AiboHack

ACustomZ - AIBO Sound CustomiZer

Overview

The AIBO Sound Customizer is a simple utility that allows you to customize some of the common sounds. Thanks to those AiboOwners that sent me their old SysODA data. Some of those custom sounds come with the tool or in a Theme Sound Pack

Sticks Supported

The following AiboWare sticks are currently supported:

Compatibility Notes

ACustomZ can not be used with the sound features of the AIBO Fun Pack (you must use one or the other - not both).
The list of customizable sounds varies depending on the stick type.
Additional sounds may be added in the future (send me email if you have suggestions).
When customizing for AiboLife2 or Explorer, customizing the 210 and 220 are separate. The last model AIBO you ran the stick in decides what is customized (ie. if you have both a 210 and a 220, you can use the same stick with two different customization)

Installation and Usage

Installation

  • Download the main program: ACustomZ.zip
  • Unzip it to a folder on your computer. The folder name should not be too long or contain spaces. The folder "C:\AIBO\CUST" is recommended.
  • Optionally: download one or more of the Custom Sound Theme Packs below. Unzip them to this same folder.

    Usage

  • Put one of the supported memory sticks in your stick reader.
  • For safety sake, backup your memory stick to your PC
  • Run the program (C:\AIBO\CUST\ACustomZ.EXE)
  • Open the MEMSTICK.IND file at the root of the memory stick

  • Open a category of AIBO actions (eg: "AIBO WANTS", use the + button or double click)
  • Pick one of the "Aibo Sounds" from the tree. You can press the "Preview" button (or double click the tree item) to hear the current sound.
  • To change the sound, pick a new sound from "Sound" dropdown list. The last selected sound will be the one used. If you want to remove customization, just select "(default)" for that sound.

  • Repeat the last two steps to customize any additional sounds
  • When complete, hit the "Save" button. This will save the new sounds to the memory stick
  • NOTE: "Save" will cause your computer screen to flash a little (a command line tool is being run 3 times). This is normal.
  • When complete, remove the stick and try it out in your AIBO.

    Advice

    When replacing a sound, try to pick a new sound that is approximately the same length (ie. duration) as the original. Most sounds are coordinated with motions, and replacing a short sound with a much longer sound does not always look that good. For example "Wake Up" sounds can be long, and most other sounds are short.

    Sound Theme Packs

    The main ACustomZ program comes with a few common sounds (barking, growling etc). To install different sounds, download one or more of the following "Sound Theme Packs" and unzip them to the same folder as the main program (eg: "C:\AIBO\CUST" is recommended).

    INSTALLATION NOTE: the actual .WAV files must be in the "SOUNDS" folder underneath the program director (eg: "C:\AIBO\CUST\SOUNDS" is recommended). If you see .WAV files in the main folder or multiple SOUNDS folders, then the wrong install folder was used (ie: there should be no "C:\AIBO\CUST\SOUNDS\SOUNDS" folder).

    Advanced: Adding your own .WAVs/.MIDs

    After you get bored with the pre-defined sounds (including the Theme Packs), you can add your own .WAV files. You should be comfortable editing WAVE files. I recommend the CoolEdit program.

    Instructions

  • WAVE files must be in the right format. 8000 samples per second, 8 bit mono files with no extra information
  • Place them in the SOUNDS folder directly where ACustomZ.exe was installed ("C:\AIBO\CUST\SOUNDS" as recommended).

  • Suggestion: Do not make the sound files too long
  • Suggestion: MIDI files can be added to the SOUNDS folder. AIBO's support for MIDI is very specific, so existing MIDI files may or may not work.
  • NOTE:If you have a lot of .WAVs in a theme, and you want to share it with others as a "Sound Theme Pack", please send me an email.