Toast with Jam is a tasty software package indeed. Bundled with extras, at least three of which might be sold as standalone applications, Toast Platinum 5.1 is the standard CD-burning tool for the Mac. Its Aqua-enhanced interface makes it the perfect companion for Mac OS X, and it works smoothly with OS 8.6 and OS 9. Toast Titanium's design is reminiscent of a funky '50s diner jukebox. The window is resizable, with simple buttons specifying the type of CD you wish to burn. Pop a blank CD-R into your drive, drag your files into the window, hit that big, red glowing record button in the corner, and you're cooking. Toast supports all major CD formats, including MP3, Mac/ISO hybrid, and Video CD (playable on many DVD players).
If the above were all there was to this package, we'd be satisfied and ready for a nap. But included here are Jam and Peak LE VST 3.0 (from Bias Inc.), for those who really want to tweak the data on their audio CDs, and Magic Mouse Discus, which lets you design great-looking labels.
Jam lets you create smoothly blended transitions between tracks with the cross-fade editor, and mark up to 49 index points within a track. The program supports 16- or 24-bit Sound Designer II, AIFF, WAV, or MP3 files, making it extremely versatile. When you're finished tweaking, Jam creates a disk image for Toast to burn.
Although it is easy and convenient to burn files directly from Toast, you will have more control over audio files if you work first from Jam and then export the disk image to Toast. Even if you don't plan on creating any cross-fades or index points, you can still listen to your entire disc and make volume adjustments, as Jam gives direct control over the final gain for each track. This feature is very flexible. Clicking on the gain amount in the track detail brings up a slider that lets you boost up to +12 dB or lower to -96 dB. You can also adjust left and right channels independently of each other.
Peak LE VST 3.0 is a trimmed-down version of the Peak software from Bias Inc., and it's a very cool and powerful tool. Peak is launched directly from Jam or on its own, and supports a dizzying array of file types, including many not supported by Jam or Toast. These can, of course, be converted to a Toast-friendly type. Although some features in this light version are disabled, you can still manipulate your audio in a number of ways, such as changing gain, normalizing, and adding DSP effects like Reverse and Invert. You can also create regions that Jam will import as tracks.
If you own a Mac and do a lot of CD burning, you want Toast with Jam. It's an extremely good value, and it's very fun to use. Best of all, taking full advantage of the features and extras in this package will lend your CDs a solidly professional quality. --John Bosch
