The biggest pain in Screamer Rally/Screamer 2 is using the setup program as it pops back to Windows to complain about accessing a COM port, so you have to ignore message then click on taskbar before the Setup program exits!

I have Screamer Rally and Screamer 2 running in high res 3Dfx (bit crashy) with perfect sound. My set up is as follows:

dgVoodoo 1.50 beta (consists of dgVoodooSetup.exe, Glide2x.dll and glide2x.ovl in the Screamer Rally install folder), DOS tab settings as follows:
Global tab:
Renderer API: Direct3D9
Display driver: Automatically selected
Screen mode: Full screen
Screen bi depth: 16 bit

Glide tab:
D3D texures bit depth: Optimal
Refresh rate:
NO tick: Monitor freq is the closest supported freq
Tick: Always wait for at least one vertical sync
Texturing options: Disable mipmapping
LFB access: Enable LFB access
Tick: Use hardware cache buffers when poss.
Tick: Use fastwrite for unmatching formats
Tick: Closer to a real hardware
Colorkeying method: Automatic
Texture mem size: 16384 kB
Resolution: 1280x960 (adjust as you like!)
Rest at default but I tick Use hardware vertex buffers too

Then comes VDMSound for the audio. You need to have the following settings applied to STRT3FX.EXE under Advanced...

DOS Environment > AUTOEXEC.BAT add line: sapucdex
Performance: Tick: Try to reduce CPU usage and drag bar to left (i.e. Low usage)

Rest on standard. As I say, actually choosing the soundcard/controls int eh Setup program (thru VDMSound as DOSBox doesn't like the Setup program) is the hardest bit!

Installing VDMSound did not help. When I run setup.bat (or chk3dfx.exe) with VDMSound and ignore the messages about the COM port, all I get when I click back to the application is a black screen. If at this point I ALT-enter back to the desktop, the screen gets all screwed up. It's easier to show you what it looks like than describe it:

1+------------------+-----------------+
2|                  |                 |
3| the whole desktop|                 |
4|    is in this    |                 |
5|    little box    |                 |
6|                  |                 | <-physical screen border
7|                  |                 |
8|                  |                 |
9+------------------+                 |
10|                                    |
11|   this area is full of garbage     |
12|                                    |
13|                                    |
14+------------------------------------+

At this point, the only way to get back to a normal desktop is to reset.
I read in this forum that nVidia cards have difficulties in displaying low resolutions (like those needed by DOS games). I have an nVidia card, can THAT be the problem?

Since switching to an ATI card is out of the question for me (ATI cards do not support stereoscopy) I was thinking: where is the audio setup information stored? If you could attach the file that stores it, I may be able to run the game with sound without actually running the setup program!

The drop-back-to-Windows-because-of-COM-error occurs with both ATI and Nvidia. I think it's the jump between DOS and full screen for the error that causes the setup program to work sometimes and crash others. Not personally had a screen of garbage myself!

If you like I could upload the config files from my game, you'd be forced to play it on keys but you should get audio then.

No problem, I'm used to play with the keyboard. Go ahead and upload the config files, I'm curious to see if they work right on my computer.

Okay, try unpacking the following files into the CONFIG folder in Screamer Rally's folder, overwriting current ones. You should have Soundblaster 16 support then.

Controls are keyboard:

left = left cursor
right = right cursor
accelerate = x
brake = z
gear up down I think is cursor up/down reversed (i.e. down shifts up)

I picked this layout from Sega PC port defaults like Daytona USA 🤣!

Thanks a lot, it worked!

Listen, since in 2 weeks or so I'm getting Screamer 2, would you please upload the configuration files for Screamer 2 too?

Screamer 2 is a bit more painful to patch into 3Dfx mode but I have all the files on my Virgin White Label budget version if you need any.

I've attached the relevant setup files to this email.

Glad to be of help!

How is it "more painful"? I already downloaded the 3DFX executable (s2_3dfx.exe), what else will I have to do?

I'm bumping this topic because I got Screamer 2 and I can't install the 3DFX patch.
I installed the game with DosBox 0.72, but when I run Setup.exe, the DosBox window goes completely black (just like it happened with Screamer Rally). I downloaded VirtuaIceMan's Screamer2Configs.zip and unzipped it into the game directory, but if I try to run s2_3dfx.exe after that, it STILL says I need to run Setup.exe! Is there any solution?

Erm not sure, not had to set it up for a while. I meant it was more painful as installing the 3Dfx and normal patches has to be done from the command line window. My Screamer2 is the White Label budget version that has the patches in a sub-folder on the CD.

I can have another look/reinstall go soon but have flu at the mo so not really up to it!