Ultrasound Daily Digest     Thu May 13 00:07     Volume 3: Issue  43  

Today's Topics:
							 Archive.epas
					CD-ROM Audio Pass Thru Cable?
				 DIGEST ADMIN: ***PLEASE READ THIS***
			  Does anyone have this SIS VLB motherboard?
						Goodbye and thank you.
								 GUS
						GUS=Midi Sampler ????
			  just bought my ultrasnd: some version nrs.
					 List of working motherboards
			 MIDI box delay - Not Entirely Gravis' Fault
				  People in search of midi keyboards
			   Prince of Persia 2 Problems w/ NEW SBOS
						   Ultrabots & GUS
					Ultrasound Daily Digest V3 #42
	   Ultrasound FTP Sites - New files validated - May 9th, 93
					VMAP and GMOS Velocity mapping

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: Wed, 12 May 1993 16:09:33 -0500 (EDT)
From: adam@jazz.epas.utoronto.ca (Adam Iles)
Subject: Archive.epas
Message-ID: <9305122009.AA03175@jazz.epas.utoronto.ca>

In case you haven't noticed archive.epas.utoronto.ca (a.k.a. klingon)
has not been too healthy over the past week.  The disk was always had a
problem booting up, but was solid once it got spinning, but now it
looks like it's toast.  Anyways, a new disk has been installed, so it
should be much more solid now.

-- 
Adam Iles -- EPAS Computing.       adam@epas.utoronto.ca

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

Date: Wed, 12 May 1993 10:32:33 -0500
From: Larry Larraga <larry@brahms.udel.edu>
Subject: CD-ROM Audio Pass Thru Cable?
Message-ID: <9305121432.AA03533@fiesta.cns.udel.edu>

Does anyone know where to get the cable that goes from a Sony
internal CD-ROM to the GUS' audio pass thru?

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

Date: Wed, 12 May 93 14:03:19 CDT
From: ddebry@itchy (Dave DeBry)
Subject: DIGEST ADMIN: ***PLEASE READ THIS***
Message-ID: <9305122003.AA01766@itchy>

	Heya, folks.

	Word has just come down to me that all non-work related mail &
news items will probably need to be removed from the machines here.
This means, of course, that the Digest and all of the sub-topic
reflectors for the GUS may get kicked off this site.

	(This is still a maybe, but it's a pretty strong maybe.)

	In any case, should this happen, is there anyone with enough
clout at their site to let me put up the lists there?  If you give me
an account at your site, I'll even maintain the lists, so you won't
have to deal with them once they're in.  

	(Besides the new account, a root user needs to make some
modifications to the /usr/lib/aliases (or /etc/aliases, depending on
your system type) for the lists to work.)

	As far as space goes, they don't take much.  It would be
possible for me to work with just 1 meg of disk space, though I'd
really prefer about 2 meg.  Still, that's not a lot.

	The new mailserver code is set up to put a minimal load on the
system while it works.  The machine it runs on here (itchy) is also
used as an important file & compute server for my group, and the
mailserver doesn't impede that at all.

	Anyway, if you can swing this, drop me a private piece of mail
and we'll chat.  It would be really helpful... I don't think many
people are interested in seeing the Digest disappear.

	Thanks!

-- 
Dave  ddebry@ debry@   \ 
DeBry dsd.    peruvian. | "A jar of eyes can be a tasty treat."
	  es.     cs.utah.  |
	  com     edu      /  

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

Date: Wed, 12 May 1993 12:04:15 EDT
From: Marc Rouleau <mer6g@fuggles.acc.Virginia.EDU>
Subject: Does anyone have this SIS VLB motherboard?
Message-ID: <9305121604.AA23226@orca.es.com>

I'm thinking of buying it for $180 + $8 s&h, but I only want it if it
will do 16-bit DMA correctly.  Will email how-to-order details if anyone's
interested.

Alternately, does anyone know of an inexpensive mail-order 486 motherboard
w/o CPU that works perfectly with the Gus?  I don't need localbus but do
not mind if it's there.

	-- Marc Rouleau

 -----------------------------------
VESA Mother Board Information

Basic Description

Battery:       Rechargeable Ni-Cad on the system board.
BIOS:          AMI, supports 2.88 MB Floppy and Auto IDE detection.
			   Shadow RAM, Hard disk type 47, Power on password,
			   and Boot up drive sequence.
Board Size:    2/3 Baby AT size.  8.7" x 9.7"
Cache:         256K Static RAM CPU Cache is standard.
			   The cache layout is direct mapped, not set associative.
Chipset:       SIS
Clock Speeds:  No need to change oscillators.  Set clock speed to 25, 33,
			   and 50 MHz by changing jumpers.  Don't worry, the
			   486DX2-66 has an external clock of 33 MHz, and it works fine.
Cooling:       An extra heat sink and a CPU cooling fan is standard for
			   486DX2-66 motherboards.
CPU Support:   The ZIF (Zero Insertion Force) socket accepts a variety of
			   CPUs.  486SX, 486DX, 486DX2, and the upcoming Pentium
			   P24T CPUs are all supported.
Manufacturer:  U-Tron
Performance:   486DX2-66.  Landmark 222.95 MHz.  45,517 Dhrystones.
			   104.3 Norton SI.  11091K Whetstones.
RAM Support:   256K, 1MB, and 4MB SIMMs accepted.
			   Requires Fast Page Mode DRAM with access time of less
			   than 80ns.  8 slots available in 2 banks.  Memory 
			   configurations are:
			   1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 20, and 32 MB.
Slots:         7 slots total.  2 Slots have the VESA Local Bus extensions.
Warranty:      1 Year, repair or replace by our discretion.
 -----------------------------------

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

Date: 12 May 93 09:27:07 AST
From: GJames <GJAMES@SHARK.STMARYS.CA>
Subject: Goodbye and thank you.
Message-ID: <MAILQUEUE-101.930512092707.288@science.stmarys.ca>

I am finally giving up on the Ultrasound. I got one last December and
have been trying to get the thing to work properly ever since. I
actually believed the box when it said SOUND BLASTER compatible. Since
my mainreason for getting a sound card was to play games, I should
have bought a sounblaster, but the promise of wavetable quality sounds
was too much to ignore. I have got the thing working with most games
(with various combinations os -x? -o?) but with each release of SBOS
being more bug filled than the last I dont hold much hope for the
GUS's future.

Anyway the reason I am posting is to say thank you to all of the
people who have helped me through my first sound card experience. One
good thing that came out of the GUS was that I know all of the
possible things that can go wrong with setting up and using sound
cards.

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

Date: Wed, 12 May 93 9:35:46 PDT
From: hippo@sfsuvax1.sfsu.edu (Vincent Poy)
Subject: Re: GUS
Message-ID: <9305121635.AA08276@sfsuvax1.sfsu.edu>

Hi there fellow GUS Users,

	 I have just two questions I need an answer to and it will be
appreciated if you can help me out.  Thanks in advance!

1) Is there any way to control the Volume with Games and stuff that uses
   Native GUS Support Mode?
2) Is there anyway I can plug something like a Walkman or DiscMan to the
   Line In Jack on the GUS and then have music go through the GUS and
   out the Line Out in DOS and in Windows?
-- 

Cheers,

Vince

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

Date: Mer, 12 Mai 93 10:35:38 FRA
From: 9269Z%FRESTP11.BITNET@FRMOP11.CNUSC.FR
Subject: GUS=Midi Sampler ????
Message-ID: <9305120837.AA17603@orca.es.com>

Date: 12 Mai 1993, 10:29:35 FRA
From: Benjamin Ryzman           44.41.11.02          9269Z    at FRESTP11
To:   ultrasound@dsd.es.com

About my trouble with 'patch allocation on the fly' is that I would like
to use my GUS like a real MIDI sampler: be able to use sysex or something
to upload new samples from the disk to the card, without having to use
the .CFG files. It would be very neat if there was a new version of the
Windows drivers for this.

Also, from what the retailer docs of the GUS say, the MIDI interface box is to
be MPU-401 compatible. Does that mean that by the way of a cable between the
MIDI in and the MIDI out, I shall be able to use my GUS with the Voyetra
sequencers for DOS ?

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

Date: 12 May 93 11:06 -0700
From: Rolf Velthuys <velthuys@cs.ubc.ca>
Subject: just bought my ultrasnd: some version nrs.
Message-ID: <1012*velthuys@cs.ubc.ca>

Hi,

just bought an ultrasnd card, in Vancouver (that's very close to
gravis HQ). It came with 5 disks, labelled 2.05. The SBOS version that
comes with is is SBOS 2.04 (how is that related to this new
SBOS2.00B7.zip file?).  So far, no problems. Tried most of the demo
software, and used the GUS/SBOS2.04 succesfully with Falcon3 &
Wizardry 7 (no switches needed). The readme file was dated: 15/03/93.

My setup: 486DX2/66 VLB/ISA, 8mb memory. Have to use DOS unfortunately
to use the GUS.

CU
Rolf

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

Date: Wed, 12 May 1993 12:02:05 EDT
From: Marc Rouleau <mer6g@fuggles.acc.Virginia.EDU>
Subject: List of working motherboards
Message-ID: <9305121602.AA23212@orca.es.com>

Some motherboards do not support DMA well and as a result do not work
well with the Gravis Ultrasound sound card.  What follows is a list of
answers to the following three questions:

1.  Describe your motherboard.
2.  Can you use 16-bit DMA?
3.  Any other problems?

Hopefully this list will help us all to purchase PC's and motherboards
which support DMA.

I am willing to continue serving as a clearinghouse for this information,
so please let me know about your motherboard.

Note that the AIR UMC localbus boards are a bit tricky.  The UL board
with three proprietary localbus slots works fine; the VL board with one
VESA localbus slot works poorly.

	-- Marc Rouleau

1.  AIR. 486UL pre-VESA localbus motherboard (w/ 486DX2-66), UMC
	82C480 AT chipset with 3 proprietary localbus slots
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No problems at all.

1.  AIR 486VL with 486DX-33, AMIBIOS, UMC 82C480 AT chipset with
	UMB82C482AF/UMB82C206L/UMB82C481A, 1 localbus slot
2.  No, 16-bit DMA does not work.
3.  Clicking noises w/ 1M GUS RAM, low MIDI in Windows w/ high WAV volume.

1.  486DX-50 VLB, UMC
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No reported problems

1.  486DX-50 VLB, Bioteq
2.  Don't know if 16-bit DMA works.
3.  Didn't work

1.  HP Vectra 486U (used in 486/25U, 33U, 50U, and 66U computers)
2.  Yes.
3.  None that I know of.

1.  486DX-33 ISA-486SIQ, AMIBIOS, 256K cache, chipset is a single SIQ chip.
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No problems.

1.  486DX-33, OPTi
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  "I have trouble with early versions of SBOS, but that's most likely
	due to running DR DOS 6.0, not the motherboard."

1.  486DX-33, OPTi ?/?/82C206Q, 1/93
2.  No, 16-bit DMA does not work.
3.  Windows crashes after doing too much sound-oriented stuff.  DOS stuff
	works fine: sbos, playmidi, gusmod, p669gu0, etc.

1.  486DX-33, OPTi 82C392/82C493/F82C206
2.  No, 16-bit DMA does not work.
3.  "Windows driver seems to drop instruments now and then. About 1
	instrument in 5-10 seconds in faster MIDI songs, like PopCorn."

1.  DTK 486DX-33, Symphony, 8/92
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No reported problems

1.  486-20/25/33, ETEQ Micro Cougar II chipset, board by Mitac,
	5/92 AMIBIOS, no cache
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No problems -- uses DMA w/ SCSI controller, SBPro, and GUS

1.  486DX-33 Orchid VLB 256K cache, 1/93, AMIBIOS
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No problems.

1.  486DLC (Cyrix), OPTi 391 motherboard, 12/92 (HI-TECH)
2.  No, 16-bit DMA does not work.
3.  No reported problems

1.  386-40, Bioteq
2.  Don't know if 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No reported problems

1.  386-40 PC-Chips chipset w/ 82C206 DMA controller
2.  No, 16-bit DMA does not work.
3.  No problems.

1.  386-40 OPTi & SiS chipset w/ SiS 85C206 DMA controller
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No problems.

1.  386-25/33/40, OPTi 82C391/82C392/82C206
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No reported problems

1.  Micronics 386, 2/91 (Gateway 2000)
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No reported problems

1.  "Soyo 386DX-33 (Soyo is the Far Eastern Manufacturer) with an ITT
	387 and AMI BIOS. It has a mix of OPTI and CHIPs chipset, including
	what I think may be the dreaded OPTI DMA-killer chip (It's in another
	part of the country, so I can't tell you the chip numbers)."
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  "I have had problems with SuperStor and DOS Games. Games start OK
	and then hang after a period of time, but the music continues."

1.  386-25, DCA chipset?, Packard Bell Legend 300SX
2.  Don't know if 16-bit DMA works.
3.  "Problems - problems with Windows 3.1 MIDI support. MID file
	tempos are bad, they drop notes, truncate notes, play wrong
	notes. Any time I use certain patches (flute, panflute,
	ocarina) Windows will crash and return EMM386 exception
	error #06. All MIDI applications (Media Player, Patch
	Manager, Winjammer) get this error."

1.  DTK PEM-2500 (25Mhz 386DX)  DTK BIOS
2.  No problem w/ 16 bit DMA
	(I also have 5.7 Mhz Adaptec 1542B SCSI controller in the same system)
3.  No problems at all

1.  286-20, C&T NEAT 82C212B/82C206/?
2.  Yes, 16-bit DMA works.
3.  No reported problems

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

Date: 12 May 93 13:30:42 +0100
From: Bjorn Havard Kleven <BJORNHK@dhhalden.no>
Subject: MIDI box delay - Not Entirely Gravis' Fault
Message-ID: <E997846215@sofus.dhhalden.no>

> So, hopefully a million other people haven't posted the info
> (particularly to that poor guy in Italy) but, as far as I know, there have
> still been no sightings of the GUS midi connector (or, for that matter, the
> 16-bit recording daughtercard). I'm a bit surprised about this.
> The midi connector seems pretty trivial - not exactly an enromous R&D job.
> And there's obviously a market for it. So, Gravis, WHERE IS IT? (You're
> throwing money away ...)

I just have to defend Gravis a little here. The long wait is due to
the appearantly simple process of making the case for the box - which
in reality is a far from trivial process - Gravis waited weeks
(months) for the molds to be ready from whoever makes them. The
current delay is also due to some problems with the mold.

As for the 16-bit daughterboard, the delays are all the results of the
desire to make this daughterboard as good as possible - among the
best. I don't remember which it is, but one of the key components
will be the same as used on the Turtle Beach Multisound - a very good
and very expensive board.

	 -=* Bjorn :: bjornhk@dhhalden.no
   ACCESS DATA :: TEL: (+47)-9-17 50 48/61-97 311 FAX: 61-97 312
				  BBS: 61-97 945 300-14400 bps, 24 hrs

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

Date: 12 May 1993   16:39:31 PST
From: chrisw <chrisw@leland.Stanford.EDU>
Subject: People in search of midi keyboards
Message-ID: <9305122345.AA15377@leland.Stanford.EDU>

Hi everyone. Just thought I'd forward on this ad I saw in rec.music.makers.
synth since there's been quite a few people looking for keyboards to use
with their GUS. Note that PC-200's are kind of small (4 octave) - though
they do have proper size keys. My feeling is they might be not bad for a 
home setup where you don't want the whole room taken up by a 88-key
weighted monster. (They're easy to lift as well. I risk permanent back 
injury whenever I lift mine).

Some disclaimers: I don't know this person at all. I'm just passing on the
ad. I'm also not sure of the going price on these things (although they
are normally offered on rec.music.makers.synth at about this price). 
I guess if it was me I'd offer $150. Make sure you ask about how worn
it is / whether it's home use only.

Chris.

>>FOR SALE
>>--------
>>Roland PC-200 keyboard controller           $180 obo
>>49 key C-C synth action keyboard. Can send on any MIDI channel,
>>Functions: mod stick/pitch wheell, velocity sensitivity control,
>>pan control, channel select.
>>Can be powered by battery or any 9V power supply.
>>
>>--------
>>AFC
>>claassen@ebs330.eb.uah.edu
>>aclaasse@nyx.cs.du.edu

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

Date: Wed, 12 May 93 12:22:00 -0500
From: wayne.sterling@sosinc.com (Wayne Sterling)
Subject: Prince of Persia 2 Problems w/ NEW SBOS
Message-ID: <429.10.uupcb@sosinc.com>

To correct the problems with SBOS and Prince of Persia 2, you should do
the following:

make a batch file that has:
SET ULTRASND=220,1,1,7,7
SET BLASTER=A220 I7 D1 T1
call sbos.bat
prince.exe
---------------------------
You will have to change your setup to interrupt 7 if you have changed
it, but this configuration is supposed to work.  Atleast that was what I
was told.

wayne.sterling@sosinc.com
																							
----
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Southern On-line Services - SysOp: Russell Jackson - 504-356-0790 |
| 2000+ Windows Files, 2.4 Gig, Internet, RIME and Throbnet On-line |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+

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

Date: Wed, 12 May 93 13:02:09 MES
From: fischer@tmpmbx.netmbx.de (Axel Fischer)
Subject: Ultrabots & GUS
Message-ID: <m0ntEZe-0003vsC@tmpmbx.netmbx.de>

>From: Steven.Morrison@f1.n251.z1.fidonet.org (Steven Morrison)
>Subject: Sound in UltraBots by NovaLogic
>Message-ID: <30109.2BEF7992@ns.fidonet.org>

>Is there any way at all to get sound out of UltraBots on the Ultrasound? 

What for problems fo you have with ultrabots?

I borrowed the game from a friend and had no problem with SBOS 2.04.
No switches are required.

-Axel

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

Date: 12 May 93 13:23:11 +0100
From: Bjorn Havard Kleven <BJORNHK@dhhalden.no>
Subject: Re: Ultrasound Daily Digest V3 #42
Message-ID: <E9778A4CCC@sofus.dhhalden.no>

> So, hopefully a million other people haven't posted the info
> (particularly to that poor guy in Italy) but, as far as I know, there have
> still been no sightings of the GUS midi connector (or, for that matter, the
> 16-bit recording daughtercard). I'm a bit surprised about this.
> The midi connector seems pretty trivial - not exactly an enromous R&D job.
> And there's obviously a market for it. So, Gravis, WHERE IS IT? (You're
> throwing money away ...)

I just have to defend Gravis a little here. The long wait is due to
the appearantly simple process of making the case for the box - which
in reality is a far from trivial process - Gravis waited weeks
(months) for the molds to be ready from whoever makes them. The
current delay is also due to some problems with the mold.

As for the 16-bit daughterboard, the delays are all the results of the
desire to make this daughterboard as good as possible - among the
best. I don't remember which it is, but one of the key components
will be the same as used on the Turtle Beach Multisound - a very good
and very expensive board.

	 -=* Bjorn :: bjornhk@dhhalden.no
   ACCESS DATA :: TEL: (+47)-9-17 50 48/61-97 311 FAX: 61-97 312
				  BBS: 61-97 945 300-14400 bps, 24 hrs

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

Date: 11 May 1993 06:42:40 GMT
From: twong@civil.ubc.ca (Thomas Wong)
Subject: Ultrasound FTP Sites - New files validated - May 9th, 93
Message-ID: <1snht0INNj7t@iskut.ucs.ubc.ca>

ReprintFrom: comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard

					GRAVIS ULTRASOUND FTP SITES NEWS
==========================================================================
Ftp Site: archive.epas.utoronto.ca     Directory: pub/pc/ultrasound
		  wuarchive.wustl.edu                     systems/msdos/ultrasound
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello all. I've just validated the following files for today,
May 9th, 93.... in both of our ftp archive sites:


Subdirectory: ..../sound/midi/files

beetho27.zip, biginjpn.zip, chrismid.zip, chrisnot.zip, depeche.zip,
depinv1.zip, fairmid.zip, hazy.zip, mid.zip, midpcfix.zip, wholenew.zip


Subdirectory: ..../sound/midi/util

gusorg.exe - version 2.0 of GUS Organ for composing midi files
winmusic.zip - Windows midi composer/player (no patch caching)


Subdirectory: ..../sound/patches/files

harp.zip


Subdirectoy: ..../sound/patches/util

ped2.arj - new version of Patch Editor (windows)


Subdirectory: ..../sound/mod/util

gusmp.zip - Modplay 1.21b MOD player for Ultrasound
gusmpsrc.zip - GUS Modplay's source code


Subdirectory: ..../sound/misc

gldwav10.zip - Goldwave 1.00 sound editor for Windows


Subdirectory: ..../info

modform.zip - Amiga (ProTracker) Module format document


Subdirectory: ..../util/unix

snd-driv-1.99.3.tar.Z - Hannu Savolainen's Linux sound driver for the
						Ultrasound



Notes to UPLOADERS:
===================

ibt93mid.zip was uploaded incorrectly, and can't be unzipped. Can the
uploader please reupload it? Thanx!

adagio04.tar.Z and mp-perl.tar.Z can't be uncompressed. The sound driver
was ok and was validated but can the uploader please reupload these 2
files again? Thanx!


Ee-bee-dee-ee-bee-dee.... that's all folks!

Thomas.

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

Date: Wed, 12 May 93 3:14:02 CDT
From: cowles@hydra.convex.com (John Cowles)
Subject: VMAP and GMOS Velocity mapping
Message-ID: <9305120814.AA04341@hydra.convex.com>

.tc says:
>Morgan_Stair@dl5000.bc.edu says:
> 
>> What does vmap mean anyway... is it that the GUS-windows-midi drivers
>> and GUS-DOS-playmidi use logarithmic volume scale, and thus midi files
>> need to have all their "volume" information changed for GUS?
> 
>Correct. The GUS's volume control is logarithmic, while Roland's
>synthesizers use linear volume control from 0-127.
> 
>One of the functions GMOS will perform is to use a lookup table
>to convert these linear volume to logarithmic volume.
> 
>.tc

Please don't forget the volume controller (7) and the expression
controller (11). VMAP currently ignores these (which is a problem). A GS Init
sets volume to 100, and expression to 127, so even though a midifile does
not need to have an explicit volume setting inside it, there is an implicit
one due to the default GS setting. VMAP assumes that the volume and
expression settings are always equal to 127!

Finding the actual volume can be quite complex, even on a synth with
linear volume curves. For example, if I set the volume controller to
100, the expression controller to 100 and then output a note with a
velocity of 100, I will actually have a note with an absolute velocity
of .7890625 * .7890625 * .7890625 of max - about 62! [ 128 * (101/128)**3 - 1 ]

In defense of Mr. Tran (the author of VMAP), this becomes much more complex
when the velocity curves are logarithmic!

John

-- 
	 John Cowles        cowles@hydra.convex.com
						Convex Computer Corp.  214 497 4375
						3000 Waterview Pkwy
						Richardson, Tx. 75080

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

End of Ultrasound Daily Digest V3 #43
*************************************
