Elmod take 2

[Yellowshaker]

I have been working on elmod for around 2 months now and have 4 tanks equipped ith it. I am very happy with the system and have now decided to try making my own sound files for the tanks.
Wibblywobbly had been helping me out on this forum with some great information about the system and I hope he read this thread. Here is the type of sound I am trying to create with elmod.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pbSzwiL ... r_embedded" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I took sounds from 3 videos on youtube of the Bovington Tiger 1 and had at making my first sound set for it. This is what I came up with...not exactly what I want. Is there anyone who can tell me what I am doing wrong with this? I made the clips about 300 ms each...and this was the best I could do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BW84HwULS70" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
If anyone knows how to get the most out of the file clips, please post up some iformation. I am determined to get the most out of this system....i just need a little guidance lol

[wibblywobbly]

Ok, first off, the engine idle sound clip is unique in that it cuts in automatically as soon as the engine start up stops. The idle then stops as soon as you pull away.

It sounds like you have the engine idle sound on the wrong file clip, or the blaster.ini parameters need adjusting. It just needs to be a short file that is played repeatedly.

Next up are the parameters for the 'pull away. This is when the engine sounds start.

At the top of the blaster.ini file you will see some settings, these can be adjusted to suit your tank, gearboxes, motors etc, as they detect the voltage being pulled and start the 'pull away' sounds. It's a bit of trial and error as all tanks are different.

Hope this helps

The track squeaks work the same way, as you can adjust them so that they start when the tank starts moving, and also the frequency with which they squeak.

...to be totally honest, I think it all sounds pretty damned good, and if I had created it I would be quite impressed with myself.

[Yellowshaker]

Well I understand the theory behin the blaster file settings, but cannot seem to figure out how to get the files set up correctly. I experimente with short files of about 100ms and long files of up to 90ms and neither worked out. In the process i ended up somehow deleting the sound set that I made and now cannot seem to reproduce the quality I had with it. Quite frustrating actually.In the blaster file, the first number for the motor seting is when it begins to kick in. So, the lower the number, the faster it will go off idle to the first sound (fs01)? I have the configurator as well, but that seems to be giving me just another thing to not fully undertsand all of the functional settings. I love the way the benedini system is so fluent. I would like to produce a sound file for the Tiger that can be that clean with elmod...When you make a file set, are you using the files all at 300 ms or do you vary them, like set the idle as a smaller or larger file? Does this even matter?
I have my Leopard and like the transition of the sounds on that set. I tried to make a set for the tiger based on that setup, but had no luck. I am wondering if the 480 motors and 3:1 gearboxes in the Tiger are ffecting the sounds too. I really want to learn this system 100%...Is that website done yet? LOL

[wibblywobbly]

Still waiting to hear back from the space provider for my websites...I am not holding my breath.

The Tiger honestly sounds great, however, a few things that I do..

1. Yes, vary the length of the files.
2. Try to get each file to start and end with the graph showing the same amplitude, you can do this in Audacity using the fade in/out controls. That way when the engine sounds are playing they appear seamless.
3. The start up sequence can be as long as you want, but as I discovered this can be a liability on the battlefield as the tank won't move until it completes and switches to idle.
4. The idle sound needs to be short, but linear, if that makes sense, as it repeats until the right stick is pushed up to move the tank. If it is too long it will keep playing when the tank is moving. Bear in mind that when you let go of the right stick the idle sound will cut back in again, so during tight manouvres, the engine and idle sounds will keep overlapping if they aren't short.
5. Try to keep them all with a minimum of 200ms. If they are too short you will get a stacatto effect.
6. One thing I have found with mine, and it could be either my choice of speaker, the gearbox/motor, tank weight etc that affects it, is that although I can create a sound file from a genuine tank, the reproduction always plays at a lower tone. My Elmod board has two speaker outputs, and I recall from what I read somewhere that I should really install a small tweeter on the second output to reproduce the higher frequencies. Unfortunately there is no room in a P3 or Stug to do that, and not a lot in my Tiger.

The Benedini sounds are exceptional, if I could reproduce this on a 1/16 tank I would be happy.

[Yellowshaker]

Can you explain to me a couple of things on audacity? How do you do these functions that you speak of? with fade in and fade out? Also, in another thread you said to use the remove silence function. I can not find that function in audactiy. I am using version 1.3 beta.
I am so close with this...
I found the sounds playing too low as well, but you can amplify the,m as you had told me before. That seems to help somewhat.
Also, it would appear the benedii system can be used in elmod tanks. It works off throttle stick position. What if you insatll the mini benedini with a 6 watt amp, then in the blaster fiels of elmod, disable the engine sounds, but leave all the other sounds operational and hook both systems to a speaker. In theory it sounds good???

[wibblywobbly]

I have v1.3.8 if that is the same as yours then we are singing from the same hymn sheet.

Look under 'effect' on the menu bar, you will see fade in and fade out listed. Just click on the one you want.

Under 'analyse' on the menu bar you will see 'silence finder'. Click on this and it will ask you to set the parameters, so you just set them as low as possible so that it finds any silence. Then you highlight the section of the sound clip and remove it. You can zoom in on the file graph to make it easier.

I like your suggestion regarding the Benedini, and linking it to the Elmod, but me being me, I cannot see any reason why the 'perfect' sound files, the 'perfect' parameters, and the right speakers shouldn't produce excellent quaility with the Elmod on its own.

It has multi channel polyphonic sound after all? I did read somewhere that when working with sound, it's best to start with a .wav file as it is the highest quality of the various formats (the others all use compression methods that degrade the quality). I think the secret is to go and ask those nice people at Bovington to start the Tiger up and whizz it around a bit while you stand next to it with equipment that will record directly in .wav

Half the problem we are having is that someone has recorded a video in Lord knows what format, converted it to You Tube, downloaded it into another format, extracted the sound, and then we convert that into .wav format. With the best will in the world, something is going to get lost in the process. Even Tamiya, who claim to use the original Maybach recording from Saumer Tank Museum have a Tiger/King Tiger that sounds nothing like a real one?

[Yellowshaker]

I agree with you completely! Now, here is a question for you. I have been reminded time and again by others that the elmod sounds are looped. They tell me that it is nearly impossible to get this to work fluently. I disagree becasue the files that are on that page for elmod sounds are very good, though I feel some could be made even better. this is my goal. I just don't have the know-how to do it...yet. That's where yuo come in LOL. You have gotten me to a point with elmod that I would never have attained and I want to now further that. Some of the comments on this link have disheartened me a bit, but now that I thought about it, I am even more determined.
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_10199860/tm.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
This is a video of my Leopard
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45m18Qh-wVM" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Notice how fluent the sounds are compared to the tiger1. If that can be done, then why can't I make them this good. They had to be made from someplace too. I noticed that the files for the leo are a lot longer too. But..when I tired longer files it glitched badly. Ther eis something I am missing. I tired to use the fade in and out but had little luck...the volume came across very low, as you said it might....Where are people that make the elmod sounds getting the original clips from?
This is an awesome system I just want to extract everything from it.
Also, are you at all familiar with runnning elmod tanks on higher voltage batteries? I have a 9.6v here and am afraid to try it and blow out lights or boards...

[wibblywobbly]

An Elmod board will run 12v, some use them for large scale tanks. Thomas at Elmod told me that the esc's are designed to run at something like 150 degrees. The boards have built in resistors, so putting in 12v will still only send 5v to the leds etc....though I have never run more than 7.2v personally. The latest boards have been beefed up to make them more durable, and handle higher amps. It's the amps that do the damage, as a free running motor will pull about 5 amps, but a stalled 480 will pull over 20 amps. A friend and I tested this once just to check. Amazingly even with the friend gripping a motor shaft as hard as he could with a clamp, he couldn't stall it completely, so it tells you how powerful some of these motors are.

A lot of the expertise for developing Elmod sound files originates from the Panzerketten forum, unsurprisingly the Germans have a lot of people into RC tanks that also have in depth knowledge of all the bits and pieces associated with the hobby. I know from reading English translations a while back that they had several forum members working on the Leo sound file, and that when it started out it was nothing like as good as it is now. If it took a small group of very knowledgeable people a few months to get it right, then the likes of you and me are going to struggle.

I have spent countless hours trying to get that perfect sound, like you I have no idea why some combinations work, and some don't. I have tried all sorts of permutations, and came to the conclusion that it is the quality of the original file that makes the difference. If the sound is sourced from a video, there will be a great deal of background noise, wind etc, that may be inaudible on the video, but which messes up the quality after it has all been processed into the wav file.

Jakeand is a forum member both here and on Panzerketten, and he seems to have that magic touch. He has created files for all sorts of tanks, and they are pretty good.

If this was better quality it would be ideal.

[Yellowshaker]

Yes, that video is the one I used to make the sounds for the Tiger. I agree that there is too much backround noise inparts of it though...
Is there any chance that jakeand would give some input on this matter and perhaps lead us in the right direction with at least, the length of the files depending on where they are placed? I have noticed that one main issue I have is upon light acceleration there is a constant ticking as if the file is looping but not smoothly, if that maeks any sense to you.
The Leo sounds great, and I can see they put much time into the execution of this file set. You are much more knowledgeable than I, so I am in a whole lot of trouble apparently...I feel as though I am soo close though. I feel as though I am just missing that one piece of the puzzle to make it all fit together. Well, if you think of anything else that might help or know anyone willing to lend a hand, I'd appreciate it.

[wibblywobbly]

The ticking is silence. When the amp detects silence it resets itself. That is what causes the tick.