Please recommend me a CMF player \ VOGONS

Please recommend me a CMF player

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First post, by ludicrous_peridot

Posted on 2025-05-11, 09:16

ludicrous_peridot Offline

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Asking for your help with CMF player recommendation. My preference if for those, which can be invoked with a filename or list of files and thus are more suitable for being run from a batch script.

I have tried a few players, inclusing those from VGMPF wiki (including muchmusic and creative player), a handful that I found via textfiles discmaster search service, and naturally adplay, and the one I liked the best was Aztech player (SONG.EXE) that comes with Sound Galaxy drivers. I found that it somehow makes the instruments sound much more nuanced and interesting then the rest (or maybe it just supports pitch bend, I havent checked 😀 ). Unfortunatelly SONG.EXE is way too "manual" to operate for inclusion into a batch file, so I am on the lookout for decent alternatives.

I am testing with this set of files:
link

Thanks ahead for your recommendations

GA-G41M-Combo G41/ICH7 - Core 2 Quad Q9550 - DDR3 1033 - Radeon RX570 - YMF744 (Cobra) - X3MB (Buran)
Beetle/M/i815+ICH2 - Celeron 566Mhz - Opti 924 (Typhoon Media)

Reply 1 of 8, by Grzyb

Posted on 2025-05-11, 11:14

Grzyb Offline

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PLAYCMF.EXE ?

Kiełbasa smakuje najlepiej, gdy przysmażysz ją laserem!

Reply 2 of 8, by ludicrous_peridot

Posted on 2025-05-11, 19:12

ludicrous_peridot Offline

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Hmm... you know, I was skeptical at first, since I have just yesterday tried one of the versions found in VGMPF wiki... but I have tried once more today with a random version found (1.01 from 1990, included with MID2CMF package) and it sounded very-very close, if not identical to the original game sound. It may be something in the versions, or just my ears really 😀, and while I still like how Aztec tool sounds more... this works for me, thanks.

GA-G41M-Combo G41/ICH7 - Core 2 Quad Q9550 - DDR3 1033 - Radeon RX570 - YMF744 (Cobra) - X3MB (Buran)
Beetle/M/i815+ICH2 - Celeron 566Mhz - Opti 924 (Typhoon Media)

Reply 3 of 8, by Grzyb

Posted on 2025-05-11, 19:57

Grzyb Offline

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CMF format was created by Creative, so it would be logical that Creative's PLAYCMF is the most appropriate tool...

Kiełbasa smakuje najlepiej, gdy przysmażysz ją laserem!

Reply 4 of 8, by dukeofurl

Posted on 2025-05-11, 20:35

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Download Xmod over here https://k1n9duk3.shikadi.net/xmod.html

Its a level editor for modern windows for Xargon that was made recently. In addition to this level editor, the archive includes a dos command line CMF player for testing out CMF music (which is what several early Epic Megagames games such as Xargon and Jill of the Jungle use).

Reply 5 of 8, by rfnagel

Posted on 2025-05-12, 19:47

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BTW, there is an older version of SBFMDRV for PLAYCMF that will play back CMF files in stereo. AFAIK NONE of the newer versions will play back in stereo, only mono.

Attached is a ZIP with the files.

Rich ¥Weeds¥ Nagel
http://www.richnagel.net

Reply 6 of 8, by ludicrous_peridot

Posted on Yesterday, 17:22

ludicrous_peridot Offline

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Thanks, @rfnagel, for your suggestion.

I am sticking with the utilities that @dukeofurl has brought to my attention, as they seem to be simpler to use (no need for the driver TSR) and produce the sound that I expect. Can't comment on the stereo playback from those, but otherwise and from what I hear, PLAYCMF.EXE seems to match Creative player from MID2CMF that I mentioned above output-wise.

GA-G41M-Combo G41/ICH7 - Core 2 Quad Q9550 - DDR3 1033 - Radeon RX570 - YMF744 (Cobra) - X3MB (Buran)
Beetle/M/i815+ICH2 - Celeron 566Mhz - Opti 924 (Typhoon Media)

Reply 7 of 8, by rfnagel

Posted on Yesterday, 22:16

rfnagel Offline

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The utilities that dukeofurl linked to sound just like the original Creative Labs PLAYCMF.EXE with the newer SBFMDRV.COM loaded in (playback in mono). It appears that the PLAYCMF.EXE included with the utilities that dukeofurl linked to has an automatic mono playback version of SBFMDRV.COM embedded in it, quite cool 😀

Anyhow, the original Creative Labs PLAYCMF.EXE with the older SBFMDRV.COM loaded has the stereo effect, although, I don't think that any games played their CMF format music files in stereo.

Rich ¥Weeds¥ Nagel
http://www.richnagel.net

Reply 8 of 8, by ludicrous_peridot

Posted on Today, 05:36

ludicrous_peridot Offline

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Interesting. Would yound mind sharing some CMF tunes that tkae advantage of stereo sound?

GA-G41M-Combo G41/ICH7 - Core 2 Quad Q9550 - DDR3 1033 - Radeon RX570 - YMF744 (Cobra) - X3MB (Buran)
Beetle/M/i815+ICH2 - Celeron 566Mhz - Opti 924 (Typhoon Media)

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