Sample your video games?

[Headphones]

Got a question for ya. Say you hook up your PS/Xbox/Wii/DS/PSP, etc. to your sampler. (Any really) Is this copyright infringement to lift samples from a game? Or is it a grey area you can maybe get away with? (especially a old game)

If you've grabbed a sample from a game, how easy was it to get the exact sound you were after while trying to play the game/sample@the same time?

[plexxsounds]

I would assume it's copyrighted as well, but would you get any trouble sampling some game is a different thing.. If you sample some old games (like Genesis, SNES games) there might be an "SFX Test" or "BGM Test" -option in the settings menu that lets you hear a certain effect/tune of the game. Useful for sampling.

[Headphones]

Yeah, I kind of had those in mind, but sampling GTA would be useful for automobile samples, gun blasts, car crashes, etc. Other games could provide alot of different sounds, but I do agree, I might have to think carefully if I choose to release any beats with sampled video games.

I'd like to experiment with it anyway in the next few weeks...

[Nothingless1987]

to be honest, i doubt the sample police are going to come knocking. sample away.

sfx test on the old games is where it's at!! megadrive was me growing up, all about the sfx on shinobi.

[cartesia]

Alot of the time games use 'standard' sound effect packs.. you will notice similar sounds all over the place.. I remember I kept hearing starcraft sounds in ads, then i realised blizzard hadn't made the sounds themselves...

Any commercially released piece of audio i would assume is copyrighted unless otherwise stated..

That being said, they will only go after you if
A) They're assholes
or
B) You actually make alot of money from the song
or
C) You make a little bit of money from the song but the sample you took is really iconic of the game/obvious

[Headphones]

Honestly, I'd be making the music for more myself than to make money or boast on the internet. So I think I'd be in a grey area since I doubt the sample police(let's just call the lawyers, since that's their profession) go through your memory cards/HD, it's going to be tough to make money if most people want a free mp3, and I'd want it to perhaps sound like the game, but not to the point where you recognize it. (If I sampled the mario theme in such a way that it's chopped to the point where you pitch the samples so that when you make a beat with it, it's not the same melody everybody knows)

I'm waiting for some money to trickle in for my samplers, so I'm mainly trying to go for ideas on what I'd want to sit down with in my head before I do it. But once I can sit down with 1-3 of them, I've got alot of ideas I think I should be able to discover.

[CULP]

you should start grabbing samples with your computer or recorder if you don't have your 'sampler' yet. you might learn some basics and develop some sampling techniques. I wouldn't worry about any copyright infringement.
take everything you can get and manipulate the b-jeezus out of it.
Don't worry about that law jazz unless you plan on selling compact discs of the xboks load up screen jingle.

[formal]

I wouldn't worry about sampling video games.

So check this out... so I'm sure you guys heard about since it's from a few years ago. Basically Timbaland took a song from the c64 (commodore 64) replayed it note for note with his own gear and then called it his orignal song. This was a popular Nelly Fertado joint so obviously the original people found out. All they wanted was credit for the original melody, but Timbaland never gave them the time of day. He ended up settling out of court for undisclosed amount of money. Moral of the story.... sample now cuz I'm really doubting yer gonna get the same amount of air time that Timbaland does. If you enjoy sampling vid games go for it. It's no different than sampling a record or even a youtube video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTvY3wZrHrQ Timbalands reply
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4KX7SkDe4Q comparisons of the two songs

[cartesia]

actually that's not a song from a C64 program, it's music a chiptune artist made.. maybe u knew, but yeah.. a little different to sampling a game/program

[formal]

Ya I knew... It's different yet still the same.

I guess my point was that he claimed that he sampled it, but in the end he just remade the song with his own gear (around the same time he was talking up his new chiptune gear too). He figured that since it was from the c64 compilation of chiptune artists that nobody would notice. In any case if you are ACTUALLY sampling the music, regardless of where it came from, that's better than trying to pass it off as your own original song. Give credit where it's due or spend more time tweaking the sounds to make them your own.... that's the bottom line.

I just used Timbaland as an example of what NOT to do

[Headphones]

Word everybody. I've actually got a 1tb hd I've been collecting different .wav/aiff files from all the Future Music/Computer Music/Music Tech mags over the years. I usually use them in Ableton, but it'd be fun to branch them out into the samplers. Sure Ableton is already a powerful sampler, but I just miss the simplicity of the sp202 sometimes. I heard good things about the sp303, and they had one at my local music store. Then they said they also had another, so I wanted that too. I'm in debt to pay them off, but I'm cool with that because it will only take me a few weeks at the most to pay them all off.

Anywhoo, most of the sample dvds that I dl to the 1tb drive are grouped with what issue it was, and usually there was a theme to it. (hip hop, trance, drum n bass, etc). I may never need to ever get a turntable as it is, but since Technic 1200s have stopped production, I may just want one before they're hard to come by. (Not a immediate concern right now) I'm not the best at beat making, and I don't really like doing it on Ableton, so having 2 sp303's I should be able to have one doing basslines, the other beats, and the su200 can just be random vocal samples, odd sounds, or melodies. (The plans I have so far in my head) I may end up sending audio straight from the headphone jack to one of the 303's to sample directly from my mac and I could use any software effects to go straight in. Decisions decisions...

But yeah, even my ps2 is going to get sampled at some point down the road.

[Unfolding]

As good as those free DVDs can be, it doesn't beat finding that unique lick or break. Keep on digging for samples if you're not out to make any money dude. I've been sampling from my DS for a while (Korg's DS10 synth kicks arse).

This is an irresponsible angle, but:
-if you're not defaming
-you're not plagiarizing
-you're not profiteering
-you're not stopping another's profit
then chances are nobody involved with the law will care what you do if they ever notice. You've already made it clear you make music for you (good way to do it BTW). Fly below the radar & they won't chase. Easy.

Just look at the competition section of this site to see illegal infringement in action. Chances are nobody will bat an eyelid at it because the scale of what's going on there is nothing compared to what you could pick up for a few $ in your local Chinatown.

^That doesn't make it right or OK in a legal context though.

If you're really concerned about getting done for infringement get yourself a Creative Commons License. Those things are designed for this kind of expression. Make sure that you're also not breaching any local laws too.

So far I've posted all the samples I've used in each song up on my Bandcamp site. Occasionally I'll get up to six copyrighted sources per song. That's infringement. Had that site for a couple of years now as well, pretty much everything there can be downloaded too... Haven't had any cops & lawyers come scouring my memory cards for that mystery break. Yet.

Wait. Someone's knocking on my door.

Oh shi-

[Nothingless1987]

The sample police are real, they hang out side diggin spots trying to seperate collecters from beatsmiths, it's not nice. They ask wu-tang related questions to catch people out. i've grown a beard and wear a mac now, so atm im safe.






side note, 2 303's and a su10. niiiiiiice!!!

[Sinapse]

sample whatever you want but learn to flip it really well, and layer multiple samples...then no one will know anyway...either way tho no one coming after yo ass unless you getting that red lobster money

[HxC]

Great discussion here btw. All's been said- if your song becomes a hot commodity and the original programmer of that melody feels like they have a case they may start w/a Cease & Desist (stop selling it or we'll sue) letter.
These days compared to just 10 years ago EVERYBODY is way more savvy all around - I'd rather do the other way around (make tunes for games).
As long as the game sound could be removed and you could still sell the shit ur good.