VOGONS


Freddy Pharkas Frontier Pharmacist CD

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First post, by priestlyboy

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Using latest CVS Build. I left notes there about it on the gameforums forum, but no response there. So I thought maybe it will have a response here.

Music Part works Excellent. Graphics and Gameplay Excellent.

Audio- SoundFX/Speech all carackly and harsh. Not intelligable.

This always seems to be a problem with many of the games i've played through DosBox.

Soundblaster Emulation even regular 2.0 or Pro emulation is off.

Like in Space Quest 4. Lower end sound is cut off.
VDMSound does it perfectly. Is there some way of using VDMSound source code or something to implement it into Dosbox?
I dunno how or what is neccessary.

Ieremiou

Reply 1 of 20, by jurgen

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Here it works fine, anyway, with SB emulation.
You can try selecting another sound card in the Freddy Pharkas install program : the disney sound source is also supported, maybe this helps (it helped for Larry 6, where the SB emulation doesn't work correctly for me)

Reply 5 of 20, by priestlyboy

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i have it enabled it's not listed in the available options in the install file. This is the CD version from the 1995 reissue cd from Sierra.

Not the Floppy or the cd version from www.freddypharkas.com <= I don't believe it is the same Version (I haven't tried it though)

Ieremiou

PS There is no digital.drv unless you mean "soundcard you wish to use".drv

Last edited by priestlyboy on 2003-12-04, 05:44. Edited 1 time in total.

Reply 6 of 20, by priestlyboy

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Okay tried replacing it with audblast.drv from my Laura Bow 2: Dagger of Amon Ra CD.

It did find with the sound effects now and the voicing in the Opening Ballad if you've played the game you'd know what i mean.

But as soon as the old miner narrates it sizzles and crashes out.
Then i get this "Unhandled CPU Opcode" in the window that tells you about your increasing and decreasing cycles. This didn't happen in the one that used the original audblast.drv but it didn't handle the soundfx/voicing though. So I can do it sorta but i can get past the ballad without it crashing. Happens everytime.

This is what my resource.cfg looks like
videoDrv = VGA320.DRV
soundDrv = SBPRO.DRV
audioDrv = AUDBLAST.DRV
joyDrv = NO
kbdDrv = IBMKBD.DRV
mouseDrv = STDMOUSE.DRV
memoryDrv = ARM.DRV
minHunk = 204k
language = 1
cd = YES
cmd = FPFPCD
audioSize = 16k

patchDir = C:\SIERRA\FPFPCD\;D:\freddy\audio
resAUD = D:\freddy\audio

Maybe i need to change something there? Probably not but there is not many choices for AudioDrv. Basically the only emulation in dos that you have emulated is Soundblaster. you don't have Thunderboard or Microsoft Windows Sound System or either Pro Audio Spectrum Sound cards. Those are the ONLY options for Audio driver.

Ieremiou

Reply 8 of 20, by collector

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The GOSiERRA patch is only for getting the driver to initialize in the first place. It should have no effect on how it performs after it starts. In other words, it only gets you past the "Unable to initialize your audio hardware" error message that you get on faster machines. This, of course, should not be an issue with DOSBox. In fact, the GOSiERRA patch does not always work, which is one of the situations I turn to DOSBox to solve.

Reply 9 of 20, by priestlyboy

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Oh it intiliazes fine and all. Gosierra has no effect on it.

In fact what's weird is that SFX/Voicing works fine through Windows XP Pro PsuedoDOS. I was playing around and thought well why not.
So there's something wrong with DosBox is my best guess.

VDMSound works fine.
Windows XP Pro works fine.
DosBox does not.

The only thing i don't like is that in VDMSound and Windows XP Pro. Real timing cycles and stuff is way off so things are either too slow or too fast at the wrong moments. Also neither go in old 320x200 mode.

Ieremiou

PS: Thank you so far with your help. Finding progs I never knew about.

Reply 10 of 20, by priestlyboy

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I have found out that sfx/voicing runs through Windows XP Professional's Command prompt (Dos) heh though music does not. So I'm going to say there IS a problem with DosBox.

VDMSound emulates it fine
Windows XP emulates it fine (have to use General MIDI for music)
yet DOSBOX does not.

Thru Dosbox:
Music - Soundblaster Pro (fine) Adlib/Soundblaster (fine)
Audio - Soundblaster (Doesn't work) Neither SoundFX/Voice
Says the system supports Thunderboard which i know it doesn't and it doesn't work either.

Using Dagger of Amon Ra's AUDBLAST.DRV it messes up VDMSound and Windows XP but let's Dosbox emulate the SFX. So i'm not sure what the hell is going on but it's really annoying.

I like DosBox because it emulates real cycling which VDMSound does not and Windows XP of course does not. Yet Soundblaster emulation has been a pain for me lately.

But i'd say all paths lead to the AUDBLAST.DRV
and GOSiERRA has no effect on it.

Thanks a bunch though guys,
Ieremiou

Reply 11 of 20, by collector

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Sometimes using a different audio driver in sierra's DOS games can lead to problems. If you use one of the updated SoundBlaster drivers from Sierra's FTP for "Conquests of the Longbow" it will cause looping sound. If you use them in "King's Quest V", the sound will be badly distorted and oddly it also kills the MIDI, unless you have it set to use the MT-32 driver. I have tried, with varied success, swapping drivers from different Sierra games to fix problems. Sometimes this has even lead to memory errors and crashes. The GOSiERRA patch is not perfect, but it does work. Sometimes you might have to close and re-launch a patched game many times to get the driver to work.

Try using the original drver in DOSBox, or use the GOSiERRA patch on the original drver and try it with VDMS, launching and re-launching it until you don't get the "Unable to initialize.." error message.

Reply 12 of 20, by priestlyboy

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that is not the problem sir.

It is Intializing. Read the posts completly.

It does "work" cept it outputs only static.

when used in VDMSound it works.
When used with Windows XP it works.

When used with Dosbox it does not.
how many times must i say... look at your code and test it yourself.

I have swapped the driver with the only other available driver like it. Audblast.drv from Laura Bow 2 : Dagger of Amon RA CD Version.

When used with dosbox it works to a point. It plays the voices and sfx in the ballad but as soon as the main game starts it crashes dosbox with an "invaild opcode".
But otherwise it does not work in Windows XP or VDMsound. It crashes immediately with those.

I feel that the source of the problem lies within DosBox and not with the program. Because it emulates fine with the VDMsound and Windows XP with the DRIVER the cd already PROVIDES.

All i wish to do is have it in 320x200 screen so that the graphics are not distorted and that the animation wouldn't be so akward. (VDMSound's cpu limit does nothing but slow the process of when the animation comes up but not the speed of the animation, i've tried.) Windows XP can not do that. (i've tried). VDMsound and windows XP do not emulate 320x200. (i've looked for it.)

thank you,
Ieremiou

PS. I know AUDBLAST.DRV is the source of the problem. It intializes it works with other emulators but not with DosBox. when replaced with a audblast.drv which i have emulated correctly with Laura Bow 2: Dagger of Amon RA CD. (it works to a point) LB2 works prefectly so i know the driver works with dosbox.
This Driver from Freddy Pharkas Frontier Pharmacist must have something different about it that DosBox can not emulate it proper but Initilize it.

Reply 13 of 20, by priestlyboy

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Here is the AUDBLAST.DRV from FPFPCD.

It is 9.22 kbs in size as said by Windows XP. Little over 4 kbs in zip because of Allowed Extensions and Sizes for attachments. (understandble)

Ieremiou

I have tried everything i can think of.
I tried playing around with my conf, maybe it was inproperly configured.
So I disabled XMS, EMS, DPMI. I went through every possible option i could think of and used all the suggestions in this thread.
If there is anyone who can prove me wrong about FPFPCD using the latest version of DOSBOX CVS and by using it emulating the CD Drive.
Speak and I will listen. Tell me how you did it. Please
I love this game.

Ieremiou

PS. After checking out the Author's website on GoSierra. It doesn't appear that his file has any effect on FPFPCD Audblast.drv because he hasn't tested it with it. I do not know. But i do know that it works with my 2.4 ghz processor without his patching system so that is not the problem from my view.

Attachments

  • Filename
    AUDBLAST.zip
    File size
    4.15 KiB
    Downloads
    392 downloads
    File comment
    This is the problem file. I have no doubt. FPFPCD 8/30/1994.
    File license
    Fair use/fair dealing exception

Reply 15 of 20, by priestlyboy

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It works yes (i tried it before i tried MS-DOS) but it won't to take up the whole screen, no matter what I do with XP's compatibility mode, for an ambient effect like MS-DOS version plus it looses a number of nice animation portions because as Sierra said in their readme about the Windows Version - not exact quote - but "Windows just won't let us do things that MS-DOS does."

I've played both versions and there is a big difference in my view. So I'm just trying to be reasonable. I've beat both versions, before I got my computer and had Windows XP, on my parent's computer. I just want to have an accurate play in MS-DOS like it was meant to be.

Thank you,
Ieremiou

Reply 17 of 20, by priestlyboy

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I did. I said that. It throws my computer back to my normal screen size with a box in the middle of it. This is for the Windows Version. The Dos Version running through Windows XP only the program takes over the screen size.

Ieremiou

Reply 19 of 20, by vladr

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Regular DosBox may work if SB type/version set to Pro or less.

I know Larry 6 for sure uses aliased DMA (i.e. use 8-bit DMA to xfer 16-bit samples or vice-versa, I forget) if SB16 is detected, which may be what screws DosBox up.

Cheers,
V.