GUS Daily Digest Sun, 24 Apr 94 9:37 PST Volume 12: Issue 24 Today's Topics: 16-bit DB / Windows driver V3.32 All those OPL4 chips GUS and SB16 co-exist under one machine! GUS Daily Digest V12 #22 GUS Daily Digest V12 #23 Patch Banks Samples have noise - how to go about reducing? Ultramid help Windows GUS&PAS Standard Info: - Meta-info about the GUS can be found at the end of the Digest. - Before you ask a question, please READ THE FAQ. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 23:38:01 +0000 From: Chrysolite Subject: 16-bit DB / Windows driver V3.32 I have my 16-bit DB up and working. The sound quality is fantastic! Even using 4:1 ADPCM, there is very little quality loss from an original CD. Using no compression, it is indistinguishable from the original! USS16 is better than I expected - it seems a lot more stable than the 8-bit version (I had a few problems with USS8). The recordings made by it are faultless. Is there any way that PLAYFILE can play back ADPCM compressed files? Are there any utilities around that convert between the ADPCM, mu-Law, A-Law and uncompressed formats? I've heard that the compression actually happens as the data is transferred to the card's memory via DMA - I guess you could write a program that DMA-ed all the compressed data onto the card's memory uncompressing it on the way, then turned compression off and DMA-ed it back. There is one big problem though... The Windows drivers won't work! Whenever anything trys to play wave audio through the drivers, it just exits the GUI and hangs. CTRL-ALT-DEL doesn't work - when HIMEM is loading it hangs - so you have to use Reset... The mixer and any MIDI programs work fine. I've never been able to use Windows to record in my system - it's always had this effect - but, up until now, I've been able to play digital audio... My configuration is as follows: i386DX-33 (OPTI chipset) 4MB RAM UltraSound V2.2 16-bit daughterboard V2.4 Windows 3.1 MS-DOS 6.2 (isn't that interesting: MS-DOS=2*Windows (:-)) UltraSound driver version 3.32 (came with the 16-bit DB) UltraSound config: Base address 220 DMA channel 1 (record & playback) GF1 IRQ 11 MIDI IRQ 12 (I use 2 outside Windows; Windows doesn't offer 2) 16-bit DB config: Base address 530 DMA channel 3 IRQ 5 In Windows, I'm not using V86 mode (i.e. I load HIMEM and say `DOS=HIGH', but no EMM386 or `DOS=UMB'. The same still happens if I load EMM386. Everything else inside and outside Windows works perfectly well. I doubt the problem's with the 16-bit DB specifically - it's more likely a Windows driver conflict problem, unrelated to the DB, which surfaced with the new driver version. MODUS (using GUSPLAY.DLL) also works fine. (Brilliant program!) -=Chrysolite=- ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 12:10:07 -0500 (CDT) From: ST4FX@Jetson.UH.EDU Subject: All those OPL4 chips I was wondering about those OPL4 sound cards like the Soundman Wave Does the soundman wave have rom or ram and how much? I saw a review on the card but it mentioned almost nothing except that it was SB compatible and that it sounded good (nice review huh?) ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 23:27:06 -0400 From: KWAN RICHARD SIK YIU Subject: GUS and SB16 co-exist under one machine! I had recently added a SB16 Basic onto my machine. After several hours of setting ports and IRQs, I had finally make the SB16 and GUS co-exist under one roof. Still there are some problems I hope someone could help me to solve. 1, I can't use the SB16 Mixer in Windows, while the GUS works fine. The error message from Windows is "Soundblaster 16 is not accessable". Still I can able to play wav files from SB16 and the mid from GUS. 2, I have a Pansonic 562-B CD-ROM, Is it compatable with the SB16? Cause the menu of SB16 says it supports model 563 and not 562. I remember someone had discussed this before. If anyone knows how to make it work, please post the solutions and upload the SB16.sys. (I can't find the file in my installation diskettes) If anyone knows how to solve them, please post as soon as possible! Thanks in advance! ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 20:23:12 +0300 From: Yossi Oren Subject: Re: GUS Daily Digest V12 #22 >Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 15:48:34 EDT >From: jasonr@Newbridge.COM (Jason Rusmisel) >Subject: Trying out new patches > >Hi GUSsers: > >I've ftped a lot of new patches and I'm trying to find a way to try them out >I would like to be able to compare two patches for example when replacing some >of the gravis patches. Is there a way to load up an arbitrary patch and play > it; either in DOS or Windoze? Yep. FTP to klingon.epas.utoronto.ca (Well, yeah, archive's the same thing, but klingon's more fun), cd to pub/pc/ultrasound/submit and get mpb08.zip (maybe 09 if it's been updated). This is the MultiPatch Browser applet, which allows you to play a sample by selecting it on a list, be it from disk, from a bank or from whatnot. If you don't have a MIDI input (who does), ftp to ftp.cica.indiana.edu, cd to pub/pc/win3/sounds and get kbmidi.zip (or was it midikeyb.zip?). This PCMag Applet lets you play MIDI from your PC keyboard. HTH, Yossi. +---+---+---+---------------------------------------------------+---+---+ | = | E |_|/| Signature 1.31 | V | ^ | +---+---+---+---------------------------------------------------+---+---+ |Yossi Oren, Al-Daf Techno-Mercenaries, Rishon Le-Zion, Israel. Help | |TInternet EMail:LIOREN1@WEIZMANN.WEIZMANN.AC.IL TT The people are T| ||Bitnet EMail:LIOREN1@WEIZMANN || with the Golan || ||Drag yer damn objects around. I've got work to do.|| Heights! || +====================================================++================++ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 21:47:28 -0400 (EDT) From: Phat H Tran Subject: Re: GUS Daily Digest V12 #23 > Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 13:23:00 -0500 (EST) > From: DINESH@VAX2.CONCORDIA.CA > Subject: CD ROM cable for GUS and > > I know that thesequestion was probably asked before. > I just got a Panasonic CD ROM, but the cable for the audio that comes > came with it does not fit on the GUS. I was told to remove the comes > plastic socket from the cable and plug each wire independently. > However, I don't have any instructions on the order which these > wires goes in. Can anyone HELP PLEASE. I don't know what the wires are like, but the pins on the 3.7 GUS are 3-pin group 4-pin group L G R R G G L when you hold the GUS with its edge connector toward you. > I would like to know the GRAVIS 16bit daughter card. > WHat is it used for. Can I connect my CD ROM directly to the > daughter card and then to the GUS thus eliminatig the CD controller > card? THanks you all The 16-bit daughterboard (DB) is used to make digital recordings in 16-bit resolution. It also provides ADPCM, a-law, and u-law compression/decompression of 16-bit audio. The 16-bit DB is NOT a CD-ROM interface. There is, however, a GUS CD-ROM DB for the Panasonic, if you really do need to free up a slot. > Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 15:41:44 -0600 (MDT) > From: Brian Novak > Subject: Darksun > > I was playing Darksun this week, all was going fine until I fought a > large group of ratmen in the sewers. Suddenly the god-awfullest > screeching, hissing, and popping came out of the speakers. I had to > unplug them, finish the fight, save the game and exit. Is there > someithing I'm missing? I used the GUS general midi support, nothing > special done. My settings are 240 DMA5 IRQ5 (I think-I'm not at home). > I also have a Audio16 SB-clone that came with my 486/66 from Quantex at > the default settings. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks I assume that by "GUS general MIDI", you mean the Ultramid support in the game? Some versions of Ultramid have a tendency to crash with a divide error, and usually bringing down the entire system. It sounds like maybe in your case, Ultramid crashed (hence the noise coming from the GUS), but the game managed to continue. If this problem is frequent and annoying, then try using Ultramid 1.00 (found in gusail10.zip) with the game instead. Ultramid 1.00 is the most stable Ultramid I know of. Unfortunately, it lacks some features found in new ultramids and thus games that rely on these newer features won't work with it. > Date: 22-APR-1994 23:41:17.54 > From: Richard Wyckoff > Subject: GUS & PAS together > > The usually impeccably accurate Phat wrote: > > >You can't use the GUS for SB emulation when you have a PAS in the same > >machine as the PAS itself has SB hardware. > > Well, you can with a real SB, and I would imagine, unless there's something > REALLY bizarre about a PAS, then you can with a PAS. I've been using an Actually, I've done the same as well (run SBOS with an SB in the same machine). It does work, but not all the time, and not will all games. It is also not a design feature of SBOS, so there's nothing saying that the emulator is supposed to work when a real SB is also installed. Sometimes, SBOS won't even load if there's an SB beside the GUS. > Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 16:55:00 -0800 > From: chris.campbell@mag-net.com (Chris Campbell) > Subject: Mega-Em > > >> Jayeson is now working for Gravis and the program is free! It > >> supports Sound Blaster digital sound, and he is currentally working > >> on a version that will work for protected mode games! > > >That'd be great! But just to be safe from major disappointments, is > >this a rumour or something rather than fact? If not, how's the > >situation with the program, and will it be priced as well as the > >current version? ;) > > No, I am pleased to say it is not a rumor. Brian Rizzo, Advanced Gravis > rep told me in the fidonet soundcards area that the protected mode > mega-em is close to completion. Since Jayeson is working for Advanced To add fuel to the fire, I hear that Jayeson has "big plans" for Mega-Em, but I didn't ask what those "big plans" were. > Gravis, I assume it will be free from the GUS BBS, and Support BBS's > or Gravis FTP sites (I have to call the BBS because I do not yet have > FTP access) changing the subject, what do you think is the best tracker > player for the GUS? My favorite is Inertia Player. I like it because I like Inertia Player 1.1 as well. Another good player is Metal 025 (and before anyone says otherwise, this version is quite accurate, and you can't beat the sound :) Most other players aren't as loud or clear. Phat. ------------------------------ Date: 24 Apr 94 10:10:01 EDT From: "Eric Bell, Howling Dog Systems" <71333.2166@CompuServe.COM> Subject: Patch Banks > A second question: > > How do I make use of the patch bank features I see mentioned in ultrasnd.ini? > I've made up new patch banks but I can't get any of the Windoze apps to > give me an option to switch banks. Can anyone give me some advice here too!? The newer version of Power Chords for UltraSound, and the new releases of Power Chords 1.1 and Pro all support patch banks. Alternate bank numbers can be stored in any subdir on any drive - the PatchDir=xxxx statement at the start of each bank indicates this. You need newer drivers to use banks, too. In Power Chords, you simply select the Melodic and/or Drum bank number you want to use (it has to match an entry in the ULTRASND.INI file). Eric at Howling Dog ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 22:49:04 -0400 (EDT) From: mikebat@netcom.com (Mike Batchelor) Subject: Samples have noise - how to go about reducing? OK, I am making my first forays into sampling sounds off of a CD, with the intent of using them to make some modules of one sort or another. I have discovered that pops and clicks can be eliminated by sampling to a RAM disk, rather than the hard disk. So far, so good. But the samples still have spurious noise in them. If I sample in stereo, there is a lot of background hiss, white noise. This is greatly reduced if I sample in mono. I also can hear some "scratches", for lack of a better word, that correspond to the beat of the music I am sampling. This is more of a scratchy white noise, it's hard to describe. I'm using playfile at first to grab some samples, then edit down the parts I want with Gold Wave under Windows. If there's a better sampling program, I'll use it (surely there must be...). But I suspect that the noises I am hearing are not software related. Any suggestions, or is there a FAQ on this? -- Mike Batchelor | UseLinuxUseLinuxUseLinuxUseLinuxUseLinuxUseLinuxUseLinux mikebat@netcom.com | xuniLesUxuniLesUxuniLesUxuniLesUxuniLesUxuniLesUxuniLesU ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Plug 'N' Play: A specification invented by Microsoft and Intel which enables a computer and its operating system to create hardware conflicts without user intervention. No more jumpers to misplace! The computer will misplace them for you. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 19:21:15 +0300 (EET DST) From: agranhol@bilbo.abo.fi (Alexander Granholm) Subject: Ultramid help How are you supposed to use the Ultramid TSR program? I can't get it to work... Take Warlords II as an example, according to the g-list it's supposed to work with the AIL drivers. Well, I copied the adv-files from the ultramid directory, and replaced the sb-drivers with them. I ran install, and configured Warlords II for soundblaster, then I ran the ultramid program, and started up the game, wich promptly responded "Can't init sound" and stopped. I think I followed all the steps in the Ultrasound manual, so I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Can anyone help? -- Alexander ------------------------------ Date: 23 Apr 94 15:30:47 EDT From: AM3249@ACSPR1.acs.brockport.edu Subject: Windows GUS&PAS Hello again peoples. I have another one of those tech question to bug ya with. Well first i want to say thanks to those people for helping me on my last problem dealing with the GUS and PAS. This question is about using my GUS and PAS trough windows. Well I initialize my GUS and PAS through DOS and they both work fine, but when I load up windows my system crashes. If I don't initilaize one of the cards upon booting my system windows doesn't crash. I realize it has something to do with windows trying to use the drivers for the GUS and PAS, because if I don't initialize my gus in DOS then run windows, windows doesn't crash and I get an initilaization error for the GUS. But a weird thing happens I can use the GUS in windows without initializing it through DOS. What gives? Is there anyway I can intialize both cards in DOS and not have Windows crash. Later. ------Daniel Di Vita ------------------------------ End of GUS Daily Digest V12 #24 *******************************