Re: Mystery little IIGS board

[Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net>]

Galen Tatsuo Komatsu wrote:
> 
>         Yesterday I nabbed from a thrift a IIGS CPU since there's
> a Transwarp GS board in it...before any starts commenting on the
> find though, upon getting home I noticed a note scribbled on the
> case saying "Transwarp acting up".
> 
>         But that's not the topic of this message (though if there's
> list of common TWGS problems, I wouldn't mind hearing it.)
> 
>         There's a little board maybe 2 square inches in size mounted
> to the first slot (the openings in back, not the card slots)  Out the
> back there's a 1/8" minijack.  Internally, there's a ribbon cable
> that runs to the other corner of the motherboard, and plugged into
> J25, and another wire, not plugged in as I found it, but judging from
> the length, probably plugs into the Fan connector right under it.
> Back side indicates it's from Roger Wagner Publishing and has an
> "FCC ID: HYORWIIGS"
> 
>         Educated guess has me thinking this is a microphone input
> for Hyperstudio?  Quick google search notes J25 being used for sound
> input.  I just answer my own question? if so, then tell me more about
> it instead, like can I read it like the old cassette input?
> 
 ....

     The mini-board was supplied with some HyperStudio packages. It gives you a
way to input single-channel sound (via the mic or directly from a radio, etc.)
to programs which can digitize, edit, and store the sound as a file.

     The mini-board has good noise characteristics (certainly better than at
least a few Slot cards which include sound input).  It works with a variety of
sound input/edit programs including Sound Shop, Sound Ace, and Universal Sound
Editor.


     The mini-board is powered via the two-wire (probably red and black) cable.
It plugs onto the +12V "Fan" terminals on the motherboad at the back. (The
cable plug is 'keyed' so that it should fit correctly only one way. According
to HyperStudio docs, viewing the plug from the front of the computer, the red
wire should be to your left.)  If you had something plugged onto the "Fan"
terminals, you can plug it onto the two +12V terminals on the mini-board.

     As you mention, the cable on the mini-board goes to J25. It is 'keyed' to
fit best just one way. According to HS docs, the red wire on the cable should
be closest to the front. If you have lots of Slot cards, the docs recommend
routing the cable above them instead of snaking between cards (to lessen noise
pickup).

     If you have a IIgs 'Stereo Card' or other board with a cable plugged onto
J25, you can plug it onto the 7-pin connector on the mini-board.


     To use the mini-board, you can plug in a mic, start a sound input/editor--
say Sound Shop-- and click "Record". Speak or play some sound in front of the
microphone. Press a key to stop. Click "Play" to hear the sound. (You can
adjust stuff like input level sensitivity, sampling rate, etc..)  You can
record directly from sources such as radios and tape decks, too.

     Record/edit programs vary a bit as to controls and options. Usually you
can cut and paste recorded wave sections, adjust filtering, and save sounds in
various formats to work with other IIgs sound/music software.



Rubywand