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View topic - [Music competition 2011] Bonus Zone by ValleyBell

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[Music competition 2011] Bonus Zone by ValleyBell
Post Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2011 7:38 am
Last edited by Maxim on Wed Apr 06, 2011 8:28 am; edited 2 times in total
Bonus Zone

ValleyBell wrote
VGM created with mid2vgm PSG.


Original MIDI conversion.

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Post Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2011 1:14 pm
Despite the quite generic title it's an original composition.
It uses the PSG-clone used in NeoGeo Pocket (mainly because of the noise).
The only 8-bit link is it's sound. The original song already sounded like one of those 8-bit remixes on VGMusic.com.

I can upload the original MIDI or an SMS-compatible VGM if someone wants them.
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Post Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2011 1:47 pm
Switching it to an SMS-compatible VGM would make it more Sega-related... I may soon arbitrarily decide to disqualify the non-Sega-8-bit-related entries.
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Post Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2011 10:43 am
Last edited by ValleyBell on Wed Mar 30, 2011 11:19 am; edited 1 time in total
Here are the SMS and GG versions. No more cheating with non-Sega chips and unusual clocks.
Although it doesn't sound as good as the original version, the SMS/GG noise is doing a lot better than I expected.

The GG version is the actual one.
The SMS version is mono and louder, because there's no volume correction for stereo notes.

EDIT: Replaced links with attachments.
BonusZone_v101_GGver.vgm (12.96 KB)
Stereo Game Gear version
BonusZone_v101_MSver.vgm (11.7 KB)
Mono Master System version

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Post Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2011 11:00 am
I enabled some more space for attachments... I can't access Mediafire from here, so I'll have to try to swap it around later.
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Post Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2011 11:24 am
It works now (thanks), so I replaced the links with attached files.
I still wonder why I got a message about the attachment filesize, as I'm only using nearly 5 MB.
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Post Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2011 12:43 pm
We hit 600MB total forum uploads, I increased the limit a bit.
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Post Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2011 10:53 pm
I've now swapped it for the Game Gear version (and remade the YouTube video).
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Post Posted: Tue Apr 05, 2011 5:54 pm
Maybe you can upload the original MIDI and VGM version for reference purpose (although we'll be voting based on the SMS/GG version).

It's quite a catchy tune. You should collaborate with demo/game entries in the future :)
The melody is a bit hidden by the rhythmic tho?
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Post Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2011 1:26 am
HW usage: 7 - not untechnical, just a little "safe"
Lyricality: 6 - the baseline sticks, but after awhile I'm more aware of "lead + sparkly arpeggios" as a general sense than of any specific melodic intent
Flow: 4 - repetitious, 'B' section seems disconnected
Scope: 6
---
Overall: 6

Criteria:
HW usage: Scoring for limited-channels chip synth is not like scoring for an ensemble. Knowing how to milk the capacity of the chip and use all the channels all the time (within creative intent) without one stepping on another is a science. Knowing how to make the chip sound like it has more channels than it does is an art.
Lyricality: The difference between that vintage console background theme that's stuck in your head 20 years later and the full orchestral next-gen PC soundscape that is amazing but which you can't quite remember 10 minutes later. Does the groove- the heart- the core of the piece stick in your head? Could you reduce it to a memorable sequence of single notes on a piano or square wave?
Flow: Is there variety, or is the track one constantly looped phrase that gets stale? Do sections with various flavors connect smoothly and feel like part of the same piece?
Scope: How much content is there, and for how long? Where does it sound like you were aiming when you made the track? A 30-second loop of cheap BGM, or a piece of performance art?
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Post Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2011 5:08 pm
I attached the original midi file (and the two VGM versions). It was made with a YAMAHA sound card and doesn't sound as good on the MS GS, but still ok.
All MIDIs loop only once (unlike the final VGMs, which loop twice).

The "NGP"-vgm (which is btw not even NGP-compatible) is still the "original" vgm. (The SMS/GG ones lack the low bass notes.)
I attached its version 1.01, because I think it a little more balanced.

I don't think I'm that great at composing. Sometimes I'm more, sometimes less successful.
Btw: The song was composed in 2006 and I just know I had fun with it. (Especially with the second part.)

One problem I have with the song is, that the melody echo sometimes "eats" the melody channel up. (And that the PSG can't play the low bass notes unless I use a 1.8 MHz clock.)
BonusZone.zip (10.61 KB)
Bonus Zone Midis
BonusZone_v101.vgz (13.2 KB)
Bonus Zone "NGP" v101

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Post Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 9:30 pm
Nice to get some stereo going. The tune itself is lost a little behind the percussive notes, and the tune itself feels kind of generic. Nice and happy though :)
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