..::Stage Research::..

SFX is the leading live entertainment sound playback software application. The typical venue for SFX is theatre, but it is also used by theme parks, magicians, and other related venues that require the playback of music and sound effects. SFX puts the art back into sound design: instead of worrying about technological limitations, you can now create rich sound designs that can be reliably played back during each performance!

How does it work?

Very simply, you put your sound files on the computer and then drag-and-drop them into a SFX cue list and, along with other special cues that you can create in SFX such as Waits and Volume Changes, you create an easy to playback sequence for the operator. Also with SFX, you can playback multiple sound effects at the same time and you can even send them to many different outputs: imagine playing a train cue that steams across the stage from stage right to stage left while also playing rain in the back of the house and then at some point also playing a telephone ringing that was based off an actor's cue -- all cues overlap, are independent, easy to setup, and even simpler to playback! Read more...

Where can you hear it?

You can find SFX in On- and Off- Broadway shows, on the professional London stage, as well as professional, academic, and amateur theatres in the U.S. and all over the world. Theme parks, haunted houses, magicians, puppet-shows, and corporate types are also users of SFX. Here are some examples.

Who is SFX for?

If you playback prerecorded music or sound effects, especially if you're a theatre sound designer or operator, then SFX is for you. The typical system that SFX replaces is one or more CD players or minidisc systems. Because just about anybody can use SFX to create complex shows that are operated easily, it is found on all levels of theatres from academics all the way to the pros. Professional theatres use SFX because it can create reliable and enriched soundscapes and has been used in many award winning shows including several Tony Award winners. The academic stage (from elementary education through college) and amateur theatre also enjoy SFX not only for the high quality of shows it can create, but also because it is easily run by novice operators. For students, they are also learning the software that they will most likely work with when they enter the theatrical job market.

What training options are there?

Stage Research has certified trainers than can put together a specialized SFX 101 package for your needs, or check our our news section on this website for training events in your area.

What's New in Version 6?

If you are familiar with the previous version of SFX, the most important new changes are:

* ASIO sound playback engine supports 16 bit or better WAV, MP3 or WMA audio files
* Cues output to a true matrix (virtually any number inputs to any number of outputs)
* Audio cues can contain mono, stereo, and even more channels, and you can even drag-and-drop multiple sound files to create a multichannel, synchronized, sound cue from existing mono and stereo sound files.
* Fades are now called Volume Changes and you can now completely customize your Volume Change curves. Curves can be assigned on a per crosspoint level.
* Revamped user interface
* Undo/Redo
* New windows: Transport Window to show/control execution of cues and the Active Matrix where you can control all the volumes of the standby and playing cues all right in front of you and on the fly.
* Collapsible Cues: cue sequences connected by Waits and Autofollows can be "collapsed" into one line
* You now can easily seek to the middle of any complex cue and have every part of that effect sync to the correct place, even Volume Changes!
* You can now select multiple effects in a cue list all independent of the Standby cue; so, you can edit effects without losing the execution sequence
* More!

See the key features of SFX...