16.820 bytes

Service Hints & Tips

Document ID: VLAR-3X9N9J

WindSurfer Communications Adapter - Various Questions and Answers

Applicable to: World-Wide

Question:
The Audiovation cards sound very similar to the WindSurfer cards, but at a much lower price. Please differentiate.
Answer:
Like the WindSurfer adapters the Audiovation cards use the Mwave DSP (Digital Signal Processor) chip, which offers many of the same capabilities. But the two sets of adapters differ in target markets. Where the WindSurfer cards are designed primarily for the office, and include fax/modem and telephone answering features, the Audiovation cards are positioned more for the home market, offering joystick ports, speech recognition and text-to-speech software instead. In addition, the Audiovation ISA card offers a multimedia kit containing an internal CD-ROM drive, and 4 CD titles. For a side-by-side comparison of features, refer to the document OBI Communications Adapters - WindSurfer Communications Adapter - Comparison with the Audiovation adapter and the V.32BIS DSP Data/Fax Modem.

Question:
The Best Ace and Spectrum Envoy adapters also use the IBM Mwave DSP. Does this mean that they are less expensive versions of the Audiovation or WindSurfer cards?
Answer:
Just as the WindSurfer and Audiovation cards differ significantly in features and price, so do other adapters using the same DSP chip. Where the Audiovation adapter has dual microphone jacks (for stereo input), another card may have only mono mike input. Or another adapter may not implement all of the features inherent in the Mwave chip, or may include different software. So it is important to compare not just the prices, but also the features and specifications of all adapters utilizing the Mwave chip to be sure you are getting the features and function you are looking for.

Question:
Is there any way to add fax/modem and telephone features to the Audiovation adapter, or joystick ports and speech recognition to the WindSurfer card?
Answer:
No. The only functional enhancements that can be made to these cards is via software. Those features would require hardware upgrades that are not possible for these adapters.

Question:
Are there any software upgrades available for the WindSurfer and/or Audiovation adapters. If so, how do I get it, and how much does it cost?
Answer:
Due to the WindSurfer and Audiovation adapters' use of the Mwave DSP technology, upgrades are simple, and sometimes even free. The Mwave DSP allows functional enhancements via software upgrades, instead of the traditional chip or board replacement methods. There is a free upgrade for all of the WindSurfer adapters (ISA and MCA) that adds the following features:

16-voice MIDI synthesizer
Caller I.D. detection
Full-duplex speakerphone
JPEG image decompression
Voice/Fax detection (2-way discrimination)
V.17 (14.4kbps) fax
V.42 error control
V.42bis data compression
Qsound 3-D sound effects

These enhancements are available free of charge electronically from the IBM Complementary Products BBS, at 704-594-3799. Download the files in the following directories: "WindSurfer ISA" or "WindSurfer MCA," as appropriate. Owners of the WindSurfer MIDI kit (P/N 82G7133) need an additional enhancement package that can also be downloaded. To get authorization to do so, send a fax to 800-283-6051, with the following information: Your name, address, phone number, fax number, and include "Subject: Request for MIDI Upgrade Enhancement." You will then receive the information necessary to download the MIDI enhancement.
Note: There are no plans for Audiovation Mwave updates.

Question:
How good is the SoundBlaster compatibility?
Answer:
Approximately 70% of all SoundBlaster applications should work equally well with the WindSurfer/Audiovation card as with a SoundBlaster; additional apps will work with some limitations (for example, music but not speech, or some distortion), while a few will not work at all, or with no sound. More than 100 applications have been tested and are known to work as is.

Question:
What kinds of programs won't work with the WindSurfer and Audiovation cards in SoundBlaster emulation mode?
Answer:
Generally speaking, any software that is trying to access a SoundBlaster card at the hardware level (versus the software interface), and those that use DOS memory extenders or proprietary game operating, systems, such as Doom. (Doom works, but without music, and sound effects are played through the PC speaker, for example.)

Question:
What's the difference between the original Mwave chip used in the Audiovation and WindSurfer cards and the newer Mwave 2780 chip?
Answer:
The primary differences are in performance and SoundBlaster compatibility. The new chip processes faster (60 MIPS vs 51 MIPS for the original chip), offers 32-voice wavetable sound, and has 100% hardware-level SoundBlaster compatibility (as opposed to only software-level compatibility in the old chip). The new chip is beginning to show up in products such as the ThinkPad 755CD/CE/CDV/CSE/CX/CV, 760, and Aptiva A-, C-, M-, and S-series systems.

Question:
How good is the M-ACPA compatibility?
Answer:
All M-ACPA programs (mostly educational software) that are written to the Device Driver (software) Interface will work exactly the same as with the M-ACPA card. Only those apps that are written directly to the hardware level will fail. There should be very few such applications.

Question:
Speaking of M-ACPA, can an Audiovation card coexist with one?
Answer:
No. The software included with these cards includes some files with the same names, so whichever card is installed last will work, at the expense of the card installed first.

Question:
How does WindSurfer/Audiovation MIDI playback quality compare to the SoundBlaster Pro ASP and ProAudio Spectrum-16 adapters?
Answer:
Significantly better. Where the SBP and PAS-16 cards use FM synthesis (for FM-quality sound), the WindSurfer and Audiovation cards' Mwave DSP chip uses wavetable lookup. This allows it to play back digitally sampled musical instruments with much better fidelity (CD-quality sound).

Question:
What's the signal to noise ratio for the Mwave DSP?
Answer:
Better than 80dB for the full record and playback path.

Question:
Is there a developer's toolkit available for the WindSurfer/Audiovation adapters, if I want to write native applications?
Answer:
Yes. Contact Intermetrics at 617-661-1840 for DOS/Windows and OS/2 toolkits.

Question:
Is there any difference between the ISA and Micro Channel versions of the Audiovation adapter, other than the bus type?
Answer:
Yes. The ISA version includes a connector for the IBM Internal ISA CD-ROM Drive (P/N 70G8501), Panasonic 562/563, or Sony CDU-31A), while the Micro Channel adapter has only an Audio-In connector to play music from a separately-attached internal CD-ROM, if installed in the system. In addition, while both adapters are bus masters (which means they offload most of the processing load from the system processor, resulting in better overall performance in a multitasking environment), the ISA card can be the only bus master in the system, while the Micro Channel adapter can co-reside with multiple other bus masters.

Question:
Is there any difference between the ISA and Micro Channel versions of the WindSurfer adapter, other than the bus type?
Answer:
Yes. The Micro Channel version includes connectors for the IBM Internal ISA CD-ROM Drive (P/N 70G8501), Panasonic 562/563, or Sony CDU-31A), while the ISA adapter has only an Audio-In connector to play music from a separately-attached internal CD-ROM, if installed in the system. Thus the higher cost of the Micro Channel Adapter is offset by not needing a separate adapter for the CD-ROM drive (which not only may mean additional cost, but also another adapter slot required in the ISA system). In addition, while both adapters are bus masters, the ISA card can be the only bus master in the system, while the Micro Channel adapter can co-reside with multiple other bus masters.

Question:
What are the other features of the WindSurfer adapters?
Answer:
Besides the fax/modem, MIDI, SoundBlaster compatibility, and CD features previously mentioned, they include high-fidelity digital audio recording/playback and sampled sound synthesis, telephone answering/voice messaging. Software provided includes DataFAX Lite for Windows, Prodigy membership kit, a subset of Prosonus General MIDI instrument sampled sounds, and an IBM voice messaging and telephone answering program called PhoneFX (not available separately). For more details, see the descriptions in the announcement letter (PCC93-521 or 193-314).

Question:
What did the WindSurfer MIDI Pac include?
Answer:
The MIDI Pac added a MIDI breakout cable, an expanded set of Prosonus sampled sounds, and the Band-in-a-Box and PowerTracks music applications.

Question:
Does the Audiovation card support recording .WAV files while simultaneously playing MIDI files?
Answer:
Yes, assuming both your PC and music software can handle it.

Question:
Can the WindSurfer use audio at the same time the modem is operating?
Answer:
Yes; all audio features (except synthesis) can run concurrently with the modem, even at 14.4Kbps. This is a feature that only the Mwave DSP offers at this time.

Question:
What kind of microphone do I need for the WindSurfer full-duplex speakerphone feature?
Answer:
Any standard unidirectional electret mike will do. If you have a dynamic microphone, you may have to turn off your monitor while using the speakerphone, due to interference.

Question:
The announcement letters for the WindSurfer and Audiovation cards mention DOS/Windows drivers, but what about OS/2?
Answer:
OS/2 audio drivers for the Audiovation adapters were released in April 1994. WindSurfer audio and communications drivers were released in early 1995.

Question:
The WindSurfer Micro Channel adapter and Audiovation ISA adapter contain CD-ROM connectors for attaching internal CD-ROM drives. What drives are supported?
Answer:
There are two connectors. One supports the connection of an IBM Internal ISA CD-ROM (P/N 70G8501) or Panasonic 562/563 drive, the other is for a Sony CDU-31A. These same drives with OEM labels, and other Panasonic and Sony drives that use the same ISA interfaces (not SCSI) should work also, but have not been tested. Additionally, as mentioned previously, the IBM Multimedia Upgrade Kit for the Audiovation ISA adapter will also work.

Question:
How can I use the IBM Internal ISA CD-ROM (P/N 70G8501) drive with the WindSurfer in a Micro Channel system?
Answer:
The IBM Internal ISA CD-ROM drive ships with an ISA adapter that has a Panasonic 562/563 CD-ROM interface. Because the Micro Channel WindSurfer adapter uses the same CD-ROM interface, you can sell or give away the ISA adapter that comes with the drive which, naturally, will not plug into a Micro Channel PC. It is redundant in this configuration.

Question:
Can WindSurfer and Audiovation adapters co-reside in one system?
Answer:
Yes, although with current software they cannot be active at the same time. Concurrent operation is planned for a future release of the software.

Question:
I have a CD-ROM drive attached to a different adapter. I would like to connect to the audio port of an Audiovation or WindSurfer card, but my CD-ROM drive didn't come with an audio-out cable. Where can I get one?
Answer:
First, try your CD-ROM vendor. If they don't offer one, there are third-party companies, such as AMC, Cables to Go, and TTS Multimedia Systems that sell cables to connect most adapters and CD-ROM drives.

Question:
I have the WindSurfer ISA adapter installed and it is conflicting with my Roland MPU-401 card and my Adaptec SCSI controller. What can I do?
Answer:
Set DIP switch 6 on the WindSurfer ISA adapter to "off." With the switch in the "on" position it emulates the PS/1 MIDI adapter at the hardware level, which uses address x'330' for the MIDI port, and conflicts with the Adaptec (and some other SCSI adapters) and Roland cards.

Question:
What is DIP switch 6 for?
Answer:
With the switch in the "on" position it emulates the PS/1 MIDI adapter at the hardware level, which uses address x'330' for the MIDI port, and conflicts with the Adaptec (and some other SCSI adapters) and Roland cards. In PS/1 MIDI emulation mode the adapter will work with software written for the PS/1 adapter, without needing any special DOS drivers. The position of this switch has no effect on software using the WindSurfer MIDI drivers for Windows.

Question:
Speaking of the Roland MPU-401, do the WindSurfer and Audiovation cards support the MPU-401 MIDI software standard?
Answer:
No, because it is unnecessary. The MPU-401 standard applies to DOS only. As the WS and AV cards require Windows or (soon) OS/2, any Windows or OS/2 MIDI applications that use the MIDI programming interfaces built into Windows or OS/2 will work without needing MPU-401 support. There are probably at least 100 Windows MIDI sequencers on the market, so finding a suitable Windows MIDI product to use with the WS/AV cards shouldn't be a problem.

	Search Keywords
	Hint Category	Performance
	Date Created	11-08-98
	Last Updated	25-03-99
	Revision Date	25-03-2000
	Brand	IBM Options
	Product Family	Communication Adapters
	Machine Type	DSP
	Model	82G7058; 82G7133; 82G7259; 92F4057
	TypeModel
	Retain Tip (if applicable)
	Reverse Doclinks and Admin Purposes