3 ms·

Was too poor to have a GameBoy and don't really remember what they sounded like. It's been 30 years since I've touched one. NES sound was pretty bad, honestly.

by oblak 5y ago

Was too poor to have a GameBoy and don't really remember what they sounded like. It's been 30 years since I've touched one. NES sound was pretty bad, honestly. Yes, I love the handful of Dr. Mario tunes but there were like 64 samples or something. Not bad but nowhere near the actual techno tunes from Streets of Rage 2/3. Can't remember if the legend was SNES had the better audio than Mega Drive. I certainly don't remember things being this way.

flobosg 5y ago
> Can't remember if the legend was SNES had the better audio than Mega Drive. I certainly don't remember things being this way. While the soundchip of the SNES is technically superior (sample-based versus the Mega Drive’s FM synthesis), some people prefer the sound of the Sega console. Personally I lean towards the SNES, but some Mega Drive games (like the Streets of Rage examples you mentioned) can have real bangers. In the end it’s a matter of taste.
- hammyhavoc 5y ago
  I'm YM2612 'til dirtnap.
ninjin 5y ago
> NES sound was pretty bad, honestly. “Pretty bad”, I will have to disagree greatly with you there. Yes, there is plenty of awful music composed for the NES sound chip, but the same goes for the SID, YM2612, etc. As with any instrument, you need talent. For heaven’s sake, what about Takashi Tateishi’s amazing soundtrack for Mega Man 2? As an example, here is the Woodman stage theme [1]. [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDC4X8Dgxr4&t=477s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDC4X8Dgxr4&t=477s Admittedly the Japanese release of Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse was helped by the addition of the VRC6 chip when it comes to sound, but the depth of the notes is astonishing [2]. [2]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqyoTvZ5cOE&t=2050s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqyoTvZ5cOE&t=2050s Let us head west then, what about Jeroen Tel’s Overlord theme for the NES? [3] Or what many consider some of the best sound ever extracted from the NES: Tim Follin’s work for Silver Surfer [4]. [3]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5vccpl9hd8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5vccpl9hd8 [4]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQlLl2j5THQ&t=231s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQlLl2j5THQ&t=231s Heck, the NES sound chip brings us great tunes to this day. Listen for example to Rainbowdragoneyes’s first half of the soundtrack for The Messenger (2018) [5]. Track 8, “Bamboo Boogaloo (Bamboo Creek)”, never fails to put a smile on my face. [5]: https://rainbowdragoneyes.bandcamp.com/album/the-messenger-original-soundtrack-disc-i-the-past https://rainbowdragoneyes.bandcamp.com/album/the-messenger-o... Yes, the Mega Drive sound is great (despite some finding it having a bit too much “twang”). Personally, I really like the Battletoads soundtrack on the Mega Drive [6]. However, using the word “bad” anywhere in a sentence with the NES sound chip is not something I can stand hearing without speaking up – it is objectively wrong. [6]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdHsKEv87rY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdHsKEv87rY
- oblak 5y ago
  Fair enough. I really wanted to say that even with a tiny amount of instruments, it's still possible to great music but couldn't figure out how to put it nicely. Mega Man did have some impressive tunes, that's true.

by oblak 5y ago

flobosg 5y ago

> Can't remember if the legend was SNES had the better audio than Mega Drive. I certainly don't remember things being this way. While the soundchip of the SNES is technically superior (sample-based versus the Mega Drive’s FM synthesis), some people prefer the sound of the Sega console. Personally I lean towards the SNES, but some Mega Drive games (like the Streets of Rage examples you mentioned) can have real bangers. In the end it’s a matter of taste.

hammyhavoc 5y ago
I'm YM2612 'til dirtnap.

ninjin 5y ago

> NES sound was pretty bad, honestly. “Pretty bad”, I will have to disagree greatly with you there. Yes, there is plenty of awful music composed for the NES sound chip, but the same goes for the SID, YM2612, etc. As with any instrument, you need talent. For heaven’s sake, what about Takashi Tateishi’s amazing soundtrack for Mega Man 2? As an example, here is the Woodman stage theme [1]. [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDC4X8Dgxr4&t=477s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDC4X8Dgxr4&t=477s Admittedly the Japanese release of Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse was helped by the addition of the VRC6 chip when it comes to sound, but the depth of the notes is astonishing [2]. [2]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqyoTvZ5cOE&t=2050s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqyoTvZ5cOE&t=2050s Let us head west then, what about Jeroen Tel’s Overlord theme for the NES? [3] Or what many consider some of the best sound ever extracted from the NES: Tim Follin’s work for Silver Surfer [4]. [3]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5vccpl9hd8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5vccpl9hd8 [4]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQlLl2j5THQ&t=231s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQlLl2j5THQ&t=231s Heck, the NES sound chip brings us great tunes to this day. Listen for example to Rainbowdragoneyes’s first half of the soundtrack for The Messenger (2018) [5]. Track 8, “Bamboo Boogaloo (Bamboo Creek)”, never fails to put a smile on my face. [5]: https://rainbowdragoneyes.bandcamp.com/album/the-messenger-original-soundtrack-disc-i-the-past https://rainbowdragoneyes.bandcamp.com/album/the-messenger-o... Yes, the Mega Drive sound is great (despite some finding it having a bit too much “twang”). Personally, I really like the Battletoads soundtrack on the Mega Drive [6]. However, using the word “bad” anywhere in a sentence with the NES sound chip is not something I can stand hearing without speaking up – it is objectively wrong. [6]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdHsKEv87rY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdHsKEv87rY

oblak 5y ago
Fair enough. I really wanted to say that even with a tiny amount of instruments, it's still possible to great music but couldn't figure out how to put it nicely. Mega Man did have some impressive tunes, that's true.