The Bundle Software.
The TerraTec Team has spared no expense or effort to bring you a software package that really has something going for it. It gives you a program which allows you to ...
· configure and control your SoundSystem SiXPack 5.1 +,
· listen to all important (and a few unimportant) audio file formats
· explore 3D audio sound worlds yourself,
· create your own pieces of music,
· decode and even encode MP3s.
You could say a complete package. And the best of all: The program is powerful enough to give you professional features and options for all your needs. No gimmicks and (almost...) no superfluous gadgetry. In the directory "HOTSTUFF" – a TerraTec tradition – you'll find some of the best and most useful (in our humble opinion) audio shareware and freeware programs. There's enough stuff there to keep you busy with hours of work and fun.
Now on to it: After you have installed the software via the autostarter – and provided you have installed the entire bundle software – you will find the following programs which we would briefly like to describe here for you. You can find more detailed information in the respective software's help files. Have fun!
· Intervideo WinDVD
· Musicmatch Jukebox
· Emagic Logic Fun (only in Windows 95/98)
· The Sensaura 3D Player
· The Sensaura 3D demos
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Crash Course in Intervideo WinDVD.
Using WinDVD
Viewing a DVD Title
To view a DVD title, put the disc into the DVD drive. WinDVD will automatically begin playing the disk.
To launch WinDVD manually:
1. Select Start > Program Files > WinDVD, or if you have created one, click the WinDVD desktop shortcut.
2. Make your selections from the menu within the WinDVD window, or click (the Play icon) on the control panel.
Creating a Playlist
1. With the disk in the drive, click (the Playlist icon)
2. The Playlist window opens. Select File from the lower right set of options (File or Disc).
Move to the drive and directory in which the files are stored. Select the first file to be played.
3. Click Add. Repeat this procedure with as many files as you want. Remember that these files will now play in the order in which they appear. Delete and replace files to create the correct order, if needed.
4. Click Save to save your playlist for future use. Click Close to close the window. When you click Play, the playlist automatically plays the files in the order specified. You can play
.mpg, .vob, and .ac3 files.
Loading a Previously Saved Playlist
1. With the disk in the drive, click the Playlist icon.
2. The Playlist window opens. Click Load Playlist.
3. The list of saved playlists appears. Select the playlist to load.
4. Click Close to close the window. When you click Play, the playlist automatically plays the files in the order specified. You can play .mpg, .vob, and .ac3 files.
Changing Your Settings
You may want to enable or disable certain features of your WinDVD. To change any properties and features of your WinDVD:
1. Launch WinDVD and view the main control panel.
2. Click (the Properties icon). The Properties window appears.
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3. Tab to the desired properties to be changed. Select from General properties, Audio properties, Parental Control properties, and Display properties.
4. Select the properties you want. If you are unsure about what a particular property means, see the online help for that properties property page, or check the glossary. You can change these properties at any time.
5. Click OK again to accept your changes.
Setting Parental Control
Parents may want to set the parental controls, allowing only those movies and titles that are age-appropriate to be viewed. (In some cases, movies can be shown in modified form to allow different ratings for the same movie.) To set movie rating limits on your WinDVD:
1. Launch WinDVD and view the main control panel.
2. Click (the Properties icon. The Properties window appears.
3. Tab to the desired properties to be changed. Select Parental Control Properties.
4. Select the desired age-appropriate level. This will be the highest level allowed. No titles with movie ratings higher than the one selected will be viewable. You can change this again at any time.
5. If you have set a password, enter the password now, then click OK. You can change your password at any time.
6. Click OK again to accept your changes. The parental control feature will now use the new settings.
Ejecting a Disk
To eject a disk from the player, click (the Eject button) from the video viewing window or the toolbar.
Hiding and Viewing the Player
You can choose to only see the Video Viewing window. To hide the Player:
1. Open the Properties page.
2. Tab to General. Disable (remove the checkmark) View Player.
3. The player is now hidden. Enable the option again to view the player. You can open the properties page from the right-click menu or from the toolbar on the video viewing window.
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Enabling the Toolbar and Status bar
You can choose to include a toolbar and a status bar when using the Video Viewing window.
1. Open the Properties page.
2. Tab to General. Enable View Toolbar to see the toolbar in the video viewing window, and
View Statusbar to see the status bar on the window.
3. You can remove the toolbar or status bar from the video viewing window by disabling the selected feature.
Viewing a DVD Movie or Video CD
Insert the Title into the DVD Drive. WinDVD reads the format of the disk and starts automatically.
Playing a DVD Interactive Title
Interactive DVD or MPEG2 video based titles require no special action from the user. Just install the application and it should properly call the WinDVD drivers to playback the DVD or MPEG2 video files embedded in the application.
Zooming In
1. Position the mouse cursor over the top left-hand corner of the desired zoom region.
2. While holding the mouse button down, drag the cursor to the opposite end of the zoom region. This creates a dotted line rectangle, the outline of the desired zoom region.
3. Release the mouse button. WinDVD automatically fills the window with this zoom region.
Capturing a Still Image
WinDVD now allows users to capture a static image during movie playback. Press the "P" key at any time to capture a BMP file of a moving or static image. Capture does not work on zoomed regions and on some hardware motion compensation graphics chips. If you are having a problem, try disabling hardware motion compensation and capturing again.
Captured bitmaps are stored in the Capture subdirectory of the WinDVD directory on your hard drive. Captured files are number cap001.bmp, cap002.bmp, etc.
Vocal options
When you insert a karaoke or other vocal disc into the DVD drive, WinDVD automatically reads and correctly decodes the type of disc. The audio output is determined by the Vocal Options properties you have selected.
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Changing the Parental Control Password
To create a new password:
1. From the Parental Control window, click Change Password.
2. Type your desired password directly into the New Password text area.
3. Type the same password again in the Confirm New Password text area. Be sure to type it exactly the same both times, or it will not be accepted.
To change your password:
1. From the Parental Control window, click Change Password.
2. Type your current password in the Old Password text area.
3. Type your desired password directly into the New Password text area.
4. Type the same password again in the Confirm New Password text area. Be sure to type it exactly the same both times, or it will not be accepted.
Closing WinDVD
To close WinDVD:
1. Stop any DVD disc in the DVD drive.
2. Click the Close icon.
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The WinDVD Controls
Once WinDVD is launched and active, use the controls shown on the WinDVD panel to navigate through the DVD Title. The WinDVD controls are designed to look like controls on a standalone
DVD player, so they may seem familiar to you. Keep in mind that not all options are available with all DVD Titles. Only the author of a title can include features. If a feature is not available with a particular title, it will be grayed out and inaccessible. Below is a description of each portion of the full WinDVD control panel.
Start/Preferences
Opens the Playlist window, letting you select a specific order and group of files.
Select from .vob, .dat, .mpg, and .ac3 files. You cannot select a file while a movie is playing.
Open the Properties window.
In order: minimize, maximize, and close the WinDVD video window.
Directional Buttons
Eject.
Stop.
Start playback of the disk.
Pause the current playback.
Single frame advance while in Pause mode.
Loop current title or chapter.
Jumps to previous chapter.
Jump to next chapter.
Play the disk in fast reverse mode.
Play the disk in fast forward mode.
Expanded view for additional controls.
Resume playback of video from a menu screen.
Opens the Audio and Video adjustment window.
Opens the online help system.
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Sliders
Move to a specific time in the title.
Increase or decrease the brightness of the video output.
Increase or decrease audio output.
Color Control Bar 1. Adjust the relative strength (balance) between video colors blue and yellow.
Smooth rewind and smooth fast forward.
Color Control Bar 2. Adjust the relative strength (balance) between video colors red and green.
Adjust the volume.
Counter
The counter shows the chapter currently being played, and how much time has elapsed since the Title began playing.
Mute
Mute if it is checked.
Directional Arrows
Use the directional buttons just as you would the mouse button or Tab key.
The arrows represent (clockwise from top): Navigate up, Navigate right, Navigate down, Navigate left. Center: Select or Enter.
Numeric Keypad
The numeric keypad provides you with a method of selecting numbers. This is more likely to be used while playing a Video CD than a DVD disc. Any time that you enter a numeric value, click the corresponding key on the numeric keypad and then click the checkmark to accept that number.
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Menu Items
Displays all of the menus available (Root, Audio Language, Subtitles, etc.) on the
DVD disc currently being played and allows you to select a menu to navigate.
Opens a submenu showing you all of the titles available on the DVD disc currently being played and allows you to select a new title to play back.
Opens a submenu showing you the chapter currently being played. You can select another chapter from this menu.
Displays the current DVD discs audio track options. If multiple audio tracks or language are available, use this menu to select your choice.
Displays the subtitle menu. If multiple language subtitles are available, use this menu to select your choice.
When available, select the angle to view from a list of optional angles.
Zoom/Unzoom/Pan
If Zoom is already active, returns to normal view.
Pan the view around the screen to change the view.
Bookmarks
WinDVD automatically remembers the last viewed location of a DVD.
Web Button
Links to Internet website.
WinCinema Manager
Launch application of WinCinema family.
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The Right-Click Menu
While you are viewing a movie, you can put the cursor on the display window and right-click to see a "video menu". The commands on this menu are the same as those in the regular menu.
You can also use this window to show the main WinDVD control panel when it has been hidden by viewing full-screen video, or as set in the Properties section. The Video menu is shown below.
Play - plays the current title, restores play after a pause.
Stop - stops the current playback.
Pause - pauses the current playback.
Fast Forward - plays the disk in fast forward mode.
Fast Backward - plays the disk in fast reverse mode.
Previous Chapter - jumps to the previous chapter.
Next Chapter - jumps to the next chapter.
Repeat - repeats the disk play.
Enable Caption - enables the line 21 caption
Mute - mutes the sound on the disk currently playing.
Eject - ejects the disk from the drive.
Menu - shows menu selections.
Title - shows title information.
Chapter - shows chapter selections.
Subtitle - shows subtitle selections.
Audio - audio selections.
Angle - shows angle selections.
Bookmarks - WinDVD automatically remembers the last vewed location of a DVD.
Properties - opens the Properties window.
Adjustment - opens panel to adjust the volume, brightness, and Color
Control 1 and 2.
View - views tool bar, status bar and player.
About - shows version and copyright information.
Exit - closes WinDVD.
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Video Viewing Window
The main viewing window for displaying video output. If you have selected View Toolbar in the
General Properties tab, the toolbar appears at the top of the viewing window. If you have selected View Statusbar, the status bar is displayed at the bottom of the viewing window.
Status Bar
When you are viewing a DVD disc and select Show Status Bar from the Properties menu,
WinDVD displays the status bar across the bottom of the screen.
The following controls are available to you from the Status Bar:
Move to a different time in the title
Smooth Slow motion or fast forward
Shows the current chapter.
Shows the elapsed time
Shows the disk type
If "Repeat" function has been enabled, the appropriate character will appear in the far right of the status bar. - "C" represents repeat chapter
- "T" represents repeat title
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Crash Course in Musicmatch Jukebox.
With the program Musicmatch Jukebox from the firm Musicmatch, you can not only play various formats, but also create your own MP3 files, archive them and burn them to CD. Actually, the program and its cleverly designed graphic interface are by and large self-explanatory, but still, we would like to give you a brief introduction so that you can achieve your goals quickly and efficiently.
The Player
Whether MP3 or Windows Media files - simply “drag n' drop” them into the playlist or player window or over “File” -> “Open”. For playback on the PC a soundcard is of course required. Coincidentally, TerraTec can also help you in this regard.
The Recorder
Clicking on the record button in the player will bring you to the recorder. With the recorder you can for example read audio CDs and directly save them in MP3 format onto your hard disk. In the recorder options you can adjust the quality (bit-rate), activate the support for variable bitrates and make other configuration changes. Important for insiders: Obviously, the original
Fraunhofer MP3 algorithm is used to ensure the best possible quality. You can also record a signal from your soundcard (for example the Line In signal) into MP3 format directly in real time.
These and more settings can be found in the “Options” menu (see photo above, the player).
If you want to transform an audio CD into MP3 format then follow these steps:
If you can, you should connect to the Internet so that Musicmatch Jukebox can access CDDB
(CompactDisc Database) – then the titles, artist, and album info are automatically saved as ID tags in the MP3 file. Otherwise handwork is required, but even that is incredibly easy. Load a
MP3 file per drag n' drop into the playlist window of the player. A simple right mouse click on
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the title and the familiar context menu appears. Choose “Edit Track Tags” and enter the info.
But now let's get back to our audio CD.
Insert an audio CD in the CD ROM drive of your PC, stop the automatic playback if it starts.
When the CDDB request was successful you should already have artist and title info displayed.
Click on the red record button in the player to start the recording process. Choose the title(s) that you wish to encode – by default all titles are selected. Start the read and encode process by clicking on the record button in the recorder. And now you need a little patience or a fast PC.
When the read and encode process is finished you will find a freshly ripped MP3 file(s) on your hard disk. Should you belong to the group of people without Internet access, you can edit the
ID3 tags manually like mentioned previously. Information as to the exact location of the file(s) can be found under “Options” --> “Recorder” --> “Settings” --> “Songs Directory “. Afterwards you are ready for the MP3 CD recording and the next chapter.
Burn Baby, Burn!
With the integrated CD burning program you can easily capture your personal favorites on one
CD. One good feature: Clear display of the amount of space remaining on the CD. In the playlist window select “CD-R” and choose “Create CD from Playlist”. Pay attention to select “Data (MP3,
WMA, WAV)” for MP3 files and then click on “Add Song”, maneuver to the song path location determined as stated in the previous chapter and click on “Create CD”. That's it – really.
Must burners are supported straight from the factory, a comprehensive and up-to-date list of the models that have been checked can be found on the Musicmatch web page under
http://www.musicmatch.com/jukebox/player/cdr.cgi .
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Keep in mind: In order to use the M3PO go comfortably and easily navigate through your MP3
CD's, before you burn a CD you should take a second look at the functionality of the EDA system (Chapter “Fehler! Verweisquelle konnte nicht gefunden werden.” on page Fehler!
Textmarke nicht definiert.). Dedicated burner software is also recommended, as Musicmatch
Jukebox doesn't offer any option to create folders.
Not just for hunters, for collectors too
Organize your music archive and sort according to a wide range of categories, including album, artists, title, genre or mood. If you want you can add your own. The “Find Music” function enables you to find your favorites quickly and easily (CTRL+F).
Always the same, yet different.
Another feature of this software is its option of providing the interface with a new skin – they like to use the word skins. In the VIEW menu under VISUALISATIONS and SELECT
VISUALISATION you can switch between installed skins.
If you want to download other skins or find out more information, we recommend the MusicMatch homepage. The address (it couldn't be simpler): http://www.musicmatch.com.
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Emagic Logic Fun – The Sequencer.
A flaunted audio and MIDI sequencer in a superior class with all the fun elements: from notation including printing music, various editing options to an excellent mixer with installed effects
– everything is there.
After installation, you will also find extensive documentation in the Logic Fun program group as a PDF file which you should scour through not just when you have questions.
To be able to read this PDF document, you will need Acrobat Reader. This can be found on your
DMX XFire driver CD as an installation version.
Go and make a start on your compositions ...
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The 3D Player – listening in the 3rd dimension.
Listen like you feel. The 3D player lets you position your own sounds around your own head.
The menu is in English and operation is extremely straightforward.
For example: Using drag&drop, move a WAV file of your own choosing to the 3D player and press the Play button. Now you can compare the supported 3D capabilities with one another in the “Listener” menu:
Headphones: adjusts the 3D positioning of the headphones
Speakers: adjusts the 3D positioning of 2 and 4 speakers
Hardware 3D: 3D functions over the DMX XFire hardware.
Software 3D: The main processor (Host) tries to imitate the 3D functions.
Stereo Pan: normal stereo picture
MacroFX Enable: activates the MakroFX functions (important: set the WAV volume on the XFire
ControlPanel to approx. 70% less to get the full enjoyment of this function)
Reverb: You can listen to various room simulation algorithms here: either EAX 1.0, EAX 2.0 or even ID3L2 – or switch it off via None.
The path of a sound object in a three-dimensional room can be set through the subpoint path in the Buffer menu:
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Horizontal Circle: describes an object's horizontal circular movement relative to the listener.
Recommended for experiencing the “back-front” syndrome.
Vertical Circle: describes an object's vertical circular movement relative to the listener. Recommended for experiencing the “up-down” syndrome.
Flyby: the object flies towards the listener from a distance, passes by the face and disappears again.
Manual: this lets you manually select the position of the objects with your mouse.
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The 3D Demos.
The DMX XFire 1024 software comes with different demos which demonstrate the 3D audio characteristics of the card:
Athene – development tool for creating your own sound world
(for more info, see the README file for the program).
Donuts – sweet sounds fly around you in an abstract 3D environment.
You can listen to and see all these programs with the friendly assistance of Sensaura Ltd.
(
http://www.sensaura.co.uk ).
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The HOTSTUFF Directory.
On the CD-ROM for the SiXPack 5.1 + we have collected together a large number of other programs, tools and files. It's well worth a look.
Many of the programs we present here are shareware. Please support the shareware principle and pay the amount that the authors ask if you like the programs. Thank you
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