As a long-time user of Sound Forge, I was excited to have the opportunity to put the latest incarnation through its paces! Sound Forge (SF hereafter) has been known for years as one of the leading applications for editing digital audio files on a PC. But this description really doesn't do it justice -- in fact, it doesn't even come close. SF9 comes bundled into a software suite that also includes Sony's popular CD authoring application CD Architect, plus Noise Reduction 2.0 and iZotope Mastering Effects Bundle, as well the Acoustic Mirror convolver and the usual assortment of Sony plugins. In addition, SF9 adds some exciting new features, including support for multichannel audio file playback, recording, and editing; saving multichannel audio files in a variety of formats, with built-in support for Dolby AC-3; advanced phase metering; and full Windows Vista compatibility (FYI, it also worked beautifully on my five-year-old XP machine too).
Ease of Use
I doubt you'll have much trouble finding your way around SF, but if you do Sony makes it easy to get help with the quick start manual, keyboard commands shortcut list, PDF manuals, and online help that are included. System requirements are very minimal by today's standards, and all required supporting software is included on the installation DVD (DirectX 9.0c, Microsoft .NET Framework 2.02, Internet Explorer 5.1). Your PC will prompt you if you need any of it, so it can easily be added to your installation. My installation went flawlessly, though the challenge/response copy protection scheme is a bit laborious due to my paranoia about having my primary DAW (with all of the not-yet-copywritten music projects on it) connected to the internet -- I suppose I picked that poison myself though.
SF has always been known for its stability, effeciency, and simplicity of use. Over nearly a decade of using several versions of SF on several different versions of Windows, I don't think I've seen it so much as freeze up more than a handful of times! Reliability has become one of my primary points of interest throughout the move to software -- I don't care what the feature set is if the darn thing keeps crashing! Sony seems to have passed the torch very nicely to this version -- thank you!
