Avisoft-SASLab Support

Frequently Asked Questions

I am not satisfied with the spectrogram print quality. Spectrograms produced on my old Kay Elemetrics Sona-Graph are of a better quality.

Avisoft-SASLab Pro is able to produce such high-resolution spectrograms. At first you should set the spectrogram parameters to appropriate values (FFT-length = 512, Overlap >= 75%). The next item to consider is the printer and the settings of the printer driver. Set the resolution to the maximum (600, 720, 1200 or 1440 dpi) and optimize the options as brightness, contrast and fine/coarse dithering). For publication, print the spectrograms as large as possible (landscape format) or deliver the spectrograms in digital format (*.wmf, *.bmp or *.tif) to the publisher. The resolution of the final journal or book will be better than that of common computer printers. For best quality, use gray-scale video printers (dye sublimation and thermal transfer printers). The problem in common inexpensive computer printers (both laser and ink-jet) is, that these devices are unable to produce true gray scales. Instead these printers have to emulate grey scales by dithering. They generate large (or closely packed) dots for dark regions and small (or less closely packed) dots for bright regions, which results in a coarse appearance of the spectrogram. The Kay Elemetrics DSP Sona-Graph 5500 for instance uses a modified Mitsubishi gray-scale video printer, which is able to print grey-scales directly without dithering.

Does Avisoft function under WindowsNT/2000/XP?

Yes, Avisoft-SASLab Light and Pro function under WindowsNT. To run Avisoft-SASLab Pro under WindowsNT/2000/XP you have to install a special device driver for the hardlock (download the driver installation program : hldrv32.exe, if it does not work, see the blm

Hardlock users' manual, 658 kBytes)
.

Is there an Apple Macintosh version of Avisoft-SASLab?

Unfortunately, there is no Macintosh version. However, it will run under the VirtualPC emulation software.

Does Avisoft function under the Virtual PC software on an Apple Power Macintosh?

Yes, Virtual PC 3.0 or higher allows to run Avisoft-SASLab Pro (USB-dongle version only). The USB option must be activated in order to enable the dongle recognition. In some configurations the hardlock driver "hardlock.vxd" located in the SASLAB directory must be copied into the WINDOWS/SYSTEM directory. Virtual PC presents the Mac sound interface as a SoundBlaster soundcard. Care must be taken for sample rates not equal to 44.1 kHz. Using 22.05 kHz may lead to aliasing effects. Therefore, it is recommended to first sample at 44.1 kHz with subsequent re-sampling (Edit/Format/Sampling frequency conversion). The real-time spectrogram display may be a little bit sluggish. High-speed sampling (with UltraSoundGate) is not possible.

What is the maximum file size which Avisoft can handle?

Because soundfiles are read directly from disk there is no limitation in file sizes (except that the .wav file format is limited to 2MBytes). Nevertheless, the file sizes should be kept as small as possible for a high working speed of the software. In the real-time spectrograph the maximum recording time is limited by the RAM space reserved for buffering.

After a system crash I'am unable to open WAVE files. How this problem can be solved?

Probably the parameter settings in the configuration file have been altered, so that the user-defined import format is activated. The problem can be solved by deleting the active configuration file (*.ini) or by selecting the correct file type in the File-Open dialog.

Questions, Problems, Suggestions

Questions and problems regarding Avisoft-SASLab can be sent to the address below. E-mails and FAX-messages will be answered usually within 24 hours. Suggestions for improvements of the software are always appreciated. If possible such hints will be realised in a future software version.

Contact Address

Raimund Specht
Hauptstr. 52
D-13158 Berlin
GERMANY

Tel: ++49
Fax: ++49

E-Mail: