deepthaw wrote on 2023-05-20, 08:16:

Hooked x2gs up to my main pc and used an X68000 emulator to capture this track from Castlevania X68000.

https://youtu.be/Zorreq9Xk-0

sounds good !

Is there a way (modding?) to boost the volume of the X2GS? My other sound devices (ESS, Turtle Beach, Gravis) have these louder type line outputs. Amp setting on max. isn't enough. It would make it a bit easier to mix and match the volume settings.

Rawit wrote on 2023-09-13, 20:49:

Is there a way (modding?) to boost the volume of the X2GS? My other sound devices (ESS, Turtle Beach, Gravis) have these louder type line outputs. Amp setting on max. isn't enough. It would make it a bit easier to mix and match the volume settings.

pretty sure the X2PresetEditor in the X2_SoftwarePack1.02.zip can do exactly that
it is found in the serdashop downloads: https://serdaco.com/downloads/X2/?dir=X2_SoftwarePack

You mean the Amp setting? It's already on max. but that doesn't make much difference. The X2GS has a lower volume output compared to a DB50XG or a Turtle Beach Rio. I want to tweak it to get it to that level if possible.

I had to turn the amp on mine down quite a bit because it was too loud, but in saying that I wasn't comparing it to a DB50XG, which is brutally loud too.

Manufacturers all used different kind of line output levels it seems. My ESS cards have the same output as my Gravis but the Aztech's, ALS's and Crystals behave a bit different. The ESS cards also easily handle a Yucatan FX (which has high bass, but isn't that loud otherwise) and a DB50XG (loud). The other cards clip with those.

The X2GS with the Roland bank selected is the only daughterboard I have that handles all the GS stuff correctly and I would love to turn the volume up a notch so that it integrates better.

I got recently released X2GS Second Edition version. Almost everything seems to be shrunk down.
It appears SE version uses ESS DAC instead of AKM. So is it better or perhaps it's down to component availability. It's bigger more expensive brother X16 uses also ESS DAC.

I have SC-55K to compare. DreamBlaster implementation sports clearly richer sound signature with slightly more emphasis on lower frequency band. I like it. OG SC-55 sounds dry next to it.

Note: New PCB design has usb port inside. So make sure you have sound card components clearance. In my case with original Orpheus card X2 usb port makes slight contact with Orpheus electrolytic capacitor. So I treated X2GS usb port with Kapton tape for isolation. Looks also better on dark pcb

Very interesting. I've compared the datasheets of the DACs and it looks like the AKM has a reference diagram using 1.13Vrms output while the ESS includes a 2Vrms Op-Amp driver. I'm a complete n00b in this department but does this mean the ESS has more power in the output if the datasheet setups were used?

I now own both the X2GS and the X2GS SE. I'm happy to report that the X2GS SE is louder then the original. I'm using it externally with the CHiLL & Phil adapter and it seems that the ESS DAC delivers more power which the line-in of my ESS sound card likes. Everything has the same levels now after a quick test.

Just got mine the other day, what a fantastic piece of hardware! I need to tweak some of the presets though, my soundcard distorts a lot of the low-end notes.

You know what would be awesome?

A card that has both a full XG and a full GS implementaion. two banks.
upon receiving a GS reset sysex, it switches to GS mode, using the Roland bank, with everything implemented by the sc55mkii, including the time variant filter to play sc55 composed techno midis properly.
Upon switching a XG reset it switches to XG mode, with a licensed XG wavebank equivalent to db50xg, and implementation of everything THAT card did.
Upon receiving a GM reset, it will reset in XG or GS mode, whichever one it's in. There's literally no working DWIM mode here, so that's the best compromise.

As for anyone who says XG is worthless and not worth the bother, final fantasy 7 pc says hi. 😀

AS for the licensing. here's is how i read it.
1) install onto soundcard=ok. roland made an scd-15 for this exact use case.
2) install into external usb case for use as an external synth on PC. also fine, even though you've essentially built your own sound module, which is an instrument. They neither can nor wish to prevent that particular use case. Even if you record the output and post that to youtube (D1M1 midi playback 🤣), it's still fine.
3) making it into a standalone midi module that can interface with a midi keyboard, and then using it as such. This is something they'd really rather you didn't do, but as long as you are just having fun in your own home, it's fair use, and they really can't stop you. Even if you use it to make music and record it, unless they have audio watermarks in the samples or something, they can't prove it. 😀 This will not get you in trouble, as a violation that's impossible to prove doesn't exist.
4) using the standalone module and the midi controller as touring gear? That will get you in trouble. You are supposed to buy the sound canvas itself, and this CAN be caught and you will be liable for damages.
5) selling this combination for less than a roland synth? You will get smacked down HARD for that one.

The important thing is if you are deliberately trying to avoid needing to pay for an actual roland synth or sound canvas for professional work, or actually trying to compete with roland's own offerings. as long as you are doing neither, you are fine. They aren't gonna fine you for jamming at home with your midi keyboard. 😀

Roland really aren't being evil here. I asked them about converting gm.dls for use with my awe32 back in the day, and was told that they really had no problem with that being done, as that's what those samples were licensed for (playback of midi on pc), but not to upload the converted file. they seem to have mellowed out a bit on that particular issue, judging by all the soundfonts still up and not DMCAed trying to fake a sound canvas. But they ARE likely to raise hell if a free emulator does show up for the SC55, and it doesn't require you to dump your own roms from your own sound canvas.

Yamaha's last ditch effort at pushing XG on the PC was to make a (basic) XG DLS sound bank available for free, which you can reverse-repackage as a bank for DREAM chips. The intention for this DLS bank was to give a taste of XG to the gaming industry and consumers, with the idea that game studios could license whatever additional XG instrument/sound samples in Yamaha's entire library that interested them, but it failed completely, as MIDI (and DLS) was pretty much dead in games when it came around. However, the full XG MIDI experience and functionality requires both the XG synth engine AND XG sound banks, which means an XG bank simply won't work the way you want it to. In order to get XG on the DREAM chips, you'd have to cook-up firmware that would match/mimic the XG engine/controls/specs and get the highest-quality XG sound samples from Yamaha or somehow pull the compiled banks out of the few high-end XG synths and add-in cards that are still around. Yamaha might actually be open to it, but it would still be difficult to figure out the firmware side without all the technical documentation/knowledge.

There's a lot of info in the manual for the db50xg, whihc is an mu-50 on a card, and uses the same sample ROM, which is also used by the softsynths. so that's a big step.

There are a lot of reverb, chorus, and variation effects, including delay (used in Children_xg) and amp simulation, overdrive, distortion, etc. while the exact implementation isn't fully described, what all the controls do IS.

I'm sure A/B testing the different effects against the vsti would go pretty far.

The readme that came with dlsread.exe (which converts DLS files to 94i Dream instruments) makes me think Hoontech ever had some sort of XG compatible firmware available. https://m.blog.naver.com/PostView.naver?isHtt … &logNo=55230060

interesting...

i somehow doubt it gets everything. it probably just supports allt he instruments and chorus/reverb/pitch bend sensitivity/portmenteau. and probably not the filter. but woudl be interesting to try if one has one of those cards handy..

anyway someone who has a sc55 and one of these try this midi file please?

https://www.smart-gsm.com/downloads/files/ton … canvas/rtft.mid

Also, seems the SE version has the usb port, but not the audio out? how does that even????

zaphod77 wrote on 2023-11-28, 09:44:

Also, seems the SE version has the usb port, but not the audio out? how does that even????

What exactly do you need an audio out for on a waveblaster board anyhow? I mean, it was nice enough of Serge to include it originally but the purpose always kind of eluded me.

X2 line of wt boards is also used in some other non-pc projects and as such the dedicated audio-out was needed
but for the X2GS-SE this was dropped as it is aimed for "normal" pc usage and smaller size
X2GS is still available for anyone that wants the output jack

appiah4 wrote on 2023-11-28, 10:29:

zaphod77 wrote on 2023-11-28, 09:44:

Also, seems the SE version has the usb port, but not the audio out? how does that even????

What exactly do you need an audio out for on a waveblaster board anyhow? I mean, it was nice enough of Serge to include it originally but the purpose always kind of eluded me.

The point of the audio out was to use it for recording/listening, when using the X2GS card in the enclosure case, making it an external and portable synth module that you could use with modern and retro desktops that don't have any soundcard with a Waveblaster header. That being said, many people didn't use the X2/X2GS as a Waveblaster add-on card for a soundcard. That's why the audio out was carried over to the X16GS, which is overkill for a Waveblaster add-on and perfect for MIDI playback and creation.