Re: A2 Music and Sound FAQ v1.2

[irsman@iastate.edu (Ian Schmidt)]

In article <1APR199408204596@vax2.concordia.ca> spector@vax2.concordia.ca (Mitchell Spector) writes:
>In article irsman@iastate.edu (Ian Schmidt) writes...

>	The Commodore 64 used what was known as the "SID" chip for music
>and sound synthesis. It was also only capable of 3 independant tones/voices,
>not 4.

Yeah, the Huang-meister caught me on this one :)

>	Once your mentioning MDIdeas' "Digitizer Pro" card, you should also
>add the "SuperSonic Digitizer" to that table. This was a mini-daugtherboard

Good idea.


>	This table is a little misleading the way you use the term "Wavetable 
>voices". I think adding a column for "Digital voices" would be more correct.
>As you know, those above IBM boards use only FM-synthesis, but have the ability
>to playback/record/manipulate "real-word" sound -- digital sound/voice/music
>samples, or plainly put, "digitized sound". The SoundBlaster ASP has an add-on
>WaveBlaster option for real Wavetable support, though like the GUS, has very
>little support. I've always been confused about the Amiga and the majority of
>Macintoshes out there though. I know a handful of Macs have true Wavetable
>support (ie - Mac IIs), but I've been under the impression many do not (such
>as the Mac LC, Plus, SE, SE/30, Classic, etc). Wavetable is defined by the
>ability to use real-world "digital-sound" in waveforms for music synthesis,
>right? (Amiga MODs kind of make this term confusing, especially when you have
>non-wavetable systems playing MODs through digital-voices.. :) 

I use 'wavetable' to mean 'playing digitized samples via a DAC or equivalent',
which is pretty much how it's used in computerized music.  I realize this
isn't strictly correct (kinda like 'baud'), but it's the most common usage so
I use it.  All 680x0 Macs are capable of playing thru 4 DACs, just the newer
ones do it a little better, and the AV ones even more so :)

>	Finally, maybe add a brief mention of the history of 8-bit Apple II
>sound? Such as, all the accomplishments programmers were able to do using
>the internal speaker (two-voice music, digitized sound, speech-synthesis,
>or lately..5-bit digital sound). Some of the add-on hardware boards, like
>the Mockingboard, Phaser, Echo, etc. (Okay, maybe old II sound wasn't much,
>but it was interesting and I guess I'm kind of nostaligic.. ;-)

Sure, if someone can get me this info.  Remember, the first Apple II I owned
was the GS, so despite reading hundreds of back issues of "Softalk", I'm a bit
deficient in the 8-bit department :)

-- 
Ian Schmidt / irsman@iastate.edu / irsman@cs.iastate.edu
"Though we know that time has wings, we're the ones that have to fly" -Peart