Difference between revisions of "MUS (DMX)"

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'''''Music (MUS)''''' is a music format created by Paul Radek for his DMX audio library. This library is best known for powering the audio in [[Doom (DOS)]] and related games. The data is almost identical to standard [[MIDI]], but with the bytes arranged in a very different and much more space-efficient structure. It can only play one track of audio instructions, but across 16 channels with multiple notes per channel. The format was used in all of the Doom-derivative games through the mid 1990s.
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'''''Music (MUS)''''' is a music format created by Paul Radek for his [[DMX (Driver)|DMX audio library]]. This library is best known for powering the audio in [[Doom (DOS)]] and related games. The data is almost identical to standard [[MIDI]], but with the bytes arranged in a very different and much more space-efficient structure. It can only play one track of audio instructions, but across 16 channels with multiple notes per channel. The format was used in all of the Doom-derivative games through the mid 1990s.
  
 
To create MUS files, John Romero created a tool called IMUSE (not to be confused with LucasArts iMUSE) that would convert MIDI files in to MUS files, and could also convert digital sound effects into MIDI or PC Speaker equivalents.
 
To create MUS files, John Romero created a tool called IMUSE (not to be confused with LucasArts iMUSE) that would convert MIDI files in to MUS files, and could also convert digital sound effects into MIDI or PC Speaker equivalents.

Revision as of 17:50, 6 February 2015

Music
MUS (DMX).png
Developer: Paul Radek
Header: Custom
Content: Notational
Instruments: External
Target Output
Output - Digital Audio - No.png Output - MIDI.png Output - FM Synthesis.png Output - PSG - No.png
Released: 1993-12-10
First Game: Doom (DOS)
Extensions
  • *.mus

Music (MUS) is a music format created by Paul Radek for his DMX audio library. This library is best known for powering the audio in Doom (DOS) and related games. The data is almost identical to standard MIDI, but with the bytes arranged in a very different and much more space-efficient structure. It can only play one track of audio instructions, but across 16 channels with multiple notes per channel. The format was used in all of the Doom-derivative games through the mid 1990s.

To create MUS files, John Romero created a tool called IMUSE (not to be confused with LucasArts iMUSE) that would convert MIDI files in to MUS files, and could also convert digital sound effects into MIDI or PC Speaker equivalents.


Players

(Category)


Converters

(Category)

MUS to ?

? to MUS


Games

(Category)


Released

Title

Sample

1993-12-10 Doom (DOS)
1994-04-01 Raptor: Call of the Shadows (DOS)
1994-10-10 Doom II: Hell On Earth (DOS)
1994-12-23 Heretic: Shadow of the Serpent Riders (DOS)
1995-09-30 Hexen: Beyond Heretic (DOS)
1996-05-15 Strife (DOS)
1996-05-31 Final Doom (DOS)
1996-??-?? Chex Quest (DOS)
1996-??-?? Chex Quest 2 (DOS)


Technical

Vladimir Arnost has written up the specs of the MUS format, the text file is encoded in Unicode.

The MUS format's timing is based on ticks, but the length of a tick is not stored in the file. This means you must know beforehand how long a tick is in order play the song at the proper tempo. All games using the Doom engine and its derivatives should be played at 140 Hz. The only game to use a different playback rate is Raptor: Call of the Shadow which is 70 Hz. Since Raptor is the one-off, most MUS players are hard-coded to playback at 140 Hz, making playback of Raptor's music (or songs eith custom timing) inaccurate.


Links