MAKING BEEP MUSIC

Making music from the Spectrum BEEP command seemed almost impossible a short time ago but now PDQ Software has a package called Spectsound which will turn the computer into a mini electronic organ.

The package, for the 48K Spectrum, contains a cassette, an instruction booklet, and a keyboard overlay. The overlay shows the notes which can be generated; the keys to switch to an octave higher or lower; and operation keys to generate random notes; delete notes; change the duration of a note; delete the whole tune in memory and play the tune so far in memory. The sound from the Spectrum is not amplified in any way using the package but the introductory booklet provides the user with ideas how to increase the output.

It is possible to store tunes and to load them back into the Spectrum. It is also possible to display the numbers which correspond to the BEEP statements necessary to construct the tune in a separate program.

Spectsound is excellent value at £5.95. It can be obtained from PDQ Software, Parsley Rye, Hilders Lane, Edenbridge, Kent, TN8 6JU.

Memory: 16K
Price: £6.95

Spectsound for the 16K Spectrum was written in 1982 and shows remarkably how much Spectrum programming has advanced since then. Once loaded, you have to RUN the program and, worse still, you have to break into it to save or load a tune. As a bonus, if you enter GOTO 45 instead of RUN and then press the B key you are treated to an inaccurate rendition of Hava-Nagila.

The program is not simple to use, the instructions not being clear.

The keys are very slow to react when you are playing and as the only on-screen representation of the notes is their code numbers, you can lose track of your tune quickly. When playing back a tune, you have the option of seeing the code numbers and duration of the notes but that display does not scroll itself automatically.

When the program was first written it may have been useful; it no longer seems to be. It can be obtained from PDQ Software.

HOW TO CHANGE YOUR TUNE

If you've tired of the Spectrum music program published in this issue then you could always try Spectsound.

AS far as producing sounds goes, the programs are very similar. The middle row of the keyboard can be played like an organ, while two other keys are used to shift the octave up or down.

It's unfortunate that the Spectrum's sound capability is so limited without adding extra hardware. This program is written in Basic and the only sound possible is produced by the Beep command. It's possible to make different sound effects by using machine code subroutines in the program, but for some reason they're not included here.

Potentially the most exciting part of this program is the facility to record and edit tunes in the computer's memory and to play them back or store them to cassette. However, a limit of the machine's sound generator is that the program can only play one note at a time.

Recording is not done in what's known as real time. This means that you can enter notes only into the memory and not the timing. If you want pauses or long notes than you'll need to enter rests as well. This does have the advantage, though, of allowing you to play slowly and then play back at a normal speed.

The keyboard does not function as a true organ, with respect to the way notes are produced. What should happen ideally is that the sound is produced for as long as you have your finger on the key, and stops when you take your finger off. Doing this on a Spectrum is difficult. In fact in Basic it's impossible.

So what the company has done is to provide notes of a fixed length. You then use two keys to either raise or lower this value. This will also vary the playback speed. This system is exactly as used in the Spectraphone listing in this issue of C&VG.

C&VG produce a monthly magazine that not only includes a game for most home micros but which is packed full of articles and reviews. It seems incredible that a software company could charge over £6.00 just to buy a magazine quality program! Lucky you - you've already purchased this magazine!

If you'd like to compare the two for yourself, Spectsound is from PDQ software in Kent.