frontier design

DAKOTA

The superintegrated PCI card
with digital audio, MIDI, and
synchronization

Many companies offer computer audio products that get you part of the way
there. But trying to get separate audio cards, MIDI interfaces, and sync boxes
to work together can be a time-consuming and frustrating
experience. That's where Dakota™ comes in. With a full complement of 16
high-performance 24-bit digital audio channels, industry-standard 2x2 MIDI,
SMPTE, and ADAT sync, Dakota makes putting together a PC-based
studio easier than ever before.

Dakota™ is a superintegrated PCI soundcard that provides a complete
solution for digital audio, MIDI, and synchronization. No other soundcard
offers this level of integration, providing computer connections to
audio converters (such as our own Tango24™ and Zulu™ multichannel converters),
digital mixers, tape machines, synthesizers, samplers, sequencers, video decks, sound
modules, and more. Dakota supports industry standards, including ADAT lightpipe,
S/PDIF, SMPTE, MIDI, and ADAT Sync, and is compatible with today’s most popular
sequencing and audio editing software. Dakota has two pairs of ADAT optical ports for
16 audio inputs and 16 audio outputs. Dakota has S/PDIF digital audio I/O on RCA
jacks via a breakout cable that also includes an ADAT 9-pin sync input connector.
Dakota also has two MIDI inputs and two MIDI outputs on standard DIN-5 connectors,
and an internal CD-ROM digital audio cable for direct transfers of audio CDs.

Audio channels on both Dakota and Montana support SoDA™ (SMPTE on Digital
Audio). This unique feature lets you use any digital audio input or output for SMPTE
timecode. Standard audio channels, in either ADAT optical or S/PDIF format, can be
defined as SMPTE I/O ports using the Dakota control panel … no additional hardware is
required. SMPTE signals are detected, decoded, and delivered digitally to external
analog converters. Dakota’s hardware supports SMPTE and MIDI timecode chase-lock.
This is a great advantage over software-based approaches that rely on real-time audio
resampling or repositioning. Hardware-based chase-lock eliminates these sources of
audio distortion and frees the CPU for other tasks.

Dakota supports a wide range of industry standard interfaces, including:

· ADAT optical audio (8 channels per cable, which can be up to 33 feet long)

· S/PDIF on electrical coax or optical cables

· MIDI using standard MIDI cables

· SMPTE using any compatible digital audio converter and its analog I/O

· ADAT sync input for sample-accurate, multi-machine sync

Dakota has an ultra-efficient PCI interface, essential for maximizing multichannel digital
audio capabilities. Dakota utilizes a bus-mastering interface, and scatter-gather DMA is
implemented to off-load the CPU even further. All digital audio paths support up to 24-bit
resolution. Dakota supports sample rates of 44.1 and 48kHz, and dynamically
resamples 8, 11.025, 16, 22.05, and 32kHz digital audio for playback through
high-quality external converters. Initially, Dakota is shipping with Windows 95/98 drivers
and a control panel for displaying the status of Dakota and Montana, and for setting
options such as input lock, audio routing, and SMPTE levels. Also included with Dakota
is a CD-ROM with Cool Edit Pro SE, a multichannel audio package that lets users set
up and record right away. The Dakota CD-ROM also includes demos of several other
popular audio applications and sound effects plug-ins.

Specifications

Digital Audio
· 2 ADAT optical inputs (16 channels), expandable to 4 inputs (32
channels) when used with Montana™

· 2 ADAT optical outputs (16 channels), expandable to 4 outputs (32
channels) when used with Montana™

· S/PDIF stereo input from coax, CD-ROM, or either optical input

· S/PDIF stereo output to coax and/or either optical output

· All channels support 16-bit, 20-bit, 24-bit audio

· 44.1 and 48kHz internal sample rate clock generation; locks to digital
inputs from 39–51kHz

· Dynamically resamples 8, 11.025, 16, 22.05, 24, and 32kHz digital
audio to 44.1 or 48kHz for output to digital tape machines or external
converters

MIDI
· 2 input ports and 2 output ports (32 channels in and out) on standard
MIDI jacks

· Expandable to 8 input ports and 8 output ports + SMPTE I/O when used
with Sierra™

Synchronization
· SoDA™ technology (SMPTE on Digital Audio) lets any audio input or
output be used for SMPTE timecode (dedicated SMPTE I/O jacks
available when used with Sierra™)

· True hardware chase-lock to SMPTE; no audio degradation or loss of
CPU power due to resampling or repositioning of audio

· ADAT 9-pin sync input for direct lock to ADAT machines and compatible
gear

· Sync format conversion (ADAT Sync to SMPTE, ADAT Sync to MTC,
and SMPTE to MTC)

Other
· Includes Cool Edit Pro SE for out-of-the-box multitrack recording and editing

· Bus-mastering scatter-gather DMA for ultra-efficient PCI bus operation

· System requirements: Pentium processor, one PCI short slot, one IRQ

· Comes with drivers for Windows 95/98 and control panel software for
status and feature control. Compatible with PC audio and MIDI
applications, including Cakewalk Pro Audio, IQS SAWPro, SEK’D
Samplitude Studio, Sonic Foundry Sound Forge, Steinberg CuBase VST,
and Syntrillium Cool Edit Pro.

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