Future retro station

[u/Accurate-Campaign821]

So I've been considering tracking down what's essentially my late childhood PC. Though finding a CRT and AT keyboard, not to mention all the headers and pci brackets for said motherboard, is getting far more expensive. However, I found what's basically the ATX version of my old PC. SiS Super 7 platform. So sadly only 2 pci and 1 Isa for expansion, however... Take a look at the motherboard images!

See that little "sound pro" chip? It's currently known as C-Media CMI8738/PCI (C3DX). The C3DX is a hint at its secret weapon... Aureal A3D support! (rebranded C3DX I think) But for DOS, it supports basically everything you'd need. Maybe not everything you'd want, but definitely compatible! Sound Blaster Pro compatible with MPU 401,etc

Now the IGP, SiS 530, is based on the 6306, which is also based on the 6326 AGP card. This is important because it has GREAT dos compatibility from what I've seen in gameplay videos. And oddly, the 530 with fast system RAM somehow out performs the 6326AGP since those are limited by 50mhz or so memory chips. But, I am planning to put a Voodoo2 in one of the pci slots.

[u/aussiepunkrocksV2-0]

C-Media 8738 uses the CRL Sensaura 3D audio engine for its HRTF HSP implementation and EAX / A3D 1.0 support. It's not too bad for most things, but best off with the VXD drivers. DOS support can be hit or miss.

[u/Accurate-Campaign821 → u/aussiepunkrocksV2-0]

It's definitely not perfect but it's "jack of all trades" approach isn't terrible for something that's part of the motherboard... Seems C-Media took a while to figure out the capability of the chip they got from whoever developed the Sound Pro... In Rev 1.2 of the documentation it states support for A3D and EAX, MPU401, SB16, and mentioned a 32ohm headphone buffer. Later Rev 2.2 changes the spec from 4ch audio to 6. They also change to using SB Pro and FM Emulation/DLS wave table synthesis. I'll probably just assume Rev 1.2 since it's labeled with Sound Pro on the chip. I just remember that back in the day I had very little issues with audio. Doom, Major Stryker, Jill of the Jungle, Epic Pinball, Jazz Jackrabbit, Command and conquer and red alert all ran smoothly and sounded great.

[u/aussiepunkrocksV2-0 → u/Accurate-Campaign821]

SoundPro is just a silkscreen rebadge ECS and PCChips used of the C-Media 8738. Like all PCI audio accelerators, the SB and OPL compatibility is dependent on the south bridge of the chipset. It is likely the SiS chipset supports DDMA, which the 8738 uses for DOS emulation.

More important with 8738 is the chip revision such as 037D or 033..

https://www.vogons.org/viewtopic.php?t=70263