Ultrasound Daily Digest     Sun, 29 Nov 92       Volume 1 : Issue  33 

Today's Topics:
						Cheers.mid and patches
					 Media Player does not......
				  Sierra NOT supporting the GUS?!?!
					  some tips for GUS software
				 Tocatta midi file does not play well
						  Ultrasound Patches
					  Ultrasound SBOS games list

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----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Sat, 28 Nov 92 21:53:35 EST
From: Phat H Tran <ptran@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca>
Message-Id: <9211290253.AA03932@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca>
Subject: Cheers.mid and patches
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I prematurely deleted my copy of the digest, so I can't quote the message
to which I'm replying, but it's the one in which someone wondered why
Media Player failed to play the main melody in cheers.mid.  The answer is
quite simple.  I checked out cheers.mid in WinJammer (the unregistered
demo version) and saw that channel 1 requested program 85.  I pulled out
the default.cfg file and, sure enough, patch 85 was undefined.  Media
Player will simply not play anything from a channel if its patch could
not be found.  Playmidi, on the other hand, will substitute in a piano.
If I change the program number for channel 1 to a defined patch, then
Media Player will play the main melody with whatever instrument I chose.

Phat.

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 28 Nov 92 13:45:50 -0500
From: ylee@norton.uwaterloo.ca
Message-Id: <9211281845.AA03750@norton.uwaterloo.ca>
Subject: Media Player does not......
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Folks, for god's sake, DO not attempt to play MIDI songs written for other      
synthesizers other than Roland Sound Canvas or other equivalent GM synths.

In the previous posting, someone complained about 'cheers.mid' playing not
correctly. Well, that midi song he included is composed for MT-32 or compatible
synthsizer. While most channels played correctly ( patch 0 maps to piano which
is same as GM - just a coincidence ) one particular channel was not. That     
channel was mapped to 85 ( synth voices ) although that channel was meant to
be mapped to 'oboe'. Why does it play in PLAYMIDI and not in Mediaplayer ?
Well, somehow ultrawin.ini and default.cfg are not quite the same. Apparently,
in default.cfg, there are few attempts to fill in the holes by using similra
(?) instruments but there are a lot less of them in ultrawin.ini.. This is the
case with patch 85 and that's why it plays lead instrument in playmidi while
media player won't....

- Yuri - 

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 28 Nov 92 12:30:37 EST
From: Kevin Dangoor <tazzzzz@eecs.umich.edu>
Message-Id: <199211281730.AA27703@quip.eecs.umich.edu>
Subject: Sierra NOT supporting the GUS?!?!
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I called Sierra On-Line's BBS to see what support they plan for the Ultrasound.
Here was the reply from the BBS sysop:
Sorry, but the way we create our sound files and the lack of RAM on
the Ultrasound card make it almost impossible for us to support it.

Hmm. I replied that the GUS could be used simply as a General MIDI synth,
and that most owners of the GUS upgrade to 1MB. I also pointed out that
Accolade didn't seem to have a hard time of it. Perhaps Sierra needs some
encouragement! The BBS number is 209-683-4463. (Sierra, for anyone who might
be in the dark about this (?) makes the King's Quest series of adventures
(which they tout as the best selling games of all time), in addition to
Leisure Suit Larry, Space Quest, Quest for Glory, Police Quest and many
other titles.)

-- 
Kevin (Tazzzzz) Dangoor          \ Locomotive (adj): powered by insanity.
University of Michigan           / 
Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA         \ This ultraDeluxe powerpack sig has 50% less
internet: tazzzzz@eecs.umich.edu / saturated sponge than the competing brands!

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 28 Nov 1992 23:48:40 -0500
From: aa344@yfn.ysu.edu (Joseph Maruschek)
Message-Id: <199211290448.AA08234@yfn.ysu.edu>
Subject: some tips for GUS software
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I finally got my GUS last week from EA (ordered 8-31, received 11-
18).  I love it!  Like everyone else says, this card has
potential!  By the way, I'm running DR-DOS 6.0 and have had no
problems with SBOS or any of the included software.
 
I'd just like to share some neat things I've been doing with the
included software.  (By the way, that PL program is great!)
 
I don't run Windows.  Thus, I don't have a sequencer to fool
around with MIDI files.  Does anyone know of a good DOS sequencer
or MIDI file editor?  Anyway, I wanted to hear what some of the
included patches sound like without writing a MIDI file just to
test them out.  After looking at some .PAT files, I discovered
that you can hear the patch using PLAYFILE using the -o355 and -16
switches.  The patches are 16 bit samples, mono, and it seems that
most of them are sampled at 22000 Hz (the default of PLAYFILE),
and not 44100Hz.  If a patch sounds too low in pitch, you can use
the -f44100 switch to hear it at a better pitch (that means that
this patch was sampled at 44100 Hz.  Some of the patches are
multisampled over the range of the instrument (see acpiano1.pat).
About all of the percussion patches just have one sample.  Some
patches are just too short to hear anything meaningful (see
glocken.pat).
 
Since I don't use Windows, I'm stuck using PLAYMIDI to listen to
MIDI files.  PLAYMIDI does a fine job with the MIDI files that
come with the GUS and other MIDI files I have acquired over the
network.  I highly recommend getting the sound canvas demo files
(SCDEMOS.ZIP).  Gravis should have asked Roland to include these
with the GUS!  Of course, I also recommend that you upgrade your
GUS to 1 Meg of RAM just so you can hear these demos in their
entirety.  If you only have 256K on your GUS, you can still listen
to the sound canvas demos.  Use the -iprogram switch of PLAYMIDI
to ignore all of the program changes in the MIDI file.  The file
will be played using the Acoustic Piano patch (or whatever you set
instrument 0 to be in your DEFAULT.CFG file).  If there is
percussion on channel 10, you will hear it as long as there is
enough room for all the percussion samples in memory.  If there
are still problems, I recommend commenting out the cymbals in the
percussion section of your DEFAULT.CFG file.  They take up the
most room.
 
Alternatively, you can turn off the percussion channel altogether
by using the -c10 switch.  If you want to hear the drums only, use
the +c10 switch.  You can do the same with all the other MIDI
channels.  Sometimes, you can get the sound canvas demos to run in
256k with the proper sounds by selectively turning off and on
different MIDI channels.
 
There are some other switches on PLAYMIDI that are useful.  If
there are text messages in the MIDI file, the -verbose switch will
print them.  The -debug switch outputs all program change, control
change, note on, and note off messages to the screen as well as
playing them.  Very useful for seeing what goes on in a MIDI file.
A last switch I really enjoy is the -udebug switch.  This displays
a row of numbers 1 to 20, and the labels CH1 to CH16.  As the MIDI
file plays, 'X's appear under the numbers and correspond to notes
being played.  Columns of asterisks appear under the channel
labels and represent the relative volume of that MIDI channel.  In
short, the -udebug switch shows a neat display of how many notes
are playing at once, and what MIDI channels are active.  What
troubles me is that can PLAYMIDI only play 20 simultaneous notes
at the same time?  Why not 32?
 
Anyway, I hope that these tips will be useful for someone, and I
hope I'm not re-stating the painfully obvious.  Happy GUSing!

--
aa344 is Joseph Maruschek                   3      3      3      3      3 
IBM PC SIGop, Youngstown Free-Net             D     D     D     D     D
motto: Strive for the simplest and the best.    |    |    |    |    |
												  :   :   :   :   :

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 28 Nov 92 23:16:17 -0800
From: rcrane@yoda.eecs.wsu.edu (Robert Crane - OTHER)
Message-Id: <9211290716.AA15780@yoda.eecs.wsu.edu>
Subject: Tocatta midi file does not play well
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

When I play the Tocatta midi file, one of the stereo
channels sounds horrible.  Notes are shortened and
it the sound is muffled or distorted in general.
The other channel sounds perfect.
I did not notice this initially when I installed
by GUS last Monday.  All the other midi files included
in the software seem to work fine.  Anyone have any ideas what
the problem is?

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 28 Nov 92 21:36:22 EST
From: Phat H Tran <ptran@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca>
Message-Id: <9211290236.AA03773@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca>
Subject: Ultrasound Patches
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

> Date: Thu, 26 Nov 92 0:09:06 EST
> From: dionf@ERE.UMontreal.CA (Francois Dion)
> Message-Id: <9211260509.AA21604@brise.ERE.UMontreal.CA>
> Subject: Accordeon is a first
> To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>
>

[some stuff deleted]
 
> It's a monosampled accordian (accordeon in french, hence the name of the
> arj archive). Yes i could have made it multisampled, but it sounds
> reasonnable for now and i have not completely hacked the format yet and
> it already takes 35Kb. Please do not upload anywhere without telling me
> first because it is still a beta version of the patch. Once i will
> have a satisfactory patch, it'll be allright.
>

So the GUS *does* support multisampled patches?  Are the patches also
divided into attack, sustain, and release segments?  That is, can we
define a patch that has a section A that is played at the start, a
section B that is looped as long as the note is held, and a section
C that is played when a note is released?  If so, would all this
be handled in hardware or via a driver?

Happy hacking, Francois!

> Date: Wed, 25 Nov 92 11:55:15 -0500
> From: adhir@cygnus.umd.edu
> Message-Id: <9211251655.AA02396@cygnus.umd.edu>
> Subject: all these problems with the GUS
> To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>
> 
> I have been reading about all the problems with the GUS and have begun
> wondering if perhaps I should buy a PAS16 instead.  It's already got
> drivers, has SB/Pro support in hardware, ACTUALLY does 16bit 44.1khz
> (while the GUS claims to but none of it's drivers can do it yet...does
> it REALLY have this spec?) and has no problems in terms of support.
> 
> Don't get me wrong, I'd really like the GUS, but is it really worth it?
> Might my money be better spent on a PAS16?
> 
> Comments...?
> 

The GUS does use 16-bit and 44.1 kHz during playback.  I think.  The
MIDI files are played with 16-bit patches, at 44.1 kHz, are they not?

As for getting a PAS16 instead...  After becoming accustomed to the
sort of sounds my GUS puts out, I would be hard-pressed to go back
to just FM synthesis.  

Phat.

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 28 Nov 92 14:19:41 -0500
From: <jason@ariel.yorku.ca>
Message-Id: <9211281919.AA08914@juno.Ariel.YorkU.CA>
Subject: Ultrasound SBOS games list
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Hi,
	Here are a few games that I have gotten working on my poor 286/12:

Wolfenstein 3D  (Demo)      Sound and voice no problems other than a bit
				slow when scrolling down walls looking
				for secret doors.  The sounds for the
				treasure are a liitle weird.

Galactix 1.3a           I have just gotten Galactix V1.3a and
				tested it out with sbos (no options) and
				had it work fine.  the display slows down
				a bit when firing but not much.

Red Baron           Music sounds fine. I haven't got my
				sources disks to try out the FX.

Civilization            Music sounds great. No significant
				slowdown.

Wing Commander I & II       Sounds great but the resulting slowdown
				makes the game unplayable.
				(Good excuse to upgrade to something faster!).

Sim Ant             Game works both in Adlib and Sound
				Blaster mode.

The Legend of Robin Hood    Both Sound Blaster & Adlib.
				No apparent slowdown.



	Hope this helps!  

							...Jason McNeely

Internet: jason@ariel.yorku.ca

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End of Ultrasound Daily Digest V1 #33
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