What music do you have in the background of your front end?

[Ginsu Victim]

I've not found a background tune I'm happy with yet.

I went from ahofle's Arcade Ambience tracks to 80's hits (GTA: Vice City sndtrk).

I've tried different game music, but haven't been satisfied with anything.

What are some of you using?

[Ummon]

Steve Roach, electro-ambient.  Sometimes I just sit an listen more than I play games.

[Ginsu Victim]

I'm considering putting Nine Inch Nails "Ghosts - I-IV" on there. 38 tracks, all instrumental. Perhaps a tad bit too dark for an arcade cabinet, though.

Right now, I've mixed some  Slayer into the 80's hits. Shakes things up.

[TheShanMan]

Ambience for me. I've also been writing an app to randomly pick an Ambience file to play on a second sound card so I can pump it through external speakers and auto-pause when the screensaver kicks in or mame is paused (I'll be mounting the speakers on the wall soon along the lines of surround sound speakers - back and to the sides). Watch for an upcoming announcement of this app.

[Ginsu Victim]

I wouldn't want it to pause when the screen saver kicked in. I usually turn on the cabinet and let it just play music in the Mamewah menu when we're cooking dinner, or just need some background noise.

[TheShanMan]

I wouldn't want it to pause when the screen saver kicked in. I usually turn on the cabinet and let it just play music in the Mamewah menu when we're cooking dinner, or just need some background noise.

I made it an option.

[Mauzy]

If I'm not already running the vinyl versions, Ill have five or six RUSH and a couple Steve Miller band albums shuffling through. Crank up the Rush  and throw in some other 80s stuff for console gaming nearby as well.

[Ginsu Victim]

I should just go all Rush. That's actually a very good idea!

[Mauzy]

heh. Ive found the version of YYZ from "Exit... Stage Left" is always good between games. Gets you pumped, but at over 7 minutes, it gives you time to think.

[Ginsu Victim]

Yeah...that could be a problem. Too much By-tor, not enough MAME.

[Blanka]

We love Katamari OST
Ritalin dispenser is included!

[Mauzy]

Yeah...that could be a problem. Too much By-tor, not enough MAME.

Very True!

We love Katamari OST
Ritalin dispenser is included!

If it wouldnt clash with Rush so much, Id have that on mine. Katamari on the Rocks is one of the greatest pieces of video game music produced thus far.

[shardian]

Arcade ambience all the way.

[RayB]

Ahofle's works of genius play in mine.

[gonzo90017]

Rusty Cage by Sound Garden

[FrizzleFried]

...arcade ambiance because my "juke" is playing tunes in the background already.

[mscromer]

I have all 80's music, you know the music that was playing in all the arcade rooms back then. Journey, Boston, Foreigner, Def Leppard, Whitesnake. I even have some stuff that I couldn't stand back then like Duran Duran and Hall and Oats, just because it takes me back to my favorite local arcade room. To many others to list, but I think you get the idea. I have over 3000 80's songs loaded so it seems like they never repeat. When I have friends over and they play the MAME, that is one thing everyone comments on, is how the games and music takes them back. That is exactly what I was shooting for.

[Ginsu Victim]

I still have the 80s music on there right now. I'd like to have Arcade Ambience and the 80s music play at the same time. Guess that would be easy enough to arrange. (As long as it doesn't take up too much processor power to play two mp3s at the same time, plus MAME and Mamewah)

[Flake]

What is arcade ambience?  I have never heard of this before.  I am relatively new to this stuff though.

[Ginsu Victim]

Google "Arcade Ambience"

Here's a freebie instead:

ahofle's Arcade Ambience

[Jack Burton]

Silence

I try to make the menu's as unobtrusive as possible, just screenshots and names.  Screen saver just cycles through the screenshots.

[Flake]

Google "Arcade Ambience"

Here's a freebie instead:

ahofle's Arcade Ambience

Thanks Ginsu - I just checked it out.  Seems pretty cool but honestly doesnt that get annoying after awhile?  Does the music play during game play?  If so, doesnt it drown out the game sounds of the game being played?

[Ginsu Victim]

Google "Arcade Ambience"

Here's a freebie instead:

ahofle's Arcade Ambience

Thanks Ginsu - I just checked it out.  Seems pretty cool but honestly doesnt that get annoying after awhile?

1981 does, mostly because of a certain sound effect that Andy knows was a little too loud. The others are great.

Does the music play during game play?  If so, doesnt it drown out the game sounds of the game being played?

I use Mamewah and it stops the music when you start a game. I don't know if other front ends give the option of playing it during the games or not.

[RayB]

If you think its too loud, you were never in a "real" arcade.

If you think you've been in a real arcade and you were able to hear your friends without shouting in each other's ears, you were never in a "real" arcade.

 

[ahofle]

mostly because of a certain sound effect that Andy knows was a little too loud.

 

One of these days I may try to redo that one. 

[borals]

Mine is a little different -->http://www.myspace.com/inkspastic 

The track "words for nerds"

[TheShanMan]

Does the music play during game play?  If so, doesnt it drown out the game sounds of the game being played?

In my case it plays all the time (game play and front end), but I have it piping through external speakers hooked up to a second sound card. I love it like this - you get the arcade sound around you and the game sounds coming right from the cab (I mentioned an app I wrote for this in my prior post in this thread). So no, it doesn't drown out the game sounds nor does it get annoying after a while. On the contrary, it makes for a truer arcade experience!

[vidmouse]

I use the Tron I/O Club Remix found here

[Ummon]

If you think its too loud, you were never in a "real" arcade.

If you think you've been in a real arcade and you were able to hear your friends without shouting in each other's ears, you were never in a "real" arcade.

 

I don't remember the local golf castle being too loud to talk, but games didn't have subs in them back then. Now going to and leaving such a place is like leaving a concert.

[Ginsu Victim]

If you think its too loud, you were never in a "real" arcade.

If you think you've been in a real arcade and you were able to hear your friends without shouting in each other's ears, you were never in a "real" arcade.

 

Oh, trust me, I grew up in arcades that are probably responsible for my hearing loss now.

Like I said, and like ahofle acknowledged, there's one sound effect that's overbearing and really grates on your nerves quick. It's because of that ONE sound that I can't use the 1981 track. (The rest of that one is awesome minus the PEW PEW PEW....PEW PEW PEW PEW!)

[Turnarcades]

I use various MIDI versions of some DDR tracks. I found MIDI's are less system dependant than MP3's (I run an older PC) and the polyphonic sound of a MIDI makes it sound a bit more 'funky retro electro'. Oh. I also run Mamewah and the track of choice at the moment is 'B4U'.

[EVEGames]

I run 3DArcade (anyone? anyone?  ) which comes with its own arcade ambiance mp3.  It's a very good clean mix, and at 2:36, it's just long enough to carry you between games.  If you're scrolling through your game list for more than 2 1/2 minutes at a clip, you're being too picky! 

I have it set to cut out when I load a game.   But I think if I had a ShanMan-type setup with separate external speakers, I might leave it on all the time. 
But then I'd definately need to switch to Ahofle's much longer ambience tracks.

-EVEGames