Arboretum Systems Ray Gun User Manual

Ray Gun Manual

How to Use the Ray Gun

Just point, aim and shoot:

Listen to your sound as you turn on the functions: Noise Reduction, Pop/Click removal or Hum/Rumble filtering.●
Start with Threshold, Attenuation and Sensitivity settings at zero. Adjust settings to fine-tune the results.●
Apply the process to create a new noise-free sound file.●

It's that simple. Ray Gun works from the plug-ins menu in any sound editing program compatible with the Windows
DirectX or MacOS VST, AudioSuite or Premiere plug-in format. Ray Gun also comes in a "stand-alone" (.exe) version for
Windows computers and a HyperEngine edition for Power Macintosh allowing self-contained operation independent of
any third-party sound editing programs. All these different versions are included in the Ray Gun package. If you need
further instructions, click on any of the manual chapters below.

New in Ray Gun 1.3:

Improved broad-band noise reduction algorithm

●

Automatic pre-roll/post-roll adjustment in DirectX plug-in version●
Preview meters now in all Windows versions●
Right-click on any slider to return to default position●

New in Ray Gun 1.2:

Now supports Windows NT 4.0 as well as Windows 95 and 98.

●

Improved MacOS HyperEngine offers enhanced file format support and increased stability.●
New Record feature in the Windows RayGun.exe stand-alone version.●

MacOS Ray Gun VST version now compatible with Logic Audio and Vision DSP●

New in Ray Gun 1.1

Now AudioSuite compatible! Works right inside Pro Tools 4 software, Emagic Logic Audio, Avid Media
Composer 7.0 and Avid Xpress 2.0 for Macintosh.

●

Now Windows 95/98 compatible! Works with any DirectX compatible sound editor and as a self-contained●

program.
Now VST Mac compatible! Use Ray Gun in real-time within Cubase and other MacOS VST compatible audio

software.

●

Better Pop/Click removal! We've increased the sensitivity of Ray Gun's transient detection algorithm.●
Bug Fixes from version 1.0: We've solved the problem with Ray Gun Presets, fixed the Rumble filter bug, and

addressed issues surrounding Ray Gun operations in Emagic Logic Audio and Adobe Premiere.

●

Table of Contents

License

Getting Started

System Requirements●
Compatibility●
Setup Procedure●

Using Ray Gun

Overview●
Noise Reduction

How Noise Reduction Works❍
Threshold❍
Attenuation❍
Using Threshold and Attenuation❍

●

Pop●
Filters●
Output●
Other Ray Gun Buttons

In (and Out)❍
Play❍
Apply❍
Cancel❍

●

Presets●

Operating Tips

PC/Windows: DirectX format Operation●
PC/Windows: Stand Alone Operation●
Using the Ray Gun Example Sounds●

Appendix A: Troubleshooting

Appendix B: About Digital Audio Files

About This Manual

The documentation may be viewed or printed from any browser, such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet
Explorer. If the text is too small or you wish to change the background color, go into your browser's Preferences and set
them as you wish. Internet Explorer users, just hit the Larger button on your browser tool bar.

Important: For better scrolling comfort use the scroll bar, or the page up/page down keys, rather than the up and down
arrows.

Important:

For better scrolling comfort use the scroll bar, or the page up/page down keys, rather than the up and down arrows.
If the text is too small, replace the HTML ViewerPrefs file in your Systems' Preference folder by the one on this CD. You

can find it by doing a "Get Info" of your HTML Viewer alias followed by a "Find Original" command.

Manual Conventions

Throughout this manual, you will see several different symbols in sections describing step-by-step operations.

Text following a right pointing arrow

invites you to execute a command with the mouse or keyboard.

Text following a down pointing arrow

describes the result produced by executing a command.

A pointing hand

indicates an important note!

Underlined text indicates a Hyper link; mouse-click on the link to access more information on the topic

For any questions, either reach us at the web site (http://www.arboretum.com), call us at [phone] or send us an
email at: [e-mail]

This documentation current to Ray Gun version 1.2, last revised 11/18/98
Copyright ©1997, 1998 by Arboretum Systems, Inc. This documentation may not, in whole or in part, be copied,

reproduced or translated without prior written consent of Arboretum Systems.

Credits

Ray Gun by Chris Weare, Ph.D.

●

Front panel design by Eric Wenger/U&I software●
Prototype: Georges Jaroslaw●
VST port: Aram Lindahl●
DirectX port & RayGun.exe: Jarret Cooper●
Documentation: Todd Souvignier●
Big Idea: Phil Royer●

For Arboretum Systems:

Georges Jaroslaw, Founder●
Zhi Liu, CFO●
Chris Weare, Ph.D., CTO●
Todd Souvignier, Marketing Director●
Richard Lee, Sales Director●

Arboretum Systems Inc. 75 Aura Vista, Pacifica California 94044

[go to First Chapter]

Ray Gun License

ARBORETUM SYSTEMS SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT

Arboretum Systems ("Arboretum") is willing to license the enclosed Ray Gun software ("Software") only upon the condition that you accept all the terms of this
Agreement. If you do not agree to these terms, then Arboretum is unwilling to license the Software to you, in which event you must return immediately, and in no
case later than ten (10) days from the date of purchase, the unopened diskette package (and accompanying items including manual, other documentation and
container) together with your proof of purchase, to the place from which it was acquired for a refund.

LICENSE: You may use the enclosed Software on a single computer. The Software is in use when it is installed into permanent memory (such as a hard disk or
other storage device) or loaded into temporary memory (RAM) of that computer. The Software is copy protected.

RESTRICTIONS: You may not transfer, modify, rent, lease, loan, resell, distribute, network, electronically transmit or merge the Software. You may also not
reverse engineer, decompile or disassemble the Software, or otherwise attempt to discover the Software source code. You are not permitted to copy the Software
(except to make an archival copy for back-up purposes) or any of the accompanying documentation. Any attempt to transfer any of the rights, duties or obligations
hereunder except as expressly provided for in this Agreement is void.

COPYRIGHT: The Software (including audio, music, text, images and animations incorporated into the Software) and accompanying documentation are owned by
Arboretum or its suppliers and are protected by United States copyright laws and international treaties. Unauthorized reproduction or distribution of the software or
documentation is subject to civil and criminal penalties.

LIMITED WARRANTY: Arboretum warrants for the period of thirty (30) days from the date of delivery of the Software to you, as evidenced by a copy of your
receipt, that: (1) The Software will perform substantially in accordance with the user documentation provided by Arboretum. Your sole remedy under this warranty
is that Arboretum will, at its option, either repair or replace the Software which does not meet this Limited Warranty, or refund to you the money paid for the
Software. Arboretum does not warrant that the Software will meet your requirements, that operation of the Software will be uninterrupted or error-free, or that all
software errors will be corrected. (2) The medium on which the Software is furnished will be free from defects in materials and workmanship under normal use.
Arboretum will, at its option, either repair or replace the faulty medium at no charge to you, provided you return the faulty medium with proof of purchase to
Arboretum.

This Limited Warranty is void if any failure of the Software or any damage to the medium is due to accident, disaster, abuse, misapplication, modification of the
Software and/or violation of any of the terms of the License Agreement.

The above warranties are exclusive and in lieu of all other warranties, express or implied, and Arboretum expressly disclaims all other warranties, including the
implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement. No oral or written information or advice given by Arboretum, its
employees, dealers, resellers, distributors or agents shall increase the scope of the above warranties or create any new warranties. Some states do not allow the
exclusion of implied warranties, so the above exclusion may not apply to you. In that event, any implied warranties are limited in duration to thirty (30) days from
the date of delivery of the software. This warranty gives you specific legal rights. You may have other rights, which vary from state to state.

LIMITATION OF REMEDIES: Arboretum's entire liability to you and your exclusive remedy shall be the repair or replacement of the Software, the repair or
replacement of the Software medium, or the refund of your purchase price, as set forth above. In no event shall Arboretum's liability to you or any third party
exceed the purchase price paid for the Software.

Regardless of whether any remedy set forth herein fails of its essential purpose, in no event will Arboretum or its authorized dealers, resellers or distributors be
liable to you (1) for any damages, including any lost profits, lost data, other incidental or consequential damages, arising out of the use or inability to use the
Software or any data supplied therewith, even if Arboretum has been advised of the possibility of such damages, or (2) for any claim by any other party. Some
states do not allow the limitation or exclusion of liability for incidental or consequential damages so the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you.

GENERAL: This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of California, except for that body of law dealing with conflicts of law. If any provision of
this Agreement is held to be unenforceable, that provision will be removed and the remaining provisions will remain in full force. This Agreement is the complete
and exclusive statement of the agreement between us which supersedes any proposal or prior agreement, oral or written, and any other communications between us
in relation to the subject matter of this Agreement. If you have any questions concerning this Agreement, you may contact Arboretum by writing to Arboretum
Systems Inc., 75 Aura Vista, Pacifica California 94044. Ray Gun is a trademark of Arboretum Systems.

You acknowledge that you have read this Agreement, understand it, and agree to be bound by its terms.

[Table of Contents] [Next Chapter]

Ray Gun Manual

Getting Started

System Requirements●
Compatibility●
Setup Procedure●

Getting Started

This Chapter describes the procedure for installing and configuring Ray Gun on your Pentium computer.
Before using Ray Gun, please make sure that you have a basic knowledge of the Windows 95, Windows 98 or Windows

NT 4.0 operating system. This includes knowing how to use the mouse, windows, menus, etc. If these terms are strange to
you, please consult your operating system documentation.

If you plan on using Ray Gun as a plug-in for any of the compatible third-party audio/video editing programs, please first
install your chosen "host" program and make sure you are familiar with its basic operations.

Hook up the audio connections between your computer/sound card and external audio system(s) so that you can monitor
and/or record audio, as necessary for your application. Make sure that you have an adequate monitoring system or
headphones so that you can make accurate judgments about sound quality and noise reduction settings.

Before Installing

When opening your Ray Gun package you will find the following contents:

One CD-ROM containing the applications, documentation, sample sounds and other files

●

One registration card●
One Ray Gun serial number card●
One envelope bearing the Arboretum license agreement●

IMPORTANT

Please fill out your registration card and mail or fax it to Arboretum Systems as soon as possible in order to:

get FREE technical support

●

be informed of new developments and upgrades●
help shape future products●

Note that in order to receive ANY upgrades, telephone support or other assistance from Arboretum Systems, you must be a
registered user.

System Requirements: Windows

A Pentium computer with clock speed of 133 MHz or faster, 200 MHz or faster suggested for Play-Thru processing

●

Windows 95/98 or NT 4.0●
16 MB or more total system RAM●
Windows compatible sound card●
DirectX Media 5.2 or higher for Ray Gun plug-in (included)●

Although Ray Gun may run on slower Pentiums, you will notice degraded preview performance due to over-taxing the
processor. Note however that even on the slowest machines Ray Gun will Process (render the file off-line) successfully in
every case. Play-Thru processing requires a Pentium 200 or faster.

Compatibility

Ray Gun is a plug-in for any Windows 95/98/NT sound editing program which supports the DirectX plug-in format (also
known as ActiveMovie or DirectShow). Run Ray Gun with audio software including Cakewalk's Cakewalk Pro Audio,
Sonic Foundry Sound Forge, Steinberg Cubase and WaveLab, Syntrillium Cool Edit Pro and others. Ray Gun also comes
in an executable version (RayGun.exe) which will run by itself and allows you to record, open, clean up and save .wav
files independently of any 3rd party program.

Audio Hardware

The Ray Gun plug-in's audio input/output services are all provided by your DirectX compatible "host" application. This
means if your sound card already works with the audio editing software you use (Sound Forge, WaveLab, Cakewalk,
Cubase, Cool Edit, etc.) then it'll work fine with Ray Gun as well. Ray Gun just "talks" to the plug-in host; any
communication between the sound card and software is handled by the host application.

RayGun.exe (the stand alone version for Windows) works with any Windows-compatible sound card. Simply install the
card and the applicable software drivers as per your card manufacturer's instructions. Once you've installed the hardware
and drivers, launch RayGun.exe, go to its the Options menu, open the Select Devices dialog and click on the appropriate
driver.

Setup Procedure: Windows 95/98/NT

Before beginning the installation, quit all other programs which may currently be running.

●

Insert the Arboretum CD-ROM which came in your Ray Gun package into your PC's CD-ROM drive.●

The "Arboretum" volume should appear at your CD-ROM drive.

Double-click on the CD-ROM drive to open the Arboretum CD

●

Open the Ray Gun folder. Note: That's the Ray Gun folder, not the neighboring Hyperprism-DX folder!●
Double-click on the Icon labeled "Setup.exe"●

You'll Enter the Setup Wizard.

Follow all on-screen directions; most of the dialogs which follow simply require a "Next" or "OK" response.

●

If the installer has detected an older (or demo) version of the Ray Gun software, it will give you the choice of
deleting the old files. We recommend in every case that you go ahead and delete the old (or demo) editions.

●

If you have old/demo software to delete, you'll enter the uninstall routine.

After the de-install, or if there is nothing do delete, click past the Arboretum Installer Welcome screen.

●

The Ray Gun ReadMe file is displayed. Make certain you look at the ReadMe for any last-minute feature or
compatibility notes which may have not made it into this documentation.

●

The Arboretum Systems Software License Agreement is shown. Be sure to read this agreement, it describes the
terms of our warranty and places certain restrictions on your use of this software. If you do not agree to the terms
of the agreement you can just stop right here and terminate installation. Otherwise OK the License Agreement to
continue.

●

Select the directory into which the Ray Gun software will be installed.●
Select the program folder into which the Ray Gun software will be installed.●
Now the installation from CD begins...●

Ray Gun DirectX plug-in, RayGun.exe stand-alone, and the associated HTML documentation and help files will be

copied to the program folder indicated in the previous step.

The installer will ask you for your name, organization (if any) and Ray Gun serial number.Name and serial number
are mandatory, organization is optional. Make sure you enter the serial number, (28 digits plus 4 dashes) including
the dashes, in the correct sequence. Don't confuse the serial number with your product's registration number, which
may be the shorter number (in larger type) on your Ray Gun registration card. Any errors will result in failure.

●

The final window in the installer sequence is a ReadMe regarding DirectX. If you're planning on using the DirectX
plug-in, you'll need Direct X Media 5.2 or higher, which is included on the CD and is also available by download
from Microsoft's web site.

●

If you view the Program folder you'll see the HTML documentation, the RayGun.exe stand-alone edition and the
Ray Gun Uninstaller. The Uninstaller can be used if you ever need to remove the Ray Gun program files and
documentation. Note that the DirectX plug-in version is not directly visible here...

The Ray Gun plug-in will appear right along with any other DirectX plug-ins you may have in your audio editing
program's plug-ins sections.

Each program implements plug-ins differently; for brief explanations of how certain Windows audio editors handle

Ray Gun, click here.

You're now ready to use the Ray Gun!

●

Windows installation support notes

Problems? If any unexpected error messages come up during the course of installation, or if the Setup fails to install or
serialize the Ray Gun plug-in and stand-alone editions, immediately quit the Setup wizard, quit any other programs which
may be running and Restart your computer.

Once restarted, run the Setup again and follow the preceding installation steps as directed. Also make sure you're using the
correct Arboretum product serial number. Arboretum's Ray Gun and Hyperprism-DX are each sold separately, and each
require their own unique serial numbers.

If Trouble Persists: Link over to the Troubleshooting chapter of this manual. Also take a look at the Support frame up on
the Arboretum web site <http://www.arboretum.com> for the latest technical notes and troubleshooting tips. If all else fails

either email [e-mail] or phone our service line during our regular weekday business hours, 10 am to 6 pm
Pacific: [phone]

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