Anime Petition to Free Broseph/World of Xeen midi hardware discussion

[A user named cat]

He's also our resident World of XEEN midi hardware expert.

Here here, I'm not an expert like Sceptic but dabbled into the realms of Xeen midi output too a while back. Still using BASSMIDI for many D-Fend games including Xeen, nice alternative to generic Roland midi sometimes.

 

[Jaesun]

The music for XEEN was written for a Roland Sound Canvas. The MT-32 is crap. Here is how it sounds on my Roland Sound Canvas:



Now Might and Magic III THAT was written specifically FOR a Roland MT-32, here it is on my MT-32:

 

[A user named cat]

The music for XEEN was written for a Roland Sound Canvas. The MT-32 is crap.

I know that but last I remember, Roland Sound Canvas couldn't be emulated or at least not properly through DOSBox. I think I had set it up before but it was missing sound effects during gameplay (footsteps, weapon strikes, etc.) so resorting to either mt-32 emulation or soundfonts were the only workarounds.

 

[Sceptic]

I think I had set it up before but it was missing sound effects during gameplay (footsteps, weapon strikes, etc.) so resorting to either mt-32 emulation or soundfonts were the only workarounds.

The sound effects aren't missing, they just play the wrong sounds, and using a soundfont won't help because a Roland GS soundfont doesn't exist. Th only way to get the sound to play right in Roland mode in WOX is to use a real Sound Canvas. The MT-32 mode is just converted from the Sound Canvas - mind you, it's a very good conversion, but it doesn't sound anywhere near as good.

I looked for an older post of mine in which I detailed the problems with WOX sound effects.

The long-winded explanation, for those who are interested in how this actually works and why the problem exists: GM uses 128 sound banks, so can never have more than 128 tones ("instruments" if you will) available at the same time. GS extends this, by assigning multiple tones to each of the 128 sound banks, and so it picks a tone using both the usual GM sound bank call and another call for whichever "sub-bank" has to be picked (incidentally, Yamaha's XG uses a similar system to expand sound banks, but its calls are not compatible with GS). The advantage is obvious: you can have a virtually unlimited number of tones (well, technically in the order of 16,000) available to your MIDI composition without having to load different sound sets every time a non-standard instrument is called for. Any MIDI composed on a GS device without using the sub-banks will sound perfectly fine if played back on a GM device. But if it does use the GS-specific sub-banks, it won't. What happens with WOX specifically is that sound bank #125, which in GM is "telephone ring", has sub-bank #2 for "door creak". If you play on a GS device (namely, any Sound Canvas, or any actual GS emulator like VSC), the game calls bank 125 then sub-bank 2, and the door creak plays. If you play the game on a GM device that isn't GS-compatible (such as Windoze wavetable synth), the game calls bank 125... but when it calls sub-bank 2 the MIDI device doesn't recognize the call and skips it, and therefore ends up playing the regular (sub-bank "zero") tone in bank 125, hence the telephone sound.

 

[A user named cat]

Ahh, thanks for the refresher. Now I truly remember the headache that all was. I recall even finding a couple ghetto Roland GS soundfonts but as you noted, the wrong sounds would play for things like doorcreeks and such. That damned telephone ring was like the Duck Hunt dog laughing at you.

 

[DwarvenFood]

Why is Sceptic Codex-famous? Nothing against the guy, obv

Sceptic is a bro and doesn't afraid of anything.


Also, he actually plays RPGs and knows his shit. That helps, try it sometimes.

 

[DwarvenFood]

In that case, I'm leaving the forum permanently. I enjoyed posting here and I liked the discussions and relatively loose moderation and stuffies, but if you're not going to unban me at some later date unless I do your dumb challenge then that's that. Farewell bros.

Too bad, you should have done the Grimrock LP, you get to play a fun game and extend Andhairas ban which is never a bad thing.

 

[Broseph]

But remember Broseph, to leave forever you must take forever to leave.

This is true, and why I still continue to post in this thread. I can't help myself.

DarkUnderlord - For the Grimrock LP, do I have to ask Andhaira for his save files? Or am I allowed to start over?

 

[DarkUnderlord]

You are allowed to start over. But must replicate his original actions up until whatever point he got to, which knowing Andhaira was probably only two feet in. After that, you may continue as you wish.

 

[Jasede]

Jaesun

If you ever have way too much time I'd love to hear more Daggerfall songs "the way they were meant to sound". I adore the music in that game. Oh, and all the Quest for Glory Erana pieces if you don't have them all uploaded yet.

Also wow, the Ultima 8 soundtrack. I always knew it was good but I never heard it played this way. Beautiful, and frankly wasted on the game. But if I had heard it back when I played it, I think I'd rate 8 even higher out of sheer nostalgia and respect for the music.

Also, heh, Veil of Darkness. I thought I was the only one to have played that.

Didn't remember to GK to have such a great OST. Nice.