How do you make your own XM wad for nxDoom mods?

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MethodGit
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How do you make your own XM wad for nxDoom mods?

Post by MethodGit »

Because I think BlackAura must have somehow does his XM wads in a special way.

I was using tools like XWE, Winamp and ModPlug Tracker to extract the music from all my mods, convert them to MIDI and then convert them to XM/IT. Now I notice that with the default XMs nxDoom auto-loops the music every time. But when I tried testing out Ultimate Simpsons Doom, while the new XM wad I made worked, it wouldn't restart the song again from the beginning, and I notice the following message in the console window:

Code: Select all

Warning: End of song reached! This may not work on a DC!
Which kinda worries me as to whether this means the music won't even play on the Dreamcast port (was testing the Windows port).

Do me and BA do things a little differently round here? Much help appreciated, thanks?
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Post by BlackAura »

That's pretty much exactly how I made the original XMs. For some reason, the Dreamcast version of nxDoom crashes when it hits the end on a song instead of looping. So, I added a position jump command at the end of each XM file, which jumped back to the first note of the first pattern. I believe it was effect B00.

If you rip a song out of one of my XM WADs, you should see that effect right at the end of the song. Might have had a C00 effect (pattern jump) in there as well, to make sure it started at the right row.
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Post by MethodGit »

Ah, okaaaaaaaaaaay......... perhaps you could pretty please give me a step-by-step guide on how to add one of these "position jump command"s to any XM of my choice? I'm not very knowledgeable on those.... this is something to be done in ModPlug Tracker right????
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Post by BlackAura »

Yep. Go to the last pattern of the song (open the Patterns tab, and grab the last pattern), and then go down to the bottom of that pattern, after the last note finishes.

In the lower window, you should see a lot of columns, each representing a channel. The columns contain four sub-columns, the right-most one of which corresponds to effects. In the right-most sub-column of the first channel, write "B00" (that's B, zero, zero). In the right-most sub column of the second channel, put "C00".
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Post by MethodGit »

Might as well say finally, thank you for the pattern-altering hints!

Although I also might as well ask, what made you switch from midi to mod when developing nxDoom? It's not all that handy in the end as the many XM wads you have to make means less room for more mods on the CD. Maybe we could see a new nxDoom soon which adds support for the original MIDI output? :) I mean, if Bero could do it.....

Although I understand you're busy atm so I shan't pressure you to do anything as such out of respect.

But thank you anyway!
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Post by BlackAura »

There was no MIDI playback stuff available for the Dreamcast at the time. I did manage to get Timidity working a while after the last release of nxDoom, but it was a pain in the backside, ate a lot of memory, and slowed loading down quite a lot. XM support was far easier to get working.
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Post by Arnold »

Hello,
I will made a XM wad with music too but i don't know what music format it is, is it ADPCM?
When it's ADPCM, how i convert MIDI to ADPCM.
I will made a new Terminator Wad, but with my own Terminator music.
I hope someone can help me.
Regards Arnold
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Re:

Post by TechnoWolf »

BlackAura wrote:Yep. Go to the last pattern of the song (open the Patterns tab, and grab the last pattern), and then go down to the bottom of that pattern, after the last note finishes.

In the lower window, you should see a lot of columns, each representing a channel. The columns contain four sub-columns, the right-most one of which corresponds to effects. In the right-most sub-column of the first channel, write "B00" (that's B, zero, zero). In the right-most sub column of the second channel, put "C00".
Hi BA,
I'm trying to compile an xm.wad for nxdoom by following this thread. I pulled up your "doom1xm.wad" file for sake of example in Openmpt and was stumped to locate the values you describe in your post. Here's a screenshot of what I'm seeing:


Image

Now where is the last pattern, and how does one grab it? Where are the B00 and C00 values you referred to?

Also, is there a "hand-holding" type tutorial anywhere on this subject?
I know enough to convert the audio files for the doom levels to .wav
I use Adobe Audition 3.0 to do this from mp3 and convert to "Microsoft ADPCM (*.wav)" I assume??
My options are:
Image

I further assume the sample rate would be as follows?
Image

Beyond this, I'm really at the beginnings of this by trying to "reverse-engineer" your xm.wad file to be best welcomed by nxdoom. Do you need to import the files into doom builder, and if so......how?

Sure you can tell I'm a little lost.

Thanks in advance, BA for any help on this!

-TW
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Re: How do you make your own XM wad for nxDoom mods?

Post by BlackAura »

Unfortunately, nxDoom can't play MP3s or any other samples audio format. It has to be XM files.

In that screenshot, you've actually opened the WAD file. You would need to extract the individual XM files from the WAD first.

I just wish I could remember what tool you use to do it.
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Re: How do you make your own XM wad for nxDoom mods?

Post by TechnoWolf »

Thanks, BA
I'll fish around. I assume DoomBuilder can open the music .wad's?
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Re: How do you make your own XM wad for nxDoom mods?

Post by BlackAura »

Probably. Anything that can load the WAD files and not be too smart about the contents should be OK.

Basically, the music lumps normally contain a specially formatted MIDI-like file, but the nxDoom music files contain XM files instead. As long as the tool doesn't try to automatically convert the files into MIDI files, it should be able to export them fine. Basically, if you export them, rename them with a .XM extension, you should be able to play them in WinAmp, and open them in Modplug Tracker.
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Re: How do you make your own XM wad for nxDoom mods?

Post by law56ker »

I wish there was more sources for xm packs for nxdoom or the ability to load a different music format or covert the music more easily. That huge mod collection I released was cool, but the limited music options sucked. I tried converting some music for using but I think it didn't work because it used too many sound channels. Is there any hope on nxdoom music capibilities improving? Or someone developing a tool to easily convert the files. It sucks having 300 different modpacks with about 6 different music tracks.
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Re: How do you make your own XM wad for nxDoom mods?

Post by TechnoWolf »

A "simple" converter where you could load your doom.wad or doom2.wad then "insert x mp3 (select from a local browser window popup) into x level in the wad" then "save as" construction utility that would render nxdoom-friendly xm's would definitely be the cat's a$$, and may rekindle interest in DoomDC and DC in general. Imagine the custom tracks one could come up with.... possibilities would be endless. This ability, exclusively easy in the Doom DC world would rival the likes of PC emulators like Doomsday and ZDoom, and probably get those communities buying DC's just to join in on the buzz of it all. Yeah??
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Re: How do you make your own XM wad for nxDoom mods?

Post by Stryfe »

TechnoWolf wrote:A "simple" converter where you could load your doom.wad or doom2.wad then "insert x mp3 (select from a local browser window popup) into x level in the wad" then "save as" construction utility that would render nxdoom-friendly xm's would definitely be the cat's a$$, and may rekindle interest in DoomDC and DC in general.
A bit of a necro post here, but "inserting X mp3, wav, etc..." isn't technically possible.

MIDI, MOD, IT, XM format files aren't even music themselves, they are the instructions on how the synthesizer creates the music. It's like comparing a cd recording of an orchestra to the sheet music for the musicians playing it.

So in the end, the only way to create custom modular music is by composing it in notation by hand pretty much.

There might be some type of converters out there that can convert MP3, or WAV to MIDI and the like, but it's only for single instrument recordings like guitar, piano, or a human voice.

You could read this article here, for a better understanding: http://www.myriad-online.com/en/sharedx ... iomidi.htm

On the other hand, converting from one module to the next, midi to mod, mod to xm, is possible.
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