Re: Modern laptops vs. more traditional designs

Posted on 2019-08-08, 15:50

by

by LightStruk

in Milliways

in Milliways

Numero Uno is always the keyboard. Modern laptops have either (A) a chiclet "island" style keyboard, with very short travel and a cheap, plasticy feel -- or (B) in the case of the MacBooks, a "butterfly" keyboard that feels like typing on little pieces of Scotch tape and frequently breaks. These …

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Re: SB Pro or SB 16 PCM audio in a microcontroller?

Posted on 2019-08-01, 14:17

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

look on page "1-6" of the programming manual https://pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/2018/readings/hardware/SoundBlaster.pdf it has nice diagrams for you Indeed it does! There's no diagram for the SB 1.0 or 1.5 - perhaps Creative Labs didn't want to remind folks of the fact that they used completely off- …

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Re: Which PCI Soundcard

Posted on 2019-08-01, 13:58

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

It's a software based emulator which may use some hardware functions (information is unclear on this). Windows only. For full hardware wavetable, you need something plugged into the game port. You're correct, it's not a full hardware wavetable implementation. Perhaps the most accurate way to …

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Re: SB Pro or SB 16 PCM audio in a microcontroller?

Posted on 2019-07-31, 14:43

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

gdjacobs wrote: I believe they use an integrated 8051 for bus interaction. Would it be accurate to say then that the SB 1.0 / 2.0 used a microcontroller as the "DSP" and discretes for ISA bus logic, while the SB Pro and the SB 16 use a microcontroller for bus logic and a custom IC for PCM audio and …

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SB Pro or SB 16 PCM audio in a microcontroller?

Posted on 2019-07-30, 17:28

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

The original Sound Blaster (1.0 and 2.0) uses a microcontroller to handle PCM audio. Do the Sound Blaster Pro or Sound Blaster 16 also use a microcontroller for PCM audio, or do they have custom ICs? Was the mixer a separate chip?

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Re: The comprehensive list of all modern reproductions of vintage sound cards

Posted on 2019-07-30, 14:47

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

Benedikt wrote: Do my parallel port audio adapters qualify? Yes, they qualify! I've added them to the list.

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Re: Which PCI Soundcard

Posted on 2019-07-30, 14:15

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

Another vote for YMF724 or YMF744. 100% SB Pro 2.0 compatible with a real OPL3 (not emulated or reimplemented) inside, plus multiple ways to get full DOS support (DDMA / SBLINK / TSR). Nice wavetable MIDI too.

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Re: The comprehensive list of all modern reproductions of vintage sound cards

Posted on 2019-07-26, 17:53

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

Updated the list. Thanks Kamerat and elianda!

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The comprehensive list of all modern reproductions of vintage sound cards

Posted on 2019-07-25, 18:26

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

It's an exciting time for vintage PC gaming enthusiasts, with so many modern reproductions of vintage sound cards coming out. I'm not talking about newly invented vintage sound products with no historic counterpart like the OPL2LPT and OPL3LPT, as interesting as they are. I'm talking about drop-in …

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Re: SB Live! Value (SB0100) or Dell/OEM SB Live! (SB0200 / SB0220) in DOS

Posted on 2019-07-24, 13:22

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

That's very helpful, thank you! It's great to hear that it can do General MIDI and even MT32 emulation in pure DOS. Also, as you said, the Audigy 2 ZS is quite inexpensive on eBay. It looks like the SB0350 is the card you're recommending: it has the joystick header, the front panel audio header, and …

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Re: Windows 98SE Media Rig

Posted on 2019-07-23, 14:46

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by LightStruk

in Marvin \ System Specs

in Marvin \ System Specs

Does the Virge support FASTVID? Or is it otherwise a strong VGA / VESA card for DOS gaming? I ask because I also had a Virge once, and the 3D acceleration (cough DECELERATION) looked just awful. Terrible dithering and everything.

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Re: 486DX2 VLB of my childhood dreams.. It's a reality!

Posted on 2019-07-23, 14:43

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ System Specs

in Marvin \ System Specs

Look at that chunky desktop case! Three half-height bays tall is just nuts. Also, your paint job looks great. At least from the photos, it looks clean and original. No network card? You could get a 3c509 for $10 or so, and then you could use FTP or SMB file sharing to get files onto the box, or even …

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Re: Motherboards with integrated LEGACY audio

Posted on 2019-07-22, 17:39

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by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

There are a few Slot-1 and Socket 370 motherboards with a Yamaha YMF740 onboard, which is SBPro compatible with a built-in geniune OPL3 FM synth. A quick Google search finds: Slot 1: Intel SE440BX-2 Soyo SY-6IBM PRM-0084I ZX- DTK Computer Socket 370: Soyo SY-7IZM Epox EP-ZX370Y Gemlight P6BIMG

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SB Live! Value (SB0100) or Dell/OEM SB Live! (SB0200 / SB0220) in DOS

Posted on 2019-07-22, 17:12

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

As described in a previous topic , I am trying to get working sound in DOS on an oddball embedded motherboard with a single 3.3V PCI slot. (PCI slots are usually 5V, and are keyed the opposite way from 3.3V slots.) I noticed that the Dell / OEM SoundBlaster Live! cards (SB0200 and SB0220) are dual …

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Re: Yamaha YMF7x4 3.3V PCI cards?

Posted on 2019-07-22, 16:58

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

Is it safe to mod a 5v only card to work in a 3.3v slot? I wouldn't want to fry a motherboard. I can tell you that the alix1e's manual cautions against it. If you actually put 5V onto any pin that's expecting 3.3V, then yes, damage is likely. Supplying 5V to the card independently from the PCI slot …

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Re: Yamaha YMF7x4 3.3V PCI cards?

Posted on 2019-06-17, 16:34

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

The motherboard is a PCEngines alix1e.

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Re: Yamaha YMF7x4 3.3V PCI cards?

Posted on 2019-06-15, 01:49

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

A lot has happened since I last posted. I purchased that "SuperGrace" YMF724F-V sound card with the 3.3V notch, and it didn't work, most likely because the YMF724 requires a digital 3.3V supply but 5V for I/O . I looked at the datasheet for the YMF7 4 4, and lo and behold, it supports 3.3V for both …

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Re: Yamaha YMF7x4 3.3V PCI cards?

Posted on 2018-12-26, 21:50

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

cyclone3d wrote: Somebody has a few YMF724 based cards for sale on eBay that will work in 3.3v and 5v PCI slots: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-724-XG-YMF724 … 24/254017434013 Has anybody had prior experience with Super Grace products? I have never heard of them before.

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Re: Yamaha YMF7x4 3.3V PCI cards?

Posted on 2018-12-23, 18:13

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

Yes, the slot on the board has the tab that blocks 5V only cards.

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Yamaha YMF7x4 3.3V PCI cards?

Posted on 2018-12-23, 14:57

by

by LightStruk

in Marvin \ Sound

in Marvin \ Sound

I’m building a mini retro gaming machine that only has a single 3.3V PCI slot. Its on-board audio does not have legacy SoundBlaster support, so I’m looking at PCI sound cards. That single slot cannot take 5V PCI cards, and most Yamaha YMF7x4 cards are 5V only. Here’s a link showing how 5V and 3.3V …

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