Dungeon Master Music

[Sphenx]

I updated the music with a newer version : Room of the Gem (final).
As you requested it, I keep the previous one here : Room of the Gem (v0.9).
About the issues, the main problem was with the violin theme really too low and that some notes were missed by the VSTi I used (when a note is out of range of some instruments, it can't play it because there is no sound for it). I fixed these. Of course it would have been difficult for you to imagine the missing notes !
I made some special versions for you so that you can hear more details : Room of the Gem - Violins part.
And even a Room of the Gem - Half-version with not all tracks. It can be a little messy at some points, but when everything is mixed together, some flaws and details fade. But I'm sure this could even be mixed better.

Thanks Bit, always good to listen to "War of the Worlds" anyway -- VSTi can be used in OpenModPlug Tracker. I don't know any other though it may exist.

[jayrshaw]

Thank you for posting the updated and special versions of your remix of the Room of the Gem theme, Sphenx! The Violins and Half Version are actually really pleasant to listen to as they are, in my opinion....


--Jay

[psychosync]

Thanks Sphenx, that is incredible work you did there with the music. That got me thinking...

There are snes flashcarts out there that have a special chip added called the MSU chip. I know they are included in some SD2SNES flashcarts. What this chip does, among other things i guess, is that it can stream mp3 files in place of the original SPC music. For exemple i know that some games like Final Fantasy III/VI and Super Metroid have a pack of remixed music that syncs exactly with the original songs.

You covered a good portion of Dungeon Master's soundtrack. If you end up covering all of them and arrange them so they can loop perfectly, it could be possible to play they snes version with your songs!

Hey, i know it's a lot of work, i'm just throwing ideas around!

Anyway thanks again, i'm adding all you songs to my personal VGM collection!

[Sphenx]

Enter the Matrix Forever !

Long story short, it took me (again) almost 80% of time just trying to make proper recordings, fixing and tweaking the different tracks (and avoiding crashes and crackling noises).
But I am also learning more to use the different combinations of violins and I'm quite happy with the results for this one. Thus as a bonus for your patience, here is the violins sub-tracks all together, which stands really well as a piece for itself : Matrix Forever - Violins part.

[Bit]

uiuiuiui, it sings! you got formanted choirs? you always surprise me again. Great work again
About the violins: Oh yes, there are so much ways to play natural instruments. That's an endless story to puzzle fitting sample sounds together.
Trying to learn more how to arrange an orchestra, I'm on the way to listen to some MIDI arrangements. Of course, one cannot find any really good one. Because the tracks also need the absolute right sounds, which aren't available by standard sound sets. If I imagine how ancient composers wrote the notes having all that just in their head... incredible!

Maybe you like to listen to those arrangements too, here are two links: https://bitmidi.com/peer-gynt-suite-no- ... g-mood-mid and
https://bitmidi.com/the-moldau-complete-mid
What a difference, if you use a basic setup or Coolsoft's MIDI-mapper and the Roland as virtual synth. So don't listen directly but download and then.

best regards
Andy

[jayrshaw]

Great tracks, Sphenx (as always)! The ending portion of the standard Matrix Forever track is particularly impressive.....


--Jay

[Sphenx]

Sorry I got out of order for some time ... I would have replied sooner.

There are snes flashcarts out there that have a special chip added called the MSU chip. I know they are included in some SD2SNES flashcarts. What this chip does, among other things i guess, is that it can stream mp3 files in place of the original SPC music. For exemple i know that some games like Final Fantasy III/VI and Super Metroid have a pack of remixed music that syncs exactly with the original songs.

You covered a good portion of Dungeon Master's soundtrack. If you end up covering all of them and arrange them so they can loop perfectly, it could be possible to play they snes version with your songs!

That's interesting, I actually wonder if the music in the game completely loops or if it stops after a few loops ? I work from the recordings that are always about 3 to 4 minutes. But in that case, to have it sync, do the remake needs to be perfectly timed with the original or the new one can loop by itself ?
Anyway I would need to remake my remakes because I've choosen to make them non-looping in order to get more creative space for variations and dynamics. I may considerer it, if you have what's necessary to test on SNES, we may try it.

uiuiuiui, it sings! you got formanted choirs? you always surprise me again. Great work again

Trying to learn more how to arrange an orchestra, I'm on the way to listen to some MIDI arrangements. Of course, one cannot find any really good one.

I have a few different syllables which make the job quite nicely.
I don't know why my virtual MIDI seems broken and I got no sound from any MIDI player But surely the problem of MIDI or more generally about symphonic works is about the audio rendering. Having poor samples-devices will make bad audio, but even HQ samples won't make it that easy because I guess more instructions must be put in the MIDI file to tell how to dynamically change some instruments mode when playing, specially for the violins, else it may sound quite "flat". Different devices will make it sound different (and even different orchestras won't play identically the same score). If you are interested in scores, I like using "musescore" to read & test some orchestral pieces.
In the MOD world, as samples are stored within the file, there should be no surprise for the sound rendering whatever your system is. I did once a piece from the Nutcracker (Sugar Plum Fairy): https://modarchive.org/index.php?reques ... ery=177651 (there is an play online button).
Another hint I have is that a perfect timing of rendering notes may also seem unrealistic, as actually having plenty of instruments playing together introduce many little mistakes and delays that gives that sense of a real orchestra. Knowing that, I deliberately put slight note shift/delays in some of my works to reduce the mechanical feeling.

Next one soon ...

[jayrshaw]

Looking forward to hearing your next Dungeon Master track, Sphenx!


--Jay

[Bit]

there is an play online button

Chapeau

I'm not that sophisticated. My old D-20 had this one as Demo Song in it. It's here (at 2:23). Wonder how it would sound with my soundfonts today. I even would be satisfied to match this quality

-Andy

[Sphenx]

Ah, nice, and I always like these warm synth harp sounds

There, have a Requiem Before your Doom.

[Bit]

Love it too.

I just had the idea to put the hmp->mid converted DM2 music into Cakewalk to listen, what the Bandlab synth makes with it. It is impressive, but surely would need some adjustments. Not necessarily with the instruments, but loudness of the several voices. Surely sounds better than the makers ever heard it, but after all - in my ears that's maybe some movie sound environment, not really music.

[jayrshaw]

Thanks for yet another great remix of a classic Dungeon Master music track, Sphenx! Listening to this reminds me of how dark and creepy some of the themes in the SNES version of this game are - it really helps solidify the feeling that your group is completely alone in the hostile environment of Lord Chaos' dungeon....


--Jay

[psychosync]

That's interesting, I actually wonder if the music in the game completely loops or if it stops after a few loops ? I work from the recordings that are always about 3 to 4 minutes. But in that case, to have it sync, do the remake needs to be perfectly timed with the original or the new one can loop by itself ?

Well if i remember correctly the songs play for a certain time and fade out i think. So your expanded versions would be an added bonus and no need to rearrange your songs. There must be markers in place or a kind of logic that determines when a song starts and stops but i'm pretty sure that when it stops it fades out. I'll pop the cartridge in my snes and i'll let you know.

[jayrshaw]

The songs in the SNES version of the game definitely stop after playing for awhile. The songs generally seem to trigger when you step on particular squares within the dungeon.


--Jay

[ChristopheF]

The songs and the list of squares where they start playing are available here: http://dmweb.free.fr/?q=node/620#toc25
The cartridge contains two music tracks that are not played in the game.

[jayrshaw]

Thanks, ChristopheF! It's cool being able to see the full list like that. The Giggler theme is definitely the funniest track once you become familiar with the room full of Gigglers where it is used in the SNES version of the game....


--Jay

[Sphenx]

A step aside into DM2 : Endless Endless Rain.
Because one loop of this music is not enough

[jayrshaw]

I just downloaded and listened to the Endless Endless Rain track even though I have never actually played Dungeon Master II - definitely an excellent recording! By the way, when is the track used in the game?


--Jay

[Ameena]

It's when you've left whatever DM2 calls its "Hall of Champions" and have climbed up the ladder to that starting base/safe room and then the first outdoor area. I also really like this track and downloaded it from somewhere many years ago - it's still in my music collection. I can play the first half of the melody on a piano/keyboard myself and sort of the bass part too but I would need two brains to be able to do them both at once - my hands both try to do the same thing so playing both sides propery at the same time doesn't really work for me .

[ChristopheF]

You can find the music from each version of DM2 on the Encyclopaedia. For example, you may listen/download/compare the PC & Macintosh versions of the music here: http://dmweb.free.fr/?q=node/612#toc62

[jayrshaw]

Ameena: Thank you for the explanation!

Christophe: It's definitely cool that you have the .mp3 files for the music tracks used in the Dungeon Master games hosted on your Dungeon Master Encyclopaedia!


--Jay