you need to be more specific which card you have. there are so many combinations. Also recommend using unisound to setup the card if its pnp.
1. your board has a wavetable attach a midi board (i.e. dreamblaster S2) and it should work on the specified port (i.e 330)
2. the mpu401 uart from the gameport. Needs a adapter or cable to connect it to a midi device. Chill and phil adapter can give wavetable from the gameport. A roland um-one can connect to a pc device (mt32-pi). A gameport to midi can connect to a midi module (i.e roland sc-55)
3. the awe cards have builtin 1 mb rom. you would select awe32 driver (0x620) in a game if it supports it (i.e. doom) this will use the onboard 1 mb rom. aweutil can be used to emulate GM on 330.
4. onboard dram to load sound fonts. This works best from within windows since SF2 can be loaded. Depends on the memory you have installed which font you can use. There are some special tools to allow larger fonts and more games that use protected mode in pure dos. Otherwise you use aweutil again to load the selected SBK.

im really just hitting the highlights so if put the model myself and others could give you more specifics. Also if there are specific games that might help.
But i think your problem is that GM at 330 will go to the gameport unless you use the aweutil to enable the GM emulation assuming your in dos and not windows.

Pickle wrote on 2024-02-01, 04:37:

you need to be more specific which card you have. there are so many combinations. Also recommend using unisound to setup the car […]
Show full quote

you need to be more specific which card you have. there are so many combinations. Also recommend using unisound to setup the card if its pnp.
1. your board has a wavetable attach a midi board (i.e. dreamblaster S2) and it should work on the specified port (i.e 330)
2. the mpu401 uart from the gameport. Needs a adapter or cable to connect it to a midi device. Chill and phil adapter can give wavetable from the gameport. A roland um-one can connect to a pc device (mt32-pi). A gameport to midi can connect to a midi module (i.e roland sc-55)
3. the awe cards have builtin 1 mb rom. you would select awe32 driver (0x620) in a game if it supports it (i.e. doom) this will use the onboard 1 mb rom. aweutil can be used to emulate GM on 330.
4. onboard dram to load sound fonts. This works best from within windows since SF2 can be loaded. Depends on the memory you have installed which font you can use. There are some special tools to allow larger fonts and more games that use protected mode in pure dos. Otherwise you use aweutil again to load the selected SBK.

im really just hitting the highlights so if put the model myself and others could give you more specifics. Also if there are specific games that might help.
But i think your problem is that GM at 330 will go to the gameport unless you use the aweutil to enable the GM emulation assuming your in dos and not windows.

Hello and thank you for the help. I was hoping it was a generic enough issue for a generic answer so i wouldn't have to get the tools out and get the sound card. Specifically I have a Soundblaster CT4170, and specifically this game I'm trying to play at the moment is DnD Blood and Magic. It looks for Midi at ports like 610-640 I think. I can specify a bit but only from a small list. Hopefully that info makes it easy advice but either way I'll take any help I can get.

thenix wrote on 2024-02-01, 05:13:

Hello and thank you for the help. I was hoping it was a generic enough issue for a generic answer so i wouldn't have to get the tools out and get the sound card. Specifically I have a Soundblaster CT4170, and specifically this game I'm trying to play at the moment is DnD Blood and Magic. It looks for Midi at ports like 610-640 I think. I can specify a bit but only from a small list. Hopefully that info makes it easy advice but either way I'll take any help I can get.

So you have a "Soundblaster 16 WavEffects". The port range you mention (610-640) is typically used for the EMU8000 chip as installed on the SB AWE32, SB 32, SB AWE 64. While AWE expands to advanced Wave Effects, this chip is not included on your card. The functionality of that chip is also not integrated into some chip of your card. The only thing that sets the CT4170 apart from earlier Soundblaster 16 type cards is the software MIDI synthesizer shipped as part of the windows driver of that card. So you won't get wavetable music from that card using the AWE32 driver of any game.

Furthermore, this is a late and (hardware-wise) extremely cost-reduced version of the Soundblaster 16, which doesn't include the internal connector for MIDI synthesizer boards (the "waveblaster connector"). Yet, of course, the card can create synthetic music and digital sound playback at the same time, in one of two ways:

• Use the SB16 or OPL3 driver to generate FM music. This cards includes an approximation to the OPL3 developed by creative labs that sounds similar, but not completely identical, to the OPL3.
• Use an external MIDI synthesizer that can generate higher-quality MIDI music connected to the game port (possibly using an adapter like the "CHiLL and Phil" adapter. You need to select the "General MIDI" or "MPU401" driver for that. The often-discussed "hanging note bug" ist (mostly?) fixed on that card, but some games like Duke3D will get performance issues if you try to output MIDI to an external synthesizer on Soundblaster 16-like cards.

Are you running actual DOS (6.x, etc.), or Windows 9x and using real DOS mode? What's your hardware specs? If the game works in a Windows DOS box, you MIGHT be able to get software MIDI working.

I have no experience with a card like this though, so I might be wrong entirely.

eddman wrote on 2024-02-01, 07:02:

Are you running actual DOS (6.x, etc.), or Windows 9x and using real DOS mode? What's your hardware specs? If the game works in a Windows DOS box, you MIGHT be able to get software MIDI working.

I have no experience with a card like this though, so I might be wrong entirely.

I was running it on actual dos. I might try it on my windows 98 computer though now that you mention it.

mkarcher wrote on 2024-02-01, 06:47:

So you have a "Soundblaster 16 WavEffects". The port range you mention (610-640) is typically used for the EMU8000 chip as insta […]
Show full quote

thenix wrote on 2024-02-01, 05:13:

Hello and thank you for the help. I was hoping it was a generic enough issue for a generic answer so i wouldn't have to get the tools out and get the sound card. Specifically I have a Soundblaster CT4170, and specifically this game I'm trying to play at the moment is DnD Blood and Magic. It looks for Midi at ports like 610-640 I think. I can specify a bit but only from a small list. Hopefully that info makes it easy advice but either way I'll take any help I can get.

So you have a "Soundblaster 16 WavEffects". The port range you mention (610-640) is typically used for the EMU8000 chip as installed on the SB AWE32, SB 32, SB AWE 64. While AWE expands to advanced Wave Effects, this chip is not included on your card. The functionality of that chip is also not integrated into some chip of your card. The only thing that sets the CT4170 apart from earlier Soundblaster 16 type cards is the software MIDI synthesizer shipped as part of the windows driver of that card. So you won't get wavetable music from that card using the AWE32 driver of any game.

Furthermore, this is a late and (hardware-wise) extremely cost-reduced version of the Soundblaster 16, which doesn't include the internal connector for MIDI synthesizer boards (the "waveblaster connector"). Yet, of course, the card can create synthetic music and digital sound playback at the same time, in one of two ways:

• Use the SB16 or OPL3 driver to generate FM music. This cards includes an approximation to the OPL3 developed by creative labs that sounds similar, but not completely identical, to the OPL3.
• Use an external MIDI synthesizer that can generate higher-quality MIDI music connected to the game port (possibly using an adapter like the "CHiLL and Phil" adapter. You need to select the "General MIDI" or "MPU401" driver for that. The often-discussed "hanging note bug" ist (mostly?) fixed on that card, but some games like Duke3D will get performance issues if you try to output MIDI to an external synthesizer on Soundblaster 16-like cards.

Thank you for the detailed explanation. I should be able to go from here. I'll try to post if I get it working.

In the short term a sw synth in windows might be best
I would look for virtual sound canvas on archive.org. This can run on a Pentium.
Another sw synth option are the ones by Yamaha

Pickle wrote on 2024-02-01, 13:57:

In the short term a sw synth in windows might be best
I would look for virtual sound canvas on archive.org. This can run on a Pentium.
Another sw synth option are the ones by Yamaha

OK so actually just setting the game to look for Soundblaster 16 in my case worked. It's using the same soundcard. It may not be the best quality but at least it's working for me.

To expand on this, I think the game was asking what card you might have so it new what port to try to play midi out of. In my case the soundblaster 16 ports worked to get the sound through my audio card.

thenix wrote on 2024-02-01, 15:21:

To expand on this, I think the game was asking what card you might have so it new what port to try to play midi out of. In my case the soundblaster 16 ports worked to get the sound through my audio card.

Yes, that definitely works. You will get the kind of music most players heard in the 90s, because not having a dedicated sample-based MIDI synthesizer was usual. To get the nicest kind of music, a better synthesizer than the FM-based OPL3 synthesizer would be required, but this is entirely optional. Especially, if you still remember how the music sounded in the 90s, and you want to get "that experience back", just keeping the "Soundblaster 16" music might actually be your personal best option.

mkarcher wrote on 2024-02-01, 21:22:

thenix wrote on 2024-02-01, 15:21:

To expand on this, I think the game was asking what card you might have so it new what port to try to play midi out of. In my case the soundblaster 16 ports worked to get the sound through my audio card.

Yes, that definitely works. You will get the kind of music most players heard in the 90s, because not having a dedicated sample-based MIDI synthesizer was usual. To get the nicest kind of music, a better synthesizer than the FM-based OPL3 synthesizer would be required, but this is entirely optional. Especially, if you still remember how the music sounded in the 90s, and you want to get "that experience back", just keeping the "Soundblaster 16" music might actually be your personal best option.

Yeah, I've put together this Dos computer about 3 years ago, starting from just period correct parts that technically work, then adding a bit more nice stuff to it over time. I wanted sound and got that sound card as maybe the cheapest option I could find at the time but I might want to upgrade to something better or just add in a midi card specifically. When I first put it together I didn't care about Midi specifically and I may not have even known much about it or how it was produced on the computer. But now I'm a lot more intrigued, although I don't see myself becoming a purist, but it would be a fun upgrade for the computer.

thenix wrote on 2024-02-01, 15:21:

When I first put it together I didn't care about Midi specifically and I may not have even known much about it or how it was produced on the computer. But now I'm a lot more intrigued, although I don't see myself becoming a purist, but it would be a fun upgrade for the computer.

And that’s where the rabbit hole starts 😉
I’d recommend serdashop and get a chill and phill with a dream blaster s2

Pickle wrote on 2024-02-02, 15:29:

thenix wrote on 2024-02-01, 15:21:

When I first put it together I didn't care about Midi specifically and I may not have even known much about it or how it was produced on the computer. But now I'm a lot more intrigued, although I don't see myself becoming a purist, but it would be a fun upgrade for the computer.

And that’s where the rabbit hole starts 😉
I’d recommend serdashop and get a chill and phill with a dream blaster s2

Thank you. I'm getting tax return soon and that might be where I splurge 😀

thenix wrote on 2024-02-03, 01:38:

Pickle wrote on 2024-02-02, 15:29:

thenix wrote on 2024-02-01, 15:21:

When I first put it together I didn't care about Midi specifically and I may not have even known much about it or how it was produced on the computer. But now I'm a lot more intrigued, although I don't see myself becoming a purist, but it would be a fun upgrade for the computer.

And that’s where the rabbit hole starts 😉
I’d recommend serdashop and get a chill and phill with a dream blaster s2

Thank you. I'm getting tax return soon and that might be where I splurge 😀

if you have enough take a look at the x2gs the price increase is worth the roland and duran sound banks. Sometimes serda has combo deals as well. Good luck!