Big Chipcompo #7

Static Strobe Emitter

Big Chipcompo #7

http://bcompo.wz.cz/index2.htm

Now download a tracker and start participating!
deadline is 31st April ! I will start on my entry when i get back home
again Smile

(which will probably be 1kb or 100kb as these are most
interesting for me =P)

What makes 1kb funny is that i had enough problem making
a decent tune i 8kb for the winter chip compo, so this will
definitely be a challenge ;D

CATEGORIES

1) 1k chiptune

file length limitation is 1k (1024 bytes)

2) 4k chiptune

file length limitation is 4k (4096 bytes)

3) 32k chiptune

file length limitation is 32k (32 768 bytes)

4) 64k remake MOD chiptune

file length limitation is 64k (65 536 bytes)
the only acceptable format is MOD!
has to be remake/remix of a tune

5) 100k chiptune

file length limitation is 100k (102 400 bytes)
you see, this category is not made
for remakes this time, so start experimenting =)

opg · Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 11:23 am Post subject:

I'm am definitely going to enter this time. I'm going to have a listen at some more of the entries from last time first, though.

opg · Posted: Tue Mar 21, 2006 8:05 am Post subject:

Quick question - might be a dumb one:

I'm also interested in the 1K tune, but what size am I going by (this is probably just a Windoze thing)?

Size in the list of files says: 1KB

In Properties, Size is 586 bytes and Size on Disk is 4KB

opg · Posted: Tue Mar 21, 2006 8:14 am Post subject:

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Tue Mar 21, 2006 11:08 am Post subject: Hi!

The reason it says 4kb is because your cluster size is set to 4kb on the disk.
this meens the track is 4kb when saved on your harddrive, but
in reality its not 4kb. so dont go for the Size on disk value.

for example, an 5kb tune would take 8kb on your disk as it uses 2x4kb clusters. if however your clusters where set to 8kb then a 2 byte file
would take 8kb on your disk.

cluster resizing is used for speeding up loading saving,
have a cluster of 4kb makes the drive capable of writing/reading 4kb blocks
at a time, and having it 64kb will make it read/write 64k blocks at a time.

however, having 64kb will make even small files, (like 200 bytes textfiles) taking 64kb of stored space on the disk. this is called Slackspace,
the slackspace is the amount of storage wasted on unused cluster data.

a high cluster size will also prevent fragmentation.

A drive for storing large files, such as videos
or mp3 files only would take advantage of having a larg cluster size.

imagine the slackspace of a 80gb drive mainly storing datafiles and
textfiles, it can be as high as 10 Gb.

=O

im just talking....hope it made any kind of sense.

Kookoo · Joined: Nov 20, 2005 Posts: 42 Location: Austin, TX, USA

This sounds like fun! I haven't touched a mod in a long time... but somehow when I started up Modplug and I knew there was a hotkey for switching octaves I instinctively hit the * key without really knowing why Smile

But, um... how in the hell do you make a 1K mod when just a blank mod made by going "new mod", "save" results in a 3K file? Shocked

Edit: I got milkytracker and though it might be a little more efficient than Modplug. It is, but ... a blank XM is 800-something bytes. If I just add a 200-byte sampl, it saves as a 5024 byte file. What am I doing wrong?

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 3:04 am Post subject: cheers again

There is a problem with creating 1kb XM tracks yes....
infact, very hard......so im going for another format that is more compact.
some people are going to use Impulse Tracker ive heard.

and im actually gonna use XM but convert it to MDL format :X hehe.
MDL format is DigiTrakker and has a more compact form of patterndata
then XM. actually i dont recommend XM or MOD at all for the 1kb entry
as it is close to impossible.

we have asked the author of the competition, and he seems open to
most existing tracking formats. =o

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 3:07 am Post subject: And....

A mod is totally impossible to create under 3kb yes :X

and the amount of data saved with a sample is also the instrument settings.
like volume, panning, and other shit...thats why a saved 200 bytes sample
is larger than it should be, .....life is a bitch sometimes :/

im thrilled to hear the entries when its done.

opg · Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 6:58 am Post subject:

Thanks for the file size deal.

I first started yesterday with ModPlug, and I was able to get it to that 586 bytes. I did 4 tracks only (the minimum ModPlug allows), 22050 8-bit mono sound output, and one 11025 8-bit mono sample. The sample was one cycle of a pulse waveform, looped, and I created one pattern. I couldn't add another sample for noise/percussion because it put me to 2 or 3kb.

I tried every combo on ModPlug and decided I would try out an older DOS-based tracker. That's where I am starting at today. But I shouldn't reveal too much of my ingenuity Wink

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 7:09 am Post subject: heheheheeh

Im not revealing how im gonna make it either Mad

except for MDL!

we cant go around and spread top secret industry information can we?!! =D

opg · Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 7:11 am Post subject: Re: heheheheeh

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 7:24 am Post subject: !!!!!!!!!!

n0000000000000000000000000000!!

*digging a bunker with panzar reinforced walls*

opg · Posted: Thu Mar 23, 2006 1:09 pm Post subject:

Man, I'm still not getting this 1KB stuff. I think it's the SONG LENGTH that I'm unsure about. I can't find any winning entries except for Cyborg Jeff who came in 22nd in #6. His song was only 7 seconds! What is the standard length (even though the longer you can get a good song to be under 1K, the better)?

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Thu Mar 23, 2006 1:24 pm Post subject: Well....

Well.....this is actually my first attempt in making a standard module
within these limits. But ofcourse there are formats that can do this
more efficient. an example is my own NovaComposer....

the sad thing is, ive never spread out nova composer,
it was an internal attempt to create as small music data
as possible. and there is no replayer available more than
the program itself, and it is for amiga :/ , so i will not be
able to compete with this format.

im providing a sample here. the original music data is 200 bytes,
so imagine what can be made in 1024 bytes.
(now rendered to WAV due to lack of replayers :X)

also my old format spec for the music sheet is in a text file
in the zip. have fun. =D

nova.zip

Description:

Nova format and sample.

Download (listen)

Filename:

nova.zip

Filesize:

199.35 KB

Downloaded:

362 Time(s)

opg · Posted: Thu Mar 23, 2006 2:05 pm Post subject:

That's awesome. Thanks! I was searching the internet all day today for trackers and sample format converters....I thought about when I used the text-editor based MCK/MML programming for NES tunes. I wish there was a way to use that....

I've switched to Impulse Tracker running in the DosBox emulator. It's still not as small as I had hoped, but it's doing better than ModPlug....

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 2:13 am Post subject: Yeeehaaa

Ive heard some stuff and some people kan make pretty amazing stuff
with the MML language. however....i cannot.......=o

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 3:25 am Post subject: This is hard....

this is really hard making a nice tune i 1kb.....

ive allready made 4 tests, and i cant get under 1.3kb yet..

geeesh. this gets on my nerves.

EDIT:

attempt 16 of optimizing.
1,16 KB (1 195 byte)

=(((

stupid F****** sh** module!!!1 111 >8(( , and besides, its starting to sound
crappier and crappier on each attempt on optimizing it.

EDIT2:
I am currently desperate. so i started hexxing the XM instead and
modifying the data so it gets smaller. i have succefullt removed
800 of bytes this way. so the XM itself is now 1.2kb (remember the MDL that was 1.16kb), im so close now having an XM in 1kb!!! i cant give up now!!! ...i should start a blog =o

EDIT3:
1095 bytes!!! EAT THAT!!!! icky picky 71 more to go!!
who told me that MDL is smaller than XM HUH??? WHO DID?
...whoooooooos your daddy now?!!!!!! O________O
(okay, winamp crashes, but xmplay and milkytracker still plays it correctly)

opg · Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 6:56 am Post subject:

DAMN!

Just calm down......you must have been up all night with that...... Cool

I'm still screwing around with Impulse Tracker (I LOVE DOSBox!), but with only one 30-byte RAW file, I'm almost at 1K with only two patterns! I'm afraid you got me beat there.... salut

opg · Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 11:34 am Post subject:

Scratch that - 15-BYTE raw file. I still get up to the edge of 1K filling two 64-note patterns, no matter what I do or what program I used.

There was a weird anomaly when I was converting to/from XM and IT earlier today. I converted a 919 KB IT file created in Impulse Tracker, opened it in ModPlug and then saved it as an XM file. It came out as 654 bytes! But, indeed, something was wrong. There was only one pattern in the original file, and after it was converted to XM in ModPlug, there were no pattern numbers listed. Instead of starting with Pattern 0, the pattern number was the default empty " - " (dash). The pattern data of course showed up on every blank pattern and I couldn't get any copying and pasting to work. Well, it probably would have screwed up in a player anyway.

Right now, I finished a 170bpm song ~20 seconds. I think that's as good as I can do. Anyway, all this thinking about MCK/MML as gotten me interested in text-editor-based music creation. Know of anything like that besides MCK/MML (or C with a conversion utility)?

Kookoo · Joined: Nov 20, 2005 Posts: 42 Location: Austin, TX, USA

I finally got around to setting up DOSBox and Impulse Tracker. I need to make samples! Tiny tiny little samples. Audacity will do everything I want *except* that it won't save in 8-bit. Sad

Seems like I saw someone around here mention a tool for generating simple waveforms specifically for use in MODs... I looked around the forums but can't find it.

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Sun Mar 26, 2006 9:30 am Post subject: =O

Well. milkytracker supports drawing of own waveforms,
but i dont think impulsetracker does that...

so....

Blipgen might be your answer =o

http://oldschool.voodoofrog.com/forum/topic-220.html&highlight=blipgen

Kookoo · Joined: Nov 20, 2005 Posts: 42 Location: Austin, TX, USA

Yes! That's the one... thanks! Very Happy

opg · Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 7:39 am Post subject:

I've been using BlipGen:

http://www.davesworld.plus.com/pc_prj.htm

I use one 15 byte square waveform in RAW format that I created from it.

Static Strobe Emitter · Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 9:30 am Post subject: Finally!

my 1kb is finished! =D after about 30-40 optimization attempts i have finally
even got under 1kb of this little xm tune. this means i do not need
to use the MDL format, as my optimized tune takes less than it does
in MDL now.

opg · Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 11:45 am Post subject:

Nice!

BTW, if you don't mind me asking - how long is the song? I'm, of course, not going to ask about your top secret optimization tricks Wink

I don't want to turn in a 15-second sound effect when everyone else has figured out how to stretch it to 1 minute or so....