Apogee’s Symphony PCI-X card is a digital computer interface that is based on the PCI-X architecture in Apple’s PowerMac G5 computers. Controlled by Apogee’s Maestro software, Symphony features 32 channels of digital I/O on a single PCI-X card format. With support for sample rates up to 192 kHz, Symphony can be used as a digital router or patch-bay when connected to external converters or other digital outboard equipment. Software drivers for Symphony feature extensive routing capabilities and very low latency performance. Symphony connects directly to Apogee’s Rosetta and AD-16X and DA-16X converters via the X-Symphony option card, which installs in the slot of the converter itself.

With the ability to have three cards installed at one time in a PowerMac G5, Symphony is the only connectivity solution that offers high-end professional users the capability to employ up to 192 channels of audio simultaneously in a single computer, more than enough for even the biggest scoring sessions.

Symphony PCI-X at a glance:

• 32 channels of 24-bit 192K Digital I/O
• 32 channel bi-directional connector
• Connects directly to Apogee’s Rosetta 800, Rosetta 200 and AD-16X and DA-16X converters via the X-Symphony option card
• Compatibility with other Macintosh based audio software
• Apogee’s Maestro Software for advanced control and routing
• Compatibility with any Core Audio application

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

Pianoteq is the very first and only truly modelled piano. It represent a brand new generation of pianos that gives the musician possibilities to tweak the piano sound in a way that until now only has been possible with an acoustic piano. Pianoteq only takes up 8MB on the disk and is thus possible even for use with a modern laptop.

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

Available in October of 2006, the Mactel upgrade will be free to current Anthology II customers and will be available via Eventide’s website, through authorized Eventide dealers, and outside North America through authorized Pro Tools dealers.

Anthology II adds six new plug-ins to the Anthology bundle: two 48-bit double precision vintage equalizers; EQ65 Filter Set and EQ45 Parametric Equalizer, both 48-bit double precision; two new configurable channel strips, Ultra-Channel, featuring Eventide’s signature micropitch shifting effect for thickening, and E-Channel, optimized for maximum instances; Precision Time Align, provides the ability to bring individual tracks into phase; and Quadravox, a four-voice diatonic pitch shifter with delays.

Anthology II also includes the latest versions of the nine plug-ins that comprised the original best-selling Anthology bundle: H910, H949, Instant Phaser, Instant Flanger, Omnipressor®, Eventide Reverb, Octavox, H3000 Band Delays, and H3000 Factory. Like Anthology, Anthology II is fully compliant with ICON, D-Control, D-Command, Venue, Pro Tools 7.2, and is Mac and PC compatible.

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

To celebrate the Mac release the price is reduced to only 50 USD for two weeks, until 10th of September 2006 (then it will get back to full price $79 US). The license at $50 US includes both Mac OS X and PC Windows versions.

“Grand Electrix” is a sample based virtual instrument featuring a new stream from disk custom technology (“direct from disk”), for very low memory and CPU usage. Samples are streamed in real time from the computer disk, so there is no need for large amounts of RAM.

Features:

• 180 MB multisample full decay, no loops, crossfading layers
• Stream from disk custom technology for very low memory and CPU usage
• Complete control on Velocity response, curve, min max, sensivity
• 3 Band EQ
• Tremolo
• Chorus
• Temperament Menu (microtuning)
• Stretch tuning adjustable

Samples are derived from the acclaimed Hollow Sun library “Definitive CP 70″. A demo of Grand Electrix Virtual Piano is available here.

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

The Rocket Science Bundle (flight path simulator, talk box and autowah) and the multiple award winning Nautilus Bundle (Phase correct scope-EQ, granular soundscape synthesizer and end-all Phaser) have today been released as Mac Intel compatible Universal Binaries.

The new versions are free upgrades for Rocket Science version 3 and Nautilus version 2 users, and can be picked up from www.audioease.com/support.

The Nautilus Bundle (for Mac OS X: MAS VST RTAS HTDM AU Audio Suite) consists of the following three plug-ins:

RiverRun
River Run is a Granular Soundscape Synthesizer capable of oozing immense sonic oceans of tiny particals taken from your original audio. It can build rhythmic textures, wide harmonic soundscapes, and it can zoom in on your fragment by stretching it by a factor of up to 200.

PeriScope
Look at the audio spectrum via the real-time animating spectroscope, or graphic analyzer, and grab faders where you see the audio happening. Phase Correct EQ, with surgical precision, and unprecedented low frequency resolution. Edit modes range from fluent to massively steep.

Deep Phase Nine
Deep Phase Nine is a true phaser that offers unparalleled control and visual feedback. Up to 24 notches per channel, beat locked sample and hold, one-shots, a true phaser (not a flanger!) done the Audio Ease way.

The Rocket Science (for Mac OS X: MAS VST RTAS HTDM AU Audio Suite) consists of the following three plug-ins:

Roger – You can apply human vowel filters to your audio with Roger. Use the vowel bar at the bottom to click through the vowels and click the portrait to select one of the Roger family members. Features include portamento, automation, Midi-controll and rythmic talk-nonsense mode.

Follo – Dynamically adjusts the peak of a resonating bandpass filter according to the level of the incoming audio. Applications of Follo include an autowah on a guitar, and a thumping resonating bass generator.

Orbit – Orbit lets you control the virtual position of your sound source. It accurately calculates the sound source’s reflections of the walls of a virtual ‘outer room’, using the exact amount of delay and attenuation for the direct sound and all reflections alike. Useit a s a physicallly correct panner, select from preset source trajectories, or create them yourself via live MIDI controller or parameter automation.

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

ModVibe is a delay vibrato with a couple of features to mix things up. There are two delay units. The first is a forward delay and the second is a feedback delay. In between these two is a modulation unit to scramble, shake, sift and swirl the contents. The vibrato oscillators are independently set and can be shaped using frequency modulation.

The vibrato units are fairly straight forward, except that the delay can range from a few milliseconds to 4500.0 ms. Between the two, that’s a bit of delay. In addition, the vibrato can be up to 500.0 ms in depth. These two combined provide effects ranging from phasor/flanger and chorus to wild, extreme doppler shifts. The sweeps can be tailored to a high degree giving a lot of flexibility.

Please note that the interface has been changed from previous Twister Audio Units to give users more control over the interface. The parameter display and label colors can now be set by the user. We have also added new options for setting the parameter values. Users can still set the parameters with the big knob, but they may also set the parameters by clicking and dragging over the parameter readout or hovering and using their mouse scroll wheels. Vertical scrolling or dragging moves the parameter values faster in bigger increments and horizontal dragging or scrolling moves the parameter values slower in finer increments. All of the other Audio Units previously released in the Twister Series have been updated with these changes.

ModVibe is $19.99 and is available for OS X as a Universal Binary. A demo is available here.

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

Max, a graphical programming environment for music and media applications, allows its users to schedule events with millisecond accuracy, create complex mappings for incoming data, and run a large number of operations in parallel. In essence, it is a graphic tool to create programs by wiring together objects. MSP extends Max’s capabilities by incorporating audio objects that are connected to create audio patches where signals flow from one object to the next-not unlike the fundamental concept of the modular synthesizer.

Jitter is a collection of video, matrix, and 3D graphics objects for Max.

Max/MSP v. 4.6 and Jitter v. 1.6 are free updates available for download at www.cycling74.com/downloads.

For more information, visit their web site at www.cycling74.com.

Synesthesia is particularly suitable for sound design and electronic music, but it can become a secret weapon for every musician and sound designer looking for new ways to improve his creativity flow. Every music work, from film scoring to rhythmic electronic and ambient music, could gain benefit from the use of this unusual set of impulse responses that can transform sound in many ways:

Reshape spectral balance
Add new nuances
Melt sounds into new sonic textures
Create alter-egos of traditional acoustic and electro-acoustic musical instruments
Reverse and pitch-bend audio in interesting ways
Generate unusual delays and supernatural acoustics

Synesthesia is priced US$34.95 and is available as CD-ROM and as a downloadable product, in WAV or AIFF format.

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

Digidesign is expecting to release an Intel-based Mac-compatible update to its acclaimed Pro Tools HD 7.2 software in September 2006. This free update for all owners of Pro Tools HD 7.2 software will allow ICON and Pro Tools|HD users to build their Digidesign system around the new Mac Pro. Within a similar timeframe, the company expects to release compatible versions of its range of Digidesign and Digidesign-distributed TDM plug-ins, while working very closely with third-party manufacturers to help them port their plug-ins and compatible applications to the Intel Mac platform.

Based on preliminary testing, Digidesign is also expecting that the current version 7.1.1 of Pro Tools LE and Pro Tools M-Powered software (already compatible with Apple’s existing range of Intel-based computers such as MacBook, MacBook Pro, Mac Mini and iMac) will function on the new Mac Pro without problems. Full qualification is expected late Q4 2006. Please note that 7.1.1 is a free update for all Pro Tools LE 7 and Pro Tools M-Powered software owners.

“The release of professional Intel-based desktop Macs is great news for our customers,” said Dave Lebolt, Digidesign’s general manager. “Pro Tools users in all areas of audio production – professionals and enthusiasts alike – will be able to enjoy maximum performance and audio quality when using their Digidesign system in combination with the cutting-edge technology and robust power of the new Mac Pro. Strong cooperative ties and ongoing technical collaboration with Apple have made it possible for us to deliver Pro Tools versions that are compatible with these new machines quickly, keeping our customers in sync with the fast-paced Mac innovations.”

As Digidesign’s development on the Intel Mac platform moves forward, the company plans to maintain backwards compatibility with PowerPC-based Mac systems for its Pro Tools product line. Pro Tools software – in all its incarnations – will continue to be a cross-platform application, working on either Mac OS X or Windows XP configurations.

For the most current system requirements, compatibility information, and online support, please visit www.digidesign.com/compato.

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

Cycling ’74 originally developed Soundflower as a way to allow applications developed with its Max/MSP audio environment to process audio originating from other programs. However, it can be used for more general audio routing tasks patching either 2- or 16-channel data at 32-bit sample depth between any applications that support standard Core Audio driver selection. Soundflower can be selected as a “default device” in the Audio/MIDI Setup utility for programs (such as iTunes) that do not allow the selection of a specific output device. As a result, Soundflower has found widespread use in the advanced podcasting community.

For more information, visit their web site at http://www.cycling74.com/.