The groundbreaking success of ReBirth compelled Steinberg and Propellerhead to develop technologies that would interface the power of Cubase (Steinberg's premiere music sequencing and recording software), with the cutting-edge virtual Roland instruments.
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At the time, Steinberg's VST technology was being used for signal processing effects, not for sound generation or synthesis, so an agreement was established with Propellerhead to develop the interface.
In mid-1997, Fredrik Solenberg started working on the internal project, named "TopHat," a communication protocol that established virtual audio and synchronization connections between ReBirth and Cubase. This later became known as ReWire, an industry standard found in many popular music software applications. Shortly after development began, Propellerhead Software was surprised by the announcement that Steinberg was introducing their own virtual instrument integration, to be called "VST Instruments." |
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| From the beginning, plans were in place to incorporate the highly-coveted Roland 909. Well over a decade after Roland introduced the 909, its sound was being used more than ever. Modified versions of ReBirth had already emerged and were featured on the Propellerhead website, replacing the original 808 drums with a 909 sample set, and the second version of ReBirth would complete the Roland triology. In the weeks leading up to the version 2.0 update, Propellerhead Software slowly divulged information and images of the upcoming release, which tantalized (or tortured) anxious users.
Version 2.0 also included a new system for managing ReBirth Mods. These mods were adapted as a plug-in format in which new graphics and drum sounds could be selected from an application menu. Not only did this provide the growing community of ReBirth Mod creators with a uniform process of customization, it simplified the act of incorporating samples and custom drums into ReBirth songs.
ReWire technology was a feature of version 2.0 that provided even more production power to Cubase users. The vintage sound of ReBirth could easily be incorporated in larger productions with hardware synthesizers and recorded performances. Also, music composed exclusively using ReBirth could be enhanced using the signal processing and mixing capabilities of Cubase. Despite having to compete with Steinberg's new VST instrument protocol, ReWire was adopted by other companies who wanted to bridge their software with the phenomena that surrounded ReBirth. |
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