Ultrasound Daily Digest     Wed, 22 Sep 93  0:47 MDT     Volume 6: Issue  21  

Today's Topics:
								   
							   1-800 #
							4pin CD Plugs
					 Dagger of Amon Ra and MegaEm
						   Digest Question
					   email to gravis+log jams
						 Fm, filtering, etc.
							 GUS-Shopping
						 GUS under WinOS2 ??
				   large .wav files under windows?
						  MegaEM Piano Patch
							Mitsumi Drive
			   Ultrasound Daily Digest V6 #20 (3 msgs)
			  Why would _I_ buy a Gravis? Here's why...

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: Tue, 21 Sep 1993 14:07:44 +0100 (METDST)
From: alessandro miccolis <miccolis@dsi.unimi.it>
Subject: Re: 
Message-ID: <9309211207.AA19172@pluto.sm.dsi.unimi.it>

-- 
== miccolis@ghost.dsi.unimi.it =================================
| MICCOLIS                      (149.132.2.1)                  |
| ALESSANDRO                    Department of Computer Science | 
=============================== University of MILAN (ITALY) ====

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

Date: Tue, 21 Sep 93 21:28:14 EDT
From: ddr@math.ufl.edu
Subject: 1-800 #
Message-ID: <9309220128.AA20035@bebop.math.ufl.edu>

The number for sales is 1-800-663-8558, take their addvice with a grain of salt though.  I called the other day and was told that Gravis does not sell
memory upgrades for the GUS and if they did I would only need 3 chips to
go from 256k to a meg!

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

Date: Wed, 22 Sep 93 03:20:00 BST
From: b.williams44@genie.geis.com
Subject: 4pin CD Plugs
Message-ID: <9309220234.AA18749@relay2.geis.com>

Hi,
   For anyone interested I've found a supplier for the 4 Pin CD pugs for
the GUS Card.The andress to order them is Dave Redfern P.O.Box 765
Crystal Beach,FL. 34681  Send $2.00 and SASE.They fit perfect.
						 ***StarHawk***

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

Date: Tue, 21 Sep 93 04:24:34 EDT
From: ddr@math.ufl.edu
Subject: Dagger of Amon Ra and MegaEm
Message-ID: <9309210824.AA14290@gomek.math.ufl.edu>

When I play Dagger of Amon Ra with MegaEm the sound used for the typewriters is
not like any typewriter I ever heard.  It is more like musical notes.  Sierra
downloads its own data to the Roland/GUS so I would guess that I cannot change
the sound ...... am I correct?

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

Date: Wed, 22 Sep 1993 01:29:13 +0200
From: chief@lysator.liu.se
Subject: Digest Question
Message-ID: <199309212329.BAA02778@ruben.lysator.liu.se>

This is probably a question for the List owner (Dave?), but in case someone
else have received these issues, here goes. Does these issues of the
Ultrasound Daily Digest exist?:

ULTRASOUND DAILY DIGEST         Vol.1: 50
								Vol.3: 3, 32
								Vol.4: 28

and these issues of the Programmer's Digest?:

ULTRASOUND PROGRAMMER'S DIGEST  Vol.3: 1, 5-6

If they do, would someone please let me know where I can find them, or
perhaps even e-mail them to me (to the address in the header)?

Thanks in advance,
 /Erik

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

Date: Tue, 21 Sep 93 9:36:03 BST
From: james@maths.exeter.ac.uk
Subject: email to gravis+log jams
Message-ID: <4734.9309210836@maths.exeter.ac.uk>

 Don Eller <don.eller@inst.medtronic.com> writes:
>** Flame-on
>Gravis,if anyone reads the digest, please wake up and realize that anyone
>familiar with internet mail uses POSTMASTER to ask email address information
>when reply's bounce back.  It's very import to maintain this alias, especially
>when you change your email addressing scheme!
>** Flame-off

In fact if it is true that gravis dont have a valid postmaster alias it
probably breaks their conditions for being connected to internet email.
But no one would be that stupid would they?

 Meshreki@ee.udel.edu sez:

>I WANT LINEAR VOLUME DRIVERS FOR WINDOWS AND PLAYMIDI!  RELEASE THEM!

Your in luck then the gus ships with them.  Unfortunately our hearing isnt
linear.  I suggest you replace your ears.
I want a portamento controller..yes I will install Linux asap, if not sooner

-- 
James Andrews, Computer Development Officer, Exeter University Maths Dept

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

Date: Tue, 21 Sep 1993 13:54:43 -0700 (PDT)
From: Christopher Jon Wilkins <chrisw@leland.Stanford.EDU>
Subject: Fm, filtering, etc.
Message-ID: <199309212054.NAA04582@elaine37.Stanford.EDU>

On the topic of FM and filtering, etc... The most significant thing that
Gravis could do to make the GUS more like a pro-level synthesizer is to
alow multi-oscilator patches.

This would enable some kind of tonal variation which
didn't slow down or speed up with note pitch so that a kind 
of filtering sound could be done (same technique as, for example, the
Yamaha SY-22,33 series use). It could also be used for tonal variation
depending on key velocity by having different velocity-amplitude
curves for different voices. (And it would let me do chorusing effects
without having to double the track which would be far less painful).

What's more, it can't be very difficult.

Anyway, have to go and finish unpacking (back in the U.S. now!)

Chris.

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

Date: (null)
From: "ALEXANDER MAJAREK"  <Alexander.Majarek@uibk.ac.at>
Subject: GUS-Shopping
Message-ID: <199309211509.AA01848@uibk.ac.at>

Hi Guys!

I bought my GUS early August, but that was far away from my 
terminal, so here is my report:

I got my GUS (here in Austria, EUROPE) for ATS 2000 = USD 165.
756 KB RAM costed another ATS 600 = USD 50. I put the RAM in my 
GUS and started. Everything fine (for one day) except that there was 
heavy noise when I played files with many instruments until I tried 
the 3D-demo  (fptest.exe). "Only 567 KB RAM onboard 512 needed" 
!??! When I made a RAM-Test I was shocked. Bank 2 completely bad, 
Bank 3 & Bank 4  only 34 & 65 KB OK. 

I blamed the RAM-chips (my GUS had noname 80ns; and I got SANYO 
70 ns) and gave them back to my dealer (the same from which I got 
the GUS). After two (unsuccesful) days of phone calls for chips with 
the same mnemonics like the original ones I noticed that there were 
exactly the same (to my luck) in my TSENG-card. So I put them in my 
GUS and decreased therefore my graphics-card-memory to 256 KB.

The RAM-Test now said Bank 1, 3 and 4 OK, Bank 2 BAD. Swapping 
the chips didn't change anything. So it was the GUS. I returned it to 
my dealer and got another one (Rev. 2.2, the bad one was Rev. 2.4). 
When I installed it, it made problems with the 16-bit DMA, which 
worked perfectly with the bad GUS. So I had to use 8-bit DMA (and it's 
not a faulty chipset on my motherboard!). When I tried some demos 
everything was OK (including RAM and so the noise was GONE), the 
Quality was *SUPERB*, but ...... when I tried the 3D demo I got nearly 
nothing on the left channel . I didn't notice that with the demos 
because I didn't use headphones when playing them and the 
speakers stood both in the middle. But when I replayed the demos 
with headphones the left channel was also dead. Same result with 
LINE OUT.

Guess it! I returned it for a new one (Rev. 2.4). Many thanks to my 
very patient and friendly dealer. This time everything was fine 
(including 16-bit DMA). As a reward for my dealer I bought the "bad" 
chips again (although they are much cheaper at other shops) and put 
them in my graphics-card. Works like a charm. Seems like the GUS 
being kind of dificult concerning DRAM.

Sorry for a very long report, but - yes - there's a point. I knew the Risk 
with RAM-upgrades, I knew about faulty DMA-controlers, I knew that 
SBOS isn't perfect and I have Internet access for e-mail and FTP, so I 
*chose* to give it a try. And after all the troubles I'm really satisfied 
with that piece of hardware which is NOW in my PC (I just can't put 
that SOUND (quality) in words).

What I don't know is: what do people do if they don't have the install 
disks (2.06a) ready at home (who have to wait 2 month or more), if 
they can't solve their problems via email & Internet, if they are not 
used to open their computer 2 times a week (like I am) or dissembling 
their graphic-card, if they can't give the GUS back to a local dealer 
(instead have to wait weeks/months for a replacement from GRAVIS), 
etc. , etc., etc.

FLAME ON ***********

Without Internet-access (or a modem) you can FORGET the idea of 
having fun with a GUS! 

FLAME OFF **********

I really want the GUS (I love it by now) to become *the* standard 
soundcard and maybe these problems are solved in the newer 
revisions of the cards. The only reason (apart from superior sound) 
for me to buy the GUS (although there are troubles) is the GOOD 
WORK from GRAVIS I can see every day on the Internet (new drivers, 
customer support, etc.) and the possibility to implement nearly 
everything new simply via software(-changes).

Gravis, go on like that.

Sascha

*********************************************************************
*Alexander.Majarek@uibk.ac.at * There are 3 ways (fast, sweet, sure)*
*Perthalerg. 1c/11            * for a man to ruin himself:          *
*A-6020 Innsbruck             * 1. Gamblin'   (fast),               *
*AUSTRIA (EUROPE)             * 2. Women      (sweet) &             *
*Tel.: 0043-512-84-26-15      * 3. Computers  (sure)                *
*********************************************************************

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

Date: Wed, 22 Sep 1993 02:49:32 +1000
From: els413c@fawlty1.eng.monash.edu.au (KWT Wong)
Subject: GUS under WinOS2 ??
Message-ID: <9309211649.AA19003@fawltyds.eng.monash.edu.au>

Hi.
I am not sure if this is a FAQ but I haven't read anything about it
for a long long time. Is there anyway to get the GUS to run under
WinOS2 in OS/2 2.1 ?? I can get the GUS working under a DOS session
but when I try to run the GUS in a WinOS2 enhanced mode session. I get
the error that the GUS needs to be working under Enhanced mode but
the session is already under Enhanced mode ! Any help appreciated


Gravis come out with the OS/2 drivers quick !! A brand new market
just waiting to be tapped !!

Another almost unrelated topic: 
Does anyone know if there are drivers for the Matsushita/Panasonic
CD-ROM drive that is normally packaged with the old SBPro ? I don't
have the SBPro and running the drive with an interface card. It uses
the MSCDEX at the moment.

Thanks in advance

Kevin

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

Date: Tue, 21 Sep 93 13:31:27 BST
From: james@maths.exeter.ac.uk
Subject: large .wav files under windows?
Message-ID: <5247.9309211231@maths.exeter.ac.uk>

To play a .wav file under windows does the whole thing have to be loaded
into RAM or something?  I've been experiencing very odd results with

perc,
the media player,
cool, version 105
& even a registered version of noisemaster
Trying to get a 2 meg 16bit/44.1 khz wav file to load.

The best Ive had is that the file loads, it can be played once through and then
I get a GPF.  That was with cool, and its inconsistent.
This is on a 486sx with 4megs of RAM.

I figure maybe that other soundcards need the sample in RAM to pump a DAC at
a realistic speed, perhaps.
Playfile lets the file play under dos and it sounds good.

Comments please.
-- 
James Andrews, Computer Development Officer, Exeter University Maths Dept

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

Date: Tue, 21 Sep 93 13:30:25 EST
From: "Bryan Cass" <bc%idx.com@sadye.EMBA.UVM.EDU>
Subject: MegaEM Piano Patch
Message-ID: <00972E0BEDE16A40.24407876@idx.com>

I *finally* got MegaEM to work with my sequencer program (MusicPrinter Plus)
and the MPU-401 MIDI card (Music Quest PC MIDI) I have installed.  I use the
following EMUSET command:   EMUSET /SC/SS/CO2   and also install a TSR driver
provided with the sequencer software for the MIDI card.

Now, though, when I play back a sequenced song the notes all play with the same
volume from attack to release (i.e. there is no envelope for the patch).

1) Is this normal for MegaEM?
2) Can I change the SCC-1 patch it's using to get a more realistic piano
   sound?
3) Was this problem answered in Phat's "Modifying Your GUS Patches" essay?
4) Can I possibly ask any more questions?

Also, now that I got MegaEM to work for my needs, I'd like to register and get
more that 20 minutes (great "make-em-register" idea!) of play time.  Are
registrations still on hold until Gravis decides what they want to do with
MegaEM? (this could be a long wait)

Thanks,
Bryan

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

Date: Wed, 22 Sep 1993 00:23:05 -0500 (CDT)
From: Phil Johnson <pjohnso2@oldub.d.umn.edu>
Subject: Mitsumi Drive
Message-ID: <Pine.3.05.9309220004.A30933-a100000@oldub.d.umn.edu>

I will post on the digest in a few days, if someone doesn't beat me to it,
on the phone # I have, as a salesman for a reseller, for Mitsumi.. the old
number which people might know about, has been disconnected..

 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
| pjohnso2@ub.d.umn.edu  Univ. of Minnesota - Duluth | "Lawnmower Man's in |
 -----------------------------------------------------  your head now."    |
													 | -- Jeff Fahey in    |
							 | Stephen King's THE  |
							 | LAWNMOWER MAN       |
													 |_____________________|

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

Date: Tue, 21 Sep 1993 10:47:30 -0400
From: Gregory Chung <gchung@eden.rutgers.edu>
Subject: Re: Ultrasound Daily Digest V6 #20
Message-ID: <199309211447.KAA15868@eden.rutgers.edu>

I've heard all the fanfare over the Mega-EM program, so I finally went out and got it.  Problem is I can't get it working, because it either tells me my
ultrasnd.ini is corrupt or it can't find the patches in the directory.  The
documentation isn't very clear on this point, but I assume is uses the
ULTRADIR environment var?  

What I have here is this:  UltraSound directory = C:\ULTRASND, while the
patches are located in E:\SOUND\MIDI.  I've tried the ultrasnd.ini from my
windows directory, which works (with Windows) to no avail.  

Any advice for the clueless?

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

Date: Tue, 21 Sep 1993 11:00:31 -0400 (EDT)
From: Phat H Tran <ptran@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca>
Subject: Re: Ultrasound Daily Digest V6 #20
Message-ID: <Pine.3.05.9309211130.A24056-c100000@sciborg>

> Date: Mon, 20 Sep 93 02:54:37 PDT
> From: brian@ccnext.ucsf.edu (Brian Huddleston)
> Subject: Dma probs..
> Message-ID: <9309200954.AA13695@ccnext.ucsf.edu>
> 
> Greetings all,
> 
> Can someone out there tell me the PROS and/or CONS of having a 16bit DMA channel
>

There is no tangible advantage that I can detect to using a 16-bit DMA 
channel over an 8-bit one, except that if you can't use DMA channels 5 
and 7 for whatever reasons, you'd be short two alternatives when trying 
to resolve conflicts.  There is no speed or sound quality difference.
However, there is a difference in the steps required to transfer
data to and from the GUS through an 8-bit and a 16-bit DMA channel, so
if software doesn't take the difference into consideration, they might
only work on a 16-bit channel and not an 8-bit one, or vice versa.
An example would be Star Control II, which only transfers samples 
correctly if you use a 16-bit DMA channel.
 
> Date: Mon, 20 Sep 1993 13:33:57 -0500
> From: Don Eller <don.eller@inst.medtronic.com>
> Subject: Re: Mitsumi/GUS
> Message-ID: <199309201833.AA10886@rwanda.inst.medtronic.COM>
> 
> There is still a remote possibility that the problem with the Matsumi drive pauses is a hardware design problem with 16 bit DMA, that might possibly be corrected if Gravis used a different design, but I wouldn't be surprised to find that the problem is 
i
n the software driver and will remain even with the GUS daughtercard.

Speaking of pauses and the Mitsumi, I get a lot of them in Windows if
I try to play a WAVE off a CD-ROM on my GUS if the GUS is using a 16-bit
DMA channel.  The pauses disappear if I use the GUS on an 8-bit channel.
I also get pauses when copying files from the CD-ROM to my HD.  

In DOS, the pauses occur much less often.

> Date: Mon, 20 Sep 93 02:31:00 -0500
> From: dan.roscigno@timeslice.gnv.fl.us (Dan Roscigno)
> Subject: Sierra Drivers
> Message-ID: <977.95.uupcb@timeslice.gnv.fl.us>
> 
> I read in a FIDO conf that Sierra has released Roland drivers for their
> old games.  This is not the GUS support that is expected, but is better
> than nothing.  If anyone can call the Sierra BBS local and upload these
> drivers to epas that would be peachy.
>

These are Roland-only drivers and you hope to use them with GUS and 
Mega-Em?  I'm not sure what you mean by "better than nothing".
														  
> Date: Mon, 20 Sep 93 20:37:37 PDT
> From: mikebat@netcom.com (Mike Batchelor)
> Subject: Ultramid -c vs. neat
> Message-ID: <9309210337.AA06573@netcom2.netcom.com>
> 
> What's the diff between -c and not using that switch?  -c loads a GM patch
> set right?  Does this imply that not using the switch will let the game
> load its own patch set?
>

No. The -c switch just forces Ultramid to load a subset of the GM patches
into the GUS' RAM, and then only use those samples, instead of caching
on the fly in the game.  But whether Ultramid caches on the fly or not,
it's still limited to the patches laid out in ultramid.ini.  A game can
use its own custom patches if it includes its own ultramid.ini. 

> Date: Mon, 20 Sep 93 05:18:58 EDT
> From: ddr@math.ufl.edu
> Subject: ~Prince of Persia ONE
> Message-ID: <9309200918.AA07880@gomek.math.ufl.edu>
> 
> Does anyone know how to get POP ONE running with the GUS?  I used to play it with my ThunderBoard, and pulled it out to try with GUS..  It locks up very quickly now.

The original Prince of Persia worked fine for me with SBOS.  The lock ups
might just be due to improper soundcard configuration.

Phat.

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

Date: Wed, 22 Sep 1993 10:50:43 +0930 (CST)
From: Gavin <SCARMAN@hfrd.dsto.gov.au>
Subject: Re: Ultrasound Daily Digest V6 #20
Message-ID: <930922105043.23d6@hfrd.dsto.gov.au>

Robert Lee DeRaud writes....

I said >the problem lies in that FM as used by the SB is quite poor
								 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
RD>The little piece-of-shit FM chip the SB uses has the same relationship to a 
RD>'real' FM synth as a toddler's tricycle does to a Corvette.

So stop agreeing with me then arguing about it. And you can only compare apples 
with apples er, IBM clones with IBM clones, so let's stick to the question asked 
and compare SB to GUS or at least soundcard to soundcard ;-).

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

Date: Wed, 22 Sep 93 00:12 EDT
From: CHEDBERG@hamp.hampshire.edu
Subject: Why would _I_ buy a Gravis? Here's why...
Message-ID: <D19A649167FF01FD73@hamp.hampshire.edu>

	 This post is to describe the reasons why, even though I no
longer own one, I still think the Ultrasound is a fantastic card.

	 At the beginning of the summer, I blew up my computer.
Literally blew chips off boards, smoke out the power supply
vents, etc. I blew it out trying to re-install my Gravis after
moving from my college dorm to summer housing. 
	 Needless to say, I was irate. I had had several friends who
had wierd problems with the Ultrasound, and I became convinced
that the sound card was responsible.
	 I called Gravis, and left a message with their tech staff.
I also called several local consumer action groups, who all told
me to work with Gravis on the problem. 
	 It took me about a week and a half to speak to a human
being, but when I did get intouch with someone, he told me he had
been trying to reach _me_, to find out about my problem.
	 I told him about the accident. His first reaction was to
explain how the Usound simply _could_ not do that kind of damage.
His analysis of the accident and his reasoning were all perfect,
and he explained it all in plain english. "That card can't put
out enough power to blow off a chip. It doesn't have enough power
to do it, " he told me. He and I then went over the rest of my
system. We eventually discovered that my stereo tuner was old
enough that it was ungrounded.

***Important note to _all soundcard owners: If your stereo's not
grounded, it doesn't matter if your computer is. You can still
transfer current. Always unplug everything before doing anything,
or be aware of the risk.***

	 I'd touched my CD player and computer case at the same
moment. The amp sent the current thru the system power, into the
cd player's chassis, and into my computer. Boom. End of 386.

	 The rep apologized, and told me that I should either put a
grounded plug on my old reciever or chop it into kindling so
nobody else would have the problem. 
	 He was right on the money. I took the stereo into a repair
shop, and it turned out that the reciever was built before
compliance to electrical standards became popular. I wound up
replacing the reciever. 

	 The story could have ended there, but in the middle of the
summer, two months after I had purchased the card, I recieved a
package. In it were system upgrade disks, along with a note,
apologizing profusely for their late arrival. 
	 I have _never_ gotten an apology in writing from a computer
company, and never recieved updated drivers without yelling,
screaming and threatening at gunpoint. The only other place I
have seen tech support like this is at Wordperfect Corp. It has
its problems, and the wheels turn slowly, but when it works, it
works well. Gravis is your friend! How many other companies work
to put out drivers to games for people who have already bought
their card, rather than to entice people to buy it?
	 What I'm saying is that they do a lot of things to inspire
loyalty in their customers, and rather than working exclusively
to get people to buy, they work to satisfy the customers they
have. They really try to correct problems. So give 'em grief, but
don't forget to thank them every once in a while.

						 From the ranks of the Dispossessed,
										-Chris Hedberg

Flames, and cheap offers on a new or used GUS to:

CHEDBERG@Hamp.Hampshire.EDU

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

End of Ultrasound Daily Digest V6 #21
*************************************
