CIRCLE ELEMENTS is exclusively distributed in the United Kingdom by TIME+SPACE. If you need further information about the product before ordering - give them a call on 01566-785400 or fax them on 01566-785777.
HOW TO ORDER CIRCLE ELEMENTS BY MAIL (normally 48 hours delivery time):
FOR FASTEST DELIVERY
Use your credit card for fastest delivery (VISA, MASTERCARD, ACCESS, EUROCARD, AMERICAN EXPRESS). Telephone orders placed before 3.00 pm, will normally be shipped the same day.
ORDERING BY TELEPHONE/FAX :
TEL. 01566-785400 ∙ FAX. 01566-785777 (Code for England is +44)
(or, if the lines are very busy, you can order from our Berkhamsted office :
TEL. 01442-870681 ∙ FAX. 01442-877266 )
Credit card orders may be placed by Telephone or Fax (24 hours, 7 days a week). Please have the following information ready:
The NAME and ADDRESS of the credit card holder, the DELIVERY ADDRESS if different, the credit card NUMBER and EXPIRY DATE, a DAYTIME TELEPHONE NUMBER so we can reach you if there is any problem processing your order. If you call outside of normal office hours (after approx. 17.30 or before approx. 09.00), you may leave your order on our answering machines, but remember to speak clearly and slowly, spelling words where necessary.
IF YOU SEND YOUR ORDER BY POST:
Make your cheque or postal order(s) payable to "TIME & SPACE". Give your NAME, ADDRESS, TELEPHONE or FAX NUMBER, and the ITEM NAMES of the goods you require. For fastest delivery, pay by postal orders, credit card, or cash (to pay by cash, ask the post office for a registered envelope (guaranteed delivery) - this method is very safe. We cannot accept responsibility for cash sent by any other method). If paying by personal cheque, please allow time for us to clear the cheque through the bank - sorry but this is approx 7 working days! - so avoiding sending personal cheques if you are in a hurry!
Post your order to:
TIME+SPACE ∙ PO BOX 306 ∙ BERKHAMSTED ∙ HERTS. ∙ HP4 3EP ∙ ENGLAND
INTERNATIONAL ORDERS
If ordering from outside of the United Kingdom, please add £5.00 to the inclusive UK price to cover airmail post and handling, or add £10.00 if you would like us to send your order by Express airmail (normally 2-4 days). Please pay by international cheque only (Bank cheque, Eurocheque, or Post office Girocheque), in pounds sterling (GBP).
Federal Express or United Parcels Service is also available worldwide for very fast and reliable delivery - call or fax for international rates. (see also below about international orders).
Now there follows a few quotes from the superb review of CIRCLE ELEMENTS in the June 1995 issue of Personal Computer World (text by Steven Helstrip):
PCW Verdict
"Circle Elements is fun and easy to use, and a must for every sound card owner.
Even Eric Bristow could piece together a decent tune with an interface this intuitive.
Circle Elements contains an interactive music encyclopaedia with audio snippets of various instruments.
Got a sound Card? Make the most of it with the Circle Elements t software and samples which let you create your very own disco inferno. Steve Helstrip takes it from the top.
Circle Elements can be described as a sample-based sequencer since it lets you take audio samples and produce musical arrangements from them. The package isn't just for musicians - anybody can use it to piece together a decent tune. All you need is an ear for what sounds good. You'll also need a 486 with at least 8Mb RAM, or an equally specified MAC, say a 68040 running at 33 MHz, as the program is heavily processor intensive.
The package comes on two CD-ROMs, each containing the Circle software and over 1,000 samples in both WAV and AIF formats. The first CD, Intergalactic, has samples of analogue synthesisers, percussion and guitar loops and myriad synthesised effects (to go through them all in any detail would take forever).
The second CD, Planet Earth contains orchestral material including string and brass sections, atmospheres (jungle, restaurant, etc.), gospel choirs, and still more guitar and drum loops.
The idea is to build up arrangements using pre-recorded samples, or elements. The main work area has 12 segments in which to load elements and there are two tracks to work with. The elements are arranged in folders according to their tempo. For example, their are four drum directories. 100bpm, 120bpm and 140bpm. within the guitar directory musical keys are also indexed.
I started off by selecting a drum pattern to work with at 120bpm. This was loaded into a segment of track one. I then chose a bassline and loaded it onto track two. It is important to choose elements with the same tempo, otherwise the result will be messy. Most elements are one bar in length which effectively means each segment represents one bar. There is no play button, only a loop button, which you guessed it, loops the selected segments.
Once you're happy with the two tracks, you can either copy them to the next segment to repeat them, or choose other elements, say another bassline. Once you have built up an eight-bar sequence the Mix button mixes the tracks to track one, freeing up track two for additional elements. You can now add a guitar riff, brass section or vocal. Again, once you're happy with the arrangement you can mix down to track one and add another part, and so on. it would have been nice to see four tracks to work with, as once you've committed to mixing down, there's no going back to alter levels and arrangement.
The package only works with mono samples and there's no control for panning instruments (controlling the position across the stereo field). It doesn't take too long to build up a complex arrangement and because all samples are 44.1kHz 16-bit, the sound quality is high. All the elements on each CD have also been recorded at 22.05kHz which will improve performance on slower machines: it also ensures the software will work with older soundcards not capable of playing 44.1kHz files.
The elements have been compiled from several professional sample libraries and cover a wide range of musical styles, although dance music does have prevalence. If your interest in music spans to collecting samples, Circle elements is worth buying just for that. £49.95 for the two CDs is a snip when you consider how many samples are included, any number of which can be used in multimedia applications or even downloaded to sound cards including AWE-32 and Turtle Beach Tropez.
The software, if a little basic, does allow you to work quickly and can be used by just about anyone who can work a mouse. once your musical composition is complete, you can save your circle as a single sample for output to tape, or CD should you be lucky enough to have access to a CD writer."
FOR INFORMATION ABOUT OTHER FANTASTIC SOUND LIBRARIES ON CD OR CD-ROM THAT CAN BE USED WITH CIRCLE ELEMENTS OR WITH ANY MACINTOSH, OR PC WITH A SOUNDCARD........
please see the file "MOREINFO.TXT"
(you can read this file with most PC or MAC word processors).
