Windows 95 is simple: yes, there are drivers and they work like anything you're used to in newer systems (well, perhaps with a few more BSODs...). Analog Devices themselves don't have drivers online for this old beast, but I suspect Terratec's drivers from the TT-Base 1 listed here would work: https://www.philscomputerlab.com/terratec-pro … dia-base-1.html
As for DOS... that's a whole different kettle of fish. Biggest difference is that you are delving not so much into different software, but actually into the hardware, as there's no such thing as an audio abstraction layer (like ALSA or OSS) in DOS. The software talks directly to some hardware locations. Hopefully there's something there listening and able to understand what it's being fed 😮
What you need to know:
- there's not really such a thing as a generic DOS 'driver' for sound cards. Each game (or other application) supports one or more sound cards at a hardware level.
- Generally cards try to be more or less compatible to popular standard sound cards. This differs from card to card.
- Compatibility is usually achieved in hardware, but sometimes TSR software is needed - not so much a driver as a compatibility shim.
- Aside from such TSRs, many cards need to be initialized in software, in fact all PnP cards do. Unisound is a generic init tool for ISA PnP sound cards.
- Popular standard cards were AdLib, Soundblaster, Soundblaster Pro, Soundblaster 16 and Windows Sound System. AdLib and General MIDI were popular music synthesis standards.
- the BLASTER variable serves two purposes:
1) original purpose is to tell software using the card what the resources are set at. This may be done by installation software (one-off), by init software (every boot) or you need to do it manually.
2) UNISOUND uses the BLASTER variable to configure the card. So it works the other way round: you set the desired resources, then it ensures the card is set to them (assuming it supports them).
So, your AD1816-based card is a PnP card that needs initializing. Once you do that, it supports AdLib (Yamaha OPL) but does not sound good doing it, it also supports Sound Blaster and Sound Blaster Pro digital audio (with some compatibility issues) but mainly it's a hardware implementation of the Windows Sound System, which was also used in quite a few DOS games, but far less than the competing Sound Blaster 16 standard.
That makes it a good match for Windows 95 (which - obviously - supports WSS fully), a decent match for late DOS games, particularly ones with WSS support, but a poor match for early DOS games using AdLib (which works reliably but sounds bad) or being creative (pun intended) with their use of Sound Blaster mode, which may not work if the game does obscure stuff. All in all, it's a pretty unloved, late, very low-end chip. Given that it supports SBPro2.0, the best BLASTER settings to use with it are A220 I5 D1 T4, assuming you're going to use UNISOUND to initialize it in DOS - which I would recommend.
The alternative is the SBLive. It is an excellent card for Win9x (or indeed WinXP), but less so in DOS. Main reason is that it requires a TSR 'driver' to work. That eats some conventional memory, and as you'll soon discover, because DOS basically doesn't do any memory management, conventional memory is very, very important, particularly with early 1990s games that were big enough to be challenging in memory department, but before DOS extenders like DOS4GW became common. Memory aside, it supports AdLib, Sound Blaster and Sound Blaster 16, and IIRC (although never tested myself) it can play general MIDI too.
As for which is better... neither are ideal for DOS stuff. The TSR for SBLive is a pain in any event, neither has real Yamaha OPL AdLib sound, both have decent but not perfect Sound Blaster support; the Live gives you SB16, the AD1816 WSS, the Live offers MIDI playback, the AD1816 a wavetable header... personally I'd try to find a better ISA card (one with a real Yamaha OPL3 or 1:1 clone), but failing that, the obvious solution is just to use both cards at the same time:
- either one (or both) for AdLib, you choose which you think sounds better.
- AD1816 on default Sound Blaster resources
- SBLive on alternate SB resources
- WSS from AD1816, SB16 from SBLive
- GM from SBLive
Default SB resources:
A220 I5 D1 T4
Alt SB resources, plus SB16, plus MIDI
A240 I7 or 3 D0 (or 3) H5 T6 P330
Note that I7 overlaps with LPT1 (printer port), and I3 with COM2 (second serial port). Choose which you don't need and disable it, freein the IRQ for the sound device.
