![]() ![]() So practically I guess the options are you don't stop playing so then the noise becomes part of the character or you use a noise gate and it will sound like you are using ione but you get silence when not playing One issue is one of the definite flaws imho is the computer is big time noisy. After weeding through pages and pages of c64 fan sites and youtube vids, I've found 2 popular softwares. Has anyone had any experience with either of these? It seems Cyber Tracker and Goat tracker are the most common. I've used them both and they're both good options, especially for someone just getting started with SID music. The major difference is that CyberTracker runs on the C64 directly, while GoatTracker runs on Windows / Linux / OSX. If you end up going with the Goat, you can export your songs to formats that will play back directly on a C64 as well (.SID. ![]() So, I'd say give them both a shot and get a sense for the capabilities of the chip and whether or not you enjoy working with it. The biggest drawback with both of these options is that you'll be pretty limited in terms of improvisation. If you're just interested in using them to write music, that's probably not a big deal, but if you're looking to integrate the C64 in a live performance context you'd probably be better off looking at the previously mentioned MSSIAH cartridge.Commodore 64 music is really fun, and I think composing is a good way to tell others what you feel inside. The SID chip can produce really expressive sounds that are still interesting even today. This article covers the basics of Commodore 64 tracking. Two examples are offered, including a cover of the famous Castle Master tune I did some years ago. Goattracker required to listen to it ( download). Please be sure to set the SID type to 8580. Just click on “6581” on the upper blue bar if needed, it will turn into 8580. Also, be sure to set the speed mode to “2x”. To set speed mode to “2x”, just click on the 1 in the “1x” label that you see the first time you start Goattracker: it will turn into “2x”. I love the real hardware, but I think that using a cross-platform tool such as Goattracker is the easiest way of doing Commodore 64 music. It has some disadvantages, as SID emulation is not perfect, but it is the most used tool among SID musicians. Still, you can fine-tune your song on the real Commodore 64 by using a special utility, and of course you can listen to your songs on real hardware as much as you want. Goattracker is a simple PC program that you can download here. It is a good tool and it comes with an excellent documentation. A track is a sequence of notes played on a single channel. Since the SID has three channels, there are no more than three tracks.Įach track has a fixed lenght. That is, a maximum number of notes you can enter on it. Each entry on a track may be empty or may contain a note. There’s a fixed line on the screen (usually made of reverse or colored characters). On Goattracker, you see this line as green characters on the tracks. While the tracks are scrolling, for a fraction of seconds you’ll notice that some notes become green. Those are the notes that are being played at the moment. So, if the ideal fixed line encounters an empty entry, it plays nothing (or keeps playing the previous sound), if it encounters a note, it plays it. To realize better what I am talking about, you may do the following. Start Goattracker, by double-clicking the “Goat icon”. Be sure that 1x mode is active (if you are in “2x” mode, just click on the “2” in the “2x” label and you will go back in 1x mode. Browse on the folder “examples” and load the file “everlasting.sng”. To load the file, select it with cursor controls and hit enter. You can stop the music at any time by pressing F4. Listen to the song and please look very carefully at what is happening on the screen. ![]() The song is slow and that helps to understand things better. You’ll see that tracks are scrolling upperwards, and the notes being played are highlighted in green. As we said, we can imagine a fixed horizontal line that is being hit by notes. ![]()
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