Review & demo of X16GS by Retro Erik : https://youtu.be/9ql7mKiHZr0?si=w_bB1pr8EV1pAOtm
Soundcloud recordings of the new unofficial MT32 stereo bank by Hummtaro : https://soundcloud.com/hummtaro/sets/dreambla … -32-stereo-bank

As someone asked but got no reply: does it fit physically an Audician32 card (height from ISA bus)?

JustJulião wrote on 2024-03-03, 11:05:

As someone asked but got no reply: does it fit physically an Audician32 card (height from ISA bus)?

Yes, the pcb dimensions are : 53mm (height) x 77mm (width)
It is mounted in 'landscape', the needed height in isa slot direction must be larger than 55mm :

dreamblaster wrote on 2024-03-03, 11:43:

Yes, the pcb dimensions are : 53mm (height) x 77mm (width) It is mounted in 'landscape', the needed height in isa slot direction […]
Show full quote

JustJulião wrote on 2024-03-03, 11:05:

As someone asked but got no reply: does it fit physically an Audician32 card (height from ISA bus)?

Yes, the pcb dimensions are : 53mm (height) x 77mm (width)
It is mounted in 'landscape', the needed height in isa slot direction must be larger than 55mm :
x16gs.jpg

Thank you!
And thank you for making it green too.

Hello friends. I need help. My Dreamblaster X16GS perfectly work by USB on Windows 11. But not worked on ASUS I-A16C (Vibra 16c) and Aureal Vortex 2 SQ2500. Under DOS and Vibra, i use unisound. Under Win98 and Vortex 2 i unmuted MPU401, but still dont have sound from Dreamblaster. Under Windows 11 and USB, dreamblaster use all two led indicator red and green. On my soundcard under dos and windows, only red led is lighting. Help my if you can, thanks.

fNzpyk wrote on 2024-08-10, 06:23:

Hello friends. I need help. My Dreamblaster X16GS perfectly work by USB on Windows 11. But not worked on ASUS I-A16C (Vibra 16c) and Aureal Vortex 2 SQ2500. Under DOS and Vibra, i use unisound. Under Win98 and Vortex 2 i unmuted MPU401, but still dont have sound from Dreamblaster. Under Windows 11 and USB, dreamblaster use all two led indicator red and green. On my soundcard under dos and windows, only red led is lighting. Help my if you can, thanks.

hi,
I will investigate and try to help. I will pm you with some more more questions.
Let's try to get it working.

dreamblaster wrote on 2024-08-10, 11:34:

hi, I will investigate and try to help. I will pm you with some more more questions. Let's try to get it working. […]
Show full quote

fNzpyk wrote on 2024-08-10, 06:23:

Hello friends. I need help. My Dreamblaster X16GS perfectly work by USB on Windows 11. But not worked on ASUS I-A16C (Vibra 16c) and Aureal Vortex 2 SQ2500. Under DOS and Vibra, i use unisound. Under Win98 and Vortex 2 i unmuted MPU401, but still dont have sound from Dreamblaster. Under Windows 11 and USB, dreamblaster use all two led indicator red and green. On my soundcard under dos and windows, only red led is lighting. Help my if you can, thanks.

hi,
I will investigate and try to help. I will pm you with some more more questions.
Let's try to get it working.

thank you very much. I hope this is a problem in the Vibra 16c chipset. But i still dont understande why it dont work under win98 with Vortex 2.

fNzpyk wrote on 2024-08-10, 12:09:

dreamblaster wrote on 2024-08-10, 11:34:

hi, I will investigate and try to help. I will pm you with some more more questions. Let's try to get it working. […]
Show full quote

fNzpyk wrote on 2024-08-10, 06:23:

Hello friends. I need help. My Dreamblaster X16GS perfectly work by USB on Windows 11. But not worked on ASUS I-A16C (Vibra 16c) and Aureal Vortex 2 SQ2500. Under DOS and Vibra, i use unisound. Under Win98 and Vortex 2 i unmuted MPU401, but still dont have sound from Dreamblaster. Under Windows 11 and USB, dreamblaster use all two led indicator red and green. On my soundcard under dos and windows, only red led is lighting. Help my if you can, thanks.

hi,
I will investigate and try to help. I will pm you with some more more questions.
Let's try to get it working.

thank you very much. I hope this is a problem in the Vibra 16c chipset. But i still dont understande why it dont work under win98 with Vortex 2.

sorry, i can't writing in messenge, because my account is new. I attaches photo, it's work fine, sounds good, green led is beping.

dreamblaster wrote on 2024-08-10, 11:34:

hi, I will investigate and try to help. I will pm you with some more more questions. Let's try to get it working. […]
Show full quote

fNzpyk wrote on 2024-08-10, 06:23:

Hello friends. I need help. My Dreamblaster X16GS perfectly work by USB on Windows 11. But not worked on ASUS I-A16C (Vibra 16c) and Aureal Vortex 2 SQ2500. Under DOS and Vibra, i use unisound. Under Win98 and Vortex 2 i unmuted MPU401, but still dont have sound from Dreamblaster. Under Windows 11 and USB, dreamblaster use all two led indicator red and green. On my soundcard under dos and windows, only red led is lighting. Help my if you can, thanks.

hi,
I will investigate and try to help. I will pm you with some more more questions.
Let's try to get it working.

i can take oscilloscope. But i hope it not nesusary. I buy new ISA sound card on Crystal CS4232-KQ, it arrived on next week, and we can tested.

update: Dreamblaster X16GS perfectly work on Crystal CS4232-KQ. Very easy to install and use. No one problem.

Matze has kindly borrowed me his SB16 CT2230 card, so I could investigate the incompatibility that some people experienced with X16GS.
I found the cause and a solution for this, and will share the details below :

The problem seemed to happen when pin 7 from the SB16 is connected to pin 7 on the X16.
It seems some sound cards such as CT2230 pull this pin high at bootup.
The Dream CPU detects this pin status during bootup, and as a result , uses the wrong memory configuration, and the bootloader doesnt start.
This is the cause of the incompatibility.

X16/X16GS had pin 7 connected for possible future use (sending midi data back to the interface), but this has remained unused, as no soundcards support this. So pin 7 has no useful function.
The solution is to disconnect pin 7 on the X16/X16GS. This can be done simply by removing R33. Alternatively, the trace between R33 and pin 7 can be cut.
See the images below for illustration of both modification options.

X16GS before modification:

X16GS with R33 removed:

X16GS with indication where to cut trace (alternative solution):

From now on, I will be shipping X16GS and X16 with this modification.
So making this change is only needed if you have an incompatible soundcard,
and an X16/X16GS ordered before August 25th 2024.

A further alternative, if you are not comfortable with removing an SMT resistor or cutting a trace, would be
to cut off one pin (marked with red cross) on the waveblaster header of your soundcard :

Needing this pin not be high is a bit strange, because high state is "nothing is happening" as far as MIDI RX/TX signals are concerned, and because no input should float on any chip it makes sense this signal is pulled high, so as to simulate no transmission to the MIDI input on host side. My Yamaha card connects this signal but it has no explicit pullup, only a weak one inside the YMF71x chip so it may possibly suffer from this same sort of incompatibility.

Tiido wrote on 2024-08-26, 05:51:

Needing this pin not be high is a bit strange, because high state is "nothing is happening" as far as MIDI RX/TX signals are concerned, and because no input should float on any chip it makes sense this signal is pulled high, so as to simulate no transmission to the MIDI input on host side. My Yamaha card connects this signal but it has no explicit pullup, only a weak one inside the YMF71x chip so it may possibly suffer from this same sort of incompatibility.

yes indeed, it is a strange situation.
In X16, I have midi out from the dream chip connected to this pin, for future use. (no real use for gaming purposes anyway)
This midi out pin on the dream chip is shared with memory config detection function during boot. (I have a 10k pull down on this pin, so normally it is at state 0 at boot)
see extract from Dream SAM5716B datasheet :

It was only when I tested with the SB16 CT2230, that I realized this side effect can happen.
If your soundcard has this pin pulled high at boot time, it may be needed to make the mod to ensure compatibility.
Luckily it is an easy adjustment.
From now on, I will ship all X16 and X16GS with the R33 resistor removed, which completely solves this.

Always count on Serge to get it fixed 😀

on another sound cards its work fine. i think it's not dreamblaster error. Creative is bad!

X16GS Review by Phil's computerlab : https://youtu.be/pfoZHfVIRPQ?si=p3skB4Sr9NIlc1hF

I've actually made a TON of SoundFonts based on older hardware, such as Tyroland, HiDef, the JummBox SoundFont, the Famicom Multichip SoundFont, FPD9x, and more. The JummBox SoundFont sounds like an even-better ESFM GM set, but it has some 8850 GS in it that doesn't depart from the style. It's also libre, and I made it into a Silicon SoundFonts bank following Section 11 of the SoundFont spec. So I made a fakebit SoundFont into something that can be an actual card or even go on a WaveBlaster header. I also extended the SF2 spec with some friends to make something called SFe.