"We recently installed a 25 PC Language Lab using Sony Virtuoso after testing and demonstrations from ConnectED and a competitor company. We found that the Sony system seemed to be a better product with ease of use and ability for using the current resource library. We are very happy with the product and have found the training and support to be of great standard and very personable. The lab has been running for 4 weeks and the students and teachers are finding it a great aid. Glitches – I wouldn’t say there were many; as with every new system it requires customisation and the company were very willing to assist in configuration of these. I would recommend the company as the support and product has met the expectation of the Language Department."
Steven Shaw, IT Network Manager, King's College Taunton

Sony Virtuoso Minimum PC Requirements:
PC Hardware
Pentium 4 class processor running at 2.6GHz or higher (Pentium-D “Dual Core” recommended)
512 MB RAM
Sufficient hard drive space for the installation of Virtuoso. This can take up to approximately
5MB, depending on how many of the Dynamic Link Library and Active-X files included in the setup
package are already installed on the PC.
Sufficient hard drive space for storage of temporary audio program and recording files.
SVGA Graphics capability with minimum of 800x600 screen resolution and 32-bit Color Depth.
Mouse or other screen pointing device
A sound card with full duplex (simultaneous record and play) capability. The sound quality  derived from using Virtuoso software is dependent on the quality of the sound card being used.  The sound card must have a “microphone” input and “headphone” output. If you are using the Virtuoso software with a PlusDeck Cassette Deck, the sound card must also have a stereo “Line” input.  For more information about Sound Cards and their use/functionality with Soloist, refer to:  http://www.sansinc.com/FAQ_4.html.
High quality headset (with microphone)
USB 2.0 port for use with the SANS SHS-100 headset with USB Sound Card. Proper drivers are needed for “Stereo Mix” capability.
Use with Cassette Deck:
RS-232C Communications Port (with a null modem cable)
100-BaseT NIC (Network Interface Card) configured for TCP/IP communications
Operating System
Windows 2000 with Service Pack 4, Windows XP with Service Pack 2
Windows Media Player Version 9 or higher
Microsoft DirectX Version 9.0c
 
Sony Soloist Minimum PC Requirements:
PC Hardware
Pentium 4 class processor running at 2.6GHz or higher (Pentium-D “Dual Core” recommended)
512 MB RAM
Sufficient hard drive space for the installation of Virtuoso. This can take up to approximately 25MB, depending on how many of the Dynamic Link Library and Active-X files included in the setup package are already installed on the PC.
Sufficient hard drive space for storage of temporary audio program and recording files.
SVGA Graphics capability with minimum of 800x600 screen resolution and 32-bit Color Depth.
Mouse or other screen pointing device
A sound card with full duplex (simultaneous record and play) capability. The sound quality  derived from using Virtuoso software is dependent on the quality of the sound card being used.  The sound card must have a “microphone” input and “headphone” output. If you are using the Virtuoso software with a PlusDeck Cassette Deck, the sound card must also have a stereo “Line” input.  For more information about Sound Cards and their use/functionality with Soloist, refer to:  http://www.sansinc.com/FAQ_4.html.
High quality headset (with microphone)
USB 2.0 port for use with the SANS SHS-100 headset with USB Sound Card. Proper drivers are needed for “Stereo Mix” capability.
Use with Cassette Deck:
RS-232C Communications Port (with a null modem cable)
100-BaseT NIC (Network Interface Card) configured for TCP/IP communications
Operating System
Windows 2000 with Service Pack 4, Windows XP with Service Pack 2
Windows Media Player Version 9 or higher
Microsoft DirectX Version 9.0c
 
Network (Use with Virtuoso)
Ethernet topology
100 Mbps Full Duplex –1 Gbps recommended
All PCs in the system must be using TCP/IP protocol and “Client for Microsoft Networks”.
All PCs in the system (including file server(s)) must be within the same network segment.
For best results regarding minimal and uniform system latency, the use of dedicated network switches and proper cascade or stacking modules (where required) are recommended. The main objective is to isolate the system from extraneous network traffic and the rest of the network from network traffic generated by the system as much as possible and practical. Establishing a VLAN for the system is a recommended consideration.
Both TCP/IP (for “unicast” or one-to-one) and UDP (for “multicast” or one-to-many) protocols are utilized – the network must support these requirements. Many of the Unicast ports are configurable, as are the multicast IP Address, ports, and Time-To-Live values. Refer to SANS’ document “SANS_Unicast_Ports_and_Multicast_Addresses-Ports.pdf” for details about the address/ports and their use.
Network switches must include auto-negotiate link speed and full IGMP compliance. This UDP multicast-forwarding feature must be enabled for all ports specified in the above-mentioned document, typically via management software incorporated into the switch.