Ultrasound Daily Digest     Fri, 19 Mar 93       Volume 2 : Issue  74 

Today's Topics:
				[GUS] Making the MIDI interface (fwd)
					   Calliope patch problems
						 General Midi Driver
							  GUS (fwd)
								GUS 3D
							Gus and X-Wing
							GUS in DOS Box
						   GUS MIDI patches
				  keyboard lockup upon boot (2 msgs)
							 Misc topics
						More FAQ fodder (fwd)
						multiple midi devices
			   MUSIX141.ZIP on archive.epas.utoronto.ca
				   New Set of disks - BIG problems.
					  new software installation
	  Noise in Line in Recording & Editor for stereo recordings?
							Opti 8-it DMA
							  Problem #2
						 problems and praise
							 Question...
							  SBOS 2.02
				SBOS 2.02 gotcha -- read for easy fix
				  Simple Question, Simple Solution?
				 To Install or Not To Install 17-21?
					Ultrasound Daily Digest V2 #73
						  X-wing & SBOS 2.02
							   Zone 66
						  Zone 66 (for GUS)

	Information about the UltraSound Daily Digest (such as
mail addresses, request servers, ftp sites, etc., etc.) can be found
at the end of the Digest.

	*** HEY!!! *** 

	Before you ask a question, *** READ THE FAQ ***.  It's
available on the request server and the ftp sites, or check the
newsgroup archives.

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 13:16:48 MST
From: ddebry@itchy (Dave DeBry)
Message-Id: <9303182016.AA09904@itchy>
Subject: [GUS] Making the MIDI interface (fwd)
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

	I'm trying to get this MIDI adapter problem resolved.  I've
had a lot email sent directly to me saying that the FAQ was wrong,
that the FAQ was right, that the FAQ really could use some salt, etc.,
etc.  So, I'm forwarding a few of them on to the list.  Please respond
to these if you have any info on the subject.

Forwarded message:
> From: pcunnell@micrognosis.co.uk (Paul Cunnell)
> In article <1nliklINN4u7@menudo.uh.edu>, st1qb@Rosie.UH.EDU writes:
> |> Has anyone made the midi interface for the GUS that is in the FAQ?
> |> If so, were did you find the part# 6N138?  I cant seem to locate
> |> this anywhere.  Also, (excuse my ingorance i'm not an EE) but
> |> what exactly is that part and its purpose? Thanks...
> |>  
> |> Dave-
> |> st1qb@jetson.uh.edu
> 
> The 6N138 is a high sensitivity opto-isolator, manufactured by
> Hewlett Packard (and I believe, a company called Quality Technology)
> The main point in using this part as opposed to other more common
> opto-isolators is the low LED ON current spec. (1.6mA) 
> 
> A midi out circuit is basically a LED in series with 600 ohms, and a
> 5V supply. Taking into account the 1.7V forward drop across the LED,
> you get about 5mA in the on state. Other optos generally need more
> current to turn them on (say 15-60mA, but this varies a lot). A 
> 'high speed' 6N137 opto will also work, I believe, but that would
> be a bit marginal on the input current (spec. is min 5mA).
> 
> Since a number of people have been asking, I'll add below the 
> midi circuit that I'm using, plus a bit of general explanation
> I've culled from other peoples' postings on the subject.
> 
> 
> Attention Dave DeBry - this should probably replace the current 
> entry in the FAQ.  I don't want to take all the credit for other 
> peoples' work.
> 
> Happy midi-ing !
> 
> Generic Midi Out/In/Through Circuit
> ===================================
> 
> The following shows a typical OUT, cable, and IN circuit
> 
>       MIDI OUT port ---->|<- cable ->|<---- MIDI IN port              +5V
>                                                                  270   |
>             +5V        DIN           DIN                     +--\/\/\/-+
>              |  220    +-+ +-------+ +-+   220    +--------+ |
>         |\   +-\/\/\/--|4|-|-------|-|4|--\/\/\/--|  OPTO  |-+-+- UART RXD
>  UART   | \            | | |       | | |          |ISOLATOR|   |
>  TXD ---|  \---\/\/\/--|5|-|-------|-|5|----------|        |-+ |
>         |  /    220    | | +-------+ | |          +--------+ | |
>         | /         +--|2|-+       +-|2|            6N138   GND|
>         |/ 7407     |  +-+           +-+                       |
>                    GND                                         |
>                                                                |
>                    +-------------------------------------------+
>                    |
>                    |      +5V        DIN
>                    |       |  220    +-+
>                    |  |\   +-\/\/\/--|4|
>                    |  | \            | |
>                    +--|  \---\/\/\/--|5|   MIDI THRU
>                       |  /    220    | |
>                       | /         +--|2|
>                       |/ 7407     |  +-+
>                                  GND
> 
> Note that when the UART TXD is high, no current flows through the resistors
> and optoisolator's LED, causing the optoisolator's phototransistor to remain
> off, allowing the UART RXD to be pulled high by the 270 ohm resistor.  When
> the UART TXD is low, current flows through the resistors and optoisolator's
> LED, turning on optoisolator's phototransistor, grounding the UART RXD.  The
> voltage drop across the optoisolator's LED is typically 1.5 volts, leaving
> 3.5 volts to be dropped across (3 times 220) 660 ohms, which allows about
> 5 ma to flow.
>  
> The reason a current loop is used is that it allows an ground isolated
> interconnection.  Note that the ground from the MIDI OUT port's device is
> not connected to the ground of the MIDI IN port's device.  This prevents
> ground loops in systems where appropriate attention has not been paid to
> grounding issues, such as the case of typical musicians in a typical club!
> 
> Acknowledgements:
>  Michael R. Kesti (mrk@gvgspd.gvg.tek.com) - general description
>  Mr. D Ingles     (davei@comp.lancs.ac.uk) - midi thru bit
> 
> Gravis Ultrasound Circuit
> =========================
> 
> 15 pin D connector
>                                           220R
> pin-1 +5v ----+--------------------------/\/\/\---------------\
>               |                                                \ 4
>               |                                          Gnd--2      MIDI OUT
>               |      |\      |\            220R                / 5
> pin-12 tr >---|------| o-----| o----------/\/\/\--------------/
>               |    13|/ 12 11|/ 10
>               |                            220R
>               +---------------------------/\/\/\-------------\
>               |                                               \ 4
> pin-15 rx <---|--------------------+                    Gnd--2      MIDI THRU
>               |      |\      |\    |        220R              / 5
>               |   +--| o-----| o---+-------/\/\/\------------/
>               |   | 1|/ 2   3|/ 4
>               |   |
>               |   +------+
>               |   270R   |                       220R
>               +--/\/\/\--+    +------+----------/\/\/\--------\
>               |B         |C   |A     |                         \  4
>             +-|----------|----|-+    |                                MIDI IN
>             |  8        6     2 |  -----                       /  5
>             |                   |   / \ IN914 or IN4148     +-/
>             |      6N138        |   ---                     |
>             |                   |    |                      |
>             |           5     3 |    |                      |
>             +------------|----|-+    |                      |
>                          |    |K     |                      |
> pin-5 Gnd  --------------+    +------+----------------------+
> 
> 
> Inverters are 74LS04. (This is a 14-pin IC containing 6 inverters.
> Connect pin 14 to +5V, pin 7 to GND)
> 
> Leave pin 2 of the MIDI IN unconnected (Don't connect to ground)
> 
> Acknowledgements:
>  Remek Lipinski   (remek@mamura.ee.mu.oz.au) - schematic (updated)
>  David Morning    (dam@dcs.glasgow.ac.uk)    - schematic (original)
>  Dave Perry       (dp@hydra.carleton.ca)     - research & pin corrections
> 
> Some hints for testing your circuit
> ===================================
> 
> 1. Check *all* connections (use a continuity tester, and tick them 
>    off on a printout of the circuit)
> 
> 2. Check them again ;-)
> 
> 3. Make sure you have the latest (GUS0012.zip) windows midi driver,
>    and make sure it is installed properly.
> 
> 4. Make sure your midi sequencer package is set up to use the 
>    Ultrasound Midi In/Out ports. (As opposed to the Ultrasound Synth)
> 
> 5. If you still have no joy:
> 
>     - just connect the +5V and GND to your midi circuit, 
>       (leave the d-connector pins 12 and 15 unconnected), and
>       then connect pin 13 of the 7404 to +5V check you have 
>       (about) +5V appearing on pin 10. This checks midi out.
>     
>     - connect pin 4 of the midi-in DIN socket via 2 extra 
>       220R resistors to +5V. Check pin 4 of the 7404. It 
>       should be low (about 0V). Then connect pin 4 of the 
>       midi-in DIN socket to 0V. Pin 4 of the 7404 should 
>       go high. This checks midi in. 
>     
>     - reconnect the d-type pins 12 and 15, and connect a midi
>       cable between midi-out on the circuit and and midi-in
>       on your synth. Set up your sequencer to use the Ultrasound 
>       MIDI port as an output, and ensure that one of the 
>       tracks is set to use this port. Check your synth
>       is expecting MIDI data on the same channel as sequencer
>       is transmitting. Start sequencer playing. Check that
>       midi data is being transmitted at pin 12 of the d-type
>       (look at it with an oscilloscope, if possible). 
> 
> Acknowledgements:
>  Paul Cunnell (pcunnell@micrognosis.co.uk)
> 
> Note
> ====
> 
> Standard disclaimers apply - use this information at your own risk,
> and if your fry your card/PC/synth/toaster, then you have my
> sympathy, but not much else ;-) 
> 
> If you're not happy about messing with circuits and soldering irons
> and wires and stuff, then you may wish to wait for the midi connector
> box from Gravis to become available.
> 
> -- 
> Paul Cunnell (pcunnell@micrognosis.co.uk) 
> Micrognosis, 63 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4N 4UD, UK +44 71 815 5294 
> 


-- 
Dave  ddebry@ debry@   \ 
DeBry dsd.    peruvian. | "I saw a sign that said 'Live Nudes'.
	  es.     cs.utah.  |  'Good choice,' I thought."
	  com     edu      /

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 23:36:37 -0500
From: aa344@yfn.ysu.edu (Joseph Maruschek)
Message-Id: <199303190436.AA10216@yfn.ysu.edu>
Subject: Calliope patch problems
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Like the rest of you who are trying out the new patches from Advanced
Gravis, I found that the calliope lead patch was out of tune.  I used 
my trusty Patinfo program and got this info:

File: CALLIOPE.PAT 
This file contains  1  sample(s).

Sample # 1 
Sample length: 45968        Loop start:  446            Loop end: 45942 
Sample rate: 22321 Hz
Low freq: 27.499 (A0)       High freq: 4186.073 (C8)    Base freq: 195.997 (G3)


Detune: 0     Octave: 2     Balance: 7    Mode: 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
Envelope/tremolo/vibrato data:
  63   8 132  72 131  63 246 246 246 180   8   8   0   0   0   0 200   0
Flags: 16-bit looped forward melodic 


Using playfile to listen to the sample, I found that the base frequency 
is wrong.  It should be 261.625 (C4).  To fix it, go in with your 
favorite disk editor (I used Norton Utilities) and change the bytes
at offset 269 (decimal) to: F9 FD 03.  Now we're in tune!

Umm, shouldn't this have been fixed before the patches were released?
Also, I *hate* the new installation, mostly because I like to do things
manually and the new installation won't let you.  And it doesn't 
even clean up after itself!  Plus, I chose not to install the Windows
drivers thinking that I could add them later and the program would be
smart enought not to un-pack all the files it had already installed.  
No such luck.

Some of the new patches sound quite good.  The addition of vibrato to
a lot of the patches makes them a lot less sterile than the first
set.  However, a lot of the sounds are exactly the same.  I'm sorry,
but the solo violin and flute sounds are not realistic.  I like the
string ensemble sounds, but a lot of them don't sound good at all
in the lower register.  We do have pizzicato strings now, decent
slapped bass, and distortion guitar. 

I hope that the information above can help you put that patch back in
tune.  It should have been done before.

--
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: Thu, 18 Mar 93 20:05:03 EST
From: hellfire@acs.bu.edu (Peter ng)
Message-Id: <9303190105.AA102826@acs2.bu.edu>
Subject: General Midi Driver
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Does anybody have any info about a Genereal Midi driver for the Ultrasound. 
Particularly one that will allow games like X Wing to support the ultrasound 
through the general midi specs. Any info is greatly appreciated.

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 16:44:40 -0500 (EST)
From: Brian Go <bgo@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca>
Message-Id: <Pine.3.05.9303181640.A7088-a100000@sciborg>
Subject: GUS (fwd)
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I think this is as polite an answer as anyone's going to get...

Brian....

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 18:11:52 EST
From: osi@aol.com
To: bgo@sciborg
Subject: GUS

Thank you for your interest in products from ORIGIN Systems. I heard the GUS
at CES and thought that it was A-OK. Actually, it was terrific, especially
with the Q-Sound. At this point, however, we have no plans to specifically
support that board other than in its Soundblaster compatible mode. We are
constantly elaluating sound boards and their specific features and will make
some determinations for future support so GUS support may be a possibility in
the near future.

Best,
Wayne Baker
ORIGIN Systems Marketing

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

Date: 18 Mar 93 11:32:53 EST
From: "Joseph R. Granto"  <GLOCK@chip.cba.ufl.edu>
Message-Id: <MAILQUEUE-101.930318113253.480@chip.cba.ufl.edu>
Subject: GUS 3D
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Is the GUS 3D still scheduled for a early April release?


----------------------------------------------------------------------
Joe Granto                                      GLOCK@chip.cba.ufl.edu

"When the going gets tough, the tough get a GLOCK!"
	--Guns & Ammo
"Don't clock'em, GLOCK'em!"
	--Miami Dade police officer
----------------------------------------------------------------------

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 08:48:02 EST
From: Hard On The Beaver <jabussey@ualr.edu>
Message-Id: <00969AF2.7FF627C0.16199@ualr.edu>
Subject: Gus and X-Wing
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

| From: IN%"ultrasound@dsd.es.com"  "Ultrasound Daily Digest" 18-MAR-1993 01:52:18.22
| Subj: Ultrasound Daily Digest V2 #73

| Date: 17 Mar 1993 12:14:19 -0500 (EST)
| From: STU_JABIRCHE@VAX1.ACS.JMU.EDU
| Message-Id: <01GVWXD4T0EQ985J55@VAX1.ACS.JMU.EDU>
| Subject: X-Wing
| To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>
| 
| Phew! I thought it was just me. I sat down last night and tried every
| option I could think of, booted in several different configurations, tried
| several different autoexec and config.sys setups, and got not a peep from x-wing.
| Before I downloaded the new disks, I was happily playing x-wing with full sound
| and only a little slowdown when the tie-fighters screamed by. Now I get no
| slowdown at all because the thing sounds like a crypt! I guess I'll have to
| download sbos 1.4whateverthehellitwas again. :(
| 
| Also had to change my configuration to run the install. Something i had in
| memory was not liking gravis, so i just did it in flat mode.
| -=Marc=-

After installation of the new disks, my SBOS now loads at reboot. If I run
X-wing without trying to load SBOS again or without trying to remove and re
load it, X-wing works as before. Some of the sounds change but it does work.


Jacque Bussey

jabussey@ualr.edu

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 12:24:14 -0600 (CST)
From: "Neil D. Danylczuk" <ndd41@jester.usask.ca>
Message-Id: <Pine.3.04.9303181214.C8326-b100000@jester.usask.ca>
Subject: GUS in DOS Box
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

To "It's your hand, Buckaroo" and anyone else interested in using
the GUS through a Windows 3.1 DOS box:
 
I have experimented with this a little bit.  I have had NO success
using SBOS through Windows whatsoever.  Early version would load, but
not work, and sometimes my video would become corrupted.  Lots of
system lock ups too.  
 
BUT early version of GUSMOD played very nicely in a DOS box.  I
think version (approx.) 1.x, the first one with a graphical interface
played the best.  No slowdowns or anything.  GTSR was not so kind,
however.  It MAY have been my imagination, but running GUSMOD in a
disk box "SEEMED" to cause random lockups in Windows.  Following
this I would have lost chains or cross-linked files on my drive.
I am not sure if this was caused by GUSMOD directly, or by the
Windows lock-ups.  Needless to say, I stopped fiddling!  The 
version 2.x's of GUSMOD don't load into a DOS box for me, just
freeze the system.
 
 
I asked John Smith at Gravis about using SBOS through a DOS Window
and he said they have NO plans to ever support this.  He said they
don't know how, or even if they want to.  I believe PAS-16 supports
that feature, but I don't blame Gravis for not wanting to do it.
After all, it's dumb to play games and other packages that
require SBOS under Windows anyway.

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 16:32:56 -0800
From: Eric N. Liao <liaoe@aero.org>
Message-Id: <199303190032.AA12443@aerospace.aero.org>
Subject: GUS MIDI patches
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

One thing that would be nice... (for the MIDI patches)

How about making the MIDI patches stereo?  I don't mean directing them to the
left/right/middle(or somewhere in between)...I mean genuine stereo where two
channels are dedicated to each midi "instrument."

I know that would cut down the number of MIDI channels by a factor of 2, but
since most MIDI files don't need all 32 voices, I think it would be a great way
to improve sound quality a step further.  The stereo "spatial" imaging would
be much improved.  As for the amount of memory required to use these patches,
I guess 8-bit resolution will have to suffice.

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 08:39:41 EST
From: nemo@vnet.IBM.COM
Message-Id: <9303181342.AA17602@orca.es.com>
Subject: keyboard lockup upon boot
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>



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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 08:40:12 EST
From: nemo@vnet.IBM.COM
Message-Id: <9303181347.AA17669@orca.es.com>
Subject: keyboard lockup upon boot
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Hiya,
I've had a really annoying problem lately.  A lot of times, when I boot my
computer, the keyboard is dead - I can't even cntrl-alt-del it, I have to
reset it.  Sometimes it takes a few resets to get the keyboard working
again.  I believe this has to have something to do with the GUS, as I never
experienced it before.  And this happens almost 40% of the time!  It almost
always occurs after I have to cntrl-alt-del after a crash of the system.
And sometimes when I reset, I have the memory-parity error - I've heard this
error mentioned here a few times.  I'm using SBOS 1.22.  Anyone experience
similar problems and know how to remedy the situation?
Thanks in advance,
Nemo De Furia.

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 10:50:02 CST
From: Michael J Stumpf <mjs7529@tamsun.tamu.edu>
Message-Id: <9303181650.AA15392@tamsun.tamu.edu>
Subject: Misc topics
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I thought I saw what I believed to be the death of Ultrasound in the store
yesterday.  LUCKILY, I was wrong.  It was a card boasting the advantages of
wave table synthesis AND FM sound.. Too bad for ViVa (manufacturer of this
card) that the card has no memory...

John Smith:  The problem of recording time is solved, in "PLAYFILE" I found
an unlimited length of time recording function.  Just what I needed.

I suggest we make the OS/2 reflector into a digest.  It may be slow for a
while, but I believe that one mail message a day is a lot better than 4-5.

I suspect that odd directory found after running playmidi is a work directory
for playmidi.. Upon examination of the file I found a number of patch names.

Thanks to whoever uploaded the digests.

Mike

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 13:18:05 MST
From: ddebry@itchy (Dave DeBry)
Message-Id: <9303182018.AA10086@itchy>
Subject: More FAQ fodder (fwd)
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Forwarded message:
> From: pcunnell@micrognosis.co.uk
> 
> Dave,
> 
> I notice that in the current FAQ, there is a description (from Dustin
> Caldwell <DUSTIN@gse.utah.edu>) of the solder side pinout for a
> 15-pin D-type connector. This looks wrong to me. I have a 15-pin
> male d-type in from of me, and it looks like this from the
> solder side (i.e. the side you attach the wires to, rather than
> the side with the pins that plugs into the card):
> 
>                     Gnd             +5V
>          8   7   6   5   4   3   2   1
>  +-----/-------------------------------\-----+
>  |     \ o   o   o   o   o   o   o   o /     |
>  | ( )  \                             / ( )  |
>  |       \ o   o   o   o   o   o   o /       |
>  +--------\-------------------------/--------+
>            15  14  13  12  11  10  9
>      Rx          Tx
> 
> It is easy to get the pins confused on these connectors - the female
> version seen from the solder side of course has everything the other
> way around (pin 1 is on the left hand side).
> 
> Hope this helps (or at least doesn't add to the confusion :-). 
> All reasonable quality D-type connectors have pin numbers marked
> against the pins anyway.


-- 
Dave  ddebry@ debry@   \ "You wouldn't know a subtle plan if it
DeBry dsd.    peruvian. | painted itself purple and danced naked
	  es.     cs.utah.  | on a harpsichord singing "Subtle Plans
	  com     edu      /  Are Here Again."

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

Date: 18 Mar 1993 11:21:40 -0400 (EDT)
From: "KEVIN HOLLY....SSC BURKE SCIENCE LAB" <HOLLYK@SSCvax.CIS.McMaster.CA>
Message-Id: <01GVY9VIUZ3C9GW0UX@SSCVAX.CIS.MCMASTER.CA>
Subject: multiple midi devices
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Quick question for you midi GUS users......

Can I have more than one midi device in my computer at one time? And if so,
can the machine handle accesses to both at the same time?
I have a 486-33 w/ 128k cache and I want to run my GUS and a Music Maker card
at the same time (Music Maker is a Yamaha FB-01 on a card). Both would be 
accesses simultaneously by sequencing software.
Please tell me that this will work! :-)

Kevin Holly

hollyk@sscvax.cis.mcmaster.ca

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

Date: 18 Mar 1993 06:40:13 GMT
From: twong@civil.ubc.ca (Thomas Wong)
Message-Id: <1o95gdINNpkq@iskut.ucs.ubc.ca>
Subject: MUSIX141.ZIP on archive.epas.utoronto.ca
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I was just validating files on archive.epas.utoronto.ca and I came
across a file that's worth noting, musix141.zip. This program is called
Music Server and what it does is serves as a GUI for any sound player with
editable command line parameters, and file scroll list for selecting the
file to play. It's a simple idea, but is a useful utility regardless of
what soundcard you own for we all have DOS sound players that needs a
GUI for if nothing else than the ability to scroll through a list of files 
to select a file to play, instead of having to DIR and typing in the
filename everytime.

The ftp site is: archive.epas.utoronto.ca
The directory is: pub/pc/ultrasound/sound/misc

Thomas.

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

Date: Fri, 19 Mar 93 05:43:13 +0100
From: chief@lysator.liu.se
Message-Id: <9303190443.AA25875@ruben.lysator.liu.se>
Subject: New Set of disks - BIG problems.
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

 I got the new set of disks from epas the other day, eased them onto
the five 1.44 disks they now claim, and started to install. Everything
went smoothly, untill it was time for SETGUS.EXE. When the installation
tried to run it, the computer just locked. Tight.

 I had to do a cold boot to get it to work again. Then I tried to
do it manually (?), by running SETGUS.EXE from the ULTRASND dir.
Once again the computer just went dead. Cold boot.

 Trying to run ULTRINIT.EXE - the computer locks up.
Cold boot.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
A friend of mine borrowed the disks, and installed the whole set
without a problem. So, here's my question: Why me?

I have a 386DX-33 (no Opti), 4MB, GUS Card v1.22 w/1MB 70ns.
Everything worked fine with the 1.22 disks, and has worked
just fine with All earlier versions of SBOS. 1.20,22,23,4B2
and 4B3 (some trouble with B3 though with Alone In The Dark).
 
Also: I didn't erase my installation of the 1.22 disks, I
just renamed the directory and removed everything from my
Autoexec.bat and Config.sys files that had to do with the
GUS. (my friend did the same, and it worked for him).

I also tried with and without QEMM v6.02 (stealth mode).
But to no avail.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh, when running the GRAVUTIL.EXE, I get the message (when it
locates the card) that it detects a 'Could be' collision,
and that I should check the manual on what to do, although
the manual doesn't say anything about this, I tried to change
the IRQ-setting, but it didn't help at all.
 
And there has never been a collision before!

Last, I tried all the .EXE's in the ULTRASND directory.
Here's a list of which ones that DIDN'T work (they locked
up the computer):

SETGUS.EXE
ULTRAMOD.EXE
ULTRINIT.EXE

all the other ones works fine with the 1.22 installed GUS
(I can't use the 2.03 to insta|Kn+=v|ll the GUS
so, I used 1.22 just to test the .EXE files).
 
Now, if anyone could help me with this, I'd be the happiest
person alive. I want to use the new set of disks, and the
new SBOS!

Help!

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 18:42:00 PST
From: GUIA@bldghsc.lan1.umanitoba.ca
Message-Id: <2BA9354A@adminbldg.lan1.umanitoba.ca>
Subject: new software installation
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

i've just installed the new drivers disks available at the toronto ftp site 
gus0017 to 21....

the following are the questions that I have:

why did the windows part of the installation give me a share violation as it 
was finishing?

I expected to see a patch manager which would allow me to deffine the patch 
numbers and patch files

i read in the installation that software can use two different dma channels 
to simultaneously record and play-back, what exactly does this mean, can I 
play my keyboard and record the music, while someone else is playing a game 
which uses the GUS?

i have set up dma6 for record, and dma7 for playback, i have not tested it 
yet since i tried to upgrade the sb midi cable's opticoupler chip and messed 
it up instead, but when i get the cable going again, will i still be able to 
record through the midi port without any trouble while listening to the sound 
through the gus-synth simultaneously?

i still do not have any utilities which give me control over the wav or snd 
files...   i'd like any suggestions, i am particularly interested in some 
kind of offset feature since a few files which i have do not cross the zero 
voltage and when i start playing those there is a "pop" at the start and at 
the end of the sequence...   i would like to offset the file to have it start 
quietly and end quietly and only speak when spoken to...   

guia@bldghsc.lan1.umanitoba.ca

c:\dos;c:\dos\run;run\dos\run

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 11:53:52 -0500
From: "Robinhood -- Marshall Lai" <mtl1@crux2.cit.cornell.edu>
Message-Id: <9303181653.AA28234@crux2.cit.cornell.edu>
Subject: Noise in Line in Recording & Editor for stereo recordings?
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Two questions:
	Why am I getting noise when I record?  I've tried all the combinations
of frequency, mono and stereo and still got noise when I record from a CD
connected to line in using PlayFile.  I know it is not my cabling's fault
because when I enable the Line IN, the CD plays thru the GUS just fine!  No
noticeable noise whatsoever.  It is when I RECORD from it and plays back, there
are a lot of noise in the recording!  I don't think it is from the play back
mechanism also because I can play back other commercial sound files with little
or no noise at all.  Where is the problem?  How can I fix it?
	2) Also, while you are at it, can somebody recomend an editor that will
edit stereo sound files?
	Thanks for your attention.
								Marshall
	A somewhat satisfied GUS user.

PS. I've got all the new files and everything works out perfectly.  I think
I should mention that I have an OPTi 486-33 with EISA bus. 8M RAM.

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 09:27:28 PST
From: biggles@berlioz.nsc.com (Winston Worrell)
Message-Id: <9303181727.AA06766@berlioz.nsc.com>
Subject: Opti 8-it DMA
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

How do I set my Opti 496/33 into 8-bit DMA instead of 16-bit?

Thanks.

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

Date: 18 Mar 1993 15:57:16 -0500 (EST)
From: STU_JABIRCHE@VAX1.ACS.JMU.EDU
Message-Id: <01GVYJFHWW42985XVW@VAX1.ACS.JMU.EDU>
Subject: Problem #2
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I made a midi file in Cakewalk's 'staff edit' which works with all of my
windows stuff, including Cakewalk, Winjammer, two soundblaster jukeboxes, and
the media player. It also works with aaplay and a .fli. The problem is, when
i use playmidi from dos, the first two channels play perfectly all the way thru
and the third channel sustains the first note thru the entire song. I have
tried changing the instrument, but it still hangs and can't get past the first
note. It's the only midi file I have had problems with. I know it's not just
Cakewalk, because all of my other compositions work fine. I will upload the
file to epas if anyone is interested in investigating it. The file will be
'marcii.zip'.

-=Marc=-

p.s.-I am talking about the new playmidi in gus0017-gus0021.zips.

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 23:14:06 +0700 (MST)
From: Adam Cowen <cowen@ee.ualberta.ca>
Message-Id: <Pine.3.03.9303182306.A24746-b100000@bode.ee.ualberta.ca>
Subject: problems and praise
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Praise:
Zone 66 is GREAT! I urge everyone to get it! Thanks Renaissance! I will
definitely be buying the other 7 missions from you guys to support you. 
PS: Don't forget to get the gus music package part. It makes it even better.

Problems:
I d/l gus0017 -> gus0021.zip from epas, and I encountered no errors. Then
I tried the demos:
moddemo : ok
flidemo : ok
mididemo : aack For some reason my flute.pat bit it. I don't know why but
it is a staticy sound instead of an instrument. If I ignore channel 1 or
ignore channel information all is cool. Now I am wondering if there was
just a problem during the install, or what? I am the only person with this
problem??? Could someone possibly uuencode their flute.pat and mail it to
me, as I don't really want to re-install all of the software again.

Otherwise a much needed improvement allround. Although lets hope that the
manuals are a bit better done this time around. ie a LOT more descriptive
than the one I recieved initially. 

Thanks again for Zone 66, I look forward to more great games!

Adam Cowen
cowen@ee.ualberta.ca

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 22:47:01 PST
From: brian@ccnext.ucsf.edu (Brian Huddleston)
Message-Id: <9303190647.AA16344@ ccnext.ucsf.edu >
Subject: Question...
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Greetings and Salutations all...
	I just wanted to ask if there was a utility out there that could
Take a look at a MID file, then display what patch numbers it wants to play on what channels:  Channel 5: 0 (which is our equivilent of ACPIANO) etc.  
I want to be able to take a look at what is being called so I can set up a 
CFG file for certain instruments.  What would be nice, is if the utility could
create the CFG file for you, sortof like The SBOS batch file maker. (It lets you choose the options and then formats it right and then creates the .BAT file...
Oh well....
							brian@ccnext.ucsf.edu

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 05:18:45 -0400
From: Sheldon Whynott <whynott@ug.cs.dal.ca>
Message-Id: <93Mar18.051852ast.67@ug.cs.dal.ca>
Subject: SBOS 2.02
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I, as well could not get the new SBOS 2.02 Driver to work with X-Wing.  No soundwas produced from the card, unless X-Wing was configured for Adlib mode.

S. Whynott

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 09:19:57 EST
From: Marc Rouleau <mer6g@fuggles.acc.Virginia.EDU>
Message-Id: <9303181420.AA18029@orca.es.com>
Subject: SBOS 2.02 gotcha -- read for easy fix
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

The sbos.bat file which is distributed with the release two disks loads
one of the drivers high with lh.  This is clearly an oversight, since
that presumes that we're all running emm386.  On my 386max system I got
partial functionality -- I would hear "SBOS Installed", and some games
would play music, but I would never hear digital sounds.  When I took
out the lh, they all started working again.

Note that this did *not* fix the horrible Windows problems I described
in yesterday's digest.

	-- Marc Rouleau

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 03:06:42 -0500
From: chris@judy.indstate.edu (Chris Hanna)
Message-Id: <9303180806.AA11522@judy.indstate.edu>
Subject: Simple Question, Simple Solution?
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

I got my GUS yesterday, sounds terrific.  Just joined the list. Strangly
enough Gravis decided they would ship disk 6 on disk 6 AND disk 3. ouch.
But I got ahold of the zip from the epas ftp site and all is ok.

My question is: is there any kind of volume control on the Native GUS mode?
I know there is a volume control on the SBOS emulator, but can't seem to
locate how to control the volume of, say, PLAYMIDI.  I run from stereo
output jack, through y-converter, directly to speakers.  Other than buying
a cable to route the whole thing thru my stereo is there any option or
shareware program that controls the GUS's Native mode volume?  

Again, if this is a question answered many times before, or in the FAQ,
forgive my ignorance.  All bugs aside it's a damn fine card for the price
(anyone else think the card seems.. a bit big?)

Later,
   Chris

chris@judy.indstate.edu

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 8:04:06 CST
From: ibmpa!hartmann.austin.ibm.com!lance@ibminet.awdpa.ibm.com (Lance Hartmann)
Message-Id: <9303181404.AA16278@hartmann.austin.ibm.com>
Subject: To Install or Not To Install 17-21?
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Well, the subject about says it.  I've gotten the 17-21 disks via ftp
from epas and I'm left still trying to decide whether or not I should
run the install.

While I've read that "most" people seem to speak highly of the quality
of the new patches, I do have concerns regarding some of the system crashes
(under Windows) about which I read.  I'm curious if perhaps maybe the
problems have something to do with removing old software.  I cannot
remember the EXACT file, but I do recall seeing a comment about removing
ALL your old software before installing the new.  Of course this is a
snap with the \ULTRASND directory, but what about the "stuff" that gets
installed for Windows?  Are there files in the \WINDOWS directory (and
sub-dirs) which need to be purged?  What about modifications to *.INI
files?

To address SBOS, it seems from my reading thus far (though I have lost
a couple of digests) that people are still split on the issue
of 1.4b3 (or some even at 1.20) versus the new v2.x.  One can fairly
easily experiment with these as this involves little more than
renaming directories and such to switch between various versions.

So, I guess my main concern is Windows.

Comments -- PLEASE!!!

Lance Hartmann (lance%hartmann.austin.ibm.com@ibmpa.awdpa.ibm.com)
			   Yes, that IS a '%' (percent sign) in my network address.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All statements, comments, opinions, etc. herein reflect those of the author
and shall NOT be misconstrued as those of IBM or anyone else for that matter.

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 13:42:04 MST
From: ddebry@itchy (Dave DeBry)
Message-Id: <9303182042.AA12988@itchy>
Subject: Ultrasound Daily Digest V2 #73
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

So speaks Richard Wyckoff:

>   OK - I'm going to have to get pedantic for a second here -
> ceasing to e-mail these companies is an OVERREACTION - and is also
> symptomatic of the refusal to take e-mail seriously.  Why are these
> companies pissed off?  The e-mail addresses I have sent messages to
> have been *customer service*, be it on Compuserve or Genie - NOT tech,
> but the approved e-mail addresses.

	It's a step in the right direction to mail customer service
instead of tech support, you're right.  The problem is that you're
dealing with a corporation.  Business have one goal: make money.  The
weird part is that the only people in the company who care if the
company makes money or not are the management folk.  (This is an
over-simplification, granted, but it has a lot of truth in it.)
Management, as a result, makes the decisions about where their
products should go in the market.

	Customer service is a lot like tech support: in either case,
the company already has your money for the product.  Management wants
to sell more of their product, so they are more likely to adapt the
product to fit the needs of the people who haven't bought it yet
(provided the market is big enough).

> These are people who are being
> paid to DEAL WITH CUSTOMERS - and they are pissed off?  

	If you get asked the same question over and over and over by
several different sources, you're going to get annoyed no matter how
innocuous the question, especially if you have no control over the
outcome.  (A good example: An annoying two or three-year-old asking
"Why?" repeatedly.)

	It's even worse when customer support has to answer questions
concerning topics that they don't know about.  Customer support can't
write the code, customer support doesn't have the slightest idea about
the bookkeeping of the company.  They help people understand the
cryptic manuals.

	I'm sorry if this sounds like a flame; it's not, honestly.
But if the GUS is to get widened support, it's important that we don't
step on anyone's toes.

-- 
Dave  ddebry@ debry@   \  "Time to get me out of the test because his
DeBry dsd.    peruvian. |  response was: 'Hi, yes, I need a pound of
	  es.     cs.utah.  |  potatoes, please.'"
	  com     edu      /

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 12:44:06 -0600 (CST)
From: "Neil D. Danylczuk" <ndd41@jester.usask.ca>
Message-Id: <Pine.3.04.9303181206.E8326-c100000@jester.usask.ca>
Subject: X-wing & SBOS 2.02
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

My experience with X-wing and SBOS 2.02 was identical to both of
yours.  I tried every possible configuration to no avail.
X-wing takes a few extra seconds to start, then plays with no
sound driver.  You can confirm this by pressing ALT-V, which gives
you the memory, sound, and version # info.
Switching back to SBOS 1.4B3 made it work again.

So for me the solution is to do the following:

Make copies of the 3 unique SBOS files, with the version number
as the extension.  Example:
SBOSLIB.SYS ----> call it SBOSLIB.143
LOADSBOS.EXE ---> call it LOADSBOS.143
SBOSDRV.EXE ----> call it SBOSDRV.143

Then, make a batch file called 143.BAT.
It should contain the lines to copy version 1.4B3 to the ultrasnd
and ultrasnd\sbos directories.  The batch file (143.BAT) just copies
the .143 files to the 2 directories.  Here is my 143.BAT:

copy d:\ultrasnd\sbos\loadsbos.143 d:\ultrasnd\sbos\loadsbos.exe
copy d:\ultrasnd\sbos\loadsbos.143 d:\ultrasnd\loadsbos.exe
copy d:\ultrasnd\sbos\sboslib.143 d:\ultrasnd\sbos\sboslib.sbs
copy d:\ultrasnd\sbos\sbosdrv.143 d:\ultrasnd\sbos\sbosdrv.exe
copy d:\ultrasnd\sbos\sbosdrv.143 d:\ultrasnd\sbosdrv.exe


NOTE: The sound library only needs to go in one directory, but the
executables go in both directories.

I have the identical setup for SBOS 202.BAT, etc.

Now, when I want a certain version of SBOS, I can get it with a
few keystrokes.

PROBLEMS with this idea:  It wastes disk space having 3 copies
of SBOS at once.  (1 copy of v2.02 files, 1 copy of v1.4B3 files,
plus 1 copy of SBOS that you are currently using)
A better batch file could be made to simply rename the files,
and to check to see which SBOS you have currently installed,
so as not to rename files when it's not necessary.  This could
be done with an IF EXIST and using a file to flag which version
is currently setup.


I have a feeling most people know how to do this already, but I
decided to spell it out very simply in case any novices read
this message.

---------------
The bottom line:
---------------

MANY people are confirming that SBOS 2.02 is not working with
X-wing on their system.  I have seen it work fine for some people
however.  When it first happened to me I thought, "Oh great, my
system doesn't work with the final release drivers!  It will be
impossible to get help, since I'll be a lonely voice in the
wilderness."  So, although I wish your system was working
properly, I guess I'm glad I'm not alone on this one.
Misery loves company!

PS:  Same story with "The Incredible Machine", so this is not
	 just a problem with Lucas programs!

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 93 1:22:28 EST
From: fcass@trashbin.MV.COM (Fred Cass)
Message-Id: <9303180122.AA11488@trashbin.mv.com>
Subject: Zone 66
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

This message is to Tran of Rennisance if you happen to be reading the newsletter

Zone 66 is an inredibly awesome game!  I've been playing games for a very long
time, and Zone 66 is by far the best arcade style game I have ever played!
The Gravis Ultrasound music and effects are incredible!  I'm sure that if 
someone didn't own a GUS and played your game, they would be convinced, and run
to the nearest store to find one!  Keep up the good work!


	Also, I was wondering if anyone has Borland Turbo Pascal source code
for programming the GUS.  I've seen the GUSUNIT.ZIP file, and that really 
doesn't help me too much.  I basically just need to know how to read a .snd
file into GUS Dram and be able to play it (for game sound effects!).  If anyone 
can help me out, I would be grateful!

	Thanks, and happy GUSSING!
		-=Fred Cass=-
		fcass@trashbin.mv.com

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

Date: Thu, 18 Mar 1993 16:35:51 -0800
From: Eric N. Liao <liaoe@aero.org>
Message-Id: <199303190035.AA12500@aerospace.aero.org>
Subject: Zone 66 (for GUS)
To: Ultrasound Daily Digest <ultrasound@dsd.es.com>

Well, I tried Zone 66, and the GUS support is great!  Explosions on the left
of the screen come from the left speaker!  Sounds in the middle come out from
the middle!  Better than SC2 in this respect.

However, I'd like to be able to control the time scale of the game.  The game
on its default speed setting is rather "jerky."  I put Z66 on its maximum
speed, so its screen-refresh rate is much smoother, but then the action goes
too fast!

How about a way to maintain this high refresh rate...while keeping the pace of
the game "regular speed"?  Josh?  Anyone?  I'm not a programmer, but I'm sure
that it couldn't be hard to do.  Just decrease the amount of "movement"
between each screen refresh.

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

End of Ultrasound Daily Digest V2 #74
******************************
