Conference napalm::commusic_v1

2317.0. "Sound Tools for the Atari and Mac" by MIDI::DAN (Dan Gosselin, CUP Engineering) Thu Apr 12 1990 15:20

For those of you with money and nowhere to spend it, I got a letter last week
from Digidesign, the same people that market C-LAB's Notator.  Here's the text:

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Dear Digidesign customer,

As an Atrai software user, you'll be very interested in our newest product:
Sound Tools for the Atari Mega ST!  Available in April, 1990, this CD-quality
digital recording and editing system is based on our popular Macintosh Sound
Tools.  With over 1500 systems installed worldwide, its the best-selling
direct to disk system ever!

Atari Sound Tools offers two channels of high-fidelity recording editing and
playback.  Here's just a few key features:

	* Two channels of 44.1 kHz recording, editing, and playback - gives
		you CD quality sound on your Atari Mega ST!
	* Optional Digital Interface offers 48 kHz recording, AES/EBU & S/PDIF
		formats, for compatability with professional DAT recorders.
	* Fast and flexible Non-destructive Playlist editing lets you create an
		unlimited number of arrangemnt without consuming additional
		disk space!
	* Recording length limited only by drive capacity (Stereo, 44.1 kHz =
		10 megabytes/minute.  Only 2 Megabytes of RAM required.
	* SMPTE synchronization (via MIDI Time Code) for audio post-production
	* Real-time digital EQ - hear your changes as you make them!
	* DSP effects like time compression/expansion, mixing, merging, sample
		rate conversion - usually found only on systems at 10 times
		the cost!

Each Atari Sound Tools system includes:

	* Sound accelerator - audio card easily installed in the Mega ST's
		internal expansion slot
	* Analog Interface - High quality A/D - D/A external converter box.
		Rack mount optional.
	* Sound Designer II - powerful audio editing software offering high-
		speed flexible editing tools

And available optyionally is our DAT I/O Bi-directional Digital Interface,
supporting sampling rates of 48 kHz and 44.1 kHZ and both the AES/EBU and
S/PDIF formats for compatibility with virtually every professional digital 
audio recorder on the matrket.

Atari Sound Tools is a breakthrough in affordability.  The system retails for
only $2995.  The DAT I/O is available for an additional $995.

This is a system with a future.  As you read this, Digidesign and C-LAB Software
are hard at work integrating C-LAB's powerful Creator/Notator sequencing/
notation package with Atari Sound Tools.  That means you will have the tools to
combine digital audio - vocals, acoustic guitar, percussion, etc. - with your
MIDI sequences.  All on a single computer!  Stay tuned for more information
about availability and pricing.

If you'd like to learn more about Atari Sound Tools, please send in the enclosed
business reply card.  We'll send you a free brochure and the name of a dealer 
near you.  Questions?  Call (415)688-0600 and a pre-sales representative will
gladly help you.

Sincerely,						Digidesign, Inc.
							1360 Willow Road, 
Suz Howells						Suite 101
Product Marketing Manager				Menlo Park, CA 94025
							(415)327-8811
							Telex: 267-6317 MCI
							Fax: (415)327-0777

********************************************************************************

It never ceases to amaze me that companies will come out with software/hardware
add-ons that cost 4 times the price of the base computer...

Dan