How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

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Crayon21
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How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

Post by Crayon21 »

this is the song i want to convert:

https://chordu.com/chords-tabs-alan-wak ... eSUvoY2oUk
Ideas?
In Heck, there are two options for perpetual torment:

Eat the Puckerberry and suffer for eternity:
drink nothing but a cocktail of The Last Dab and Mexican Cake blended and served with
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Moggy
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Re: How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

Post by Moggy »

Those are guitar chords not piano but never the less I assume you want some kind of conversion for the Spectrums BASIC PLAY command?

As a musician I can guide you through the musical side of things but alas I know nothing about the 128's PLAY abilities in the sense of, can it sound at least three notes simultaneously for example.

The most simplest of chords involve three notes (root, third, and fifth.), and are known as Triads and if the 128 can sound three notes at once rather than serially then it's possible otherwise you would have to resort to the primitive AY "chip tune" method of repeating three notes in very rapid succession to achieve a crude arpeggio which in chip tune is supposed to emulate a chord though in my opinion sounds quite dreadful and would imagine if implemented on the Spectrum via the PLAY command would sound equally bad even if the BASIC could keep up the speed required to do it.

Also more complex chords require more than the simple three note triad found in tracker compositions.

I will have a play with an emulator and see what is possible and if I can help you in any way.
Moggy
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Re: How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

Post by Moggy »

Having had a mess around in fuse I can only say that I wasn't aware just how primitive the 128's PLAY command was and having looked at the piano chords page on the site you linked to they do indeed show simple triads but the song being played, which is guitar based, is using a damn site more than the simple chords as shown with the odd chord progression not being shown as well as two guitars playing not one.

The finger picking played by "feel" style used by both guitars would be very difficult to replicate if at all on the 128 timing wise with its simple AY chip which requires a convoluted lengthy input to do anything and for very little output.

Also, unless anyone knows different, the 128 doesn't have the ability to shape the note wave forms without tracker software resulting in a monotonous glorified beep rather than the subtle tones I think you are after.

Like machine code which is so primitive that it's actually complex to do anything useful then, for me at least, the 128s' sound generation methods are a bit to crude to get to grips with to do anything other than play Three Blind Mice so sadly will have to pass.

Perhaps a shout out on the WOS forum would be fruitful as I believe quite a few there have included music in the games they have created so could be more positive to your request.
Crayon21
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Re: How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

Post by Crayon21 »

what about the +3 or QL?
In Heck, there are two options for perpetual torment:

Eat the Puckerberry and suffer for eternity:
drink nothing but a cocktail of The Last Dab and Mexican Cake blended and served with
habanero slices
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Moggy
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Re: How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

Post by Moggy »

As far as I'm aware the +3 uses the same PLAY command as the 128 and I know absolutely nothing about the QL sadly. :(
roganjosh
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Re: How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

Post by roganjosh »

Crayon21 wrote: Wed Nov 17, 2021 8:13 am what about the +3 or QL?
The QL also only has a single audio channel. The sound is generated by its second processor (which is better described as a microcontroller). The BEEP command has the parameters: duration,pitch, pitch2, grad_x, grad_y, wrap, fuzzy, random. I'm no musician but I very much doubt it's sophisticated enough for what you want.

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TMD2003
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Re: How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

Post by TMD2003 »

Crayon... you're trying to ice-skate before you can walk again. In effect what you're saying is "can someone do this for me?"

I've been meddling with the PLAY command for my entire history with the Spectrum - and that's 34 years, give or take a month or so. As Moggy says, PLAY is effectively BEEP, just directed through the TV output by the AY chip, with a few enhancements. Most of what's possible with it will sound like three channels of BEEP played at once, with only minor variations; you can change the volume (with the V control), you can put a very limited amount of whirry sound effects on it (with the U, W and X controls), and you can make white noise with it (with the M control). If you want any more, it is possible to control an external MIDI device (with the Y and Z controls) with 26 channels playing all at once, but that's so far above my pay grade (and involves a lot of external hardware) that I've never considered it. There is a video out there of someone doing it, but that's one example in the 36 years since the Toastrack was first released in Spain - it's rare for a reason.

If you want an example of what I can do with PLAY - many examples, actually - here are some programs I made recently:
Dr. Jim's Grand Gargoyle's Quest Jukebox - the complete soundtrack from Gargoyle's Quest translated into PLAY statements;
+D Blue Peter - the Blue Peter theme tune contains use of the U/W/X controls;
Corona Capers - uses the M control to make white noise in all the various death-sequences in the find-your-way-through-China phase;
Jigsaw - also contains the Blue Peter theme tune if you can't find your way round a +D.

As for the QL... its sound capability is less than the Spectrum's. It's suitable only for making sound effects to jazz up the 1984 equivalent of a PowerPoint presentation, which is probably all the ROM programmers had in mind. If only they'd opted for 65536 pitch levels (as is the case in Z80 machine code) instead of a mere 256, it could have been handy for teaching music... but it was not to be. What a waste.
Spectribution: Dr. Jim's Sinclair computing pages.
Features my own programs, modified type-ins, RZXs, character sets & UDGs, and QL type-ins... so far!
Moggy
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Re: How to convert piano chords to zx spectrum 128?

Post by Moggy »

Put much better than I ever could TMD.

Crayon Should you have any MIDI ability then perhaps either use a PC based sequencer to create the tune of your choice or seek it out on the net.

The ZX81 and ZXpand+ combo for nearly five years has been able to play General MIDI files with a suitable add on small daughter board which then connects to a MIDI instrument or module of choice to play the files and if you have any GENUINE interest in that I can walk you through it or if it is Spectrum only where your interest lies then perhaps a net search could prove fruitful.
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