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Sevilla, Spain

So recently I bought an amstrad cpc for making AY tunes and I've been happily messing with VortexTracker and doing a few tracks on it. But the bad thing about Vortex is that I can only work on my tracks at home.

That's why I started to look up alternative ways to make ay songs and I found out a promising one but now I'm a little bit blocked. What I've been trying is to use a speccy emulator (Unreal Speccy for Android) and run Golden Disk's ProTracker, which is very similar to Vortex.

The thing is that I can't find any user manual or tutorial, and I only figured out a few controls, for example: I got how to move the cursor in the grid, mouse, delete, put notes and values on the grid, edit 'samples' BUT once I click Play I don't know how to pause the whole thing.

Does anybody know if there's an user manual? Otherwise I would like to know how to stop/play the song/pattern and a few block functions like copy&pasta.

Thanks ^w^!

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The Rubber Man

Hi dude.

Although I prefer the SoundTracker 1.1 myself (chiptune music from it sounds like this: http://chipmusic.org/yerzmyey/music/a-v … -adventure )

but indeed the ProTracker 3.x is probably the most popular soft for music-making on Spectrum. Also, the Vortex has been based on this ZX Protracker's version.

The problem is, it is a Russian program. So most of the manuals are in Russian language (like this http://zxdn.narod.ru/software/pt37xman.txt or this http://bulba.untergrund.net/PT3Docs.7z ).
There is something in English somehow but I doubt it would be useful - http://zxpress.ru/article.php?id=9313&lng=eng

The only thing I wrote some time ago, was a manual/instruction for ZX81 SoundTracker -
http://chipmusic.org/forums/topic/6668/ … tion-ayym/
The prog has been based on ZX Spectrum's SoundTracker, so it's rather similar.

Also, seems like You can find below instructions of SoundTracker for ZX Spectrum (written by Gasman).
ftp://ftp.worldofspectrum.org/pub/sincl … F08all.PDF
ftp://ftp.worldofspectrum.org/pub/sincl … F09all.PDF
ftp://ftp.worldofspectrum.org/pub/sincl … F10all.PDF
(in 3 parts).

Also I will ask on WOS forum about it. We will see.

Last edited by YERZMYEY (Jul 15, 2014 11:53 am)

Offline
Sevilla, Spain

Thanks dude, like you said I chose ProTracker because Vortex is based on it. As you said, the user manual is not very useful, even if I use a translator.

The only que question I have now if there's a way to convert a song made in sound tracker to a pt3, I guess that Vortex maybe can do the job.

Offline
The Rubber Man

Yes, exactly.
When somebody needs me to make a PT3, I just use the SoundTracker and then convert the file with the Vortex - into PT3. smile
Well, the way is "a little bit" longer wink but that's the general idea.

PS: I wrote a question on WOS http://www.worldofspectrum.org/forums/s … hp?t=48079 but they answered nothing at all. Of course.

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Sevilla, Spain
YERZMYEY wrote:

Yes, exactly.
When somebody needs me to make a PT3, I just use the SoundTracker and then convert the file with the Vortex - into PT3. smile
Well, the way is "a little bit" longer wink but that's the general idea.

PS: I wrote a question on WOS http://www.worldofspectrum.org/forums/s … hp?t=48079 but they answered nothing at all. Of course.

Nice, then I'll use SoundTracker instead. It looks like I'll have more sources of knowledge.

Thanks for all Yerzm!

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not really a solution to your question but that screenshot seems like an old version, I think 3.72 is the last

protracker versions

and this page has a good downloable database of speccy programs and btw a prety cute screenshots to look at

Offline
The Rubber Man

Hmmm. This is an interesting finding indeed.

Meanwhile Alone Coder was so kind to make a translation of ProTracker instruction (yay!)


___________ZX_PRO_TRACKER_MANUAL__________________
Characteristics:

√ Tempo: 1-63
√ Positions: 256
√ Patterns: 48
√ Pattern length: 1-64
√ Ornaments: 15
√ Samples: 31
√ Player size: #c00 (PT Util: #900, sources: from #632)
√ Sample length: 64
√ Ornament length: 64
√ TurboSound (2AY) mode (7MHz CPU or Pentagon w/o indicators)

New options above v2.x:

√ Volume (global gain)
√ Write data (auto-fill input note parameters with former)
√ Scroll step (scroll down after inputting note)
√ Edit melody (roll between patterns by positions order)
√ Set up (set colors, sound etc.)
√ Positions list (order of patterns playing)
√ Pattern length (set specified pattern length for all patterns
by one click)
√ Clear sample, ornament
√ Copy sample, ornament
√ Volume transposition
√ Copy 3 channels at once (click "Channel")

PT3.x can load Pro Tracker 2.x, Sound Tracker, Sound Tracker Pro
modules.

Frequences cumulation, volume increase/decrease, envelope mask
are in Edit smp.

Use -96 displacement in ornament for fix every note to C-1.
You haven't to set F before ornament #.

ssQ/ssW - line delete/insert commands (available anywhere).

Arrow control: Q,CS,O,P,Space (or Kempston Mouse)

Disk/compilation errors are shown on border.
Since v3.697 memory isn't being cleared before loading module.

Loader:

Setups are in basic block:
5d3b, 5d3c = colours;
5d3d: bit0-2 = border;
       bit4 = "play on";
       bit5 = "sound";
       bit6 = "print points";
       bit7 = "kempston joystick";
5e16: frequency table.
Press CS to disable indicators if your computer is slow.

Hot keys:

W - Edit melody
Ext - Edit pattern
Enter - Play

In pattern window:

0-9 (in note field are octaves)
А-V (input O,P with Symbol Shift; input Q with Caps Shift)
cs9 - begin/*centre of pattern
*ss9 - end of pattern
L - clear note
*ssL - clear note with parameters
*K - clear command field for current note
Enter - play while hold
ssE - memorize channel into buffer
ssR - recall channel from buffer
*CS(SS)+note - note with octave above(below)
*SS+digit - set Autoscroll
*cs1,cs2 - go to previous,next channel
*True/Inv - go between patterns
*ssY - switch flat/sharp for current note
*csU - set block begin to cursor (including pattern number &
channel)
*csI - set block end to cursor
*csY - copy selected block to cursor
*csT - transpose selected block
*F - empty note (autodata+autoenv+scroll)
*W - on/off Edit melody
*Ext - exit to "Hot keys"
*ssI - Edit smp
*ssU - Edit orn
*csL - edit positions order
*ssA - insert current note parameters into AutoData former
*csA - on/off AutoData
*csE - on/off AutoEnv
*E - on/off transparent envelope entering mode. Note ISN'T being
changed in this mode. Transparent mode is stable if AutoEnv=ON,
in other case it switches itself off after inputting one note
*csW - on/off TurboSound mode
*cs0 - switch between 2 AY chips in TurboSound mode (2nd chip is
in patterns 47..24, these patterns must be in positions list)

2-nd column in pattern - noise shift for all channels.

Special commands (right column in every channel):

Record format: 1234
1 - command type
2 - Delay in commands 1,2,3,9,А
3,4 - depends of command

Command type:
0 - no command
1 - Slide down, fields 3,4 - step. Tone shift if delay=0.
2 - Slide up, fields 3,4 - step. Tone shift if delay=0.
3 - Tone Portamento, fields 3,4 - step, target note is in note
field.
Sample & Ornament will be initialized!
I don't recommend 3xxx from note to SAME note. Have pity to
player!
4 - Sample will play from line # specified in 3,4
5 - same, but for Ornament
6 - Vibrato, in 3 - sound on duration, in 4 - sound off duration
9 - Envelope slide up, fields 3,4 - step
А - Envelope slide down
B - Tempo (3,4)

In positions list (order):

digits - change pattern #
*K - Set loop start
*L - Set loop end

In Edit smp (orn) menu:

*0-9 - octave
*True/Inv - switch between samples (ornaments)
ssU,ssI - switch between ornaments (samples)
W,E - +/-1
R,T - +/-32 (12)
*ss8,ss9 - regulate volume
0 - annul
ssK - change sign
*K - Set loop start (loop is magenta stripe over line numbers -
you can re-set it by mouse)
*L - Set loop end
*A - regulate volume cumulation
*9 - on/off tone frequency cumulation
*F - on/off noise/envelope frequency cumulation
*Y,U,I - on/off T-N-E masks
note keys for hear current sample with current ornament

How to convert track (music channel) from Tempo=6 to Tempo=3:
ss2, Graph, Down, ssW (hold until receiving result)

How to convert track from Tempo=3 to Tempo=6:
ss1, Graph, Down, ssQ (hold until result)

How to clear track quickly:
a) if cursor is in last pattern: Inv,ssE,True,ssR
б) ss1, ssL (hold until result)

Main code: Nick/GDC
Ideas, code, fix, design: Mm<M/Sa9e
Decompile, code, large fix: Alone Coder/i8

(4732) 522-449 Вадим (JV Gfx of GDC)
(4732) 141-962 Николай (Nick of GDC)
(8462) 94-15-95 Сергей (Mm<M) mmcm^yandex.ru
(4912) 75-13-90 Дима (Alone Coder) 2:5029/77.48 Dima Bystrov
390026 Рязань,ул.Высоковольтная д.37 к.1,кв.12 Быстрову Дмитрию
alco^mail.ru
alone_coder^mail.ru

GDC Voronezh, 1997 - Sa9e Samara, 2000 - Invaders Ryazan, 2006

P.S. Save is in disk menu. Don't forget to click SAVE smile
Enter key only closes window!

Offline
Sevilla, Spain

WOHOOOOOOOOOOO!

Please, somebody tell this guy that I love that!

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The Rubber Man

Done. wink

Hahaha.

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alone coder heart heart heart

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France

hello,

I asked about ProTracker 3 on WoS (http://www.worldofspectrum.org/forums/d … edirect/p1) and since I didn't receive answer, I copy my question here as well:

how to transfer the data to my PC?

I can save a tune into the original PT372.SCL floppy, then I used sn113 (dos tool to get data from spectrum disk) to extract the saved file to my PC. It works, I got a file.$M with data in it. But if I try to open it in vortex tracker (as pt3, I renamed the file), it's not usable. Some notes are recognised, but not everything, and therefore it's not correct.

There is a save, compile, decompile option in protracker. What are the differences? It seems save and compile are giving the same binaries in the end.

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The Rubber Man

Maybe write me this question to my e'mail address.
I will forward it to Alone Coder, surely he could help.