Audio/ Sound files

[islanddoc1701]

Can you use Audio files in FG2 for ambiance?

found answer in another thread - sorry

[Peabody]

Can you link back to the answer you found? Curious minds want to know what work-arounds & options others are using...

[islanddoc1701]

It was a NO :(, I'm afraid. Some use Shoutcast others use a virtual cable to pass thru Vent. Would be a nice feature but after doing some connnections w/ folks I see how lag could be a issue.

here was one I found https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10768&highlight=audio


Good luck

[Peabody]

Thanks for that! I see there are several excellent options to try out that will allow me to play mood music & sound effects.
Perfect!

I'll say right now that I do like the idea of having independent music/sound effects, voice and VTT. If one or the other hangs, we will still have something linking us together and as GM I can keep the group informed and entertained.

Thomas

[dm-crazy]

Is that true.... LAG!!!! We use Ventrilo and FG, dont have nay lag, but with effects sound like music.... :(

[EugeneZ]

There's no lag with a good VoiP software like Skype, because it's always streaming sound anyway. Adding music to the mix doesn't change that. This might be true for Vent as well, but I wouldn't know, I use Skype.

[islanddoc1701]

Lag would only be a issue w/ bandwitdh but then you have to take it into account with each person connected. If a players FG2 is having to download images or modules from the DM and is somewhat slow then could affect was all I was saying. I had hoped would be a included feature - some nice sound files out there to add ambiance to a game. (eg. Tavern sounds)

[Zeus]

There's no lag with a good VoiP software like Skype, because it's always streaming sound anyway. Adding music to the mix doesn't change that. This might be true for Vent as well, but I wouldn't know, I use Skype.


I can confirm this, I often play background ambient music from one of my systems and pipe the output through my Mac/Skype setup.

The music is clearly audible to the players but not so much that it distracts from the role playing just enough to add appropriate atmosphere.

I have never experienced any 'lag' and Skype has proven to be the most reliable conference setup that I could get (for free) and that required minimal setup for my players.

[islanddoc1701]

What if any program do you use between your Audio player(eg itunes) and Skype. Or can you play the audio files directly with skype.

I saw mention in another post of Virtual Audio Cable. Any recommmendations.

[Zeus]

I use a hardware mixing desk solution as I also dabble in music production. I basically take a digital output from one of my PCs and route it through the desk to the mic input to my mac. My headset for voice on Skype is similarly routed through the desk to the mac's mic input (same channel, just mono).

I have not personally used the software virtual routing solutions, however from what I have read Virtual Audio Cable would seem to be able to the job. If I didn't have my music to consider I'd more than likely use VAC as the desk takes up a lot of desk space.

[terrell]

I use MorphVOX for NPC voices and sound effects over Skype and Ventrillo. Just set the VOIP's input to be the MorphVOX driver. I have done music with it, but it wasn't designed for that. Some folks I believe have had success with RPG sound mixer for ambient sounds, music, and effects.

[EugeneZ]

Lag would only be a issue w/ bandwitdh but then you have to take it into account with each person connected. If a players FG2 is having to download images or modules from the DM and is somewhat slow then could affect was all I was saying. I had hoped would be a included feature - some nice sound files out there to add ambiance to a game. (eg. Tavern sounds)

I'm not sure I follow your logic. If you're saying that using Skype consumes bandwidth, that's true -- though, not much, and it's a very small amount, even if you're uploading other stuff.

But if your group is *already* using Vent or Skype, then adding music to the mix does not add any more load on your network.

[islanddoc1701]

In my case we were not using skype or any audio at the time, simply playing using Chat.

Sorry I ever mentioned Lag: :(
Rack it up to a misspeak by a newcomer

Put Simply :

Do I wish sound was supported by FG2: Yes
Is It currently supported: No
Is there work arounds : Yes - apparently one of best is use Skype

A number of people have posted some good results using Skype here on the forums. I will try the Virtual Audio Cable method with Skype myself this week.

I appreciate how everyone steps up here to offer help


thanks

Islanddoc

[adminwheel3]

Not sure how others add music to Skype, but there is an add-on for it called Pamela which will play wav and mp3 files without having to have a funky vent set up.

They call it 'Mega Emotion Sounds'

https://www.pamela.biz/en/

[adminwheel3]

And by the way, if you're looking for long-playing loopable background music you might want to check out Sonic Legends. Seems like they have a good variety of options which would allow you to keep the same musical tone over an extended length of time.

https://www.rpgnow.com/index.php?manufacturers_id=3018

They have things like 'country village', 'arabian bazaar', 'goblin encampment' etc

[islanddoc1701]

The "Prosperous Tavern" and "Goblin encampment" offerings are what made me 1st think about using audio files.

[Spyke]

Not sure how others add music to Skype, but there is an add-on for it called Pamela which will play wav and mp3 files without having to have a funky vent set up.

They call it 'Mega Emotion Sounds'

https://www.pamela.biz/en/
It's also worth adding that Pamela also lets you record the session direct to mp3, which is fantastic for your game archives. I rate Pamela as one of my best gaming purchases...

Spyke

[drahkar]

I have to say, after looking over Pamela, I think I'll be getting it. It is definitely an impressive addition to Skype and a lot simpler than many other options suggested. Plus using Skype you don't have to deal with bandwidth concerns due to how they handle their calls.

[EugeneZ]

I used Pamela but it just wasn't good enough for me. It was such a long time ago that I can no longer recall exactly what made me drop it. I think, first of all, that the playback functionality is very simplistic and wasn't designed for what we're using it for. For example, I don't believe there was a way to seek. The playlist management was also very poor and it did not go to the next track after finishing the current track. Very annoying!

I believe it would occasionally crash Skype or at the very least create strange instabilities that I never had once I stopped using it. I tried many alternatives... I think PrettyMay Call Recorder had a pretty decent one but it also had many of the same problems. I looked in vain for a powerful MP3 playback solution. Then I realized that what was needed was a TOOL that did the job (MP3s) by design, like foobar2000. Now I can set up playlists, I have support for all audio formats, complete control over the quality of the playback, I can mix in as many audio sources as I want, etc.

It's just so NICE to have all the power of an MP3 player at your disposal, not just Pamela's thingy which was designed to play emoti-sounds like someone laughing and so on.

[Zeus]

Eugene, a question about the setup your using. Am I right in understanding foobar is outputting a stereo mp3 stream to VAC which is passing a digitally unmodified (still stereo) stream to Skype?

If so, do your players receive the MP3 stream in stereo? I only ask as I have never been able to successfully get Skype to stream any audio where my players didn't receive it in anything other than low quality mono.

Up until now I had assumed it was simply a case of Skype primarily being used for VoIP and that it therefore compressed everything down to a single mono channel as thats all thats really needed for voice. However your post regarding having complete control over quality of MP3 playback is leading me to think that perhaps I was wrong and that there is a way to stream audio via Skype and have output in stereo. :confused:

Please say its so.

[adminwheel3]

Yes - I can't say I've extensively tested the output for Pamela/Skype, so if there is a better way to do it I'm keen to learn about it.