Cakewalk^® Announces Rapture™ Software Synthesizer for Mac and PC

—Cakewalk’s 2nd in-series of simultaneous MAC/PC virtual instrument releases in Audio Units, RTAS, DXi (32-bit & x64), and VSTi formats; features advanced modulation capabilities; sophisticated world-class sounds, more—

Anaheim, CA, Winter NAMM 06 (booth 6800), (January 19,2006) — Cakewalk, developer of the world's best-selling music and sound software, announces Rapture, the ultimate wavetable synthesizer for igniting the sounds of today’s pop, dance, and electronic music. Rapture has an estimated street price of $199.00 U.S, and will be available at select music and sound retailers around the world February 2006.

Following the recent successful launch of Dimension Pro, Rapture is the latest dual platform, music inspiring synthesizer to come from the Cakewalk Instruments engineering team. In Rapture, musicians will find powerful and flexible wavetable synthesis in an inspired creation tool that enables vast sonic possibilities and experimentation.

Rapture is the first product of its kind, combining one of the most advanced and exciting modulation systems available in any synthesizer today, with an unrivaled non-aliasing wavetable resampling engine for unparalleled sound quality and creativity.

Rapture Highlights:

• Wavetable synthesizer with cutting edge sound manipulation capabilities, well suited for electronica-related music styles
• Non-aliasing resampling engine for pristine sound quality
• Over 500 professionally-crafted sound programs
• Six fully-programmable, stereo sound-generating Elements
• Multi-waveform Oscillators with ring modulation
• Two 16-mode filters per oscillator with LoFi and Drive
• Over 40 Envelope Generators, LFOs, and Step Generators for superior parameter modulation
• Comprehensive MIDI Modulation Matrix
• Mix and modulate all Elements through global FX and dynamic Step Generator
• Superbly designed graphical envelope generators and LFOs for ease of use
• Expandable with native support for SFZ sample formats
• Mac formats: AU™, RTAS®, VSTi™
• Windows formats: DXi (32-bit & x64), RTAS, VSTi

Brilliant Sounds

Rapture sounds like no other synth, offering brilliant sound design capabilities with patches that blend up to six different Elements. Out of the box you get a stunning collection of over 500 programs including Basses, Leads, Pads, Arpeggios, Textures, Electronic Percussion and Sequences.

At the heart of Rapture’s six-part sound engine are powerful, multi-mode wavetable oscillators. These pristinely produced wavetables provide a virtually endless array of sonic possibilities, plus you can multiply each oscillator up to 9 times across the stereo field with controlled detuning, creating some of the fattest sounds ever heard. Rapture’s high resolution anti-aliasing rendering engine ensures that every note of every voice will be pure and vibrant.

Advanced Modulation Capabilities and Sound Design

Rapture’s modulation capabilities provide the basis for awesome synthesis capabilities sure to inspire listeners, performers, and sound designers alike. Rapture offers over 40 Envelope Generators, LFOs, and Step Generators per patch. These Step Generators breathe life into your sound, allowing for dramatic trance gate effects and percussive rhythms. With graphical step sequencing of sound parameters, Rapture provides a modern extension to traditional envelopes and LFOs, allowing you creative control of Pitch, Filters Amplitude, and other parameters.

And Rapture’s global and per-Element FX stages provide the finishing touches to your sounds. In the Global FX Stage Rapture offers 3 multi effect units with 9 Delay and 3 Chorus types, 3 Parametric EQs, and a dynamic Step Generator for volume with independent L/R control. The per-Element FX stages offer the multi-effect units and EQs mentioned above, plus two 16-mode filters per oscillator with LoFi and a 5-mode Overdrive section for additional control.

Elegant Design

Rapture’s interface is infused with sleek and elegant design, carefully constructed to enhance usability at every turn. Everything you need to make your sounds come to life are easy to find, and more importantly easy to use. A comprehensive MIDI Control Matrix provides for extensive MIDI controllers mapping of all of Rapture’s functions, with the added sensitivity over modulation depth and smoothness control. An X-Y pad lets you assign multiple Rapture parameters to X and Y axes, allowing you to intuitively glide between various parameter levels with ease.

Pricing and Availability

Rapture has a $199.00 U.S., estimated street price and will be available at select music and sound retailers around the world February 2006. For more information call 888-CAKEWALK, +1 (617) 423-9004 outside U.S. or visit Cakewalk on the web at www.cakewalk.com.

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Founded in 1987 and based in Boston, MA, Cakewalk is an international, industry-leading provider of software for music and sound creation. The company's award-winning products are used worldwide by more than 1,000,000 users, for applications including audio CD production, film/TV soundtracks, live stage sound, club remixes, computer game sound, multimedia applications, and Internet delivery.

Cakewalk is a registered trademark, Rapture, Dimension Pro, and the Cakewalk logo are trademarks of Twelve Tone Systems, Inc. Mac and Audio Units are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., RTAS is a trademark of Digidesign, a division of Avid Technology, Inc., REX is a trademark of Propellerhead Software AB., ACID is a registered trademark of SONY Pictures Digital, Inc., VST is a trademark of Yamaha Corporation. All other trademarks mentioned are held by their respective owners.