Binary Interface

Welcome to the September edition of the Binary Interface newsletter, providing news and updates on what's new in our corner of the world of music technology. As always, we welcome any comments, suggestions or contributions.

Executive Summary:
Congratulations to our winners in the recent Superscope User Story competition
Sony Creative Software have released new Windows Vista-compatible versions of all of their studio software titles. Check them out here.

We are offering great special pricing on the Edirol R09 hand-held recorder and accessories this month.

Now that both Sibelius and Finale have unveiled their new flagship notation software versions, we offer a quick roundup of the most outstanding new features of each.

Our term 4 Professional Development day for teachers, 'Music Technology Tomorrow' will be held on 22nd October, so hold this date in your diary. If you need further PD training on your favourite music software, why not enrol in one of our upcoming Courses and Workshops in our on-going Professional Development Series.

Here are some excerpts from the winning stories submitted in our recent Superscope promotion. Both their schools are proud owners of the Superscope PSD340 CD recorder/player:

"Since aquiring the Superscope recorder students and staff have enjoyed getting to know the capabilities of this device...The portability and ease of use makes the Superscope a viable tool for almost any class."
Mark Turpin (Coombabah State High School)
read the full story on our website

"I am writing to tell you how thrilled I am with my recent purchase of the PSD 340. The Superscope is an invaluable tool in the classroom and I have used it in every conceivable manner. This is a statement from a person who is technologically challenged...The Superscope should be a basic resource for every music teacher!"
Maria Misson (Thornlands State Primary School)
read the full story on our website

Below is a summary of the great new features in the Sony Studio range of easy-to-use media software:

Acid Music Studio 7

• Includes over 3,000 music loops and 1,000 MIDI files
  
• Includes 90 DLS instruments and 25 DLS-based projects
  
• Microsoft® Windows® Vista™ support
  
• Multicore processor support
  
• Multitrack audio and MIDI recording
  
• Multiple events per track with automatic crossfades
  
• Inline MIDI Editing with drum grid
  
• MIDI step recording
  
• Processing and filtering for MIDI events
  
• Freehand envelope drawing on the timeline
  
• MIDI import and export
  
• MIDI input filters for tracks
  
• Gracenote® CD album identification
  
• ATRAC .aa3 support
  

Sound Forge Audio Studio 9

• 24-bit/96kHz audio support
  
• Microsoft® Windows Vista™ support
  
• UI customization
  
• Vocal Eraser plug-in
  
• Disc-at-once (DAO) CD burning
  
• Vinyl Recording and Restoration Tool
  
• JKL scrubbing
  
• Gracenote® CD album identification
  
• ATRAC™ .aa3 Format Support
  

Vegas Movie Studio 8

• Microsoft® Windows Vista™ support
  
• Gracenote® MusicID™ technology for extracted audio from CDs.
  
• Freehand envelope drawing on the timeline.
  
• Display of media marker names in events.
  
• Improved snapping — color-coded visual snap indicator and the ability to snap to event edges on other tracks.
  
• Full-screen preview to a secondary Windows display
  
• Multithreaded audio engine maximizes performance
  
• Import and Export ATRAC3™, ATRAC3plus™, and ATRAC Advanced Lossless™ files.
  
• Insert I-frames at marker positions when rendering MPEG-2 (works in conjunction with I-frame viewer in DVD Architect Studio 4.5).
  

Vegas Movie Studio 8 Platinum

• Microsoft® Windows Vista™ support.
  
• Improved native HDV .m2t playback performance and improved memory handling for HDV longform projects.
  
• Gracenote® MusicID™ technology for extracted audio from CDs.
  
• Freehand envelope drawing on the timeline.
  
• Display of media marker names in events.
  
• Improved snapping — color-coded visual snap indicator and the ability to snap to event edges on other tracks.
  
• Full-screen preview to a secondary Windows display
• Sony AVCHD import and edit support.
  
• Multithreaded audio engine maximizes performance
  
• Import and Export ATRAC3™, ATRAC3plus™, and ATRAC Advanced Lossless™ files.
  
• Insert I-frames at marker positions when rendering MPEG-2 (works in conjunction with I-frame viewer in DVD Architect Studio 4.5).
  

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Edirol R09 Bundles

Portable Audio Recording

The Edirol R-09 hand-held recorders are one of the handiest tools for teachers for easy on-the-spot audio recording, so Binary Designs has come up with some great specials for the month of September only while stocks last:

Edirol R-09 24-bit recorder, usually $795 now only $675

Edirol R-09 recorder with cover/stand set plus 4Gb SD RAM card
Normally $1003, now only $852

P.S. We now have the Edirol R09 in stock in your choice of Black, White or Red. (Ask us about our other special R-09 bundle offers).

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Sibelius 5 is proving a hit with composers of all levels with its stunning new headline features:

• The Ideas Hub lets you quickly store and retrieve your musical ideas on-the-fly. Also comes with an indexed library of ideas to get you started.
• Panorama View lets you view your score as a continuous stream of music with no page breaks.
• Sibelius Sounds - a free sample library to add realism to your score's playback. VST and Audio Units support means you can add a range of plug-ins from other manufacturers to further enhance the sound.

For more information, click on this link www.binarydesigns.com.au/sib5.html

Finale 2008 also toured in August and showed among its flagship features:

• Add an audio track to your Finale score. Great for transcription, recording vocals, and exporting the mix as a wave file.
• The number of sampled instruments from the Garritan sound libraries has increased to over 250, plus Finale now includes additional Latin Percussion sounds.
• A new Selection Tool now means all editing can be done via Simple Entry.
• The Scoremerger lets you combine any number of scores into one document for easy saving or printing.
• For educators, ability to use coloured noteheads, Boomwhackers sounds and the exercise creation wizard are sure to be a hit.

For more information, click on this link www.binarydesigns.com.au/finale08.html

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Music Technology Tomorrow

Announcing 'Music Technology Tomorrow', an expo of teaching tools for the cyber generation on Monday 22nd October at Saint Laurence's College in South Brisbane. The day will combine a series of seminars and hands-on workshops and is aimed at studio, primary and secondary classroom and instrumental teachers. In addition to the Binary team, we will be joined by visiting product and education specialist presenters from interstate. More details will be forwarded to schools soon, and posted on our website (binarydesigns.com.au), including an on-line registration form.

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Did You Know?

Did you know Binary Designs suppy not only the best in music software, but can also provide all your music technology accessories. e.g. USB flash drives, CD-R/RW disks, cables, microphones, scanners, printers, memory cards and virtually anything else you may need to make the job of creating music easier. We also supply Piano Sheet Music and Music Giftware.

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Professional Development Courses
Upcoming courses Sept/Oct 2007:

These workshops form part of our Binary Designs Basics series for
Vocational Education Training:

Vital
  Effective
    Today

Date	Course	Comment/Cost	Time
Sat 22nd September	Finale Basics	Easy score creation with Finale 2008 Hands-on $45	2:00pm-3:30pm Includes a/tea, workbook, & your CD
Sat 22nd September	Sonar Home Studio	Learn how easy it is to record using Sonar Home Studio BYO Instrument $45	4:00pm-5:30pm Includes a/tea, workbook, & your CD
Sat 13th October	Sibelius 5 - Beyond Basics	Get to the next level with Sibelius Hands-on $45	2:00pm-3:30pm Includes a/tea, workbook, & your CD
Sat 13th October	Groovy Music	Introducing Groovy Music for primary teachers Hands-on $45	4:00pm-5:30pm Includes a/tea, workbook, & your CD
Sat 20th October	Becoming a Multimedia Mogul	Learn how to use audio looping tools and video software to create cool digital content Hands-on $45	2:00pm-3:30pm Includes a/tea, workbook, & your CD
Sat 20th October	High Tech Gadgets	See what's hot in new digital music hardware Hands-on $45	4:00pm-5:30pm Includes a/tea, workbook, & your CD

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