TOOLBOX AUDIOKINETIC SOUNDSEED IMPACT Review by Bradley D. Meyer EVERY GENERATION OF CONSoleS the SoundSeed Impact plug-in for parameters in the Impact modeler, comes with the promise of bigger! Wwise. The Impact Modeler tool Audiokinetic you save out a new residual wave Better! Faster! With these new analyzes a wave file and generates SOUNDSEED IMPACT file, and then import it into Wwise specs comes the desire to add a residual noise file consisting and attach the SoundSeed Impact more to every project: more of the impact sound with all plug-in to the sound. ¤ STATS textures, more shaders, more resonant frequencies stripped out. Audiokinetic Inc. animations, more levels! More! It generates a text file containing 409 rue Saint-Nicolas, bureau 300 PLUG IT IN More! MORE! On the audio side we data regarding the frequency, Montreal, Quebec » The plug-in side of the software have the call for more streams, bandwidth, and amplitude of each H2Y 2P4 applies the resonant modal data more DSP effects, and more resonant mode of the original file. Canada to the residual file and provides variations of sounds. Wrangling The plug-in for Wwise then uses the www.audiokinetic.com several controls to apply variation memory for these new features is residual audio file and the resonant ¤ PRICE to the sound (See Figure 2). You the constant, silent, often violent modal data to resynthesize the Initial Platform: $5,000 Additional can alter the quality of the sound, battle in which we all partake residual file into multiple variations Platform: $2,500 which determines the number of throughout each project. So what at runtime. Additional Maintenance—12 months: resonant modes used to generate if there were a product that could The Impact Modeler (Figure 1) $750 (license includes 24 months of the resynthesized sound. If CPU is help sound designers resolve at is a standalone application where support) an issue, quality can be cranked least one of these requests? you import your source file, strip ¤ SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS down pretty far (50 to 60 percent) out unnecessary elements, and Windows XP/Vista, Xbox 360, and still generate believable MODAL SYNTHESIS generate residual files based on PlayStation 3 (requires Wwise 2008.4 sounds, although reducing the » Audiokinetic, developer of audio the number of modes you desire. or later running on PC) modes audibly lowers high middleware solution Wwise, has The fewer modes you use, the frequency detail. You can also ¤ PROS released a new family of products less CPU power you need, but this 1 Crams a lot of variation into a very tweak the center frequency of called SoundSeed. The company’s also lowers the sound quality. The small amount of disk space. each resonant mode (Frequency first entry into this new brand of work done in the Impact Modeler 2 Interesting use of modal synthesis. Stretching), which is most closely products, released with Wwise optimizes your sound file to give 3 Can be used in unique ways for related to pitch, or changing version 2008.4 at the end of the greatest amount of variation more than just impacts. the perceived size of an object. last year, is SoundSeed Impact. for your sounds, while keeping CPU Bandwidth Stretching changes ¤ CONS SoundSeed Impact uses modal load manageable. 1 No Wii support available. the size or width of frequencies synthesis to generate multiple Using the tool is pretty 2 Currently requires Wwise as a for each mode. Adjusting this variations of resonant impact straightforward and boasts some project's audio engine (which is only value will dampen or brighten the sounds using a single reference nice features. It allows you to bad if you're not already using it). sound. Finally, Magnitude Scaling audio file. Modal synthesis analyzes audition the differences between 3 No batch processing available in applies an increased or dampened a waveform and breaks it down the original wave, the residual Impact Modeler. amplitude weight to harmonic into discrete modes, or vibration sound, and the resynthesized content, which Audiokinetic patterns, and can then recreate sound as it will play back in Wwise Audiokinetic has some very helpful likens to different forces of sounds by referencing the modal so you can hear how your sound is movies online that walk you impact. Frequency, Bandwidth, data rather than actual audio data. changed by the synthesis algorithm through the process of using the and Magnitude Scaling can all The end result is a bevy of variations and compare your source file to Impact Modeler and explaining the be randomized by a scale of 0 to based on one very small source file. the end result. It also shows a features of this very interesting 100 percent each time a sound spectrograph of the sound in its tool. Once you get the hang of the is played, thereby generating a WORKING WITH ImPACT varied forms, giving you a visual software, it’s a cinch to breeze unique variation each time the MODELER representation of where the through making the most efficient, sound is triggered in the engine. » Two tools comprise SoundSeed frequencies exist in the residual quality-preserving tweaks to your Furthermore, all parameters Impact: the Impact Modeler and file versus the original. Fortunately, original files. After setting your within the SoundSeed Impact 26 April 2009 | g A m e d e v e l o p e r OUR RATING SYSTEM : exCEPTIONAL GREAT FAIR POOR UNFORTUNATE Plug-in can be driven by real-time but the sounds created through it parameter controls (RTPCs) in were far more realistic sounding the game. Utilizing RTPCs you can than simple pitch or volume reduce quality based on distance, variation. The best technique I decrease frequency based on the found was to create a random mass of the object, or use any container with a few residual other game parameter to control sounds and apply one SoundSeed any setting(s) of a SoundSeed Impact plug-in to the parent. Impact plug-in. Surprisingly, SoundSeed Impact’s performance is better on USING MODAL SYNTHESIS the PlayStation 3 than the Xbox 360 CREATIVELY (and much better still on PC). Expect » While the synthesis engine is to use between .2 and .7 percent of customized to create believable one CPU core to handle one instance impact sounds, there is nothing of the SoundSeed Impact plug-in; preventing you from applying a fairly modest load (provided it’s SoundSeed Impact to any used judiciously) considering the sound you like, creating unique amount of variation that can result. FIGURE 1 The Impact Modeler is a standalone application for importing sound files into variations of any transient (fast (See Figure 3). A final drawback SoundSeed. attack) sound. I played around of SoundSeed Impact is that, due with generating non-impact to the complex nature of the plug- resonant files and mixing these in architecture and the lack of with residual impact sounds, software DSP support on Nintendo’s and then mixing and matching hardware, it does not support the resonant models with different Wii, which is arguably the platform residual files and got some unique that would benefit most from a low coloration to sounds. For example, CPU alternative to loading dozens of asphalt footsteps were given a variations in memory. huge booming presence when referencing the modal data of a SoNIC VARIetY AT LOW COST large metal impact. Even more » SoundSeed Impact is an interesting were the variations interesting, unique tool that created on vocal emotes. I was satisfies a sound designer’s need able to generate subtle, believable to create numerous variations of variants of a single emote that frequently repetitive sounds. On my sounded much more natural than test files I saw file size reductions subtle pitch variation. A lot of my of 30 to 50 percent between the experiments were not necessarily original wave file and the residual usable, but mixing and matching file. Combine that with using one FIGURE 2 The SoundSeed Impact plug-in provides controls for varying the sound. sounds and residual models can to three variations instead of five easily waste hours of a sound to nine and you are looking at designer’s life, and sometimes some impressive disk space and uncover a really unique gem. memory savings. Like the rest of Audiokinetic’s toolset, SoundSeed THE LIMITATIONS Impact is intuitive and easy to use. » In spite of the distinctive nature Audiokinetic has additional products of SoundSeed Impact, there are already in development in the some limitations to its capabilities. SoundSeed family, each of which It currently cannot handle varying uses unique forms of synthesis to resonant pitches within a residual help designers create other types sound elegantly. So if you’re hoping of sounds in new, creative ways. It to use this tool to make endless will be interesting to watch how this variations of a warbly sheet metal product line grows and what new hit, you may be better off taking the sprouts we will see from SoundSeed old fashioned route and creating in the future. multiple variations of the sound itself. In many cases a single BRADle Y D. ME YER is audio director variation even using SoundSeed at Shaba Games, and can't believe he's still Impact was not quite enough to living the dream. Email him at bmeyer@ FIGURE 3 SoundSeed Impact realizes its best performance running on PC CPUs. sustain a believable sound palette, gdmag.com. w w w . g d m A g . c o m 27.