i have seen other people here at gamedev.net that have made thier own music. I have tried to get a response form them, but to no avail. I am really kind of curious how i can make music (like mp3s) from scratch. can anyone here help me? - Moe -

you can''t really "make mp3''s". Mp3''s are just compressed wave files. you can''t make wave files the same way you can make midi files. you pretty much have to record them. If you are musically inclined you should try using Cakewalk to make midi files. If you get the panning and echo right you wouldn''t even know it was a midi file.

at one time i had a midi making program. i could put the notes onto the bars of the music sheet, and it would make a midi file out of it. I am just wondering if there are any better programs out there than the one i had (it was something like midisoft, or something with a name like that). i have heard of cakewalk and i think i will check it out.

- Moe -

That is really a broad question, so I''ll give you a brief overview. I''m assuming you want to make music that you would play in a game. The best way is to own a really fancy keyboard and voice box with some 5,000+ voices. This is expensive, but that''s how you usually make digital music for the computer. That in itself is very complicated. You have to be musically inclined to use it, and like to learn how to record VCRs. Why VCRs, because using some keyboards is very complicated and tricky. Music involves flowing noice that changes and overlaps. That means many different insurments playing at the same time. Getting your keyboard to record over, and do some special tricks to fit the different parts together is very hard. But, you really can''t pick up a piano and make an awsome soundtrack unless you are musically inclined. I''ve been a musician for a long time, and could never make a decent tune.

Another way is to use Cakewalk to make MIDI music, or some other program. This is easier, because it is not as sophisticated as digital music from a keyboard. You could use your keyboard to make MIDI, but I personally think that is stupid.

The third way, is what I think is the best way. Make a program there is some cool code out there that makes fractal music, which sounds wierd and funky, but every once and a while you get a good tune. There are also other programs that attempt music on the fly. I know microsoft has something like it, and it''s found on the DirectX 6.1 SDK, I think, because it is used in their demo program Boids, demonstratiing DirectX capabilities.

The Microsoft thing is really cool, and a great idea. It''s dynamic music that changes to a programs specifications. Other then that, it does it''s own thing, and it sounds great. It uses predefined music styles, called styles. It isn''t to tricky to figure out, if you work at it.

That''s about it, like I said, it''s a huge topic, and my response left you with more questions then an answer. The best place to look is on a search engine, and try to find some music sites, they are out there. They have some good starting tutorials for Microsoft Music and MIDI software.

But if you want to make music, you have to go to your local music store, and sign up for lessons

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thanks. i didnt realize there was so much to it. i think i want to use a program like cakewalk to make music. i think i will download a trial version of some of thier software and see how i like it (or figure out how to use it, for that matter). i probably wont be using a keyboard, since i dont have one (but i can get access to one). i will probably just try to use something like cakewalk. thanks for your response.

- Moe -

Another thing to consider is tracking.. there is a huge community out there making mod files.. similar to, yet very different than midi... check out http://thrax.box.sk

Yes, absolutely. I prefer using the ultimate tracker:
FastTracker 2. This creates Xtended Modules (XM) files, and these are very good. A vast number of demo groups have used it for their well..er...demos! ;-) But still, the XM''s are made by actual musicians, that know a thing or two about composing.
But it''s a nice way to start, without needing MIDI stuff.

ah, who needs music lessons! Fast tracker 2 is probably the easier tracker to use. Basicly what a tracker does is it plays back sound samples at different speeds to create different pitches. Like if you spun a record faster as it was playing. You can have lots of these going on a once and everything gets mixed and spit out the speakers. This is a very basic explination.

Tell you what. Download Buzz Tracker (much better then fast tracker but harder to use) www.buzz2.com.

Read all the help files and go through the tutorial on the web page. After you do that, I will explain everything and answer all of your questions. even teach you a few tricks maybe.

Cool! I''ll try and get in to it too. Sometimes people just hang around the old stuff too long. (Frankly I hadn''t really looked around for better Trackers, I was kind of happy with FT2.) Still, I''ve downloaded it and saw that I''ve got to learn some stuff here before producing any noise...


Mr.Mouse
XeNTaX Zax

XeNTaX MultiEx

(:Music for PC and C64!:)
www.xs4all.nl/~michael

If you want to make mp3 music on your computer that will sound like techno, try a program like Techno eJay or ACID. They allow you to compose your own music like you would on a keyboard. They then save it as a wav which can easily be converted to an mp3.

- mallen22@concentric.net
- http://www.cfxweb.net/mxf/