Peak Pro 5, the fifth generation of its award-winning professional stereo recording, editing, mastering and delivery software. On the Macintosh platform, Peak is the established leader for professional dedicated stereo recording, sample editing, processing, mastering and delivery, and version 5 adds a host of new high-end features to the already robust feature set.

Extended information

A number of new features make Peak Pro 5 even more powerful than previous versions, especially in the areas of mastering and professional CD preparation. Peak's playlist has been substantially re-vamped. In addition to the list view window, the Playlist includes a graphic waveform view featuring optional staggered or linear views with optimized Quartz-2D drawing and transparency, allowing crossfades and tracks to be adjusted visually. The Playlist also features unlimited undo/redo, as well as support for keyboard triggerable controls for auditioning and nudging, as well as bounce to multiple word lengths via POW-r dithering.

Peak Pro 5 now offers 100% replication-ready CD burning with ISRC entry, writing CD track indexes, PQ subcode editing, CD-Text, and other advanced features conforming to the full Redbook specification. Users of Peak 5 Pro will also soon be able to purchase an optional extension for DDP file export — making BIAS the only company offering a cost effective non-hardware dependent DDP authoring solution for the Mac. Many major record labels require mastering engineers to deliver their pre-masters in DDP format and the DDP Extension for Peak Pro 5 should be well received by the professionals worldwide.

Peak Pro 5 also includes a number of other significant new features. Vbox, Peak's intuitive graphic effects routing window, now supports Audio Units plug-ins as well as VST plug-ins. As in previous editions, plug-ins can alternatively be instantiated via the 5 available inserts. Also new for version 5 is support for VST and Audio Units instruments within both Vbox, and the plug-in inserts. Peak Pro 5 also offers instrument playback via a dedicated keyboard window or from an external MIDI keyboard. Many of Peak's on-board DSP algorithms have been improved, including Change Pitch, Change Duration and Sample Rate Conversion, and new DSP items have been added such as Auto-Define Regions, Strip Silence and Envelope From Audio. Peak's popular convolution-based sampling reverb DSP function, ImpulseVerb, has a new brushed-metal "skin" and now offers gain control for both impulse response and source.

Peak Pro 5 includes additional new features and enhancements, including a new high-resolution Tape Style Scrubbing via CoreAudio. The Batch File Processor now enables the preservation of file resolution and type. A new Recover Audio File command enables users to recover some damaged files, and the New Region Split command makes the region creation process faster and easier than before. Peak Pro 5 now includes support for Unicode, allowing the use of non-English file names, and support for file names longer than 32 characters has been added. Peak Pro 5 enables recording of files up to 10 GB, and an improved sample rate conversion algorithm ensures higher quality audio playback than previous versions. A new waveform drawing algorithm enables more audio phase information to be seen in the audio waveform display, and SMPTE HD units have been added to the time display. And lastly, Multimedia developers will appreciate the addition of Snap to CD Frames, PS2, Xbox Units, or Custom Expression Evaluator in the Actions menu.

Technical specifications

• Fastest & most intuitive waveform editing available on any platform
• Displays multiple documents simultaneously
• Multithreaded processing and compatible with multi-processor (MP) Macs
• Unlimited Undo/Redo with independent graphic edit history for each audio document
• User-definable display size & color
• Record audio directly or import all QuickTime-compatible audio formats
• Supports built-in Mac I/O, plus OS X and Core Audio-compatible audio hardware
• Easily create, edit, read & write region, loop & reference markers
• Automated Redbook (Disk-at-Once /DAO) CD burning direct from the Playlist as well as any audio document window
• Full DSP (Digital Signal Processing) Toolset, including Fade In/Out, Normalize, Gain Envelope, ImpulseVerb**, Reverse, Invert, Harmonic Rotate. Rappify, ultraaccurate Pow-r(TM) dithering, Convolve, Reverse Boomerang, Convert sample rate, Mix, Change Pitch, Panner, Amplitude Fit, Find Peak, Bit Usage Graph & more
• Sophisticated playlist featuring advanced crossfades, real-time effects, & Nudge Regions window
• Bit depths up to 32-bit
• Sample rates up to 10Mhz
• Master Volume Fader
• Advanced looping tools-- including the highly acclaimed Loop Surfer, LoopTuner, Crossfade Loop & Guess Tempo
• AudioUnit Plug-in support
• VST plug-in support*
• Over 25 VST audio effects plug-ins bundled free
• Includes new BIAS Sqweez procaliber compressor/limiter VST plug-in and BIAS Freq 4-band paragraphic EQ
• Advanced VST audio effects routing matrix via integrated Vbox support (Vbox SE included)
• Automated Repair Clicks & Remove DC Offset
• ImpulseVerb** -- instantly applies recorded room ambiance to any audio document
• Supports all SMDI hardware samplers
• Reads/writes multiple file formats -- even MP3 and AAC (MP4)
• Full-featured batch processing options -- including Export Regions & much more
• Change Duration DSP function allows high-quality time compression/expansion without affecting pitch
• Recording notepad & timer
• Threshold function automatically divides files into discrete regions based on amplitude
• Trigger playback & cueing of up to 10 audio documents using Mac keyboard
• Dynamically resizable and customizable toolbar & keyboard shortcuts
• Advanced QuickTime movie & DV (digital video) clip support features better-than-frame accurate synchronization of audio & movie playback, even during selection & scrubbing
• Supports DV standard (16-bit/48kHz) without additional hardware