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ADX Frontend v2! *RELEASED* (Read 153660 times)

Started by Jesse~, October 15, 2008, 12:00:28 pm
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ADX Frontend v2! *RELEASED*
New #1  October 15, 2008, 12:00:28 pm
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Hello all!

If any of you remember about 2 years ago, maybe a bit more, I was working on the ADX Encoder Frontend, which I ended leaving at v1.1 and quite unfinished.  Well, I polished my skills quite a bit on the software development program I was using and FINALLY I can bring you the changes you asked for and a new interface that won't blind you or make you turn away screaming for some sort of salvation!  :P

After a couple of years in "WIP status", it's now been given a violent shove into a stable (I think) status with better features.  Here's what's different and new:

GUI:
-Text is updated to reflect new program changes (ex., Source File: is now WAV File:)
-Fonts have been changed to Tahoma 10pt for better clarity
-Buttons are larger
-Old Output File: edit box is now gone (it is no longer needed)

Features:
-New Open function lets you open the WAV file you want without having to type it in anymore
-Saving and Loading of loop points in *.lp format (can be edited in any text editor)

Here's a screenshot of the new program:



As you can see, it's different from my old one, if it's still being used at all.  If not, I can try to provide a screenshot of what the old one looks like for comparison.



Spoiler, click to toggle visibilty



EDIT: - information updated as of April 3rd, 2011

WOW!  It's been a while, hasn't it?  Now it's 2011 and people are still using my frontend.  I'm proud people still find it useful.  I came back on here to help others with some troubles I have seen posted on the YouTube video tutorial and perhaps some that think this is all done with completely.  I plan on doing a re-write to add some "minor" functionality, but nothing promised. :p

Q: I press the encoding button but nothing happens/pop-up flashes and nothing happens!
A: This can be attributed to two things.  You either don't have the adxencd.exe file in the same folder as the frontend or the music you're trying to convert is in or is being output to a folder that contains spaces.  The encoder itself can't handle folders/directories with spaces in them due to the limitations of the DOS file system and functions.  I know that in Windows XP - Windows 7 you can see full directories in the Command Prompt, but please remember that it's not real DOS anymore.  DOS "Real Mode" died out in Windows 98.  WinXP and above use a virtual system and thus they can make it do as they wish, except be fully compatible with older DOS programs and viewing habits.

In short: Make sure the WAV and ADX files are in folders and being saved to folders that have NO spaces.  Underscores work just fine.

Q: *Anti-Virus* program has declared viruses in the program!  This seems sketchy! >_>;
A: False positive.  To be honest, this program was created in a program called Multimedia Fusion 2 Developer and I don't see why it'd be showing false positives.  To get the program to run/to be extracted onto your PC, simply add an exception.  If you think this is more trouble than it's worth, submit a report of a false positive or don't use it.  The encoder can still be used without the frontend, it's just a pain to type out all those commands into the Command Prompt.  If you submit a report for a false positive and they find there is a virus (an actual one), then I can try to add a virus-free version, which is the one I use, but it's the same one everyone else has been using.  My developer version was lost quite some time ago after some major HDD failure.

Q: When I encode my WAV to ADX, the loop points sound horrible/are off!
A: Remember, you're encoding using samples for precision instead of decimal-based time.  Also, conversion from 16-bit to 8-bit can cause loop point changing as well as down/upsampling your WAv files before saving and encoding.  Make sure your loop points are just the way you want them.  Another thing is to leave at least 32 samples after the end loop point.  Some music (I don't know why) has clicking and popping noises at the end loop if the loop ends right at the cut off point.  Happened to me a lot during initial testing of the frontend.

Q: My encoded ADX is really loud and just one big thing of static!  What happened!?
A: You're probably trying to convert a 32bit or 24bit WAV file.  That is a big no-no.  The program was made to work with files at a range from 8khz - 48Khz and at either 16bit or 8bit quality.  This is not an issue with the frontend, but rather an issue with the way ADX files are made.  Blame CRI Middleware for that.

Q: My ADX files won't play at all in MUGEN!
A: I've just recently found out about 1.0 (I was gone from the MUGEN scene for a long time) and I don't know if Winamp plugins still work, but if they do, grab the latest version of vgmstream since in_cube is now obsolete.  It should also fix issues with loop points sounding off if you did everything right.  Seems the old in_cube plugin was rather buggy and although vgmstream is still not completely bug-free, it fixes a lot of bugs that were in in_cube.

I hope this helps others that are still using this.  Thanks for your continued support by using the frontend!

- EDIT edit...lol? - Okay, so I've found out that there is no longer a need for ADX files in 1.0 due to in-engine BGM looping of WAV/MP3/OGG files without the need to convert to a WAV and then an ADX file.  This has many advantages over ADX, such as:

  • No need for conversion of MP3/OGG to WAV, then to ADX
  • MUCH smaller filesizes (from 20+ MB to 1-5 MB instead)
  • You choose the quality of music being used

It seems they are using the same method of looping, which is using samples, not decimal-based time.  Instead of typing copy/pasting the samples into the converter, just put them into the stage defs in the music section.

Although it saddens me to know that this measure effectively puts my frontend out of business, it's great to see that this functionality is now integrated directly into the engine itself, which makes me happy.  If anyone needs help with the frontend for the use of ADX files in other things (or perhaps for WinMUGEN, for those that have not upgraded), then I'll be glad to help out in any way I can until no one needs it anymore.  Only at that time will I have this thread locked.  Thanks again to everyone for their support during the creation of the program.  I really appreciated it. :)

Jesse~
ADX Encoder Frontend - Making ADX encoding easier!
Last Edit: April 04, 2011, 09:36:38 am by Jesse~
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#2  October 15, 2008, 02:35:08 pm
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Well this certainly looks refreshing!

...and with HankVenture working on a massive ADX archive this will sure come in handy for a lot of people.

I have Windows XP, send it my way.

apoklepz@gmail.com

I'll provide feedback as soon as I can.
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Last Edit: October 15, 2008, 04:38:42 pm by MaxBeta
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#3  October 15, 2008, 04:08:20 pm
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This may sound stupid and all because I am still a noob at this but what is this for and what does it do? ;D
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#4  October 15, 2008, 04:29:20 pm
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Pretty awesome since adx is much better than mp3 :D

I have Win98SE and XP SP1(lol)

lett@gmx.at
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#5  October 15, 2008, 04:34:36 pm
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This may sound stupid and all because I am still a noob at this but what is this for and what does it do? ;D

What this program does is it converts your WAV sound/music files to ADX format...The BEST compatible music format for Mugen stages, because they play flawlessly and loop correctly without making Mugen skip (curses friggin mp3 plugin :P). This program will convert your WAVs to ADX and allow you to set the looping point.

It's never considered stupid or noobish to ask/look for information, my friend...otherwise information would never be acquired. ;)


BTW, Can't wait to get my hands on this!!!
It should be a real a time saver compared to the various programs method HankVenture uses. This will actually be really helpful to him as well.
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Last Edit: October 15, 2008, 04:40:32 pm by MaxBeta
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#6  October 15, 2008, 09:27:14 pm
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So far the thing is working great in Windows XP 32-bit so far. I'll be testing it out in Vista 64-bit later. I like this little app, takes all the tediousness of the DOS counterpart away. And I like that.
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#7  October 15, 2008, 09:58:28 pm
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Glad to see you like it and that it's working great in XP 32-Bit.

@Lett1, good thing you have Win98SE.  That helps tons.  I'll be sending you a link to a file host that has it since sending by email will just be tedious. :P

@MaxBeta, I will be sending it over to you for further XP testing.

BTW guys, I'll be adding new features later on, but for now, it will just work for you and I'd still like a new interface, or at least one that has a bit more to offer, yet still simplistic.

Anyway guys, expect those links real soon.

Jesse~
ADX Encoder Frontend - Making ADX encoding easier!
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#8  October 16, 2008, 01:27:53 am
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Sorry for the double post, but I wanted to point out something to my testers.

If you use my program and it's not converting anything it's because you need to have adxencd.exe in the same folder as the frontend program.  IF you don't have that and need it, here's a link to the program:

http://files.filefront.com/ADX+Converter/;3852400;/fileinfo.html

That leads to adxencd.exe on FileFront.  Thanks guys!  ;)

Jesse~
ADX Encoder Frontend - Making ADX encoding easier!
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#9  October 16, 2008, 02:24:11 am
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I have Windows XP 64 bit. This sounds (pun not intended) good, so send it over here!
matthew1122@gmail.com
Doesn't accept yahoo, sorry.
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#10  October 16, 2008, 02:45:38 am
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I'm running Windows Vista 32-bit and I have a couple of track I'd like to convert.

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Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#11  October 16, 2008, 04:09:46 am
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Question. Will ADX files skip due to hardware acceleration like mp3 and ogg do when the assertspecial of nomusic comes into play?
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#12  October 16, 2008, 04:29:19 am
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Like when during a special intro and the music plays for a split second as the stage loads?

In my experience, no.
Last Edit: October 16, 2008, 09:11:56 am by Drex
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#13  October 16, 2008, 05:15:33 am
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Alright then, I'll give this a try.
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#14  October 16, 2008, 06:39:08 am
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UPDATE!

Okay, I have enough Windows XP 32-Bit, Vista 32-Bit and Vista 64-Bit testers.  I still need the following:

Windows XP 64-Bit
Windows 98 SE (One more user)
Windows 2000

If I can get these testers soon, the program will be out sooner.  If not, well I'll just release with a stated warning that it may not run on on those systems well or at all.

Expected release date is November 1st, beginning of next month.  Everything will be polished up for the end user and it will be ready to go.

Thanks for all who are participating!

Jesse~
ADX Encoder Frontend - Making ADX encoding easier!
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#15  October 16, 2008, 08:43:00 am
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How does one know where to set loop points with just a .wav file?
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#16  October 16, 2008, 08:52:50 am
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looks like a grate tool! :sugoi: does this come with plugins so that mugen will play the ADX?
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#17  October 16, 2008, 12:05:10 pm
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How does one know where to set loop points with just a .wav file?

See, in order to set the loop points, you have to put the music into an audio editor and make your loop there and then just grab the "wave samples" that represent the loop you found and input those into the program.

Um, I know it's confusing, so I'll reference an old thread where we talked about it:

http://mugenguild.com/forumx/index.php?topic=35553.0

That's the thread that even got me into making this program.  The thread is old, yes, but it's very useful.

looks like a grate tool! :sugoi: does this come with plugins so that mugen will play the ADX?

My frontend only makes using the MS-DOS ADX encoder easier to use with a nice little GUI.  Still lacking the "batch functionality" that a regular old *.BAT file can do, but I'm getting there.  First things first and that's releasing a working copy that is stable and works on as many of Microsoft's "good" systems as possible, thus the need for testers.

If you need the plugin that plays ADX files for MUGEN, go here:

http://www.hcs64.com/in_cube.html

Grab version 0.38 as it's the most stable version to date.

I'm also going to include a manual for my program with tips on making ADX files from the MP3/OGG, to the audio program to the ADX using the program!

Jesse~
ADX Encoder Frontend - Making ADX encoding easier!
Last Edit: October 16, 2008, 12:34:34 pm by Jesse~
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#18  October 16, 2008, 02:49:25 pm
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It works great on Windows XP. good stuff.

Now, can somebody tell me what program I can play my ADX files with on my PC? or even better, is there a Windows Media player or VLC Player plugin that'll allow me to play them?

Kudos on your program...Now all we need is a program that'll allow you to edit the script for each stage on the fly to point to the ADX files, like Stage Viewer...but just because Stage Viewer doesn't recognize ADX  :P

"We need other people in order to create the circumstances for the learning that we are here to generate" RIP Adam Yauch aka MCA
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Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#19  October 16, 2008, 08:24:42 pm
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in_cube.dll works on both Winamp and XMPlay and was designed to work on Winamp.

I'm working on converting as many pieces of music for Smash Bros Melee to ADX for my own listening pleasure. ;)

Jesse~
ADX Encoder Frontend - Making ADX encoding easier!
Re: ADX Frontend v2!
#20  October 16, 2008, 09:08:07 pm
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Why is the source file have to be WAV? Most of my songs are in mp3 format. There isn't an option to use mp3 as a source file first before converting it to adx?

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