(place tab stops every one-half inches for best viewing) MUSICompress(tm) Lossless Audio Compression * Completely lossless audio compression software * 2x - 3x better compression than PKzip(tm) on audio * 4x - 5x faster than PKzip(tm) on audio * 1.5:1 to 3:1 average compression ratios on audio * Compression speed is 8x - 12x faster than real-time on 16-bit, 44.1 ksamp/sec audio (100 MHz Pentium) * Sample-accurate editing of compressed files * Lossy mode for higher compression ratios * C object code (MS Visual C++) or source code license * DSP object or source code license (Motorola, TI DSPs) * Low-MIPS algorithm suitable for FPGAs or ASICs * Free PC demo app available from our Web site! 1.0 Introduction Soundspace Audio introduces MUSICompress(tm) - a fast, lossless audio compression algorithm intended for high-quality audio applications. MUSICompress implements a patent-pending algorithm which losslessly compresses audio much more effectively and more quickly than alternative, Lempel-Ziv data compression algorithms. MUSICompress returns a bit-for-bit identical copy of your original digital audio recording after decom-pression. And MUSICompress is fast! MUSICompress files can be cued (played with random offset) and edited with sample accuracy in their compressed format. Finally, MUSICompress' lossy mode offers better compression ratios with user-specified quality. 2.0 Audio Compression Alternatives Computer users have regularly been using file-based data compression utilities like PKzip to compress all kinds of computer files. Such utilities are only marginally effective on audio files, since their compression algorithms were developed for text, spreadsheet, and database files. A .zip file can't be played back before decom-pression, and it can't be cued or edited. Lossy audio compression algorithms like MPEG, Dolby AC-3, and RealAudio suffer from two drawbacks. First, they can require lots of MIPS or dedicated hardware to compress your audio files. Secondly, they don't give you back your original audio. The audio you get after a compression-decompression pass is NOT the same as the audio you put in, because these algorithms are lossy. They use psychoacoustic principles to remove bits you may not miss. But we believe that many customers actually want all of their original bits. 3.0 MUSICompress (TM) Soundspace Audio's MUSICompress algorithm is targeted for audio applications where audio quality is paramount. MUSICompress was specifically designed to remove the redundancies present in digital audio or other sampled data signals while perfectly preserving the original waveform, bit for bit. MUSICompress achieves high compression ratios, typically at least 2:1, often as much as 4:1, using your 8-bit or 16-bit, mono or stereo digital audio source material as input. MUSICompress processing is fast, many times faster than playback time. Finally, MUSICompress files can be cued and edited with sample accuracy in their compressed format. 4.0 Example Compression Ratios Cut # Title or Type Original Size PKzip size (MB) MC size (MB) MC advantage of Audio (MB) (% saved) (% saved) 1 Sine wave 8.74 6.04 (30.9%) 3.34 (61.8%) 2.00 2 Pink noise 4.02 2.75 (31.6%) 2.13 (47.0%) 1.49 3 Mozart strings 6.87 5.46 (20.5%) 2.83 (58.8%) 2.87 4 Peg, Steely Dan 20.98 18.81 (10.3%) 13.37 (36.3%) 3.51 5 Spring, Vivaldi 19.23 16.38 (14.8%) 11.54 (40.0%) 2.70 6 Lithium Sunset, Sting 20.01 18.79 (6.1%) 14.06 (29.7%) 4.88 7 Solo piano, P. Aaberg 18.58 13.82 (25.6%) 5.77 (68.9%) 2.69 8 Sade, Kenny G 22.98 19.91 (13.4%) 14.22 (38.1%) 2.85 9 I Can't Dance, Genesis 21.26 19.14 (10.0%) 13.57 (36.2%) 3.63 10 Only Wanna..., Hootie 19.99 19.18 (4.1%) 15.86 (20.7%) 5.10 SUMMARY 162.66 140.28 (13.8%) 96.69 (40.6%) 2.95 5.0 Example Compression Times (on a 100 MHz Pentium) Cut # Title or Type Cut Length PKzip time MC time MC advantage of Audio (sec) (sec, x faster (sec, x faster than real-time) than real-time) 1 Sine wave 102 49 (2.08) 11 (9.27) 4.45 2 Pink noise 49 23 (2.13) 5 (9.80) 4.60 3 Mozart strings 82 48 (1.71) 9 (9.11) 5.33 4 Peg, Steely Dan 238 145 (1.64) 32 (7.44) 4.53 5 Spring, Vivaldi 215 136 (1.58) 27 (7.96) 5.04 6 Lithium Sunset, Sting 158 94 (1.68) 21 (7.52) 4.48 7 Solo piano, P. Aaberg 211 127 (1.66) 23 (9.17) 5.52 8 Sade, Kenny G 260 161 (1.61) 36 (7.22) 4.47 9 I Can't Dance, Genesis 241 151 (1.60) 32 (7.53) 4.72 10 Only Wanna..., Hootie 226 147 (1.54) 32 (7.06) 4.59 SUMMARY 1782 1081 (1.65) 228 (7.82) 4.74 6.0 Products Product Description Price --------- -------------- ------ PC Demo Software: Runs under Windows 3.1, Win95, and Free WinNT. Uses any .WAV file as input. (under NDA) (available under non-disclosure agreement) C Object or Source Object A: MSVC version 4.x (32-bit .lib) Call for quote Object B: MSVC version 1.52 (16-bit .lib) C Source code is fully ANSI standard. DSP Object or Source Platforms: Motorola 56xxx, TI 'C2x, 'C2xx Call for quote (available Summer 1997) Algorithm License For FPGA or ASIC implementations Call for quote 6.0 Soundspace Audio Soundspace Audio is a privately held business located in Sunnyvale, CA (USA). Soundspace Audio was founded in September 1995 by Al Wegener, the company's president. Mr. Wegener is a digital signal processing (DSP) engineer by training, with a BSEE from Bucknell University and an MSCS from Stanford University. With over 15 years of DSP experience and over 5 years in the pro audio business, Mr. Wegener developed the MUSICompress algorithm specifically to provide a high-quality, low-MIPS solution for lossless and loss-limited audio compression. A U. S. patent application for MUSICompress and related audio compression technologies was filed in April 1996. Copyright (c) Soundspace Audio, 1996-97. All rights reserved. PKzip is a trademark of PKware, Inc. RealAudio is a trademark of Progressive Networks, Inc. Dolby AC-3 is a trademark of Dolby Labs Licensing Corp. All other trademarks or trade names are the property of their respective holders. MUSICompress, MC App, and the MUSICompress logo are trademarks of Soundspace Audio.