Acoustica 4 - A Valued, Solid Performer

I installed Acoustica on both XP Media Center Edition and Vista Home Basic. I encountered no issues. It installs to a new C:\Program Files\Acon Digital Media\Acoustica 4 folder. Nothing special was needed during my install. For example, I didn't have to turn off virus protection. Acoustica appropriately uses the registry, and is self-contained; it does not replace files used by other apps.
 
The code seems fresh and recent. The help file says the Preferences Directories page contains only one setting, the directory for all temporary files created by Acoustica, and advises you to set it to a directory on a fast hard disk with sufficient free space. Acoustica works extensively with temporary files ,and the speed of the program depends to a large degree on the speed of the hard disk where the temporary files are situated. The default is shown in the figure below:
 
[AcousticaFigure06-TempFolder.jpg]

Acoustica's system requirements are modest. Per Acoustica's help file, you'll need a Pentium or compatible processor with a clock rate of 800 MHz or more, a minimum of 256 MB RAM, and 16-bit color depth. You'll also need a Windows-compatible sound card;
Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Windows Vista; and DirectX version 8.0 or later.

Acoustica's  user interface was designed with speed, accuracy, and ease of use in mind. The support for audio resolutions up to 32-bit and sampling rates up to 192 kHz allows you to record and edit in amazing audio quality.
 
A large range of high-quality audio tools and effects are already integrated in Acoustica, including tools for dynamic processing and equalizing; numerous effects such as reverb, chorus, and flanger; and time-stretching and key transposition tools.
 
I mentioned the audio tracks of video files above. Another source of music is your personal CD collection. Put a disc in your drive and choose File -> "Import Tracks from Audio CD," and Acoustica will rip any track you want in seconds.
 
[AcousticaFigure07-ExtractAudioCD.jpg]
 
The audio CD files come in as 44.1 Khz, 16-bit, stereo. If you’re coming in with sound from a microphone or sound card, check out the Recording Console tool.

 
[AcousticaFigure08-Recording.jpg]
 
Recordings distorted by noise, clicks, crackle, clipping, or missing high-frequency content can be restored. And if the tools included in Acoustica aren’t enough, there is support for DirectX and VST plugins so you can use tools and effects from other third-party manufacturers.
 
You can monitor the effect of your editing steps visually using Acoustica's real-time analysis tools, such as FFT analysis (frequency spectrum) or the phase correlation meter.

You can then add effects such as reverb, delay, flanger, or any third-party VST or DirectX effects. The effect chain editor simplifies mastering by allowing you to chain internal tools and effects as well as DirectX or VST plugins and store the chain, including all the effect settings, for later use. This makes this feature somewhat of a project file; you just need to keep notes about which effects were in the chain.

The Cleaning Wizard fixes audio and adds effects, and removes loud clicks, pops, short but frequent clicks referred to as crackle, analog or digital clipping, and static noise like tape hiss.
 
[AcousticaFigure12-CleaningWizardAtWork.jpg]

 
However, it’s a one-pass process. My test file was so badly in need of fixing that with the sliders all the way up, I still needed to make another pass. Some audio editing apps apply the results of each pass, allowing multiple passes without having to save the new file. Acoustica doesn’t dynamically apply the pass to the working file. I needed to save the first pass of restoration and then open the new file and apply the filters again.

The included help is well done and educational. Free online tech support is available via email. The email address is at the website

http://www.acondigital.com/us_Support.html
 
There’s an online forum for peer support, with no moderators, at

http://www.acondigital.com/forum/
 
You can use Help > "Check for Updates" for a quick check.