Ensoniq Elite Press Release - Elite: RAM/ROM samples with dual DSP - elite.txt [01/01]
William B. Jones
The Elite
Ensoniq To Deliver $200 Wavetable Sound Card
MALVERN, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1995 MAR 21 (NB) --
Ensoniq has announced Soundscape Elite, a 16-bit, 32 voice wavetable card.
With dual digital signal processors (DSPs) and downloadable sound effects,
Elite should hit the street with a $200 price tag by mid-April.
According to Ensoniq, this new card can run effects like reverb, chorus,
flange, distortion, pitch, and phase shift and equalization in simultaneous
real-time. It supports IDE, Sony, Panasonic, and Mitsumi CD-ROM interfaces
and it is designed to support Windows 95, Windows NY and OS/2.
Soundscape Elite offers a ROM/RAM-based wavetable sound set which is
Extended MIDI-compatible with 128 instruments and 61 drums, the full GS set
with seven drum kits, and the MT-32 instrument set.
Speaking to Newsbytes, John Spataro, Ensoniq's director of marketing for
the multimedia division, said, "All a user has to do is listen to the
difference between an FM synthesis card and a wavetable card and they will
hear a 'night and day' difference. We are putting a CD demo in retail
stores so users have that opportunity. This will let any user make his or
her own decision about which is best. FM synthesis is the reproduction of
sound through software. With wavetable sound, real sounds are sampled, so
that a listener actually hears the real sound of a music instrument or
whatever the sound may be."
With the introduction of the new card, Ensoniq will reduce its standard
Soundscape board to a suggested retail price of $199 from $279. Users may
expect a street price of about $149. Soundscape DB, a daughterboard to
upgrade Ensoniq FM synthesis cards, has been reduced to a suggested retail
price $119.
Commenting about installation problems users have reported in the past,
Spataro said, "Users have reported installation difficulties with a number
of other sound cards. We take great care to make sure installation is as
easy as possible and at this time IRQs and jumpers are set by the hardware.
We will also be ready with a plug and play-compatible card which will ship
when Window 95 is available."
Spataro also said, "Our goal is to drive down the prices of the best audio
cards to an affordable consumer price. One of our advantages is that we
produce our cards right here in Pennsylvania and we produce our own
silicon."
Ensoniq is a developer of audio technology for keyboards, personal
computers (PCs), karaoke machines, and other professional and entertainment
products.
(Patrick McKenna/19950321/Press Contact: James Harrington, Pat Meier
Associates, Public Relations, tel 415-957-5999; Public Information, Elliot
Levine, Ensoniq, tel 610-647-3930)
END -- Cut Here -- cut here
B. Bruegmann
B. Bruegmann
Anybody has more detailed specs?
This Elite may be a perfect replacement for AWE/GUS/Tropez if it has
digitized sounds, RAM, sound effects, and excellent sound (neither of
AWE/GUS/Tropez has it all).
Bernd
John Doggett
: >>Bernd
: >I'm sure it'd rank higher than the Tropez for patch quality, but I didn't see
: >anything about SB/SB Pro compatibility, etc. Hope it works better than the
: >original
: Ensoniq does their SB FM sound via software emulation. I am hoping that they
: decide to include a *real* Yamaha OP/3 chip on their board. I'm looking
: forward to this board for it's other capacities though.
: Bill Jones
Hell, with 2 dsp's, what's wrong with software emulation? Just make it
use the onboard RAM and make the DSP's do most of the work (the question
is whether or not they have any power), and all you need is a nifty little
driver to behave as an interrupt hook, right? Nothing big,
nothing more than the SB needs (I don't think). I couldn't care much
less about an OPL3... Bring on the DSP's!!
Of course, this is based on my knowledge of other platforms. So shoot me
if I'm wrong. You shouldn't blame me, though, since the one we're in love
with is retarded.
-John
William B. Jones
William B. Jones
dog...@saul2.u.washington.edu (John Doggett) wrote:
>Hell, with 2 dsp's, what's wrong with software emulation? Just make it
>use the onboard RAM and make the DSP's do most of the work (the question
You make a good point! Yeah, bring on dem DSP's!!
Bill
Michael R. Gile
NOPE, ensoniq really screwed up this one, because you can't add any
ram to the elite, so you can't download your own samples to the board.
I guess it is just another permutation on the theme:
How can we make a soundcard with just enough features to be
a good deal, but not enough to please everyone.
Mike
--
Michael Gile | Graduate Assistant
gi...@rpi.edu | Computer & Systems Engineering
"Don't Blame Me, I voted for Perot!"| Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute