background image

• Use the Field Chooser window to view your collection the way you want 

to see it.

SIREN XPress brings powerful functionality to your desktop:

• Use Search for Music to find music on a network or removable drive.

• Export custom playlists to your Rio or Nomad II portable MP3 device.

• Use your Microsoft Internet Keyboard hotkeys to control SIREN 

XPress’s functions.

Siren™ XPress Quick Start

Welcome to Sonic Foundry’s SIREN XPress! This guide is designed to provide you
with information that will allow you to immediately begin taking advantage of the
powerful features of SIREN™ XPress.

SIREN XPress allows you to operate in Philips compact mode or normal mode.The
compact mode includes only the Transport buttons (Play, Stop, Pause, etc.). Normal
mode displays the entire SIREN XPress window, and allows access to all SIREN
XPress functionality.You can toggle between the Philips compact mode and normal
mode using any of the following methods:

• Click the 

Compact/Skin Mode

button.

• From the View menu, choose the 

Compact/Skin Mode

option.

• Press 

Ctrl + M

on your keyboard.

You can expand the Philips compact mode to display the current and next songs, the
Compact/Skin Mode button, and the Select Playlist button.To expand the compact
mode, click the Expand control on the right end of the player.You can also use this
control to collapse the compact mode.The SIREN XPress expanded compact mode
is shown below:

59

58

About SIREN

XPress

Acoustic Edge supports Microsoft’s standards for multichannel playback however
some soft-DVD players may not. If this mode does not work with your soft-
DVD player then use QMSS DVD enhancement mode described in the 
preceding section.

If you only have stereo speakers:

1.

Make sure “2 speakers” is selected in the Acoustic Edge control panel 
settings tab.

2.

Select “DVD QSurround” under “2 speakers” in the Acoustic Edge 
control panel.

3.

Follow the soft-DVD players instructions for “5.1 speaker” playback. [If your
soft-DVD player does not provide a 5.1 speaker mode then select “QXpander”
instead of “DVD QSurround in line 2) above and follow the soft-DVD players
instructions for “stereo” playback instead]

4.

Play a DVD and Acoustic Edge will virtualize surround effects coming from 
the DVD.

A

BOUT

SIREN™ XP

RESS

Transform your PC into the ultimate music entertainment center with SIREN XPress
music jukebox. SIREN XPress lets you “rip” your CD collection onto one convenient
location—your hard drive. Let SIREN XPress help you surf the net and find more
great music to add to your collection—MP3, WAV, and WMA files are all supported.
Use SIREN XPress’ advanced organizational features to create custom playlists of the
songs you want to hear. SIREN XPress maximizes your audio experience with daz-
zling, colorful eye candy—real-time computer animation that pulses and interacts
with your songs. And when you’re ready to hit the road with your portable MP3
player,* SIREN XPress is the fun, easy way to upload your custom playlists.

* Supported MP3 players do not currently run under Windows NT or Windows 2000.
You must be running SIREN XPress on Windows 9x to upload songs to portable players.
SIREN XPress includes 20 free MP3 encodes, with unlimited MP3 playback.

SIREN XPress makes it easy to organize your music:

• SIREN XPress includes a powerful, database-driven music management engine.

• The Sort, Group, and Filter tools provide you with superior control over your

music library.

DVD Playback Modes

Summary of Contents for Acoustic Edge A581-T8

Page 1: ...User s Manual PSC706 706 PSC Philips Consumer Electronics Company A Division of Philips Electronics North America Corporation Knoxville TN 37914 1810 U S A Printed in the U S A ...

Page 2: ...Philips Acoustic Edge 5 1 Channel PCI Sound Card A581 T8 ____________________________ Philips Consumer Electronics Company One Philips Drive Knoxville TN 37914 ...

Page 3: ...ed Software at its discretion 5 Changes of the agreement No changes of this Agreement are valid unless with Philips and your written approval Any terms and conditions provided by you are inapplicable whether or not contained in order forms or otherwise unless specifically accepted by Philips in writing by means of a duly signed addition to this Agreement 6 Limitations of liability PHILIPS ACCEPTS ...

Page 4: ... ...

Page 5: ... your games music and movies Load your favorite music games and movies and be prepared to hear every detail as never before articulated through 96 distinct 3D voices 256 distinct DirectSound voices and 576 distinct synthesized Wavetable voices The heart of your sound card is Philips powerful new ThunderBird Avenger audio processor which relieves your computer of performing enormously complex audio...

Page 6: ...itional 3D QSound Environmental Modeling for EAX and DS3D games QSound Multi Speaker System for quad or 5 1 output of stereo sources QXpander for 3D enhancement of stereo DVD QSurround 5 1 speaker virtualization over stereo speakers compatible SoftDVD player required 576 voice total wavetable synthesis music polyphony 512 Voice professional quality soft synth with XG and GM compatibility 64 channe...

Page 7: ...your sound card 2 Use a grounding strap or touch any non painted surface of your computer chassis before you begin installation to discharge static electricity WHAT YOU NEED FOR INSTALLATION Computers come in different shapes and sizes The installation procedures in this manual apply generally and you should compare the illustrations here with your computer before you start your sound card install...

Page 8: ...er Save the mounting plate for possible use later TO INSTALL THE SOUND CARD Turn off your computer and disconnect the power cable Disconnect all devices that are connected to the computer Remove the computer cover 12 13 Installing Acoustic Edge PCI Bus Slot PCI Bus Slot Cover Plate Mounting Screw Cover Plate Mounting Screw ...

Page 9: ...nding Remove the Acoustic Edge Sound Card from the anti static bag Align your sound card with the selected PCI Bus Slot and firmly push it into the slot Be sure the sound card is aligned properly and fits snugly into the slot 14 Installing Acoustic Edge Align sound card and fit firmly in place PCI Bus Slot PCI Bus Slot Mounting Screw Sound Card Top Bottom View ...

Page 10: ...ic In Line Out Lime DIN S PDIF Black DIN GAME MIDI PORT Mic In Line Out Lime S PDIF Black Game Midi Port TAD AUX In C LFE Orange REAR Black FRONT Lime Lime DIN Analog CD IN LINE OUT CABLE S PDIF OUT orange S PDIF IN Brown Black DIN S PDIF CABLE CD ANALOG CABLE Digital CD In ...

Page 11: ...rt into the socket DO NOT FORCE IT IN instead verify the key alignment is correct and gently reinsert The DIN sockets are the large round sockets just below the two smaller jacks for Line In and Mic Next plug your front speakers or headphone into the lime colored 3 5mm stereo jack at the other end of the cable If you have a quad surround or 5 1 channel speakers then plug your rear surround speaker...

Page 12: ...NEXT To install the drivers for Windows 95 98 2000 1 Turn on the computer and place the Philips Acoustic Edge CD in your CD ROM drive When the Add New Hardware Wizard dialog box reports that a new PCI Multimedia Audio Device has been detected click NEXT Installing Acoustic Edge ...

Page 13: ...l CD or if you have copied the install to any other location select SPECIFY A LOCATION and browse to your directory where the setup files are located For Windows 95 98 select Win9x directory then choose english For Windows 2000 select WDM directory Click NEXT Installing Acoustic Edge ...

Page 14: ...e files You will find these files in the same WDM install directory and Windows will finish installing the drivers for Philips Acoustic Edge automatically Click FINISH on each screen to install each of these devices 25 24 5 Windows then copies the files You may be prompted to insert your Windows CD or floppy as the core sound components of the operating system may need to be copied as well These i...

Page 15: ...ill be installed It is possible during gameport installation Windows will detect newer versions of msanalog vxd vjoyd vxd and msjstick drv It is recommended that you keep your existing files ClickYES on all 3 screens that appear 8 Next the software launcher will allow you to open the Acoustic Edge control panel and configure your speaker settings if desired SelectYES to modify these settings now o...

Page 16: ...entation This serial number is case sensitive Click NEXT 29 YAMAHA SOFTSYNTHESIZER INSTALLATION 10 After Acoustic Edge driver installation the software launcher will prompt you to install the Yamaha SoftSynthesizer Click YES 11 The Yamaha SoftSynthesizer Welcome page appears Click NEXT 28 Installing Acoustic Edge ...

Page 17: ...31 30 14 Select A Program Folder dialog box appears Click NEXT 13 The Choose Destination Location dialog box appears Follow the instructions in this box Click NEXT Installing Acoustic Edge ...

Page 18: ...ation If you are connected to the internet you can register your product now by clicking YES in the dialog window shown below If you prefer to register your product at a later time go to www philipsusa com prod_reg_bounce html and follow the instructions Congratulations You have successfully installed your Philips Acoustic Edge 15 The Yamaha Software License Agreement dialog box is displayed If yo...

Page 19: ...r real MS DOS mode only and should not be run under Windows In Windows use the Windows mixer for adjusting playback and recording levels 35 WINDOWS NT INSTALLATION Installation of the drivers for your Philips Acoustic Edge in a Windows NT envi ronment are as follows note you must have the appropriate privileges in order to install the drivers 1 Boot the system to the Windows NT desktop and insert ...

Page 20: ... the GAME CONTROLLERS listed then click OK JOYSTICK CONFIGURATION FOR WINDOWS 95 98 2000 1 Open the Control Panel and double click on the GAME CONTROLLERS icon Select the ADVANCED tab and under PORT DRIVER ASSIGNMENT and select Philips Acoustic Edge GamePort Installing Acoustic Edge ...

Page 21: ...e nature of the problem has been determined a Return Authorization number and address will be supplied A RETURN AUTHORIZATION NUMBER MUST ACCOMPANY THE RETURN OF THIS PRODUCT When returning the product for service The cost of shipment is at your expense and you assume all the risk It is recommended to ship the product through a carrier that provides proof of delivery and product should be insured ...

Page 22: ...capable of providing 5 1 output QSound Environmental Modeling QEM Effects Tab QSound Environmental Modeling QEM provides EAX game compatibility and the ability to apply reverb to non EAX sound sources including applications S PDIF In and external inputs QSound Multi Speaker System QMSS Settings and S PDIF Tabs QMSS QSound Multi Speaker System transforms stereo sources into 4 channel or 5 1 channel...

Page 23: ...ack in 2 speaker mode This feature will provide the sensation of a full blown 5 1 speaker system by virtualizing the surround speakers For proper operation 5 1 output must be selected in the soft DVD player s control panel QSurround requires a soft DVD player capable of providing 5 1 channel output If your soft DVD player does not offer 5 1 output mode then select stereo or Pro Logic mode in the s...

Page 24: ...f you have a 4 or 5 piece speaker system stereo front left and right and rear surround left and right speakers and optional subwoofer 3D sounds generat ed by compatible applications will processed to the appropriate speaker and stereo sounds from applications will be expanded to four distinct channels using QMSS Stereo sources from external inputs CD In Line In will not be expanded to the rear spe...

Page 25: ...tings on the Settings tab will have no affect on the signal on the S PDIF output Rear Left and Right Channels In this mode the same content being sent to the rear surround Line Out speaker jack in analog format will also be sent to the S PDIF output in digital format for applications running on your PC MP3 games etc For external inputs CD In or Line In select the proper source on the Apply Reverb ...

Page 26: ...ing the Philips Acoustic Edge H W Synth rather than the Yamaha SXG default then the Environment you select will also be used when playing MIDI music and the intensity will be controlled on the reverb slider on the MIDI tab Some Environments such as Concert Hall are more appropriate for music while others like Forsaken were designed with specific games in mind and others like Drugged are for gaming...

Page 27: ...on of sound with the environment As an example imagine the sound of a gunshot in a large cathedral compare to the same sound in a tiled bathroom The entry under Default Environment allows you to select a certain surrounding environment such as a cave arena or hallway while the sliders provide for control over the intensity of the effect Typically very low settings should be used when adding ambian...

Page 28: ... and Reverb Level controls to adjust Acoustic Edge WaveTable synth These adjustments will have no effect on MIDI play back unless the Acoustic Edge Wavetable synth is selected as the MIDI device 52 Better Gaming Default Recommended Best setting for Windows DirectSound and DirectSound3D Gaming Maximum hardware acceleration for games Better Polyphony Setting for the highest MIDI WaveTable polyphony ...

Page 29: ...selected Use the Master Volume Slider to adjust the overall output level of your speaker system Adjust speaker connections as required to complete your sound card installation SPEAKER TEST TAB The speaker test tab is a utility to help verify proper speaker connections to your sound card The acronyms are defined as follows LF Left Front Speaker CTR Center Speaker RF Right Front Speaker RS Right Sur...

Page 30: ...and type audio channels 5 Select either 2 speaker Stereo or 2 speaker Dolby Surround or ProLogic Either option will work well as the QMSS DSP algorithm does not depend on Dolby encoding Effectively you should follow the soft DVD player instructions for playing back over stereo speakers even though you have a quad or 5 1speaker system connected 6 Close the control panel and play a DVD Acoustic Edge...

Page 31: ... DVD enhancement mode described in the preceding section If you only have stereo speakers 1 Make sure 2 speakers is selected in the Acoustic Edge control panel settings tab 2 Select DVD QSurround under 2 speakers in the Acoustic Edge control panel 3 Follow the soft DVD players instructions for 5 1 speaker playback If your soft DVD player does not provide a 5 1 speaker mode then select QXpander ins...

Page 32: ...Sonic Foundry products visit www sonicfoundry com 61 Media Files A media file refers to any audio and video file that SIREN will play from your com puter SIREN supports the following media file formats wav mp3 wma pca aif ogg avi wmv asf mpg mpeg mov qt Finding Media After you install SIREN XPress a configuration wizard will scan your local hard drives for any mp3 and wma files and add them to you...

Page 33: ...ages and let your imagination go Turn your wedding photos and special occasions into a creative slideshow for friends and family Keep your vacation memories alive forever Go on vacation without going on vacation Create an Internet Commercial to promote your business To install AudioPix follow these simple steps 1 Insert your install CD into your CD drive 2 Go to D Applications QSound Labs AudioPix...

Page 34: ...ing under Adjust Volume for and check the recording source that you want to display in the Recording Mixer Click OK and the Recording Mixer window will open Now you can select the recording source you intend to use and adjust the recording volume level Recording Source Configuration ...

Page 35: ...xample disk controller and graphics cards Add each card back until Device Manager indi cates that a conflict has occurred To resolve conflicts in Windows 95 98 1 Click the Start button point to Settings and then click Control Panel 2 In the Control Panel window double click the System icon 3 In the System Properties dialog click the Device manager tab 4 Under the Sound Video and Game Controllers e...

Page 36: ...68 Notes ...

Page 37: ...User s Manual PSC706 706 PSC Philips Consumer Electronics Company A Division of Philips Electronics North America Corporation Knoxville TN 37914 1810 U S A Printed in the U S A ...

Reviews: