SoundTracker for ZX81 ?

[siggi]

Yes, the 3 locations for the 3,5 mm connector are electrically identical.

The easiest way to modify MrX is to cut off the resistors which mix the 3rd channel into the first 2 and put an addon board to the extension connector K3, which hat the 3 outputs (as well as the digital ports) of the YM at its pins 21-23, see

http://8ung.at/8bits/download/manual.pdf

Siggi

[Andy Rea]

Thanks Siggi,

I did not know there was a manual, that makes it Really simple...

@Moggy, if you can solder a new plug on the end of a cable, you can cut a few resistors... would most likely mean you'll end up with a few flying lead, but these could have inline sockets on them.

Andy

[Moggy]

Thanks Siggi,

I did not know there was a manual, that makes it Really simple...

@Moggy, if you can solder a new plug on the end of a cable, you can cut a few resistors... would most likely mean you'll end up with a few flying lead, but these could have inline sockets on them.

Andy

@Andy I have two Xpand AY units at the moment but if You can show me a definite way to alter a Mr X unit I will get one straight away.
Moggy

[sirmorris]

I can imagine a little board which would sit between the Ay and its sockets - it would break out the outputs. It would be a little frankensteinian but it would save you having to buy another AY board. I don't want to compromise a sale for mr. x but having zxpand hung off an extender might make things a little wobbly... That said - the mrx board has all the AY signals broken out in a connector - very smart

[Andy Rea]

@moggy,

I'm 100% sure it can be done, without seeing the board i can't be totally sure which resistors would need removing to ensure complete channel separation, Can't seem to locate the shcematic on the german site now.... i know i've seen it before. The soundchips outputs are nominally 1V peak-to-peak (the data sheet (ym2149) says 0.95v[min] to 1.35v[max] ) so should be alright to send straight to a line-in on a mixing desk.

Andy



the Channels are available in the bold red rectangle.

[Moggy]

@Charlie

If You can make a board no matter how tatty I'll take two, only thing that stopped Me buying Mr X before is that I have three Xpands two AYs' and Mrs Moggy tells me our pension is running low


@Andy thanks for the explanation if memory serves I'm sure it's the 1.6k resistors doing the mixing, plus as .75v is desk line level then 1 volt is better still.

Thanks for time and trouble Guys much appreciated.


Moggy.

[sirmorris]

Would you like the ability to have it jumpered so you can select the internal mixer or have independent outputs? Do you need caps/resistors on the outputs or just wired straight?

adapter.png (7.21 KiB) Viewed 3152 times

This is wired straight but adding caps would be trivial. You can jumper the signals back to the internal mixer or take them off-board depending on the plug you use.

C

[yerzmyey]

Moggy:

> Also I have found all patterns have to be the same length, if You are making a 64 bar pattern as the main song it would be nice to choose say a 16 bar break or middle 8 to mix things up.
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Ah yes - another thing. This - and no "jump to next pattern" command. Maybe Spectrum48 had too small RAM after all, to implement all required commands...?
As for the 64 bars, You _can_ also make a waltz (just set 48 bars instead of 64) but then of course You will have ONLY patterns with 48 bars. That's how it works. Simplicity
There are no such things on further trackers of course.


> That's why a lot of the tracker stuff sounds repetitive as Yerz' comments, it's the nature of tracker (as opposed to sequencer) creation where time signature changes and different passage length is almost impossible without creative thinking.
------------------------
Not modern PC trackers of course.


> I think a lot of the stuff You are interested in hasn't been done for the reasons above, some of stuff by artists like the Beatles that I have heard people try to reproduce with a tracker to be honest sound awful.
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Ah, that's another thing - rock music will not sound good on AY. Therefore people - when do covers - they mostly do covers of electronic music.
I made literally _one_ cover of The Beatles on ZX48+AY and I was forced to change it's style to... dance music.


> I said at the time when Sir Morris was creating the AY unit that as a working old school Musician I would have liked the AY unit and any software to be part of a bigger set up and be an instrument in its own right, that would require three separate output channels, to use with a mixing desk and other instruments to create a bigger picture. The Ay created By Sir Morris and the Mr X units are players rather than musical instruments with fixed "ersatz" stereo and that is one amongst other reasons why creating stuff with a balanced output other than "chiptune" is difficult with a tracker.
------------------
Well, You actually could use ZX81 with SoundTracker and AY-interface, as an instrument, but You'd have to record things channel-by-channel only.
That's how I created this:
http://yerzmyey.i-demo.pl/Yerzmyey-Unkn ... ectrum.mp3
on ZX48+AY, adding to every track some heavy mastering (Tangerine Dream style, as I mostly listen to German music).
In the same way You could use ZX81+AY as a part of a bigger set up.
Yes, takes more time, but works fine.


> Moggy.
-------------
Best wishes,
Y

[Moggy]

@Charlie.

WOW a couple of posts and You come up with this
To say I'm staggered is an understatement.
Please please build Me a couple of these charlie with jumpers for both options, caps please as You can never have enough DC blocking.
No resistors though as 1 vpp is great for My desk/amps so no need to knock it down, The Xpand AY is really good from a S/N point of view, I have top line DSPs' that kick out 5 times the noise of that little bugger

I know You are extremely busy Charlie so thanks again for this amazing offer.

Thank You Good Sir Knight.

Moggy.

[Moggy]

@Yerz.

Thanks My Friend for this amazing tutorial I am now beginning to get the logic of how to work with trackers.

Your demo is superb, tonight I am going to study it and see if I can work out how You created it.

Charlie, Andy and Yourself have given Me much to think about.

Thanks again My Friend.

As a famous Vulcan once said "żyć długo i szczęśliwie"


Moggy.