Translator FAQ

Translator FAQ

How much is Translator Giga Edition?
Check with Nemesys Direct.

Translator Giga Edition is a Special Edition of Translator Full Edition. The introductory price of Translator Full Edition is $149.95, and it will stay that way until shortly after Kurzweil support is released. The price will go up sometime after that to $199.95. Domestic US shipping is $7, International is $12.

Is it shipping yet?
Yep - as I sit here composing this web page, our shipping lady just walked by with a bunch of Windows versions in her hands, with address labels and stamps (already licked).

What if I buy the Giga Edition, and then decide to get the Full Version later?
You can purchase an upgrade from Chicken Systems for $80.

What does the Full Edition do that the Giga Edition doesn't?
The Giga Edition only translates to Giga format, whereas the Full Edition translates to anything, such as Akai, Emu, Ensoniq, etc., and also writes directly to those disks. However, both versions have all the special frills, such as formatting of proprietary formats, creating of Virtual Drives, auditioning, and other functions.

Do I buy each individual module for my sampler, or do I have to buy the whole thing?
With the Full Edition, the whole ball of wax is included - you get all this translation capability in one program. For a lesser price, you can get a Special Edition of Translator, such as the Giga Edition.

Is there a demo?
Not yet; but there will be shortly.

Will you support floppy disks?
Probably not - why are you using floppy disks anyway? Translator does not support reading proprietary floppy disks, such as Ensoniq, Emu, Akai formatted floppies. However, we include two shareware/freeware DOS programs, not written by us, with the Translator package - EPSDisk (for Ensoniq) and AkaiDisk (for Akai). These enable you to at least read a file onto your hard drive so Translator can then access it. The Translator interface has buttons that can directly access these programs for convenience. Since the programs aren't written by us, they come as unsupported - when using them, you are on your own.

Do you support (fill in your sampler here) yet?
Go to the Status page, look for the SOURCE and DESTINATION sampler formats you are interested in, and see what is supported so far. This page is updated daily to reflect the current translations available, and along with the mailing list updates, is the first and only source for current information on translations.

Does the program come on DAT tape?
Of course not. Translator will be distributed physically via snail-mail on a CD-ROM. Floppies can be made available on request. The door is open for net distribution, including updating, but plans are still in the development stage.

How does the program work?
Translator's interface is an Windows Explorer clone, only the additional entries for the SCSI and ATAPI drives. You can drag and drop any level of file - a single sample; a program, instrument, or preset; banks, volumes, or whole directories; or even entire disks. You also only see the files you need to work with, which cleans up much of your work.

You can't write to my Akai SCSI Drive. You can't even read it - I tried it; I hooked it up to my computer, and it said "Disk not formatted, would you like to format?" I can't even see the directories.
Oh, yes we can. Translator Full Version is the ONLY program in existence that can convert a file format AND write it onto a non-DOS disk format. You can see all your volumes, folders, directories, contents - everything.

Aren't parameters on different samplers different? How is it possible to make instruments to sound the sample on completely different samplers?
Obviously all/most translations will be to a certain extent "lossy." The point is to get as close as possible to achieve coherency, just like language translation does. All samplers share basically the same attributes, with supersets of the basic OSC-FILTER-AMP-ENVELOPE-LFO scheme. Translator is extensively documented on the abilities and limitations of it's translations.

Why should I get Translator when my sampler already imports the formats I want?
Translator can potentially make better, faster, and more useable translations. For example, the Ensoniq ASR-X imports Ensoniq EPS/ASR sounds, but there are certain critical translation problems, the effects DSP information is not translated, and it has to be done one-by-one. In addition, the ASR-X can translate Akai and Roland formats, but only the wavedata and the keymap arrangement on the keyboard. This is also the case with many other manufacturers translations - they want to expand the reach of their product, but have not had the resources to truly get the job done right. Translator improves on this situation for your benefit.

What if I don't like the translations that Translator performs? What if I spot a bug or a obvious translation error?
Call or e-mail us and give us SPECIFIC information on the problem. Translator also has an extensive bug-solving apparatus that allow us to diagnosis any problem. We listen and may upload or e-mail you an update within 48 hours.

You haven't mentioned a WORD of my desired format.
Make a request at translator@chickensys.com.

How is Translator shipped and how is it updated?
Translator is NOT available for download, but is initially shipped via snail-mail. We ship within 24 business hours of your order. Express Mail shipping options are available. However, updates ARE available for download from our Web Site, using our easy-to-use updating method from the program itself.

So say I buy Translator and do a bunch of translations, and say they are OK. When another build comes out and offers a better translation, do I have to do all my translations over?
Probably not all of them, but perhaps certain ones. You have an extremely good point, and is why we are attempting the best possible translation the first time around. It is also a partial reason why the program is not released as yet.

I'm tired of your stupid mailing list. Take me off it.
No way, not with that attitude. Ok, if you're nice, we'll remove you. You can also remove yourself by following the instructions at the bottom of each posting.

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