dnewhous wrote on 2021-03-08, 21:01:

I imagine the splash/install screen does have audio on original hardware.

No one is going to offer you a bug fix for an imaginary problem, sir. Figure out what it does on original hardware first and then maybe someone will be able to offer a solution.

Jorpho wrote on 2021-03-08, 21:21:

Figure out what it does on original hardware first and then maybe someone will be able to offer a solution.

What do you mean by original hardware? I thought you meant an authentic MS-DOS machine with an actual Soundblaster 16 ISA. Otherwise, I don't know what you are talking about. If you explain the test fixture you expect I might go buy it.

I think you are asking me to compare the performance to a legacy computer - that sounds like that task for a developer and I assure you I do not have access to the source code for DOSBox or DOSBox -X.

While it is possible that an install program plays audio on an auto-detected soundcard, it would be unusual. What is more likely is playing CD-audio tracks.

dnewhous wrote on 2021-03-07, 23:53:

The corrected command is mount d e:\ and it doesn't change the result.

Actually, the correct command is:

mount d e:\ -t cdrom

Without the "-t cdrom" switch, DOSBox will treat the mounted drive like a hard disk drive, not a CD-ROM drive.

So, add the switch to your mount command and maybe the install program will play audio tracks on the disc, if there are any.

If there is still no audio you might try adding interface switches, such as:

mount d e:\ -t cdrom -ioctl

mount d e:\ -t cdrom -ioctl_dx

Please try these suggestions in official DOSBox 0.74-3 first -- if you have any success, then try doing the same in unofficial builds.

dnewhous wrote on 2021-03-08, 23:35:

What do you mean by original hardware? I thought you meant an authentic MS-DOS machine with an actual Soundblaster 16 ISA.

That is exactly what I mean. Have you gotten this install program to play sound on an authentic MS-DOS machine? Or are you just "imagining" what it would do on an authentic MS-DOS machine?

ripsaw8080 wrote on 2021-03-08, 23:45:

While it is possible that an install program plays audio on an auto-detected soundcard, it would be unusual. What is more likely is playing CD-audio tracks.

I agree, that much would be more likely – but since the purpose of an install program is generally to copy stuff off of a CD, and CD audio playback would stop as soon as it tried to access anything else on the CD, that would also be unusual.

Jorpho wrote on 2021-03-09, 00:32:

dnewhous wrote on 2021-03-08, 23:35:

What do you mean by original hardware? I thought you meant an authentic MS-DOS machine with an actual Soundblaster 16 ISA.

That is exactly what I mean. Have you gotten this install program to play sound on an authentic MS-DOS machine? Or are you just "imagining" what it would do on an authentic MS-DOS machine?

I'm not a DOSBox developer and I don't think your expectation is appropriate.

dnewhous wrote on 2021-03-09, 00:34:

I'm not a DOSBox developer and I don't think your expectation is appropriate.

What are your expectations? You "imagine" this program should play sound and therefore expect people to provide a "bug fix"? Even though it probably doesn't play sound at all!?

Jorpho wrote on 2021-03-09, 00:38:

What are your expectations? You "imagine" this program should play sound and therefore expect people to provide a "bug fix"? Even though it probably doesn't play sound at all!?

My expectations are that the developers can try that, because they presumably have test fixtures to validate the actual output.

Also, there's no difference with the minGW build.

Actually, I see the point and its ironic. The install program doesn't go through an audio setup routine, therefore expecting it to have any sound is much too Windows; in MS-DOS sense, I can't expect the install program to have any audio except PC speaker.

I had the 10th Anniversary disc back in the day and I am 99% certain the music that plays during the installer is redbook audio.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkovDtIWmE8

Notice that the music stops during the installation of files. 😉

So, again, you must mount the CD-ROM drive with the "-t cdrom" switch in order to hear the disc's audio tracks, and the interface switches I mentioned previously may or may not be needed as well.

The OP sure likes to string people along playing charades.

As for installers playing sound, the Command&Conquer installers of course were very advanced, playing sound/animations. I don't remember if they auto-detected your audio device in DOS. I do remember the C&C Renegade installer needing a patch not to crash on my system, though.

C&C only plays audio after you confirm the hardware setup (to test that it works).
Quake was probably the most well-known game that played audio without requiring the user to run a setup program (via basic auto-detection).

Does FreeDOS really work?

dnewhous wrote on 2021-03-09, 18:52:

Does FreeDOS really work?

That has nothing to do with Lord of the Rings, or the 10th anniversary anthology, or DOSBox, or anything else mentioned so far. If you have questions about FreeDOS, why not start a new thread!?

FreeDOS has been around for over twenty years now, so yes, it exists in a form that "really works", but that depends entirely on what you want to use it for.

ripsaw8080 wrote on 2021-03-08, 23:45:

While it is possible that an install program plays audio on an auto-detected soundcard, it would be unusual. What is more likely […]
Show full quote

While it is possible that an install program plays audio on an auto-detected soundcard, it would be unusual. What is more likely is playing CD-audio tracks.

Actually, the correct command is:

mount d e:\ -t cdrom

Without the "-t cdrom" switch, DOSBox will treat the mounted drive like a hard disk drive, not a CD-ROM drive.

So, add the switch to your mount command and maybe the install program will play audio tracks on the disc, if there are any.

Yes, this is correct. But it needs a protection mechanism to prevent corrupting a game if I try to install it a second time. Scratch that, it just doesn't work when actually installing a game.

You do get to hear the LotR theme in General MIDI, and it is impressive.

Damn. I want to hear that midi.

RedCharles wrote on 2021-03-11, 08:50:

Damn. I want to hear that midi.

You realize this is about a 1990 game and it's not going to sound anything like Howard Shore's compositions from ten years later, right..?

There are surely suitable Youtube videos.

Jorpho wrote on 2021-03-11, 16:04:

You realize this is about a 1990 game and it's not going to sound anything like Howard Shore's compositions from ten years later, right..?

There are surely suitable Youtube videos.

It sounds better than Howard Shore's compositions. It sounds a bit like dw1theme.mid that I downloaded from the web one day.

"A child's sobbing echoes through the woods."

Is there a sound for that? Is that a bug?

shan2752 wrote on 2021-03-14, 01:21:

Daniel L Newhouse what is your major malfunction? Is that really your photo? Do you like peanuts? Are you human or some sort of rogue AI?

human. Yes, it's really my photo.

When I select the LAPC-1 setting and I walk east to Taffy, DOSBox -X freezes when I hear the wolf howl in the east woods ruins. I am using DOSBox -X for the D-70.sf2. When I get the notice about Taffy crying, I hear some sort of tine.

I also tried rescuing the dumb dog on Hill Lane to get the background music to play. The D-70.sf2 leaves something to be desired. When I reach for the shovel the game freezes up, if I step towards Anson Goodbody before I try to get the shovel. I remember this error from the original game, and I think it is a bug with a misconstructed autoexec.bat. I remember, it's what happens when you load a RadioShack driver into config.sys. It will work, but with that exact bug in LotR and an inability to operate with the DOSshell.

I think I must have imagined the tine. The norCtrack D-50 sf2 is twice the size of the Quasar Sounds D-70. The D-70 sounds like techno retread, the D-50 makes the BGM sound like organ music.

I combined them both and the sound of the D-70 dominates, but the D-50 is audible in the quiet passages the flute overdub is audible with the D-50 sounds merged.

I made a soundfont using D-50.sf2 and CM32/64 kit XG as a drum kit, that comes with sYnergi, assigned to patch 000:000. It works. The default CM32 drum kit that comes with sYnergi does not sound as good. In fact, I'd say after finishing that the sound has a Yamaha sheen to it.

A new retailer and new soundfonts to improve the sound of LotR. Amazounds offers D-synths vol 1. The LA Synths folder is the one I merged into a D-50 instruments soundfont. There is another one to buy, a soundfont for Drum Kits. Under the kits folder there is a D 70 kit.sf2 that can be used as the patch 0:0:0 drum kit for a merged soundfont. It improves the sound. A sign that the D-50 is the right source is the mega soundfont from goldmidi, that is a replica of the SC-88 pro. There a few D-50 instruments in the bank that I doubt would be of any use merging with the Amazounds D-50.sf2, but its interesting that they chose that as a model for LA synthesis.

Even better, there's a D-110 drum kit. That's a rack mountable LA synthesis module. Use that drum kit for even better results. One problem, though, is what to use for CM-32L style sound effects drum kit. There really isn't anything.

Another upgrade, D-synths vol 2 with D-110 drum kit. Now the instruments start to genuinely separate. The main melody sounds like 2 pianos and an acoustic guitar. It's not the orchestral sound that the interplay CD made me think would be there at all. It's supposed to be a D-70 soundset and it sounds so much better than Quasar sounds that I doubt everything quasar sounds has done.

Quasar sounds does sell 3 volumes of sound effects that you could use to put together a SFX drum kit. But they sucked so hard that I am wondering if I should bother with the money.

The TR-707 drum kit sounds even better than the D-110, but the wavesamples are not labeled.

The 707 sounds better. The 727 sounds just plain silly. Latin percussion? And monkeys might fly out of my butt.

Merging the Amazounds D-70 with the Amazounds D-50 obtains a sounds much like the Cm-32l. Smoother, not quite so strident. At least in my imagination.

There's a free soundfont. The ColumboMT32. It sounds better. I tried to combine it with the norCtrack D50 because I prefer its flute. I don't think it made a difference but it didn't hurt either. I reduced the drum kit to just one, the TR707 that comes with Columbo. The drums sound better the Amazounds. It's layered like a real drum machine. An organ sounding flute sounds better than a plucky keyboard flute.

After the flute kicks in I hear a volume swell with the keyboard that I do not remember on the CM-32L I owned. Also, when the piano solo kicks in it is quite lovely. It all has a bit of an "MT-32" effect like the sounds come out of a wind tunnel or something. I think SFX MT was only available with Utopia. The volume swell makes it sound like a Mister Mister song.

This leads to some philosophizing about a keyboard v electric organ sounds. Plucky flutes really stink. The D-50 sounds more like an electric organ. Is that what LA synthesis was for? The only way to beat an organ I'm thinking is with a rack module. That's not really fair. The D-110 is the rack module of the bunch.

The difference in the drums is that they are no longer the same volume with every strike.

Going into Bag End and using the read, perception, or just plain trying get causes the game to freeze up. You need to go into Bag End and get a torch at the least.

I tried DOSBox -X 83.14 and it can't even mount drive C:\.

Anybody know what the wolf howl in the East Woods Ruins sounds like in the Amiga version? There is not Gravis support but it looks like Gravis was a way to introduce Amigasound to the PC since it was argued that they copyrighted better clips. However, if it sounds like Taffy is being eaten on the Amiga version that might have killed Amiga.

This thread is surreal!