timofonic

I was think about those MIDI synths with floppy drivers (playing midi files, using samples...) and then came to my mind about a storage module for MIDIBOX. The interface could be USB for using standard massive storage devices on it, probably "only" a matter of expanding the MIDIBOX USB module with that functionality. I'm pretty sure that there must be some examples of mass storage device driver implementation for the same family of PICs used. This could make MIDIBOX synths a lot more standalone and even a recording function and an editing one for already saved ones on the storage device. Even this could be useful for avoiding the memory and size limitations of PICs, loading additional modules in the PICs on demand (a "microkernel" on an embedded system? :D). I was said "a bit"·something like this some time before on this thread: http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php?topic=4996.0

Does this toy will be released in the future? I have a few old VGA monitors that can start to being really very useful with that 8)

Here are interesting info on an older forum post:http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php?topic=4067.0 I don't want annoy, only let's see if we can discuss this old idea again ;) PS: I think in the future the forum will need a smart thread merging and cleaning.

Ok. Sorry, I got confused. http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php?topic=3414.0 http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php?topic=5431.0 Not too much posts but they are OK. Sadly, nobody showed scematics of an early experiment with the POKEY chip :-\ About FPGAarcade... it's possible a 100% POKEY emulation using FPGA? ??? I could donate two Atari POKEY (C012294B-01) chips (as minimun) for the cause to some electronic guy that wants to experimenting on the MIDIBOX POKEY :D

http://bisqwit.iki.fi http://nesdev.parodius.com MIDINES, a black box type (no schematics and/or source code available of it) MIDI interface cart for NES/Famicom MIDIbox NES? forum thread. http://www.slack.net/~ant/nes-emu/apu_ref.txt http://nesdev.parodius.com/2A03/ Do you want to do a MIDIBOX NES (2A03) or just a simple MIDI experiment?

Sorry I didn't found that forum thread, searching "POKEY" appeared 0 results (???). I was mean more stuff like some electronic design using Atari POKEY, it seems nobody tried it.

You didn't readed what I writed... http://sourceforge.net/docman/?group_id=9266 From the SIDplayer thread: As you can see, and even in words of TK, there are not open source implementation of an app that communicates using the ASID protocol. There are specs and an open-source implementation on hardware side (MIDIBOX SID ;)), but not on client side. I hope an ASID implementation can be implemented into Sidplay2 some day, the project is STILL alive ;)

Anyone invested in this? It could be nice read someone trying something with this chip. Anyone could put interesting URLs about POKEY? Since music collections to techie stuff... http://sndh.atari.org

Yes, thanks A LOT ;)

So MBSIDv2 wil be more limited in sound generations in some ways that MBSIDv1? It's because PIC chips are becoming small for the engine? It's this still a limit in the lastest MBSIDv2 concept? I'm afraid of design limitations on most circuit pieces :-\ I don't want to sound bad, but seems the used PICs needs to be changed. I think a second version can't have that kind of limitations. It's your project and we are taking this for free. This is only a suggest and you are the expert designing this nice piece of hardware, so you know a lot more of this and why v2 is still interesting with those limitations (I'm still trying to understand how is designed this). Do you considered to use dsPICs for the proyect? They seems very interesting in many ways and quite powerful too. Microchip's dsPIC33FJ256MC710 seems a quite powerful little beast. I don't know if they can be socket compatible, or maybe just doing some socket adapter. Here are a few specs from the page: PS.: Sorry if I'm very confused when trying to understand the stuff you writed.

Hello, I was using google for my daily constant find of weird and/or retro stuff when found this nice geek stuff: NesSIDPlay. I was reading about this small program that runs on the C64, and it's some kind of PSG emulator for C64 using the SID! The emulation is not "perfect" due to some hardware limitations, but is very good. When I first discovered MIDIBOX SID my first uses were retrocomputerish ones, but then I discovered a wide variety of possibilities. I think MIDIBOX SID can have even more retro uses. What about emulating different PSG chips? Mainly in my mind I see Sinclair Spectrum, NES, Gameboy, PCengine and SMS ones. But it can be nice emulating them not only by emulating the sounds for syntheticing retro 8bit sounds, but the possibility of using MIDIBOX side as a tiny box where you can play those songs stored in special files (.NSF, NSFe[/ur], .HES, .GBS, .PSG, .SND, OUT, ZXAY, ZX50, STC, ZXS, ASC, YM, VTX, PSG, STP, PSC, FTC, FLS, PT1, PT2, PT3, SQT...). This thing can consume a lot of time, but can be a long term and low priority goal as some retro contrib, or the future project by someone new in the MIDIBOX scene experimenting with it. I think with two SID chips is fully possible to do 100% perfect emulation of most PSG chips. Am I correct? http://web.archive.org/web/20050311094903/http://www.zyx.com/chrisc/nessidplay.html (official site is dead but nicely rescued by web archive ;)) http://sunsite.mff.cuni.cz/MIRRORS/utopia.hacktic.nl/pub/c64/Music/NesSidPlay/ (some mirror countaining the program) Here are some specs: SMS (Sega Master System) NES Does this mean two SID chips are able to doing a FULL recreation of the Master System and NES' PSG? Can SID with SMS' FM? And MIDIBOX FM?

Another idea for doing this cheaper could be doing a "reconfigurable synth". A FPGA-PIC based synth with a wide variety of modular filters and memory size for storing samples, so it can emulate almost all digital synths and a wide variety of analog ones.

Hello, I see MIDIBOX is getting big with a lot of new modules (and being improved with better versions), and cables too :o What about socketizing MIDIBOX? I mean designing a motherboard with the main (obligatory) stuff and slot connectors (like ISA buses or C64 cartidges) for adding the new stuff. Even this design can be thinked for the future, a PCB where you can put less slots (or soldering it in the future) if not needing it ATM, but having more in the future for the more modules created (Speakjet :D). Only cables will be used for the regulator stuff and maybe connectors too, but the first ones can be solved in a smart way (a big plane cable to where all the regulators, leds and other stuff are) I think this will can do easier and faster the upgrade process and cleaner solution for big MDIBOXes! TK, what do you think? Of course, the old ones using cables will do the same, it's just a matter of easy. Regards.

I'm sorry to annoy with unimportant in this very interesting conversation about the future of MBSID (I can understand hardly a portion of the conversation, but the understood stuff is very interesting too), but what about playing oldie C64' SID files and even those that run only on SID emulators? Any future open-source app sending the file by MIDI for not needing to using closed-source stuff that only will run on Bill Gates' OS? This is not important, better still fight first with that evil envelope bug first until the last round and even more (with the help of other people's ideas and tech knowedge too), just a thing for the TODO list in the long future ;) Back to on topic: Maybe it's a stupid idea, but what about sharing the work between other SID? This could double the amount of SIDs for the same work, but maybe reducing lag. Yes, I'm stupid, but who knows... So the last solution can be emulating some SID stuff on the PIC (my brain is collapsed now, I need to use it more)? ???

Sometimes cloning some vintage synths is more because preservation than "because it's cheaper than buying them", but now some of them are getting more expensive because fscking collectors >:( I'm a retrocomputer that loves those 8/16bit oldies and some of them has very good music using vintage synths connected to them. I knowed things like MIDIBOX thanks to the 8bit world :) You know: it's not a matter of having it, it's a matter of doing the hardware inmortal (like using FPGA for emulating old computers and consoles).

Hello, I'm impressed with the work over MIDIBOX, this "small" community (but big on ideas) has very interesting stuff and MIDIBOX is a very flexible platform. I was see that many people used MIDIBOX as a base for cloning vingate synths. I would like to know what ones are cloned thanks to MIDIBOX stuff and some people using it as base of it, but I would like to this being as a "wish list" for saying what ones you want to being cloned and the techie ignorant guys like me knowing if it's possible to do or not. Cloned vintage synths using MIDIBOX hardware (that I found): - Roland TR-909: Thanks to introspectiv.org's 9090 Vintage synths I want to seeing cloned using MIDIBOX hardware: - Roland CM-64 - Roland MT-32 - Roland SC-55 - Yamaha SY22 + Yamaha TG33 - Some Moog ones. Non-MIDIBOX stuff (but possible base for MIDIBOX powered ones?): - Roland TB-303: Carlos Germany (LosDos) version (url not found) and Oakley's TB3030 and TB3031 http://m.bareille.free.fr/synth.htm regards. PS: This kind of info can be a good candidate for wiki, I can help putting it if necessary...

It can this be really useful of there are better alternativs like PureData? http://nosuch.com/keykit/

It's interesting to know that about ISA bus :) Anyone know about those cards and Pnp/PRO? it could be interesting to know stuff of them and software, patchsets, tools and hacks available for them :)

A friend said me that up to Intel 440 (Pentium II - Pentium III) it has DMA activated, but since Intel 810 it's only a map from PCI lossing a lot stuff from original ISA. It's this true? Anyone can explain more about this? It seems interesting... What about Gravis Ultrasound PnP and Gravis Ultrasound PRO? Anyone can provide info of them?

Hello, I want yo buy a good Linux-compatible sound card, specially with a good number of MIDI IN/OUT, excellent analog audio IN/OUT and low latency. I was readed this on a old forum thread: http://www.rme-audio.com/english/hdsp/multifa.htm It's this? It's supported by Linux? Are you using another one? It could be really quite interesting to know what cards supported by Linux are using the people.

Hello, I will have very soon a Gravis Ultrasound MAX, it's old ISA thingie, but it has quite interesting stuff because demoscene liked it a lot. It has retro stuff like emulation of MT32, SC55, CM32/64L... Anyone knows how that emulation is really? It can be really interesting for doing music with retro sounds? I want it for doing music with old school sounds and using it as subtitute of original synths for vintage computers (MSX for Illusion City, X68000...). What other retro audio cards are interesting too? Any manner of using old ISA audio cards on new computers?

This is SID stuff, so I suposse that this is the adecuate place for it and all MIDIBOX SID users can know about new SID stuff, no? ;) From vorc.org: Get all them here...

http://www.puredata.info/ What about this? Any some kind of MIDIBOX integration possible? It sounds too interesting for people aren't afraid to learning programming languages for doing advanced stuff...

http://www.synhouse.com/ What about this? It's better the MIDIBOX stuff?

Do you want to clone old school analog synths? Nice, go for it!