Hmm stuck notes is new to me. In fact I am only aware of stuck notes when using certain models of Sound Blaster 16 to hook up your MT-32...

First generation MT-32 is ideal for Sierra games! In fact they sound correct only on these early models. Same goes for Dynamix games and Wing Commander.

So these games should just work!

Make sure you test the games on DOSBox with a USB midi cable to be sure it's not something else...

I think I found what the problem is. Everything seems to work when I disable Turbo. MT-32 does not show buffer overflow like with fast 486 so maybe the Midiman does not work properly with fast CPUs. I wouldn't call 386DX-40 fast though. I'll need to try Roland MPU-401AT on this 386.

Larry 3 is a good game to test this stuck note problem. Start the game and press Bail Out before it starts asking questions. Some note gets stuck almost always when returning to DOS with Turbo enabled.

I've been using MT-32 with DOSBox for some time. In fact I have (keyboard) switch box so I can easily switch the MT-32 between retro-PC and DOSBox PC.

Buffer overflow shouldn't be cpu related though at all...

All the new units can handle data transfer that happens non stop. Wheras the old ones needed pauses to keep up.

Many games have these pauses, but some don't and will trigger this error on a MT-32 (Old).

I use the MM401 on a Slot 1 Celeron 300 machine without any issues.

Try Wing Commander or Space Quest 3. These games are meant for a MT-32 (Old). They shouldn't give you any issues.

Same goes for LSL3 I believe, although this is a game I don't have and never tested it but AFAIK I read on quest studios that pretty much all Sierra Games are meant for the MT-32 (Old)

A game that will always trigger a buffer overflow is Lure of Temptress. No matter how slow your machine...

A stuck note after quitting the game... Well I wouldn't worry about it. Do you get stuck notes during the game or only when leaving? Does this happen in every game or just LSL3?

If the pauses are controlled by software timing loops, then CPU speed matters. I need to disable Turbo for some games if I want to use MT-32 with 486DX4-100. I would need to disable Turbo anyway since DX4-100 is too fast for older games.

Back to the Midiman. Notes gets stuck even during gameplay. I didn't test with many games but at least LSL2 and LSL3 had the problem. I'll do more testing on Sunday.

That's interesting...

I did Sound Canvas and MT-32 recordings of Doom and Dark Forces on my Celeron 300 without any issues.

What speed do you have your ISA Bus set to? It should be around 8 MHz I believe...

I don't overclock anything anymore. It gives nothing but trouble. So the ISA clock is 8 MHz as it should.

I did found the problem! Since disabling Turbo helped, it was logical to assume that the problem is related to timings. It turned out that I had to adjust two BIOS settings:
AT Cycle Wait State must be set enabled.
Cache Read Wait State must be 3-1-1-1 or 3-2-2-2 (2-2-2-2 or 2-1-1-1 won't do).

Other setting did not seem to have any effect for Midiman. I did try Roland MPU-401AT and it worked perfectly with fastest possible timings. So real Roland MPU-401AT is the best possible Midi Controller for MT-32 even though Midiman supports Intelligent Mode.

Here is a picture from Midiman compatible BIOS settings. Since I use 386DX-40, AT BUS divider is 5 to get 8 MHz. Memory write wait state is 2 since Memtest86 gives memory errors if I use any less.

Wow that's interesting!

My Celeron machine doesn't have such detailed BIOS settings 😀

Anyone see the MPU401 AT that just sold on Ebay? It doesn't bode well for anyone else looking for one.... £205.

Half of it must be the sound canvas daughterboard that comes with that one, but it's still pricey.

Would a Roland SCC-1 ISA card double as an internal solution for getting a SC-55, and also act as a mpu-401 interface for running a MT-32 in intelligent mode?

Sorry for posting in an old thread.

Yes - as long as you get the mini-DIN to MIDI cables of course (the onboard MIDI ports use the small mini-DIN form factor to fit on the backplate).

megatron-uk wrote:

Yes - as long as you get the mini-DIN to MIDI cables of course (the onboard MIDI ports use the small mini-DIN form factor to fit on the backplate).

Any used card I see on ebay does not come with cables. Are these proprietary cables that came with the card?

Mau1wurf1977 wrote:

Option 1: Soundcard with a MPU401 port + joystick port to midi cable + MT32. […]
Show full quote

Option 1: Soundcard with a MPU401 port + joystick port to midi cable + MT32.

Main benefit: Many soundcards have this port
Main drawback: Doesn't support the "intelligent mode", so some games won't work (though many will). "Hanging note" bug on many Sound Blaster cards.

Option 2: A Roland MPU401 or compatible (mine is a clone) card + midi cable + MT-32

Main benefit: Supports "intelligent mode", so every game should work.
Main downside: Harder to find

Option 3 (For DOSBox): A machine that runs DOSBox + USB midi interface + MT-32
Main benefit: Really really cheap (Like 5 bucks shipped) and easy to obtain (ebay).

To be complete, one should also probably include DOSBox with the MT32 emulation, right? (It ought to sound the same since it uses the MT32 ROMs, right?)

Jorpho wrote:

To be complete, one should also probably include DOSBox with the MT32 emulation, right? (It ought to sound the same since it uses the MT32 ROMs, right?)

Hmmm not sure. Some googling I've done suggests MT-32 emulation is not really all that great or complete. But I have no experience trying it myself.

I think the point in this thread though, started with questions of what hardware was available in various combinations of cards, and what options were possible with pros and cons. I would probably not focus on MT-32 emulation much in this one at least. *shrug*

bytesaber wrote:

Any used card I see on ebay does not come with cables. Are these proprietary cables that came with the card?

Not a big deal if you ever built a cable before. Just need to buy the fitting plugs, a wire and solder a little.

Ah great. Yes I can do that 😀

Or look for MIDI cables on eBay. You never know what you find!

I believe this one works fine :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/120836689953

Myself, I just randomly went to visit my local music(instruments) store a few years ago, and lo and behold, they were able to order original Roland cables for me! Took a while, probably came from Japan, but they got here !

SCC-1 cable

http://queststudios.com/smf/index.php?topic=1053