Sound Forge 4.5 From Sony


Sound Forge 4.5 From (now Sound Forge 10 from Sony) Sonic Foundry
by Bob Stone
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Sonic Foundry's Sound Forge 4.5 audio editor is a complete package of features and functions with several additional options available for advanced requirements. Support for Internet audio formats, DirectX plug-ins, the Acid family and integration of frame accurate audio-to-video editing make this substantial tool a definite must for anyone serious about quality audio editing on a PC. Now included free are the Batch Converter, Spectrum Analysis and MP3 plug-ins previously available for $199, $149 and $19.95 respectively. Also available are XFX, Noise Reduction and Acoustic Mirror that are plug-ins covering about every aspect of audio.

My initial demo installation over the Internet was a snap and the full package installed just as smoothly from the CD-ROM, including a simple, online registration process. Sound Forge found my Multi!Wave Digital Pro™ card with no problem so I jumped immediately into the "feed-it-sound" mode. The usual recording functions are self-explanatory and I had a file recorded, converted to MP3 and sent over the Internet in no time. When recording, elapsed time is visible in a small window in the main program status bar but not in the Time/Location window. Non-destructive playlist editing is simplified by selecting a region and then dragging and dropping it into a playlist. Playlist editing is somewhat limited without the ability to directly edit crossfade information between list items although selected regions can be dragged into another channel window for visual editing. A means to slide regions around in the channel window and audio scrubbing would be handy additions. For now, region placement is fixed where you put it. The unlimited undo/redo history is a valuable time saver if you need to modify or recall an earlier edit.

Sound Forge 4.5 has a decided edge as a platform for plug-in support. The built-in functions offer the average user a wide variety of processing and sound modification choices. Full documentation is included on the program CD-ROM but the printed "quick start" pamphlet will get you up and running in a hurry. The program's help files will guide you along nicely while exploring the multitude of features and configuration settings, however my own preference would be for a complete printed manual.

Listing at $499 MSRP, the current version of Sound Forge is 4.5g and operates on Windows 9x, Windows 2000 or NT 4.0 platforms. Sonic Foundry is located at 754 Williamson Street, Madison, WI 53703. On the web at: www.sonicfoundry.com You can order 24 hours a day, seven days a week at: 800-577-6642 or E-mail to sales@sonicfoundry.com for more information.

Bob Stone was formerly chief engineer for Larrabee Sound and Frank Zappa and is now mastering CDs at his studio facility in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles.

Edited by: Barry Rudolph

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