Mod Archive Forums
Music Production => Tracking => Topic started by: Eljoshyo on December 21, 2013, 22:18:45
-
Hi everyone! I'm extremely new to MilkyTracker (new to creating chiptunes) and I've been slowly figuring out more. I am having in issue though:
Why do some samples sound faster/slower when you play a different note? For example, I play C1 of the instrument and it sounds slow (with low pitch of course). Then I play c4 on the same instrument and it sounds fast now (with a higher pitch). There are samples I have downloaded that DON'T do this though. At first I though MilkyTracker changes pitch by just playing back the sample faster or slower. Is this the case or am I missing an option when I make samples so that it stays at the same speed?
Thanks for the help!
-
Well, it makes sense to say that to get a higher pitch (with the same provided sample), you'll need a higher frequency, and to do that you'll have to speed up the 'tempo to get the desired note (for example, D-4 from the initial, C-4) you wish to play. It also applies to notes which are lower than the initial.
Back then, when Karsten created the first tracker, he didn't have the capabilities, or much rather, technology isn't quite catching up well. So 'higher/lower pitch w/ no 'tempo' differential' thingy was not accessible, nor was it understood (I really don't know what other ways to explain to you).
I'm no expert, but that could be one of the many other countless theories out there as to answer that problem.
-
And as to why some samples dont tend to 'speed up' is because there are more than one set sample, fitted in to make the sample seem to not be speeding up.
-
It's probably not relevant anymore since the original poster hasn't been here since, however another possibility for samples not "speeding up" can be "chiptune" samples, i.e. samples with a very short loop. They are simpy so short that the length of loop determines the pitch of the heard sound (kinda like an LFO suddenly turning into pitch with FM synthesis), and thus there is nothing that can sound "slow" or "fast" anymore.
-
There are many such thing that can be done to avoid it, in addition to that already mentioned. You can use instrument-defined envelopes (supported in .XM and .IT format; .IT also supports filter envelopes too), command envelopes (supported in all common formats), vector synthesis, and some combination of these and others.