VST plugins, but I use the Amulet VST Adapter when I need to use a VST plugin in a DirectX environment.

My main soundfile editing tool is Sound Forge, again with tons of plugins.

I use Square Circle's WaveSurgeon for loop slicing. When I need to sync something up to an AVI, I use a program called DDClip. It's written by SoftLab-NSK in Russia (http://www.softlab-nsk.com/ddclipro), and I recommend it highly.

A complete list of all of my hardware and software can be found on my web site at http://gameaudio.3dportal.com , in the Articles section.

I don't use any softsynths per se, but I do use the SoundFont capability of my Sound Blaster Live! card quite a bit. There are quite a few decent SoundFonts available on the Internet, and

I've created a few of my own using either public domain samples or samples ripped from CD-Audio only sampling CDs. I mainly rely on the SBLive to play back samples that I'm not going to tweak during playback (i.e., just play the note, don't worry about adjusting filters or whatnot).

This frees up voices on my K2500RS and other gear for instrument-specific sample CDs, things that require realtime adjustment, and so on.

Blair Witch Volume 1: Rustin Parr preview - Mikael @ 04:53 EST

IGNPC has posted a preview of the recently gone gold nocturne powered Blair Witch Volume 1: Rustin Parr. Here's an interesting bit:

So far, the biggest strengths of Rustin Parr are the same as the strengths of the movie -- strong voice acting, overall, and some of the creepiest sounds to come out of your speakers since System Shock 2 and Half-Life. Besides the impressive engine, which features more dynamic shading tricks, and some of the best pre-rendered landscapes you've ever laid eyes on, Nocturne's greatest asset was the moody sound design, which caused just as many chills as the creatures and models in the game itself. Rustin Parr is no different, and in a matter of hours I'd heard the familiar childlike moans and noises coming from the forest, extra footsteps that weren't mine, and slight breathing that seemed to emanate from every corner (with good 3D audio, anyway).

Vampire review - Mikael @ 04:40 EST

Jumbo.com has posted a review of the Vampire. They are quite impressed with the game which they think offer great gameplay, graphics and excellent aural experience. They like most other reviews have some complaints about the AI and they also complain about the camera angles. Here's the detailed sound impression:

Sound-wise, you'll be hard-pressed to find a role playing game with better sound than Vampire. There are all kinds of sound effects and a ton of spoken dialogue - more than any other game I can remember playing. The game's developers didn't skimp on the voice actors either, folks. These are real actors doing the voices, and it's all very well done. I believe this is the first time I've ever given a perfect '10' in the sound category; it is well deserved.

John Carmack interview - Mikael @ 04:35 EST

VoodooExtreme has posted part 3 of their interview with John Carmack. Several of the questions are submitted by other top game developers. Topics include: DOOM III, id Software, games in general, technology, programming and much more. Here's the only sound related one:

Voodoo Extreme -- We rarely see any major sound advances in games these days, seems most developers focus on the visuals. Are you planning on doing anything different with the sound engine in Doom3? I ask this as, as we've seen in some recent games like System Shock 2, in creating a genuinely creepy game, sound can be an incredible thing.

John Carmack -- Graeme's primary task is going to be a completely new sound engine. Coupled with the fact that this will be the first project where I am comfortable using threads (previously the cross-platform issues have nixed it for me) for required background streaming, we should have quite literally an order of magnitude more audio richness than in our previous games.

Diablo II MP3 of the Week - Mikael @ 04:30 EST

Blizzard has released a new Diablo II MP3 of the week.
News Source: Blue's News

Thursday, September 21, 2000

NVIDIA Delivers Second Key Processor for Microsoft's Xbox - Mark @ 22:13 EST

NVIDIA Corporation has announced today that it is supplying the Media Communications Processor (MCP) for the Xbox. The MCP performs the multimedia processing for broadband connectivity, communications, and audio capabilities of the Xbox. At the heart of the MCPX, is a pair of high performance multimedia DSPs, executing up to 4 billion operations per second.

According to the announcement, this is equivalent to the multimedia processing power of a high performance Pentium III. The processing power of MCPX will enable the Xbox to produce theatre quality 3D audio and super realistic 3D sound effects, while connecting to the broadband Internet for networked games. The MCPX is manufactured in advanced 0.15um 7 layer metal process and is the second NVIDIA processor to be featured in Xbox. For additional information and some more quotes you can check out the full press release.

For more on the processor you can check out an article over at C/Net News where they also talk about plans beyond the X-Box. Several interesting bits but one that jumps out is they list Dolby Digital encoding as one of the features that will be on the MCPX! At first I thought it was a misprint but the source is from an NVIDIA powerpoint presentation (linked below) and is clearly set out as "Real time encoded Dolby Digital AC3 stream". In addtion, that particular slide also list the following features:

First APU with 256 2D and 64 3D voices

First Microsoft DirectX 8 Hardware Audio Processor

Hardware 3D effects processing (Reflections, occlusion, reverb)

For some more coverage along with the copy of the powerpoint presentation I mentioned above you can check out NVNews. Thanks to Fred Mah and golem (from Consoles.org) for the pointers.

Another Aureal update @ Vortex of Sound - Mikael @ 08:18 EST

Vortex of Sound has been updated again (yesterday) with another update on who will end up buying Aureal. Still not any confirmation but another indication Creative Labs will end up buying it. The info he got only mentions "Alternate Purchaser" (that is not Guillemot) so that refers to Creative Labs is speculation but it looks likely unless all the previous rumours have been wrong. Thanks to Mark Tannert for the pointer.

Sontage Announces Price for Game Commander 2 - Mikael @ 08:10 EST

Sontage Interactive, a division of Mindmaker, Inc. and makers of Game Commander voice recognition software for games and simulations, has announced pricing and upgrade information for Game Commander 2 which will be released toward the end of October 2000.

Game Commander 2 will be available on CD with a noise-canceling head microphone for $39.95*. As with previous versions of Game Commander, Game Commander 2 will also be available in downloadable, software-only format. The downloadable product will be $29.95* directly from the Game Commander Online Store. For more info check out the press release

Hitachi DVD Players Incorporate Spatializer N-2-2 - Mikael @ 08:07 EST

Spatializer Audio Laboratories has announced that Hitachi, Ltd. has included Spatializer N-2-2(TM) Virtual Surround Sound across its entire DVD Player line-up. Models DV-P250, DV-P305 and DV-W1 have already established themselves among the top DVD Players in the global market since their introduction earlier this year. Two additional models, the DV-P705 and DV-C605 will be introduced early next year. You can find more details about Spatializer N-2-2 in the press release

Hitman: Codename 47 demo released - Mikael @ 07:59 EST

As the enigmatic Hitman, you must use stealth and tactical problem solving to enter, execute and exit your assignment with minimum attention and maximum effectiveness. For a price, you have access to the most devious devices, but how you use them will determine if you retire as a millionaire or get permanently retired. You can download the demo from 3dfiles.

According to a preview of Hitman: Codename 47 the game will support EAX, DS3D and A3D. I have not tried the demo but Jeff "wumpus" Atwood from GameBasement sent us the following short but interesting bit about the demo:

The Hitman demo has both a3d.dll and eax.dll in the demo install folder, although there are no real sound options other than levels. Very cool demo!! Could be another Thief.

Gunlok demo released - Mikael @ 07:43 EST

Gunlok is a ‘3D team based action strategy’ game, from Rebellion, the developers of the number one world-wide hit Aliens vs. Predator. As the game starts the player sets out on a quest to destroy The Corporation, along the way solving puzzles and battling robots as he strives to free mankind. During the game Gunlok picks up companions and together, through team co-operation and using each other’s unique abilities, they battle their way to a final confrontation with the evil at the heart of The Corporation. You can find more details about the game and download links at 3dfiles. I don't know if the demo supports 3D sound but according to an interview in February the game will support 3D sound and EAX.

Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force Reviews - Mikael @ 07:37 EST

Plenty of new Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force Reviews have popped up on the net. All agree that the game is an excellent Star Trek game and a must buy for the fans of the series. Most of them consider it to be a good or great game for all FPS fans while GamePro and especially Beyondtron thinks it's an excellent FPS. Beyondtron even thinks it offer some of the best aspects of Half-Life and Thief. Some complaints of the game are poor AI, short game, not that many scripted scenes and one (GamePower) complaint of the Multiplayer mode. Several other reviews thought the multiplayer mode was great.

Pretty much all of the reviews are relatively short and several of them didn't even mention anything about the aural aspects of the game. One exception is Beyondtron that offers a rather detailed review of the game. Here's the usual sound snips:

GameRankings:

If the detailed surroundings don't make you feel like you are in the Star Trek world, then the sounds to go with it definitely will.

As mentioned the game supports A3D 2.0 or 3.0 and will offer 3D sound and EAX just like Quake3 on soundcards that support DS3D and EAX. Not played Star Trek but in case of Quake3 I consider the EAX effects rather wacky and the sound effects are also lacking, at least on the Live using the Windows9x drivers. Heard some say it works better on the Live with the WDM drivers and some also said they like the wacky EAX effects in Quake3.
News Source: Blue's News

Wednesday, September 20, 2000

Creative Labs Nomad Jukebox (Silver) Review - Mark @ 22:17 EST

C/Net Consumer Electronics has posted a very positive review of Creative Labs Nomad Jukebox (Silver). Here's a snip from their intro to set the stage:

Let's get to the point: The most significant aspect of the Nomad Jukebox is it holds 6GB of music. This means that you can take about 1,000 songs with you wherever you go, in a device that's the size and shape of a portable CD player. When you add the fact that it records live audio directly to stereo WAV files, it's pretty easy to see why we've been dying to get our hands on one of these ever since we heard about them. It's not the perfect music machine, but it's close.

Sony Launches First MiniDisc Walkman Player/Recorder With Digital PCLink - Mark @ 22:06 EST

Sony Electronics has announced the first portable MiniDisc player/recorder with Digital PCLink. The new MZ-R70DPC MD model enables consumers to record personalized music mixes by taking the audio information out of the ``noisy'' PC environment and converting it to a digital signal, as it is transferred to the recorder. With this latest version of the MD Walkman®, the consumer receives all the benefits associated with true digital-to-digital recording, such as near CD quality sound, automatic synchronized recording and automatic track mark insertion. The automatic synchronized recording function allows the user to create a personalized MD that sounds professionally mixed. The included plug-and-play USB interface, called the MiniDisc Digital PCLink, automatically configures itself when connected to a Windows® 98/2000 enabled PC. The MD Walkman player features a dual headphone jack for sharing music and a ``smart'' remote with editing functions. An optional car adapter allows consumers to plug the unit into a car stereo system. The new MD Walkman player/recorder features a digital Mega Bass® sound system and a 40-second shock-resistant memory. It delivers up to 17 hours of continuous playback on a single AA battery or consumers can use the included rechargeable AA battery. The MZ-R70DPC MD Walkman player digital PC bundle comes supplied with everything needed to digitally record Internet music files, including a USB cable, digital PCLink and an optical cable. An AC power adapter and carrying pouch are also supplied. The new bundle will be available in October and is expected to sell for about $300. For lots more detail check out the full press release.

NFS: Porsche Unleashed Review - Mark @ 20:00 EST

Gamer's Pulse has posted a review of the DS3D supporting Need For Speed: Porsche Unleashed and are quite impressed with the game. Here's a snip on sound:

NFSP has many, many cars. Almost every car's engine has a unique sound...almost (some cars sound a bit off tune). Everthing else in the sound department is perfect! Drive a top-down convertible and you can hear the wind rush past your ears! No amount of writing can do justice to how good this game sounds; you have to experience it in order to believe it!

Clive Barker's Undying: The Developer Journals Updated - Mark @ 19:50 EST

GameSpy has posted a new installment to their Undying Development Journals with an update from J.Peter Scott, who is one of the designers at Dreamwork Studios working on the Unreal engined horror game. The extensive update includes the following snip on sound:

Sound is another area we've done extensive work on. We have awesome sound engineers. And to get the most varied audio behaviour possible, we implemented an extensive sound matrix system that allows every combination of surface type and impact object to have its own sound and parameter set. I truly think our sound quality is equal to that of Half-Life, which is a pretty good compliment.

Turtle Beach Santa Cruz Review - Mark @ 18:26 EST

Combat Sim has posted a different Turtle Beach Santa Cruz review. Different in that rather than coming at it from a gaming perspective the review instead focuses on some A-B comparisons with the reviewer's home audio equipment and to say the least, they are very impressed with the performance of the Santa Cruz. The comparisons are interesting but unfortunately the review is written from the perspective that the Santa Cruz is the first sound card to bring qualiy audio to the PC, which it certainly is not. It's also worth noting that the Santa Cruz is just like every other PC99 sound card in that operates at an internal sample rate of 48 kHz so it does resample CD audio from 44.1 to 48 kHz. These are not knocks against the Santa Cruz or the reviews A-B comparisons. Rather, it's some perspective that I find is lacking from the review. To be really interesting they would have to had done similar tests with other second generation sound cards. A couple other things I will mention. One is the VersaJack cannot be configured for digital input so I can't follow the test results based on that fact. The other is while I assume the revier knows this, they never actually state that the Santa Cruz does not do Dolby Digital decoding. It needs a software MPEG decoder like WinDVD 2.2 to take advantage of all its capabilities. At the end, their concession to game is they compare ZD audio numbers to a Vortex 1 board rather than other second generation sound cards so it's not a all surprising to see the decrease in CPU usage. Beacause they did not do any gaming tests they missed the issues with EAX 2.0 that exisit with the card's latest drivers.

ABIT SP50 Home Theater Speakers & AU10 Sound Card Review - Mark @ 13:38 EST

Anandtech has posted their review of the ABIT SP50 Home Theater Speakers & AU10 Sound Card. I have been using the speaker system off and on for the past few weeks but have been delayed completing the review because of work on our upcoming Turtle Beach Santa Cruz review. As it stands I am able to offer some hands on comments on the system.

First, their comment on CPU usage for WinDVD decoding of audio and video being a potential problem is surprising. If you are multitasking, I agree. However, for dedicated DVD playback I have never had a problem on my TNT1 on a Celeron 333a o/c to 416 with software video and audio decoding. When it comes to the subwoofer crossover of the Abit system it's worth noting that in 5.1 mode the bass management is handled by the sound card and not the speaker system. It's true that the FM801 based cards do go faily high in the frequencies sent to the subwoofer but overall I think that benefits performance of a speaker system with such small (2") satellite drivers. While I have used other FM801 based cards, I have not yet tried Abit's so I will limit my comments. First, CPU usage in games should not be a significant issue (checkout the review link below for some numbers). I also found their comments on how the card affects frequency response surprising and equally surprising is they find movie sound tracks to be more revealing of flaws in the system than music playback. It makes me think there was some other problem as music is typically considered the most demanding aural media. There are other areas that I perhaps could comment on, but won't since I have not tested as an integrated system yet. Basically, when it comes to quality, I would agree that the sound quality is not at the level of the Sirocco Crossfires, for example, and the design using 2" drivers for the satellites does pose some performance challenges. However, I am at this stage of my testing developing a more positive impression than the Anandtech reviewer presents.

For some more detailed FM801 impressions you can check out our Skywell Magic Sound Live reivew. The FM801 in the MS Live is an older version but it will give you a good general idea as the quality we expect from the Abit sound card as the quality should have gone up and not down. Look for our full review of the system in the next couple of weeks.

PowerDVD Retail Patch - Mark @ 12:50 EST

This will only be of interest to a select audience. If you have PowerDVD 255 Retail Build 0201 then you can get a free patch to update it to Build 0620. You can get all the details over at 3DSL where you will also find links to the patch.

Motorola Unveils New High-Speed and Low Power Audio Chip - Mikael @ 06:14 EST

The chip, named the DSP56367, greatly increases performance while reducing power consumption for the consumer industry's digital audio products.

With performance of 150 MIPS, the DSP56367 provides the capability to process all the major multichannel audio decoding standards (Dolby Digital®, DTS, MPEG2 Multichannel and AAC, and DVD-audio) along with Dolby Headphone in a single device. It also allows up to 100 MIPS to handle other audio processing requirements such as subwoofer management, soundfield effects, 3D virtual surrounds, equalization, THX+Surround EX(TM), DTS-ES, Prologic II, and Pacific Microsonics HDCD.

Reducing power was a key consideration when Motorola designed the DSP56367. Motorola will offer the part with 150 MIPS at 1.8V and 100 MIPS at 1.5V core voltages. The typical power is 0.6 mW/MIPS at 1.8V and 0.4 mW/MIPS at 1.5V. For portable application such as MP3 decoding, the Motorola Symphony Onyx DSP family needs ~22 MIPS for MP3 decoding.

One of the companies that will use this new chip is Creative which will use it for an upcoming speaker system. You can find more details in the press release.

Demand for MP3 Players Rises - Mikael @ 06:05 EST

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the legality of some digital music download programs and business models, millions of consumers are already hooked on portable digital music players, according to Cahners In-Stat Group. The high-tech market research firm projects that annual sales will soar from a total of $126 million in 1999 to $1.25 billion by the end of 2002. For more info read the press release

Low Power A/D Converter Brings High-Fidelity Recording to Portable Products - Mikael @ 06:03 EST

Cirrus Logic Inc has announced the industry's lowest power A/D converter system, the Crystal CS53L32A, that consumes only 9.7mW of power. The CS53L32A provides 98dB dynamic range and -88dB total harmonic distortion plus noise (THD+N) which produces excellent sound quality and longer battery life for audio applications requiring low power consumption. The CS53L32A complements the Crystal CS43L43 D/A converter and Cirrus Logic's Maverick(tm) Market Specific Processor product line to offer a complete audio solution for Internet audio players and recorders. If you are interested you can find more details in the press release.

4x4 Evolution demo/ Public beta updated again - Mikael @ 02:08 EST

Terminal Reality has released an updated demo/public beta test again. One of the new features mentioned is new sound effects. You can grab the updated demo from 3dfiles or just the patch from Avault

According to a preview the 4x4 Evolution that was posted last month the game will support all major 3D sound APIs. At the time for the preview they were 50% done with that aspect.

Interview with Creative's Jean-Marc Jot, 3D Audio Researcher - Mark @ 00:27 EST

The Creative Audio Technology Centre is Creative's primary advanced research and development center, working on leading-edge technology for Creative's PC and Personal Digital Entertainment products. Jean-Marc Jot, Lead 3D Audio and EAX technology R&D Researcher, offers a sneak preview into developments in the pipeline as well the science behind EAX technology over at Creative's official EAX site. The actual interview is an audio interview (RealAudio format) but they have some text excerpts from the interview. Here's one of the excerpts:

How does EAX simulate multiple environments and transitions between environments (environment morphing)?

EAX currently supports only one reverberation engine, it not allow the listener to hear the reverberation of several rooms simultaneously. However, the EAX reverb engine is designed to be very flexible. With the same reverb algorithm implemented on the EMU10K1, we can simulate a wide variety of rooms. For example, a narrow corridor or a concert hall.s with the same engine. This is not possible with more conventional reverb units found in recording studios...

For the audio links and all of the text excerpts head to their featured column.

Hitman: Codename 47 Preview - Mark @ 00:18 EST

Action Trip has posted a preview of Hitman: Codename 47. Not a whole lot on sound but they do mention that EAX, DS3D and A3D sound effects are supported and also had the following to say:

Similar to Thief, each hit is preceded by careful sneaking, or stalking your opponent. The best thing is to kill as quietly as possible, because each alarm can lead to a shoot out with a bunch of goons.

Interview with Kevin Manthei, Composer - Mark @ 00:11 EST

RPGDOT has posted an Interview with composer Kevin Manthei. Kevin has done work on titles such as Majesty, Wizardy 8 and Vampire: The Masquerade - Redemption. Quite a nice interview that's worth checking out. Here's just a small taste:

10. Can you describe the feelings you have in and for the key tracks in the Vampire soundtrack ?

On the deepest level, my goal for Vampire, as well as any game, TV or film project is to score the correct mood and feelings to convey the story properly to the player/viewer. The music has to fuse with the very essence of the project, it needs to intertwine with the dramatic elements of the story. Since Vampire is an RPG it really plays out like a long interactive film. Because of that, I approached it in a very traditional film scoring sense. There is a main Redemption theme, a love theme for Christophe and Anezka, Christophe's theme and evil boss themes. Beyond the specific themes, there are moments where I am scoring the mood of a location and the action taking place there. Ray and I discussed how the music was to have a very real and present sense of horror coupled with a strong medieval style. I took this a step further and introduced modern scoring techniques. My inspiration for Vampire primarily came from Ray Gresko and his infinite wisdom on his game and the desires he had for it. There is nothing better for inspiration than the person/team who creates the project. After all, they are the ones who have been living with the ideas, conception and finally the fruition of the game. Ray & Chris Hewish had me look at all the concept drawings of the characters, buildings and places in the game. I took an afternoon and went over to Activision to see the beginning stages of the game and get copies of all the concept art. Ray then sent me the entire game script and the game design doc. I read the script as I was composing some of the first tracks. Understanding the story and what takes place really gets you zeroed in to a project. Because of reading of the script and design doc as well as looking at the concept art, it made me feel that I had a lot to contribute to the project. It wasn't just a puzzle game that needed tunes. It was a feature film rolled into a game.

Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force FAQ - On EAX - Mark @ 00:04 EST

The official StarTrek: Voyager Elite Force FAQ has the following bit on why EAX is not supported in Q3A engine based game:

EAX does not fit in with the Elite Force code-base. It would have required all new maps to take advantage of the environmental audio settings, and we just didn't have enough time to do that. We will be considering it for future projects, though.

Tuesday, September 19, 2000

Havana Interview - Mark @ 17:21 EST

Live! center has published the fourth part in its series of interviews with musicians using the Sound Blaster Live!. This time, the band "Havana" shares its secrets about music making with the Live!. Examples of Havana's music are included for you to listen to while reading the interview.

Star Trek : Elite Force reviews - Mikael @ 17:11 EST

The first reviews of Star Trek : Elite Force have been very positive but today we have 3 new reviews where only one was impressed. The Ecronom has posted a very short review where they say it's a great Star Trek game but only a decent FPS game. They also complain that it's very short (10 hours). Here's the positive impression of the sound effects:

The ambient sound effects are a nice touch. They're not over the top but you would notice if they weren't there. Each ship has its own sound effects, like when you press a button and the ambient sound of the ship. They all change, the coolest being the Borg ship. I think the Borg ship is the scariest in the game because of the background sound effects. You can hear Borg wandering round, working on the ship, doing Borg stuff, and with surround sound speakers its really spooky. You never know if they're just going to turn on you, or walk by. There is music in the game, but again it's ambient background music that just adds to the atmosphere. The voice acting is cool as its done by the original cast, all but Seven for some reason.

On GameRush you'll find a review of the game written by a Star Trek fan and he thinks pretty much every aspect of the game is excellent, that includes the graphics, level design, gameplay and sound effects. Only complaint is that the game is a bit short. He made no comment about the sound effects and music other than both are great.
News Source: Blue's News

Midtown Madness 2 reviews - Mikael @ 16:46 EST

ActiveWin has posted a short and overall positive review of the 3D sound supporting Midtown Madness 2. They complained a bit about poor performance and poor speech. Here's the speech complaint and other sound impressions:

Sound is another mixed bunch, while city sounds and cars, horns etc all sound fine - the speech leaves a lot to be desired. It ends up being very repetitive and the London cabby ends up sounding like an American trying to put on the usual bad English accent.

Soulbringer review - Mikael @ 16:35 EST

Well-rounded has posted a review of the 3D sound supporting RPG Soulbringer They complained about most aspect of the game including the aurals:

The musical score isn't any better. From the supposedly moody soundtrack to the uninspiring grunts and groans of slain monsters, the audio fails to draw you into the game, while ambient sounds are sorely lacking. Though you'll spend time adventuring through forest paths and city streets, your ears won't know the difference. The result? You focus even more on the lousy graphics!

Metal Gear Solid PC Goes Gold - Mikael @ 16:09 EST

Microsoft has announced that Metal Gear Solid PC, the PC version of Konami's number one selling console game, has gone gold. This means that the product is completed and is expected to hit store shelves in the U.S. later this month. Metal Gear Solid PC has all the intense action, cunning espionage and tactical stealth of the original, with exciting new features that improve the game play experience. There is no mention of 3D sound on the official site but in an interview earlier this week the Program Manager for Metal Gear Solid on the PC said "3D sound has been included to continue the great atmosphere in the game..
News Source: Voodoo Extreme

Deep Fighter Demo Released - Mikael @ 16:02 EST

Ubi Soft has released a playable demo for Criterion Studios' upcoming aquatic action/adventure game, Deep Fighter. The demo allows you to play four of the 35 missions from the full game. Aureal announced late last year that it would support A3D 2.0 but those plans may have changed. On the official site they offer the following details on the sound:

1. Dynamic context sensitive music, the mood and style of the music change depending on current environment and action


2. Full 3D environment audio utilising 3D hardware if available
   
3. Uses hardware post-processing for additional sound effects ( reverb/chorus/flange etc.)

Grand Prix 3 Demo - Mikael @ 14:57 EST

The Formula One car racing simulation of the complete Grand Prix season featuring all the circuits, all the teams, all the drivers and all the cars reproduced accurately as licensed by the FOA, the sport's governing body. Featuring Driving Aids for rookies, Quick Race, Non-Championship Races and the complete Championship Season with full qualifying and practice days, pit stops, complete car set ups and data logging. According to several reviews the recently released game supports 3D sound. You can download it from 3dfiles.

Maxi Sound: Muse Review - Mark @ 07:37 EST

Gamer's Depot has posted a review of Guillemot's Maxi Sound Muse, their latest low cost ($29) entry in the 4 chanel sound card market. While they do have a valid point in comparing the price of Live Value (OEM product) to the retail price of the Muse, many people who don't shop online don't have access to OEM products. It's also worth noting that the OEM Live does not come with a software bundle other than Liveware 2.0 and Mediaring on the CD. Getting back to the Muse, in addition to A3D 1.0 the card also supports EAX 1.0 and if Guillemot and C-Media update the drivers then it will end up supporting EAX 2.0 as you can see in this press release. When it comes to their testing I have just one comment. The A3D 2.0 support in Q3A only works for non-Aureal cards if you install Aureal's A2D "wrapper" which will get you 3D audio support, EAX support (with wacky effects) and some dropped sound effects. It's also worth noting that ever since ID patched the game A3D 2.0 no longer works on Vortex 2 boards so its not a great test of compatability since the only way to get 3D sound on the patch game is to not use a Vortex board. We have recently received the Muse and will have something for you once we get through our Santa Cruz / Sonic Fury reviews. In the mean time you can check out the details of this $29 board over at Gamer's Depot.

Grand Prix 3 Released - Mikael @ 04:47 EST

Hasbro Interactive has now announced the release of the officially licensed Formula One simulation game, Grand Prix 3. The game features the circuits, teams, and many of the drivers and cars from the 1998 Championship season. Some of the special features include detailed 3D track graphics, wet weather effects, collision damage and force feedback. It also supports 3D sound according to several reviews of the game. You can find more details about the game by checking out the official site and previous Grand Prix 3 posts
News Source: Ga-Source

Creative's NOMAD Jukebox Hits the Road - Mikael @ 04:40 EST

Creative Technology has finally announced it has begun shipping the NOMAD® Jukebox in the U.S. The NOMAD Jukebox features 6GB of storage in a sleek, portable design that holds over 100 hours of high-quality digital music, or the equivalent of about 150 CDs. The NOMAD Jukebox supports both PC and Macintosh operating systems and is available now for U.S. $499.99 at retail stores and e-tailers. Two interesting features mentioned in the spec list are the following: "Surround Sound Support including two line outs for FourPointSurround speaker systems" and "Future Support for upcoming downloadable features including new EAX Environmental Effects, security features, and auto playlist generators". The surround support for now will most likely be the same as if you used a stereo splitter or maybe some 4-speaker stereo expansion algorithms (probably similar to force Dolby Prologic on stereo content) but considering the AAC format supports more than 2 channels it's possible it could be true surround sound in the future. You can find plenty of details in the press release.

In a related announcement Creative Technology let us know they are now showcasing the Creative NOMAD® Jukebox amongst the world's latest contemporary and conceptually dynamic designs and products in the internationally renowned Design Museum in London.

Toshiba Develops DSP Codec for Digital Audio Players - Mikael @ 04:30 EST

Toshiba has announced that it developed a new series of single-chip digital signal processors (DSPs) for digital audio players that offers both signal encoding and decoding capabilities. The new DSPs are programmed to support the high quality sound of Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), an advanced sound compression format for music distribution supported by the SD Association and promoter of the SD memory card, as well as MP3 decoding. Where this player DSP differs to others DSPs used in portable MP3 players is that it supports encoding. You can find more specs and other details in the press release.

Xitel MD-Port DG1 review - Mikael @ 02:12 EST

3DAI has posted a review of Xitel's $99 MD-Port DG1. It's pretty much a digital version of the MD-Port AN1, that is it allows you to send MP3s and other songs from the PC using the USB port to your MiniDisc player which has to use an optical input for this to work. According to 3DAI the product works great. One disadvantge compared to transfering music to a MP3 player is that the transfering will always be the same speed as playback.

Offspring will release their next CD for free - Mikael @ 02:06 EST

Offspring who have spoken in favor of Napster have now announced that they will be offering its entire new album for digital download in the MP3 format via the Internet for free. In addition to download it for free you will have the option of being placed into a drawing to win $1 million -- coming entirely out of the band's pocket.

Offspring still expect people to buy their CD since users who insert the purchased CD into their computers immediately have access to a coded part of the band's Web site that offers exclusive downloads, advance concert tickets and weekly updates. To download the CD in MP3 form you will also have to register which the band will use to create register that they can later use to directly market its music. Offspring says retailers are happy with their initiative but according to The Hollywood Reporter Online Sony is not that pleased. You can read more about this in The Hollywood Reporter.

Midtown Madness 2 Preview - Mikael @ 01:58 EST

Ga-Sports has posted a preview of Microsofts' recently gone gold racing game, Midtown Madness 2. They think the game is great and had a very positive impression of the aural aspect of this DS3D supporting game:

One area that I took special notice of was the sound effects. This game has a lot of atmosphere, and a lot of that is, in part, to the ambient city sound effects present in the game (you can choose to have either music or the ambient effects, and I preferred the latter). In San Fran, you hear the ocean off in the distance, seagulls, and other sound effects that really draw you in. London has the pattering of rain, the chime of Big Ben, and so on.

The cars also each sound different…from the grinding sound of the larger vehicles to the “zippyness” of the smaller, more agile vehicles. Each vehicle has its own different sound, and this makes itself very evident when competing against other cars, because you can tell what type of car is on which side of you. This makes each race a feast for the ears.

The music didn’t really thrill me in th