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Adlib Driver for Sound Blaster SFX?

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First post, by Nitroraptor53

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The Sound Blaster had a DMA. The Adlib did not. However, the Adlib can still play PCM sound effects, just like a Sound Blaster, but the CPU has to do all the work. So, is there some kind of driver? I don't know how to code in x86 assembler, and you may be saying "Just get a Sound Blaster!" I want an Adlib clone(https://github.com/schlae/plaid-bib) for my PS/2 and I don't think there's a Sound Blaster MCA card. (clone) Thanks for any useful info!

Reply 1 of 7, by Grzyb

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I'm only aware of such a driver for Windows 3.1

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  • Filename
    ADLIBW10.ZIP
    File size
    6.42 KiB
    Downloads
    40 downloads
    File license
    Fair use/fair dealing exception

Nie tylko, jak widzicie, w tym trudność, że nie zdołacie wejść na moją górę, lecz i w tym, że ja do was cały zejść nie mogę, gdyż schodząc, gubię po drodze to, co miałem donieść.

Reply 2 of 7, by derSammler

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If you are looking to use that for games, forget it. Playing samples on Adlib uses a base tone which is modulated using volume ramping. This is how sample playback generally works on sound chips that do not really have that capability. Problem is, it uses about 100% of the CPU and is not compatible to Sound Blaster or anything else.

For Win3.x, there's a PCM driver for the PC speaker as well. I'd rather use that than abusing the Adlib card.

Reply 3 of 7, by keropi

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@Nitroraptor53
Eletro Body/Man (made freeware in 2006) plays samples through adlib, try it you'll be impressed - there are a couple of more games that do that but I don't remember them atm
https://www.classicdosgames.com/game/Electro_Man.html

🎵 🎧 ⏳ ⚡ PCMIDI MPU , OrpheusII , Action Rewind , Megacard and 🎶GoldLib soundcard website

Reply 4 of 7, by Cloudschatze

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I'm not aware of a generic driver/redirector, but the OmniMusic, DIGPAK, and AIL sound libraries/routines support digital audio playback via the OPL2, as applies to titles that use those solutions.

You might want to consider the Disney Sound Source as an alternative though, which provides better output quality, and has additional publisher support besides (Sierra being a notable example). Depending on the games you're interested in, the combination of a Plaid Bib, Disney Sound Source, and serial-MIDI output ought to get you pretty far with an MCA-based PS/2.

Reply 5 of 7, by Nitroraptor53

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I'm aware of such things and also am about to order a CVX4, but games like DOOM don't support it (neither does Mars3d, or many other games I play...)

Last edited by Nitroraptor53 on 2020-02-21, 18:40. Edited 2 times in total.

Reply 7 of 7, by Grzyb

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Nitroraptor53 wrote on 2020-02-21, 18:39:

Does it work for Windows 95 or NT 4.0?

Windows 95 - very likely
Windows NT - no way

Anyway, if you can't find an MCA sound card, you may want to look for an LPT one, eg. Logitech Portable Sound Plus - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7VxWbCgWHk
It does provide SB compatibility, using V86 mode software of course, so don't expect Doom (or any DOS-extender stuff) to work...

Nie tylko, jak widzicie, w tym trudność, że nie zdołacie wejść na moją górę, lecz i w tym, że ja do was cały zejść nie mogę, gdyż schodząc, gubię po drodze to, co miałem donieść.

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