Sequencing sounds into a ByteArray seamlessly - flash, as3 - actionscript-3

I'm creating the soundtrack for a video which consists of an intro sound clip, a looping middle one, and an end clip. I need to write these dynamically to a ByteArray and then combine them with bitmaps to make a video. It's working, except in the video output I get a tiny delay between the intro sound ending and the loop sound beginning (the audio files do not have any silence, they are seamless) - can anyone advise how I could avoid this? (_soundIntro, _soundLoop and _soundEnd are the embedded audio files.)
var baAudio:ByteArray = new ByteArray();
var baAudioIntro:ByteArray = new ByteArray();
var baAudioLoop:ByteArray = new ByteArray();
var baAudioEnd:ByteArray = new ByteArray();
var totalLength:Number = (_bitmaps.length / FLV_FRAMERATE) * 44000;
var loopLength:Number = totalLength - (_soundIntro.length * 44.1) - (_soundEnd.length * 44.1);
_soundIntro.extract(baAudioIntro, _soundIntro.length * 44.1);
_soundLoop.extract(baAudioLoop, loopLength);
_soundEnd.extract(baAudioEnd, _soundEnd.length * 44.1);
baAudio.writeBytes(baAudioIntro);
baAudio.writeBytes(baAudioLoop);
baAudio.writeBytes(baAudioEnd);

Indeed, the answer was that .mp3 encoding outside of flash tends to leave gaps at the beginning and end of audio clips, preventing a seamless loop/transition (http://www.netalive.org/swsu/archives/2007/01/gapless_mp3_loops_in_flash_1.html)
I switched to .wav files, imported to Flash (thus letting Flash handle the encoding) and it fixed the issue.

Related

Playing parts of an audio file in WebAudio

Instead of loading 9 different audio files with a distinct sound effect, I have compiled my sound effects into one .ogg file and I have the various start and stop times for each effect. However, I don't see any way to handle this in the WebAudio API. I'm sure there is. Anyone know?
Here's how to do it.
var context = new AudioContext();
var mainNode = context.createGainNode(0);
mainNode.connect(context.destination);
function play_sound(sound, start, length) {
var source = context.createBufferSource();
source.buffer = get_buffer(sound); // assume get_buffer gets a file that has already been
source.connect(mainNode); // loaded and decoded with context.decodeAudioData()
source.start(0, start, length);
}
// lets say I want to play a 0.2 second sound effect in sfx.ogg starting at 0.5 seconds.
play_sound('sfx.ogg', 0.5, 0.2);

How to cache audio stream data and access it in AS3

I'm streaming an MP3 file in AS3. All is working fine (I can play it) but I'm looking to implement a 'seek' bar. This means I will need to cache the file (as it's being downloaded) and then access the cached data when the user seeks a specific time in the song.
The code to actually play the mp3 stream:
function openStream( stream )
{
var s:Sound = new Sound();
var req:URLRequest = new URLRequest(stream);
var context:SoundLoaderContext = new SoundLoaderContext(500, true);
s.load(req, context);
s.play();
}
So how would I cache the file as it's being downloaded and then access the data from the cache?
I know this is pretty far from a trivial task, so I would be grateful if you could even just provide a few links to some tutorials/docs/articles.
You do not need to cache the sound for this.
The downloaded sound data is is available as long as the sound object lives in memory.
So all you need to do is take the sound object outside the function into the class scope..
Also the play function returns the current SoundChannel used by the Sound.
private var snd:Sound = new Sound();
private var channel:SoundChannel;
function openStream( stream ) {
...
channel = snd.play();
}
To implement the seek functionality you may make use of,
bytesLoaded (To know how much of the sound is downloaded)
soundChannel.position (To know current sound position)

load an external swf (FlashPaper pdf) into a flash project

I have to do a very simple swf application able to show a series of pdf files.
Actually I was able to create on a single layer the menu interface (some buttons on frame 0 which redirect the user to other frames where the pdf should be showed).
Here my question:
I need a way to read the pdf inside the flash frame.
I've found a possible solution converting the pdf into an swf with FlashPaper 2
Now I wish to know how import the swf into the frame.
Reading some actionscript 3 guides I was able to create a container movieclip (a simple rectangle) into which I have loaded the swf with this code:
var swf:MovieClip;
var loader:Loader = new Loader();
var defaultSWF:URLRequest = new URLRequest("test.swf"); //test.swf is my converted pdf
loader.load(defaultSWF);
screen_01.addChild(loader); //screen_01 is the container rectangle converted to movieclip
I've used a container movieclip to mantain the other objects (menu buttons) on the frame, and ecause it helps with the swf positioning.
I seen it is possible also using loader.x and loader.y and it works.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to control width and height of the swf/pdf file (loader.width and loader.height exists but if used cause the swf will not loaded at all)
Solution:
I've found a possible solution at this page. The idea is to change swf scale only after the load process is complete (positioning can be done even before).
Anyway I had to use Actionscript 2 for this project because FlashPaper converted pdf doesn't work properly with AS3, I don't know why...
here the code:
//insert an emplty movieclip to load the swf, I've called it screen_01
var movLoad:MovieClipLoader = new MovieClipLoader();
var myListener:Object = new Object();
myListener.onLoadInit = function(thisMc:MovieClip) {
thisMc._height = 600;
thisMc._width = 900;
thisMc._x = 50;
thisMc._y = 30;
};
movLoad.addListener(myListener);
movLoad.loadClip("folder/flashpaper_converted_pdf.swf.swf",screen_01);
You can modify the size of the loader using scaleX and scaleY properties.
Keep them equals so the swf isn't stretched.
You may also want to listen to the COMPLETE event to do such a thing :
loader.contentLoaderInfo.addEventListener(Event.COMPLETE, onComplete);
function onComplete(e:Event)
{
var loader:Loader = e.currentTarget.loader;
loader.scaleX = loader.scaleY = 2; //Double the size of the loaded swf
}

How do you loop a sound in flash AS3 when it ends?

What AS3 code is used to loop a sound using AS3?
This won't give you perfect, gapless playback but it will cause the sound to loop.
var sound:Sound = new Sound();
var soundChannel:SoundChannel;
sound.addEventListener(Event.COMPLETE, onSoundLoadComplete);
sound.load("yourmp3.mp3");
// we wait until the sound finishes loading and then play it, storing the
// soundchannel so that we can hear when it "completes".
function onSoundLoadComplete(e:Event):void{
sound.removeEventListener(Event.COMPLETE, onSoundLoadComplete);
soundChannel = sound.play();
soundChannel.addEventListener(Event.SOUND_COMPLETE, onSoundChannelSoundComplete);
}
// this is called when the sound channel completes.
function onSoundChannelSoundComplete(e:Event):void{
e.currentTarget.removeEventListener(Event.SOUND_COMPLETE, onSoundChannelSoundComplete);
soundChannel = sound.play();
}
If you want the sound to loop many times with a flawless, gapless playback, you can call
sound.play(0, 9999); // 9999 means to loop 9999 times
But you still would need to set up a soundcomplete listener if you want infinite playback after the 9999th play. The problem with this way of doing things is if you have to pause/restart the sound. This will create a soundChannel whose duration is 9999 times longer than the actual sound file's duration, and calling play(duration) when duration is longer than the sound's length causes a horrible crash.
var sound:Sound = whateverSoundYouNeedToPlay;
function playSound():void
{
var channel:SoundChannel = sound.play();
channel.addEventListener(Event.SOUND_COMPLETE, onComplete);
}
function onComplete(event:Event):void
{
SoundChannel(event.target).removeEventListener(event.type, onComplete);
playSound();
}
import flash.media.Sound;
import flash.media.SoundChannel;
var mySound:Sound = new Bgm(); //Bgm() is the class of the internal sound which can be done in the library panel.
playSound();
function playSound():void
{
var channel:SoundChannel = mySound.play();
channel.addEventListener(Event.SOUND_COMPLETE, onComplete);
}
function onComplete(event:Event):void
{
SoundChannel(event.target).removeEventListener(event.type, onComplete);
playSound();
}
This works perfectly.
To expand on #scriptocalypse's gapless playback a bit:
The problem of not having proper gapless playback comes from mp3 including information about the file in either the head or the tail of the file (id3 tags etc), hence the small pause when you try to loop it. There are a few things you can do depending on your situation.
Ignore it, just play as normal, with a small pause at the end of every file. You can also try and mask it with another sound (a beat drop yo), or fade out and fade in.
If your sounds are embedded, and not streaming, then create a fla file, drag your mp3 in there, and set them to export (the same way you'd add a linkage name for a MovieClip etc). It seems that when you export sounds like this, Flash takes the delay into account, or strips it out when it creates the Sound object. Either way, you can just do a simple play() passing the loops that you want for a gapless playback (I've found using a loops parameter is better than waiting on the SOUND_COMPLETE event and playing it again).
You can try some of the ogg libraries to use .ogg files instead of .mp3. A simple google search for "as3 ogg lib" will turn up what you need. Personally, I found them a bit awkward to use, and I couldn't afford the overhead added (as opposed to mp3 decoding, which is done in the player).
If your mp3 files are streaming, then the only way to get gapless playback is to layer them. Determine the gap (depending on what you used to encode them, it'll be different - my files has a gap of about 330ms), and when you reach it, start playing the overlay. It's a proper pain if you're doing fading, but when it works, it works quite nicely. Worst case scenario, you end up with situation (1)
I guess this what you looking for in case the voice/music file is in the library:
var mysound:my_sound = new my_sound();
mysound.play(0,2); // this will repeat the sound 2 times.
This appears to have worked for me:
var nowTime:Number = (new Date()).time;
var timeElapsed:Number = nowTime - _lastTime;
_lastTime = nowTime;
_musicTimeElapsed+=timeElapsed;
if(_musicTimeElapsed >= _musicA.length - GAP_LENGTH)
{
_musicTimeElapsed = 0;
_musicA.play(0);
}
The other answers are great, however if you do not want to use code (for whatever reason), you can put the sound in a movieclip, set the sound property to "Stream", and then add as many frames as you like to the movie clip to ensure it plays fully.
This, of course, is a less preferred way, but for animators I'm sure it may be preferable in some situations (for example when synced with mouth animations that the animator wants looped).
this work for me :
import flash.media.Sound;
import flash.media.SoundChannel;
var soundUrl:String ="music.mp3";
var soundChannel:SoundChannel = new SoundChannel();
var sound:Sound = new Sound();
sound.load(new URLRequest(soundUrl));
soundChannel = sound.play();
soundChannel.addEventListener(Event.SOUND_COMPLETE,onComplete);
function onComplete(e:Event):void{
sound = new Sound();
sound.load(new URLRequest(soundUrl));
soundChannel = sound.play();
soundChannel.addEventListener(Event.SOUND_COMPLETE,onComplete);
}

if I load a flv with netStream, how can I call a function when the flv stops playing

I have a website in ActionScript 3 that has lots of FLV animations that happen when you press buttons. Right now this is how I have it set up.
in AS3,
im loading FLv's (which are animations I exported in FLV form from After Effects)
with net stream. I have a timer set up for the same amount of length of time that the animations (FLV's) play and when the timer stops it calls a function that closes the stream, opens a new one and plays another video. The only problem I noticed using timers is that if the connection is slow and (animation)stops for a second, the timer keeps going, and calls the next flv too early.
Does anyone know a way to load a flv, or swf for that matter, at the end of play of the flv? so that the next FLV will always play at the end of the run time of the previous FLV, rather than using timers?
im thinking onComplete but I don't know how to implement that!?
Sequential playing is pretty easy to achieve with the OSMF framework, you should check it out. Google "osmf tutorials" and you should find a few tutorials online.
The framework is fairly recent, but it looks like it may become the de facto solution for media delivery in Flash as it's not limited to video but also audio & images.
As a developer you won't have to bother with the NetStream & NetConnection classes. Developing video solutions , as well as audio & images solutions should be streamlined and easier to handle. Only limitation is that it requires Flash 10
Here's some code for checking when a FLV ends with NetStream. I just provide snippets as I assume you got the FLV up and running already.
//create a netstream and pass in your connection
var netStream:NetStream = new NetStream(conn);
//add callback function for PlayStatus -event
var client : Object = {};
client.onPlayStatus = onPlayStatus;
netStream.client = client;
//attach your NetStream to the connection as usual
//---
//function that gets called onPlayStatus
function onPlayStatus(info : Object) : void {
trace("onPlayStatus:" +info.code + " " + info.duration);
if (info.code == "NetStream.Play.Complete") {
//play the next FLV and so on
}
}
EDIT: With your example code it will look something like this.
var nc:NetConnection = new NetConnection();
nc.connect(null);
var ns:NetStream = new NetStream(nc);
var listener:Object = new Object();
listener.onMetaData = function(md:Object):void{};
listener.onPlayStatus = function(info : Object) : void {
trace("onPlayStatus:" +info.code + " " + info.duration);
if (info.code == "NetStream.Play.Complete") {
//play the next FLV and so on
}
};
ns.client = listener;
vid1.attachNetStream(ns);
const moviename1:String = "moviename2.flv";
const moviename1:String = "moviename3.flv";
var movietoplay:String = "moviename.flv";
ns.play(movietoplay);