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Reply 60 of 438, by Mau1wurf1977

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Yea but what about that Pentium 2 we talked about?

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Reply 61 of 438, by j^aws

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Mau1wurf1977 wrote:

Yea but what about that Pentium 2 we talked about?

I could get benches for the P2 as well. I'm busy at the moment, I'll try later. That bench should just scale less than the P3 scores.

Reply 62 of 438, by bjt

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Saw a video on YouTube of SoftMPU working with a PCI sound card (Diamond Sonic Impact S70, ESS ES1968S).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gssnD2CVml0

This is pretty awesome as DOSBox was previously the only way to get intelligent mode support on machines without ISA slots!

Reply 63 of 438, by Mau1wurf1977

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That's great news. The Vortex 2 cards should work well as they have MPU401 under DOS as well.

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Reply 65 of 438, by carlostex

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My MT-32 arrived today, so i tried some games on my AMD 386 DX 40 and found some things.

Most "intelligent mpu" games work perfectly with either SoftMPU 1.2 or 1.3, but Wing Commander 2 was giving me problems. Using Mt-32 on music and SB for speech, the system was always hanging randomly from the point the first speech cutscene starts. Sometimes it would hang with the Emperor and Thrahkath, other times with Tolwin and Blair. I could never go through to the Khasra and Thrahkath conversation.

Using SoftMPU 0.5 it never crashes, and all other games i tested with SoftMPU 0.5 work fine, with the added plus of an almost non existant performance penalty.
I would reccommend everyone to gather all SoftMPU versions, as some games might run better with a specific version, and a specific system.

But i never get tired of saying, SoftMPU is awesome!

Reply 67 of 438, by Mau1wurf1977

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carlostex wrote:

My MT-32 arrived today, so i tried some games on my AMD 386 DX 40 and found some things.

Most "intelligent mpu" games work perfectly with either SoftMPU 1.2 or 1.3, but Wing Commander 2 was giving me problems. Using Mt-32 on music and SB for speech, the system was always hanging randomly from the point the first speech cutscene starts. Sometimes it would hang with the Emperor and Thrahkath, other times with Tolwin and Blair. I could never go through to the Khasra and Thrahkath conversation.

I can confirm the same issue on my Pentium 133 MMX text bench machine with AWE64 Gold 220/7/1/5/330 amd SoftMPU 1.2.

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Reply 68 of 438, by carlostex

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bjt wrote:

Will check this out later. What sound card are you using by the way?

Yamaha Audician 32 Plus.

Basically YMF-718 chipset card.

One thing about this card, is that i can't assign a different IRQ to MPU, it just assigns the same as Sound Blaster.

Reply 69 of 438, by elianda

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I tried SoftMPU on one of my 386 machines.
The machine is equipped with a GUS and a EWS64S at 220/5 MPU1 at 300 and MPU2 at 360, there is a SCSI Controller at 330.
First of all I tried to load SoftMPU with QEMM386, since EMM386 4.95 works on this machine unreliably.
SoftMPU does not work with QEMM, it explicitly wants EMM386 loaded. Do you use some specific function only available in EMM386?
I just tried a EMM386 config with no UMBs.
So SoftMPU loads also on top of the Megaem emulator for the GUS at virtual port 330. This is a virtual MPU401 interface on top of the SCSI controllers port. I noticed in Wing Commander a considerable slowdown to about a quarter of the regular speed.
Wing Commander plays music also without SoftMPU loaded (just megaem).
I will try with LSL2, LSL3 and Wonderland later.

The second system I tried is a K6-233 with EWS64XL, Dream at 300, MPU2 with Roland SC (In+Out) and Roland MT32 (Out) at 330.
I tried
Wing Commander without SoftMPU it starts, but no music playback, with SoftMPU it starts, but no music playback
LSL2 without SoftMPU it starts, but no music playback, with SoftMPU it starts, but no music playback
LSL3 without SoftMPU it starts, but no music playback, with SoftMPU it starts, but fails to initialize music device, then crashes or reboots the PC.
When I load SoftMPU the Message appears in the MT-32 display, but no further MIDI messages are issued as I run the games.

I cross checked with Monkey Island and it works with Music, with and without SoftMPU loaded and Roland SC and MT-32 play at the same time.

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Reply 70 of 438, by bjt

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All good info, thanks. SoftMPU does use an API implemented only in EMM386.

SoftMPU on top of Mega-Em on top of SCSI eh? SoftMPU might detect the virtual MPU, but then it'll probably just override the Mega-Em port traps. From then on it's probably writing data to your SCSI controller 😵

The EWS64 report is interesting, you're the first one to try it. Unless I can get hold of one to debug it's unlikely to be fixed TBH. I'll try LSL2/3 to rule out a game-specific issue though.

Reply 71 of 438, by elianda

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bjt wrote:

All good info, thanks. SoftMPU does use an API implemented only in EMM386.

Oh, so support for QEMM or other memory managers is not on the list?

SoftMPU on top of Mega-Em on top of SCSI eh? SoftMPU might detect the virtual MPU, but then it'll probably just override the Mega-Em port traps. From then on it's probably writing data to your SCSI controller 😵

As I wrote it really works. I load SoftMPU on top of Megaem and I hear the playback on GUS, so the port trapping still works. I also notice the strong slowdown due to SoftMPU. If it would write to the SCSI controller it would freeze on the next disk access.

The EWS64 report is interesting, you're the first one to try it. Unless I can get hold of one to debug it's unlikely to be fixed TBH. I'll try LSL2/3 to rule out a game-specific issue though.

I will also investigate on this further, f.e. if my LSL versions have already the applied MT32onSB Sierra patch.
I will also try on my other EWS64XL enabled systems.

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Reply 72 of 438, by Great Hierophant

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elianda wrote:

SoftMPU on top of Mega-Em on top of SCSI eh? SoftMPU might detect the virtual MPU, but then it'll probably just override the Mega-Em port traps. From then on it's probably writing data to your SCSI controller 😵

As I wrote it really works. I load SoftMPU on top of Megaem and I hear the playback on GUS, so the port trapping still works. I also notice the strong slowdown due to SoftMPU. If it would write to the SCSI controller it would freeze on the next disk access.

Do you have to load MegaEm for SoftMPU to work on the GUS?

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Reply 73 of 438, by elianda

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Ok I tried the patched driver creator for Sierra games by Anders M Olsson and created a MT32SB.DRV, added it to the installer script file and chose it in install.
Without SoftMPU the MT32 plays, with SoftMPU it plays too.
If I choose the original MT32.DRV, load SoftMPU then it gives the 'Unable to initialize music hardware' + crash as described before.

other system:
Guillemot Maxisound 64 Home Studio (CS4236+Dream SAM9407) with Dream at 300 and Midi2 at 330. DB60XG plugged to Midi2.
Wing Commander
with SoftMPU it runs + music
without SoftMPU it runs, no music
LSL2:
with SoftMPU runs and music,
without SoftMPU runs, but no music
LSL3:
with SoftMPU runs and music,
without SoftMPU runs, but no music
Wonderland: (-disp v -roland)
with SOftMPU runs, but no music
without SOftMPU runs, but no music

As for the GUS, I don't have the MPU401 expansion box, so I have to load Megaem to get a (virtual) MPU401. So I can't test without Megaem for GUS as there is no MPU401 port there and SoftMPU does not install.

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Reply 74 of 438, by elianda

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other system: EWS64XL with DB50XG, DB50XG is at MIDI-2 at 330, MIDI-IRQ is set to OFF

LSL2, LSL3, Wing Commander and Wonderland run without SoftMPU but no music

With SoftMPU LSL2, LSL3 and Wing Commander play music, Wonderland still no music.

I have to check once more the other EWS64XL system, maybe its a problem if MIDI IRQ is enabled?

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Reply 75 of 438, by elianda

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I took the K6-233 with the EWS64XL again and disabled MIDI IRQ 9 on MIDI-2 (port 330). Now this EWS64XL is on exactly the same resource settings as the other EWS64XL.
It didn't had any effect.

But I found out that the error "Unable to Initialize Music Device" from LSL always pops up if I start LSL directly after loading SoftMPU.
If I load SoftMPU, issue a MT32 'reset' and then start LSL it runs, but no music.
This applies to LSL2 and LSL3.

I started experimenting with himem.sys and emm386.exe versions.
Now I downgraded to Himem.sys 2.77 and emm386.exe 4.95 and now softmpu works with LSL2, LSL3 and Wing Commander. For Wonderland I am not even sure that it plays music somewhere on the first few locations.
Also Megaem loads again and does not about with 'Can not expand server pages'.
In the following I also ran megaem for testing

With Himem.sys 2.77 / emm386.exe 4.95 softmpu works / megaem works.
With Himem.sys 3.09 / emm386.exe 4.95 softmpu works / megaem aborts with error.
With Himem.sys 3.10 / emm386.exe 4.95 softmpu works / megaem aborts with error.
With Himem.sys 3.95 / emm386.exe 4.95 softmpu works / megaem aborts with error.
With Himem.sys 3.95 / emm386.exe 4.48 softmpu works / megaem aborts with error.
With Himem.sys 3.95 / emm386.exe 4.45 softmpu loads, but games stay silent / megaem aborts with error. <- I tested this twice (and guess which emm386 version was used in the first time on this system)
With Himem.sys 3.95 / emm386.exe 4.20 softmpu loads, but games stay silent / megaem aborts with error.

Versions introduced with MS-DOS / EMM386 / HIMEM:
MS-DOS 4.01 4.00 2.04
Windows 3.0 4.10.0419 2.60
Windows 3.0a 4.10.0419 2.60
MS-DOS 5.0 4.20.06X 2.77
MS-DOS 6.0 4.45 3.09
MS-DOS 6.2 and 6.21 4.48 3.10
MS-DOS 6.22 4.49 3.10
Windows for Workgroups 3.1 4.44 3.09 ?
Windows for Workgroups 3.11 4.48 3.09 ?
Windows 95 4.95 3.95

I have not tested this on another machine yet, but it seems it is not related to the EWS64XL.
Could you maybe recheck your requirements?

Just 'MS-DOS 6' or later is probably not sufficient as I actually have MS-DOS 6 running here and it uses EMM386 4.45 which doesn't work.

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Reply 76 of 438, by Jolaes76

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I have been using himem v3.95 and emm386 v4.95 for the tests.
For the games I have, these are working pretty well as you have also found - well, without megaem which, I think, very few ppl use - the GUS is not a proper MIDI out device...

I do like Gravis cards, but as they work along other MPU capable sound cards very well, there is no need for the GUS in this matter.

"Ita in vita ut in lusu alae pessima iactura arte corrigenda est."

Reply 77 of 438, by elianda

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Jolaes76 wrote:

I have been using himem v3.95 and emm386 v4.95 for the tests.
For the games I have, these are working pretty well as you have also found - well, without megaem which, I think, very few ppl use - the GUS is not a proper MIDI out device...

I do like Gravis cards, but as they work along other MPU capable sound cards very well, there is no need for the GUS in this matter.

I know, but as I have a GUS installed in the same system and I had also issues with megaem I also checked if this emulator loads. So it is not strongly related to SoftMPU but maybe someone with the same issue gets some insight that loading an old himem.sys helps. (Actually Megaem also emulates an intelligent MPU401.)

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Reply 78 of 438, by elianda

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I changed the system to a 386DX-40 with a Soundblaster 16 CT1740.
SoftMPU works with LSL2, LSL3 and Wing Commander and I took the opportunity to have a look at the system speed impact:

Config is Himem.sys 3.09 and Emm386.exe 4.48

Speedsys 4.78
5.98 -> 5.19 (-16%)
Norton Sysinfo 7
42.5 -> 37.0 (-13%)
NSSI6 Dhry
11250 -> 9928 (-12%)
NSSI6 Whet
2104 -> 1899 (-10%)
3DBench
15.3 -> 13.1 (-14%)

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Reply 79 of 438, by j^aws

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3Dbench tests for my P2, as requested, using the appropriate v1.0 and v1.0c versions:

---P2@400MHz downclocked to 133MHz, with L1 and L2 enabled---

Using S3 GX2 4MB AGP:

- W/ fastvid = 174.6
- W/O fastvid = 113.5

Using Rendition v2200 8MB AGP:

- W/ fastvid = 51.4
- W/O fastvid = 33

---P2@400MHz downclocked to 133MHz, with L1 and L2 disabled---

Using S3 GX2 4MB AGP:

- W/ fastvid = 3.2
- W/O fastvid = 3.2

---P2@400MHz with L1 and L2 disabled (FSB = 133MHz)---

Using S3 GX2 4MB AGP:

- W/ fastvid = 8.4
- W/O fastvid = 8.2

So, with the previous 3Dbench results of 13-14 for the overclocked Tualatin Celeron (1669MHz with L1 and L2 disabled), I have these approximate scores between my twin-BXs to cover the lower end of the spectrum:

3, 8, 13, 33, 51 and 113.

BTW, the Rendition Verite seems like a very effective VGA decelerator in this test!

I haven't done anymore sound card tests - I'll try to finish those tomorrow.