PC sales and editorials imply that the CD-RW is replacing the CD-ROM reader. A CD-R 'burner' can create CDs or CD-ROMs that are write-once discs. The CD-RW 'burner' can create CD-Rs and CD-RW discs, the latter of which can be written to many times. Of course, it is even better if you have a CD-RW and a DVD player in your system so that you can more: (1) "burn" CD's with the CD-RW, and (2) read data, play games or watch movie discs with the DVD player. Yet, because of backwards compatibility, you can use either device to read a CD or a CD-ROM. It is also convenient to have two CD compatible devices so you can copy from one to the other.
We don't find it a tough choice to purchase a CD-RW "burner," but it is tougher to put out extra dollars for DVD when there are no universally accepted standards for how to write to a DVD or even how to add HiFi audio. In any case, we spent the extra $100 to add the DVD reader to our new PC (instead of just a second CD-ROM reader).
When you go shopping for a stand-alone DVD player, you are currently buying a very popular machine designed to play DVD movie discs that are encoded with better-than-VHS movies combined with 5.1 surround-sound Dolby audio. Movie theatres have been bragging about their surround-sound Dolby system for years, but as a way to encode HiFi audio, it doesn't come up to the standards that would make audiophiles purchase a DVD for its sound. Unfortunately, there is a war on for control of DVD audio that we hope will be resolved so that all the competing standards are accepted. This would allow the consumer to buy one DVD machine that "does it all." That may not be very soon, so some companies are designing DVD machines just as PCs are designed, i.e. with slots for add-in cards so you can upgrade as needed.
Meanwhile, if you want to make your current collection of CD's sound up to their potential, we recommend you discover that audio CD players are not all the same, and new 'old fashioned' tube amplifiers are a wonderful way to add the natural warmth missing in CD's. In Sacramento, we have had good success with Deetes Sound room (916-334-7000). Elsewhere, buy a Stereophile Magazine to find out where 'real' HiFi equipment is sold.
Currently, the electronics industry has decided on a Level I standard for DVD audio that allows room for video while allowing space for Dolby surround sound, or 24/96 HiFi surround sound and there is still space for the Sony/Phillips SACD HiFi specification. In case you don't have time to comb the shelves for audiophile magazines, the SACD (Super Audio CD) encodes audio one bit at a time, but at very high speed, while the 24/96 standard improves on the 16/44.1 CD audio. The 24/96 standard moves up from the current CD that is digitized by recording 16 bit samples at a slower 44.1 KHz. Here, the 16 bits to represent the amplitude (loudness). The new standard would sample at 96 KHz and use 24 bits for the loudness so that the sound would have a much greater dynamic range and resolution. We hope that this is not too confusing, but just as in a PC, going faster and using more bits means 'better.' However, the high speed SACD has been getting rave reviews.
Audio Into Your PC
If your sound card has an audio input (most do), it is equipped to accept an analog input (e.g. music) and convert the waves of sound into the standard "red book" CD format 16/44.1 and save it as a WAV file. You can playback this WAV file using (1) the Windows Media Player, (2) the Windows WAV Player or (3) a third-party player such as WinAmp available on the WEB. Then, if you have a CD-R or CD-RW, you can 'burn' these WAV files onto a CD using software that comes with the 'burner.' In general, the 'burner' software comes from Adaptec who also offer a 'Deluxe' version of their CD Creator.
This is the most basic way to create a CD, but if you want to have better sound you can use more advanced tools for digitizing and editing the audio input. You might consider a professional sound card and/or professional editing software.
We have already told you about the capabilities of Cakewalk's ProAudio 9 to edit music, and Midiman's 2044 to convert audio input into digital WAV files, so today we have additional options to explain: one from Midiman and one from Sonic Foundry.
Midiman's Delta 66 PCI Audio Card
The versatile PC is capable of holding more than one sound card without any problems, so you needn't throw away your current sound card with its handy MIDI capabilities. Instead, you can add a PCI card with professional Analog-to-Digital (A/D) conversion combined with matching D/A output. We are most familiar with the Midiman Company that is still selling it's well established 2044 PCI card that accepts four separate channels of audio and performs professional A/D and D/A conversions. You can find this card at any professional music dealer or catalog outlet. It is a superb way to produce 'Red Book' (i.e. standard) 16/44.1 CD audio, and we have used it extensively. Of course, you will need microphones and a microphone preamplifier, but that is another subject.
Today, with 24/96 audio on its way in (slowly), Midiman now offers the Delta 66. This 24/96 card is also backwardly compatible with CD sampling (16/44.1 KHz) or even exactly double the CD rate (88.2 KHz). Here we find four analog audio inputs and the corresponding four outputs. The A/D and D/A are professional quality and they can sample at 24/96 or 24/88.2 (or even other options) so that the editing of music remains at the very highest standards in the PC until you decide whether you are going to mix the sound down to a CD or make a DVD (someday soon?).
In addition to the four A/D inputs/outputs, there are a pair of S/PDIF inputs/outputs that can accepts digital audio directly from recording devices that do their own digitizing. For example, a DAT recorder does its own digitizing so you can send the digital stream directly into your PC through the S/PDIF ports. Thus, the Delta 66 has six inputs and six outputs.
The Delta 66 has a Windows 9X driver, a NT Driver and is compatible with Mac's that use PCI slots. Call Midiman for questions or a catalog. You can also contact a catalog company such as Sweetwater (800-222-4700) to get street prices and information on other Midiman offerings in different price ranges. In Sacramento, visit Skipp's House of Music on Auburn Blvd. It is hard to beat the price/quality mixture of these products.
The Delta 66 PCI 24/96 Card [$499.95 list]
The DMAN 2044 PCI 16/44.1 Card [$349.95 List]
Midiman US
45 E. St. Joseph Street
Arcadia, CA 91006-2861
info@midiman.de
CD Architect 4.0 from Sonic Foundry
If you are going to 'burn' a CD, it is necessary to edit the sounds, line up all the tracks, balance the sounds, and space the intervals. Adaptec's CD Creator does a good job, but for professional level control, you will have to upgrade to a program such as Sonic Foundry's CD Architect 4.0. Here, we find software that includes a powerful editor, Sound Forge XP 4.5, combined with visual and spreadsheet tools to view and manipulate the final CD. For even more powerful editing, Sonic Foundry offers many other products, including their flagship product, the full Sound Forge 4.5 editor.
In Figure 1, we show that the CD Architect splits the viewing window into a spreadsheet representation of the entire CD at the bottom, with an upper level graphical representation of all the music, including the spaces between tracks. From this window you can easily compare and adjust all the sound levels and spacing. It is simple to move tracks from place to place in either panel.
 |
| Figure 1. The Control Center in Sonic Foundry's CD Architect 4.0. |
Click on thumbnail for full image.
(75K) |
Not seen in Figure 1 is the Window where Sound Forge XP lets you edit individual or multiple tracks using the tools most often needed to create the desired sound. Talking about tools, in the Architect View, there is a truly clever and useful sound level adjuster that can be bent with as many as 32 attached points to swell and fade the sound as needed.
Those of you who fear software with so much power needn't worry. The changes being made in the Architect are performed on the fly as a CD is 'burned.' The underlying WAV files remain unchanged. The only warning we pass on is to save your Architect Layout file as often as necessary and keep a backup copy.
There are two manuals included: one for the Architect and one for Sound Forge XP. These are full of pictures and lessons. You may want to do the lessons to understand the details of how to space the tracks. That part is not completely obvious.
If ever there was a product that really put us back on our heels, this is it. We are truly amazed to find ourselves in such control of the CD creation process, and it is a surprise that CD Architect is so easy to use, but powerful beyond our most optimistic hopes. Be sure to check out the WEB site since Sonic Foundry also has a large collection of professional products for special effects (SFX) and music composition.
CD Architect 4.0 with Sound Forge XP 4.5 [$395 list]
Sound Forge 4.5 [$499 list]
Sonic Foundry
754 Williamson Street
Madison, WI 53791-8062
