Who's who? Beauty and the Beast...

Picked up this with my Ebay bucks today.

Is that...an Amiga Zorro II(?) networking card?

kolderman wrote on 2020-10-03, 05:44:

Doesn't get much better than this.

Anyone know if opl4 daughterboards were ever made?

Probably not as they weren't standalone MIDI synths the way others on daughterboards were. That's also why they don't work under DOS, they need more software support than just sending MIDI instructions the way most chips work.

wiretap wrote on 2020-10-03, 19:39:

Picked up this with my Ebay bucks today. […]
Show full quote

Picked up this with my Ebay bucks today.

I had one of those in my Amiga 2000HD in the late 1990s. Perfect for my FTP needs.

EvieSigma wrote on 2020-10-03, 20:50:

Is that...an Amiga Zorro II(?) networking card?

Yes, it is going into my Amiga 2000.

dionb wrote on 2020-10-03, 21:00:

kolderman wrote on 2020-10-03, 05:44:

Doesn't get much better than this.

Anyone know if opl4 daughterboards were ever made?

Probably not as they weren't standalone MIDI synths the way others on daughterboards were. That's also why they don't work under DOS, they need more software support than just sending MIDI instructions the way most chips work.

The was some company that made them... Site is still up but they don't respond to inquiries... And the address on their site shows a boarded up building.

Also pretty sure there is at least 1 OPL4 card that has working DOS midi.

EDIT:

Here is the company that used to sell the OPL4 daugterboards:
https://scientific-solutions.com/surplus/part … /opl4/opl4.html

And more about YMF278 vs YMF704
The YMF704 OPL4 mistery

And some more info about the cards that support GM through DOS... or at least it sounds like they do:
http://www.os2museum.com/wp/44-voice-midi-on-yamaha-opl4/

The OPL4 chip itself did not directly respond to MIDI data and had to be driven by software (or firmware). Some cards, such as the Audiotrix Pro, Logitech SoundMan Wave, or miroSOUND PCM12 and PCM20, included a microcontroller which enabled direct MIDI playback over the MPU-401 interface.

Yamaha’s own SW20-PC provided a software driver for DOS enabling MPU-401 playback.

I somehow found retro (well...the Dell isn't quite so retro, but it's over 15 years old now so that counts for something) computers today going out to yard sales and the local flea market. A Dell Precision 340 (Socket 478 with RDRAM) and a Compaq Presario 5340 (CPU currently unknown, haven't tested it yet and it doesn't have a helpful sticker). How the heck do you actually reach the motherboard on these Presarios, do you have to remove the power supply?

cyclone3d wrote on 2020-10-04, 01:14:

Also pretty sure there is at least 1 OPL4 card that has working DOS midi.

I have an Analog Devices based ISA card with also the OPL4-ML chip, or YMF704C-S (datasheet available at) with 1MB GM sample set - on the card itself. This old thread shows how daughterboards based on that chip variation also exist(ed). See also this old thread.

The other (or perhaps more accurately, main) OPL4 chip variant was the YMF278B (PDF data 4.7MB) whose GM sample set was, at 2MB, twice the size of the 704C, and which I believe had potentially more flexibility in terms of bank configuration, accessing external RAM etc. More capable, basically - the "flagship" version of the OPL4 lineup. I believe (as per reasons below) you will only find this chip on soundcards themselves, and not on separate daughterboards.

A factor noted in the 704C docs is "contains an interface which is compatible with MPU-401 UART mode". I may be misconstruing this, but I believe it indicates how the 704C was used more extensively (if not exclusively*) when it came to "OPL4"-based daughterboards, because that inbuilt interface (and the omission of the 278B's more featureful ROMplering) enables a simple partnering with third-party cards via the standard waveblaster connection.

*To add further complication there is also the YMF721 aka the OPL4-ML2 (PDF data 461KB), which seems to essentially be an updated "V2" of the 704C. Again with 1MB sample set, and MPU-401 UART interface compatible, and designed to greater simplicity + lower cost than the 278B. So I suspect that these -ML chip variants - the 704C and the 721 - are what you will find on all "OPL4" daughterboards.

I hope this information aids your search.

EvieSigma wrote on 2020-10-04, 01:56:

I somehow found retro (well...the Dell isn't quite so retro, but it's over 15 years old now so that counts for something) computers today going out to yard sales and the local flea market. A Dell Precision 340 (Socket 478 with RDRAM) and a Compaq Presario 5340 (CPU currently unknown, haven't tested it yet and it doesn't have a helpful sticker). How the heck do you actually reach the motherboard on these Presarios, do you have to remove the power supply?

I have a Compaq Presario from roughly the same era (mine is a 5420) so if it's similar inside then the PSU may be on a bracket that you can unscrew and slide out of the way, allowing you to reach the motherboard without having to remove the PSU fully. Those cases are extremely snug inside and can be a pain to work on.

cyclone3d wrote on 2020-10-04, 01:14:

[...] […]
Show full quote

[...]

And some more info about the cards that support GM through DOS... or at least it sounds like they do:
http://www.os2museum.com/wp/44-voice-midi-on-yamaha-opl4/

The OPL4 chip itself did not directly respond to MIDI data and had to be driven by software (or firmware). Some cards, such as the Audiotrix Pro, Logitech SoundMan Wave, or miroSOUND PCM12 and PCM20, included a microcontroller which enabled direct MIDI playback over the MPU-401 interface.

Yep, that was what I was referring to. Wasn't aware someone stuck the microcontroller on a wavetable board though.

Makes me wonder though: would it be possible for SoftMPU to support OPL4 the way it does Emu8k?

dionb wrote on 2020-10-04, 09:35:

cyclone3d wrote on 2020-10-04, 01:14:

[...] […]
Show full quote

[...]

And some more info about the cards that support GM through DOS... or at least it sounds like they do:
http://www.os2museum.com/wp/44-voice-midi-on-yamaha-opl4/

The OPL4 chip itself did not directly respond to MIDI data and had to be driven by software (or firmware). Some cards, such as the Audiotrix Pro, Logitech SoundMan Wave, or miroSOUND PCM12 and PCM20, included a microcontroller which enabled direct MIDI playback over the MPU-401 interface.

Yep, that was what I was referring to. Wasn't aware someone stuck the microcontroller on a wavetable board though.

Makes me wonder though: would it be possible for SoftMPU to support OPL4 the way it does Emu8k?

SoftMPU supports emu8k? As in talks to the aweutil /em:gm tsr?

PTherapist wrote on 2020-10-04, 09:22:

EvieSigma wrote on 2020-10-04, 01:56:

I somehow found retro (well...the Dell isn't quite so retro, but it's over 15 years old now so that counts for something) computers today going out to yard sales and the local flea market. A Dell Precision 340 (Socket 478 with RDRAM) and a Compaq Presario 5340 (CPU currently unknown, haven't tested it yet and it doesn't have a helpful sticker). How the heck do you actually reach the motherboard on these Presarios, do you have to remove the power supply?

I have a Compaq Presario from roughly the same era (mine is a 5420) so if it's similar inside then the PSU may be on a bracket that you can unscrew and slide out of the way, allowing you to reach the motherboard without having to remove the PSU fully. Those cases are extremely snug inside and can be a pain to work on.

That seems to be the case, yeah, but man is that annoying!

I just pick up this little guy from the scraper.
Its a Gateway 2000 with Pentium lll @ 933mhz.

It was designed for WinME but should work fine with Win98se too.

A little TLC and it should be fine.

Intel486dx33 wrote on 2020-10-04, 16:22:

I just pick up this little guy from the scraper.
Its a Gateway 2000 with Pentium lll @ 933mhz

I like the case. Front USB ports that aren't placed at the very bottom are a rare sight among 90s era cases.

For various reasons, I prefer keeping my PCs on the floor and not on my desk. So having easily accessible front USB ports is something that I highly value.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2020-10-04, 16:34:

Intel486dx33 wrote on 2020-10-04, 16:22:

I just pick up this little guy from the scraper.
Its a Gateway 2000 with Pentium lll @ 933mhz

I like the case. Front USB ports that aren't placed at the very bottom are a rare sight among 90s era cases.

For various reasons, I prefer keeping my PCs on the floor and not on my desk. So having easily accessible front USB ports is something that I highly value.

Yeah, I have a few Gateway 2000 computers from the 1990’s. This one is actually from 2001 but I have another one in the same style case from 1999. I really don’t like the 486 gateway computers as they where loud and difficult to work with.

This model works fine they just need a rear case fan.

This was one of the last American computer companies who’s height was in the 1990’s.

Just bought two nice things for my SixtyClone machine.

The first is an original VIC-II video chip. It is an 6569 Revision 5. One of the best longboard chips out there. I think it is only the Revision 7 that are better, yet the price diference makes the R7 a no-go. Also. My SixtyClone is an 250466-board, and they came with an R5.

The other is an ARM-SID. The quality is close to the original breadbin SID, and the original Model-C boards (shortboard), sounds crappy compared to the ARM-SID. Plus I want to create a C64 with the use of as many modern parts as possible. I can't wait to see what the FPGA-VIC-II and FPGA-CIA chips will be like.

There is a video about the ARM-SID here.... (I am convinced that it is worth it, when looking at original SID prices and FPGA-SID prices)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmlIhfqN43o

I am going to rebuild my Intel x86 version of the Sun Solaris workstation from 1990’s.
Intel DK440LX motherboard with Dual Pentium 300mhz CPU’s.

Maybe Win2000.

Turbo -> wrote on 2020-09-30, 07:49:

Bought this early Pentium 4 computer case, but I think I can get away with installing a higher-end Pentium III system, judging by its looks, which was my primary goal why I bought it.

Iam using the same case for my Pentium III 550Mhz machine. I like it very much for what it is.

Intel486dx33 wrote on 2020-10-04, 17:30:

I am going to rebuild my Sun Solaris server from 1990’s.
Intel DK44LX motherboard with Dual Pentium 300mhz CPU’s.

Maybe Win2000.

Are the CPUs positioned opposite each other with heatsinks in the middle? That would've been a most brilliant design ..