TBs' Daytona uses S3s new SonicVibes chipset. This chipset is very powerful, with FM synthesis, general MIDI and DirectSound support along with SRS positional ability all under one roof. Unfortunately, its also a resource hog. With all options and the top down on a warm summer night it wants two IRQs, one DMA, and EIGHT memory addresses. Legacy DOS support is also weak.

Videologics' SonicStorm uses the ESS Maestro-1 chipset. This DSP (digital signal processor) is the most powerful in this roundup, pushing 500 MIPS. Thats some engine, although the power differential from a 300 MIPS DSP to 500 will never be noticed by the user. The Maestro 1 supports QSound, DirectSound, and DirectSound3D acceleration, does 64 channels of wavetable and, of course, supports DOS legacy mode.

When the SonicStorm was released the drivers did not support Aureals positional sound technology. However, new drivers (5 meg) released on April 30th now support A3D emulation. Version 1.91 info is as follows:

• Added 4MB WaveTable support (4 MB card only)
• Enhanced QSound3D 3D positional game coverage
• Added support for Aureal's A3D API interface.
• Added PC Speaker volume control in the mixer volume control.
• Fixed bug which stopped audio being heard in DOS sessions when running on certain BIOSes e.g. Phoenix

The Ensoniq ES1370 Digital Audio and Music Controller is not a DSP, and neither does the board support A3D. This chip "supports" DirectSound3d but does NOT accelerate it by offloading the CPU. I haven't had an Ensoniq board in hand so I can't really comment on other issues regarding this piece of hardware. (Creatives' new PCI64 uses this chip also). My advice? If you want to make the best use of the PCI bus and your scarce gaming dollars, avoid it.

Analog Devices' 2181 is a 40 MIPS digital signal processor, the slowest DSP of the three in this roundup. The Diamond Monster Sound M80 uses this chip, and the board itself sounds very good. The AD 2181 fully accelerates DirectSound and DirectSound3D AND also fully supports A3D. Unfortunately, the M80 has a slightly finicky digital game port and does not support downloadable sound font technology. Diamonds latest board, the MX200, uses the same AD 2181 DSP.

Of all these chipsets, the Vortex and Mastro 1 seem to be not only the fastest and of the best quality, but also offer the best support for DOS legacy mode. Just as important, two of the boards using the Vortex chipset, the TB Montego and Orchid NuSound, also sport a fully digital gameport. Like the auto trans option that appeared in the late fifties on luxury sedans, its a welcome addition that costs you little extra but offers great gains in use (more below).

The Maestro 1, incarnated solidly on Videologic's SonicStorm PCI, is also a blazingly fast DSP. Its the only chipset that offers driver support for DOS games even in a true DOS session (thanks to AECU.SYS in CONFIG.SYS, and MAESTRO.COM in AUTOEXEC.BAT - be sure you have the v191 drivers which solved the Phoenix/AWARD BIOS issue).

Click to continue . . .

Subjectively, the Maestro and Vortex are the cleanest sound I have ever heard on the PC. I know that that is a fairly dramatic statement, and its about time! These chips produce no noticeable distortion running some of my favorite music CDs, and games sound great when pumped through the 200 watt Yamaha surround sound system that lurks permanently in my office. Vortex specs are quite impressive: Stereo Crosstalk: 100Hz (-89db); 1kHz (-90db); 10 kHz (-87db), THD: Better than -92 db (0.005%, A weighted), SN Ratio: Better than 92dB (A weighted, compared to 85dB for the Maestro).

Digital Joystick Port

Last week we posted a review of PDPIs Lighting 4, a stand alone digital joystick port of the highest quality. Since then I've been deluged with mail, mostly asking if anyone can really get 50% better frame rate in F15! = ) While some may get substantial frame rate increases, not everyone will, and certainly not on every simulation. But what you do get with the L4 is rock solid stability. In most cases the L4 will also give some frame rate increase, especially in complex and active scenes.

But if you purchase a board with a digital joystick port, its a tough decision whether you should also add the L4. If you want the absolute best, and you play a lot of online competition, then go for it. If stability is a consideration, you can't do any better.

Otherwise, boards like the Montego or NuSound are an excellent choice. The digital port on these boards will give you 66% the speed of the L4, greater stability than an analog port, and in most cases will also give you a frame rate increase over your old analog port by offloading your CPU from the time consuming task of polling your joystick (on average 32 times per second on an analog port). If you have DSP acceleration, why not offload your CPU from monitoring your joystick also?

What about the digital port on the M80? Although this port is slightly faster than the port on the Montego or NuSound, I found it less stable than either and sometimes even finicky, giving me occasional spikes. Some users have also reported difficulty with joystick recognition, as have users with TBs Montego.

Summary: the Ultimate Sound Value?

64 voices, full duplex support, hardware DirectSound and DirectSound3d acceleration, DOS legacy support, digital joystick ports, connectors and outputs galore... my goodness, we must be nearing the millenium! We can finally purchase all this quality for $100 - $120 US, its a great day for gamers!

Which would I choose? Go for Turtle Beach, the NuSound or the SonicStorm (though this one lacks a digital port the port is speed compensated). Why pay extra for Diamonds' slower DSP or be forced to use a second sound board for DOS legacy support? With clean sound, easy installation, a digital joystick port, a single card solution and top notch quality, its time to leave your old ISA bus in the dust.