------------------------------------------------------------ Synthesized Sample Editor Demo Release 1.1 ------------------------------------------------------------ Intro We are pleased to see you are interested in Synthesized Sample Editor. We like to call it SSE. This is a new approach to sound and music for the PC world. SSE will allow you to create sound samples to develop musical scores for use with world famous programs such as Whacker Tracker and Fast Tracker. SSE has a unique feature that allows freedom of expression by letting the user take the mouse in hand and create a waveform free from any restrictions. The samples created by SSE are very clean and totally noise free. An additional method of creating waveforms is by using SSE's patch functions. The user clicks on a few values to be entered into a patch equation, clicks once more to start, and voila! a complex waveform is created right before your very eyes. For those of you interested in sound shaping, these waveforms are created with an envelope pattern. There are five to choose from, and one is user programmable via the mouse. SSE offers some special effects such as echo, smoothing, and distortion. With SSE, it is also possible to edit samples and waveforms. Feel free to use the included samples as you like. The five samples were created using SSE. System Requirements - 512K of free base memory - mouse - VGA graphics (640 x 480) - Sound device (Soundplayer, DAC, Stereo DAC, Sound Blaster) - 80286 or better - 80386DX-16Mhz or better to play samples - optional 80X87 math coprocessor (it will create samples faster) - no EMM driver - no TSRs - no screen savers - no shells (Windows included) Registered version will have: - more special effects - more patch functions - ability to save created and modified samples i Table of Contents i ........................ Intro ii........................ Table of contents 1 ........................ SSE Screen Display 1 ........................ Menu Commands 1 ........................ Load File 1 ........................ Save File 2 ........................ Configuration 2 ........................ Pan Left & Right 3 ........................ Edit-FX-Amplitude 3 ........................ Edit-FX-Echo 3 ........................ Edit-FX-Reverse 3 ........................ Edit-FX-Smooth 3 ........................ Edit-FX-Distortion 4 ........................ Edit-FX-Play Sample 4 ........................ Edit-FX-Quit 4 ........................ Edit-Patch 5 ........................ Edit-Patch-Programmable envelop 5 ........................ Edit-Edit-Play Sample 5 ........................ Edit-Edit-Copy to buffer 6 ........................ Edit-Edit-Insert into waveform 6 ........................ Edit-Edit-Delete from Sample 6 ........................ Edit-Edit-Flat line it 6 ........................ Edit-Edit-Append to Buffer 6 ........................ Edit-Edit-Erase Buffer contents 6 ........................ Edit-Edit-Marking 6 ........................ Edit-Edit-Quit 7 ........................ Edit-New Wave 7 ........................ Edit-Free From 7 ........................ Edit-Quit 7 ........................ Play Sample 7 ........................ Whole Sample View 7 ........................ Quit 8 ........................ How to Make a Sample 9 ........................ DAC & Soundplayer 10........................ Order Form 11........................ Tech Support & Register Info ii SSE Screen Display After the initial introductory screen, you will see the working screen. The top half shows a grid where the waveform will appear. The lower half has a few more sections to it. Just below the grid you will see a rectangular box. This represents the size of the sample. Inside this box is another, it shows what part of the sample is displayed on the grid. As you move about the sample, the smaller box will move. The left side shows all the menu options and the sub-menus. The center of the lower half shows specifics about the file; i.e. file size in bytes, viewing position of sample, and names of the sample file. The upper right shows two status bars. One shows how much buffer space is available for the current sample. The other shows how much buffer space is available for editing. Both have a capacity of 64K bytes. Below that is a dual purpose window. When in the patch routines, it will show the current envelope pattern. When editing, it will show the contents of the editing buffer. More will be explained later. SSE Menu Commands Load file ------------------------- Use the left mouse button to click on Load file. The files specified in the configuration will appear. You may click, using the left mouse button, on the file, drive, sub or root directory of your choice. Use the up and down arrows to scroll through your list. You may abort this operation using the right mouse button. Save file ------------------------ This option is not available in the demo package. If you are interested in obtaining the latest version of SSE please mail (check or money order) $19.95 U.S. dollars + $2 for shipping to: Michel P. Weber P.O. Box 711901 Santee, CA. 92072-1901 USA If you are ordering from outside the U.S. please include $5 U.S dollars for shipping. Please fill out and attach the order form SSE.FRM to help us in providing more useful and entertaining software. 1 Configuration ------------------------- SSE is configurable to use the directory that contains your samples. Click on the Sample Path, and the current directory will be displayed. Find the directory you want by clicking on the ".." or directory name. When you have reached your destination, press the right mouse button. Samples can be used on PC or Amiga machines. To set SSE for one or the other, click on Sample Mode. The mode will toggle between the two formats. SSE can load in any type of file, 64K bytes or less in size. You may load in .WAV, or uncompressed .VOC files. Click on Sample Extension and enter the file name extension. Executable files that have embedded sound waves can be used. SSE can support different sound playing devices. Click on Sound Device and a list of available choices appear. Simply click on the one you want. If available, SSE will change to that setting. You may click on Quit if you decide not to change. If the colors don't suit your taste, click on Colors. You may change the menu borders, background colors, or text colors. Click on the title until the color box displays what you want. You may click on Default to use original SSE colors or Load Colors that were saved on disk previously. Click on Quit when you are finished. When you have configured SSE, simply click on Quit. A configuration file is created so that next time you use SSE it will configure itself as you set it. Pan Left & Pan Right ------------------------- You may view different parts of the waveform by clicking on either of these commands. The display will move 320 data points (bytes) at a time until you reach the end or beginning of the sample. 2 Edit (sub-menu) ------------------------- FX (edit) ------------------------- Amplitude (edit-fx) ------------------------- This function will increase the amplitude of the waveform. It works on the principle that anything below center is increased negatively and anything above center is increased positively. If a waveform's data is all below the center, it will be pushed down further. This happens if you load a text file in the PC mode. Echo (edit-fx) ------------------------- Use this feature to add reverb to the sample. Voice samples have the greatest result. When you click on Echo you will be prompted to select the amount of delay in seconds. Click on the up and down arrows to change the delay time. Click on Echoize to modify the sample. Experiment with this until you reach the desired effect. NOTE: You need to re-load the sample to undo the Echo. Reverse (edit-fx) ------------------------- Click on Reverse for the sample to be played backwards. The sample will be stored into memory in reverse. Click on Reverse again to undo. You will not hear the sample at this time. Smooth (edit-fx) ------------------------- Click on Smooth to get rid of any noise. This will 'smooth' out any spikes and high frequency sounds. Distortion (edit-fx) ------------------------- Click on Distortion to change the sound quality of the sample. This works best on samples that are uniform in sound, i.e. bells, sinusoidal. Click on Distortion again to undo. 3 Play sample (edit-fx) ------------------------- Click on Play to hear the current sample. The sample will be played through the current sound device at a fixed rate. As the sample is played you will see a vertical bar appear in the position indicator window. This represents the position of the sample as it is being played. Some voice samples will be played out of speed. The registered version will allow you to change the play rate. Quit (edit-fx) ------------------------- Click on Quit to go back to the previous menu. Patch (edit) ------------------------- Click on Patch to enter the sub-section that allows you to create samples. You will be warned about losing data. If you pick NO, you will return to the Edit menu. If you select YES you will then see an array of numbers in one window and an envelope pattern in another. A mini-menu with commands from the main menu will also appear. If you click on CREATE SAMPLE, the current sample in the grid will be erased and a status bar will appear. The status bar will show how long the process will take. When the creation is finished the waveform will appear and you may play it via Play sample in the mini-menu. Array of Numbers ------------------------- At the top of the array is the patch function. This demo version has three to choose from. The registered version will have three more for a total of six. Duration selects how long the sample lasts in seconds. The longer the duration, the longer the creation process will take. If you have a very fast machine this will not take long. A math coprocessor will reduce this time significantly. Next, are the three order values. These numbers influence the frequency of the samples. The higher the number, the higher the frequency. Since there is an incredible amount of numerical combinations, it is impossible for us to test all. We have come across some that produce a flat waveform. 4 Next to the three order values are the amplitude variables. These change the magnitude of each order value. The Eccentric patch function adds the three amplitude values together and work as one. The Amplitude value makes the overall sample louder or more quiet. Increasing this value can cause the waveform to reach minimum and maximum values or clip. The Envelope pattern selected will create similar samples, but the volume will vary. Select pattern number 5 to create a pattern that can be used in MOD file editors that repeat samples. When you have selected the numbers, amplitude, and pattern, click on CREATE SAMPLE. This will create the sample using all the parameters you have selected. Listen to the sample and make any changes for the desired effect. Programmable Envelope ------------------------- Select envelope pattern number 6. You will then see the word 'Edit' appear, as well as a new envelope pattern in the window. Click on 'Edit' and you now have a new cursor in the envelope pattern window. Hold down the left mouse button and move the mouse to create the desired pattern. When you are finished, press ESC on the keyboard. You now can create a sample using the new envelope pattern. NOTICE: The programmable envelope pattern will be lost when you exit the Patch functions. Edit (edit) ------------------------- Play sample (edit,edit) ------------------------- Click on Play sample to hear the current sample. The sample will be played through the current sound device. As the sample is played, you will see a vertical bar appear in the position indicator window. This represents the position of the sample as it is being played. The registered version will allow you to change the play rate. Copy to Buffer (edit,edit) ------------------------- Click here to copy, what is currently highlighted on the grid, to the temporary holding buffer. Whatever is highlighted will appear in the edit buffer window. Any data existing in the edit buffer prior to this, will be erased. The buffer usage bar will increase accordingly. 5 Insert into waveform (edit,edit) ------------------------- Click here to take the contents of the edit buffer and place it into the current waveform on the grid. After you click on this selection, your cursor will appear on the grid. Move the cursor where you want the insertion to occur. Click on the left mouse button. The waveform will increase in size depending on the size of the edit buffer. The size of the sample will be displayed in the buffer usage bar. You may click on the right mouse button to abort the insertion. Delete from Sample (edit,edit) ------------------------- After highlighting an area of the waveform on the grid, you may remove it from the sample by clicking on Delete from Sample. The usage bar will decrease accordingly. Flat line (edit,edit) ------------------------- Highlighted areas of the waveform can be flat lined by clicking on this menu selection. Append to Buffer (edit,edit) ------------------------- Highlighted areas of the waveform can be added to the existing data in the edit buffer. This can be repeated until the buffer usage is filled. The edit buffer usage bar will increase as you add to the edit buffer. Erase Buffer contents (edit,edit) ------------------------- This will clear all data from the edit buffer. The edit buffer usage bar will reflect this. Marking (edit,edit) ------------------------- Click on Marking. The word 'Marking' will appear and the cursor will appear on the grid. Place the cursor at the beginning of the area to highlight and click the left mouse button. Move the cursor to the end of the area and click again. You will notice the waveform will be highlighted. Quit (edit,edit) ------------------------- You may click here at any time to stop the editing functions. 6 New wave (edit) -------------------- To start a new waveform and lose existing waveform data, click here. You will be prompted to confirm this action. Free form (edit) -------------------- Click here to use the mouse to create custom waveforms. After you click on the left mouse button, the cursor will appear on the grid. You may do this to any loaded waveform or after starting a new waveform. - Place your mouse anywhere on the grid - hold down the left mouse button - Move mouse slowly to right - Move mouse up and down variably - Release the mouse button You have now created a unique waveform. Click on the right mouse button to return to menu operations. You may continue to create custom waveforms by following the above steps. By moving the cursor past the right side of the grid, the waveform will scroll to the left allowing further freeform wave creation. Quit (edit) -------------------- Click here to return to the previous menu. Play sample ------------------------- Click on Play to hear the current sample. The sample will be played through the current sound device at a fixed rate. As the sample is played, you will see a vertical bar appear in the position indicator window. This represents the position of the sample as it is being played. Some voice samples will be played out of speed. The registered version will allow you to change the play rate. Whole sample view -------------------- Click on this to show a representation of the entire sample on the grid. Click the mouse button again to return to normal view. Quit -------------------- Click here to quit SSE. 7 How to make a Sample -------------------- Start at the main menu. You know you're there when no other menus are overlapping. - Click on Edit - Click on New wave - Click on Yes to confirm losing data. To create the sample, click on Free Form. The cursor is on the grid. Hold down the left mouse button and move it up and down while slowly moving it to the right. Do this for about 5 grid blocks. Press the right mouse button to return to the menu. - Click on Edit - Click on Marking Place the cursor at the start of the wave form you created in the previous step and press the left mouse button, "MARKING" will appear. Move the cursor to the end of the wave form. Press the left mouse button again. The wave form is now highlighted. - Click on Copy to buffer - Click on Append to buffer - do this about 5 times - Click on Insert Place the cursor at the end of your waveform and press the left mouse button. Your waveform has now repeated itself. Click on Play Sample to hear your waveform. You may add to the waveform by clicking on Quit, then Free Form. Move the cursor to the right until you see the end of the waveform. Click the right mouse button to stop the free form editing. Once you have created the desired waveform, you can modify it with special effects found in the FX menu. 8 DAC & Soundplayer ------------------------- If you don't have a SoundBlaster card you may use the next best thing. A DAC, or as some people call it a Soundplayer. This device is the same as that used on the SoundBlaster and sounds just as good. It is a digital to analog converter which connects to your parallel port. Below is a simplified diagram on how to build one for yourself. If you don't want to make a DAC, you may order a fully assembled and tested unit. See the order form SSE.FRM for more details. Parallel port Resistors pin no 2컴컴컴컴컴컴� 2.8 M� 컴컴컴컴컴컴� � 3컴컴컴컴컴컴� 1.4 M� 컴컴컴컴컴컴� � 4컴컴컴컴컴컴� 0.7 M� 컴컴컴컴컴컴� � 5컴컴컴컴컴컴� 352 K� 컴컴컴컴컴컴� 旼컴컴컴컴컴커 � � � 6컴컴컴컴컴컴� 176 K� 컴컴컴컴컴컴� � Amplifier � � � or any � 7컴컴컴컴컴컴� 88 K� 컴컴컴컴컴컴캑 � kind of � � � Stereo � 8컴컴컴컴컴컴� 44 K� 컴컴컴컴컴컴캑 Capacitor � system � � � (50k� � 9컴컴컴컴컴컴� 22 K� 컴컴컴컴컴컴컨컴컴컴캑20uF쳐컴캑 impedance)� � � 18컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴캑 � (gnd) 읕컴컴컴컴컴켸 9 ======================================================================= Synthesized Sample Editor - Order Form - ======================================================================= Name:_______________________________________________________ Address:____________________________________________________ City:_________________________________ State:____________ Country:_______________________________ ZIP:______________ Phone #(optional):__________________________ Where did you find SSE:_______________________________________ Comments/Suggestions: ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ Type of Software you'd like to see: ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ======================================================================= QTY Item Amount Total ---------------------------------------------------------------- ______ SSE Latest registered version........ $19.95 ________ ______ 3.5" or ______ 5.25" diskette ______ DAC/SoundPlayer for LPT port......... $19.95 ________ sub-total ________ postage & handling ($2 US or $5 Foreign) ________ GRAND TOTAL ________ ---------------------------------------------------------------- Please make check or money order payable to Michel P. Weber - Do not send cash - Send to: Michel P. Weber P.O. Box 711901 Santee, CA. 92072-1901 USA 10 Tech Support ------------ If you are having problems with SSE and would like some help, you may send me a post note at the PO Box address or you may send me e-mail at mpweber@pnet01.cts.com which is an internet account number. If you have Compuserve you have access to internet. *********************************************************************** * * * To register: * * * * Mail $19.95 U.S. dollars (add $2 shipping and handling for * * US orders, $5 for foreign orders) to: * * * * Michel P. Weber * * P.O. Box 711901 * * Santee, CA. 92072-1901 USA * * * * * * You will receive the latest version of SSE. The latest * * version will include more special effects and more patch * * functions. Your name and address will be placed on file for * * future upgrades. * * * * I can be contacted via internet at * * * * mpweber@pnet01.cts.com * * * * I will be glad to help you and answer any questions you may have. * * * *********************************************************************** 11