When you can spend over £1,000 on a new Gibson and get a decent computer package and polyphonic synthesizer for £750, computer music doesn't look so expensive any more. It's a fact that software and hardware companies have stretched the music capabilities of the cheaper micros to unbelievable lengths to find the mass market, and this can only be a good thing for those of us with Apple Macintosh ambitions on a Commodore 64 budget.

The 64 has fared particularly well recently with the release of two packages, one of which ties it into the world of MIDI through any commercial interface. We'll look at Firebird's Advanced Music System (AMS) in a moment, along with the simpler non-MIDI version (TMS) which shares its complex, musically notated display. But first, the Electrosound 64 package from Orpheus, which is available on tape or disk.

Electrosound 64 is designed to work with the Commodore Music Maker, an essential purchase for music-oriented 64 owners which consists of a plastic music keyboard designed to clip over the top two rows of the computer's keys. The Music Maker does come with its own software, but Electrosound 64 is a distinct improvement, producing some of the most powerful synth-like sounds I've ever heard from the 64.

The packed and complex main screen display includes a diagram of the music keyboard, a grid-like music composition layout, and a list of preset sounds and other parameters. You can play sounds manually, polyphonically (up to three notes at a time) or monophonically for more powerful sounds, and all the notes played are shown as moving dots on the keyboard display. You can link the 64 up to an amp or mixer through a rear panel socket (Orpheus don't tell you how, but it's in the Commodore Programmer's Reference Manual) and with this treatment the preset sounds are quite spectacular. Screaming lead sounds, flutes and strings and much more.

It seems likely that Orpheus have written additional modulation generators and other facilities into the software — we know they've written the music for some of their own games such as "The Young Ones' using it — because some of the sounds give the distinct impression of more than three voices being available simultaneously. There are five voice files often sounds each including Lead Synths, Harpsichord, Chimes, Pianos, Brass, Effects and Strings in the package, and of course you can also create your own sounds.

A very expressive demo gives some idea of the package's compositional facilities, which are based on step time entry on the compositional grid. The ornamentation on some of the demo pieces is quite stunning, as are the changes of tempo and time signature which can be programmed as part of each sequence.

Editing pieces is simplicity itself — using the cursor keys you can step to any of the three voices and any column in the grid and punch in new notes on the keyboard. The keyboard display also works while sequences are playing back, which apart from producing a really psychedelic display can be very educational in compositional terms.

The package also has 24 preset percussion sounds which can be inserted between notes on any of the three channels, giving the impression of three voices AND a drum kit playing simultaneously. A selection of keys not covered by the Music Maker keyboard switch in the filter, select new sounds, start and stop sequences and allow you to load new patterns from tape or disk, while the Voice Grid in the centre of the screen allows you to change individual parameters of sounds using the Function keys; many parameters including Ring Modulation are accessible.

Electrosound 64 can record 20 sequences and 5 tracks for composition of very lengthy pieces, but you can't enter music in realtime from the keyboard. A little application is going to be needed before you can come up with pieces as impressive as the demos, not because the system is difficult to use but because it's inevitably time-consuming. But the manual is as helpful as anyone could desire, with complete tables of preset sounds, sound parameters, control functions and methods of modulation.

The otherwise fine TMS/AMS package is marred by a very silly security system called Lenslok which has you squinting sideways at a secret code on the screen before you can even load the software. If you manage to do so (several reviewers have already sent the package back in disgust) you'll have the package ready to use, although you still won't know that The Music System (TMS) was originally designed for the BBC Micro by Island Logic, who have licensed the C64 version to Firebird.

Several new facilities have been added, notably the ability to interface to MIDI synths found on the Advanced version (AMS), but otherwise the package is very much as for the BBC version.

The basic operational method is Macintosh-inspired, with the main screen offering six icons representing the Keyboard, Linker, Synthesizer, Editor, MIDI and Printer options. The icon system is retained throughout the program (sometimes at the expense of its comprehensibility rather than to its advantage) and it's fast to use once you're familiar with it.

Music can be entered live in realtime (from a Music Maker keyboard if you like) or edited in step time with full musical notation on a standard stave. Sounds can be created on the Synthesizer page with the help of an Envelope display, and saved to or loaded from disk into any song.

The Linker is simply a page which allows you to list files consecutively to create long patterns, and like the Electrosound 64 package, the AMS is capable of very lengthy compositions. The difference is that the AMS can print them out too, but how many three-part compositions are worth printing? Good question.

In Compositional mode, the AMS works like a multitrack tape recorder, with Rewind, Fast Forward, Stop and Play controls and a three-bar display showing how much space is available on each of the three tracks. If you convert files to MIDI use you'll find another three monophonic tracks becoming available, and these can be played by an external synth (a big plug here for the Casio CZ-101 which could play these tracks with three different sounds).

The AMS is obviously a very powerful package, but some of the demos included don't do it full justice. It's well suitable for the advanced musician interested in music notation and printing facilities, but Electrosound 64 is cheaper and in some ways more fun. On the whole, though, these are two outstanding packages which only go to confirm the C64's position at the top of the league in micro music.

On the more professional front, we'll soon be able to take a look at several new packages from Roland UK. At the time of writing the company are just about to launch the MKS-7, a MIDI module with TR-707 type drum voices, a monophonic bass synth, a four-note polysynth and a two-note lead synth (all with preset sounds) in a single package. Obviously the unit is ideal for composition, and in fact there's a dedicated computer package available to help it do just that. The package runs on a new micro from the Japanese company NEC which is about to be launched over here, and initial demos of the combination have been very impressive.

Roland have also been experimenting with a package called MUSE (MIDI Users Sequencer/Editor) for the Apple II+/IIc/IIe or Commodore 64, which uses an interface card and Roland MPU-401 convertor and which can be run from a joystick without touching the computer's keyboard at all.

MUSE uses eight independent tracks with merge, auto-locate and punch in/out functions, and allows you to select time signatures, track lengths and chain/loop modes. Auto correct is available along with full editing and after touch, and program change or modulation and pitch bend information can be removed or overdubbed. Capacity is over 6,000 notes.

There's good news for Spectrum owners too — Cheetah Marketing's £29.95 SpecDrum offers sampled percussion sounds on the 48k model.

The unit itself is just a plastic cartridge containing a digital/analog interface, with an edge connector fitting into the Spectrum's user port. A 2-metre cable terminating in a phone plug gives direct connection to an amp or mixer; software is loaded from tape, and the manual explains how to load an impressive demo file.

The Main Menu gives ten options, the first allowing you to choose one of 16 Songs named on the left of the screen. Drum Play starts the song selected, and you can stop the unit playing by touching the space button.

Pulses can be produced from the computer's Mic sockets for tape synchronisation (the Syncro On/Off function) and Pattern selects the composition page, while Edit enters the song's building section. Tempo allows you to adjust the speed of the rhythms from 1-999 BPM, FINISH files away song information in the most economical form possible, and LOAD/SAVE enters the cassette function page.

Each of these main sections is colourful and easy to use, as is the basic programming routine; you can work in real or step time starting with a hi-hat pulse in step time and using facilities such as Auto Repeat and Delete until you're happy with your pattern.

The main problem is that the eight sounds are grouped into three channels, and instruments on the same channel can't be sounded simultaneously. For some reason the Bass Drum and Snare share the same channel, although you could always get around this by using a large number of divisions per beat and placing Bass and Snare on adjacent divisions.

RealTime composition is even easier than StepTime; simply select the instrument you want to play, press W to start writing, and tap key 0 at the appropriate places. A flashing square indicates the down beat, and drums can be deleted if you make any mistakes. You can define 64 patterns in this way, then 16 Songs of up to 255 sections, each consisting of up to 255 repetitions of a pattern.

Songs can be saved to or loaded from cassette singly or in groups, and you can also load new sampled instrument sounds. The basic kit consists of Kick (bass) drum — good and solid; Snare — very snappy; Mid Tom and Low Tom — short and punchy; Cowbell — realistic; Hi Hat Open and Closed — a little short; and Claps — rather synthetic, but useable; and the starter cassette also provides Rimshot and Hi Tom sounds.

Obviously all the sounds are fairly short, but they are lifelike and Cheetah promise cassettes of new sounds in the future. The SpecDrum has obvious limitations; all the sounds comefrom a single output, although you could sync to tape and lay them down one at a time for individual equalisation. It's not clear whether the Tape Syncro pulse will run sequencers or other devices — but it is possible to Sync to Roland machines — check with Cheetah for details.

Overall, the SpecDrum offers high sound quality and good programming flexibility at an amazing price. It's being sold exclusively by Boots The Chemist at the moment (!), and an Amstrad micro version and further sound cassettes are planned.

(Stop press: A Latin sound set and voice customise package is now available — £3.99 for both. Can't be bad!) You can get hold of a 48K Spectrum, tape recorder, interface, joystick and games package for £139 nowadays, so the £29.95 SpecDrum looks good value if you can't stretch to both a micro and a digital drum machine.

Electrosound 64; £9.95 (tape) £12.95 (disk). Orpheus Ltd, (Contact Details)
The Music System; £12.95 (tape) The Advanced Music System; £24.95 (disk). Firebird Software, (Contact Details)
MKS-7, MUSE; Roland UK, (Contact Details)
Cheetah Marketing! (Contact Details)