Sounds like improper DOS drivers where in DOS MODE thru Windows they work fine due to Windows drivers.
Read this: ESS (not Ensoniq) Maestro-2 Compatibility it may help.
Then if you go here: http://web.archive.org/web/20030207160318/htt … rivers.shtm#pci
or http://web.archive.org/web/20020124194356/htt … rivers.shtm#pci
it lists the original drivers (note: N0 DOS driver listed but there is within the Win95 archive)
Lists 4056 or 4056A.zip but that leads to here: http://ftp.dyu.edu.tw/pub/4056.zip.html and http://ftp.dyu.edu.tw/pub/ES1978_win9x.html (same file) listed for the ES1978 chipset for /win9x/
It might help.... or not but does have the Maestro.com file needed for DOS. Maybe you already have that file in your Windows Audio driver folder ?

Edit; fixed links

Horun wrote on 2021-09-11, 01:55:

Sounds like improper DOS drivers where in DOS MODE thru Windows they work fine due to Windows drivers. Read this: ESS (not Enson […]
Show full quote

Sounds like improper DOS drivers where in DOS MODE thru Windows they work fine due to Windows drivers.
Read this: ESS (not Ensoniq) Maestro-2 Compatibility it may help.
Then if you go here: http://web.archive.org/web/20020124194356/htt … rivers.shtm#pci it lists the original drivers (note: N0 DOS driver listed but there is within the Win95 archive)
Lists 4056A.zip but that leads to here: http://ftp.dyu.edu.tw/pub/4056.zip.html and http://ftp.dyu.edu.tw/pub/ES1978_win9x.html (same file) listed for the ES1978 chipset for /win9x/
It might help.... or not but does have the Maestro.com file needed for DOS. Maybe you already have that file in your Windows Audio driver folder ?

Oh I am not trying to run the games in DOS mode. I'm trying to run them in Windows 98's Dos prompt. I have the driver installed from the restore CD for this machine.

Sorry my reply lost my link to this topic: ESS (not Ensoniq) Maestro-2 Compatibility
"I recently acquired a second hand laptop (a Toshiba Satellite 4090CDS) with a Ensoniq Maestro 2 integrated sound card.
Anybody does know if there is a DOS driver for this card or is this card hardware compatible with another one?"

The restore disk probably does not include creating a true DOS driver (not DOS mode) since it was designed to just set the OS back to specs.
Did you look for Maestro.com on your HD ?

Horun wrote on 2021-09-11, 02:30:

Sorry my reply lost my link to this topic: ESS (not Ensoniq) Maestro-2 Compatibility "I recently acquired a second hand laptop ( […]
Show full quote

Sorry my reply lost my link to this topic: ESS (not Ensoniq) Maestro-2 Compatibility
"I recently acquired a second hand laptop (a Toshiba Satellite 4090CDS) with a Ensoniq Maestro 2 integrated sound card.
Anybody does know if there is a DOS driver for this card or is this card hardware compatible with another one?"

The restore disk probably does not include creating a true DOS driver (not DOS mode) since it was designed to just set the OS back to specs.
Did you look for Maestro.com on your HD ?

Yes there is a Maestro.com in the C:/ drive

Also in DOS Mode I only get the FM emulation going, when I select Midi I get no sound.

Am not a guru on some of the ESS chipsets (because they changed a bunch over time) but in your DOS autoexec.bat do you have a C:\maestro.com or LH c:\maestro.com (depending on your memory config) as the first line ?
Also may require a Set Blaster= line but not sure as that changed from one ESS chipset to another, most DOS games need it...

Horun wrote on 2021-09-11, 03:05:

Am not a guru on some of the ESS chipsets (because they changed a bunch over time) but in your DOS autoexec.bat do you have a C:\maestro.com or LH c:\maestro.com (depending on your memory config) as the first line ?
Also may require a Set Blaster= line but not sure as that changed from one ESS chipset to another, most DOS games need it...

Yeah it works fine in DOS, but my problem is that it sounds corrupted while running DOS games under windows itself, in the DOS prompt.

Can you list your contents of Config.sys and Autoexec.bat ?
You do know laptops are neutered desktops so are missing things or not wired same that the same parts are more workable in a desktop. Never met a laptop of same era as a similar desktop that could work as well... just my opinion
There is a good topic here that is all about laptops: The quest for the perfect retro laptop: a saga
Maybe someone else has better info.

Horun wrote on 2021-09-11, 03:31:

Can you list your contents of Config.sys and Autoexec.bat ? You do know laptops are neutered desktops so are missing things or […]
Show full quote

Can you list your contents of Config.sys and Autoexec.bat ?
You do know laptops are neutered desktops so are missing things or not wired same that the same parts are more workable in a desktop. Never met a laptop of same era as a similar desktop that could work as well... just my opinion
There is a good topic here that is all about laptops: The quest for the perfect retro laptop: a saga
Maybe someone else has better info.

Are the games even using those files while running under windows? I have different configuration autoexec and config for each game.

Vany wrote on 2021-09-11, 02:45:

Also in DOS Mode I only get the FM emulation going, when I select Midi I get no sound.

according to ESS archive: ES1968 DOS
"Blaster Type : SoundBlaster Pro or compatible (8bit)
Settings : Port=220 IRQ=5 DMA=1 HDMA= Midi= Type=4
DSP Version : 3.02
Compatibility : Adlib, SoundBlaster 2.0, SoundBlaster Pro
Features : Stereo, ESS 1968 Maestro-2, FM + Wavetable Synthesis, 16bit DAC/ADC, 4-48khz, PCI, DirectSound, DSound3D"

No MIDI or mention of port 330

Horun wrote on 2021-09-11, 14:18:

according to ESS archive: ES1968 DOS "Blaster Type : SoundBlaster Pro or compatible (8bit) Settings : Port=220 IRQ=5 DMA=1 HDMA […]
Show full quote

Vany wrote on 2021-09-11, 02:45:

Also in DOS Mode I only get the FM emulation going, when I select Midi I get no sound.

according to ESS archive: ES1968 DOS
"Blaster Type : SoundBlaster Pro or compatible (8bit)
Settings : Port=220 IRQ=5 DMA=1 HDMA= Midi= Type=4
DSP Version : 3.02
Compatibility : Adlib, SoundBlaster 2.0, SoundBlaster Pro
Features : Stereo, ESS 1968 Maestro-2, FM + Wavetable Synthesis, 16bit DAC/ADC, 4-48khz, PCI, DirectSound, DSound3D"

No MIDI or mention of port 330

How would I go about enabling Wavetable Synthesis in DOS? I only get FM sound and I have the drivers in autoexec and config

Well "Compatibility : Adlib, SoundBlaster 2.0, SoundBlaster Pro" does not mean Wavetable 🤣
According to the ESS Maestro-2 datasheet page 15 and 16 there is charts where PCI register porting shows it might allow Midi port 330 be synthed thru the DOS SB Pro FM emulation.
Page 1 say: "features include a 64-voice wavetable synthesizer with Downloadable Sample (DLS) and complete DirectSound acceleration." which may only work with the 32bit Windows drivers though...
The Blaster variables from Creative for a SB Pro shows T4 for regular SB Pro: Set BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 T4 and T5 for SB Pro w/synthesis chip like: Set BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 T5 P330
That assumes the DOS driver enables and supports those register bits of 40h/41h and 50h/51h for the Maestro-2 to emulate a SB Pro with Synth....
You can try to change the Blaster variable and see what happens... Maybe some one more knowledgeable has a better answer but tikbalang only got Adlib and SB FM to work under DOS with ESS PCI audio according to the research:
http://www.vogonsdrivers.com/getfile.php?file … =60&menustate=0

I discovered more problems with the laptop's midi sound, I created a new thread and posted a video since this no longer applies to just DOS games but MIDI overall.

Problems with MIDI on a Toshiba laptop (Video included)

I tried the latest drivers and have to say that those are the WORST drivers available for this chipset. In the latest drivers they removed the wavetable and repalced it with Microsoft GS, sound blaster compatibility is gone, FM synthesis also gone. 🙁