Two Issues about the AWE32

[Great Hierophant]

I have a CT-2760, rev.3 I think.

One: How can a DOS game use a waveblaster daughterboard or an external midi device connected through the gameport?  How do you configure the IRQ/DMA settings (you configure the I/O via jumpers)?  What are the necessary programs/drivers/lines in autoexec.bat?  Does this require the hated AWEUTIL?

Second: How do games detect the AWE32 as compared to the '16?  Is it by writing to the EMU8000 chip or by some method that does not involve the EMU8000?  The early AWEs share many of the chips with the '16 CT-1740, such as the CT-1745 Mixer, CT-1748 ASP or CSP, CT-1741 DSP and CT-1701 Codec.  The '16 has the Yamaha YM-262 OPL3,YM-512 OPL DAC and CT-1746 Bus Controller and the AWE32 CT-2760 has the CT-1747 OPL/Bus Controller, CT-1971 EMU8000, CT-1972 EMU DSP and CT-1707 Mitsumi CD-ROM Controller.  I wonder if the '16 + Goldfinch is a seamless replacement for the AWE32.  While it takes up two ISA slots and extra mixing, it doesn't need full length slots or AWEUTIL or the crappy later DSPs. 

[NewRisingSUn]

That's more than two issues...

How can a DOS game use a waveblaster daughterboard or an external midi device connected through the gameport?

Same way it works on the SB16 --- MPU-401 or DSP MIDI commands.

How do you configure the IRQ/DMA settings (you configure the I/O via jumpers)?

SBCONFIG.EXE/DIAGNOSE.EXE takes them from the BLASTER environment variable and writes them to mixer registers 81h/82h.

Does this require the hated AWEUTIL?

AWEUTIL initializes the Emu8000 chip to play back FM data (/S option), and if made resident, catches MPU-401 writes and translates them to appropriate Emu8000 writes.

How do games detect the AWE32 as compared to the '16?

If they want the AWE32's Emu capabilities, they'll look for the Emu chip. Otherwise, they won't distinguish between AWE32 and SB16 and just look at the DSP version number (>=4.00).

[5u3]

I have a CT-2760, rev.3 I think.

Is this your card? I heard about early AWE32 models which don't have a full set of jumpers anymore, but are not PnP cards either. This seems to be one of them.

One: How can a DOS game use a waveblaster daughterboard or an external midi device connected through the gameport?  How do you configure the IRQ/DMA settings (you configure the I/O via jumpers)?  What are the necessary programs/drivers/lines in autoexec.bat?  Does this require the hated AWEUTIL?

Just set the MIDI I/O with the configuration program (which you hopefully have), remove the MFBEN jumper (this turns off the MPU401 emulation for the internal EMU8K synth), connect your external devices or DB cards, and off you go... The AWEUTIL TSR is not required, but resetting the card with AWEUTIL /S might be a good idea. Creative's MIDI port doesn't have a separate IRQ setting, and even a real MPU401 doesn't need a DMA channel, so just specifying the I/O address in games is enough. If a game asks for a MIDI IRQ, take the one you configured for the SB16. Some games do not work correctly with the AWE32 MIDI interface, but this is the same with all SB cards.

Second: How do games detect the AWE32 as compared to the '16?  Is it by writing to the EMU8000 chip or by some method that does not involve the EMU8000?

I don't think many games try to detect AWE cards automatically. Some of them read the BLASTER environment variable, which includes the EMU8K port address (Exxx), but most require the AWE synth to be set manually in the sound setup program, otherwise default to the FM synth.

[edit] Damn, too slow ;-)

[Great Hierophant]

Is this your card? I heard about early AWE32 models which don't have a full set of jumpers anymore, but are not PnP cards either. This seems to be one of them.

Yes, that is my card.  The Mitsumi interface uses an extra IRQ and DMA, so I would want to make sure that it is disabled.  I would also like the option to enable it as well.

Just set the MIDI I/O with the configuration program (which you hopefully have), remove the MFBEN jumper (this turns off the MPU401 emulation for the internal EMU8K synth), connect your external devices or DB cards, and off you go... The AWEUTIL TSR is not required, but resetting the card with AWEUTIL /S might be a good idea. Creative's MIDI port doesn't have a separate IRQ setting, and even a real MPU401 doesn't need a DMA channel, so just specifying the I/O address in games is enough. If a game asks for a MIDI IRQ, take the one you configured for the SB16. Some games do not work correctly with the AWE32 MIDI interface, but this is the same with all SB cards.

The midi I/O port is not configurable in software on any CT-2760, the MSEL jumper sets it to either 330 or 300.  I think it may simply be a case of removing the MFBEN jumper.  If so, then it should work just like an SB 16.  I assume to change the normal IRQ and DMAs, you have to use the Creative PnP Configuration Utility in DOS/Win 3.1.  I wonder if I can change them permanently using Windows 98se Device Manager. 

I don't think many games try to detect AWE cards automatically. Some of them read the BLASTER environment variable, which includes the EMU8K port address (Exxx), but most require the AWE synth to be set manually in the sound setup program, otherwise default to the FM synth.

The whole thing sounds a real pain in the ass.  I think I will settle for the Goldfinch upgrade, which eliminates all this partial PnP nonsense.  I am growing to hate full-length sound cards. 

[dvwjr]

Second: How do games detect the AWE32 as compared to the '16?  Is it by writing to the EMU8000 chip or by some method that does not involve the EMU8000?

Before Vince Vu reverse-engineered the AWE32 control registers to produce the first un-official EMU8000 documentation in September 1995, I believe that programmers just read the BLASTER= environment variable to get the E6x0 EMU-8000 address for PnP AWE32 models.  If a non-PnP AWE32 was used then the EMU-8000 address was determined by determining the BLASTER=A2x0 address and then adding 0x400.  In both cases the programmer just prayed it was correct.

In 1996 Creative Labs finally release their documentation for the AWE32/EMU8000 Programmer's Guide in PDF format.  However, by that time most programmers had standardized on the below method created by Vince Vu - even the Miles AIL3 sound-drivers used in so many DOS games was among those whose AWE32/64 driver code  (contained in the SBAWE32.MDI file) also used the exact same AWE32 detection code (albeit in hand-coded assembler) as the C code listed below.

Code:

for baseport: 0x620, 0x640, 0x660, 0x680

int awe32Detect(unsigned baseport) {

        int scratch;

        outpw(0xc02+baseport, 224);     //Select index 224 by writing to 0xe22
        inpw(0xc00+baseport);           //Read from port 0xe20
        scratch = inpw(0xc00+baseport); //Read from port 0xe20 again

        if((scratch&0xf) != 0xc)
                return 1;               //Not detected

        outpw(0xc02+baseport, 51);      //Select index 51 (base index 32,
                                        //oscillator 29)
        scratch = inpw(0x800+baseport); //Read from port 0xa20

        if((scratch&0x7e) != 0x58)
                return 1;               //Not detected

        outpw(0xc02+baseport, 52);      //Select index 52 (base index 32,
                                        //oscillator 30)
        scratch = inpw(0x800+baseport); //Read from port 0xa20

        if((scratch&0x03) != 0x03)
                return  1;              //Not detected

        return 0;                       //Woo-hoo! Detected!

}

I wonder if the '16 + Goldfinch is a seamless replacement for the AWE32.

Seems to be on my Dell GxPro Optiplex with the Vibra 16C and CT1920 Goldfinch.  Only uses one ISA slot since the Vibra 16C is on the Dell motherboard.  Also, the OPL3 FM does not route through the EMU-8000 on the Goldfinch.  Of course the Goldfinch models are PnP so the Creative CTCU utility must be used, however the nice thing is that the DOS environment varible BLASTER= is programmatically determined and written with no user intervention if CTCU.EXE /S is a line in the Autoexec.bat file...


dvwjr

[5u3]

The midi I/O port is not configurable in software on any CT-2760, the MSEL jumper sets it to either 330 or 300.

Ah, now I see it, the MSEL jumper is in a strange location on this model

I assume to change the normal IRQ and DMAs, you have to use the Creative PnP Configuration Utility in DOS/Win 3.1.  I wonder if I can change them permanently using Windows 98se Device Manager.

No, your card doesn't seem to have any PnP functionality, so the resources have to be set through Creative's SBCONFIG.EXE/DIAGNOSE.EXE utilities, as NewRisingSun mentioned. 3rd party programs like .\\aster .\\ixer can do this as well. Anyways, this only takes two lines in AUTOEXEC.BAT:
1) Set the desired resources in the BLASTER variable: e.g.: SET BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 H5 P330 E620 T6
2) Call the configuration utility to initialise the card.

Setting the resources with the Windows device manager only works for both OS if you have a PnP card AND make CTCM use the CTPNP.CFG file located in the Windows directory.

Actually the SB PnP cards are nice to use compared to other soundcards of that area 

@dvwjr: Nice bit of background info on the AWE32 detection!

[Great Hierophant]

I note that the AWE32 Upgrade (Goldfinch) card has some slight software differences from a real AWE32, as I quote from Creative's FAQ:

14.  Will SB AWE32 software work with the AWE32 UPGRADE?

     The SB AWE32 software package consists of SB16 and AWE32 software.
     Since AWE32 UPGRADE has only the AWE32 synthesizer, only AWE32
     synthesizer software will work with the AWE32 UPGRADE.

     However, some of the SB AWE32 synthesizer software may not work
     with AWE32 UPGRADE, There are:

     A. The AWEUTIL.COM for the SB AWE32 uses a different approach
   to implement MPU401 MIDI Emulation feature than AWE32 UPGRADE's
   AWEUTIL.EXE

     B. The DIAGNOSE.EXE for SB AWE32 cannot be used on AWE32
   UPGRADE. For AWE32 UPGRADE, use AWEDIAG.EXE instead.

   NOTE: Although DIAGNOSE cannot be used on the AWE32
         UPGRADE, it can be used to test the SB card
         that AWE32 UPGRADE may be instaled with.

         DIAGNOSE may modify the BLASTER string if there are
         changes to the hardware settings OR if you run
         DIAGNOSE with a command line option /S. You are
         advised to run AWEDIAG after running DIAGNOSE, this
         is to setup/modify the BLASTER string which is
         recognizable by the AWE32 UPGRADE's software.

The Upgrade is not meant for connecting to standard '16, its meant for the Vibra cards.  So maybe these changes reflect differences in implementation between the 16 and Vibra 16s. 

So, the EMU8000 cannot process OPL3 music with the Upgrade.  Also, the Upgrade does not seem to have an S/PDIF connector. 

[dvwjr]

{Message part 1/3}

So, the EMU8000 cannot process OPL3 music with the Upgrade.  Also, the Upgrade does not seem to have an S/PDIF connector.

As to the OPL3 music not being routed to the EMU-8000 - at least you get back two EMU-8000 voices so that a full 32 voices are available.  It is probable that nothing was ever programmed that used more than 30 out of the 32 potential voices.  The 32 voices are only possible for audio which only utilizes the EMU-8011 one megabyte waveROM samples.  If the DRAM slots are populated and utilized, then 2 of the 32 oscillators are dedicated to the DRAM refresh process.  So it seems that 30 voices is really a maximum in the real world.

As to a S/PDIF connector, it depends on the AWE32 Upgrade model.  Here were the five models of the "Goldfinch"  that were evidently produced by Creative at some point in time...


Creative AWE32 Upgrade card: CT-192x series


AWE Upgrade model numbers:       (Goldfinch)
============================
CT-1920 = SB 16 AWE32 PNP         UPG  Goldfinch 8-pin
CT-1921 = SB 16 AWE32 PNP         UPG  Goldfinch 8-pin
CT-1922 = SB 16 AWE32 PNP         UPG  Goldfinch 8-pin & S/PDIF Jack
CT-1923 = SB 16 AWE32 PNP         UPG  Goldfinch 8-pin
CT-1924 = SB 16 AWE32 PNP         UPG  Goldfinch 8-pin & RCA Audio Jack


Immediately below is a picture of what the CT-1920 AWE Upgrade card that Dell was shipping to its customers.  Dell refers to their OEM version as a 'CT-1922'  even though the Creative Labs silk-screened card model number is CT-1920.  This is the AWE32 Upgrade version that I purchased from Dell back in 1997 to go with the GxPro's Vibra-16S.  Visible on the right-side near the metal ISA card bracket is the 8-pin "Goldfinch"  audio connector, also visible are the unimplemented circuit-board provisions for both analog RCA Audio and digital S/PDIF out connectors.  Incomplete information seems to indicate that the CT-1922 model had an external S/PDIF connector actually implemented, while the CT-1924 had an external RCA audio connector installed.  It appears from documentation that the S/N ratio was around 80dB for both the analog 'Goldfinch'  and the analog RCA audio connectors.  No information was found on the S/N ratio of the digital S/PDIF out connector.

The Creative CT-1920
Advanced Wavetable Upgrade

The following three diagrams from the CT-1920 Advanced Wavetable Upgrade manual reinforce the fact that some models of the CT-192x line did have analog RCA Audio and digital S/PDIF connectors implemented.

AWE Upgrade manual
#1

AWE Upgrade manual
#2

AWE Upgrade manual
#3

The Upgrade is not meant for connecting to standard '16, its meant for the Vibra cards.  So maybe these changes reflect differences in implementation between the 16 and Vibra 16s. 

The difference in the initial AWEUTIL.EXE utility for the CT-192x AWE32 Upgrade vs the AWEUTIL.COM utility for regular SB-32/AWE32/AWE64 was due to the fact that the algorithm for the detection of the base port for the EMU-8000 was different due to the PnP nature of the CT-192x.  The functionality of the AWEUTIL.EXE utility was transferred to the AWEUTIL.COM utility in later releases so that there was no more need for the older AWEUTIL.EXE utility. The typical SB32/AWE32/AWE64 was configured so that the base Sound Blaster I/O port address plus 0x400 would be the EMU-8000 I/O port base address.  The PnP nature of the CT-192x AWE32 Upgrade would allow the EMU-8000 I/O port base address to be located at 0x620, 0x640, 0x660 or 0x680 - independent of the Sound Blaster base I/O port address.  The later versions of AWEUTIL.COM and DIAGNOSE.EXE both recognize this possibility and will function properly with the EMU-8000 base I/O port address not being exactly 0x400 above the Sound Blaster base I/O port address.  However, most DOS applications and 3rd-party sound-card drivers written to support the SB32/AWE32/AWE64 will fail to support the CT-192x AWE32 Upgrade unless the EMU-8000 base I/O port PnP configuration follows the "SB base I/O port + 0x400"  rule.  The AWEUTIL.COM v1.36 and DIAGNOSE.EXE v4.05 support the CT-192x AWE32 Upgrade card, therefore deprecating both AWEUTIL.EXE and AWEDIAG.EXE completely.



Possible SB16/AWE Hardware ISA PnP settings:
=================================================
Interrupt (IRQ)      : 2, 5, 7, 10
8-bit DMA Channel    : 0, 1, 3
16-bit DMA Channel   : 5, 6, 7
Joystick I/O Address : 0x200
Audio I/O Address    : 0x220, 0x240, 0x260, 0x280
MPU-401 I/O Address  : 0x300, 0x330
FM AdLib I/O Address : 0x388
EMU8000 I/O Address  : {0x620, 0xA20, 0xE20};
                       {0x640, 0xA40, 0xE40};
                       {0x660, 0xA60, 0xE60};
                       {0x680, 0xA80, 0xE80}.


I also do not believe that the CT-192x "Goldfinch"  was designed to connect exclusively just to Vibra-16 cards or select SB-16 cards, although they were marketed that way...  The 'Goldfinch'  8-pin audio connector was, of course intended to connect to a compatible OEM motherboard 'Goldfinch'  wave audio input connector.  The fact that a particular motherboard or OEM sound-card might have the actual SB-16 chipset, or the Vibra-16 (CT2501), or the Vibra- 16S (CT2504), or the Vibra-16C (CT2505), or the Vibra-16XV (CT2511)  or a line-in trace to whatever motherboard audio is present would not matter.  The CT-192x 'Goldfinch'  could be used in a stand-alone fashion if the audio or S/PDIF connectors were present (or added)  on the AWE32 upgrade card.

If an ISA CT-192x AWE Upgrade card appears to have its Emu-8000 synth output available only via its proprietary 'Gold_Finch'  analog audio connector, do not give up hope. While these Sound-Blaster cards might not have the corresponding proprietary 'Gold_Finch'  8-pin header, they may still receive the synth output of the AWE32 Upgrade Emu-8000 from the CT-192x PnP-ISA card by way of a CD or AUX audio-in connector. An adapter patch cable can be constructed so that most Sound Blaster models (from the Sound Blaster 2.0 model with the SB2CD upgrade, upwards) that have an analog CD-in connector will function when paired with the CT-192x AWE Upgrade card.  This dual ISA card configuration yields the functional equivalent of an Sound Blaster AWE32, with some additional advantages.

More detailed instructions on that adapter patch cable construction below...



Sound Blaster 16/AWE32 Basics:

Here is a block diagram of the Creative Sound Blaster 16 model hardware implementation:

Sound Blaster 16 LSI block diagram

Source: Sound Blaster Series Hardware Programming Guide Chapter 1-9, PDF page #22/141.


Here is a block diagram of the Creative Sound Blaster AWE32 model hardware implementation:

Functional Block Diagram of Sound Blaster AWE32

Source: Developer's Information Pack version 3.01, Page 1-9, PDF page #10/110.


The above block diagram illustrates the typical SB-16 or SB AWE32 manufactured from the various Creative LSI ASICs and 3rd-party components.  The 8/16-bit AD/DA section originally used a Creative CT1701 LSI ASIC, which was eventually replaced by the 16/16-bit Creative CT1703 LSI ASIC.  The "FM or Music Synthesizer"  block was usually composed of the Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3 and YAC-512-M DAC components which defined the original OPL3 "sound" of the SB-16.  Creative eventually replaced the Yamaha components with the CT1747 CQM LSI ASIC or included the CT1747 CQM "OPL" functionality in the CT2501, CT2502, CT2505, CT2511, CT8903 and CT8920 VLSI ASICs. Below is a partial table of the Creative (V)LSI ASICs and their supposed functions.


Creative (V)LSI     Function
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
CT1701              8/16-bit ADC/DAC Codec
CT1703              16-bit ADC/DAC Codec
CT1741              DSP
CT1745              Analog Mixer
CT1746              ISA Bus interface
CT1747              E-mu CQM OPL3 replacement
CT1748              ASP (CSP)
CT1749              VLSI: CT1741+CT1746+CT1747
CT1971              EMU-8000 processor
CT1972              EMU-8011 (1 MB Mask waveROM)
CT1978              Binaura 3-D Audio
CT2501              VLSI: ViBRA-16     = CT1703+CT1741+CT1745+CT1746
CT2502              VLSI: ViBRA-16 Pro = CT1703+CT1741+CT1745+CT1746+CT1747
CT2504              VLSI: ViBRA-16S    = CT1703+CT1741+CT1745+CT1746
CT2505              VLSI: ViBRA-16C    = CT1703+CT1741+CT1745+CT1746+CT1747
CT2511              VLSI: ViBRA-16XV   = CT1703+CT1741+CT1745+CT1746+CT1747
CT8903              VLSI: CT1971+CT1978+ CT1703+CT1741+       CT1746+CT1747
CT8908              VLSI: S/PDIF digital output
CT8920              VLSI: CT1971+CT1978+ CT1703+CT1741+CT1745+CT1746+CT1747




Sound Blaster "ViBRA"  CT25xx series VLSI ASIC overview:

The Creative "Vibra 16"  line of VLSI ASIC packages appeared to have started with the CT2501, intended as a replacement for the proto-typical Sound Blaster 16 CT1745/CT1746/CT1741/CT1748/CT1703 LSI plus combination.  This first "Vibra"  design iteration sacrificed its equivalent to the CT1745-A Mixer analog bass, treble and gain controls but did gain a S/N ratio of around 82dB vs the CT1745-A S/N ratio of 75dB.  The CT2501 VLSI was used in the original SB Vibra-16 cards and the original SB-32 non-PnP retail cards.  The Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3 and Yamaha YAC-512-M DACs components were still used in the FM Synthesis section of the original Vibra-16 based sound-cards. Typical S/N ratio was around 80dB, with the released DSP is the 4.13 version.


The original CT2501 VLSI ASIC based Vibra-16 was followed by the Creative CT2502 VLSI ASIC (containing licensed tech from arch-rival Crystal Semiconductor) - which gained back the analog Mixer bass, treble and gain controls and had an even better S/N ratio (85 dB)  than any of the follow-on CT1745-S or CT1745-T LSI Creative mixer designs.  It was used in some SB-32 PnP model CT-3600 (retail), in the all SB-32 CT-3604 (OEM)  made for Micron and finally in the CT-3671 model sound cards.  The CT2502 VLSI ASIC based Sound Blaster cards are now considered to have been the 'cleanest'  implementation of the Sound Blaster hardware standard ever used by Creative ISA sound-card products, with a S/N ratio about 12-15dB better than the older SB-16 CT1745-A LSI based combo. The CT2502 VLSI based versions of the Creative CT-3600 and CT-3604 Sound Blasters led the Creative ISA Sound Blaster pack in S/N ratio.  After a limited run of the CT2502 VLSI based sound cards, Creative used the royalty-free home-grown CT1745-T revision LSI instead in many of the other CT-3600 models and OEM versions CT-3601, CT-3602 and CT-3603. These Creative CT-360x model sound-cards were produced with the same Creative CT1745-T LSI mixer as was the later AWE64 Gold. The downside of the CT2502 VLSI package?  No use of the SB Pro 2 or SB-16 standard Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3 or YAC-512-M DAC chips.  Instead of the previous Sound Blaster standard Yamaha OPL3 FM synthesis, Creative substituted the E-mu designed CT1747 CQM quadratic modulation LSI, which was intended to be a replacement for the previous Sound Blaster standard Yamaha provided OPL3. Therefore the CT2502 VLSI package integrated the "OPL functionality"  of the Creative home-grown CT1747 CQM LSI package. The genuine Yamaha OPL3 used a 256-point look-up table per quarter of the sine waveform, producing a better waveform than does the mathematical approximation of the Creative/E-mu designed CT1747 CQM LSI replacement for the Yamaha OPL3, which had previously defined the ISA Sound Blaster cards FM synthesis. The released DSP is the 4.13 version.


The Vibra-16S was the next design iteration based on the (CT2504)  VLSI ASIC, which gave up the analog Mixer bass and treble controls but had a better or equal S/N ratio of around 80dB as compared to the CT1745-A, CT1745-S or CT1745-T used on the SB-16, SB-16 PnP and AWE-64 respectively.  While its S/N ratio was not as high as the preceding limited-run CT2502 VLSI, it did reduce OEM costs by encompassing many of the other separate Creative Labs LSI chips used on a real SB-16, excepting the all-important Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3. The fact that the VLSI ASIC transistor budget of the CT2504 OEM product did not allow for the integration of the Creative 1747 CQM functionality luckily required OEMs to use the genuine Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3 and Yamaha YAC-512-M DACs in their motherboard and OEM Vibra-16S designs manufactured by Creative Labs.  The next iteration of the Creative Vibra VLSI line would eliminate the need for the Yamaha produced OPL3 and DACs completely.  So the CT2504 based Vibra-16S looks like a happy accident in the cost-reducing Creative drive of the mid 1990s. DSP is typically the 4.13 version.

Added White, "It is important to understand that while we have created the chip to include all of the Sound Blaster technology, mother boards will have to use in addition, the Yamaha OPL 2 or OPL 3 chip as well."

Volume pricing is not yet available, but Creative maintains that the technology will provide an "economical audio solution," while offering the highest sound technology.

The company also claims that the Vibra 16 is the only chip "solution" available that provides 100 percent software compatibility with the Sound Blaster 16 audio standard.

Source: Creative Labs offers sound chip technology Newbytes New Network, Patrick McKenna, April 14, 1994.



The Vibra-16C (CT2505)  was the cost-reducing, even more "integrated"  OEM version of the earlier Vibra-16S chipset, used extensively by OEM motherboard makers to replace the previous Vibra-16S VLSI. The Vibra-16C (CT2505)  VLSI package went even further than the Vibra-16S (CT2504)  design by eliminating the need for the separate Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3, and Yamaha YAC-512-M DACs for FM Synthesis audio output. So the Vibra-16C is the custom VLSI OEM package which for the first time included the functionality of the Creative/E-mu CT1747 CQM LSI which was intended as a Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3 replacement - it was the Creative 'custom'  integrated FM synthesizer. Ah, the Creative cheapness rears its head - it does not use a true Yamaha YMF-262-M for the FM synthesis. No more paying Yamaha... So the only Vibra VLSI package which retained the true Yamaha OPL3 sound was the Vibra-16S CT2504 VLSI for OEMs and OEM sound cards. Typical S/N ratio of around 80dB, while the DSP is typically the 4.16 version.


The Vibra-16XV (CT2511)  was a further cost-reduced VLSI design which appears to implement only two 8-bit DMA channels instead of the previous one 8-bit DMA and one 16-bit DMA channel. The Vibra-16XV (CT2511)  was used in the CT-4170, CT-4171, CT-4173 Vibra based WavEffects models and returns a DSP v4.16 value, with the typical S/N ratio of around 80dB.  A real winner here... 

Continued in next message posting...
dvwjr

edit: relinked missing image files

[dvwjr]

{Message part 2/3}

Creative Sound Blaster sound cards based on the ViBRA VLSI ASICs

Selected Creative ViBRA VLSI ASIC sound cards:

CT2501 VLSI ASIC based models:

Creative OEM CT-2260 ViBRA-16



Creative CT-3930 SB-32

CT2502 VLSI ASIC based models:

Creative OEM CT-2940 ViBRA-16 Pro



Creative OEM CT-3600 SB-32

CT2504 VLSI ASIC based models:

Creative OEM CT-2800 ViBRA-16S

CT2505 VLSI ASIC based models:

Creative OEM CT-2960 ViBRA-16C Value
(Has GOLD_FINCH connector at top)

CT2511 VLSI ASIC based models:

Creative CT-4170 ViBRA-16X WavEffects

Ok.  Now in spite of all that enlightening Creative back-ground material your were just forced to wade through   - isn't the question you really want answered: Which Creative sound card(s) might one choose to get the 'best'  Sound Blaster-16/AWE 'retro' DOS gaming experience? </EmulatingMicrosoftPlatformPRspeak>  Perhaps a list of ranked criteria gleaned from the posts made by individuals on this and other forums might help to narrow down possible selections.  The ranking of these various criteria should be based on their contribution towards achieving the best possible retro Sound Blaster-16 and/or AWE sound compliance. Of course, the ranking can be re-arranged to suite individual requirements.

Let's get started...


                                        Sound Blaster 16/AWE Ranking Criteria

1.) Yamaha OPL3 FM Synthesis
2.) CT1741 LSI DSP version 4.05, 4.13 or 4.16
3.) Excellent RCA analog line-out S/N ratio
4.) ISA non-"Plug'n'Play"
5.) MPU-401 UART MIDI support
6.) WaveBlaster 26-pin header for MIDI daughter-boards
7.) Analog Gameport/MIDI DB-15 female connector
8.) EMU-8000 with 30-pin SIMM sockets
9.) EMU-8000 with 512Kib DRAM and 30-pin SIMM sockets
10.) Single ISA-slot solution
11.) MPC-2 male CD-in connector
12.) Dual ISA-slot solution
13.) CT-192x Gold_Finch connector
14.) No SCSI or CD-ROM hardware IRQs
15.) CT1745 LSI Mixer with analog Bass and Treble controls
16.) CT1748 LSI ASP/CSP
17.) CT1978 LSI Binaura 3-D Audio




Using the above ranking criteria as a guide it appears that the best single ISA-slot SB-16/AWE solution would be the  Creative CT-3930 non-PnP Sound Blaster 32 model.  This card has the true Yamaha OPL YMF-262-M and Yamaha DAC YAC-512-M components; an excellent RCA analog output S/N ratio of around 82dB; support for MPU-401 UART mode external MIDI devices via the DB-15 connector; an IDE interface which can have its hardware IRQ disabled; dual 30-pin SIMM sockets; an available CD-in connector.  It does give up analog Bass and Treble controls and has no socket for the little used CT1748 ASP ASIC.  This Creative card also does not have a WaveBlaster MIDI daughter-board 26-pin connector.  The DSP version is typically the v4.12 or v4.13 release.

Creative CT-3930 SB-32

If the rank-ordered criteria are changed so that a dual ISA-slot SB-16/CT-192x 'Goldfinch' solution is favored, the 'winner'  would be the Creative OEM non-PnP CT-2800/CT-1920 combination.  This card combination has the true Yamaha OPL YMF-262-M and Yamaha DAC YAC-512-M components; an excellent RCA analog output S/N ratio of around 80dB for both the CT-2800 and the CT-1920; uses jumpers for the CT-2800 ISA hardware IRQ/DMA configuration; supports external MIDI devices with MPU-401 UART support via the DB-15 connector; supports MIDI daughter-boards via the WaveBlaster 26-pin header; has a black CD-in MPC-2 and a white CD-in JST connector for the CT-1920 Emu-8000 synth output; has the AWE EMU-8000 synth and 1MB ROM samples; has two 30-pin SIMM sockets and includes 512KiB of sample DRAM; has no extraneous CD-ROM or SCSI IRQ logic/jumpers; does not require AWEUTIL.COM to initialize the Yamaha FM hardware since it is not routed through the Emu-8000 as is the SB32/AWE32/AWE64; the CT-1920 only requires the ISA PnP to set the base EMU-8000 I/O port address.  This Creative card does not have the little used CT1748 ASP ASIC; it does not have the noisy CT1978 LSI Binauara 3-D Audio chip; it gives up analog Bass and Treble controls.  The DSP of the CT-2800 OEM card is v4.13 and the CT-1920 'Goldfinch' EMU-8000 synth output can be connected to either of the CT-2800 CD-in male connectors with an easily constructed adapter patch cable.

Creative OEM CT-1920



Creative OEM CT-2800

                                              Chip ID     Description
                                             ----------------------------------------------------
                                                 1        Creative Vibra 16S  CT2504-TCQ  VLSI
                                                 2        Yamaha OPL YMF-262-M
                                                 3        Yamaha DAC YAC-512-M




Of course, if the above rank ordered list is again re-ordered so the goodness of the Yamaha OPL3, being non-PnP, having a WaveBlaster header and 30-pin SIMM requirements are no longer important - there remains the ever popular Creative CT-4390 and CT-4540 AWE64 Gold PnP sound cards.  Like all AWEs there is no WaveBlaster MIDI header, but they do contain the highly integrated Creative CT8903 VLSI ASIC which includes the both the EMU-8000 and Creative/E-mu "CQM FM" functionality; has a CT1745-ST LSI Mixer with analog Bass and Treble controls; has excellent S/PDIF digital and RCA analog output S/N ratios; comes with 4MB of RAM standard; hosts a stable DSP version 4.16; support the Binaura 3-D Audio capability with the somewhat noisy CT1978 LSI ASIC.  They are also gold.

Creative CT-4390
AWE64 Gold

Now after examining at the 'winning' Creative CT-2800 OEM card listed above,  which is based on the Vibra-16S (CT2504)  VLSI ASIC, I returned to examine my own Dell GxPro motherboard.  As expected I found the Vibra-16S (CT2504)  present, just as on the non-PnP CT-2800 OEM card, however the Dell Optiplex motherboard uses ISA-PnP to configure the OEM ViBRA-16S.  Given that I originally thought that the Vibra-16S was produced later than the Vibra-16C, I never thought to even look for a Yamaha OPL3 chip.  Since I now realized that the Vibra-16S (CT2504)  ASIC does not include the integrated Creative/E-mu "CQM FM"  synthesis functionality, that indicated that a true Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3 had to be nearby. (There's a pony in here somewhere...)  Match that up with the CT-1920 'Goldfinch' and you have a pretty good two-board AWE32 replacement - with genuine Yamaha OPL3 parts.  None of the single ISA slot AWE cards can make the same claim.

Dell GxPro motherboard

                                              Chip ID     Description
                                             ----------------------------------------------------
                                                 1        Creative Vibra 16S  CT2504-TCQ  VLSI
                                                 2        Yamaha OPL YMF-262-M
                                                 3        Yamaha DAC YAC-512-M




Thar she blows!  The Yamaha YMF-262-M OPL3 just an inch away from the ViBRA-16S...  Here is a closer look with the Yamaha OPL3 on the left and the Creative Vibra-16S on the right:

Dell GxPro:
Close up of the Creative Vibra-16S ASIC
and
Yamaha OPL YMF-262-M.

Directly below the Vibra-16S sits
the Yamaha YAC-512-M DAC, its lettering
was not visible in previous pictures.

Dell GxPro:
Closeup of the Yamaha YAC-512-M DAC

Here are some screen-shots of the Dell GxPro Vibra-16S VLSI ASIC and the CT-192x 'Goldfinch'  combination as recognized by the Creative DIAGNOSE.EXE v4.05 diagnostic utility. Note the fact that the Dell GxPro PnP ViBRA-16S has its base I/O port address located at 0x220, while the EMU-8000 wavetable base I/O port address is located at 0x640.  This test configuration does not follow the 'SB base I/O port + 0x400 rule'  that the previous non-PnP SB32/AWE32 hardware enforced.  The above mentioned CT-2800/CT-1920 combination would function identically under the Creative diagnostic utilities.

Creative Diagnostic Utility v4.05:
auto-recognition

The ViBRA-16S and CT-192x combination is supported by the v4.05 DIAGNOSE.EXE utility, including the test section which plays AWE synthesized music.  However, as noted previously - no DOS application, game or 3rd-party DOS sound-driver for the AWE32 family seem to support the variable PnP CT-192x port I/O base address functionality.  This sound-card combination must be configured to follow the 'SB base I/O port + 0x400 rule'  for the EMU-8000 synthesizer to be found and used by anything but the Creative DIAGNOSE.EXE v4.05 utility.

Creative Diagnostic Utility v4.05:
While playing AWE Synthesized Music.

Continued in next message posting...
dvwjr

[dvwjr]

{Message part 3/3}

Construction of CT-192x 'Goldfinch' adapter cables


Here below is a photograph of a CT-1920 'Goldfinch' AWE Upgrade board with the 'Goldfinch' audio connector circled in red on the upper-right side of the picture.  The 8-pin (actually 7)  connector outputs the stereo left and right outputs of the Emu-8000 synthesizer to either a motherboard or Sound Blaster sound card with the corresponding 'Goldfinch' connector.  If such a 'Goldfinch' connector is not present, then an adapter cable can be constructed to allow the CT-1920 synth output to be directed to the CD-in connector of a Sound Blaster sound card.

Creative OEM CT-1920
with 8-pin connector

Here below are the 'Goldfinch' connector pin-outs as defined by Creative CT-1920 AWE Upgrade card documentation.  The output pins that are of interest are #1, #3, #5, #7 - the lower row of pins.  Pin position #5 is a key, no pin present.  Pins #2,#4,#6,#8,#7 are all tied to a common ground.  This is fortunate since it means that the lower four pins: #1, #3, #5, #7 can be used to provide the necessary signals for the Emu-8000 synth outputs: Right, Left, Open, Ground.

AWE Upgrade manual
'Goldfinch' audio connector pin-outs.

Here below is the Dell supplied 'Goldfinch' connector cable used between two 'Goldfinch' 8-pin connectors.  Note that there are only six wires present, for pins #1-#6.  Note that pins #7 and #8 have no wires at all.

Creative 'Goldfinch' cable

Here pictured below is a Creative CT-2960 which has the 'Goldfinch' connector which would allow use of the CT-1920 Emu-8000 AWE output.  Few Creative sound cards came with the 'Goldfinch' connector, it was found more often on OEM motherboards with the ViBRA chipsets to allow the use of the CT-1920 AWE Upgrade card.

Creative OEM CT-2960 ViBRA-16C Value
(Has GOLD_FINCH connector at top)

Also note in the below sound-card picture of a CT-2940 the two types of male connectors for analog CD-in and AUX inputs.  The various four-pin connectors circled in red are from left to right: a white JST Aux2; a white JST Aux1; a black MPC-2 CD-in; a white JST CD-in.  The white JST male connectors were the Creative Sound Blaster standard and were still placed on many Creative sound cards along-side the industry standard black MPC-2 male connector.  On the Creative sound-cards the white JST Aux and the white JST CD-in connectors were wired differently.  However, the 'industry standard'  black MPC-2 (Molex 70553)  connectors that Creative used on its sound-cards only followed the defined MPC-2 pin-out industry standard on most of its ISA AWE64 and all of its PCI Creative sound-cards.  Unfortunately, on all other pre-AWE64 Creative sound-cards the black MPC-2 male connector does not use the MPC-2 industry standard pin-out, instead Creative used the same pin-out configuration as the proprietary Creative white JST CD-in male connectors.  So much for Creative following even minor industry standards.    This information will be used with the CT-1920 adapter cable construction detailed below depending on the target type of Creative sound-card and its CD-in connector.

Two types of male
analog CD-in connectors

Shown below is a picture of the two types of female connectors terminating the typical CD-out to CD-in audio cable.  These are the black female MPC-2 (Molex 70066-G, 70400-G, 70430-G)  and the white female JST connector.  The creation of a user-made patch cable for access to the CT-1920 synth output will always requires a CD-out to CD-in audio cable with a black MPC-2 four-pin female connector on one end to attach to the CT-1920 'Goldfinch' connector's lower row of output pins.  Depending on your particular Creative sound-card, the other end of the cable will either be another black MPC-2 female four-pin connector or a white JST female four-pin connector as shown in the picture below.  Which connector type you will need, of course depends on the type of analog CD-in connector present on your Creative sound-card.  On many sound-cards Creative would surface mount two CD-in male connectors: one a black four-pin MPC-2, the other a white four-pin JST.  Only one analog CD-in circuit is actually present on the sound-card, Creative was just giving consumers a choice of which CD-in connector type to use depending on the type of CD-out to CD-in patch cable they possessed.

Two types of female
analog CD-in connectors

Industry standard MPC-2
vs
Creative MPC-2 and JST
Sound card connector implementations

Industry Standard
 Molex 70553 Male
 CD / Aux in
   Black MPC-2    
*******************
*  P   P   P   P  *
*  i   i   i   i  *
*  n   n   n   n  *
*  #   #   #   #  *
*  1   2   3   4  *
*                 *
*  L   G   G   R  *
*******************
Standard MPC-2 wiring
(used by most AWE64)
(used by all PCI sound-cards)
(used by IDE CD-ROM drives)



Creative "Standard"
 Molex 70553 Male
 CD / Aux in
   Black MPC-2    
*******************
*  P   P   P   P  *
*  i   i   i   i  *
*  n   n   n   n  *
*  #   #   #   #  *
*  1   2   3   4  *
*                 *
*  O   L   G   R  *
*******************
Non-standard Creative
MPC-2 CD-in wiring
(used by SB16, SB32, AWE32)



Creative Standard
 SB CD-in
 White JST male
*******************
*  P   P   P   P  *
*  i   i   i   i  *
*  n   n   n   n  *
*  #   #   #   #  *
*  1   2   3   4  *
*                 *
*  O   L   G   R  *
*******************



Creative Standard
 SB Aux-in  
 White JST male
*******************
*  P   P   P   P  *
*  i   i   i   i  *
*  n   n   n   n  *
*  #   #   #   #  *
*  1   2   3   4  *
*                 *
*  L   O   G   R  *
*******************


Legend:
L = Left
R = Right
G = Ground
O = Open

The first picture in our patch cable modification process shows the two identical standard MPC-2 female connector on each end of a standard CD-out to CD-in cable.  The color coding for both ends of this particular cable used as our working example in the standard MPC-2 L-G-G-R configuration is as follows:

White  = Left
Black  = Ground
Yellow = Ground
Red    = Right

One MPC-2 female connector will remain unchanged, the other connector will be modified to attach to the 'Goldfinch' connector on the CT-1920 AWE Upgrade card. Note: not all CD-ROM patch cables use these signal wire colors.

CD-ROM analog CD-out
to
Sound Blaster CD-in

Here is the female MPC-2 connector to be modified inserted into a CD-ROM analog CD-out MPC-2 male connector.  Note how this particular cable wire colors as inserted line up in the MPC-2 standard L-G-G-R signal configuration on the CD-ROM.

CD-ROM patch cable
to be modified

The next step is to get the tools necessary to change the default MPC-2 pin configuration.  A set of long needle-nosed pilers and a small flat-blade jeweler's screwdriver (or a stiff paper-clip)  seem to work best.

Tools and target

Next up, what is the final configuration of the 'Goldfinch' side of the adapter patch cable?  Here is the desired layout given the starting White-Black-Yellow-Red wiring.  The Red wire is never moved from pin position #4.

Creative 'Goldfinch'
Black MPC-2 adapter
modification layout
*******************
*  P   P   P   P  *
*  i   i   i   i  *
*  n   n   n   n  *
*  #   #   #   #  *
*  1   2   3   4  *
*                 *
* Bla Yel Whi Red *
*  G   O   L   R  *
*******************

Here is the resulting implementation of the 'Goldfinch' Black MPC-2 connector.  About 1-2 minutes work.  

Completed 'Goldfinch' connector

Here is the reverse side of the completed Black MPC-2 'Goldfinch' connector showing the four metal 'spring' tabs located in the four small square slots.  These 'tabs' must be depressed in order to remove each individual wire assembly.  After the wires are removed, these 'tabs' must be re-lifted after being depressed, so that they may properly function as locking tabs in the slots when the wires are re-inserted.  If this is not done then the wires will not stay seated and the completed patch cable will not function.  When the wires and their metal tabs are correctly re-seated, they should not be able to be removed with a casual tug.  

Reverse side
of
Completed 'Goldfinch' connector

Now that the cable is completed, a connection can be made between two Creative Sound Blaster audio cards.  For the purpose of demonstration , here is a PCI-bus Sound Blaster Live! and the CT-1920 AWE Upgrade card which will be inserted in a dual-bus PCI/ISA Dell GxPro.  This sound-card combination means that the single ended cable modification performed above will suffice.  The reason again is that most all ISA-bus AWE64 sound-cards and all PCI-bus Sound-cards use the standard MPC-2 CD-in wiring.

PCI Sound Blaster Live!
ISA CT-1920 AWE Upgrade

Simply insert the patch cable's unmodified female Black MPC-2 connector into the Sound Blaster Live! CD-in connector.  Only fits one way, so not much to go wrong here.  

Connection to Sound Blaster Live!

Now for the CT-1920 AWE Upgrade card.  In this case make sure that the Red wire (Pin #4) of the modified female MPC-2 connector goes on the Pin #1 of the CT-1920 'Goldfinch' 8-pin male connector. With this orientation that means that the White (Pin #3) will go on CT-1920 Pin #3, that the Yellow Pin #2 goes on CT-1920 Key #5, and finally that Black Pin #1 goes on the CT-1920 Pin #7.  This makes the Right, Left and Ground wires connect properly to the CD-in of the Sound Blaster Live!
 

Modified 'Goldfinch' cable
inserted on lower row of Goldfinch Pins

Our finished product!  Now the cards just have to be inserted in to their respective PCI/ISA bus slots for testing.  Remember that the CT-1920 Emu-8000 synth output will be found and modified by the Mixer software CD-in controls.

Completed patch cable

Now most people would not use an ISA CT-1920 AWE Upgrade card to provide an AWE Emu-8000 synth output for a PCI sound card, many which usually come with their own native GM synthesizer capabilities.  A more likely scenario would be to use the CT-1920 to provide its Emu-8000 synth output to a Creative Sound Blaster ISA sound-card which did not already have an on-board Emu-8000.  This means that the target Creative ISA sound-card would only need to have some type of CD-in connector to use the CT-1920 synth output.  However, as mentioned above the non-AWE64 ISA Sound Blasters did not use the industry standard MPC-2 pin-outs.  They instead used the Creative proprietary analog CD-in pin-outs.  This means that the newly constructed patch cable would need further modification.

The diagram below contains the information necessary to modify the Sound Blaster side of the patch cable.  The CT-1920 side of the cable stays the same, while the Sound Blaster analog MPC-2 CD-in end of the example patch cable would be modified as follows:

Creative "Standard"
 Molex 70553 Male
  CD / Aux in
   Black MPC-2    
*******************
*  P   P   P   P  *
*  i   i   i   i  *
*  n   n   n   n  *
*  #   #   #   #  *
*  1   2   3   4  *
*                 *
* Yel Whi Bla Red *
*  O   L   G   R  *
*******************
Non-standard Creative
MPC-2 CD-in wiring
(used by SB16, SB32, AWE32)

Shown in the picture below is the modified Sound Blaster MPC-2 CD-in end of the patch cable inserted into the CD-in connector.  This signal wire configuration would be the one most commonly used in the real retro PC sound-card world.    Which of course means that both ends of the adapter patch cable have been modified.

ISA Sound Blaster
CD-in configuration

The earliest known model of ISA Sound Blaster that could work with the CT-1920 probably have been the Sound Blaster 2.0 with the CD-ROM upgrade kit, the SB2CD.  This interface board which attached directly to the Sound Blaster 2.0 card provided an interface to a Panasonic CD-ROM player and also provided a CT1335 Mixer chip with analog CD-in, Voice-in, Music-in connectors to the Sound Blaster 2.0 sound-card.  So theoretically the CT-1920 AWE Upgrade card could be connected to this early 1990s Creative 8-bit sound-card via the CD-in of the optional add-on CT1335 Mixer.

ISA Sound Blaster 2.0CD
I/O Address Map

There may be situations where the analog CD-in of a Sound Blaster is actually required for the output of a CD-ROM based DOS game, therefore if an AUX connector is available it may be used instead.  However, keep in mind that the Sound Blaster analog AUX pin-outs differ from those of the Sound Blaster analog CD-in pin-outs, as diagrammed above.  Instead of the CD-in configuration of O-L-G-R, the AUX configuration is L-O-G-R.




I hope these three QuestStudios message postings are somewhat useful to anyone attempting to build a retro-DOS gaming PC workstation using the Sound Blaster line of ISA sound-cards. The information presented in these messages was consolidated from many Internet information sources. Any errors are probably due to my mis-interpretation.   Please feel free to respond to this message thread if there are any errors noted, so that such information may be added as a correction.


dvwjr

edit: fix imageshack broken links

[Great Hierophant]

Wow, I am amazed at so much solid information in your post, especial thanks for pointing out the CD-ROM connector differences.  However, the CT17x0 series, using a white CD connector, has this pinout:

1234
GLGR

I am still a fan of the CT-17x0 series because those cards offer true OPL3 with the CT-1745 mixer, so you can adjust for gain, treble and bass.  The only Vibra chip that can do that, the CT-2502, seems to lose the OPL3 in all implementations.  Moreover, in the Creative world, higher DSPs mean a greater liklihood of sound stuttering.  I doubt you will find the 4.05 DSP on any Vibra-based board.  In fact, the only disadvantages of the CT-17x0 + CT-192x combination are a lower SnR and a lack of EMU effects applied to the FM Synthesis.  I wonder if they are applied on the CT-3930. 

I have never seen a CT-1920 with either an S/PDIF or an actual Line Out connector, I wonder if they really exist or are just Creative designs that never got into the systems.  I have the same concerns about the SB2.0CD Upgrade.  I have seen Creative CD Interface cards, but never one with more than the one CD input. 

Finally, the AWE64 Gold cards use the noisier CT-1745 mixer, yet boast a SnR of 90db.  How is that done?  What is this Binura 3D Audio, I've never heard of it before.  I doubt anything beyond Creativ'e software took advantage of it.

[Cloudschatze]

Construction of CT-192x 'Goldfinch' adapter cables

I get to ask the dumb question.

Why not just solder in an 1/8" stereo (line out) and RCA (S/PDIF) jack, and drill accomodating holes into the mounting bracket?

[Great Hierophant]

Why not just solder in an 1/8" stereo (line out) and RCA (S/PDIF) jack, and drill accomodating holes into the mounting bracket?

An equally dumb answer: while the jacks can be had for a few cents each, and soldering irons are fairly inexpensive, how many people have access to a metal drill?

Also, that applying EMU-8000 effects to "FM" (CQM) Synthesis sounds like another Creative-only utilized feature.  I find it unlikely that a game would offer AWE32 support but only limit it to that. 

[Cloudschatze]

Why not just solder in an 1/8" stereo (line out) and RCA (S/PDIF) jack, and drill accomodating holes into the mounting bracket?

An equally dumb answer: while the jacks can be had for a few cents each, and soldering irons are fairly inexpensive, how many people have access to a metal drill?

Whaaaaat? That is pretty dumb. 

Anyone with a normal drill probably already has, or can cheaply buy, a combination wood/metal bit set. Center-tap an indentation, and away you go.

[davesedg]

Hey dvwjr!

Just want to echo the other comments and say thanks for such a well-researched and detailed post. It's given me a lot of food for thought regarding how best to use my Goldfinch...

Now I just have to find a reason to use AWE32 sound in a game - I feel like most of them that supported it also supported SC, so I might only be using it for "comparison purposes" 

[Great Hierophant]

Now I just have to find a reason to use AWE32 sound in a game - I feel like most of them that supported it also supported SC, so I might only be using it for "comparison purposes" 

Another reason why I have shied away from upgrading so far. 

[5u3]

Wow, dvwjr, you just created the best reference concerning SB chipsets on the web!
Really nice work, was very interesting to read. Congratulations!

Now I just have to find a reason to use AWE32 sound in a game - I feel like most of them that supported it also supported SC, so I might only be using it for "comparison purposes" 

Another reason why I have shied away from upgrading so far. 

Yeah, in GM-based games the Roland and Yamaha devices always sound better than the AWE32. It would do well in games with tracker music, but unfortunately none of these support it, they rather have support for the GUS.

[dvwjr]

{Start of message part 1 of 2}

Thank you for all the kind words on the Creative sound-cards message postings.  I hope that the information can be of some help to those constructing 'retro' DOS gaming PC workstations.  I am sure that additional information can be found and added in the future.

Since there were many more Sound Blaster AWE type cards produced than the excellent Roland family SC-55/SCB-55 and Roland MPU-401 ISA cards - this means that after-market sources such as eBAY will supply many more Creative AWE cards to more potential 'retro' buyers.  The relative scarcity of Roland MIDI products versus the plenitude of AWE sound-cards may mean that not everyone might be as selective in sound-card selection when building retro DOS based PCs.  While the AWE Emu-8000 MIDI output does not compare to the Roland samples, it was a sound that made its mark during the heyday to the DOS gaming era, along with the always distinctive FM melodies of the Yamaha OPL3. 


Now, on with some answers to the responses...

However, the CT17x0 series, using a white CD connector, has this pin-out:

1234
GLGR

Just think of your Creative JST pin-outs as a superset of the ones documented above.  Since the Creative sound cards do not implement XLR (balanced)  audio connections, a single ground will suffice.  Pin #3 is guaranteed to be a ground no matter what Creative MPC-2 or JST analog input implementation is present, so treating Pin #3 as the sole ground will always ensure that the an adapter cable will function properly.

Creative Standard
 SB CD-in
 White JST male
*******************
*  P   P   P   P  *
*  i   i   i   i  *
*  n   n   n   n  *
*  #   #   #   #  *
*  1   2   3   4  *
*                 *
*  O   L   G   R  *
*******************

"I am still a fan of the CT-17x0 series because those cards offer true OPL3 with the CT-1745 mixer, so you can adjust for gain, treble and bass.  The only Vibra chip that can do that, the CT-2502, seems to lose the OPL3 in all implementations."

Nothing wrong with liking the CT-17x0 series of Sound Blaster 16 cards in combination with the CT-192x AWE Upgrade.  It does give you solid MPU-401 UART MIDI support. This just means that your evoke set based on the above listed ranking criteria must look something like this:


                                        Sound Blaster 16/AWE Ranking Criteria

1.) Yamaha OPL3 FM Synthesis
2.) CT1745 LSI Mixer with analog Bass and Treble controls
3.) CT1741 LSI DSP version 4.05, 4.13 or 4.16
4.) MPU-401 UART MIDI support
5.) WaveBlaster 26-pin header for MIDI daughter-boards
6.) Analog Gameport/MIDI DB-15 female connector
7.) CT1748 LSI ASP/CSP
8.) ISA non-"Plug'n'Play"
9.) Dual ISA-slot solution
10.) EMU-8000 with 512Kib DRAM and 30-pin SIMM sockets
11.) No SCSI or CD-ROM hardware IRQs
12.) MPC-2 male CD-in connector
13.) CT-192x Gold_Finch connector
14.) Single ISA-slot solution
15.) EMU-8000 with 30-pin SIMM sockets
16.) Excellent RCA analog line-out S/N ratio
17.) CT1978 LSI Binaura 3-D Audio



Lack of a gain control makes it harder to level match when connecting to an amplifier, however the lack of analog treble and bass controls bothers me less as than can be performed in the analog domain somewhere else in the analog chain before the speaker drivers start vibrating the cones.    Stereo receivers and some PC speakers even come with analog bass and treble controls.  Not a big loss.

Now as to the matter of the Emu-8000 ViBRA based sound-cards lack of analog treble or bass controls.  Fellow forum member '5u3'  made me familiar with a 1996 DOS utility program for the AWE series of sound-cards that went by the name MasterMixer v5.11 by author Cedric Amand of Belgium.  Since the OPL3 output of the AWE cards goes to the Emu-8000 and then out the Emu-8000 DAC this means that Emu-8000 reverb, chorus and the "UNDOCUMENTED internal Equalizer" of the Emu-8000 can also be applied to the OPL3 output.  This allows the treble and bass shaping of all AWE output in the digital domain with the MasterMixer treble/bass slider controls since the author figured out how to manipulate the digital domain treble and bass controls.  I believe that the last release of MasterMixer v5.11 was some sort of 'freeware' or 'post-cardware', perhaps forum member '5u3' could enlighten us further - maybe even uploading the utility.  He is an expert and user in this subject matter...

To summarize:

Creative and OEM boards based on:

The ViBRA CT2501 VLSI ASIC did not implement any of the analog gain, treble or bass controls.
The ViBRA CT2502 VLSI ASIC implemented all three SB16 analog:  gain, treble and bass controls.
The ViBRA CT2504 VLSI ASIC implemented analog gain, but gave up analog treble and bass controls.
The ViBRA CT2505 VLSI ASIC implemented analog gain, but gave up analog treble and bass controls.
The ViBRA CT2511 VLSI ASIC implemented analog gain, but gave up analog treble and bass controls.



Now as to the use of genuine Yamaha OPL3 components in Creative ViBRA based products, the following information holds sway...

Creative and OEM boards based on:

The ViBRA CT2501 VLSI ASIC did use Yamaha OPL3 components.
The ViBRA CT2502 VLSI ASIC used Creative OPL VLSI technology, not Yamaha OPL3 components.
The ViBRA CT2504 VLSI ASIC did use Yamaha OPL3 components.
The ViBRA CT2505 VLSI ASIC used Creative OPL VLSI technology, not Yamaha OPL3 components.
The ViBRA CT2511 VLSI ASIC used Creative OPL VLSI technology, not Yamaha OPL3 components.

Moreover, in the Creative world, higher DSPs mean a greater likelihood of sound stuttering.  I doubt you will find the 4.05 DSP on any Vibra-based board.

I assume by 'stuttering'  you mean the loss of MIDI bytes by the hardware emulated MPU-401 UART interface found on Creative cards with DSP versions that are not v4.05?  The ViBRA or AWE PnP based cards will have a DSP version of 4.13 or 4.16 given their dates of manufacture.  This MIDI 'hanging notes'  problem is yet to be pinned down to every model with a DSP later than v4.05, however from what I have read and what others have tested it appears that a v4.13 or v4.16 DSP on AWE32 PnP or AWE64 PnP cards might not have the problem on their internal WaveBlaster or external DB-15 MIDI interfaces.  This of course means that the certain ViBRA based series of Creative/OEM cards might indeed have the problem depending on the particular model and/or PnP implementation.

The Creative SBMPU401.EXE and DELL MPU-ON.COM (for ViBRA) non-TSR utility programs seem to be attempts to bring the Creative MPU-401 hardware emulation up to the Roland MPU-401 UART standard.  Both of these utility programs put undocumented values into undocumented CT1741 DSP registers.  Even the PC game company "ORIGIN" released their own utility SBFIX.COM sometime in 1993, for a Sound Blaster MPU-401 UART MIDI problem their customers had encountered.  More investigation of non-v4.05 DSP cards with these two utility programs is necessary to find out if they are at all helpful in correcting the 'lost' MIDI byte problem encountered by the non-PnP sound-cards with either v4.13 or v4.16 DSP releases.  These utility programs may only turn off the Creative proprietary SBMIDI functionality of their supporting CT1741 DSP. 

File download: Sound Blaster MPU-401 utilities

In fact, the only disadvantages of the CT-17x0 + CT-192x combination are a lower SnR and a lack of EMU effects applied to the FM Synthesis. I wonder if they are applied on the CT-3930.

I am not sure that the lack of Emu-8000 effects on the FM OPL output might be considered a disadvantage by some. However, others might feel that the CT1745-A Mixer induced noise inherent in the older Sound Blaster 16s is part of their 'retro' charm...    The Creative CT-3930 is a fairly conventional Creative Emu-8000 implementation, so I would not be surprised to see the FM OPL3 output routed to via the Emu-8000/DAC.

I have never seen a CT-1920 with either an S/PDIF or an actual Line Out connector, I wonder if they really exist or are just Creative designs that never got into the systems.  I have the same concerns about the SB2.0CD Upgrade.

Good point.  I have seen a CT-192x with an analog output, it was a Micron OEM product.  Don't know about the digital S/PDIF - could have been vaporware, though I have read articles on the web/newsgroups about folks that have implemented said S/PDIF connectors on their own.  Maybe someone in the future who reads this message thread will provide a picture of a CT-192x model with the S/PDIF connector.

As to the actual production of the Creative SB2CD upgrade with its add-on CT1335 Mixer and bundled Panasonic (521) CDROM drive - I have never seen one myself; however, it seems as if Creative went to a lot of trouble to document the CT1335 Mixer register programming if it never did produce such an optional upgrade.  Plus this guy 'Johan' from a Usenet posting in June of 1993 seemed fairly sure he owned a "Creative Labs CD-ROM upgrade kit for SB 2.0" to go with his Creative Sound Blaster 2.0 sound-card.  The existence of the Creative SB2CD upgrade kit also explains the seldom seen "BLASTER=M250" DOS environmental variable intended for Mixer I/O ports not located relative to the Sound Blaster Base I/O port address.

Creative Hardware
Programming Guide
Appendix A-5

Source: Sound Blaster Series Hardware Programming Guide Appendix A, page 5; PDF page #119/141.

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[dvwjr]

{Start of message part 2 of 2}

Finally, the AWE64 Gold cards use the noisier CT-1745 mixer, yet boast a SnR of 90db.  How is that done?

I do not believe that Creative Marketing, even with their generous ability to delude themselves (and others)    ever claimed a S/N ratio of 90dB for the analog RCA outputs of the Sound Blaster AWE64 Gold.  However, the digital S/PDIF output on that card did make the 90dB S/N ratio.  Perhaps that is to what you are referring?  The Creative CT1745 LSI Mixer did go through three productions revisions during its lifespan.  The original, fairly noisy "A" stepping used in the first SB16 models, then the "S" stepping and finally the "ST" stepping of the analog Mixer LSI ASIC.  The Creative AWE64 Gold use of the CT1745 "ST" stepping, which was combined with some engineering effort on other portions of the design to reduce 'noise' from all other components on the AWE64 Gold board. The combination resulted in one of quietest Creative ISA sound-cards, which had the best analog S/N ratios, around 82-85dB, depending on who was measuring.  It was on par with the S/N ratio of the CT2502 ViBRA based SB-32 products made two years earlier.

 

Creative AWE64 Gold
Analog Specifications

Source: Creative AWE64 Gold Brochure PDF file, 2 pages.

What is this Binura 3D Audio, I've never heard of it before.  I doubt anything beyond Creativ'e software took advantage of it.

Actually, I understand most people who heard it did NOT want to take advantage of it.  


How Creative eventually ended up with the Binaura 3D Audio is the last chapter of the Creative ISA sound-card story.

In the beginning, there were but two speakers, and the sweet stereo sound they rendered was declared good. Then desire for even better sprung forth like a demon - the people wanted even more, but it could not cost alot. Just in time the world was given QSOUND.  Madonna liked it.  Sting liked it.  Therefore, Creative liked it and it was pronounced good enough.  Creative then said to the people, "Lo, I give unto you QSOUND 180° Virtual Audio and a demo program!".  Thus fulfilling the prophecy of the Book of Creative Marketing - that one day the people will be given a reason for their purchase of the greatly-hyped, over-priced and very secret ASP chip, which only the sanctified employees of Creative were allowed to program.  Here endeth the marketing lesson.

So Creative now had QSOUND for the ASP chip equipped Sound Blasters for WAV file output.  The DOS CONFIG.SYS driver CSP.SYS demand loads the required ASP code stored in the following files into the ASP chip to provide hardware-assisted support for the following functions in the pre-Pentium MMX days.


wfm0001a.csp  QSound decoder
wfm0006a.csp  A-law codec
wfm0007a.csp  u-law codec
wfm0011a.csp  IMA ADPCM codec
wfm0200a.csp  Creative ADPCM codec
wfm0202a.csp  Fast Speech 8 codec
wfm0203a.csp  Fast Speech 10 codec


Creative next reasoned that if QSOUND was good enough for the ASP equipped Sound Blasters, surely the Emu-8000 AWE Sound Blasters deserved a dose of QSOUND love.  So the Emu-8000 effects processor had QSOUND added to the Reverb and Chorus settings with the restriction that QSOUND could not be used at the same time as the Chorus/Reverb.

However, QSOUND support by Creative became moot when it was decided not to renew the QSOUND license.  Since the "3D" check-off box for magazine reviews was still important in the pre-EAX/A3D/DolbyD days of old, Creative had to come up with some replacements.  Creative then came up with a game oriented 3-D positional Audio technology and API for the Emu-8000 and 3-D Stereo enhancement replacement for the ASP driven QSOUND.

Creative AWE64 Gold
3D Audio Technology

During the change-over from DOS/Win 3.1 to Win95 it became evident that Microsoft wanted more control over the operating system marketplace by defining and controlling the APIs for Video and Audio in Windows.  Since DOS never defined APIs for those sub-systems, Microsoft had seen the VESA video committee and 3rd-party DOS sound driver providers such as HMI and MILES own that part of the operating system space. Microsoft wanted it back - no third parties need apply, thank you.

Creative had a non-starter in the gaming 3-D positional Emu-8000 Audio with the advent of the Direct3D sound APIs which were part of the Microsoft DirectX technology/APIs.  What was left was the ASP QSOUND 3-D replacement.  So Creative had gone to the Binaura Corporation for their chipset supporting spatial-enhancement for stereo speakers. Creative combined that deal with its hiring of a contractor, the SoundField Corporation, which was selected to implement their proprietary 3-D spatial-enhancement algorithms in the form of DOS and Windows drivers necessary to implement said 3-D stereo spatial-enhancement using the new Creative hardware, the Binaura Audio Processor now labeled as the CT1978-BAP. The CT1978-BAP was mounted on the 'Plug-and-Play' versions of the Sound Blaster 16, Sound Blaster AWE32 and Sound Blaster AWE64/Gold.

"Binaura Corp offers what is perhaps the simplest spatial-enhancement circuit, the Universal Discrete analog design. The circuit requires only a quad op amp and a handful of resistors and capacitors. The company hopes to have a stand-alone IC available this year but is licensing the design for now. Creative Labs ships the Bianura circuit on all newer sound cards. Creative sells the circuit, along with sound-generation ICs, on an OEM basis."

Source: 3-D audio: above and behind you or moving low left to right? EDN 06/06/1996, Maury Wright, Technical Editor.


Here, again is a block diagram of the Creative Sound Blaster AWE32 model hardware implementation:

Functional Block Diagram of Sound Blaster AWE32

Source: Developer's Information Pack version 3.01, Page 1-9, PDF page #10/110.

Note the block labeled "3D Stereo Enh"  directly to the right of the MIXER block.  This is the Creative CT1978-BAP referred to above.  All digital, FM and Emu-8000 output was routed through this LSI ASIC before it went to either the on-board speaker amp or the analog line-out jack.  It was known as the Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement.  The following text is from a Dell AWE64 Value sound-card User's guide.

Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement
 
Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement eliminates speaker crosstalk when two speakers are placed close together. This results in a sound with more depth and breadth—enhanced mono and stereo output.

Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement can be enabled or disabled in Microsoft Windows 95 or DOS. By default, Creative 3D Enhancement is disabled. Do not enable Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement if your speakers have an enabled 3D stereo feature.

In Windows 95

To enable or disable the effect in Windows 95, perform the following steps:

1. Right-click the My Computer icon on your desktop, and select Properties. The System Properties dialog appears.
2. Click the Device Manager tab. A list of devices in your system appears.
3. Double-click Sounds, video, and game controllers. A list of multimedia devices appears.
4. Select your audio card, for example, Creative AWE64 16-bit Audio.
5. Choose Properties. The audio card's properties dialog appears.
6. Click the Settings tab.
7. Select the option to enable or disable the Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement effect.
8. Choose OK until all system property dialogs are closed

In DOS

To enable or disable the effect in DOS, perform the following steps:

1. At the DOS prompt, change to the directory containing your audio card's software. For example, type CD C:\SB16, and press <Enter>.
2. Type CT3DSE ON to enable the effect, or CT3DSE OFF to disable the effect, and press <Enter>.

Source:   Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement Dell Sound Blaster® AWE64 Value Sound Card User's Guide.

The Win9x "SoundField" 3-D audio enhancement was implemented via a CT3DSE.VXD driver which also exposed a Windows check box for "Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement" Audio properties Settings tab. The DOS implementation was via the command-line CT3DSE.EXE utility.  To repeat, the Creative CT-1978 BAP was the hardware used to implement the 3D Stereo Enhancement on selected Creative Sound Blaster 16 PnP and Sound Blaster AWE32 PnP and AWE64 PnP sound-cards.  So all sounds processed through a CT1978-BAP equipped Sound Blaster could have the effect applied if the user so desired.

File download: Creative 3D Stereo Enhancement DOS utility

Why not just solder in an 1/8" stereo (line out) and RCA (S/PDIF) jack, and drill accomodating holes into the mounting bracket?

Well, because in the time it takes you to heat up your trusty soldering iron enough to make some poor, harmless minerals run around frantically screaming "I'm melting! I'm melting!"    I can shift the pins of a CD-out to CD-in cable.  Despite the pictures and verbosity of the patch cable making procedure as outlined, the process is fairly straightforward and quick once you have the wiring pin-outs.  The other reason was that I wanted to use sound-card connections internal to the PC case, leaving the external analog audio-in jack of the SB-16/ViBRA-16 free for other purposes.

Also, that applying EMU-8000 effects to "FM" (CQM) Synthesis sounds like another Creative-only utilized feature.  I find it unlikely that a game would offer AWE32 support but only limit it to that.  

Actually the DOS AWE sound-card users could apply Emu-8000 reverb and chorus effects themselves to the FM output with the Creative AWEUTIL with the /R:xx and /C:xx command-line parameters.  This would not hold true with the CT-1920 'Goldfinch' Upgrade card since no FM output is present on the card.  For a comparison, please check out the SYSTEM SHOCK Intro audio files provided by forum member '5u3' under the "FM Synthesis" section of this QuestStudios forum posting.  The one listed as "SoundBlaster AWE32 PnP with SBPro2/SB16 driver version" has a 30% reverb and a 20% chorus setting applied to this OPL output.  Compare that to the "SoundBlaster Pro 2.0 with SBPro2/SB16 driver" straight OPL3 version listed directly above.  Again, member '5u3' would be best positioned to comment on the AWE reverb and chorus effects.



Hope this helps,

dvwjr


{End of message part 2 of 2}

edit: fixed image links and restored fixed space font

[Great Hierophant]

I am not sure that the lack of Emu-8000 effects on the FM OPL output might be considered a disadvantage by some. However, others might feel that the CT1745-A Mixer induced noise inherent in the older Sound Blaster 16s is part of their 'retro' charm...    The Creative CT-3930 is a fairly conventional Creative Emu-8000 implementation, so I would not be surprised to see the FM OPL3 output routed to via the Emu-8000/DAC.

Normally the YMF-262 output, which is still in digital form, is routed to the YAC-512 DAC.  The picture of the CT-3930 shows what almost certainly is a YAC-512 on the board.  I would think that the EMU-8000 handled digital data from the CT-1747 CQM chip so it could add reverb and chorus effects.  The only real way this could be done is the AWE32 could process the FM music in the normal way or re-route the processing to the EMU-8000. 

Also, the AWE64 Value, such as the CT-4520, does not contain a CT-1745 mixer or any other chip that looks like a mixer chip on the PCB.  How does it provide for mixing functionality?

Finally, does the SnR ratio of the S/PDIF digital output stream really matter?  The wire coming from the S/PDIF connector is sending a stream of bits, not voltage.  I would think its up to the receiving device to translate the bitstream into analog voltage and introduce the real noise into the signal.