A VST workstation that breaks new ground in terms of performance, versatility and ease of use.

HALion Sonic is Steinberg's premier VST (Virtual Studio Technology) workstation that breaks new ground in terms of performance, versatility and ease of use. Over a thousand instrument sounds created by top sound experts at Yamaha and Steinberg offer a staggering array of first class synths, hybrid and acoustic instruments, covering almost any conceivable style. HALion Sonic is the long-anticipated successor to the highly acclaimed Hypersonic 2 workstation, and allows you to work more productively than ever before. Exclusive and comprehensive world-class content, an intuitive interface for seamless handling and the sheer endless possibilities of creating entirely new landscapes deliver truly unlimited sonic dimensions.

HALion Sonic redefines quality and variety for workstation instruments with a next-generation sampling and synthesis technology, innovative control and editing features and an outstanding library that covers a wide range of styles — from finest detailed acoustic instruments to legendary synthesizers, club sounds and soundscapes, from ultra-realistic acoustic drum kits to the latest electronic beats.

Performance to the Power of 4
The exquisite sound engine that powers HALion Sonic builds on Steinberg's latest sampling and synthesis technologies and offers four extremely powerful, yet easy-to-use sound engine modes at its core: high-performance Disk-Streaming Sample Playback for breathtaking recreation of acoustic instruments including all articulations, a dedicated Sliced-Loop mode for using and abusing loop-based beats, a special Drum mode with all the tools needed to produce studio-grade drum tracks, and finally a complete and fully editable Virtual Analog Synthesis Engine offering multiple oscillator types and full access to all sound-sculpting parameters for the most demanding synthesis experts.

HALion Sonic's flexible sound architecture includes unique morphing filters which seamlessly blend between up to four of the 24 different filter types and guarantees new sonic levels. Virtually unlimited polyphony provides enough creative headroom to max out the Multi Program Rack with up to 16 individual programs sounding at the same time. Each program and even each layer features its own effect rack with a total of four insert slots fueled by one of the 16 effect types, including gems such as REVerence or the or the exceptionally sounding rotary cabinet emulation.

World-Class Content
HALion Sonic redefines quality and variety for workstation instruments with its 1,200 instrument sounds across 12 GB of uncompressed custom-recorded samples. Created by the Yamaha sound design team behind Yamaha's legendary MOTIF synthesizers, this world-class library with up to 20 articulations per instrument covers an enormous range of styles, all the way from finest detailed acoustic instruments to legendary synthesizers, club sounds and soundscapes, from ultra-realistic acoustic drum kits to the latest electronic beats.

All included sounds with articulations feature real-time control and support for Steinberg's VST Expression, delivering easy articulation editing in and tight integration with Cubase 5. The massive library also includes over 1,500 patterns for the FlexPhraser module that drives beats, arpeggios and complex tonal phrases, plus automatic articulation switching.

The highly intuitive design of the integrated MediaBay sound management system means you search less and produce more, with immediate access to any sound within the huge content library in the blink of an eye.

Unprecedented Control and Flexibility
HALion Sonic reaches a new level in intuitive handling and control, thanks to its clear and transparent layout. Each instrument sound comes with predefined Quick Controls for fast and effective sound tweaking of layers and programs. The eight SoftPads not only allow you to trigger specific notes, but also to take snapshots of chords which can then be triggered in different sequence for various chord progressions.

In the Studio HALion Sonic is the go-to composition and production instrument, offering the complete range of soundshaping and creative editing features expected from studiograde instruments. Yet, HALion Sonic also shines when performing live: building keyboard splits and layers to layout, for example, bass, piano and a lead sound across the keyboard is absolutely effortless thanks to the many visual help functions.

Almost any parameter can be tweaked live using a MIDI controller. Programs and even entire Multi-Setups can be switched with a single key or push of a button on a master keyboard. With the so called Multi-Chain feature, entire Multi-Setups can step through a list of up to 128 predefined Multi Programs. The included standalone application and the dedicated player view ensure that the artist is always in full command while performing on stage.

Steinberg Halion Sonic Retail Features:

• Easy-to-use yet powerful premier music and production workstation
• Next-generation audio and synth engine
• Outstanding library including over 1,200 instrument sounds
• Powerful multi-timbral VST3 audio-engine with 4 different modes
• Unique morphing filters; FlexPhraser module for driving beats, arpeggios and complex tonal phrases
• FlexPhraser module for dynamically driving beats, arpeggios and complex tonal phrases
• Wide range of audio effects, including REVerence convolution reverb
• Integrated MediaBay sound management system
• Made to be played live: tweaking sounds on stage has never been faster
• Full VST Expression support for smart articulation editing
• Cross platform: Windows (VST3, VST2.4) and Mac OS X (VST3, VST2.4, AU) plug-in support

Order an easy-to-use, yet powerful music and production workstation today!

Steinberg Halion Sonic Retail Specifications:

• System requirements
  
  To use HALion Sonic, your computer must meet the following requirements:
  
  Windows
• Windows Vista and Windows 7 (64-bit version natively supports 64-bit versions of Vista and Windows 7)
• Pentium/Athlon 2.0 GHz dual core mobile or dual core 2.0 GHz processor
• 2 GB RAM
• Approx. 12 GB of free hard disk space
• Display resolution 1280 x 800 pixels recommended
• Windows DirectX compatible audio hardware (ASIO compatible audio hardware recommended for low-latency performance)
• DVD-ROM drive with dual-layer support
• USB component port for USB-eLicenser/Steinberg Key (license management)
• USB-eLicenser/Steinberg Key is required (not included)
• Internet connection for license activation
• For using as plug-in, a VST2 or VST3 compatible host is required
  
  Macintosh
• Mac OS X 10.5 and 10.6
• Intel Core Duo 2.0 GHz processor
• 2 GB RAM
• Approx. 12 GB of free hard disk space
• Display resolution 1280 x 800 pixels recommended
• CoreAudio compatible audio hardware
• DVD-ROM drive with dual-layer support
• USB component port for USB-eLicenser/Steinberg Key (license management)
• USB-eLicenser/Steinberg Key is required (not included)
• Internet connection for license activation
• For using as plug-in, a VST2, VST3 or AU compatible host is required