Guide to editing in-game music and SFX

ocealot for vfxeditor; perchbird/meli for the orchestrion plugin

changelog:

apr. 1, 2023: added a section about packaging a mod as .ttmp2. included a bit about defining custom sound paths in .pap, .tmb, and .avfx, which goes in tandem with a recent guide appendix about setting up sounds in those files. there's also some .exd research, but that's really just for myself because it's very technical

mar. 22, 2023: updated the guide to reflect the newest quality-of-life changes implemented within vfxeditor. your life will now be easier, although it's still a little funky. if you haven't checked in a while, there are also numerous appendices that go over the intricacies of .scd editing, and many things have been cleaned up

feb. 27, 2023: a few minor changes and additions here and there across the document. nothing too impactful

jan. 30, 2023: more .scd research expanding into sfx.

jan. 22, 2023: document has been edited with another possible method for finding loops (in bytes) that's maybe less janky

hello, it me. after going through the struggle and strife of editing .scd for use in-game, i've decided to slap together a comprehensive guide to save others the trouble of figuring it out themselves. note that its focus is on bgm, but it should be applicable elsewhere that .scds or sounds are involved. there's also a small tutorial towards the end of the main segment, on getting it all set up in penumbra

for a comprehensive list of .scds, please refer to my companion mod page: https://xivmodarchive.com/modid/69656

this guide is mostly penumbra-based; however, i've recently added in help for translating your penumbra and vfxeditor mod into textools format. if you wish to stay fully in the textools world, there's a guide written by zazaru about adding music to a mount by way of textools (link provided in the links section). and if you're looking to edit the music for a dance mod specifically, i do have a bit on that subject, but you can alternatively consult euphe's guide (also provided in the links section). downside for the .scd conversion method in either of those guides is that you won't be able to edit metadata for having more control over how your file reacts in-game (like if your music should honour mount acceleration's volume changes or if it shouldn't play over a certain type of sound/BGM), and so i would recommend checking my guide for that part, at least

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UnqSD0fBkQ8jT-172ZVMAcG1WT153mr_/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=103089453852140080219&rtpof=true&sd=true

while i view it as still a work in progress because of the sheer amount of information involved with .scds, it should nonetheless set you up for basic to advanced edits. being as it's comprehensive, it will be rather verbose at times, so i apologise if it takes me a bit to get to the point

feel free to contact me if you need anything~