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[supernova777]

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/feb00/articles/bitzhead.htm

Voodoo is the latest product to follow this virtual trend. It comes from Bitheadz, those nice people from sunny California who have also brought us the Retro AS1 virtual analogue synthesizer, and the Unity DS1 virtual sampler. To put it in a drumshell, Voodoo is a software beatbox that allows you to assemble kits from samples, generally kick 'em around with various sound-manipulation tools and then record patterns either as straightforward digital audio or as MIDI files that can be exported to other programs. As Bitheadz are at pains to point out, Voodoo offers three technologies in one: a MIDI sequencer with record and playback support (and MIDI sync to boot), a sample editor, and a synth engine with programmable envelopes, filters, LFOs, and real-time effects.

It comes as no surprise to find that much of the technology behind Voodoo — notably the synth engine, MIDI input utilities, and drivers — is borrowed wholesale from Unity DS1. Indeed, it's the Unity control panel that pops up whenever you need to make changes to the overall system settings, MIDI input channels and so on. Note that if you already own Unity, you'll have to upgrade to version 1.2.4 or later before installing Voodoo: the necessary updater is included on the Voodoo CD-ROM.

The CD is password-protected, with the secret code printed on the CD case — lose this and you'll get no further, my friend. Mac users will require a 120MHz PowerPC or better, while PC people will need a 200MHz Pentium or above. The PC crowd will also have to wait a little while as the Windows version isn't due along for a few more weeks. Also recommended as minimums for both platforms are 64Mb system RAM and an 800x600-resolution colour monitor. The program itself is fairly modest in its requirement for hard disk space, but if you want to install all the included drum sounds, loops and MIDI files, you'll need a fairly hefty 250Mb of spare room. Start deleting those unnecessary Internet downloads now!