Free Audio Plug-in Promotion

For a very limited time, BIAS is offering a free download of a powerful plug-in from their highly acclaimed Master Perfection Suite ($599 SRP).

The Master Perfection Suite — used by professionals worldwide — combines six uniquely powerful plug-ins for mixing, mastering, analysis and sound design — featuring linear phase multi-band dynamics (Sqweez-3 and -5) and spectral matching (Repli-Q), seven analysis tools (Reveal), 4,6,8 and 10-band paragraphic EQ (SuperFreq), pitch correction/modification (PitchCraft), and a top-performing gate with integrated downward expander (GateEx). For a limited time, BIAS has selected one plug-in from this amazing suite to be offered at no charge.

Act now, as this very special offer ends on September 30, 2008. For more information, click here.

 

New Media Expo Show Report

Last month, aspiring and seasoned podcasters alike flocked to the New Media Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada. The New Media Expo is a relatively new conference and exhibition that specializes in all aspects of the podcasting world.

BIAS exhibited its latest software which currently includes Peak LE, Pro, and XT 6, along with the Master Perfection Suite, SoundSoap Pro, and SoundSoap 2. Widely popular among the podcasting community, Peak Pro was awarded Best of Show for Mac audio editing software two years in a row, establishing itself as a leader in podcast production. With the release of version 6, Peak LE, Pro, and XT now integrate three popular feature requests among this important user segment: direct podcast publishing, voiceover ducking, and metadata editing. The addition of these new features — as well as many more — were well embraced at the New Media Expo by those already familiar with BIAS, as well as new users looking for ways to improve their podcast production workflow.

We ran into Michael Geoghegan — a pillar of the podcasting community — at the show, and asked him what he thought of Peak Pro 6, as it relates to podcasting — here's what he had to say: "The new integrated podcast publishing and metadata editing features are sure to be a hit with podcasters who have been using older versions of Peak for producing their shows," said Michael. "I also think the new Voiceover Ducking tool is extremely handy for adding voiceovers into a music bed or other background audio — it's great to see these powerful features in both the Pro and LE editions."

Click here for more information about the New Media Expo

 

Peak 6.03 Update Now Available

Registered users of Peak LE, Pro, and XT 6 can now download a free update, which optimizes performance and stability of several features. For details on what's new, please see the Read Me file that is installed along with the update.

Click here to download the 6.03 update.

 

Frank Serafine Selects BIAS Software for Moog Foundation Archive Project

Oscar-winning sound designer Frank Serafine's first synthesizer was a Moog. It helped him start his sound design career, which began on Star Trek. "All the lasers, wooshes, rumbles, were created on the Moog", said Serafine, who became a Moog pioneer by creating sound effects like the "Whiplash Energy Bolt" in Star Trek 1, using over a hundred channels of sound created on a Moog.

Recently, the Moog Foundation has started an archive project, whose mission is to collect and restore music and other audio created with Moog synthesizers. One of Serafine's contributions to the project is the task of transferring and restoring material by major artists Beaver and Krause, John Jacques Perrey, Dick Wyman, Isao Tomita, and Gershon Kingsley — all of which was only released on vinyl — and is working on a compilation of their music, which all prominently features Moog synths.

Frank had this to say about using BIAS software for this project: "Using Peak Pro 6 with SoundSoap Pro for transferring vinyl is simply the perfect way to do it. We're pulling them in, restoring them, burning CDs and outputting files at 24-bit at 48 kHz — for Avid video compatibility".

And on SoundSoap Pro — "It's just perfect, we're taking out all the clicks and pops — it just gets rid of it. The results are transparent".

For more information about Frank Serafine, click here. For more information about the Moog Foundation, click here.


Using Peak's "Send to iTunes" Feature

So you've just finished your latest Peak project, and want to move it to your iTunes library, and of course to your new iPhone or iPod. Nothing could be easier than using the new Send to iTunes feature in Peak LE, Pro, and XT 6, which performs this transfer in a few easy steps. Here's how it works:

Open and/or bring the desired audio document to the foreground, and from the File menu, choose Send to iTunes. To send the entire audio document as a single file, click the Single Song button — if the audio document contains Regions you would like to become separate tracks, click the iTunes Playlist button. Enter a name for the iTunes Playlist that will be created in your iTunes library, and choose the type of encoding you wish to use (i.e., None, AAC, Lossless, MP3). The name of the Peak audio document is used for the iTunes playlist, and the Region names in the Peak audio document become the track names in the iTunes playlist.

BIAS DCAT (Dither Cloning Audio Technology)

The new DCAT dither modeling system is available only in Peak Pro and Peak Pro XT 6, and offers unparalleled, highly-tunable, cutting-edge dithering technology.

Dithering is the process of reducing high-bit-depth files to lower bit-depths — for example, converting a 24-bit mixdown from your DAW to 16-bit format so it can be burned as a Red Book audio CD.

When performing bit-depth reduction without dithering, additional bits are simply removed (truncated), which can result in audible distortion. When dithering is used, specific patterns of noise are blended in with the bit-depth reduced audio content, to produce an end result that sounds much better than the anomalies that can result from bit-depth truncation alone.

There are many dithering systems available, from manufacturers such as Apogee, POWr, Waves, and others — each with its own unique characteristics and sound. DCAT's proprietary algorithms provide twelve models of the most popular dithering technologies available. Its assortment of additional parameter controls make DCAT the ultimate in high-quality and flexible dithering, providing optimized results on any type of audio content.

Here's how to dither files with DCAT in Peak Pro or Peak Pro XT 6:

  • Open a high bit-depth file (i.e. 24-bit).
  • From the File menu, choose "Save As".
  • From the Bit Depth menu, choose 16-bits, check the "Dither" checkbox, and click the "Dither Prefs" button.
  • Choose the BIAS DCAT algorithm that best suits your audio content.
  • Fine-tune the Frequency and Attenuation Skew sliders.
  • Click the "Preview" button at any time to preview the results before processing.
  • Click the "OK" button to exit the DCAT window, and then click the "Save" button to apply the selected DCAT dither profile.

"Buy One — Get Other Free"

For a limited time, BIAS has a variety of "Buy One — Get Other Free" offers available:

  • Buy the Master Perfection Suite — get a free SoundSoap Pro!
  • Buy SoundSoap Pro — get a free Master Perfection Suite!
  • Buy Peak Pro 6 — get a free DDP Export Extension!

Act now, as these very special offers end on September 30, 2008. For more information, click here.

BIAS FORUM

Did you know that BIAS has an online forum where users exchange ideas and help each other out? Click here to join the forum.

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