How to Learn Chiptune Trackers TUTORIAL

[@ArrowOnionbelly]

finally, a DAW tutorial that makes sense, uses freeware, and doesn't require me to own any physical instruments. You're a saint. Thank you.

[@_buttonmasher]

🫡

[@d1ssolv3r]

yep and you can do so much more with trackers than just chiptune, if you look at something like sunvox

[@BeachBear64]

Well there is the exception of a midi controller

[@dinsfire8489]

​@@BeachBear64 You can use your computer keyboard, it's just not ideal

[@BeachBear64]

@@dinsfire8489 yeah you can barely switch octaves

[@branflakes325]

you're such a legend for making this

[@_buttonmasher]

Thank you king

[@Deku-yv6kw]

Now I want to deep dive into chiptuning thx!❤​@@_buttonmasher

[@balorprice]

God tier instructional - wait, this is your FIRST tutorial? Okay, subscribed, no hesitation. This is great stuff!

[@_buttonmasher]

Greatly appreciated! There is more instructional content on the way

[@nintendude794]

@@_buttonmashercan’t wait!

[@KnightSuperiority]

For someone who has been DYING to use a tracker for over 2 years now, this video is a godsend. Great work!

[@_buttonmasher]

Thank you!

[@marisakirisame867]

Note tracking aside, FM 4-op is really a headache

[@boltinthevoid5299]

That's extremely valuable information, and your tracks are bonkers !!!! Thanks so much for that

[@dantescanline]

i've been away from trackers for more than ten years (used milkytracker + renoise) and i wanted to jump back in. even knowing about all these basics this video got me so hyped to start playing with this stuff again, and Furnace specifically. thanks!!!

[@_buttonmasher]

So glad to hear it!!!!!

[@GregzillaGT]

I've only ever dabbled casually in making chiptune-y music in FL Studio with soundfonts, and I wanted to finally dive into a tracker instead. This vid made it a lot less daunting. Thanks for the great overview!

[@_buttonmasher]

Thanks for watching! Cant wait to see what you make!

[@64Abstract]

a wonderful resource for anyone wanting to make chiptune magnificent video right here man !!

[@kawashin7427]

I will remember this, this is the video that got me started learning how to cook using tracker.thank you so much

[@_buttonmasher]

@@kawashin7427 excited for you buddy!

[@Retrogamingmaverick]

I’m currently working on a c64 cover of The Model by Kraftwerk and this helped a ton! Thanks ^^

[@_buttonmasher]

🙏

[@VetNovice]

Realizing how to transcribe is such an important tool for any skill range . Learn from masters. Fundamental tutorial! A must for anyone getting into chiptune / Furnace Tracker.

[@AngelicDirt]

I was sold at the title, but then you show Furnace just as I was starting to puzzle it out to see if I can use it the other day? THANK YOU~ X3

[@_buttonmasher]

❤❤❤❤

[@Fourscythe]

Ahoy's video on Trackers is so, so good. Great to see this has gotten a mention - stoked to keep up with this series!

[@_buttonmasher]

❤❤❤

[@RobbieNerve]

This is a nice jumpstart! I've used C64 trackers/composers and mod/s3m trackers back in the 90s. Looking to get back in some sort of tracker and furnace seems really cool. Thanks for this tutorial ;-)

[@makotroid108]

I never knew i needed a tracker in my life, but here i am. Great video, thx!

[@retrokid104]

Button Masher coming in clutch as usual. Thanks! Now I won't get confused by furnace.

[@_buttonmasher]

Glad to help!

[@AlambradasMusic]

I've always admired the fact that chiptuners help each other on their sound discoveries; it's nice to see different approaches on music and Furnace itself. thanks for taking the time to present all of this to us!

[@_buttonmasher]

Couldn't agree more!

[@AlambradasMusic]

also, @pedipanol é do Brasil e eu já amo!

[@Roebey]

incredible! this is the exact amount of in depth my brain needs without it getting to lengthy. please make more of these!

[@_buttonmasher]

More on the way! Stay tuned for “how to make snes music in 2023!”

[@InnerMotionMusic]

This video is an excellent crash course on the basics of using trackers. Looking forward to the next episode!

[@_buttonmasher]

thank you!

[@TotallyRadical]

Dude you're so awesome for making these how-to videos. As a guy in my mid 40s, I've always wanted to get into making this type of music but high cost and lack of time and knowing where to start always held me back. Now that the tech is more readily available and affordable I'm going to dip my toes in the water!

[@_buttonmasher]

Glad I could help!

[@TotallyRadical]

@@_buttonmasher I look forward to watching future videos in the series! 👍

[@retroasobi]

Awesome tutorial covering Furnace and with a hand of talented people from the community! Looking forward to follow through the series!

[@_buttonmasher]

Welcome aboard!

[@TheXtremeBoltGuy]

I desperately needed this, thanks

[@_buttonmasher]

Happy to help

[@arceus413]

i'm hoping to learn how to use openmpt alongside furnace with this tutorial, thank you for making this!

[@_buttonmasher]

@@arceus413 i think a lot of the same principles can apply! Particularly the transcription method i outline towards the end of the video

[@HeatleyBros]

You are the MAN! thank you for this🤘

[@JacktheRacoon]

I’ve wanted to learn how to do this for a long time, but even as a Computer Science student, this looked way to complex for me (granted I have like next to no musical education at all). But this video might seriously change that! You did an IMMACULATE job of communicating these ideas in an easy to follow way. I wish more software tutorials were like this! Well done.

[@_buttonmasher]

I greatly appreciate this. Theres more on the way

[@vitorrossini5454]

Alright alright, after a tutorial as good as this one, I have no excuses anymore. Time to get it started :D Thanks for the video!

[@_buttonmasher]

You got this!

[@ben_burnes]

This is very comprehensive! Always glad to have see tracker tutorials out there :D

[@_buttonmasher]

I learned famitracker from your tutorials. Super grateful for them. Just trying to do my part for the community!

[@ben_burnes]

@@_buttonmasherAbsolutely agree! Aside from *just* Famitracker, the more people that get hooked into trackers and chiptune the better. Honestly, I want to give this Furnace tracker a try 👀 I think I commented a few times on Twitter when you were talking about making this. It came together great!

[@husrev_vv]

epic demonstration, thanks a lot man.

[@cfcefa09]

Awesome man! I've wanted to learn for so long and I haven't found anything as step by step and direction simple as this.

[@_buttonmasher]

Glad you liked it!

[@thecolorcomputer]

Your instrumental prowess is on another level. And now I've been introduced to your technical understanding 🙌 Great stuff, getting all of us out here happy and informed🎵

[@GuacaFlockaFLAME]

Thanks for taking the time to make this! Excited to learn and practice:)

[@_buttonmasher]

Hope you enjoy it!

[@lumena-tan]

You're doing god's work. Looking forward to seeing this whole series realized!

[@_buttonmasher]

Lets GO!!!!!

[@katachiaudio]

WOW the transcription method is so simple but so mind blowing useful. Thank you so much for sharing this knowledge.

[@TheCreepypro]

gotta love a man willing to share the precious secrets of his art!

[@reyhkibanki]

can't wait for more episodes of this series, i love this! :D

[@lazy_bt]

this is an incredible tutorial, i dont think ive ever watched a tutorial video this neat, helpful, and comprehensible all at the same time. as a non-native english speaker, your timing and pronunciation are a godsend! theyre both perfect so that theyre not too slow or so fast that it becomes unintelligible for someone like me. despite the lack of captions (note that the auto-generated captions, though available, are never reliable on videos about topics this niche), i dont think people with hearing difficulties or non-native speakers will have issues understanding you. i understood every word perfectly and im not even wearing heaphones at the moment! this video is helpful, succint, accessible, and even motivating to a degree. you sold me on furnace tracker completely, and the transcription method sounds wonderful for quick learning. im not even half-kidding when i say people who make tutorial videos should learn from this one attentively. its THAT good. thank you so much 👍

[@_buttonmasher]

Thanks!

[@corel7966]

im so glad there's a tutorial for this...and furnace specifically! i want to make music too, so this is real helpful!

[@lazyful3961]

hell yeah! been excited for this since it was announced. great video, looking forward to learning more!

[@_buttonmasher]

More to come!

[@mattsephton]

Subscribed for this series. Thank you!

[@_buttonmasher]

Welcome aboard!

[@TheDuccinator]

Very excellent and well executed for explaining how trackers work!

[@_buttonmasher]

Thanks!

[@RobertoVillegas-vincent404]

As someone who has wanted to learn trackers in general, especially in a chiptunes context, this has been super helpful just to understand the methodology way better. I’m looking forward to future episodes for sure and hoping that even though they’ll be Furnace specific in term of UI and such that they’ll stay general enough to use with any tracker. Great series and thank you for doing this.

[@_buttonmasher]

Thanks so much! I will also be covering daws in some segments! The upcoming episode on making snes music in particular will be daw heavy

[@RobertoVillegas-vincent404]

@@_buttonmasher interesting. Now I’m really looking forward to the next video. I have a feeling what VST (if any) may pop up, but still curious how you’ll go about it. Should be good learning either way.

[@fm_am4n]

This is a brilliant tutorial series for those who want to step into the realm of trackers! Can't wait for the next episode!

[@_buttonmasher]

The next episode is gonna be on snes music!

[@carstenstengel7495]

Nice one! I am quite familiar with Trackermechanism but Furnace is new to me. Looks interesting. Thank you

[@baggonotes]

Great video, I really love the way you’ve broken down concepts and shared your method of learning to compose chiptune! Transcribing pieces is definitely a great way to learn the ins and outs of tracker software! It’s wonderful you were able to work with so many talented people to put this video together. The Chiptune community rocks!

[@_buttonmasher]

Thank you for this! I am indeed very grateful to my very talented peers who were and are eager to help me with these projects.

[@mattschaeferdesign]

Your graphics are just as good as your music! It all comes together so well. Been a fan for a long time.

[@_buttonmasher]

thank you!

[@jakke6691]

wow this looks very complicated but i'm also super hyped to try it myself. have only worked with daws like fl studio before, so it'll propably take a lot of getting used to

[@voidnattawav]

I just started to create music using trackers, thank u so much for this tutorial!

[@EberFilipeSunlight91]

YESSS!! Thank you!!!

[@_buttonmasher]

You bet!

[@EvanMarien]

This is an incredible video! Great insights and guidance here. Looking forward to more videos, and can't wait to make more music with you!

[@_buttonmasher]

Same bro!!! So stoked for our next track! And thank you for watching!

[@VGMCollective]

This video is awesome 🎉❤

[@_buttonmasher]

Hold up….. you mean to tell me vgm is makin a come back???? Well sign me up brother.

[@jgurtz]

Fantastic introduction and tutorial. I am am inspired, thank you!

[@_buttonmasher]

You're very welcome!

[@TakuikaNinja]

Thanks, now I don't have to awkwardly explain my chiptune workflow to my friends every time!

[@_buttonmasher]

Yup!!!

[@the777th]

This is the best can’t wait to try the tracker😮

[@jarifin776]

I am a complete beginner to chiptune, I got confused which tracker should I use to learn, there are so many of them, like famitracker, milkytracker, etc. This video really help me with that, I'm going to learn with furnace now! Thank you so much!

[@sozellicus]

Thank you very much for this. I’ve been wanting to get into tracking for a while now but have been intimidated by it. This video was a very well-made introduction to it and may be the push I needed.

[@_buttonmasher]

You got this!!!!!!

[@DEFENSEMECHANISM]

this is so cool! now i can start making chiptunes in my own style like i always wanted to!!!!

[@_buttonmasher]

Sir this is a wendys.

[@Tomapella]

This is wonderful, I always wanted to make something like this and so happy it now exists!

[@PaozBeats]

Thanks a lot ! Great video

[@ConnorBaxter]

Great video! was looking at trying out furnace and this has completely sold it! looksvery user friendly with the Tempo settings, and effects list being displayable!

[@MrRarestlizard039]

Amazing tutorial !! I can't wait to see what incredible talent will come from this

[@ChaosColaStudios]

Hey I just wanted to thank you for making this tutorial! I got a comment asking me to teach them how to make chiptunes, so I recommended them this tutorial :).

[@Hifitracker]

Nice oldshool ❤😊❤😊

[@retrostarultra]

i'm looking forward to the rest of this series! :D as for chiptune related topics, i've always absolutely LOVED learning more and more about the history of certain sound chips, and the composers who've used them. while this topic may not exactly fit in a "tutorial" series, it's a topic that i personally find very interesting, and love hearing people document. it's always nice to have a proper chiptune tutorial series that's easy to follow and go back to, it's something i struggled finding and following along with when i first started making music in famitracker haha. keep up the good work man!

[@_buttonmasher]

Thank you!

[@burgerbeatz6293]

very accessible tutorial, also those chiptunes are fire, subbed

[@_buttonmasher]

Thanks!

[@prizmwizard]

Awesome tutorial, thanks so much! I'd like to learn more about your approach to harmony/arrangement in the context of chiptune music, as it always sounds so lush and vibrant.

[@_buttonmasher]

Coming soon!

[@prizmwizard]

@@_buttonmasher

[@calemills699]

This is such a rad series man! Just the thought of being able to sit down and create with the sounds of something like Chrono Trigger…I think I’ll probably cry 😂 looking forward to it!

[@_buttonmasher]

Ill cover that in my next video

[@picori.]

i’ve been wanting to use a tracker for years (specifically famitracker), but haven’t been able to (and still can’t) due to computer problems, lol. but i kid not, for the first time ever yesterday, i watched a few tutorials on it just to get an idea of how it works. even if i cant use it atm. so i thought i thought it was funny when i saw this in my sub feed. looking forward to it!

[@_buttonmasher]

thanks so much!

[@picori.]

thank *you!*

[@kenkune55]

This is a great introduction! I've been learning music for a few years and have been looking to branch into arranging and trackers soon. I'd be super interested in a future video with any tips or guidance on making chiptune arrangements of non-chiptune songs. Looking forward to the rest of the series!

[@_buttonmasher]

That is a GREAT idea

[@reversebjork8735]

Let's goooooooo. Content cold right here

[@_buttonmasher]

thanks!

[@abdullahajeebi]

‏‪8:39‬‏ Small correction, the DPCM channel uses a NES instrument OR a generic sample instrument, with the latter used for PCM playback.

[@_buttonmasher]

Thanks for this!

[@ianchandler4903]

Great video! Saw you last month in Boston and you all were awesome. Very inspiring! Reccomendation for a good midi keyboard for begginers might be a good topic to cover in a video. Otherwise just keep it up man, love it!

[@_buttonmasher]

Great suggestion!

[@Sector_VII]

This is great!!! I’ve been waiting for a series like this for years! Thanks for putting these together👾

[@_buttonmasher]

More to come!

[@mattanimation]

dude, amazing work! I know this must have taken quite a bit to put together. thanks for sharing.

[@_buttonmasher]

Thank YOU!

[@ChrisLeeW00]

Wow I just heard about furnace, it really has a lot of great features.

[@Nordischsound]

Don't forget the Commodore64 😁 Thanks for this great video!

[@_buttonmasher]

Of course!!!!!

[@user-yv6xw7ns3o]

This is amazing, thank you!

[@_buttonmasher]

You're very welcome!

[@mistery8363]

another cool thing to learn could be something akin to Furnace shortcuts and general tracking "best practices" if any.

[@_buttonmasher]

Good idea!

[@nicks5898]

Mr. Masher, this was such a joy to watch. My big question here that you touched on earlier in the video is this: if I’m not intending to export my work to be played on the console, is there a reason I couldn’t somehow just use the samples as a VST in my DAW of choice? I suspect the answer is that using the tracking software forces me to create in the confines of what is technically possible on that specific chipset. Is that the case?

[@_buttonmasher]

There are many consoles that a vst will not be able to replicate. But more importantly, there are certain automation techniques that are possible in a tracker that are NOT possible in a daw. I have 2 examples i want you to listen to. My cover of “Ryus Theme” and my cover of “Those who Fight” from final fantasy 7. The former was made in a daw and the latter was made in a tracker. I think the difference that it makes FOR THE SOUND will be immediately obvious.

[@RoninJoegenji0085]

Subbed. This is legendary my God respect 🙏

[@tabormullins]

Killer stuff dude!

[@_buttonmasher]

Thanks bro

[@BillyReginald]

Can't wait for this

[@mistery8363]

A more in-depth Furnace tutorial would be great, given the overall lack of 3rd party resources, but I'd also personally appreciate general tracking tips or just bite-sized videos on how to achieve specific sounds from videogames (or even meatspace instruments!).

[@_buttonmasher]

Coming soon. But i cant stress enough how much the transcription method will help you. Everything ive learned about tracking came from transcribing modules. Its the greatest tip anyone will ever give you.

[@victornoagbodji]

This is a wonderful tutorial 😊

[@kqlolll2618]

im deciding to use this as beepbox seems very limiting, yet i also know im managing to make decent songs without knowing anything about music. of course i eventually want to learn how to compose any music as a whole, because theres so many things i want to create. i felt like ive been listening to music long enough, now i want to make music like my favorite songs i know as a whole.

[@kitterbug]

I've been struggling with furnace for the past year, and it was been very discouraging. This is helping me alot, thank you!

[@HeraldOD]

"To do this on a mac, you'll need to download two separate version of furnace" LMAOOOO

[@_buttonmasher]

@@HeraldOD hahahahahaha i know its truly so miserable 😭

[@huberjonathan]

great video dude!!

[@_buttonmasher]

thanks bro. my life would be complete if i ever got you to make music with furnace!!!!

[@huberjonathan]

I may just have to download it and try it out sometime haha@@_buttonmasher

[@dashwen]

Thank you so much for this video! I’ve loved video game music for as long as I can remember and now watching your video has inspired me to try and take on making something. I love the explanation of hexadecimal number (As a programmer, you explained it perfectly). My question for you, for someone who doesn’t have any musical background and starting fresh by following your tutorial, would that be troublesome or is it recommended for someone to have a background in music? Thanks so much again for launching this tutorial series!

[@shortriver7451]

Thank you very much!! This video is really helpful

[@oliviertakemitsu9583]

Hello! I’m currently working on a very ambitious project, and your resources and videos have been incredibly helpful! Your Tracker learning method, certainly shortened my learning curve, and helped me to focus in the musical content of my project. I’ll share it with you as soon as it’s finished and dedicate a huge thank you to your channel! Since you’ve invited us, your listeners, to suggest topics in the comments, I’d like to take the opportunity to worry you with a few questions: 1. My project involves creative use of waveform visualizers. I especially love your color-responsive waveforms and the videogame-inspired GUIs you use for your cover songs. Could you share which wave visualizers you use or recommend? Or is it a trade secret? Haha. I also wanted to mention that the topic of visualizers isn't well-covered online, and it seems like those who use them at a high level often possess secret knowledge in areas like coding or video editing. It would be great to see a KZbin video that dives into this. I know it's not purely musical, but it's a crucial element in this small yet passionate niche. 2. My project also involves microtonal music. I primarily use Plogue’s Chipsynth SFC since it supports Scala tuning. However, I’d love to take advantage of a tracker to create microtonal music, but as a Mac user, many notable trackers with microtonal support are Windows-exclusive. I recently learned that Renoise has microtuning parameters, but I’m unsure if it offers chip emulation like Furnace or DefleMask. Have you used Renoise, and does it support chip emulation? Note: As for Trackers i am currently using scripts to modify DefleMask’s fine-tuning parameters to create microtonal music, but this process can be a bit tedious. Do you have any suggestions? Given Furnace’s compatibility with DefleMask, do you know if it’s possible to create microtonal systems through fine-tuning parameters in Furnace? 3. Can you recommend any communities or circles where I can learn, share, and have discussions about chip music? I’ve been surprised by how difficult it is to find a cohesive chip music community. Even Reddit doesn’t seem to have one as active as other niche communities, and Discord servers like the much-advertised "Pixel Coffee" seem to focus more on pixel art than chip music discussions. Sorry for the long comment! Your fan, Olivi

[@_buttonmasher]

@@oliviertakemitsu9583 i will write a more thorough response when i have a moment but as far as communities go, please join my discord, the maj7 discord, the furnace discord, and battle of the bits!

[@oliviertakemitsu9583]

@@_buttonmasher hey! Thank you for the answer, and sorry if I asked a lot haha. Joining the communities right now!

[@Jhoofnail]

Oh hey it’s you! I follow you on TikTok. Absolutely amazing video, I guess I’ll just have to follow you again

[@HANGINGOUTWITHAUDIOPHILES]

Loved this :)

[@TheChuck59]

Neat video! I really like it!

[@_buttonmasher]

Thanks chuck. Love your work btw.

[@keenankrieger3409]

I’d love a tutorial on making instruments!

[@CRAETION_]

dude thank you so much for this

[@empcat1254]

I always wondered how there was so much control in old video game soundtracks

[@_buttonmasher]

Most them werent written with trackers though. Many were programmed in assembly

[@Raikkline]

DAMNN hace tiempo que intenté aprender sobre esto y solo hay un video de ello en español, me leí el manual entero del famitracker y ojalá haber encontrado este video cuando comencé.

[@Tweedlex_The_Great]

thanks so much for helping me. Now I can make some music.

[@ribenasquash]

I did not know the DPCM channel could pitch shift. Very impressive even if the games were a bit small to fit samples often.

[@_buttonmasher]

It actually cant. Furnace allows you to do it but to really use a bass sample in the channel you would need to make samples of every note that you want

[@ribenasquash]

@@_buttonmasher oh ok thanks for confirming that for me. :)

[@thatonecaster6501]

this was..really digestible