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From: brazil@pawl.rpi.edu (Timothy E. Onders)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: Strategies for Playing Digitized Sound
Message-ID: <139@rpi.edu>
Date: 15 Jan 89 06:31:18 GMT
References: <8901121633.AA12910@TIS.COM> <1504@psu-cs.UUCP>
Sender: usenet@rpi.edu
Organization: Central Services, Troy, NY
Lines: 23

In article <1504@psu-cs.UUCP> kirkenda@psu-cs.UUCP (Steve Kirkendall) writes:
>
>Also, you wouldn't need nearly that many samples.  A sampling rate of 6KHz
>at 6 bits per sample sounds like a typical telephone.  A sampling rate of
>10KHz should push the Atari's PSG and the monitor's speaker to their practical
>limits.

Since I am presently developing some digital audio hardware for the ST, I must
comment that a 6KHz or even 10KHz sampling rate is pathetic for decent sound.
The frequency range for a sample is limited to 1/2 the sample rate, or, in this
case 3KHz or 5KHz. While this would be ok for voice, and maybe sound effects,
it would not allow many musical instruments, such as the piccolo, the piano,
and the pipe organ, and would eliminate important first order harmonics,
providing identifyiable sound, but sound on the level of a cheap toy. Even
a simple mac can do this type of sampling.

Since the Atari computers are noted for their large amounts of memory, there
is no reason to be limited to poor quality sound.

Timothy E. Onders      | 'Music is an extension of the soul, much as the eyes 
brazil@pawl.rpi.edu    |  are a window on it.'

P.S. Be on the watch for Central Services Audio products for the ST soon.