KQ6 DOSBox vs. ScummVM

[Daventry]

Hello, I recently downloaded Collector's new KQ6 installer, which is all-in-all quite awesome. I've noticed however that the DOSBox version, although missing the high-res art, sounds better than the ScummVM version. I'm not sure if it's just my ears playing tricks on me, but the ScummVM midi sounds a bit tinny. Has anyone else noticed this, and if so, is there a way around it? I have a really hard time choosing between the higher quality music and the SVGA characters.

[Collector]

DOSBox simply has better sound emulation than ScummVM. You can get ScummVM to sound better, but it takes some tweaking. Try loading the ScummVM GUI and go to the options. The audio and MIDI tabs have the audio settings. The ScummVM default device is the questionable MS GS Wave Synth. Some of what is in the drop down list will depend on your hardware, so I have no reasonable way to determine what would be best.

If you add the game to the GUI, you can get the game to load using main scummvm.ini, which will have any changes that you have made. See what sounds best to you and you can find the changes in the main ini file, (in %AppData%\ScummVM\). The values you want to keep can be added to the scummvm.ini in the game's folder so that your KQ6 shortcuts will use the same settings.

[Daventry]

Thanks for your reply, Collector!

I know it depends on the individual hardware, but may I still ask which audio settings you use for your Scumm?

[Collector]

I have a SoundFont capable card, so I have the default device set to it. That way it uses whatever SoundFont I have loaded. For AGI games it is best to choose PCJr.

[Maxor127]

I tried Quest for Glory 1 VGA and it sounded tinny until I switched to FluidSynth and loaded a SoundFont for it. But that still had a problem where there were missing sound effects/instruments. I think the midi emulation just basically needs more work.

[Collector]

I still see DOSBox as THE solution for most of the SCI games. Period. It is only the few non-DOS games that ScummVM becomes interesting. So far as to what is actually supported at this point that means KQ6. There are musically some differences between the Windows and DOS versions of KQ5, but I am not so sure that it is enough of a difference to worry about. I question the defaults that the ScummVM team has chosen.

You said that you liked the undithering of the SCI0 games, but many dislike the false colors it generates. There was a debate about what should be the default undithering setting on the ScummVM forums and the developer that added this to the ScummVM code was pissed that anyone might want to see the art work as the artist intended, given the technical limitations of the time. It is much like the colorizations of old black and white movies. Some may like it, but it is making artistic decisions about changing the work of someone else. It is good to have options, but the defaults should respect the original.

[MusicallyInspired]

QFG1VGA's General MIDI implementation in general is missing instruments as opposed to the MT-32 soundtracks from both the remake and original. The reason being it was converted from the MT-32 score and not all the MT-32 instruments from QFG1EGA exist in General MIDI so they had to make cuts/changes. This is also evident in SQ4CD. There's loads of missing instruments in the General MIDI soundtrack.

[Kadrom]

Yeah, I was excited about having the high res portraits back, but sometimes entire instrument/track lines cut out in KQ6 when playing in ScummVM and I seemingly can't get them back even by reloading or changing audio drivers and back again. Frustrating. I'd rather have the music done right than the portraits.

[Collector]

The KQ6 installer also installs the DOS version in DOSBox. Look in the installed folder for a DOSBox shortcut. You can see if that sounds any better to you.