Page 1 of 1

Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Fri Aug 19, 2011 9:14 pm
by DarkMistress89
I've been reading about a lot of disparate methods to acquire MIDI files from the game itself like dissection of obscure and esoteric file types, and recording using the in and out port (using either multiple computers or virtual ports) and it seems that there's even supposed to exist programs that can record and/or log MIDI files at an instant.

I was hoping that this would be a great place where a lot of experienced retro musicians and gamers assemble.

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Fri Aug 19, 2011 10:09 pm
by MusicallyInspired
You'd probably find more help about this at Quest Studios or VOGONS.

You can certainly record MIDI data from one computer to another if you have the proper hardware, peripherals, and software. However, the easiest way is probably to just pressing Ctrl+Alt+F8 in DOSBox, which starts and stops recording of raw MIDI commands to a MIDI file.

You can also record raw OPL commands and play them back with AdPlug or something in Winamp which is nice for games that don't have Adlib but no MIDI soundtracks.

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Sat Aug 20, 2011 12:22 pm
by DarkMistress89
I'lll try the DosBox way which I've read about once before.


I guess DosBox records only the games it uses for the moment which is all I demand. DosBox does not record all MIDI sounds from the computer, right?

For an example, let's say I wanted to record MIDI music from a windows game. Although the games I'm thinking of certainly exists in an alternative DOS version I probably could buy somewhere. Well, let's say I would, hypothetically, want to record midi from maybe an earlier releases of KQ2+ or KQ1. What would be most effective?


I'm a musician interested in MIDI composing and enhancing (I guess my life-long adoration of Sierra's games is the sole reason for this) and I love to experiment with MIDI in all ways. That includes enhancing my own and others' compositions and everything else you can do with MIDI.


Also, I would like to add that I recently switched from XP to Windows 7 which has the same restrictions in audio and MIDI setup as I heard Vista had. Does this affect DosBox?

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Sun Aug 21, 2011 5:41 pm
by MusicallyInspired
Correct, the DOSBox method won't work for recording MIDI from a Windows game. You could use a MIDI loopback driver in that instance. Do a Google search to find more information on that. All I know about it is that a loopback driver allows you to record MIDI information being played on the same computer.

And no, Win 7/Vista's restrictions don't affect DOSBox since all the features are self-contained inside the program itself. It doesn't use Windows at all to record the MIDI information as it's all done internally by code, being a virtual machine and all.

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Sun Aug 21, 2011 7:51 pm
by DarkMistress89
At first DosBox wouldn't record anything it just went on saying that it waits for the MIDI data to appear but today it worked without any problems. Yesterday it just wouldn't work and I even tried assigning DosBox to a virtual MIDI port which I tried to record using other MIDI programs.

Today both worked just like that so I can use DosBox for DOS games and I will continue to experiment with the virtual ports and the shareware I've installed for other games but it's kinda hard when Windows games generally tend to peremptorily adapt to Windows' MIDI setup who in these new systems give you no alternatives.

In DosBox it was very easy assigning it to virtual MIDI ports. I even tried my Yamaha keyboard and it worked so great I'm considering using it plugged into my amplifier or my computer's speakers whenever I play since the sound is so much better than the tedious Microsoft GS Wavetable Synth. I guess it would be most appropriate to use the PC speakers since the wave sounds will use those.

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Mon Aug 22, 2011 5:54 am
by MusicallyInspired
There is a homemade application out there that will allow you to choose the default MIDI driver for Vista and Win7. Can't remember the name.

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Mon Aug 22, 2011 6:23 am
by Collector
Keep in mind that not every thin in DOS games is necessarily MIDI. Usually it is, but sometimes it may be digital sounds. Early CD games often used Redbook CD audio tracks. Loom is one of the more famous examples of this. MI, the utility you were thinking of is probably this:

http://www.sierrahelp.com/Utilities/Sou ... apper.html

One of the Munt driver installers that I made also installs Putzlowitsch's if it detects Vista/Win7.

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Mon Aug 22, 2011 8:34 am
by DarkMistress89
I've tried several MIDI mappers for Vista that's supposed to work for Win7 but doesn't, and I'm not alone.


Also I would like to add that there are some games the recording still won't work on. I.e. it worked for the CD version of Shadows of Darkness but not the floppy.

I wonder why. Maybe it could come down to an issue of coding and archiving of the MIDI files?

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Mon Aug 22, 2011 4:30 pm
by MusicallyInspired
MIDI data is MIDI data. If it's MIDI DOSBox will output it. Remember that Adlib/Sound Blaster music is NOT MIDI, even though the source file inside the game might be MIDI. Each game must be set up to output MIDI (usually this means setting the music option in the game installation/setup to "General MIDI") outside of DOSBox instead of DOSBox emulating the sound (like Adlib/Sound Blaster or digital music). And that utility that Collector posted does work in Win7. It's worked for me.

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Mon Aug 22, 2011 9:19 pm
by Collector
One of the problems of Putzlowitsch's on Vista is that if you have 64-bit Windows it does not appear in the main control panel. On Vista 64 there is a 32-bit control panel as well, which is where you will find it. On Win7 the 32-bit control panel applets are in the main panel with all of the 64-bit applets.

Now if someone were to make a replacement for the Win7 system audio mixer that let you set different volume levels for wav and MIDI...

Re: Best way to extract/record MIDI from DOS game?

Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2012 4:30 pm
by StefPhoenix
Thank you for the link to the MIDI Mapper. Now I don't have to start up my old computer every time I want to record MIDI from a Windows game when I can't seem to be able to extract the original MIDI files.

I've been wanting to extract the all midi files of Star Trek: Judgement Rites since being such a large game, recording them would be very, very time-consuming. Has anyone had any experiences with Interplay games or other non-Sierra games?

With Sierra games, I've always had SCI Viewer and most of the other games I've extracted music from are Windows games which to my experience, are much more simple in comparison. After a while you find a way to enter or at least rip some file types from the archive and after that you mostly just have to convert the format from XMI to MIDI.

But with this Star Trek game, I cannot even locate the files. So far, I've only been able to rip dialogue and sound effects.