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Comment by mattgreenrocks | Hacker News Reader

One common cash register in the US uses the exact sound from Sonic the Hedgehog that plays when you collect a ring. I haven’t determined if it was ripped from it or they simply share a common source.

Edit: found this summary:

> “Did some searching, and found out there's actually a story behind this. "Sega sold their intellectual properties to a company called Sammy, who used those sounds to make Pachinko machines. Pachinko isn't as popular as it used to be now, so Sammy has been licensing out those intellectual properties to Chinese manufacturers who make most of the cheap electronic devices for 'Merica, registers included."

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I'd perhaps be slightly suspicious of the explanation as Sega didn't sell IP to Sammy, the companies merged (the general holding company for the group is Sega Sammy Holdings, but in the west we mostly only see the Sega side of the business). If they got that wrong, would the rest be right?

AFAIK the ring effect is FM synth generated (it's not like the Mega Drive is very good at digitised audio), so it's probably original to the game, but I suspect random cash register manufacturers are just ripping it off myself, rather than actually licencing it (are two notes and some synth parameters copyrightable in the end? probably depends on how much you can spend on lawyers...).

Ring sound effect is a square wave using the sega master system's sound channels, not an FM synthesis effect using the Yamaha FM chip.

This is incorrect. While some sound effects in the Sonic games on the MD/Genesis do use the PSG, the ring sound is not one of them. I double checked just now using the oscilloscope view in my emulator. Looks like the ring sound effect alternates between channels 3 and 4 depending on which way it's panned (unclear why it's done that way since any FM channel can be panned left or right).

Crap, you're right, I was thinking of the Jump sound effect.

It might have something to do with surround? https://rec.games.video.classic.narkive.com/cEZltqT1/sega-ge...

Some kind of fast-food order management software common at least in Russia uses the ICQ incoming message sound to notify someone about something. Back in the day I used to think it was the actual ICQ they use in the kitchen.

“uh oh”, that was such a strange sound, in hindsight

Something I learned when working on the Sonic the Hedgehog movie is that SEGA doesn’t own that ring sound. They have a license to use it in video games but it’s owned by a 3rd party. It had to be relicensed for use in the movie.

The Motorola FLEX computer-aided dispatch (read: 911) software uses AOL Instant Messenger sounds in its built-in IM client. It messes with my brain whenever I hear it being used. I think about conversations with old friends late at night…

The cash registers at Stewart's locations in New York all play the ding noise from Windows 98.

Hah I knew there was a reason that sound was so familiar and comforting

that sound is in Gilbarco registers commonly found in gas stations

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