Creating Simple Sounds For Homebrew

[Uprising]

I know it sounds like a stupid question, but how do you create some simple sounds for your game/program such as beeps for menus? Do you just record something in a mic then edit the wav using something like audacity until it sounds right or is there a more sophisticated approach?

 

[rokdcasbah]

I know it sounds like a stupid question, but how do you create some simple sounds for your game/program such as beeps for menus? Do you just record something in a mic then edit the wav using something like audacity until it sounds right or is there a more sophisticated approach?

nah, that's about it. i haven't done any sfx for games (someday, someday) but i have done them for other things.

as with everything else computer+music, you have two approaches

1. microphone (then clean, filter, amplify & whatnot)
2. synthesize

most of the little sounds you need for moving around in a menu can be synthesized. get a virtual instrument host like vsthost, some free vsts and fool around a little.

also there is http://freesound.iua.upf.edu/ and similar places.

this is kind of interesting: http://www.nwe.ufl.edu/~tharpold/resources...ng_of_myst.html
if you get anything out of that video it's...keep your mind open as to how you're going to get the right sound.

if you do live recordings to get sounds, it helps to eliminate frequencies you don't need on the extreme low and high end, since they'll just contain noise. also, don't just clip the wave wherever you feel like it. always do it at a zero crossing (where it hits zero on x-axis) or you'll get little ticks. also, sometimes reverb helps even when it seems like you wouldn't need it.

 

[Uprising]

Thanks alot for your advice rokdcasbah.

I am much more clear on what to do now!

 

[Sphinxter]

I use mhwaveedit to record, splice, effects etc. though it often checks out in wave conversions. My kitchen was my favorite sound lab for a while, think 1940's radio opera. I have a collection of 1980 on vintage toys like a rap1 and shs10 for synthesizing beeps now but some things, like the gurgling current in fishball is just me holding the dishwasher spray back two feet into a sink full of water. The hard part was taking a roll of monster audio cable and making some ridiculously long mini patch cords and odd adapters. Experiments, lots of experiments. Taking the free sounds and mutilating them in mhwaveedit can take you quite far, star hustlers was done that way. I'll usually do the entire game first and save adding and working on the sounds til the very end.

 

[rokdcasbah]

Experiments, lots of experiments.

hell yeah. iirc there is some footage in that myst video of them blowing bubbles with a big straw into a toilet.

maybe that was cause they were using macs though, i dunno. h34r: