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1994-10-01
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Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!hookup!yeshua.marcam.com!charnel.ecst.csuchico.edu!olivea!sgigate.sgi.com!sgiblab!swrinde!howland.reston.ans.net!EU.net!sun4nl!news.nic.surfnet.nl!highway.LeidenUniv.nl!nic.wi.leidenuniv.nl!dtauritz
From: dtauritz@wi.leidenuniv.nl (Daniel R. Tauritz)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.advocacy,comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.games,comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.misc,comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.music,comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.tech,comp.answers,news.answers
Subject: Aria Soundcard FAQ v1.03
Followup-To: poster
Date: 30 Sep 1994 20:01:32 GMT
Organization: Dept. of Math. and Comp.Sci.; Leiden Univ.; Leiden; the Netherlands
Lines: 525
Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDU
Message-ID: <36hqqs$9rb@nic.wi.leidenuniv.nl>
NNTP-Posting-Host: hermes.wi.leidenuniv.nl
Summary: This posting discusses hardware related issues concerning soundcards
based on the Aria chipset from Sierra Semiconductor Corporation.
Originator: dtauritz@hermes.wi.leidenuniv.nl
Xref: bloom-beacon.mit.edu comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.advocacy:664 comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.games:1728 comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.misc:1627 comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.music:1748 comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.tech:2716 comp.answers:7514 news.answers:26538
Archive-name: PCsoundcards/aria/faq
Submitted-by: Daniel R. Tauritz
Posting-Frequency: monthly
Last-modified: 30-September-1994
Version: 1.03
=============================================================================
=== THE ARIA FAQ VERSION 1.03 ===
=== ===
=== Copyright 1994 Daniel R. Tauritz ===
=== Released on 30 September 1994 ===
=============================================================================
COPYRIGHT Distribution of this document by individuals for
non-commercial purposes is permitted. Commercial use of the
information contained requires the explicit permission of the
author. Parts of this document may be included in other
non-commercial works provided the author is acknowledged.
DISCLAIMER In no way is the author liable for any damage resulting from the
use of the information contained in this document.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
INDEX
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 - INTRODUCTION
1.0 - Why this FAQ ?
1.1 - What's new !
2 - ARIA SOUNDCARDS
2.0 - The Aria System
2.1 - Product specific information: Features
2.2 - Product specific information: Availability & Sales conditions
2.3 - General Soundcard Comparison
3 - VARIOUS TOPICS
3.0 - Troubleshooting
3.1 - Supported operating systems
3.2 - General MIDI & DOS
4 - HOW TO HELP
4.0 - Current problems & investigations
4.1 - What YOU can do to HELP ! (This section includes the author's E-mail
address and must be considered the most
important paragraph!)
Appendix A: Reference list for other ARIA documents you want to know about
Appendix B: ARIA Software Developers Kit Information
Appendix C: How to contact ARIA soundcard manufacturers
=============================================================================
=== 1 - INTRODUCTION ===
=============================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.0 - Why this FAQ ?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
This document is aimed at everyone who is in the market for a new soundcard,
already owns an Aria soundcard, or wants to learn more about Aria soundcards
in general. It focuses on hardware related Aria information. See Appendix A
for other documents of interest. The Aria Support List, by the same author,
for example focuses on software related Aria information.
The Aria family of soundcards is expanding rapidly and keeping track of the
differences between the many brands is one of the main features of this
document.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.1 - What's New !
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
A new paragraph concerning General MIDI & DOS has been added, hopefully this
will reduce the amount of E-mail I get a bit :-)
=============================================================================
=== 2 - ARIA SOUNDCARDS ===
=============================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.0 - The Aria System
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
There exist two generations of the Aria audio system. The old system utilised
the SC18051/2/3/4 ROM chips and a discrete analog mixer. The new family
utilises the SC18056/7/8/9 ROM chips and an integrated SC18075 mixer chip.
Both generations offer the following features:
- 32 Simultaneous voices
- General MIDI compliant with all patches defined by the General MIDI
Specification
- AdLib and SoundBlaster compatibility is provided at the register level
- Joystick Port
- MPU-401 UART MIDI Port
- 16-bit DAC (distortion<0.1%, 92 dB typical signal-to-noise ratio)
- Mixer noise: -70 dB max
- DSP chip: A 42 MHz TMS320C25 (Texas Instruments)
- 32 MB RAM/ROM DSP address space
In addition the old system offered:
- 3 stereo inputs: DAC, auxiliary (CD-ROM) and external
- 8-bit linear level control on auxiliary and external inputs, independently
adjustable
- DAC output level controlled by DSP
- external input is selectable for line level or microphone level
- 10 bit ADC (Except for the Sonic Sound made by Diamond which included a 16
bit ADC)
- frequency response: 20 Hz to 16 kHz - 3 dB
- distortion : 0.5% max
While the new system improved on that:
- 5 stereo inputs: DAC, auxiliary 1 (master output), auxiliary 2 (CD-ROM),
external and microphone
- 6-bit logarithmic level control on all inputs, independently adjustable
- treble and bass tone controls
- 16 bit ADC
- frequence response: 20 Hz to 19 kHz - 3 dB
- distortion : 0.2% max
The DSP can execute DSP applications if enough DSP RAM is available. Aria
soundcards come basically in two flavors. Those with and those without speech
recognition. The ones without speech recognition come with 8 kWords DSP
RAM, the ones with have 40 kWords DSP RAM aboard. Also, the new Aria system
generation offers reverb effects if the RAM expansion is in place. In
practice this means that only the more expensive Aria soundcards offering
speech recognition also offer reverb effects, though the cheaper cards could
also offer reverb effects if they were outfitted with the RAM expansion. If
anyone knows where to get the RAM chips then please let me know so I can
include that information here!
The Aria ROM chips offer the following features:
Basic features: Aria PCM Audio, Aria Synthesizer, Sound Blaster Emulation
Feature Table :
OLD ROM's NEW ROM's
| SC18051 SC18052 SC18053 SC18054 SC18056 SC18057 SC18058 SC18059
RAM |------------------------------------------------------------------------
8 | 0.5 1.0 0.5 1.0 0.5 1.0 0.5 1.0
40 | 0.5 1.0 0.5+L 1.0+L 0.5+R 1.0+R 0.5+R+L 1.0+R+L
Legend: 0.5=0.5 MB Samples,1.0=1.0 MB Samples,R=Reverb Effects,L=Listener
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.1 - Product specific information: Features
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Legend: AD=ADC resolution; J=JUMPERLESS
TMC-950=Future Domain TMC-950 SCSI-2 chip memory-mapped
A6960=Adaptec 6960 SCSI-2 chip (330 Kb/s)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Soundcard |Manufacturer |ROM|#MB|AD| SCSI |J|
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
AltraPro |AVM Technology | |1.0| | | |
Aria 16 |Prometheus |056|0.5|16| no |y|
Aria 16se |Prometheus |058|0.5|16|TMC-950|y|
AudioBahn 16 Pro |Genoa Systems |054|1.0|10| 6960 | |
Cyber Audio |? | | | | | |
Omnivox |Kingston Technologies| | | | | |
Sound 2000 |Add Tech | | | | | |
Sound Pilot |Cardinal Technologies| | | | | |
Sonic Sound Rev.A5|Diamond |051|0.5|16|TMC-950|n|
With upgrade kit: |054|1.0|16|TMC-950|n|
Sonic Sound Rev.B2|Diamond |056|0.5|16|TMC-950|y|(1)
Sound Tower |? | | | | | |
TESS |Zoltrix | | | | | |
ViVa Maestro 16 |Computer Peripherals | | |10|Adaptec|n|(2)
ViVa Maestro 16 VR|Computer Peripherals | | |10|Adaptec|n|(2)
VR |Alpha Systems | | | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
(1) No upgrade kit available at the moment
(2) Out of production
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.2 - Product specific information: Availability & Sales conditions
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Price=Lowest USA Street Price)
(W=# years warantee)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Soundcard |Manufacturer |W| $ |Store
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
AltraPro |AVM Technology | | |
Aria 16 |Prometheus |5|89 |ComputerCity
Aria 16se |Prometheus |5|160|ComputerCity
AudioBahn 16 Pro |Genoa Systems | |280|
Cyber Audio |? | | |
Omnivox |Kingston Technologies| | |
Sound 2000 |Add Tech | | |
Sound Pilot |Cardinal Technologies| | |
Sonic Sound (1) |Diamond |5|189|TC Computers (1-800-723-7287)
Upgrade Kit: (Only for Rev.A5) |120|
Sound Tower |? | | |
TESS |Zoltrix | | |
VR |Alpha Systems | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
As you can see this chart is far from complete. Please E-mail me the relevant
info on your Aria soundcard. If you have suggestions for adding entries to
this chart, I'll be glad to hear them. Just for clarification, the estimated
street prices should reflect the lowest price for which a particular
Aria soundcard is ALWAYS available. So a one time special is not of interest.
Also, it might be a good idea to include info on WHERE you can get a
particular soundcard for the lowest price. Please include this info with any
prices you E-mail me!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.3 - General Soundcard Comparison
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
(SB: SoundBlaster Compatibility in Hardware -> H
Software -> S)
Note: Prices are lowest I could find, try CompUSA, ComputerCity, Micro
Warehouse, Computer Discount Warehouse, ComputAbility, Midland
ComputerMart, Dee One Systems, TC Computers, Midwest Micro, Comp-U-Plus
and Wal-Mart.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Soundcard | Company | $ |SCSI| CHIPSET | DSP |SB|
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
ProAudioSpectrum16Basic|MediaVision| 49| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
SoundBlaster(SB) | Creative| 59| - | OPL-2 | - | H|
SoundMan 16 | Logitech| 77| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
SB Pro | Creative| 78| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
Aria 16 | Prometheus| 89| - | ARIA |TMS320C25| H|
SonicSound LX | Diamond| 89| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
Pro Audio Spectrum 16 |MediaVision| 95| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
SB 16 Basic | Creative| 96| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
SB 16-MCD | Creative|107| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
SonicSound LX | Diamond|109| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
Gamewave 32 | Orchid|114| - | OPL-3 | - | H|
Pro Audio Studio 16 |MediaVision|115| x | PAS | - | H|
GravisUltraSound(GUS) | Gravis|129| - | ICS-GF1 | S|
SB 16-SCSI-2 | Creative|129| x | OPL-3 | - | H|
Premium 3-D SCSI-2/MCD |MediaVision|145| x | OPL-3 | Jazz | H|
Aria 16se | Prometheus|160| x | ARIA |TMS320C25| H|
SoundGalaxyBasic16Extra|Aztech Labs|169| x | OPL-3 |AnalogDev| H|
Soundwave 32 | Orchid|169| - | ADSP-2115 |AnalogDev| H|
SB 16-MCD+ASP | Creative|169| - | OPL-3 | CL-ASP | H|
GUS-MAX | Gravis|179| x | ICS-GF1 | S|
MS Sound System 2.0 | MicroSoft|179| - | AD1848JP | - | H|
SoundMan Wave 16 | Logitech|180| x | OPL-4 | - | H|
SonicSound | Diamond|189| x | ARIA |TMS320C25| H|
SB 16-SCSI-2+ASP | Creative|199| x | OPL-3 | CL-ASP | H|
RAP-10 | Roland|249| - |SoundCanvas| Roland | -|
SB AWE-32 | Creative|249| - |OPL-3+EMU | AWE32 | H|
Pro 3-D |MediaVision|259| x |OPL-3+KORG | Jazz | H|
MultiSound Monterey |TurtleBeach|315| - |EmuProt.1XR|Motorola | -|
Audio Machine | Adaptec|329| x | ? | ? | ?|
When you should choose Aria:
* If you are looking for a cheap wavetable synthesis soundcard with bullet
proof SB emulation and digital recording and playback up to 16-bit 44.1kHz,
try the Aria 16 for $89.
* If you are looking for a cheap wavetable synthesis soundcard with bullet
proof SB emulation, digital recording and playback up to 16-bit 44.1kHz, a
SCSI-2 interface, reverb effects and speaker-independent non-continuous
speech recognition capabilities, try the Aria 16se for $160.
NOTE: This comparison chart is very incomplete in every imaginable way.
The author would appreciate receiving additions and/or error reports,
but does not want to indulge in flame wars with for example GUS owners
over the relative merits of this comparison. It is merely provided to
present an overview of the many soundcards and the author has
deliberately chosen not to be complete which would make it much too
long and much too complicated.
=============================================================================
=== 3 - VARIOUS TOPICS ===
=============================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.0 - Troubleshooting
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aria soundcards, certainly the newer jumperless ones, are usually extremely
easy to install and configure. And if there is a problem the trouble
shooting sections in the operating manuals are pretty decent and often the
problem can be solved without much complications. However, there is one
undocumented feature of the jumperless cards which in rare cases can cause
problems. The configuration of IRQ's, DMA channels, etc. is done via a device
line which is executed first in the CONFIG.SYS and reads as follows:
DEVICE=C:\ARIA\BIN\soundcfg.sys C:\ARIA\aria.cfg
Normally this should be sufficient, I had a case however where executing
ARIATEST resulted in "DSP not responding" or something similar. The trick is
to change the RBA port address, which is somehow used for the configuring of
the jumperless cards, to a non-conflicting port adress anywhere between 280
and 330 hexadecimal. Prometheus technical support informed me on this issue
and suggested using port address 298, which worked fine. The device line was:
DEVICE=C:\ARIA\BIN\soundcfg.sys C:\ARIA\aria.cfg 298
Yes, it's that simple!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.1 - Supported operating systems
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
At the moment only MS-DOS & MS-Windows 3.1 (or 3.0 with Multi-Media
extensions) are being supported. When (and if) drivers for OS/2, NT, etc. are
to be released is unknown to me. I'll post any info I receive, please do not
E-mail me with requests for OS/2 drivers and the like, it just wastes
everyone's time. However, if you are interested in creating Aria device
drivers yourself, then please contact me!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.2 - General MIDI & DOS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is probably the most frequently asked question I have gotten the last
few months: "Why can't I select General MIDI in a DOS game like DOOM?"
The answer is that Aria supports all the patches defined by the General MIDI
specification, but lacks a MIDI interpreter in hardware. The MIDI interpreter
must therefore be emulated in software and that is why under DOS you always
need Aria drivers to get General MIDI support. The issue of native Aria
support under DOS is the focus of the Aria Support List.
=============================================================================
=== 4 - HOW TO HELP ===
=============================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.0 - Current problems & investigations
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm in the process of compiling a data-base on Aria soundcards. You can help
by sending me an E-mail message containing the output of ARIATEST executed on
your system along with the following info: Manufacturer (e.g. Diamond),
Soundcard (e.g. Sonic Sound), Revision (e.g. Rev.A5, this is very
important!), Price (e.g. $200), Retailer (e.g. CompUSA), Jumpers (e.g.
Jumperless), Warranty (e.g. 5 years), SCSI (e.g. SCSI-2 interface) and
anything else that seems important to you.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.1 - What YOU can do to HELP !
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you know more about one of the problems mentioned in paragraph 4.0 or can
add insights not yet included in this document, then please E-mail the
information to:
dtauritz@wi.leidenuniv.nl
and hopefully it will be included in the next update of this document!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appendix A: Reference list for other ARIA documents you want to know about
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Document | rtfm.mit.edu:pub/usenet/comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard
--------------------------|--------------------------------------------------
Aria FAQ | Aria_Soundcard_Faq_v1.03
Aria Support List | Aria_Support_List_v2.06
General Soundcard FAQ | c.s.i.p.s_F
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Document | ftp.wi.leidenuniv.nl:pub/audio/aria/docs
--------------------------|--------------------------------------------------
Aria FAQ | aria1_03.faq
Aria Support List | aria2_06.lst
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appendix B: ARIA Software Developers Kit Information
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aria Software Developers Kit Price List
---------------------------------------
Aria Synthesizer Software Developers Kit (SSDK) with Aria Card $300(?)
The SSDK consists of an Aria Synthesizer sound card with
the Aria Listener speech recognition option, all end-user
software including the Aria Listener Voice Macro program
plus the Aria Synthesizer Software Developers Kit
documentation, sample driver source code in both C and
assembly language and the synthesizer patch bank editor.
Aria Synthesizer Software Developers Kit (SSDK) w/o Aria Card $50
This is the same as the SSDK above, but without Aria Card.
Aria Listener Software Developers Kit (LSDK) with Aria Card $400(?)
The LSDK consists of the SSDK with Aria card plus the
Aria Listener API and API documentation, the Aria
Vocabulary Development system and documentation and
the Aria Listener Good Listener Cookbook. Additionally
the LSDK includes 90 days of telephone support.
Aria Listener Software Developers Kit (LSDK) w/o Aria Card $100
This is the same as the LSDK above, but without Aria Card.
Aria Listener Software Developers Kit (LSDK) upgrade $50
This kit includes all of the software and documentation for
the LSDK, but does not include the Aria card or the SSDK
software and documentation. This kit includes Aria
Listener API and API documentation, the Aria Vocabulary
Development system and documentation and the Aria Listener
Good Listener Cookbook. Additionally the LSDK includes
90 days of telephone support. This kit is intended to upgrade
a SSDK to a LSDK.
If you are interested in purchasing one of these kits, please contact
Sierra's Customer Support group at 408-263-9300.
SIERRA SEMICONDUCTOR
2075 North Capitol Avenue
San Jose, California 95132
Phone: (408)263-9300
Fax : (408)263-3337
Aria Software Developers Kit Conditions of Purchase
---------------------------------------------------
- There are no royalties involved.
- There are no restrictions on the use of the materials included in the SDK
except that you may not make them public and distribution of source code is
only allowed if a majority of the code is of your own creation, not simply
copied from the development kit. So for example it is perfectly legitimate
to write an audio driver for Aria using the SDK and distributing its source
code as Public Domain, Shareware, on a commercial basis or any other way
you see fit.
- For ordering please provide purchase order number. All orders are shipped
COD, or you may charge on VISA or MASTERCARD. Please reference your phone
and fax number so Sierra can reach you, should they have any questions.
To order one of the above mentioned kits fill in the following order entry
form completely, with a notice that you found it in the ARIA FAQ, Copyright
1994 by Daniel R. Tauritz, and fax it to 408-263-3337.
Order Entry Form
----------------
--------------------------------- CUT ---------------------------------------
ARIA SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT KIT - ORDER FORM
(From the ARIA FAQ maintained by Daniel R. Tauritz)
COMPANY NAME : Order Date :
Contact Person: Ship Via :
Address : Date Shipped:
Telephone : Fax #:
SHIP TO: BILL TO:
__________________________________ ______________________________________
__________________________________ ______________________________________
__________________________________ ______________________________________
__________________________________ ______________________________________
__________________________________ ______________________________________
SSC PART NO. DESCRIPTION QTY PRICE TOTAL
_________________ ____________________ ________ _________ _________
Customer Request Data Sierra Commit Data
_____________________ _____________________________
=============================================================================
PAYMENT TERMS:
P.O.#____________________________
Credit Card Name__________________________________________
Card #_________________________________________/Exp.Data__________________
C.O.D.______________________________________ C.I.A.____________________
Ship Via____________________________________ Shipping Charges______________
SierraContact________________________________________ Date___________________
--------------------------------- CUT ---------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appendix C: How to contact ARIA soundcard manufacturers
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alpha Systems Lab Inc.
2361 McGaw Av.
Irvine, CA 92714, U.S.A.
(800) 998-3883
(714) 252-0117
(714) 252-0887
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
AVM Technology Inc.
655 East 9800 South
Sandy, UT 84070, U.S.A.
(800) 880-0041
(801) 571-0967
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cardinal Technologies Inc.
1827 Freedom Rd.
Lancaster, PA 17601, U.S.A.
General: (717)293-3000
Customer service: (717)293-3049
FAX: (717)293-3055
BBS: (717)293-3043
Tech Support: (717)293-3124, 9-5 EST Mon.-Fri.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer Peripherals Inc.
67 Rancho Conejo
Newbury Park, CA 91320, U.S.A.
(800) 854-7600 (Sales Department)
(805) 499-5751
(805) 499-6021 (Technical Support)
Computer Peripherals BBS (+1 805 499 9646, FYI)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Diamond Computer Systems, Inc.
1130 East Arques Avenue
Sunnyvale, CA 94086, U.S.A.
Phone: 408-736-2000
Fax : 408-730-5750
Technical Support (E-mail)
CompuServe : 75300,3673
America OnLine: GO DIAMOND
Internet : 75300.3673@compuserve.com
Software Updates
CompuServe : GO GRAPHBVEN
Diamond BBS: (408) 730-1100 (2400 Baud)
(408) 524-9301 (9600+ Baud)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Genoa Systems Corp.
75 East Trimble Rd.
San Jose, CA 95131, U.S.A.
(800) 934-3662
(408) 432-9090
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Prometheus
Technical Support: (503) 692-9601
BBS : (503) 691-5199
E-mail : CompuServe 76004,527
America Online Promethean
Internet 76004.527@compuserve.com
=============================================================================
=== Greetings to all Aria soundcard owners from ===
=== Daniel R. Tauritz (dtauritz@wi.leidenuniv.nl) ===
=== and hoping to hear from you soon! ===
=============================================================================