Better PSF2 decoder for KH2? by dachschaden at 3:34 PM EDT on March 23, 2021
I'm using foo_psf to decode some PSF2 files, in particular KH2; doesn't matter if regular or FM, I noticed that sometimes certain instruments are being muted if other instruments reach certain volumes (a channel thing)? The version the plugin plays doesn't match either with the official soundtrack or the version that PCSX2 plays. Most recognisable in "Working Together", "Unknown", and "Rage Awakened".
vgmstream doesn't have PSF2 support, so does anyone know of a better PSF2 plugin or a way to properly convert PSF2 files to WAV/FLAC?
I've downloaded and dropped the plugin into xmplayer (which I've been using for converting jobs as well). Same difference.
At this point I'm not even sure if the dumps are good. I've had issues with Mega Man VI in the past as well; any and all players I dumped the NFS file through wouldn't emulate the noise channel in the intro track correctly. Whenever playback was restarted the noise channel would sound different and glitchy. I first chalked it up to all NFS players out there being inaccurate, but then I dumped the file into mednafen. At this point I had already recorded the intro track from the original game ROM correctly (via hidden soundtest), so I *knew* that mednafen was accurate enough - and yet, with the NFS file, mednafen would produce the same broken noise emulation. The only constant at this point was the NFS file.
Is *everyone* out there using the same PSF2 files without even having checked what the heck they're actually playing? This site for instance claims to host the most accurate and recent PSF packs (to their knowledge), but guess what - their package has the same problem. And over at zophar's they're even providing MP3 files that have the instrument-masking live and in colour (starting at 0:35, 0:51 and 0:54).
So I guess I'm left with re-ripping the tracks myself, because I really want those tracks. Yes, I've had a look at the remastered ones from the PS3/PS4 versions. No, I didn't like them. Luckily I've got a KH2 disk lying around here. Unluckily my foray into asset extraction met an untimely end when the tool I was using (openkh) would throw exceptions upon executing the command "OpenKh.Command.IdxImg kh2 list Iso\KH2.Idx":
FATAL ERROR: Object of type 'OpenKh.Command.IdxImg.Program+KingdomHearts2' cannot be converted to type 'OpenKh.Command.IdxImg.Program'. at System.RuntimeType.TryChangeType(Object value, Binder binder, CultureInfo culture, Boolean needsSpecialCast) at System.RuntimeType.CheckValue(Object value, Binder binder, CultureInfo culture, BindingFlags invokeAttr) at System.Reflection.MethodBase.CheckArguments(Object[] parameters, Binder binder, BindingFlags invokeAttr, CultureInfo culture, Signature sig) at System.Reflection.RuntimeMethodInfo.InvokeArgumentsCheck(Object obj, BindingFlags invokeAttr, Binder binder, Object[] parameters, CultureInfo culture) at System.Reflection.RuntimeMethodInfo.Invoke(Object obj, BindingFlags invokeAttr, Binder binder, Object[] parameters, CultureInfo culture) at System.Reflection.MethodBase.Invoke(Object obj, Object[] parameters) at McMaster.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.ReflectionHelper.<>c__DisplayClass1_0.<GetPropertySetter>b__0(Object obj, Object value) at McMaster.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.CommandLineApplication.HandleParseResult(ParseResult parseResult) at McMaster.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.CommandLineApplication.Parse(String[] args) at McMaster.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.CommandLineApplication.ExecuteAsync(String[] args, CancellationToken cancellationToken) at McMaster.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.CommandLineApplication.ExecuteAsync[TApp](CommandLineContext context, CancellationToken cancellationToken) at McMaster.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.CommandLineApplication.Execute[TApp](CommandLineContext context) at McMaster.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.CommandLineApplication.Execute[TApp](IConsole console, String[] args) at McMaster.Extensions.CommandLineUtils.CommandLineApplication.Execute[TApp](String[] args) at OpenKh.Command.IdxImg.Program.Main(String[] args)
My take from this is that it's either them or me who're clearly not intellgent enough to remedy the situation.
Speaking of nsf, I remember there were some issues with a certain function being cut out. I don't remember what it was, the discussion was on the vgmrips site by user NewRisingSun. Linked to a site with a bunch of "corrected" nsf's but I don't know if that's related to what @dachschaden was having issues with. I have to track down the thread to provide better details.
EDIT: Found the thread, but it appears to be a different issue.
I appreciate the sentiment, but the linked program apparently only works on VGM/VGZ files, which frankly I've never even heard about. The linked archive does contain Rockman 6, not Mega Man VI, a.k.a. the Japanese version that had a different intro song (due to the prologue being longer - and guess what, their sample is glitched out as well). It's the international version (Mega Man VI) that had the intro song which glitches out with the commonly available NFS dumps.
The only "fixed" ROM from the archive I would've truly been interested in was Rockman No Constancy, but that's only because the version I'm having access to is missing one track from the beta version (8-bit remix of "Murder by a Psycho" from Live-A-Live) - and this "fixed" version doesn't provide it. Other than that I've already managed to get clean, lossless recordings from the games (Rockman 1-6 + NC) itself by manipulating the sound engine memory of the games via cheats, so I'm already good in that department even with missing register writes. Can't do the same for KH though because the game (and console) is infinitely more complicated than just a simple 256-byte stack.
It's a driver issue. You can try swapping the driver out w/ FFX's. I think you'll need to make some edits to the bgm/sequence header to properly implement reverb (it'll likely be absent from some/most songs otherwise).
I think this should fix one of them. There is ordered priority on the bgm tracks (eof has least priority). It was in fact the last track cutting out.
edited 4:31 PM EDT October 29, 2021
by dachschaden at 5:50 PM EST on November 26, 2021
>You can try swapping the driver out w/ FFX's. How?
>fix one of them Exactly. One of them. I'd rather have the driver fixed.
by dachschaden at 8:27 PM EST on December 25, 2021
I've downloaded your KH2FM archive and loaded it up into foobar. "Working together" seems to be fixed, or at least the instruments are a lot less subdued - however, "Unknown" remains broken. I don't know enough about music to know which instrument it's supposed to be, but starting at 0:56 it suddenly disappears, only to re-appear at 1:01 again. Going off of the original soundtrack that's not supposed to happen.
Is it this track/instrument? If so, the delay of the 19th note (@ 0:56/1:01.5) is intentional (it's coded to be the exact same time delay as the first note of that track). It also slightly lowers the volume of itself and the next note (which then gets reset to its original value).
by dachschaden at 1:06 AM EST on December 27, 2021
That does sound like the instrument I'm referring to, yes. As I've said, I'm going off of the soundtrack to the game (in which the track is called "Darkness of the Unknown", a compilation of four different PSF2 tracks actually). The instrument itself appears after the switch from the first to the second track at 1:19 and remains throughout the entirety of the second track to 4:20; until this point it *never* goes away, especially not in 2:09 - 2:20 (the equivalent to zophar's version). I've located a snippet so that you can listen to it yourself.
Now, if you tell me that these PSF2 files are the accurate manifestations of what was written to both the KH2 and KH2FM discs, and somehow, by a freak accident, the soundtrack version is incongruent to these (either because both KH2 and KH2FM were faulty and they patched that for the soundtrack, or because KH2 and KH2FM are shipped as intended and it's the soundtrack version that's buggy), then I'll just have to accept that. But I'd like you to be sure about this - maybe there's another driver-related instrument mixup?
by dachschaden at 1:11 AM EST on December 27, 2021
<Wupps, didn't mean to double-post. Damn mouses with their damn fidgety go-back buttons.>
A recording directly from a console would be preferred (or even an emu I guess). OSTs are mastered and touched up at times, or even based on pre-console mixes, so I rarely consider them when ripping (first-party N64 OSTs are notable for this).
Anyways, it's not too hard to mod the sequence to throw in the extra notes required and get rid of the delayed one. I can almost guarantee you that this is not how it would play on console... but here it is. Just make sure to throw it in the same directory as "ffxdriver.psflib" (it would be in the same directory as the KH2 rip I uploaded/you've downloaded).
edited 2:44 AM EST December 27, 2021
by dachschaden at 1:35 PM EST on December 27, 2021
I've now gone and watched footage of: KH2 JP PS2, KH2 EN PS2, and KH2FM EN PS2 (couldn't find KH2FM JP PS2 footage, which is weird considering FM PS2 came out in Japan exclusively - but then again they put the English voice acting in that one, so maybe no one considers it special enough?). All versions feature the note dropping you described; to me this means the soundtrack version is the modified one. I'll leave it at that, and thank you for your support. Have a happy new year!