Trash Man

Yes, I couldn't agree more. There's no way you can get a guitar for example, to sound legit unless you yourself are the one making the velocity for every last note. If you understand a guitar, it's very easy. Simply slapping a randomizer on will only end in tragedy. The same pretty much applies to all instruments, you just have to understand yourself how they are played and when notes are loud or soft, then it becomes easy to do, and things will start to sound much more legit than just randomizing them. Even for synths. Even doing it for every single note does not take long. Making music is all about the effort, the more you put into it, the better it will sound, so don't take velocity (or anything else) lightly, and try to stay away from the randomize tool.

Well, I would never use the randomize tool. I would rather just enter velocity by hand and just think how it would be before I enter it. The results are just much better, as you are deciding when an instrument gets loud or soft at any point in time (so all you really have to do is imagine when a player is going to be hitting notes hard or soft). It's really not that time consuming, and the results are going to be better than just randomizing. As for things that do not use velocity, well for the most part, I try to avoid using these as best I could, yeah I know this doesn't help. Perhaps somebody else has a good suggestion.

Are you linking all the percussion samples to a single layer when you use a piano roll? Or are you trying to write it by using multiple piano rolls for each line? It's much quicker and easier if you link everything to one layer so that when you write it, it's all there on one page. It should never take ages to write that way. If you are using an actual kit, I don't see how you could have a problem writing in piano roll, unless you are trying to use more than one kit, or additional samples. If the above is not your case, then it's probably just you needing to get comfortable with FL's interface. I had problems when I first used it, but it grew on me and then it got to the point where it's easy to make whatever I can imagine on it.

I'm using version 2, so maybe that's why you are having problems. I have yet to have any trouble with any soundfonts I have, and I'm sure the few patches that do have a few easy to fix issues, are ones that weren't made properly in the first place. So, sorry if there was any confusion, it must be because I'm using version 2; I never tried any other versions yet, as 2 seems to work fine with me. You have to create shortcuts to your soundfonts/samples in the correct folders, or else you can't load any patches or samples. That may be why you didn't get it to work. It also helps to click "refresh" so they show up.

If you have problems with panning or velocity or anything like that. It's a very easy fix. Takes 2 seconds. All you do is select all zones at once, and then make the adjustment to the low and high values. Same thing for Panning, Pitch, and so on.. It's very easy to fix these things on the fly. I don't see this as a problem. Also, more than likely, it's probably a problem with the Soundfont itself, rather than the Sampler. I haven't really had any issues though. I had one occasion where the velocity was borked on one patch, but I easily fixed it in 2 seconds. Really, this isn't hard or a hassle to use. Also, the fact that you can edit and manipulate the sounds is really a huge pro, and it's just well worth it (very little need to drop to audio). Also, you don't use as much RAM as you do with SFZ, which loads the entire soundfont, which nobody wants to do with something like the SGM-180, and then only end up using a few patches on it. Also, with SFZ, you can't adjust the pitch range. On this sucker, you can, and have it for each patch, rather than the entire Soundfont.

OK, I am an FL user and I really love this sampler. I was able to use it with ease and there was nothing that was hard to figure out. I was able to adjust everything I wanted per sample used within. I really don't see it being a problem, especially if you want to use just PARTS of a soundfont, rather than the entire thing. You can use other samples as well, and not have to have as more instances of the sampler itself. I'm sure there are other samplers out there that can do the same thing, but that's not my argument. My argument is that this sampler is NOT hard to use. It may be different, but it is definitely not hard to use. I would recommend this to any FL user looking for a good way to be able to use multiple samples or soundfonts and have full control of the sounds.

Damn you got biiig feet. Also, is it just me, or is that more like an 8 foot song? Doesn't seem like a 10, which is odd because usually the ITG songs I see are like really intense. Perhaps it was a 10 from all the parts where you had hands. Can you do as well without the bar? I notice many ITG players seem to use the bar. Anyway, excellent job.

By any chance remember your level and weapons and armor? The later two make a huge difference. All I had on my first time against him was 3 Save the queens, Maximillion, Some hat that protects against Darkja (didn't know to use it until 3rd try), Bubble Belts (which were later switched to Opal Rings so I could just attack him with Flare). Level was only 70 or so. So yeah, it took me longer than just a few seconds. I can see how if my level was higher, and if I had the best weapons in the game, that it would make him die faster. I also just don't see how a person could walk in there and just know he's gonna throw Darkja at you and know to protect against it (unless they use guides to do everything in a game, which to me, is not what a good gamer does). Even with protection, there's still a 50/50 chance it will kill a party member, if not all 3. So even if you had protection, chances are slim that he did not entirely wipe out your entire party with one of his Darkja attacks, which he spams to hell and back. And later on he puts up a pailing, so having 3 strong guys will mean nothing, since the pailing never goes away, and you are forced to use magic. And if you dare use Dispel on him, he also puts up a magic pailing, rendering himself near impossible to beat. The only way to have beaten him really fast, is to know what was coming, and rape him before he got his pailing up. Otherwise, it would have been at least a few mins battle, even it it went well, seeing as the first 20 secs are just you watching Darkja happen right off the bat as soon as you enter the room. I never liked using quickenings because to me, they just seem to make the game too easy. I know about other tricks too, but it also just feels cheap, and I'm the kinda person that likes to make a game harder. Sorta like how in FF6, how you can just beat almost any boss/enemy in the game in a single turn with the old vanish/doom or vanish/X-zone trick. I know about it, but I never use it.

I said he's harder than Yiazmat. I didn't say he was HARD to beat. I only died the first two times because I didn't equip the proper things to protect against Darkja. After two failures, I learned from my mistake. Also, I didn't use cheap tactics like quickenings pulled off right before he puts up the pailing.. Or the old I'm the suck so I'll use Decoy, Reverse, Stop trick. Yeah, if you use those, then it's a quick battle. Also, the only way I see you beating that guy in 40 secs is if you are one of those really lamer people who use the dark matter when it was charged all the way up.

Yiazmat is a joke compared to other bosses like Omega Mark XII or Zodiark. Sure, he has a butt-load of HP, but that's all he really has going for him. I was at like level 70 or so when I beat him the first time (Maybe not even that high). Reserves, as usual, were never touched, so they were all really low levels. Zodiark was harder IMO. I think I died like twice before I learned my lesson on him (Level 70ish for him as well on my first time). I never got a game over on Yiazmat. I only left because it got boring over time, and I wanted to play it safe just in-case the power went out or something. I remember the old days of FF optional bosses, where you can get entirely raped in just one turn. Didn't matter if you were max level, max stats, or so on. It was still able to happen. Nowadays, it's just big show bosses that have no real bite in them anymore. OH and uh, the hunt club prizes are worthless, you can easily get all those things elsewhere. And those are all you get. there are 31 rare game hunt club enemies. 1 to start the thing (The turtle), then 30 more to get trophies that you give to Atak Blok or Stok. You get nothing special otherwise. Yeah, what a fun waste of time huh? The worst part is that nothing you get from them is even worth the effort it takes to find those enemies (assuming you are the honorable player who does not use a guide to get answers).

Yeah... I suppose now you actually have to be a decent player to even be able to play the ES. Unless this Volcano song is only a 9 or 8 foot red which we've seen before (Maximizer, Trip Machine Survivor, and more).

Hmm. This new scoring system seems interesting. I'd definitely have a LOT more AAAs this way, seeing as many 8s, and even some 9s I have only 5 or less greats on. I always seem to get one or two greats though. I've only managed to get AAA once so far (I only count heavy and higher, anything below and I don't even consider it worthy of mentioning the score). I can't help but feel that they are dumbing it down now though. I mean I would feel much more proud of a AAA if it was all perfects, than I would if it was like 3 greats. Oh well, it does make sense though. I mean, we all know how much we hate getting a black flag. Hopefully the unlock system will be BETTER this time around. It really sucked in Supernova. I wanna just play songs and unlock as I play. I don't wanna have to do stupid missions and deal with weird stuff to pass.

Well, I finally beat Legend of Max today. So that leaves just two 10 foot songs I have yet to finish. I still had trouble with all the damn jumps, but I was able to do well enough on the rest, that I made it through. I'm betting Fascination MaxX eternal love mix will be the next one I complete, I can come very close, but usually mess up later on when it does the slow down thingies.

Maybe you can repair/rebuild that one single arrow. I've never seen how a cobalt flux is, but I bet that you could do it. I've seen a cobalt flux in use though, and they really warp and bend a lot when people use them. Especially the ones that weigh 180lbs or so(muscle or fat). You should probably consider making a base for your pads, so that they last longer (forever probably if you make one).

You know what I want? An Afranova 10 foot song. That would be awesome. I don't think one exists yet. It would be one mean boss song if it held true to the Afranova tradition of steps. Any idea yet on what songs would be in this mix? Or maybe from the Supernova 2 PS2 release?

The way FF8 worked is kinda funny. If you leveled up to 100 without bothering to boost your stats, then yeah, you probably made the game hard for yourself. If you boosted your stats without leveling up at all, then your game is very insanely easy. If you leveled up to 100, but then boosted stats afterwards, it's still pretty easy, but not as easy as if you left your levels low, but maxed stats. Basically, as you level up, so do all the enemies. So, you probably had a hard time on the final boss because of your levels. Personally, I didn't find it that hard (and I didn't boost my stats yet). I found Omega worse, but I didn't fight him until I was level 100 and still had not boosted my stats at that point.

Pretty much every boss in Twilight Princess was rather underwhelming. Most I beat without even getting hit and that was on the first run though the game. FF10's final boss was a joke. Having to kill your own summons and then well, it's just weird for a boss. Seriously, it's like you are on drugs. It was still a great game though. FF12... Shouldn't even be a final boss. Also, the optional bosses this time were also a huge joke (when compared to previous optional bosses). I didn't even have to level up or anything to beat them (did Yiazmat at about level 69 or so). The only one that seemed to pack a decent punch was Zodiark, but even he isn't so bad once you learn what armor you should wear.

Sadly, the name I chose is one used by others often. I'm surprised I was lucky enough nobody used it when I first registered here.

Hopefully they release an Actual DDR game on the Wii this time. Or, if it is another Mario Mix, they make it harder (pshh, we wish, that'll never happen). I mean, the hardest song in the game (Bowser's Castle), was still quite easy. I'm lucky though, I can just wire a GCN controller into my pad, and then boom, it's Wii/GCN compatible. And I have a spare controller just lying around, so I don't even have to spend any money.

I think you'd have to be a size 13 or 14 to be able to hit two arrows with one foot. I know I can't do that, and I have size 11.5 shoes. Also, my biggest problem, probably from being so heavy as well as tall, is jumps at really fast succession. Or hitting the same arrow over and over like how some of the Paranoias have you do that (luckily it's not enough to screw up my AA). songs like Legend of Max, I just can't do because the jumps are ridiculous. Others like Paranoia Survivor and PSM are easy because the jumps aren't there. There's like only 3 songs I can't do: Legend of Max FaxX Felm I can't do FaxX because it's too fast to understand. I can almost do Felm, but the slow down things mess me up big time. Keep in mind, I don't use the bar, and this is probably what's keeping me from passing them. However, I prefer to stay away from the bar, so if I can't pass them, then so be it. Someday I'll get there.

I'm 6' 1.5", and I weigh 180 pounds (that weight won't be going down either, as it's not fat). And yeah, I noticed that most people who reg DDR seem to be on the short side (no offense). I wonder if it's easier because of that. Maybe somebody can clarify that. It took me I think 2 years to get to where I am now, which feels like it took longer than it should.

I have to travel 30 mins to get to the good DDR machine (Supernova, oh yeah). And only 10 mins to get to the ITG machine, but the people who play there are real jerks, so I avoid it. The arcade is in a bad bad side of town, and like all the punks go there. It's like this strip mall right off the street and they just leave the doors open and the ITG machine is like right there. Terrible. It's nice to go to the supernova machine though, not so many jerks go there. Sad part is, not so many regs go there either.

The arcade I have, hardly has any regulars. I know because my scores are still there and it's been two weeks. And they weren't very good scores either. In a way I guess it's a good thing, because well, sometimes the people who are good at it hog the machine all day, and then when you play they purposely try to mess you up. Though most of the times, when I encountered regulars, they were polite enough and actually wanted to play the game with me. IMO, a good player is one that does not have to harass others because they don't do as good as he/she does. I may be able to AA 9 footers, but I won't go making fun of somebody because they can't.

The way I got my arrow graphics in was I cut TWO pieces of 1/8 inch Lexan (It's cheaper than polycarbonate and just about as strong, the only downside is that it will shatter if the stress limit is broken, but trust me, you'd have to weight 500lbs to do so, or hit it with a hammer). I put the graphic in-between the two pieces of Lexan and left enough space for an edge bordering the entire thing. Then I just used plastic bonding glue and wammo, graphic arrows. Also, it looks like you used the more expensive kind of wood. I simply just bought two big pieces of plywood (total 14 bucks), then some other thin wood for making the arrow wells and the spacing required for the sensors. I used 3 2x4 beams to go underneath the first plywood layer, and then underneath the 2x4s I made a bottom panel that comes off so I could access the wiring. I used terminals to allow the addition of ANY new controller if I plan it. You can actually skip on the sheet metal covering if you want. The only thing YOU Actually need sheet metal for is making the sensors. You also DON'T HAVE to use weather stripping to make the space like some say. And I actually recommend against it. I made a 1/16" Space by just using a thin wood boarder around the well. It made them super sensitive and the off response was very good. Edit: details on how I recommend making the sensors.. First, solder the wire to a piece of sheet metal that will cover the entire bottom surface of the arrow well. Use strong glue (I used gorilla glue) and glue the sucker to the wood. Make sure the arrow well border where the arrow will rest on is only 1/16 inch tall and that it goes in about 1/2 inch or so. Now, solder another piece of sheet metal that will fit just on top of the other one. Same size and everything.. Then, GLUE this sucker to the arrow on top of it.. IF you really are worried about the solder joint coming loose, you can rig a thin strip across one of the well edges and solder to that instead, and just glue a metal piece to the arrow that sticks out over it. IF you are having problems with it warping and the off time being bad, then your metal is too thick, or you are covering up the edges of the well which is why it doesn't want to come back up or go down fast enough. I hope my advice made sense. If you do it right, you will have super super sensitive arrows. Also, make sure you use sand paper in the area you will solder on, It allows for a much better solder joint. Edit again: BTW, you do NOT need any cushions. Yeah, I know it may be hard to believe, but trust me, as long as the border is 1/16 inch and you have gaps to allow air out, you'll be fine. Also, from looking at that picture, it appears you are attempting to do the method where they make the sensors on the edges of the well. I recommend against this method, because it's not as accurate as the sheet metal method. If that's not what those black things are, then I apologize for my assumption. So, if you skip the sheet metal covering (I didn't but I know it would save a good amount of money), you can just use the brackets to hold your arrows in place. I actually skipped the brackets part, because I instead just made a lip border that holds the arrows in place. It also makes it easier in the event something goes wrong, since I have no skrews to undo. Personally, I never used a guide online, I saw them and never trusted them as some of their ideas looked hacky at best. I never looked at the ones you guys just linked though. The absolute most expensive part of the pad may be buying a controller to sacrifice. I just bought some pads that were for both Xbox and PS2 and gutted their controller parts because it was perfect for soldering, and wasn't made of that cheap plastic thing that PS2 official controllers use (Don't make the mistake I did and try to gut those). Those soft pads were like 30 bucks each, and I was willing to do it. You can prolly get the even cheaper kind and gut them and it might be the same way they do the controller. It's probably much easier to solder those than regular controllers. Whatever you do, make sure you plan it out before you go and do it. Make sure you will have the proper tools like a good soldering kit and a good knife to cut the polycarbonate/lexan (that stuff can be a pain to cut, trust me).

You should consider making one man. Really, if you have the will to do it, it's worth it. If I never made my pad, I wouldn't be able to play the songs at the levels I play, because the soft pads are too crappy and the only decent hard pad is a Cobalt Flux and the price is too insane. I built my doubles pad for about 250 dollars. I know it could be done for much less, especially if you were only making a singles pad. My pad cost so much due to the fact that I made it as thick as the arcade pad, so that it would never even flinch from the constant harassment of 10 footers. I've made simfiles of my music. But, I only do it for feet, and most of them suck (including the song as well as the steps). I personally don't like finger stepfiles. They are usually too fast to be any fun. I got maybe 3 songs that would be half ass.. But then again, one cannot really judge their own work, so blah. Also, FFR sucks, it's too glitchy. You are better of downloading it and using Stepmania instead.