Computer Science & Software Engineering

CSCI 135 Fundamentals of Computer Science I Fall 2014

ASSIGNMENT #7 - Guitar Hero

• Plucking the string. The excitation of the string can contain energy at any frequency. We simulate the excitation with white noise: set each of the N displacements to a random real number between -1/2 and +1/2.

  

• The resulting vibrations. After the string is plucked, the string vibrates. The pluck causes a displacement which spreads wave-like over time. The Karplus-Strong algorithm simulates this vibration by maintaining a ring buffer of the N samples: the algorithm repeatedly deletes the first sample from the buffer and adds to the end of the buffer the average of the first two samples, scaled by an energy decay factor of 0.996.

  

• The ring buffer feedback mechanism. The ring buffer models the medium (a string tied down at both ends) in which the energy travels back and forth. The length of the ring buffer determines the fundamental frequency of the resulting sound. Sonically, the feedback mechanism reinforces only the fundamental frequency and its harmonics (frequencies at integer multiples of the fundamental). The energy decay factor (.996 in this case) models the slight dissipation in energy as the wave makes a roundtrip through the string.
• The averaging operation. The averaging operation serves as a gentle low-pass filter (which removes higher frequencies while allowing lower frequencies to pass, hence the name). Because it is in the path of the feedback, this has the effect of gradually attenuating the higher harmonics while keeping the lower ones, which corresponds closely with how a plucked guitar string sounds.

public class RingBuffer
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        RingBuffer(int capacity)  // create an empty ring buffer, with given max capacity
    int size()                    // return number of items currently in the buffer
boolean isEmpty()                 // is the buffer empty (size equals zero)?
boolean isFull()                  // is the buffer full  (size equals capacity)?
   void enqueue(double x)         // add item x to the end
 double dequeue()                 // delete and return item from the front
 double peek()                    // return (but do not delete) item from the front

public static void main(String[] args) { int N = Integer.parseInt(args[0]); RingBuffer buffer = new RingBuffer(N); for (int i = 1; i <= N; i++) { buffer.enqueue(i); } double t = buffer.dequeue(); buffer.enqueue(t); System.out.println("Size after wrap-around is " + buffer.size()); while (buffer.size() >= 2) { double x = buffer.dequeue(); double y = buffer.dequeue(); buffer.enqueue(x + y); } System.out.println(buffer.peek()); }

% java RingBuffer 10
Size after wrap-around is 10
55.0

% java RingBuffer 100
Size after wrap-around is 100
5050.0

public class GuitarString
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       GuitarString(double frequency)  // create a guitar string of the given frequency, using a sampling rate of 44,100
       GuitarString(double[] init)     // create a guitar string whose size and initial values are given by the array
  void pluck()                         // set the buffer to white noise
  void tic()                           // advance the simulation one time step
double sample()                        // return the current sample
   int time()                          // return number of tics

• Constructors. There are two ways to create a GuitarString object.
  • The first constructor creates a RingBuffer of the desired capacity N (the sampling rate 44,100 divided by frequency, rounded to the nearest integer), and initializes it to represent a guitar string at rest by enqueueing N zeros.
  • The second constructor creates a RingBuffer of capacity equal to the size of the array, and initializes the contents of the buffer to the values in the array. On this assignment, its main purpose is for debugging and grading.
• Pluck. Replace the N items in the ring buffer with N random values between -0.5 and +0.5.
• Tic. Apply the Karplus-Strong update: 1) compute the average of the first two samples, 2) delete the sample at the front of the ring buffer, 3) add to the end of the ring buffer the previously computed average multiplied by the energy decay factor.
• Sample. Return the value of the item at the front of the ring buffer.
• Time. Return the total number of times tic() was called.

public static void main(String[] args) { int N = Integer.parseInt(args[0]); double[] samples = { .2, .4, .5, .3, -.2, .4, .3, .0, -.1, -.3 }; GuitarString testString = new GuitarString(samples); for (int i = 0; i < N; i++) { int t = testString.time(); double sample = testString.sample(); System.out.printf("%6d %8.4f\n", t, sample); testString.tic(); } }

% java GuitarString 25
     0   0.2000
     1   0.4000
     2   0.5000
     3   0.3000
     4  -0.2000
     5   0.4000
     6   0.3000
     7   0.0000
     8  -0.1000
     9  -0.3000
    10   0.2988
    11   0.4482
    12   0.3984
    13   0.0498
    14   0.0996
    15   0.3486
    16   0.1494
    17  -0.0498
    18  -0.1992
    19  -0.0006
    20   0.3720
    21   0.4216
    22   0.2232
    23   0.0744
    24   0.2232

String keyboard = "q2we4r5ty7u8i9op-[=zxdcfvgbnjmk,.;/' ";

                                              w q q
        8       u       7       y             o p p
i p z v b z p b n z p n d [ i d z p i p z p i u i i

nn//SS/ ..,,mmn //..,,m //..,,m nn//SS/ ..,,mmn   (S = space)

Do I need to follow the prescribed API? Yes, we will be testing the methods in the API directly. If your method has a different signature or does not behave as specified, you will lose a substantial number of points. You may not add public methods to the API; however, you may add private methods (which are only accessible in the class in which they are declared).

Where do I enter keystrokes in GuitarHeroLite and GuitarHero? Be sure that the standard draw window has focus by clicking in it. Then, type the keystrokes.

Is the size of a RingBuffer equal to the number of nonzeros? No. Some of the elements in the buffer can be zero. To get an accurate count, increment the instance variable size each time you call enqueue() and decrement it each time you call dequeue().

How do I throw a RuntimeException? See the examples in Vector.java (but you'll need to pick your own short description string).

When generating random values between -0.5 and +0.5 in should I include the endpoints? You are free to choose whatever convention you find most convenient. The inclusion or exclusion of the endpoints makes no humanly discernable difference in the sound, but the inclusion of exactly one endpoint makes the implementation of the method very simple.

How do I round a double to the nearest int? See the toGray() method in Luminance.java (Program 3.1.3).

What should RingBuffer do if the client attempts to dequeue() from an empty buffer or enqueue() into a full buffer? You should throw an exception to indicate the error. This is easy to do, here is an example: throw new RuntimeException("Ring buffer overflow");

What happens if I call StdAudio.play(x) where x is greater than 1 or less than -1? The value is clipped—it is replaced by the value 1.0 or -1.0, respectively.

I get an ArrayOutOfBounds or NullPointerException error in RingBuffer. What could cause this? Does your constructor correctly initialize all of the instance variables? Did you allocate memory for your array? Did you inadvertently redeclare an instance variable in a method or constructor, thereby shadowing the instance variable with the same name?

I get a Ring buffer underflow error in GuitarHeroLite before I type any keystrokes. Why? Did you forget to initialize the ring buffer to contain N zeros in your GuitarString constructor?

When I run GuitarHeroLite for the first time, I hear no sound. What am I doing wrong? Make sure you have tested with the main() provided for GuitarString. If that works, it is likely something wrong with pluck() since the main() provided for GuitarString does not test that method. To diagnose the problem, print out the values of sample() and check that they become nonzero after you type lower case characters 'a' and 'c'.

When I run GuitarHeroLite, I hear static (either just one click, and then silence or continual static). What am I doing wrong? It's likely that pluck() is working, but tic() is not. The best test is to run the main() provided for GuitarString.

How do I use keyboard.indexOf(key)? If keyboard is a String and key is a character, then keyboard.indexOf(key) return the integer index of the first occurrence of the character key in the string keyboard (or -1 if it does not occur).

Should I hardwire the constants 44,100, 110.0, 440.0, 880.0, and 37 in my program? No, in general, we will deduct if you use an unnamed constant (such as 37) in your program more than once. We recommend using the name SAMPLING_RATE for 44,100 and CONCERT_A for 440. But you need not name all of the constants in the formula 2^{(i - 24) / 12}.

Extra credit performance At the beginning of the next lab, perform a piece for your classmates (on my laptop, your laptop, or a lab computer). Partners may perform a duet and both will receive extra credit, or a solo for individual extra credit.

Extra credit idea 1. Write a program GuitarHeroVisualizer.java (by modifying GuitarHero.java) that plots the sound wave in real-time, as the user is playing the keyboard guitar. The output should look something like this, but change over time.

Extra credit idea 2. Modify the Karplus-Strong algorithm to synthesize a different instrument. Consider changing the excitation of the string (from white-noise to something more structured) or changing the averaging formula (from the average of the first two samples to a more complicated rule) or anything else you might imagine.

Extra credit idea 3. Make an actual game similar to the real Guitar Hero game. The game should indicate what keys to play and the timing of the notes. The video to the right shows the game one previous student came up with.

Page last updated: December 18, 2014