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Making SMAF MA2 vs. MA7?

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nine-times
2007-12-05
2013-04-15
  • nine-times

    nine-times - 2007-12-05

    Retrocode supports MA2, MA3, MA5, and MA7, but I don't see anywhere in the documentation showing how to make the different formats.  How do you tell it which kind of SMAF you want?

     
    • Till Toenshoff

      Till Toenshoff - 2007-12-06

      The generated SMAF compatibility mostly depends on the sample format you want to encode. But also on the chosen encoding. Streaming samples e.g. are not supported by MA2. Additionally, there is a special attribute within SMAF files, the PRO-tag - once that is included in a SMAF file, only MA5 and MA7 support it.

      The sample frequency levels for the SMAF compatibility follows...

      For stereo:
      <= 12khz is MA5
      > 12khz is MA7

      For mono:
      == 4kHz, 8kHz MA2
      <= 16kHz MA3
      <= 24kHz MA5
      > 24kHz MA7

      Please note that RetroCode's SMAF encoding for stereo samples is currently broken.

       
      • nine-times

        nine-times - 2007-12-06

        I know that higher sampling rates are precluded by using a the lower MA number, like you can't make a 24kHz MA2.  However, I believe you can make an MA5 with a sampling rate of 8kHz.  At least that appears to be the case with Yamaha Wave Sound Decorator.

        So is there a way to specify in command line which kind of SMAF you want?

        This also brings up another question for me: is there a table available that would show what sampling rates and bitrates are possible for which formats in retrocode?  I haven't been able to make an AWB because no matter what kind of WAV I feed it, it seems to think the sampling rate is wrong.

        Thanks for the help.

         
    • Till Toenshoff

      Till Toenshoff - 2007-12-08

      Re SMAF Format choice:
      There is currently no general way of explicitely specifiying the SMAF subformat within RetroCode when encoding. As described above, RetroCode does that choice implicitely. I am actually not sure if that is possible with ANY tool that generates SMAF files. Could you please supply SMAF examples? The optimum would be a MA2, MA3, MA5 and a MA7 compatible MMF that use a sampled sound with the very same attributes. Small and simple examples are preferred.
      For supplying the files, please use the Feature Request Tracker at https://sourceforge.net/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=1846922&group_id=209634&atid=1010504.

      Re Sample frequency and bitrate table:
      That actually was something i always planned but never did (assigned a low priority to it). Now that you remind me, I think that really would be helpful, hence it will somehow be part of the next release.

       
    • Till Toenshoff

      Till Toenshoff - 2008-08-09

      Here is to conclude the format specific SMAF conversion....

      RetroCode has been enhanced with the "did / deviceid"-parameter. That parameter renders a device specific message targeting a specific Yamaha SMAF chip model. Within a SMAF file, a few system exclusive messages are used - that means it contains device specific data marked by a device identifier. Set implicitely by the attributes of the input sample format when 0=Auto is used. 1*=MA2 (YMU786), 2=MA3 (YMU762), 3=MA5 (YMU765), 4=MA7 (YMU786). Valid only when the streaming sample format has been selected (stream/ss).
      (*) Do not use for MA2 as streaming samples dont work on MA2 devices.

       

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