Edit: Some wrong info was posted here, will fix post in future sometime.

vlbnn wrote:

6) about games (with wavetracing) - to me the best A3D 2.0 support is in Unreal/UT and Heretic 2. I tried famous Half-Life many times and it not that cool to me. I try to explain it more clearly: in both Unreals the reflections help me almost feel things around me, but in Half-Life reflections come from all directions with identical force. I always tried all games with headphones only. In Half-Life s_geometry and s_reflect both set to "1" and drivers play Aureal sound at level startup. Even Quake 3 is better in this case - turning A3D gives shotgun fires be audible according to around geometry. Anyone else have this experince with Half-Life?

If you want more suggestions for games, Descent 3 is one of the best showcases for A3D 2.0. It adds a lot to the experience.

ZanQuance wrote:

Be sure to check out my reverse engineering thread I started here

Thank you, I already read this thread. And I have another question based on it: you write there "Everything that Daughterboard was originally designed to do has now been done in software, Dolby encoding/decoding, EAX reverb, more 3D sound sources..." and answer me with "Reverb is done in hardware in the WT cell...". It is mutually exclusive.)

ZanQuance wrote:

What I've found is that there are actually a total of 192 mono audio channels.

I.e. Aureal can easily increase voice count by driver update? But 16 A3D Sources cannot be altered in any way, right? If it so then they can be new reflection channels, I think. By the way Creative operates "ghost" 131 channels for EMU10k1 in their press-releases...) -> http://support.creative.com/kb/ShowArticle.aspx?sid=5805 ("Capable of processing, mixing and positioning audio streams using up to 131 available hardware channels"). But maximum that I can get of SBLive! card is 64 DS and 32DS3D channels at all (with VXD drivers)...

ZanQuance wrote:

Creative lied so much

Agree.

ZanQuance wrote:

Vortex audio Data Bus VDB

I found it interesting that some people think that EMU20kx is in some way Vortex 3 with its ring architecture (like Au8830 has). What do you think about it? Is it right that EMU20kx has inside many ideas they took from Au8830?

ZanQuance wrote:

Each channel can have 4 effects applied at once in hardware

Can you write example of these effects please? This is something like Creative effects (reverb, chorus, flanger) or something else?

ZanQuance wrote:

Reverb/Delay WaveTracing, HRTF and panning, and Gain

Can you please explain me what do you mean here by panning and gain? Is it that panning Aureal used for rear speakers or not?

ZanQuance wrote:

ITD params

What is that?

ZanQuance wrote:

It has the full programmable HRTF filters

Oh, this is the thing I read as "downloadable HRTF".) I.e. it may be updated if necessary... Very well, a good answer to EMU10kx programmable DSP.

By the way: i cannot see at scheme path in back direction from A3D engine and Crosstalk canceller? Is it mistake or not?

ZanQuance wrote:

There is only a 16 channel limit passing data through the A3D channels at a time

In the 98-99 it was been enough but later I think (in Vortex 3) they upgraded it to 32-64 voices.) But (Creative)...

ZanQuance wrote:

It's a hybrid system of sorts, for a modern implementation it's better to have the GPU do all the work and pass the final parameters to the soundcard for mixing.

Agree.

Can you in simple terms explain me next thing: for example in Unreal (as well in H-L, Heretic, Sin, ...) there is such console parameter - s_maxreflectpoly which is set by default to 100 and I usually increase it to 500-1000. But - in any way it is larger then number of reflection (i.e. wavetable) channels - 64(or even 60). How their algorithm choose polygons (only 64 from 100-1000(!)) which can be used to build reflectons? Or they do some interpolation?

ZanQuance wrote:

This means that the Audigy2 ZS only had 430 mips of power

Correct, its DSP has power about 100 MIPS (Live! has 50 MIPS -> !!! and all chip around 300+- MIPS).

ZanQuance wrote:

The AU8830 we assume runs at 50mhz

EMU10k1 for comparison runs at 100MHz and EMU10k2 at 200MHz but their results far from perfect...

ZanQuance wrote:

It was also stated to have an internal bus bandwidth of 900MB/s.

Such a huge bandwidth for '98...

ZanQuance wrote:

With rev B0 of the chip I think they only adjusted the internal silicon to make it 12% faster.

Maybe they increase bandwith of VDB or in such a case it breaks all internal timings?

ZanQuance wrote:

At all times you should only be using the 2041 drivers with Half-Life, they were the best set of drivers and work really well all in all.

Already use them, thanks.

firage wrote:

If you want more suggestions for games, Descent 3 is one of the best showcases for A3D 2.0. It adds a lot to the experience.

Thank you, I'll give it a try when buy joystick.)