SoundBlaster 16 problem! \ VOGONS

SoundBlaster 16 problem!

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First post, by F2bnp

Posted on 2010-10-28, 14:46

F2bnp Offline

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Hello fellas, I've a question to ask. For some reason my SB16 is acting weird. It seems to produce a weird tapping/clicking sound in the speakers whenever its playing digital sounds. FM synth seems fine, Midi on my DB50xg though also seems to do the same thing, albeit much less irritatingly.

To clarify, if for example I play the classic Windows 98 opening sound, the clicking is very noticeable right in the end when the sound file is still being played but the sound has faded. This happens both in DOS and Windows and despite trying different drivers I haven't managed to work the problem out.
I should say that I've tried both my SB16 cards, one's a CT2940(the one I'm currently using) and the other is a CT2960. I'm currently using my SB16+DB50XG in conjunction with my AWE64 Gold, but I'm pretty sure this also happens when I'm using just the SB16.

I'm generally not picky about my sound, I only use 2 normal stereo speakers from the 90's on my retro PC, hanging note bug on SB16 never ticked me off nor did the AWE64's dropping note bug, so I'm fairly sure the problem exists 😜

I should not that ,at least on the Wavetable Midi side, the sound disappears in recordings that I've created.

Reply 1 of 9, by Mau1wurf1977

Posted on 2010-10-28, 19:02

Mau1wurf1977 Offline

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And both SB16s produce this clicking sound?

I would try another ISA slot. I would also check the BIOS in case you have a IRQ conflict. I make it a habbit to disable any devices I don't use (serial port, com port, ide controllers...)

If the BIOS has a PnP option, make sure you put the Sound IRQ (5 or 7) to "Legacy ISA card"

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Reply 2 of 9, by HunterZ

Posted on 2010-10-28, 19:23

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Try muting the PC Speaker, Mic and Line In on the SB16's mixer. They could be picking up RF noise from your computer.

Reply 3 of 9, by F2bnp

Posted on 2010-10-28, 20:23

F2bnp Offline

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I've tried another ISA slot and it still does it. I've also disabled 1 of 2 serial ports (I need one for transferring files to my Amiga 😜) and my serial port(I'm fairly sure it's not an IRQ thing).My SB16 right now is using A220,I5,D1,Midi 330 and my AWE64 A240,I7,D3,Midi 300. I'm going to try a few things tomorrow probably like:

*Use earphones to check if it still does the same thing
*Record and see if it also happens there

Reply 4 of 9, by duralisis

Posted on 2010-11-02, 23:07

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I get the same issue on a Via KT133A board and a CT2943. It only has one ISA slot and no combination of BIOS options or stripping out all other hardware/interference seems to work.

It even crackles in pure DOS for me; only digital though; the synth is unaffected. Oddly; my AWE64 Value doesn't have any issue with crackling; so I'm pretty sure it's a low level hardware compatibility issue.

Reply 5 of 9, by retro games 100

Posted on 2010-11-03, 05:20

retro games 100 Offline

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duralisis wrote:
I get the same issue on a Via KT133A board and a CT2943. It only has one ISA slot and no combination of BIOS options or stripping out all other hardware/interference seems to work.

It even crackles in pure DOS for me; only digital though; the synth is unaffected. Oddly; my AWE64 Value doesn't have any issue with crackling; so I'm pretty sure it's a low level hardware compatibility issue.

I hear crackling noises with an AWE32 on a Via KT133A board, and I get weird results (latency problems) with a Terratec EWS64XL on the same board. I also notice an absence of crackling when using an AWE64. I wonder if it's a voltage problem with the ISA slot?

Reply 6 of 9, by swaaye

Posted on 2010-11-03, 18:18

swaaye Offline

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Well VIA couldn't make PCI work properly for about 5 chipset families so who knows if ISA is well designed or not, or if the mobo maker took shortcuts because ISA was almost dead, etc.

Also, sometimes you can get things working better by playing with Passive Release and Delayed Transaction. Mystery options that sometimes don't get along with ISA cards (enabled or disabled is the question). You could also try cranking the I/O Recovery Times (if they are configurable) so that ISA has more time to do its thing.

Reply 7 of 9, by retro games 100

Posted on 2010-11-03, 19:21

retro games 100 Offline

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Very interesting suggestions swaaye, thanks for the info. The next time I'm messing about with that board, I'll try out some of that BIOS tweaking!

Reply 8 of 9, by F2bnp

Posted on 2010-11-03, 21:24

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I've got a Via Apollo PRO 133 board, I'll search at the bios settings tomorrow probably.

Reply 9 of 9, by Amigaz

Posted on 2010-11-04, 08:19

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Got crackling sounds too from my AWE32 on my Abit KT133A mobo

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