"Play/Test/Judge my simfile" thread V2

[rCaliberGX]

Song: This Will Be the Day
Artist: Jeff & Casey Lee Williams
Difficulty: 12, 9 NPS
Style: 4k
Notes:
-Yay RWBY OP.
-Low 12/high 11 IMO
-May or may not suffer from Ossa Syndrome
-Need help on how to break the monotone 8th jumpstream, but no discernable sounds to put arrows to

Link: http://www.mediafire.com/download/63...liberGX%29.rar

[rCaliberGX]

Oh cool double post

Song: Forbidden Tracks
Artist: The Flashberb
Difficulty: 13 (actually high 12), 9 NPS
Style:4k
Notes:
-The whole file is basically an experiment in layering/patterning techniques, so comments on these are much appreciated
-Final check before single release
-Mollo is awesome
-His graphics are too

Link: http://www.mediafire.com/download/fd...CaliberGX).rar

[ilikexd]

^ pretty cool overall, seems fairly well done

i would very very strongly recommending stepping a 320 kbps mp3 because it will really help you make out some of the complicated fast drum rhythms better (unless you did already and then cut it which is why it's 128 kbps). if you didnt a lot of these sections will probably be at least slightly off as they are very complex.

the guitar is basically exactly 16ths so stepping them off by 192nd/96th makes it sound off on quite a few notes, but if you want to step them on 192nd intervals, for example 3.788 and 4.704 left arrows should actually 1/96th earlier (this one is very distinct) and in general just recheck the placement on these notes

50.358s 32nd usage here is really suspect, might want to recheck what's going on here. i've stepped this before and listening to the high quality mp3 i dont think thats whats going on here. only this really stood out to me; looking through the whole file somewhat quickly i didnt really see anything that sounded far off.

by the way fantastic graphics this is exactly what goes through my head when i listen to it (and i've listened to it a lot)

[Mollocephalus]

Tested the file, i'm glad i made gfx for it cause outside some small things it's really cool!

First of all, it seems to me that you are now experimenting with layering by being very rigid about it (not using much variation in patterns or switching to more natural combinations to help flow it better) but at this speed and density it's barely an issue. I like how you synced with color notes and the only real mistake is during one of the most intense moments - i think you may have missed a couple drum kicks or some other beats. My main remark is how at the end, with the song getting more intense as the guitar begins to follow the melody, you left the chart structure completely unchanged. It feels lackuster and i wouldn't have minded more jumps in the end to accent that. Overall a solid file and something i'd definitely play again, especially with some slight changes and a final revision.

EDIT: if the guitar is just 16ths then i'd rather have you step it as 16ths instead of 192s :P

Score:

[rCaliberGX]

Originally Posted by ilikexd

^ pretty cool overall, seems fairly well done

i would very very strongly recommending stepping a 320 kbps mp3 because it will really help you make out some of the complicated fast drum rhythms better (unless you did already and then cut it which is why it's 128 kbps). if you didnt a lot of these sections will probably be at least slightly off as they are very complex.

Yeah I cut it in Audacity since the ending leads to the next song and cuts off abruptly, and also has no sounds that make it necessary to extend it for the whole song. Also cut since this was originally an FFR submission, hence the holds not being perfectly pitch relevant. The original MP3 I used was 256kbps which I got off iTunes, though. Would people mind if the steps cut off from the end and the song ends abruptly like in the original?

At 39.670 and 40.281, there are 32nd rolls on the toms but I left those out since most people wouldn't notice.

the guitar is basically exactly 16ths so stepping them off by 192nd/96th makes it sound off on quite a few notes, but if you want to step them on 192nd intervals, for example 3.788 and 4.704 left arrows should actually 1/96th earlier (this one is very distinct) and in general just recheck the placement on these notes

Actually, the guitar 16ths that are off by a 192nd are to indicate a string slide. I could actually fix those so they go exact so they still set themselves apart from the quantized 16ths, though.

50.358s 32nd usage here is really suspect, might want to recheck what's going on here. i've stepped this before and listening to the high quality mp3 i dont think thats whats going on here. only this really stood out to me; looking through the whole file somewhat quickly i didnt really see anything that sounded far off.

Hmm, after changing the audio file to the original 256 kbps version, it doesn't actually sound that much different (though the overall sound quality is raised). If the snare hits weren't there, I would have made the 32nds a roll, but I was limited by the jumps being there. I removed the 32nds between the snare jumps

by the way fantastic graphics this is exactly what goes through my head when i listen to it (and i've listened to it a lot)

That was my reaction when Mollo sent me the gfx too lol

Originally Posted by Mollocephalus

Tested the file, i'm glad i made gfx for it cause outside some small things it's really cool!

First of all, it seems to me that you are now experimenting with layering by being very rigid about it (not using much variation in patterns or switching to more natural combinations to help flow it better) but at this speed and density it's barely an issue.

Yeah, this was just what came out me experimenting with width theory (snare has no width, kick has 1 arrow width, misc. drums have 2 arrow width) but as you said, it doesn't really make the file a ton harder because of the speed.

I like how you synced with color notes and the only real mistake is during one of the most intense moments - i think you may have missed a couple drum kicks or some other beats. My main remark is how at the end, with the song getting more intense as the guitar begins to follow the melody, you left the chart structure completely unchanged. It feels lackuster and i wouldn't have minded more jumps in the end to accent that. Overall a solid file and something i'd definitely play again, especially with some slight changes and a final revision.

Are you talking about the short jumpstream near the end? If so, yes I left out some drums to accent there, mostly because having a dense jumpstream is a bit of a difficulty spike, but I see what you're saying about the intensity of the music. I agree the patterns need to be changed in the jumpstream though, it's basically 196 BPM 16ths.

Score:

Ha, nice score. My best is a 4 great FC.

[Mollocephalus]

Originally Posted by rCaliberGX

Are you talking about the short jumpstream near the end? If so, yes I left out some drums to accent there, mostly because having a dense jumpstream is a bit of a difficulty spike, but I see what you're saying about the intensity of the music. I agree the patterns need to be changed in the jumpstream though, it's basically 196 BPM 16ths.

from 1.30 to 2.08

this section feels really empty while the guitar makes the sound deeper and richer, in fact at 2.08 it sounds suddenly a lot more calm than before, basically i would add more jumps in the mentioned section to accent that the song is at its climax.

[rCaliberGX]

Originally Posted by Mollocephalus

from 1.30 to 2.08

this section feels really empty while the guitar makes the sound deeper and richer, in fact at 2.08 it sounds suddenly a lot more calm than before, basically i would add more jumps in the mentioned section to accent that the song is at its climax.

Ah, I see. I added jumps to the toms also, instead of just the kick drum.

[rCaliberGX]

Uploaded the v2 here.

edit: how do you fix the preview audio being offsync? Changing the time it starts doesn't do anything until it's changed over 1 second, but then it jumps after 3 seconds forward.

[Mollocephalus]

If you change preview you should make sure to make a new folder name or clear cache before the changes are effective, i think. Let me have a look.

[rCaliberGX]

Originally Posted by Mollocephalus

If you change preview you should make sure to make a new folder name or clear cache before the changes are effective, i think. Let me have a look.

Hmm, that didn't fix it. It's about a 32nd early, and I can't change the actual time it starts without going too far. This has happened before on other files, but the interval was usually large enough that I could shift the preview time and get a decent result.

[ilikexd]

Song: Hirofumi Sasaki - The Least 300sec
Difficulty: 10 NPS
Length: 1:35
Style: 4key
http://www.mediafire.com/download/ow...ast_100sec.zip

i know it's been stepped before, but i think the files i've seen for this song have been pretty insufficient
i hurt my hands and haven't been able to play sm for a while so i've been making lots of files..unfortunately i can't play any of them for now so i'm interested in knowing how this feel to play

[mi40]

watch and judge PLS

http://www.twitch.tv/ssx_f/b/461013876?t=23m48s

[TheSilentLord]

Song: Pioneer
Artist: AKB48
Genre: JPop
Difficulty: 7.8 NPS --> 8 or so
Length: 2:29
Speed: 162 BPM
Style: 4key

I'd be thankful if someone could take a look at this file, and give me some comments on it. The file is mostly a mix of JS and normal stream.

DL: www.mediafire.com/download/l97r7gl61av4xc9/

[Wafles]

I'm gonna be fairly harsh because circlejerking about how good our files are doesn't really help anyone or anything. I'll plan on being as critical as I intend to be for Yolomanai Vol. 2 when I start accepting submissions for that.

Originally Posted by ilikexd

Song: Hirofumi Sasaki - The Least 300sec
Difficulty: 10 NPS
Length: 1:35
Style: 4key
http://www.mediafire.com/download/ow...ast_100sec.zip

i know it's been stepped before, but i think the files i've seen for this song have been pretty insufficient
i hurt my hands and haven't been able to play sm for a while so i've been making lots of files..unfortunately i can't play any of them for now so i'm interested in knowing how this feel to play

This file really has been stepped a little too much, as to be expected from a decently fast DDR song. I like your approach for the most part. There are a couple jacks that I don't necessarily agree with, and the 260bpm speedup isn't really justified. Beyond that I had a lot of fun playing this file, definitely more enjoyable than the other Least 100 Seconds files I've played.

Compared to the ones in Dark Chancellors and FFRCP4 I think you did a more accurate and smart job about syncing the file. From what I can tell both of the previous "good" versions of this song use the exact same syncing which abused pauses/stops while they shouldn't have. I also think your steps are a LOT more fun. You stepped the solo near perfectly. Honestly if you redid the 260bpm section a little bit to make it a little more fitting this file would be almost perfect.

Difficulty wise its not quite difficult enough for me to really enjoy playing it too much, I feel like I'd go for the AAA and probably not play it much afterwards, but for newer and more amateur players this file would offer a lot of fun and some solid replay value.

Originally Posted by TheSilentLord

Song: Pioneer
Artist: AKB48
Genre: JPop
Difficulty: 7.8 NPS --> 8 or so
Length: 2:29
Speed: 162 BPM
Style: 4key

I'd be thankful if someone could take a look at this file, and give me some comments on it. The file is mostly a mix of JS and normal stream.

DL: www.mediafire.com/download/l97r7gl61av4xc9/

First of all, there is no Jumpstream in this file to speak of, so I was a little mislead going into this. To clarify before I start I always review files by first opening them in Ddream, checking the sync and watching it scroll by, and then I play it before developing any final opinions on it.

This file was actually kind of fun, which I didn't expect considering how easy it is. I wouldn't replay it (mostly because of song choice and the fact that I got like 2 greats FC on sightread), but amateur players would definitely enjoy this file.

The main complaint I'm going to forward is that you stepped this like an index file but labeled it for 4key. There isn't a single hand in the whole file that I could remember, and the streams used really index based anchor patterns/trills.

The patterns are overall pretty solid, but a little too basic for most people to get a lot of replay value. Then there's the issue about layering being completely inconsistent across the board. You took some parts and added jumps to the vocals, only to completely throw it out the window a few bars later because some 16ths came in. Overall it didn't really feel like I was playing the song because there were so many pattern mismatches.

The guitar solo is the biggest blunder of this file. Your hold lengths make no sense and don't really add anything to the section. It is also severely mischarted: some of the rythms are pretty incorrect.




Hopefully this feedback helps (both of you). I had some free time this morning and decided to do this.

[TheSilentLord]

Originally Posted by Wafles

First of all, there is no Jumpstream in this file to speak of, so I was a little mislead going into this. To clarify before I start I always review files by first opening them in Ddream, checking the sync and watching it scroll by, and then I play it before developing any final opinions on it.

This file was actually kind of fun, which I didn't expect considering how easy it is. I wouldn't replay it (mostly because of song choice and the fact that I got like 2 greats FC on sightread), but amateur players would definitely enjoy this file.

The main complaint I'm going to forward is that you stepped this like an index file but labeled it for 4key. There isn't a single hand in the whole file that I could remember, and the streams used really index based anchor patterns/trills.

The patterns are overall pretty solid, but a little too basic for most people to get a lot of replay value. Then there's the issue about layering being completely inconsistent across the board. You took some parts and added jumps to the vocals, only to completely throw it out the window a few bars later because some 16ths came in. Overall it didn't really feel like I was playing the song because there were so many pattern mismatches.

The guitar solo is the biggest blunder of this file. Your hold lengths make no sense and don't really add anything to the section. It is also severely mischarted: some of the rythms are pretty incorrect.

First of all, thanks for your feedback. It's much appreciated.

Actually you are right about the JS thing. I don't know why i wrote it there. Just wanted to say something about it and failed, I guess.

My goal was to make an easier file which you could play with different styles. I'm an one-handed player (never got into spread, I feel it's pretty fun how you have to change the place of your fingers while only using one hand, that feels much more dynamic than spread) and not that good at the game so obviously this affects my pattern selection a lot. I think I put 4key out there because I'm not even sure about the right terms, to me 4key just means a keyboard player.

I knew that the layering would probably be criticized here. At first I had jumps on all the vocals but that ended up with patterns that were awkward to hit for me at this bpm:

1 x 3 x
x 2 x x (just an example)
x x 3 4

A better player wouldn't maybe have thought that there was anything wrong here. But I wanted it easier so what did I do? I just removed the jumps at 8ths. Now it flows better (for me) when i play it but is indeed inconsistent. Maybe I should take a step towards pad files and remove the jumps altogether? (most pad files dont use that much jumps)

By guitar solo I think you mean the one 60-70% into the file? Or do you mean both it and the one in the beginning/end? The hold lengths are always the same (one 48th) and only used to highlight the instrument (the drums don't have holds in this part). In the middle part the guitar didn't really go in rhythm at all points and when the sound "slides" from a note to another it's sometimes hard to point out where the transition exactly happens and where i should place the arrow. Any tips on how to chart a guitar solo like this better?


Thanks for your feedback anyway!

[Wafles]

Originally Posted by TheSilentLord

Any tips on how to chart a guitar solo like this better?

Pay more attention to the rythms and use accurate holds. 48th holds don't do anything other than give it a visual layering cue. Real holds create a more dynamic experience.

[beary605]

Song: I UPDATED MY F-LIST by Renard
(Genre: Breakcore)
Length: 3:11 (191 secs), Style: 4-key
Difficulty: maybe 75-76? on FFR scales (166 BPM, very technical)

planning to have this in FFR, so if there's any holds or mines (somehow) then chastise me on it

Main patterns in the file: 12th jacks/jumpgluts, 16th minijacks/jumpgluts, 24th/16th polyrhythmic bursts... would like some opinions on the patterns, if they are too awkward... a little awkward is OK

Here is the file (version 2)
Here is the file submitted to FFR

[RARAWR]

Song: HELLO GENTLEMEN (Maniacal Laughter Cut) by The Sapphire Dragon
Genre: J-Core
Length: 207 Seconds (3:27)
Style: 4-Key, Spread (Made with Up-scroll in mind, down-scroll will likely find it best to use mirror)
Difficulty: 65-70 on the FFR scale if I had to guess. 146BPM

Cut this song down to size and added a few changes to help with the progression and overall play.
Full of Jump streams, jump gluts, grace hands, streams, and two walls of rolls.

The File:HELLO GENTLEMEN (Maniacal Laughter Cut)

[Callipygian]

Song: A Fifth of Beethoven by Walter Murphy
Genre: Disco
Length: 183 seconds (3:03)
Style: 4-Key, Spread
Difficulty: FMO with some tricky trills

File: https://www.sugarsync.com/pf/D6323119_68994684_6631883"

EDIT: If the .rar doesn't open, try the following links for the audio and .sm file:
https://www.sugarsync.com/pf/D6323119_68994684_6631859
https://www.sugarsync.com/pf/D6323119_68994684_6631851

I just downloaded ddreamstudio yesterday and this is my first attempt at makeing a simfile. As such, I'm pretty sure it has tons of stuff that can be improved. In fact, I was thinking about changing a few patterns, but cannot seem to open the .ds or .sm file anymore in ddreamstudio (it says it cannot find a proper audio file, even though it's right there in the same folder...stepmania has no problem with it and I could play the song there).

Some jack theory, use of mini-freezes, some fast trills, a few hold sections. Except for the trills, it's not a very hard file. Single BPM didn't work well, so I tapped and then adjusted to the wave form, which is why virtually every measure has slightly different BPM.

Looking forward to some much needed feedback. Thanks!

[Xiz]

Yeah I got bored so I did this.

Originally Posted by beary605

Song: I UPDATED MY F-LIST by Renard
(Genre: Breakcore)
Length: 3:11 (191 secs), Style: 4-key
Difficulty: maybe 75-76? on FFR scales (166 BPM, very technical)

I UPDATED MY F-LIST (Beary605)

15.943 - Perhaps add a grace note 'round here
25.394 - Please no quad here. Make it a hand
26.109 - You know, I really fucking hate renard files, but this section here was actually really fun. Nicely stepped.
51.230 - Missing jump
53.579 - Missing jump
54.844 - Missing jump
58.459 - ^
59.543 - ^ (Yeah there seems to be a pattern here. Re-check this section. A lot of them happen on the 8th notes but I'm noticing some on 4th notes also.
72.374 / 73.097 / 73.820- I dunno 'bout you but I rather see these 4th notes as jumps. Would match the music better imo.
78.157 - Same as above
79.724 - The 12th notes here repeat, so imo make it 34/34 or something, then swap 79.965 to 12 or something to compensate.
80.085 - Same here
80.507 - Missing note
80.688 - Step this measure
81.772 - Keep these hands if you want to put a hand at the beginning of this section. Add them accordingly where needed. Otherwise, take out the hands. (But I wouldn't, since you have been doing it for the whole song already)
82.856 - Ew. I dunno I don't like this section for some reason. Sadly I don't really have any recommendations…. this isn't a helpful comment is it? lol…
85.929 - PR would go good here, Try making it a defending hand pattern?
86.471 - An upward roll would be good here matching the string section, since you did that in the beginning.
90.447 - See 72.374
91.169 - See 79.724
92.073 - Missing note
92.254 - Step this measure. Okay it's getting obvious you did a cut 'n paste to fill this in, and perhaps did something like a mirror. Make sure you don't forget to re-check everything when doing that
92.615 - Same as what i said above, you know the drill.
95.507 - This section is really fun, but make sure you PR it to match the rest of your file. You are missing jumps and notes everywhere. Quite sloppy here.
101.290 - This isn't stepped right. Recheck this.
112.495 - You are missing that jack thingy you always do here.
114.302 - I am in LOVE with this pattern. Others will probably disagree though lmfao
120.086 - Missing note around here
122.977 - Same here
123.700 - And here
125.860 - aaannd heeerreee
128.670 - You get the idea, there is one more after
130.929 - You know I'd like to see hands used in this section. It would work. Up to you.
141.773 - I don't really have much to say about this whole section besides that I think you don't need to turn it into a dump like this. Take out a lot of the unnecessary 16th notes imo… but once again it's up to you. It seems kinda cluttered right now.
157.857 - I like this part
172.135 - Ew this is yuckky. Make this more user friendly :P
173.039 - You really don't like stepping this note here don'tcha?
173.219 - Or this whole measure? lmfao
176.111 - I don't really get why you did this. Meh, go back to your jack thingy you did before.
179.003 - Should be 32nds here
180.000 - You already know what I am gonna say

Overall, not bad. You have some work to do though. Lots of small errors. Also please remove the chart you are not using. I got 2 chart with this file.

Originally Posted by RARAWR

Song: HELLO GENTLEMEN by The Sapphire Dragon
Genre: J-Core
Length: 353 Seconds (5:53)
Style: 4-Key, Spread (Made with Up-scroll in mind, down-scroll will likely find it best to use mirror)
Difficulty: 65-70 on the FFR scale if I had to guess.

Hallo Gentlemen (Rarawr)

3.973 - Lmfao wtf is going ooooooonnnnnn!! Okay, you don't need to step the sound of a vibrator with 24th notes… Instead just put one note. It will do. Trust me.
14.795 - Don't do a left handed tril like this. Do a roll or something easier.
15.616 - Instead of stepping hands, and literally just hands, make this jumps instead. Then step the offbeats with an 8th note. It will make the file flow a lot better.
22.192 - This is the first place where a hand SHOULD be used.
28.767 - There are claps that you could be stepping. It will make the file progress more. Step those.
41.918 - This section isn't a gallop section. Those 12th notes should be 8th notes.
68.219 - Okay for the main melody, listen closely and PR this. Right now the notes just go everywhere and thats a no no. Also while I'm on this section, every time when you hear the chords change a jump can go there, instead of just making it a stream of single notes.
95.342 - No quad please. A hand would be just fine. Or even a jump.
122.055 - Missing jump
124.315 - Same here
125.137 - And here
130.685 - Here you just swapped styles here. Keep it consistent. Either make it a jump stream or don't.
147.124 - I actually like this section, but its such a spike from everything else you are doing. Also, its very very repudiative. Find a way to make it unique somehow. I can go more n depth with you later if you want about this.
171.782 - WALL OF DEEEATTTTHHHH OH LAWRDDYY
173.425 - You can layer this more. A lot is missing.
200.000 - Okay you should end the file here IMO. Its too long and repetitive. I'd make comments about the second half of this file but its un-needed because its literally the exact same errors from what I stated above.


Overall, this really really really needs a cut. It's not bad for starting out, but you have a ways to go. Add me on Skype and I'll chat with ya and give ya some advice if ya want. I'm no pro but I can def point ya in the right direction.

Originally Posted by Callipygian

Song: A Fifth of Beethoven by Walter Murphy
Genre: Disco
Length: 183 seconds (3:03)
Style: 4-Key, Spread
Difficulty: FMO with some tricky trills

A Fifth of Beethoven (Callipygian)

0.000 - LMFAO I LOVE THIS SONG Bahahahaha
0.000 - Okay, the offset is wrong to the start. From the very first measure the entire chart is off sync. To sync it, make sure you match the wavelength to the music accordingly (if using DDream) if using Stepmania, nudge the measure a bit. Right now it's really really late.
0.001 - Okay, this is a swing file, so really you got the notes all wrong. Instead of 16th notes they should be 24th notes and what not. Listen closely at a slower speed, you can tell.
0.002 - Really it's hard to look at the file when it's off sync and the notes are not stepped correctly. This needs to be re-worked.

33.166 - You know, jumps would be better then hands. You seem to favor hands a lot in this file. Sadly, it doesn't need it. Cut back on them a LOT. It will also clean up a lot of patterns in this file.
40.193 - You have a lot of ghost notes that don't exist in the file. Play this file at a slow speed. It will be a lot better for ya.
51.953 - No hands please, no quad either
63.220 - Unnecessary pattern here. It should be more of a background sound then anything. Or, here is a good place to put a hold. This happens a few times. Apply for all.
88.774 - Okay this is getting insane. Cut back on the difficulty a lot here. The patterns here are really annoying to play.
90.00 - (Ish, around this section) I get you want to do holds on the strings, however it can be done by just one note. Granted, you can hear two+ notes, but right now you are really constraining yourself.
100.132 - Okay, these jacks are really unnecessary. Not needed at all. They are just ghost notes. Take em out. A hold would be good here.
101.231 - 173.000 - A lot around here is what I said above. Its way overstepped for what it is. the quads are really unnecessary, and the hands are unnecessary as well.


Overall, really pay attention to when notes hit, and where. I can help you out if ya need. Also make sure the sync is correct. That is a MUST or giant lizards will come and eat your soul. Keep practicing, you will get better.