► FFVII SOUNDTRACK OPTIONS - COMPENDIUM ◄ For FFVII,
Nobuo Uematsu composed the 1997 PS1 OST in just 8 months, using mainly MIDI synthesizers. This was a significant reduction from the usual 2 years that previous Final Fantasy titles took. To minimise the game's load time, Uematsu had to sacrifice advanced audio quality and voice performance. But he was not happy with the loss of quality that was necessary at the time. FFVII was the first game in the series to feature a track with digitised vocals: "One-Winged Angel" is considered to be Uematsu's most recognizable contribution to the music of the Final Fantasy series. In addition, the 1998 PC port included
four sets of MIDI songs (awe, midi, xg and ygm) for Sound Blaster AWE, General MIDI, XG and Yamaha sound cards. It also had four sets of soundfonts (FF7, FF7M, FF7S and lb2), a soundfont manager, and a license for Yamaha Corporation's S-YXG70 software synthesizer.
The Yamaha converted the original 100 music tracks into XG format files. Although the quality is obviously high, the final result differs from the original PS1. De gustibus. In the official PC re-release version, the ogg tracks suffer from lower clarity and volume due to higher compression. Additionally, there are looping issues and music bugs.
However, thanks to mods, you can change the tracks to your liking and have a bug-free experience. Choose according to your preference based on nostalgia for the first version played in the past.
- Preservation of FF7 PS1 OST CDs 1997 version: "The Reunion FF7 PSX OST mod" by DLB
Previously known as Anxious Heart. The bugless music files are looped OGG Vorbis files from the official OST.
[Format: .OGG Vorbis, Bit rate: 192 kbps, Sample rate: 44100 kHz, 2ch] Get it on the link above. (complete) {Mirror}
[Another work is "
OST CDs Maximum quality mod" by
FBX.
It's based on the OST CDs as they are better in sound quality than the PS1 midi files and or PSF files.] (incomplete) **DISCONTINUED**
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- Emulation of FF7 PS1 1997 version: "FFNx FF7Music mod" by myst6re {Mirror}
This plays the original PS1 bugless music files on a PC via a BIOS that emulates the 16-bit Sony SPU, the PS1's audio processor. Same quality as MIDIs, but with the sound of the PS1. Super lightweight alternative.
[Format: .miniPSF, Bit rate: unknown, Sample rate: 44100 kHz, 2ch] Get it on 7H. (complete)
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- Emulation of FF7 PC 1998 version: "Deet's XG Music mod" by Dte102 {Mirror}
These XG MIDIs run through the Yamaha S-YXG50 SoftSynthesizer which is similar if not the same as the Yamaha S-YXG70 SoftSynth included in the original 1998 Eidos release.
[Format: .OGG Vorbis, Bit rate: 256 kbps, Sample rate: 48000 kHz, 2ch] Get it on 7H. (complete)
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- Remake of FF7 PS4 2020 version: "ReMusic mod" by Fewtch
Richer orchestration and more realistic instrument samples. More complex and have a grander, cinematic feel. All Remake music. Feature Dynamic Music: game music is interactive, music flows seamlessly from exploration-to-battle. Not compatible with Echo-S yet.
[Format: .OGG Vorbis, Bit rate: 128 kbps, Sample rate: 48000 kHz, 2ch] Get it on Nexus. (complete)
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- Remaster of FF7 2023 version: "Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis OST mod" by noctiztrio
Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster's treatment? Here we go. Praised by many, this upgraded official soundtrack is extremely loyal to OG, a true remaster and a great option for your music if you are a nostalgic.
[Format: .OGG Vorbis, Bit rate: 156 kbps, Sample rate: 44100 kHz, 2ch] Get it on Nexus. (uncompleted 60/85) (not converted directly from WAV and some looping issues)
[Another work is "
Synthetic Origins: FF7" by
Mathew Valente / TSSF.
A tedious work and appreciated attempt executed with painstaking accuracy. This is basically taking the sequences and utilizing samples from the original synthesizers and samplers with much less editing that was required to have the PS1 play it back at that time. Mathew, the sound engineer (owner of original samplers/romplers/sample libraries) adds a bit of flavor showing what the music would have sounded like if full patch instead of single samples were used... when it does not sound bad. FF7 has something like 60 to 70 samples, an educated guess is that we know 80% of the sources. These samples were identified from many people, see for example G-boy's spreadsheet as a good reference. Long story short: a much crisper sound and high quality samples bring us basically a remastered version. Also plugins, reverb released around the same year, many other stuffs, are all taken in consideration... and much more is happening behind the scenes.] (incomplete) **DISCONTINUED**
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For Complete Sound Mod:
Cosmo Memory mod is your friend.
For Full Voice-Over Mod:
Echo-S 7 mod is your friend.
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Nobuo Uematsu - Interview & Info
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Information & Known Issues
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Don't forget to purchase "
FF7 Revival OST" official 2019 release by SE - This is a reprint, its audio is a hi-res 24bit/96kHz quality.
Check out Must Install ModsOther FF7 related topics:
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