From: sherman@ecadsr.enet.dec.com (My name is...)
Newsgroups: rec.music.synth
Subject: PAS16 quickie review
Date: 4 Sep 92 16:55:51 GMT
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation


This is a "quickie" review of the PAS16.  Thought it might be of interest to
noters.

Steve


    The Pro Audio Spectrum (PAS16) is a sound card for an IBM PC
    compatible.  I don't have all the figures handy, but basically it has
    Soundblaster compatibility and other goodies.  Among some of the
    features:

    	- Sound generation to stereo headphones or PC speaker or whatever.
    	- Soundblaster compatibility (up to 20-voice Yamaha 4-op FM engine 
    	  internally, supports General MIDI standard)
    	- Does recording/playback of sampled waveforms (mono or stereo,
    	  up to 44 kHz)
    	- Has built-in SCSI driver and hookups for CD-ROM
    	- Has hookups for joystick or MIDI-mate (MIDI IN and OUT, maybe
          THRU, dunno because my MIDI-mate hasn't come yet)
    	- Has limited support for Windows 3.x
    	- Comes with miscellaneous software
    	- Is compatible with a boatload of sound file formats and software

    It claims "CD quality".  The specs say CD-quality since it can go up to
    44.1 kHz with 16-bits in stereo.  There are limits.  For my 386 system,
    I can only expect to do 32 kHz, 16-bit stereo sampling or 44.1 kHz mono
    16-bit sampling because the machine isn't fast enough.  To do it all you 
    have to go with a faster 486 machine.  Also, the sound recording and 
    manipulation software does not run under Windows, only the mixing and 
    playback stuff.  Too much overhead involved.  

    But, you would not want to make a CD with this thing.  Sure, it has CD
    specs, but (for picky musicians) the hiss the thing generates will not
    be acceptable.  Granted, I can't hear the hiss normally because the
    sound of the fan masks it.  But, if I cup my hands over my ears and
    listen over headphones it has about as much hiss as a cassette tape.
    I've gotten used to thinking that the hiss I heard coming from my D70
    was marginal for CD recording.  But, the D70 is much closer to
    CD-quality than the PAS16.  I would be hesitant to use the PAS16 for my
    next album unless I did something to improve the signal to noise ratio
    like have it turned WAY up and attenuate it through a clean mixer.

    It has a SCSI port and Media Vision can sell you a kit for about $25 to
    hook it up to a CD-ROM, internal or external.  There is a list of
    compatible CD-ROM players that I don't plan to post because it is long.
    However, be warned.  Windows NT does not *yet* support running a CD-ROM
    through the PAS16.  My understanding is that Microsoft is working this
    issue and this will be fixed for the Beta release in the next six
    months or so.

    The support for General MIDI standard is a real plus.  Now I don't have
    to worry about conforming to the standard with my "real" gear.  I can
    just play and work with General MIDI standard files on the PC.  I
    *might* incorporate the standard on my gear, but now there's less
    likely of a need.

    The software bundled with the PAS16 includes (from memory) a cut-down
    Voyetra sequencer, a tool for recording and editing sampled sounds,
    mixers (for Windows to adjust the playback characteristics) and a
    text-to-voice program.  Most of it runs under DOS.  PAS16 does support
    Windows applications that use sound files and such, including the
    Windows stuff that can do .wav file playback.  But, to use most of this
    software you have to get out of Windows and go into DOS.  You can add
    FX to the sound, but this is limited to working with 8-bit sounds and
    is itself rather limited in capabilities.  But, together the software
    forms a bare-bones way to manipulate sounds and such.

    I expect this software will be useful for me to create sound files and
    music playback files to be bundled with software.  I can use my
    external sequencer and the D70 to do most of the work and then dump the
    sounds and MIDI to the computer.  The cut-down Voyetra sequencer can
    read MIDI standard files on PC disks, but provides no way to read or
    generate files for Macintosh.  But, the external sequencer I'm using is
    an MC50.  I bought the MRM500 (?) software package for the MC50 for
    $35 and it can generate MIDI standard files for Mac or PC.  And, Music
    Prose can also handle some of these formats, so this is not a problem 
    for my system.  (That is, Music Prose can exchange its own format files 
    with Mac or PC, though I don't recall if it can exchange MIDI standard
    files with both Mac and PC and suspect it can't.)

    Also, if this Voyetra sequencer is any indication of what sequencing
    software can be like for a PC, well, I'm sure glad I've got my MC50.
    I've used Trax and EZ Vision on a Mac and felt that the MC50 was (for
    me) easier and faster to use.  But, the Voyetra sequencer in a DOS
    environment is like going back to the stone ages, IMO.

    All in all, the PAS16 seems to be a good board for a PC user.  It gives
    you SCSI CD-ROM support, MIDI (when you add MIDI-mate) or joystick, Yamaha 
    FM, high-bandwidth, mono or stereo, 16-bit sampling and playback, General 
    MIDI standard support, bare-bones software to get you started and, in
    general, access to and support for most standard sound file formats.

    Steve
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU