Creative Introduces SoundFont 2.0 Sound Sample Format

- New Downloadable Sample Format For Developers, Musicians and Creative End-Users -

April 14th, 1996 - Creative Labs, the leading provider of multimedia products for the PC, today introduced SoundFont© 2.0, a downloadable sample format developed by the Joint E-mu/Creative Technology Centre. The new SoundFont format is a revision of the SoundFont 1.0 downloadable sample specification originally introduced with Sound Blaster©AWE32. The SoundFont 2.0 format lets developers, musicians and customers using either Sound Blaster AWE32, or Sound Blaster 32 with added memory, customise their special effects and musical synthesis, similar to changing the character font in their word processor.

With SoundFonts, users are not limited to using the sounds supplied with their sound cards. By simply loading new SoundFont banks, users can replace instrument sounds in order to tailor their sound cards to their individual needs. These enhancements range from replacing the stock piano sample with a preferred sample such as Steinway piano SoundFont bank, to create your own instruments by recording and modifying the samples.

"SoundFont technology and SSEYO's Kan Pro makes the promise of computer-aided music composition a reality," said Tim Cole, president of SSEYO Limited, a developer of musical compostition programs for the PC user.

For The Developer/Musician
SoundFont technology provides developers and musicians with the ability to incorporate preferred instruments and effects in their scores. New sounds can be created and existing instrument sound can be augmented with special effects. These changes result in games and entertainment titles with musical scores that are much more expressive and stimulating. Currently available from E-mu Systems are SoundFont banks, including compilations of pre-recorded instrument collections such as World Instruments, 9 Foot Grand Piano, Woodwinds, Arco Strings, Haunts Fonts and more.

"SoundFonts give me the unique ability to add custom instruments and sound effects to our games," said Russel Shaw, musical and lead audio programmer at Bullfrog Productions. "For example, on 'Dungeon Keeper' I have a range of special SoundFont banks which I use to add atmospheric sounds to enhance the musical score - if you don't have SoundFonts you don't get it!"

For The End-User
The end-user can expect to alter or entirely change the instrument sound that comes with their sound card using SoundFonts. Games and entertainment titles that are developed utilising SoundFont technology are more compelling.

Feature of SoundFont 2.0

Portable: It can be supported on many wave-table synthesis-based platforms.

Exchangeable: It can easily be transferred from one platform to another.

Expressive: The format allows professional sound designers to develop high-quality sound with tremendous multiple layering and effects.

Easily Customisable: The format make it very easy to customise professionally developed sound without having to modify the original content.

"The Joint E-mu/Creative Technology Centre has done a tremendous job with the SoundFont 2.0 format," said Sim Wong Hoo, chairman and chief executive officer at Creative Technology Ltd. "It truly fulfills our goal to provide developers and Creative's customers with flexibility needed to exercise their creativity."

"We designed SoundFont 2.0 to provide the ultimate in sound creation tools for truly extraordinary sounds, " said Dave Rossum, founder of E-mu System, Inc, a wholly- owned subsidiary of Creative Technology Ltd."

About Creative ...
Creative Technology Ltd. develops, manufactures and markets a family of sound, video, software, telephony and multimedia products for PCs under the Blaster family name, and the ShareVision line of desktop video conferencing products for PCs. The company's Sound Blaster sound platform enables PCs to produce high- quality audio for entertainment, educational, music and productivity applications, and has been accepted as the industry standard sound platform for PC-based software.

Creative Technology was founded in 1981 and is based in Singapore. The companys subsidiaries include Creative Labs in China, Europe, Japan, Taiwan and the US. The European head office is based at Ruscombe, near Twyford. In January 1994, Creative opened its technical support group in Dublin, which provides telephone support to French, German and English-speaking customers across Europe. Creatives stock is traded on the NASDAQ exchange, with sales in FY 1995 of $1202.3 million - a 83% increase on 1994.