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Downloadable Sounds Format
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Format Description Properties
• ID: fdd000118
• Short name: DLS
• Content categories: sound
• Format category: bitstream encoding, file format
• Last significant update: 2004-08-11
Identification and description 
| Full name | Downloadable Sounds Format |
| Description | Format usually associated with MIDI data that features segments of waveform audio and "articulation parameters." The specification defines what are called "levels," with Level 2.1 (August 2001) providing increased functionality compared to Level 1.1a (January 1999). In the words of the Level 1.1a specification, waveform-articulation pairs are "needed to create one or more 'instruments,'" i.e., each pair provides data that supports the production of sounds (p.35). The waveform elements consist of 8- or 16-bit PCM samples, described as "WAVE format," apparently meaning structured as if in a WAVE-LPCM file (pp. 63-5).
|
| Production phase | May be used by composers or arrangers for initial-state activities, in middle-state exchange of data or archiving, or for final-state, end-user delivery. |
| Relationship to other formats | |
| Subtype of | RIFF, Resource Interchange File Format for Windows 3.1 |
| Used by | XMF, eXtensible Music Format |
| Used by | Other file or wrapper formats, not documented at this time |
Local use
| LC experience or existing holdings | None |
| LC preference | None established at this time. (Advice sought on comparison of DLS [standardized and documented] and the SoundFont sf2 format [possibly more widely adopted].) |
Sustainability factors
| Disclosure | Fully documented. Developed by the MIDI.org (an arm of the MIDI Manufacturers Association). |
| Documentation | Online: Downloadable Sounds Level 1, Version 1.1 (January 1999). Printed: Downloadable Sounds Level 2.1 (August 2001), from http://www.midi.org/about-midi/docorder.shtml. |
| Adoption | Not known to the compiler of this document. |
| Licensing and patent claims | None |
| Transparency | Relatively transparent, including the included waveform data. See also RIFF and WAVE-PCM. |
| Self-documentation | See RIFF. |
| External dependencies | Playback requires sequencers and/or synthesizers (which may be in software or hardware) to produce the actual sound. |
| Technical protection considerations | None |
Quality and functionality factors
| Normal rendering for sound | See external dependencies, above. |
| Fidelity (support for high audio resolution) | Not applicable; fidelity depends upon the performance of external hardware and software. |
| Support for multiple sound channels | Not inherent to this format. DLS works with MIDI, which features as many as 16 channels. |
| Support for downloadable or user-defined sounds, samples, and patches | DLS is a downloadable sound element for use in MIDI and [possibly] other contexts. |
| Functionality beyond normal rendering for sound | Not investigated at this time. |
File type signifiers
| Tag type | Value | Note |
| Filename Extension | dls | From The File Extension Source, which also offers this cryptic note: "Interactive Music Architecture. A Roland GS MIDI sound set file. This format has been licensed by Microsoft and Apple for use in their products." |
| Internet Media Type | | No Internet Media Type listing found at http://www.iana.org/assignments/media-types/. |
| Magic numbers | | None found by compiler of this document. |
| RIFF form type | DLS | |
Notes
| General | From the specification: DLS "enables the author to completely define an instrument by combining a recorded waveform with articulation information. An instrument defined this way can be downloaded into any hardware device that supports the standard and then played like any standard MIDI synthesizer. Together with MIDI, it delivers . . . . a common playback experience, unlike GM [General MIDI]; an unlimited sound palette for both instruments and sound effects, unlike GM; true audio interactivity, unlike digital audio . . . ." (p. 1)
From an article by Jennifer Hruska: "So what do you do when you've tired of your sound card's ROM presets or you can't stomach another General MIDI violin? You might find the answer in downloadable sounds. These give you access to hundreds or even thousands of new sounds that you can use in your sound card, in a hardware sampler, or even in a software sampler running on your computer. Unlike with most sound-card presets, you can tweak, twist, and fine-tune downloadable sounds to your liking." (http://emusician.com/mag/emusic_downloadable_sounds/) |
| History | The specification also reports that DLS was developed in the early 1990s under the auspices of the Interactive Audio Special Interest Group's Downloadable Sounds Working Group (IASIG DSWG), who sometimes met as the Downloadable Sounds Device Architecture Working Group (DSDAWG) and the Downloadable Sounds API and File Format Working Group (DSAFFWG).
Meanwhile, an undated note at http://www.sonicspot.com/guide/patchfileformats.html reports: "The Downloadable Sounds Format (DLS) is closely related to the [E-mu Systems] Sound Font format." And: "E-mu Systems' Sound Font format (SF2) is relatively new, but is quickly becoming the most widely supported patch file format. The original SoundFont Bank 1.0 format (SBK) was supported by the Create Labs Sound Blaster AWE32 which had the EMU8000 wavetable synthesizer (by E-mu Systems). It then was improved and the specification was made available to the public allowing software developers to more easily support this format. This format is currently being pushed by E-mu and Creative Labs in hopes of gaining even more support with free sound font give-aways and other promotional activities." |
Format specifications
URLs
• Downloadable Sounds Level 1, Version 1.1, January 1999 specification (http://www.midi.org/about-midi/dls/dls1v11a.pdf)
Print
• Downloadable Sounds Level 2.1 (August 2001), from http://www.midi.org/about-midi/docorder.shtml
Useful references
URLs
• MIDI Manufacturers Association (http://www.midi.org/).
• http://www.sonicspot.com/guide/patchfileformats.html
• Jennifer Hruska article about DLS, also covers the competing SoundFont sf2 format (http://emusician.com/mag/emusic_downloadable_sounds/).
• The File Extension Source (http://filext.com/)
• http://www.iana.org/assignments/media-types/ (no MIME type found)
Print
Last Updated: 03/ 7/2007
