I'm working on a retro PC, taking one of Phil's Computer Lab builds and modifying it a bit. The motherboard I have (AOpen AX6BC) has no ISA slots, but has an integrated sound card (AD1881 Codec Chip, according to the manual). What do I need to know about this audio card? Will it work with DOS games?
From what I can find, the AD1881 will NOT work in pure DOS mode.
You can use it for DOS games if launched through Windows 9x though.. although it is not the best to use.
I would recommend a PCI sound card that either has a PC-PCI/SB-Link header (for full ISA type support of DMA) or one that doesn't need EMM386 loaded for DOS support.
Yamaha YMF7x4 based cards are going to be about the best, even ones without a PC-PCI/SB-Link header. The stock configuration utility will work great with your motherboard and be able to use DDMA.
They have authentic Yamaha OPL3 built in and yo get hardware MIDI in Windows.
Wrong forum. This forum is for DOS games on *modern* systems. Ask old hardware questions in Marvin. Marvin, the Paranoid Android
Moved.
"I see a little silhouette-o of a man, Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you
do the Fandango!" - Queen
Stiletto
When I do find a sound card, would it need the -12V rail for ISA slots?
wrote:When I do find a sound card, would it need the -12V rail for ISA slots?
Depends on the card really.
Retronautics: A digital gallery of my retro computers, hardware and projects.
OK, and what sort of price should I expect to pay for a decent card with the Yamaha architecture previously mentioned?
Depends on your luck and your ebay search skills. I've seen them go for as low as $5 or as high as $30 or more.
A couple of years ago there was a source of cheap Chinese generic PCI sound cards that used a real Yamaha XG chip. I got a few of those for $3 a piece. Unfortunately that source has dried up and I can't find any more of those. The downside is that they didn't have PC/PCI headers or solder pads, and also didn't have joystick/MIDI port. Only basic audio jacks. They looked like this, just with red PCB and Yamaha chip instead of CMI:
https://ecs7.tokopedia.net/img/cache/700/prod … 4c2157a933e.jpg
I/O, I/O,
It's off to disk I go,
With a bit and a byte
And a read and a write,
I/O, I/O
I'm thirding the advice to use a Yamaha YMF7x4 card, the OPL3 sound is genuine (since it's Yamaha), the XG synth is excellent and it's designed specifically to be compatible with older DOS software. You even avoid some of the weird SoundBlaster-specific quirks like the hanging note bug in some games. They're cheap too, you can find them at fleamarkets for next to nothing. They're easy to spot with the big XG logo on the main chip:
Or like this for a smaller version as YMF744. Still with a big XG logo.
I/O, I/O,
It's off to disk I go,
With a bit and a byte
And a read and a write,
I/O, I/O
The ESS Solo-1 is a better alternative to a novice I feel.
But then, I love the sound of ESFM..
Retronautics: A digital gallery of my retro computers, hardware and projects.
Please be aware that the XG synth on YMF-PCI cards is not purely a hardware solution, so it won't be available via the DOS drivers.
All hail the Great Capacitor Brand Finder
I've purchased this one https://www.ebay.com/itm/163238005139
Anything I need to know about it?
It's a good card for your chipset/motherboard running DOS games as it is the right revision for DDMA support on the 440BX:
wrote:It's a good card for your chipset/motherboard running DOS games as it is the right revision for DDMA support on the 440BX:
Sweetness! I thought I'd have to pay a ton for my sound card! 😁
Just realized: do I need a -12V rail for my PSU with this card?
If not, can nay old modern PSU work as long as it has MOLEX connectors?
Awesome! Now to figure out my PSU wattage.. how do I do that with a mix of old and new components?
