Happy Birthday PC Engine!

[ccovell]

Kitsunexus: thanks for the info on the AppleIIGS and Jaguar, but some corrections on the others:

The Amiga has only 4 channels: 2 fixed in the left channel and 2 for the right.
As far as I know, the SNES' SPC-700 outputs at 32Khz maximum (fixed?).  See here for at least one page which confirms it: http://www.alpha-ii.com/Info/snes-spdif.html


p.s. While searching for confirmation on the SPC's output rate, I found out that the once-great SPC is now being put to use providing monophonic sound inside of LED/Fluorescent display panel microcontrollers.  Oh, the humanity!

[Kitsunexus]

  I knew I messed SOMETHING up! That's what you get doing this from memory. In retrospect, it makes sense, because the MOD file format is 4-channel.

And I thought it said in the official SNES literature that it was a 41khz machine, guess I was wrong. My bad.

[Digi.k]

if I were to pick sound chips other than the pce's I would have to go for :

Sega Saturn's sound chip and the old Gravis ultrasound card..

Saturn sound chip basically because the games that I love on this system have awesome chip music.

you can hear some examples from here:
dracula X saturn version. Yea I know the saturn version is piss poor compared to the psone version but these are music files.




One of my favourite track from lunar eternal blue:

obviously because of the restrictions of youtube and that the fact I had to compress these the quality is reduced somewhat.

lunar silver star story complete (you wont believe how many mails i get from playstation fanboys telling me to stop misleading ppl and that the version I've uploaded is playstation version and that it don't exist for saturn)


Gravis ultrasound card.. back then when we only had DOS and windows 3.11 we only adlib and the original soundblaster and they were awful and expensive.. well when this card finally appeared.. apart from having some real nasty compatibility issues this card finally gave pc games some real nice warm sounds!! especially if the (yamaha and roland sound cards were out of your price range) and proved that the pc could make gaming music as good as the Amiga imo.

[ParanoiaDragon]

Ok, that's pretty obvious to me, that it's not the Playstation version, as it doesn't skip when it circles around the boat.  But, those PS fanboys actually say it doesn't exist???  They must not know how to use the internet, because it doesn't take a rocket scientist to find all the different versions of the Lunar games.  Sheesh.

[Digi.k]

Ok, that's pretty obvious to me, that it's not the Playstation version, as it doesn't skip when it circles around the boat.  But, those PS fanboys actually say it doesn't exist???  They must not know how to use the internet, because it doesn't take a rocket scientist to find all the different versions of the Lunar games.  Sheesh.

They say that my vids ARE actual playstation ones...

even here on this very vid scroll through the the comments from some member called Masteroftheshadows if you dont believe me...

[Necromancer]

They say that my vids ARE actual playstation ones...

even here on this very vid scroll through the the comments from some member called Masteroftheshadows if you dont believe me...

That is just hilarious. 

Mr. Ostrich says: I think it must be on a PlayStation because everyone knows that Saturns are grey and PlayStations are white.  That video might actually be of a Mac Mini in a Saturn case (spray painted white) and running the PC version of SSS.  Don't try to dissuade me, as I've made up my mind and searching the internet for some reality would be a waste of time.  Now pardon me, but my head has an urgent meeting with some sand. 

[Kitsunexus]

Saturn sound chip was pretty damn awesome, coupled with Cybersound it was nigh-perfect!

Gravis Ultrasound was cool because at a time when software interpolation was crap, the GUS's hardware interpolation made MOD playback sound like a real Amiga!

ROFL @ The SSS thing, that's hialrious.

[Digi.k]

Incase you missed these one's earlier..

Naxat Soft's version of Capcom's 1943 KAI
Open new1943kaifinal.mp3

Hudson Soft's Final Soldier, Super Star Soldier and Soldier Blade
Open soldierfiinal.mp3

Namco's Dragon Saber
Open dragonsaberfinal.mp3

Taito's Hana Tahka Daka!?
Open longnosefinal.mp3

Back to the pc engine sound..  well here some more music tracks i recorded earlier (and again its from the real stuff no emulation)!!

You know I really hated this soundtrack because it just seemed like worst of the pc engine music chip-scene.. in the way it just sounds sooo tinny and weak..  fast forward a decade I really do appreciate this now.. maybe its what Namco intended it to sound like..  tinny, weak, irritating.. and like a really cheap budget bad 70's slash horror flick as you start off  the music matches the the scene and story ie bleak and lonely.. but the last two tracks give you the sense to fight on and live.  There's also notes which just sound flat buzzing, or bleeps which to me reminds me of paranormal activity you know?? electricity flowing kinda thing...  To get the best out of it you need headphones mostly because of the great stereo seperation which are fantastic on some bits not featured here..

anyway here's some music tracks taken from it: (5 tracks, 6.22 mins, 5.83mb)
Open splatter.mp3



and I just love the music to bomberman 93' just listen to it! do eeet!!!  imo the final track on this which is the ending music kinda reminds me of the good ol' amiga days as it sounds like nothing heard on the megadrive, SNES, NES or Mastersystem yup its got a very unique sound..(3 tracks, 4.54 mins, 5.61mb)
Open bomberman93final.mp3


Air Zonk music which i think is done by the same person who handled 1943 kai and coryoon.. (2 tracks, 3.41 mins, 4.22mb)
Open airzonkfinal.mp3


Detana!! twin bee:
just one track and a few sampled voices ^^,
Open twinbeefinal.mp3


I'm hoping all this will persuade a few nay-sayers that the pce sound chip is a great piece of silicone.

[ccovell]

I'm hoping all this will persuade a few nay-sayers that the pce sound chip is a great piece of silicone.

You'll never persuade me in a million years that it's better than Pamela Anderson's.

[Kitsunexus]

I'm hoping all this will persuade a few nay-sayers that the pce sound chip is a great piece of silicone.

You got that right. NSFW

[Digi.k]

ah going back to the splatterhouse game this is the arcade tracks..

Open newsplatterhousearcade.mp3

Comparing the Arcade to the pc engine's.. I can't decide which has the upper hand.. some tracks I think the arcade has better arrangements but there are other tracks I think the pc engine sounds better.

[esteban]

ah going back to the splatterhouse game this is the arcade tracks..

Open newsplatterhousearcade.mp3

Comparing the Arcade to the pc engine's.. I can't decide which has the upper hand.. some tracks I think the arcade has better arrangements but there are other tracks I think the pc engine sounds better.

I think the PCE tunes hold up well, though there is a harshness to them that clearly is not in the originals. Personally, I prefer the PCE overall, since the "melodies" are so prominent... unlike the arcade version, which is much more subdued and "restrained."

Don't get me wrong, though, I'm really enjoying these arcade tracks... they are a nice complement to the PCE tunes.

[nat]

Let's see some mashup action here!