Seeking Soundcard Recommendations for DOS Gaming Rig

[Lou Scaruffi]

Hi,
I'm trying to build a DOS gaming machine to re-live my gaming youth. I've
got a old Compaq Pentium MMX that I'm working with. I have ISA and PCI
slots available. I've loaded MS-DOS 6.22.

Newer Soundblaster Cards either don't support DOS or require drivers. I'm
loath to use any drivers that will reside in memory and therefore reduce the
amount of my available memory. An (apparently) exhaustive list of old
Soundblaster cards is here:
http://www.tarigon.de/tramp/sblist.html

I'm not as concerned with sound quality as I am with broad compatibility.
Recommendations and what to avoid is appreciated.

-Lou

[Ross Ridge]

Post by Lou Scaruffi
I'm trying to build a DOS gaming machine to re-live my gaming youth. I've
got a old Compaq Pentium MMX that I'm working with. I have ISA and PCI
slots available. I've loaded MS-DOS 6.22.

An ISA SoundBlaster 16 is probably your best bet. You'll have zero
compatibility problems using this card. An ISA SoundBlaster 32 AWE
or 64 AWE is another option, but it'll probably be hard to find one of
these cards and there aren't many games that can take advantage of the
wave table synthesis these cards support.

Post by Lou Scaruffi
Newer Soundblaster Cards either don't support DOS or require drivers. I'm
loath to use any drivers that will reside in memory and therefore reduce the
amount of my available memory.

It's not really a problem, the drivers use very little conventional
memory. You'll have some compatibility problems, but not because
of memory.

Post by Lou Scaruffi
I'm not as concerned with sound quality as I am with broad compatibility.

As an addition to an SB 16, an MT-32 or an LAPC-1 for much better MIDI
music is something you might want to consider.

Post by Lou Scaruffi
Recommendations and what to avoid is appreciated.

In general, you don't want to get a PCI soundcard. Only an ISA card be
100% compatible.

Ross Ridge

[m***@thulk.com]

Post by Ross Ridge

Post by Lou Scaruffi
I'm trying to build a DOS gaming machine to re-live my gaming youth. I've
got a old Compaq Pentium MMX that I'm working with. I have ISA and PCI
slots available. I've loaded MS-DOS 6.22.

An ISA SoundBlaster 16 is probably your best bet. You'll have zero
compatibility problems using this card. An ISA SoundBlaster 32 AWE
or 64 AWE is another option, but it'll probably be hard to find one of
these cards and there aren't many games that can take advantage of the
wave table synthesis these cards support.

Post by Lou Scaruffi
Newer Soundblaster Cards either don't support DOS or require drivers. I'm
loath to use any drivers that will reside in memory and therefore reduce the
amount of my available memory.

It's not really a problem, the drivers use very little conventional
memory. You'll have some compatibility problems, but not because
of memory.

Post by Lou Scaruffi
I'm not as concerned with sound quality as I am with broad compatibility.

As an addition to an SB 16, an MT-32 or an LAPC-1 for much better MIDI
music is something you might want to consider.

Post by Lou Scaruffi
Recommendations and what to avoid is appreciated.

In general, you don't want to get a PCI soundcard. Only an ISA card be
100% compatible.
Ross Ridge
--
l/ // Ross Ridge -- The Great HTMU
-()-/()/ http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca/u/rridge/
db //

Thank you

***@thulk.com

[Guru For hire]

Check out the Turtle Beach Santa Cruz (PCI), they go for $15-$20 on EBay.
And you can still get drivers of their website.

Post by Lou Scaruffi
Hi,
I'm trying to build a DOS gaming machine to re-live my gaming youth. I've
got a old Compaq Pentium MMX that I'm working with. I have ISA and PCI
slots available. I've loaded MS-DOS 6.22.
Newer Soundblaster Cards either don't support DOS or require drivers. I'm
loath to use any drivers that will reside in memory and therefore reduce
the amount of my available memory. An (apparently) exhaustive list of old
http://www.tarigon.de/tramp/sblist.html
I'm not as concerned with sound quality as I am with broad compatibility.
Recommendations and what to avoid is appreciated.
-Lou