Re: VIA C3 Ezra / Ezra-T CPU

Posted on 2016-10-11, 01:27

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

The VIA C3 chips were designed to operate the FPU at 1/2 speed. It is in no way a replacement for a fast P3/P4/Athlon machine. kanecvr: Homeworld really benefits from a faster machine. Use a 1ghz CPU and GF4/Radeon x8xx GPU, max the detail settings, and enjoy! It's the only way to make captured 60+ …

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Re: Ensoniq Card

Posted on 2016-10-11, 00:37

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Hmm... similar to the TB Maui/Tropez cards, I wonder if the 68EC000 firmware can be patched to support normal mode MPU functionality.

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Re: Need a bios

Posted on 2016-10-11, 00:31

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Thats the bios, how'd you find it so fast, i spent 4 hours looking for it lol I googled 4M4PBOX1 bios, then found this https://panam.gateway.com/support/drivers/getFile.asp?id=14928&dscr=BIOS%20Revision%204M4PB0X1.15A.0033.P21&uid=503132801 Next I googled 7508283.exe and found it here.. http://www. …

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Re: Early PCI sound cards and DOS gaming

Posted on 2016-10-10, 09:22

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

kanecvr wrote: I use a 724 pci + SC55 in DOS - haven't found a problem yet. The Ensoniq AudioPCI / Creative PCI128 and Aureal Vortex 1 are pretty good in DOS too. So is the Crystal 4xxx series and the ALS1000s. The Yamaha cards include an OPL core which makes them just a little more special, IMHO.

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Re: Phil's Ultimate VGA Benchmark Database Project

Posted on 2016-10-10, 09:16

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Glad the database is back to being editable now Phil. Also nice to see you stepping into the VIA CPU waters, what are your plans for the little beast? Best regards, Chris To be honest, I haven't done any research about this platform! Tell me what to do! :blush: The board is special, there will be a …

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Re: How-To: Running Munt for Windows on Linux

Posted on 2016-10-10, 09:01

by

by gdjacobs

in MT-32 General

in MT-32 General

A standard JACK/MIDI patch bay will work great for this. No need to get exotic.

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Re: Early PCI sound cards and DOS gaming

Posted on 2016-10-10, 06:47

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

The only exception to these rules wrt PCI cards are the Yamaha YMF-7xx PCI series, especially if they have SB-PCI and you have a compatible motherboard.

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Re: Opinions on Pentium 1 systems

Posted on 2016-10-10, 06:45

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

^^ Sorry, but "don't bother'" with what? Discussing? I still don't have an answer to why a 386/ 486 is better for a pure DOS machine. The OP was asking a question about nostalgia... The answer is already in this thread, the problem is that Pentium 1 systems do not emulate the full range of speeds …

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Re: power supply

Posted on 2016-10-10, 06:41

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

The other option is to source a buck-boost converter. That will source from a +5V or +12V rail and offer stable inverted polarity output, either greater or less than the input voltage.

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Re: How-To: Running Munt for Windows on Linux

Posted on 2016-10-10, 06:29

by

by gdjacobs

in MT-32 General

in MT-32 General

What exactly is the problem this is meant to address? Routing Munt from any ALSA MIDI port has never been a problem for me, except when the ALSA install was incomplete. Also, Munt is much more efficient when compiled natively with optimizations.

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Re: Bought these (retro) hardware today

Posted on 2016-10-09, 03:45

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

I agree, I was just poking James for his "Single cycle DMA" is common knowledge comment in another thread :) By my sword or wit, it WILL be common knowledge. :lol: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Don_Quichotte_Honor%C3%A9_Daumier.jpg/410px-Don_Quichotte_Honor%C3%A9_Daumier …

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Re: My 486 Build

Posted on 2016-10-09, 01:59

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ System Specs

in Marvin \ System Specs

I haven't heard or read of any quantified or qualified differences between the original YMF262, CT1747, or Aztech's licensed OPL3 chips. Low power OPL3 chips from Yamaha (like the YMF289) appear to use some internal methods with minor differences that show up in scope shots. Chips like the OPL-SA …

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Re: Does X-Com (199..3?) not use MPU-401?

Posted on 2016-10-07, 10:40

by

by gdjacobs

in DOS

in DOS

X-Com (at least the version I use) has an option for LAPC sound. That is fully compatible with the CM-32L and possibly the MT-32, although I don't know if it uses the extra effects of the CM-32L/LAPC. A bit of a heads up. The DOS sub-forum is specifically for getting DOS games running on modern …

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Re: Want to build a tiny DOS/Windows/3DFX PC

Posted on 2016-10-07, 01:45

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

So, if you are looking for a small Socket 7 mainboard, check the MVP3BS7-954 ;) http://smartinfo.com.my/IT/PC_Hardware/MVP3BS7_954/PC-Partner_MVP3BS7_954.jpg And I recommend building a small, vertical tower and putting it right next to the monitor, in my opinion it can be a better solution than a …

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Re: High End 486 vs Pentium

Posted on 2016-10-06, 17:30

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

buckeye wrote: I have a mmx 233 pentium but with a intel se440bx currently so can't disable the cache. Are there any slot 1 mobo's out there that will allow this? P2 233, surely? The PMMX is a socket 7 chip.

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Re: Got myself a Truck

Posted on 2016-10-05, 09:20

by

by gdjacobs

in Milliways

in Milliways

Go for the 5.4 if you need the power, but a Ford six cylinder is usually very inexpensive to operate.

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Re: What scientific calculator simulator do you use?

Posted on 2016-10-05, 09:15

by

by gdjacobs

in Milliways

in Milliways

I use reality and a Sharp DAL.

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Re: Last parts for vintage gaming rig on their way!

Posted on 2016-10-03, 14:56

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ System Specs

in Marvin \ System Specs

Might be interesting, particularly with the MTH. The i820 was legendary, if only for all the wrong reasons.

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Re: What retro activity did you get up to today?

Posted on 2016-10-01, 15:24

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

CelGen wrote: gdjacobs wrote: PA RISC servers on the left? Dang right it is.

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Re: Want to recap soon. What's the best for cleaning...

Posted on 2016-10-01, 00:14

by

by gdjacobs

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

I generally use isopro to spot clean boards, but I immediately clean it off when I'm done. For general application, at most I'll use a damp cloth.

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