Emulator X is a

software Software consists of computer programs that instruct the Execution (computing), execution of a computer. Software also includes design documents and specifications. The history of software is closely tied to the development of digital comput ...

-based

audio Audio most commonly refers to sound, as it is transmitted in signal form. It may also refer to: Sound *Audio signal, an electrical representation of sound *Audio frequency, a frequency in the audio spectrum *Digital audio, representation of sound ...

sampler that was produced by

E-MU Systems E-mu Systems was a software synthesizer, audio interface, MIDI interface, and MIDI keyboard manufacturer. Founded in 1971 as a synthesizer maker, E-mu was a pioneer in samplers, sample-based drum machines and low-cost digital sampling musi ...

from 2004 to 2009. Emulator X software is compatible with PCs running the

Microsoft Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware and software resources, and provides common daemon (computing), services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems scheduler (computing), schedule tasks for ...

. The sampler can operate as a stand-alone program or as a VST instrument and, as of Emulator X3, is available in both

32-bit In computer architecture, 32-bit computing refers to computer systems with a processor, memory, and other major system components that operate on data in a maximum of 32- bit units. Compared to smaller bit widths, 32-bit computers can perform la ...

and

64-bit In computer architecture, 64-bit integers, memory addresses, or other data units are those that are 64 bits wide. Also, 64-bit central processing units (CPU) and arithmetic logic units (ALU) are those that are based on processor registers, a ...

versions. For the software to run, one of several

sound card A sound card (also known as an audio card) is an internal expansion card that provides input and output of audio signals to and from a computer under the control of computer programs. The term ''sound card'' is also applied to external audio ...

s sold by E-MU was originally required. The sound card acted as a hardware

dongle A dongle is a small piece of computer hardware that connects to a port on another device to provide it with additional functionality, or enable a pass-through to such a device that adds functionality. In computing, the term was initially synony ...

to prevent unauthorised use without the purchase of an E-MU branded device. This requirement was later dropped with the release of Emulator X3.

Versions

Following E-MU's decision to end sales and production of its hardware sampler line in 2003, Emulator X was released as the company's first entry into the software sampler market in 2004. Emulator X2 was released in 2006, followed by the third and final incarnation, Emulator X3, in 2009. The product has since been discontinued and is no longer available to purchase from either E-MU or its parent company,

Creative Technology Creative Technology Ltd., or Creative Labs Pte Ltd., is a Singaporean multinational electronics company mainly dealing with Audio equipment, audio technologies and products such as speakers, headphones, sound cards and other digital media. Foun ...

Functionality

Emulator X was largely based on E-MU's hardware sampler operating system, EOS. As such, it replicates or expands upon most of the design and features available in the final revision of the operating system, EOS 4.70. An example of this is the inclusion of E-MU's highly publicized "Z-Plane"

filters Filtration is a physical process that separates solid matter and fluid from a mixture. Filter, filtering, filters or filtration may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * Filter (higher-order function), in functional programming * Fil ...

, with Emulator X containing over 25 new filters not available in EOS. It is also capable of importing and exporting bank files in EOS format for compatibility with E-MU's legacy hardware samplers such as the Emulator IV and E4 Ultra series devices. It is the last software sampler produced that retains the ability to directly sample other sources, in contrast to current software samplers, which require existing samples and are therefore more akin to traditional ROMplers. Among the more noteworthy sampling features added in Emulator X2 is SynthSwipe, a tool which gives Emulator X the ability to sample from connected

MIDI Musical Instrument Digital Interface (; MIDI) is an American-Japanese technical standard that describes a communication protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, ...

devices such as hardware

synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...

s by sending a series of notes at differing velocities via MIDI and automatically recording the device's output to create a new fully mapped sample bank.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:E-Mu Emulator X Samplers (musical instrument)