Has anyone ever had any luck in doing so? Right now I'm trying to figure out a streamlined approach to this.

There's a thread here: http://modthesims.info/t/418050 and here: http://forum.xentax.com/viewtopic.p...t=4922&start=15
And my post here: http://modthesims.info/showthread.p...5#startcomments

But it's pretty old and the programs didn't work for me.

Alternatively, is there any way of disabling particular sound effects at all?

It's possible to replace the .snr files but only wih the pre-made ones from the game, not custom ones. Nobody has figured out how to convert audio files into .snr files yet.

Thanks for the tip!

How would I replace a .snr with another file? I have some in mind.

Extract the .snr file you want to replace (referred to as file 1) and the .snr file you want to replace the former one with (referred to as file 2). Copy the file name of file 1, change the name of file 2 and paste the name of file 1. Then import file 2 (with the name of file 1) into S3PE and save the new package in Mods/Packages. The filename consists of S3 + TGI reference + name of the file in S3PE + %%+ + SNR extension, divided by underscores, for example:
S3_01A527DB_001407EC_5A4F3EAAAB4EBA1E_fx_phone_ring_wall_loop01%%+_AUD.snr
Good luck

Thanks!

Do you know how to play snr files? I want to pick out which files to use.

I tried ffplay, but not all of them play.

This is a common issue and I've got no idea how to solve it

Has the method of replacing .snrs worked for you?

Trying it right now but it doesn't seem to change the sounds.

It's like a trial & error method. It may work or not. Not all .SNR files work the same way and some of them have .AUDTUN files as well and AFAIK this file contains the properties but I haven't figured out how it works yet. I had been working extensively on this half a year ago but I gave up eventually because of frustration and helplessness.

Thanks for the note!

Hmm, if I want to replace an audio set completely, I assume I would have to also include an overwritten .AUDTUN file in the package, right?

Do you know any single audio tracks that would be suitable for replacing the steam train sounds from World Adventures? I'm looking for something more of background noise.

Try THIS tutorial. I didn't want to create a custom sound as such but I wanted to "tell" the game to use a different sound by editing the .audtun file, but it didn't work. I don't remember the details, sorry.

I don't think you have to replace the .AUDTUN. When I created a package which replaced a .SNS, I didn't have to edit/replace the .AUDTUN, because I didn't edit the TGI reference of the .SNS file.

If you want to replace the steam train sounds, you have to look for appropriate .SNR files in the Fullbuild package.

Hmm, in order to replace a .SNR file with an empty one, the best way is to edit the .SNR file with a HEX editor and delete everything but the header. I think that's the way it works.

I really wish EA revealed how they created the .SNR files.

I tried that tutorial before, but I've been running into the issue where ealayer3 closes immediately after I open it.

I did manage to find an empty SNR file that worked, though. It seems that a lot of the SNR files in the Fullbuild package are actually empty!

Strangely enough though, duplicating one of the original sound effects (so that I got just the engine sound twice) and changing the name did not work. The whistle sound still appeared!

I found two more threads which you might find helpful:
http://modthesims.info/showthread.p...0&highlight=SNR
http://modthesims.info/showthread.p...5&highlight=SNR


When you want to convert a .SNS file into am .MP3, you simply drag the .SNS file to ealayer3.exe and after a few seconds a new MP3 is generated.

If you want to convert an .MP3 file into a .SNS file, you need to make a copy of cmd.exe (search for it via Windows search tool) and paste it into the folder where you keep ealayer3.exe. Make sure the MP3 file you want to convert is in the same folder. Memorize or write down the name of the MP3 file.

Open the Notepad and paste:


NAMEOFTHEFILEYOUMEMORIZED.mp3 has to be the same as the one of the MP3 file in order for this to work.
For example, you want to convert an MP3 file and its name is: trainsounds.mp3, so the command line has to look like this:



In Notepad select the whole command line with the appropriate names of your mp3 and sns files and copy it.

Then you open cmd.exe from the folder where you keep ealayer3.exe and paste (right-click and paste, not CTRL+V) your command line. Press Enter and after a while your newly generated .SNS file should be in the same folder. Make sure you rename the .SNS file.

Notw that this method works for .SNS files, not .SNR, unfortunately. You can, however, convert your .SNR files into .WAV. The procedure is basically the same, but you use ffmpeg.exe instead and the command line looks like this:

Thanks

Has the SNR conversion method worked for you? Or any sound conversions for that matter?

The original files I'm looking to replace are SNR files.

It's possible to convert files into .SNR format via ealayer3.exe, but the file looks exactly like a .SNS (checked in a HEX editor) but with a .SNR extension, so it's kind of useless in game.

Would a sns file work the same way as a snr file?

Nope

Hmm ok,

In my case, I have two Snr files that would then probably need to be replaced with new two corresponding snr files.

I've been working today on this and I FINALLY figured out how to replace .SNR files with custom sounds More info soon

@jje1000, let me know which .SNR file you want to replace and send me the file you want to replace the .SNR with. I'm going to create a short long tutorial without pictures and you're gonna try to do it yourself and test it in-game. Deal?

Wojtek, this is a considerable breakthrough. You might just be a National Hero of the Sim People.

@Wojtek- Thanks!

I just need to first finish putting together the sound files first

The original snr file are uploaded here: http://modthesims.info/showthread.p...623#post5013623

A list of programs you have to have in order to succeed. Click on the name of the program to be redirected to the download page, where you can obtain the program.
1. s3pe - Package editor
2. Audacity - Sound editor (you may have to download a plugin to be able to export MP3 files)
3. EALayer3 - Sound decoder (download the 3-0.6.2 version)
4. cmd.exe – Windows Command Prompt (find it via the Windows search tool)
5. HxD - Hex Editor

In this tutorial you'll learn how to replace the files in a .SNR format. These are sound files containing short sounds, which are encoded using the EA XAS ADPCM codec). They're used in the Sims 3 and stored in a big FullBuild1.package file.

Part 1. Working with ѕ3рe

Step 1.1 Download and install ѕ3pe if you haven't already.

Step 1.2 Configure ѕ3рe
1.2.1 - You'll find the FullBuild file, depending on your system and where you installed the game in: […]/Electronic Arts/The Sims 3/GameData/Shared/Packages.



OR

If you want to edit the sounds from an Expansion Pack, you just open the appropriate folder of the Expansion Pack you want to take the file from, for example FullBuild_p21 from the Sims 3 Into the Future EP:



1.2.2 – Open the FullBuild file you want to export the .snr file from (either the Fullbuild from the base game or an expansion pack).
1.2.3 – Tick the 'Sort' and Display 'Names' and 'Tags' at the bottom. Now you can see the names and tags
1.2.4 – Click 'Name' (in the upper-left corner, below 'File') to put the names in the alphabetical order.



Step 1.3 Find and extract the desired .snr file (skip this step if you have the file already)
1.3.1 – You can either do it by looking at the names of the files on the list, which is time-consuming, or click the Tool/Search or Ctrl+E and type the key word between quotation marks. To narrow down the search results to .SNR files, tick the 'enable filter' and choose '_AUD 0x01A527DB', which tells the search engine that you're looking for .snr files only, and hit Enter for the search to begin. It may take a while to load a full list of files which contain the key word you typed. Double click each line after the search has finished and the program highlights the file for you. You can either close the window, if you've found what you've been looking for, or search further if you haven't.



1.3.2 – SNS and .SNR files have the _AUD tag and you have to make sure that the file you want to export is a .SNR. Once you have found the file, double click it.
1.3.3 – A windows will pop up with the resource details (TGI) of the file. The .snr files belong to 0x01A527DB Type, the one you chose when narrowing down the search results.
1.3.4 – Close the resource details window, right-click the file you selected earlier, click Export/To file...
1.3.5 – The extension of the file is .snr. Save it somewhere you can find it easily later.



Part 2. Working with Audacity

Step 2.1 Prepare the audio file
2.1.1 – Find the file you want to replace the game's default.snr file with.
2.1.2 - Your sound should be in the MP3 format and last less than 1 minute.

Step 2.2 Download and install Audacity if you haven't already

Step 2.3 Set the file up in Audacity
2.3.1 - Open Audacity and import the file there.
2.3.2 (optional) - If you're familiar with the program, you can adjust the file to your liking before exporting the final version.
2.3.3 - Make sure the project sampling (Hz) is set to 44100 and its sample format is 32-bit float (Stereo). You can edit it by clicking on the arrow, which is encircled in the picture.



Step 2.4 Once your file is ready, export it as an MP3.
2.4.1 - Make sure you've installed the LAME codec for Audacity.
2.4.2 - File/Export sound... OR Ctrl+Shift+E
2.4.3 – Type the name of the file, click 'Save as a type', choose 'MP3 files' from the list and click 'Options'.



2.4.4 – Set up the Bit Rate Mode to: Variable, Quality to: 3,155-195 kps, Variable Speed to: Standard and Channel Mode to: Joint Stereo.
2.4.5 - Now your file is ready for export. Click OK, ignore the Metadata box and save the file somewhere you can find it easily. You can replace the “old” MP3 file if you want to.



Part 3. Working with EALayer3

Step 3.1 Download and open ealayer3-0.6.2-win32.zip, extract the 'ealayer3-0.6.2-win32' folder and save it somewhere you can find it easily.
3.1.1 – Find cmd.exe (via Windows search tool) and copy it to 'ealayer3-0.6.2-win32' folder.
3.1.2 – Copy the MP3 file you exported from Audacity earlier and paste it in the 'ealayer3-0.6.2-win32' folder.
3.1.3 – Create a .txt file and paste the following code:

3.1.4 – Replace the NAMEOFYOURMP3FILE with the name of your MP3 file. Copy the whole line
3.1.5 – Open cmd.exe and paste the line (right click/Paste NOT Ctrl+v), hit Enter and after a while a new .sns file (NAMEOFYOURMP3FILE.sns) is generated and placed in the folder where you keep cmd.exe, your MP3 file and EALayer3.exe.
3.1.6 – Repeat steps 3.1.3-3.1.5 but in this case you don't want a .sns file, but a .snr one.

3.1.7 – Now you should have two files (.sns and .snr). They're identical in size and the only thing which makes them different is the extension.
3.1.8 – Now you need to change the name of those two files. Let's start with the .snr file. Find the original .snr file you exported from s3pe. Copy its name and paste it into the newly generated .snr file. It should look moreless like this:
S3_01A527DB_001407EC_NAMEOFTHEFILEINS3PE%%+_AUD.snr
See the 01A527DB? It indicates that it's recognized/categorized by the game as a .SNR file and _AUD type.
3.1.9 – Now change the name of the .sns file. Copy the name of the .snr file, be it the original or the one generated by EALayer3 (they're the same) and paste it into the .sns file. Now it looks exactly like the .snr file, but there's one thing you have to change in the filename.
S3_01A527DB_001407EC_NAMEOFTHEFILEINS3PE%%+_AUD.sns
Replace 01A527DB with 01EEF63A. Now it should look like this:
S3_01EEF63A _001407EC_NAMEOFTHEFILEINS3PE%%+_AUD.sns
Why change it? It's a .sns file not a .snr and that's why the game has to recognize/categorize it as such.

Part 4. Working with HxD

Step 4.1 Download and install HxD if you haven't already

Step 4.2 Opening and configuring HxD.
4.2.1 – Click Additional/Options... and in the View panel tick/check the options as I did (you can see it in the picture below)



Step 4.3 Editing the .snr file
4.3.1 – Open your .snr file in HxD and change the Offset to (h).
4.3.2 – Select and copy the first eight bytes (16 digits organized into 4 chunks). Right-click + Select all OR Ctrl+A and hit Delete. Paste the eight bytes you copied before. You deleted the sound data and left the header only.
4.3.3 – Replace the values at addresses 00-03 with 0504 AC44. At address 04 you see a number. Replace the whichever number you have there with 40. You're creating a pure header which is going to link the .snr file to the .sns file.



4.3.4 – Your .snr file is ready. Save the changes (Ctrl+S or File/Save)

Step 4.4 Editing the .sns file
4.4.1 The easy part of working with HxD is gone. Now it's time to edit the .sns file. Open the .sns file with HxD
4.4.2 – At addresses 06-07 you see the 0480 value. Replace it with 002F.
4.4.3 – Look at addresses 02-03. In our case we've got 0153. Press Ctrl+G and type in 0153 and press OK. It redirects you to the address. You usually find 0000 starting at the address you've been sent to.



4.4.4 – Download the MTS_Flyby_1211063_Tutorial_templates.rar and save the file on your Desktop. Open the archive and extract CodeBlock(C4).sns to your Desktop. Open the file with HxD.
4.4.5 – In HxD copy the whole code (Ctrl+A + Ctrl+C) and paste it (Ctrl+V) in where you were sent in step 4.4.3.
4.4.6 – The position of the cursor after pasting the code indicates the new address. You can see it as the Offset in the lower-left corner. In this case it's 217. Now replace the addresses 02-03 with the new address. The address has to have 4 digits, so we add 0 in front of the address, so it's 0217.
4.4.7 – Save the changes (Ctrl+S)



Part 5. Working with ѕ3рe

Step 5.1 Packing the .snr and .sns files with ѕ3рe
5.1.1 – Open ѕ3рe, File/New OR Ctrl+N. Right-click just anywhere, Import/from file... Choose the .snr and .sns files you edited with HxD and hit 'Open'. A window pops up. It's a good idea to select 'Replace duplicates' and check 'Compress', 'Use resource name' and 'Rename if present'. Click OK. Now your files are imported into a package. Now you can save your ready package (File/Save OR Ctrl+S). Give it your name or initials and a descriptive name of your package. Save your package into My Documents/Electronic Arts/The Sims 3/Mods/Packages/subfolders if you use any and click Save.



Part 6. Testing the sound in-game.

6.1 Now you can test your new sound in-game.
6.1.1 – Launch the game and load one of your saves or start a new game in any of the towns available.
6.1.2 – Depending on which sound you replaced, you have to figure out in which situations the sound is played. You have to somehow trigger the situation or wait for the sound to be played. It's up to you. For example, if you replaced the sound played when the Weather Stone appears, the best idea is to start a new game, choose the active family and wait for the Weather Stone to appear. If you replaced, for instance, a sound played during an interaction with an object, you have to order your sim to perform the interaction with the object in order to hear the sound and check whether it worked or not.

I tried to do my best to explain it in a comprehensible manner. If something needs further explanation or correction, just let me know. You need more pictures or examples? Let me know. I fulfilled @jje1000's request and replaced one of the two train sounds in France. I attached the .rar file with the ready package. Download it here. @jje1000, now you can test it in-game and tell me whether it worked or not. Then follow my tutorial and try to do the same with file 2.

I would like to say THANK YOU to @Flyby for his tutorial. This is where I learned it all and my tutorial is basen on this one.

@Wojtek - Thanks for the tutorial!

Hmm, when I tried it, the sound came out all garbled and weird.

Edit: I tried again and one of the sounds came out ok, but the other came out silent.

Both seem to be kind of quiet as well compared to the original recordings.

WoJTek, thanks for the correction.

I converted the first sound you sent me and I assume you tried to convert the second one, right? Make sure you follow steps 2.3.3 and 2.4.4 as you edit the MP3 file in Audacity. If you don't manage to do it, just let me know.

Ok I got it to work! Dunno why it didn't the first time around.

Anyways, thanks again for the tutorial! You ought to post it again in the Modding forums for others to reference in the future!

Actually, I think it should probably be in the tutorials in the Wiki.