PlanetZ forums - scopeusers.com

In case you haven't looked, there is a new tripleDAT upgrade available for DSP users in the on-line shop.

Yes, but it will not be working the first couple of days :

" System requirements: Luna II Version 2.6 or higher, Pulsar Version 3.0 or higher, SCOPE /SP Version 3.0 or higher under Windows

For now this software doesn't run with Pulsar XTC "

Maybe this means that v3.0 is getting very close, hmm ?
!

You are correct. I only have Luna and the upgrade for that is also available with the tripleDAT purchase. When I get to my PC this evening, I'll install it and let everyone know what I find out.

I've already posted some of these comments in the Creamware forums but I'll post something here for review and comment as well.

I installed the latest tripleDAT upgrade yesterday afternoon and only got to spend a few minutes looking at things. Here's a brief list of some of the most obvious observations:

1) New version is 3.11 and is mainly for DSP users although it seems to work with the older ISA board (the options are still there for tripleboard and TDAT).

2) I think (correct me if I'm wrong), that tripleDAT uses little (if any) DSP resources. I think it runs on your computer processor/memory.

3) No CD-R support unless you are a previous tripleDAT owner. This involves installing the new version over the old version. Installation of the new version does not give you the option of choosing a specific subdirectory. It defaults to a sub-subdirectory under the Luna subdirectory. In order for me to get the CD-R writing options back, I had to reinstall the old tripleDAT into this new sub-subdirectory. A bit confusing to say the least. Needless to say, the old CD writing options won't support many of the newer CD/RW drives.

4) Still no reverb options in the new tripleDAT. That was removed a few versions back (for reasons unknown).

5) Didn't get a chance to check out the MP3 support. Doesn't mean much to me personally although it might in the future.

6) Some strange cosmetic bugs remain from the last version (already over 2 years old).

7) The Effects window in tripleDAT has a tendancy to "stick", even if tripleDAT is minimized to the taskbar. This seemed to cause a problem when trying to re-mazimize the tripleDAT window although I didn't really get a chance to investigate more.

A few lock-ups when loading/unloading arrangements - one required a complete reboot of the system.

9) Still, I am having problems recording through the Luna SPDIF input into tripleDAT. If anyone can provide any suggestions here, I'd be thankful.

After waiting patiently for the past 2 years for any type of upgrade to tripleDAT, I was thankful, but discouraged, at the same time. With a few exceptions, 3.11 is almost the same in appearance/features as 3.06. I had hoped for a major revision. Maybe more will come. Eager to hear other viewpoints/observations.

As a plain PulsarII DSP user I'm very interested in this option. Are there any really comprehensive reviews around ?

This new upgrade was just released so it might take a few days before people get a chance to purchase the option, install it and put it through it's paces. However, version 3.11 is virtually identical to version 3.06 and I have over 4 years experience with that version. If you'd like a more detailed explanantion of tripleDAT's capabilities (based on my knowledge of 3.06) I'd be happy to comment further. Let me know.

Hi Kizrox,
If you can describe some of its good and bad points that'd be much appreciated. For example, can you simply "play" Pulsar synth tracks into it and then have each take on a different track? Can you drop STS wavs in? What do you mainly use it for? Does it have any horrible bugs or weaknesses ?

thanks,
Spirit

Can you simply "play" Pulsar synth tracks into it and then have each take on a different track?

Answer: yes, easily.

Can you drop STS wavs in?

Answer: I don't know what an STS wav is but if it conforms to the MS WAV standard then I'd say it probably can. Maybe someone else can answer this question.

What do you mainly use it for?

Answer: TripleDAT basically does one thing and one thing only: multi-track audio recording. It does not have the sequencing capabilities like Cakewalk or Cubebase (although it does support MIDI implementation) I use it much like you'd use a normal multi-track tape deck, specifically, to record tracks for CD audio projects. Also, it doesn't do video like Vegas Audio.

Does it have any horrible bugs or weaknesses ?

Answer: Horrible? No. Annoying? Yes. Some of the obvious weaknesses in 3.11 were mentioned above already. I'll give you a brief list of strengths & weaknesses (based on my humble opinions .

Strengths:

Easy editing of samples & waveforms. Bit-level surgery is a breeze. Crossfades, volume & pan curves, etc. handled easily.

Built-in FX (especially considering that this new version has Firewalkers & Osiris) which are costly add-on's in other packages. I paid $400 just for Osiris alone. I think Osiris is probably the best noise reduction program on the market - works in realtime!

Simple & clean user interface. TripleDAT's simplicity is really a strength in my opinion. Other programs have more bells & whistles but are also harder to master and are less stable.

I can easily process 24 tracks or more on a PIII 750MHz with 256M RAM. Actually, I remember one arrangement where we had close to 40 tracks running. Pretty cool!

CD writing capability in 3.06 (or earlier) only. This is a biggy in my opinion. Record, edit & burn all in one nice bundle. You might be able to retreive this capability by downloading one of the previous versions from Creamware's FTP site. 3.06 won't work without tripleboard but you might be able to get to the specific files needed for CD writing.

Weaknesses:

As I mentioned before, Creamware hasn't updated this program in over 2 years. I don't know if they have plans to do anything more to it. If you are expecting to see frequent updates, this is not the program for you.

No CD writing capability (removed in this version for DSP users only). I mention it again, only if you're not able to incorporate the feature from a previous version.

No reverb FX although you can get that from a previous version (prior to 3.06). Many didn't see this is a problem since the original Room Simulator had a quality about equal to a low-end rack-mount unit or stomp box.

Some minor appearance problems as I mentioned before.

No Direct x support but many don't see this as a weakness. You are locked into the FX that come with the program. Again, not a big deal since you can easliy add better FX through Pulsar.

Bottom Line: $228 USD seems like a very good deal for this program, warts & all. Original customers paid a lot more, believe me. The strengths outweigh the weaknesses. If you're looking for more features, better support, etc. - look elsewhere.

Hmmm very interesting. Do you use a second ata-100 hard drive or something like that for the tracks ?

Thanks very much for the information, most kind.

cheers Spirit

Not yet but one is coming. Currently, I only have a 20GB Maxtor drive. C drive is configured at 5 GB and D drive at 15 GB.

I'm in the process of recording 15 songs for a client and only have about 3GB remaining on D drive. That's why I decided it was time to upgrade. I have a 60GB Maxtor on the way. That should be plenty.