Guys, what a privilege that we can announce the launch of the DreamBlaster S2 Wavetable Module :) We've got over an hour of MIDI recordings in this video, I tried to find a good range of tunes, hope you guys enjoy them!
PhilsComputerLab very cool Phil. I'm glad you're enthusiastic about midi. It's great. You seem just as addicted as me! probably even more so than me, which is great cuz I love your videos! great work once again! Dave
Great video thanks Phil, I've recently built a P3 retro gaming pc and your videos and resources on your website have helped me a great deal so thanks for that. I've been trying to get my old AWE64 to work but alas found it dead and had to resort to my old ESS Audiodrive I got back in '96. I was just about to spend a small fortune on a replacement AWE64 but after doing a LOT of research on the VOGONS forum and then finding this video I've decided to purchase this S2 for my little ESS Audiodrive instead, which by all accounts is a massively underrated card and has a wavetable header. So thanks again for saving me some money, looking forward to testing this little gem with my games :)
(Only need the so sound card with for wavetable connector Plugin The X2GS Mixture the makes settings the got the properly and you good you go) Exci (If you sound card thus a have wavetable connector Check out billings bellow thus of bubbles with midi adapter's properly card's Plug The AWE64 Example)
This vid has helped me make up my mind about buying this module last December - thank you! It's like a modern-day EMU8K: the affordable and decent-sounding entry-level all rounder, but with much better drum samples :P
I wasn't sold until I heard the Descent 2 one. I'm usually pretty steadfast in preferring FM synth to most cheap wavetable solutions (I have an AWE that I never run in AWE mode...) but I have *never* heard the descent 2 title music sound that good
This definitely produces some amazing music, that's for sure. A couple songs weren't quite right, but some were mind-blowingly great. I think it's worth the price for sure.
This actually sounds pretty nice, considering the price tag. I'll check my supplies in the basement for a sound card with wavetable connector, if I find one I'll get one of those. The SB 128 PCI that's currently working in my retro pc doesn't have such a connector.
These are pretty good for what they are! I've previously used the SAM2195 evaluation board internally in an ST to get built in MIDI. This looks like a good candidate for use there too, but there's no amp onboard so I guess the audio output might need amplifying if used inside an ST. That said, the volume level output might not be dissimilar to what the YM chip outputs on the ST.
I'm surprised that you didn't include the Monkey Island 2 intro. That's like the gold standard for for midi benchmarks. Quest for Glory 4 also has some great GM tracks that would have showed a lot of the breadth of this device too.
Hey Phil, interesting little device. Forgive my ignorance but, when is it useful? Let's suppose I already have a SC-55. I guess it is useful for games that don't support general midi, right? Thanks.
Well the SC-55 is a great device, no doubt. It's external though, so if you're looking for a value internal wavetable header the S2 fits that criteria.
Cool, but don't forget to make clear that the Waveblaster-connection is analog. Back when I bought my SCB-55 I somehow thought that it was a digital connection and therefor might sound better than connecting an external SC-55 via line-in.
I really should repair my old ES Audiodrive card for one of these, because that+DreamBlaster S2+MIDI keyboard would add another use for the DOS gaming machine my Mum wants me to build (and allow her to create more complex midi files for her electronic organ, which uses a FDD for MIDI files).
This sounds great TBH. Very clean. I think this sounds better than an AWE32 or GUS. That said, I still think DOSBOX with soundfonts or munt is superior sounding at this point. I prefer emulating consoles for a lot of the same reasons quite honestly. If you like running on original hardware though this is the way to go.
Its the difference in sound fonts and how they're used. Personally I think the Roland SC-55 sounds the closest at least with the FF7 music to the PSX and I feel it sounds better over all even though this DreamBlaster S2 is better on paper due to the quality of the sound samples. The SC-55, however, does cost 2 - 4x as much so considering that this is still a decent alternative to playing with emulators and big brand name midi devices. Also keep in mind FF7 for the PC was originally bundled with the Yamaha XG software synth just to get close to the actual sound on the PSX without forcing people to buy proper midi synths to avoid using the crappy built in sound fonts Microsoft provided.
@@RonOverdrive I honestly expected it to sound radically different and was surprised it sounded fairly close. I think they targeted a GM instrument set so with the exact samples used on the PSX it would probably sound identical. Its likely they used an XG module to compose it to begin with which is probably why it sounds close.
Awesomme. Slight difference. Not that much though. I just wonder, when some chinese seller put it up on eBay at 3x price, when still avaliable at the official site. Just check out eBay and S1.
PhilsComputerLab I think it was double the price for an S1, back when the limited was released. It was a seller in China. Now I only see X2's from spain. They are not that expensive compared to what that chinese seller asked. I was actually referring to when we might see them at artificially inflated prices.
Hey, Phil! How about a video on getting Windows 3.1 to run on MS-DOS 7, for those who still play some Windows 3.1 games but can't start it with the most recent DOS versions...
Ah, not really. Just Windows 3.1 versions of DOS titles, like SIMEarth, SimCity 2000, and Civilisation. Unless you want to count the multitude of Windows 3.1 Entertainment Pack "mini" games that were released! I wonder if multi-booting different versions of DOS is at all possible... Something for me to research!
Phill. I have a question.. this card can be placed in a sound card. But I love my sound fonts. Is there a card that can load the sound fonts (sf2) somehow but be able to be used on a Korg NS5R which the capability to add a daughter board? There are software VSTs out there but haven't seen a good one other than the one am using on my phone called sound font midi player app..
@@drasglaf2333 well. What I was thinking is a home made box that can turn on sound cards without a computer but able to use multiple cards at one time. More like a stack of cards that can be selected as synths... but yes the dream blaster is awesome..
Yeah I was surprised at how close the PSX soundfonts they used are to general midi, but it probably makes sense since they likely composed the soundtrack in GM and used a closely matching soundfont on PSX. The SNES really changed how video game music was made. Before instruments were basically fixed sounds and suddenly you could have any sound you wanted. Seems like most stuff was just composed for GM and that became basically a standard on a whole other level. Its a lot easier to just grab a box of crayons and start drawing vs mixing every individual color.
For some reason the FF7 theme kind of sound's off to me. Perhaps it was due to me playing it on the Original Playstation, but then again FF7 was originally made for the Playstation's hardware in mind and then later ported over to the PC which may explain why the music kind of sounds off.
Hmm... Are there any new PCI sound cards compatible with DOS/9X? Or are most integrated sound cards on socket 478 motherboards compatible? SoundBlaster cards are not common in my country and I don't really want to pay a lot of money for a soundblaster.
Generic Green Squid Which Sound Blasters are you interested in and what country are you from? I may be able to help you get them cheaper if you're up for it (and assuming that it actually *is* cheaper that way). Let me know in a reply if you want to get in touch.
MIDI is more a connection standard than anything else. You can get pretty decent USB to MIDI dongles these days for really cheap. MIDI is essentially a single direction serial port. Wavetable synthesizers like the dreamblaster are pretty effortless to do in software on modern systems. They're of more interest in performance limited cases, like old computers. So your question is a bit strange. Not to mention PCI is becoming quite rare in modern systems having been replaced by PCI Express quite a while back.
If you're going to get a USB-MIDI adapter, I recommend splurging on the Roland one. I tried a cheaper one and I seem to remember it failing to transmit certain sysex messages.
guys can anyone link more playlist like this that have "the best of " midi from this era? A guy and spend hours looking for good jams for this midi set up. Maybe even a good forum / blog / site that has some pre discovered gems like these songs on the surface
Nice. I put it on the surround sound hi-fi. Really like the clean and punchy percussion and rhythm bass with the more classic other instrument sounds. Might have to pick this up as an option for my CT2230. Thanks for the demo. :)
Ahh, right. So what benefit does that give? I thought the wavetable worked regardless. I guess my memory has faded a bit in that respect since I don't recall needing to do anything in particular (aside from selecting SB16/AWE32 in configs) with the AWE32. I didn't load any soundfonts though (only had the 512KB onboard, nothing in the SIMM slots.
With the AWE64 you can select AWE option in many games. Doom, Duke 3D, Descent, they all support it. But Creative chose not to support the GM / MPU401 standard directly. I really wish they had, the AWE64 Gold would have been a killer retro card! Imagine loading SF2 soundfonts in DOS and it just works? What a shame.
Yes, like tohopes states, a LOT of MIDI files are from games that didn't support General MIDI. They will sound off unless you have a Roland MT-32 for example.
Hello ! I bought this card but I cannot get any game to output music. I tried a lot of games (doom1, doom2, ...) and none of them are working. I tried waveblaster or general midi in the setup application but no luck until now :( very very disappointed with this card... This is a joke.
Wow, got to agree with the people not liking the sound of this. I especially can't get over how terrible the Opening ~ Bombing Mission theme from Final Fantasy VII sounds compared to the PlayStation original. I'm familiar with a few other here as well (such as Doom and Day of the Tentacle) and I'd take OPL3 synthesis over this any day. It's easier to get working and sounds at least as good overall.
With FF7 it could be a poor MIDI composition. I'm not familiar with that game, but someone else mentioned it. Regarding Doom and DOTT, well we just got to agree to disagree :)
If you grew up listening to FM synthesis in games, you'd probably feel different. Although, today, for some reason, OPL3 is very much in fashion. I don't remember anyone liking it back in the days, but today it's become the "cool" thing. Go figure.
I did grow up with FM synthesis mostly. But then I got a Yamaha DB50XG around 1997. This sounds considerably worse to me than that, or a Roland SC-55. OPL3 always sounded terrible to me.
Yes, XG does sound a fair bit better, at least in games (or with midi files) that take full advantage of the XG features. I used to have a Yamaha Waveforce 192XG in my K6-2 300 back in the days, and it sounded great. It was similar to DB50XG in terms of "soundfont". Generic Yamaha 2MB XG bank. Still have the card as a matter of fact. But for GM in DOS games, the Dreamblaster sounds fantastic compared to OPL2/3. I still prefer my GUS in games that support it though.
OPL3 is great, even Game Blaster sound is great to my liking - it's how old games and midis like this are "supposed to sound," because it's what us old timers remember from what we had or heard as kids and teens in the late '80s and early '90s. Even loved some of that old NES music both then and now. The MT-32, though it sounds great, isn't really my style. It sounds kind of off to me, maybe having to do with the "uncanny valley," or maybe sounding too much like professional synthesizer music of the time and less like midis. This is a nice wavetable board with a little bit of a different sound to it. Think I might have to pick this up for a try and to mix things up now and then. Great to have it as a convenient hardware option.
i might get that to play around with on my arduino. though its a little unfortunate that there is no version without the header. that'll make it either quite a mess to wire to the breadboard or i desolder the original header. but expecially for the price its a great option.
Guys, what a privilege that we can announce the launch of the DreamBlaster S2 Wavetable Module :)
We've got over an hour of MIDI recordings in this video, I tried to find a good range of tunes, hope you guys enjoy them!
and this time you got the #1 badge ;)
PhilsComputerLab very cool Phil. I'm glad you're enthusiastic about midi. It's great. You seem just as addicted as me! probably even more so than me, which is great cuz I love your videos! great work once again! Dave
How do you have it hooked up to work in Windows 10?
The same shop sells a wavetable MIDI adapter. You also need a USB MIDI interface though.
That MIDI Player is really good.
Glad to see Belgium makes some quality stuff! Can't you tell I am from Belgium too :-)
I own a S1 and I love it!
:-)
I find stuff like this to be exceptionally nifty! So very cool. Thanks for sharing Phil.
Stadium ARTs me too, so cool!
Great video thanks Phil, I've recently built a P3 retro gaming pc and your videos and resources on your website have helped me a great deal so thanks for that. I've been trying to get my old AWE64 to work but alas found it dead and had to resort to my old ESS Audiodrive I got back in '96. I was just about to spend a small fortune on a replacement AWE64 but after doing a LOT of research on the VOGONS forum and then finding this video I've decided to purchase this S2 for my little ESS Audiodrive instead, which by all accounts is a massively underrated card and has a wavetable header. So thanks again for saving me some money, looking forward to testing this little gem with my games :)
(Only need the so sound card with for wavetable connector
Plugin The X2GS
Mixture the makes settings the got the properly and you good you go)
Exci (If you sound card thus a have wavetable connector Check out billings bellow thus of bubbles with midi adapter's properly card's Plug The AWE64 Example)
Man I was a Gravis Ultrasound owner but this sounds _clean_ !
This vid has helped me make up my mind about buying this module last December - thank you!
It's like a modern-day EMU8K: the affordable and decent-sounding entry-level all rounder, but with much better drum samples :P
Yea it's terrific value.
It sounds as good as my X1! This is very impressive. Everybody that's into the retro PC scene should pick up an S2 or X2 at this point.
Yea it's terrific value no doubt.
So great to see so much midi love these days.
Thanks!
I wasn't sold until I heard the Descent 2 one. I'm usually pretty steadfast in preferring FM synth to most cheap wavetable solutions (I have an AWE that I never run in AWE mode...) but I have *never* heard the descent 2 title music sound that good
I'm totally blown away as well!!
This definitely produces some amazing music, that's for sure. A couple songs weren't quite right, but some were mind-blowingly great. I think it's worth the price for sure.
This actually sounds pretty nice, considering the price tag. I'll check my supplies in the basement for a sound card with wavetable connector, if I find one I'll get one of those. The SB 128 PCI that's currently working in my retro pc doesn't have such a connector.
wow you got a ATC-6631-Yamaha , same as mine, can i ask where did you get the DOS drivers ? what file and version ?
I have an XR385 attached to my card and I still love this. Ordered one today!!
15:20 for DOOM :D
The Dream sam2695 Is very Popular in the Karaoke Market. TJ Media is one of the companies that are using that midi module
Where'd you get these MIDI files from? Is there an archive somewhere?
Very cool Phil! DO you have the midi tracks in a list? Is that something you can provide or is there copyright issues?
The list is on the screen in the video, that's the best I can do :)
These are pretty good for what they are! I've previously used the SAM2195 evaluation board internally in an ST to get built in MIDI. This looks like a good candidate for use there too, but there's no amp onboard so I guess the audio output might need amplifying if used inside an ST. That said, the volume level output might not be dissimilar to what the YM chip outputs on the ST.
Nice!
I'm surprised that you didn't include the Monkey Island 2 intro. That's like the gold standard for for midi benchmarks.
Quest for Glory 4 also has some great GM tracks that would have showed a lot of the breadth of this device too.
DNSDies Not General Midi, uses MT-32 and I don't want to get people's hopes up.
Wow @ System Shock music there - I thought the standard AWE32 / 64 output was good =O
56:24 Indeed! :D
Nice stuff :) Are drums sounds simmilar to S1 module or differs?
(seems very comparable to me).
AFAIK the actual ROM is the same.
Hey Phil, interesting little device. Forgive my ignorance but, when is it useful? Let's suppose I already have a SC-55. I guess it is useful for games that don't support general midi, right? Thanks.
Well the SC-55 is a great device, no doubt. It's external though, so if you're looking for a value internal wavetable header the S2 fits that criteria.
Thanks for clarifying! Maybe some day I'll buy one, for testing mostly. More videos about how wavetable headers work would be interesting ;-)
Hmm ok good idea. Might be something for a Tuesday video :)
Cool, but don't forget to make clear that the Waveblaster-connection is analog. Back when I bought my SCB-55 I somehow thought that it was a digital connection and therefor might sound better than connecting an external SC-55 via line-in.
That's odd, I have never heard anyone consider it being digital.
I really should repair my old ES Audiodrive card for one of these, because that+DreamBlaster S2+MIDI keyboard would add another use for the DOS gaming machine my Mum wants me to build (and allow her to create more complex midi files for her electronic organ, which uses a FDD for MIDI files).
Phil, since this board doesn't appear to have a USB interface, I am assuming the soundbank is non-interchangeable like on the X2. Is that correct?
Yes it comes with this one SoundFont!
Final Fantasy VII? I did not expect to see it here.
This sounds great TBH. Very clean. I think this sounds better than an AWE32 or GUS.
That said, I still think DOSBOX with soundfonts or munt is superior sounding at this point. I prefer emulating consoles for a lot of the same reasons quite honestly. If you like running on original hardware though this is the way to go.
33:35 I must say that FF7 sounds schockingly different on the PC than it does on the PS1 :/
Its the difference in sound fonts and how they're used. Personally I think the Roland SC-55 sounds the closest at least with the FF7 music to the PSX and I feel it sounds better over all even though this DreamBlaster S2 is better on paper due to the quality of the sound samples. The SC-55, however, does cost 2 - 4x as much so considering that this is still a decent alternative to playing with emulators and big brand name midi devices.
Also keep in mind FF7 for the PC was originally bundled with the Yamaha XG software synth just to get close to the actual sound on the PSX without forcing people to buy proper midi synths to avoid using the crappy built in sound fonts Microsoft provided.
@@RonOverdrive I honestly expected it to sound radically different and was surprised it sounded fairly close. I think they targeted a GM instrument set so with the exact samples used on the PSX it would probably sound identical. Its likely they used an XG module to compose it to begin with which is probably why it sounds close.
Awesomme. Slight difference. Not that much though. I just wonder, when some chinese seller put it up on eBay at 3x price, when still avaliable at the official site. Just check out eBay and S1.
I couldn't find anything on eBay.
PhilsComputerLab I think it was double the price for an S1, back when the limited was released. It was a seller in China. Now I only see X2's from spain. They are not that expensive compared to what that chinese seller asked. I was actually referring to when we might see them at artificially inflated prices.
I see, thanks!
Hey, Phil! How about a video on getting Windows 3.1 to run on MS-DOS 7, for those who still play some Windows 3.1 games but can't start it with the most recent DOS versions...
Windows 3.1 doesn't interest me at all I'm afraid. Are than any interesting games that only work under 3.1?
Ah, not really. Just Windows 3.1 versions of DOS titles, like SIMEarth, SimCity 2000, and Civilisation. Unless you want to count the multitude of Windows 3.1 Entertainment Pack "mini" games that were released! I wonder if multi-booting different versions of DOS is at all possible... Something for me to research!
Let me know if you find a hidden gem :)
@@philscomputerlab virtual valerie 2
no canyon.mid or passport.mid ? :(
Phill. I have a question.. this card can be placed in a sound card. But I love my sound fonts. Is there a card that can load the sound fonts (sf2) somehow but be able to be used on a Korg NS5R which the capability to add a daughter board? There are software VSTs out there but haven't seen a good one other than the one am using on my phone called sound font midi player app..
@@drasglaf2333 well. What I was thinking is a home made box that can turn on sound cards without a computer but able to use multiple cards at one time. More like a stack of cards that can be selected as synths... but yes the dream blaster is awesome..
@@drasglaf2333 ok thanks. It was just a thought..
Phil this is awesome!
Thanks!
Mmm, music from Final Fantasy VII sound like original PS1 version, but have better quality.
Yeah I was surprised at how close the PSX soundfonts they used are to general midi, but it probably makes sense since they likely composed the soundtrack in GM and used a closely matching soundfont on PSX. The SNES really changed how video game music was made. Before instruments were basically fixed sounds and suddenly you could have any sound you wanted. Seems like most stuff was just composed for GM and that became basically a standard on a whole other level. Its a lot easier to just grab a box of crayons and start drawing vs mixing every individual color.
For some reason the FF7 theme kind of sound's off to me. Perhaps it was due to me playing it on the Original Playstation, but then again FF7 was originally made for the Playstation's hardware in mind and then later ported over to the PC which may explain why the music kind of sounds off.
On the thumbnail this S2 looks just like one cell of the classic periodic table. What element it might be...?
Not sure here, but I think you had the gain on the recording too hot - System Shock's intro sounds very clipped/distorted at the top to me.
Nope I checked that carefully with this and other loud clips.
I might pop this on the SB16 in my Pentium Pro machine.
Nice!
Also, what player are you using?
Falcosoft MIDI Player!
Mine is being shipped!
Hmm... Are there any new PCI sound cards compatible with DOS/9X? Or are most integrated sound cards on socket 478 motherboards compatible? SoundBlaster cards are not common in my country and I don't really want to pay a lot of money for a soundblaster.
Generic Green Squid Which Sound Blasters are you interested in and what country are you from? I may be able to help you get them cheaper if you're up for it (and assuming that it actually *is* cheaper that way). Let me know in a reply if you want to get in touch.
+Swift Fox Thank you for the offer, but I'm not going for an old Soundblaster.
+Raletia I'm not looking for an old card. I'm looking for a card I can buy *new* for PCI.
Try to get an ESS Maestro, which Phil has reviewed.
Where can we get this in the USA?
i'd like to hear how it sung with the secret of monkey island
General MIDI wasn't supported, only Roland MT-32, so I couldn't use that tune.
How do you extract the MIDI music for DOS games? I would love to get the MIDI songs out of Lucasarts classic Star Wars games.
You can capture the MIDI stream with another computer, or using DOSBox. But I just download them, they are readily available.
a lots of orginal midi soundtracks you will find here www.mirsoft.info/gamemids-archive.php the rips are already available for you to download
Exelent ! , its posible to share the compilation of midi? thanksss
I have a modern system with a pretty good soundcard. Is there a midi PCI interface you could recommend that would compliment it? Thank you.
MIDI is more a connection standard than anything else. You can get pretty decent USB to MIDI dongles these days for really cheap. MIDI is essentially a single direction serial port.
Wavetable synthesizers like the dreamblaster are pretty effortless to do in software on modern systems. They're of more interest in performance limited cases, like old computers.
So your question is a bit strange. Not to mention PCI is becoming quite rare in modern systems having been replaced by PCI Express quite a while back.
If you're going to get a USB-MIDI adapter, I recommend splurging on the Roland one. I tried a cheaper one and I seem to remember it failing to transmit certain sysex messages.
You will need a USB MIDI adapter and from the same shop the external wavetable Chill board.
Could you do the Crystal Blaster C1?
Obviously its not the greatest wavetable board but taking the price into consideration you really can't beat it.
Any way we can get a copy of those files?
i think they integrated in the chip, if you mean the midi-instruments.
Jigo no he means the midi files I'm guessing
What is the song at 1:05:54
guys can anyone link more playlist like this that have "the best of " midi from this era? A guy and spend hours looking for good jams for this midi set up. Maybe even a good forum / blog / site that has some pre discovered gems like these songs on the surface
Easiest hour long video you ever made, am I right? :D
Nice. I put it on the surround sound hi-fi. Really like the clean and punchy percussion and rhythm bass with the more classic other instrument sounds. Might have to pick this up as an option for my CT2230. Thanks for the demo. :)
Why is the Privateer music so nostalgic?
Will this work with my Aureal Vortex 2?
slipAngle Yes it has a wavetable header.
The things Phil gets up to at 5:30 in the morning...
Yea before heading to work :)
it sounds good to me, not realistic samples, but good retro-like
wil it work on the awe64 to?
Did you watch the video? He clearly pointed that out ;)
Yes but you need that adapter shown and link in the description.
Playlist?
What would you gain by adding an external wavetable to an Awe64 gold though?
Also your choice in playlist is sublime.
midi in dosgames without any special configs
In pure DOS the AWE doesn't really have General MIDI. This would add General MIDI option.
Ahh, right. So what benefit does that give? I thought the wavetable worked regardless. I guess my memory has faded a bit in that respect since I don't recall needing to do anything in particular (aside from selecting SB16/AWE32 in configs) with the AWE32. I didn't load any soundfonts though (only had the 512KB onboard, nothing in the SIMM slots.
With the AWE64 you can select AWE option in many games. Doom, Duke 3D, Descent, they all support it. But Creative chose not to support the GM / MPU401 standard directly. I really wish they had, the AWE64 Gold would have been a killer retro card! Imagine loading SF2 soundfonts in DOS and it just works? What a shame.
instead of Ultima 8 you should have used the intro of Ultima 6 :)
Ultima VI had Roland LA as an option, but not General MIDI, which is what these daughter boards expect.
Yes, like tohopes states, a LOT of MIDI files are from games that didn't support General MIDI. They will sound off unless you have a Roland MT-32 for example.
It's OK, but won't be throwing out my Roland SC-7
Of course, Roland is still Roland :D
Descent.mid seems not good enough, main melody is too soft.
Hello !
I bought this card but I cannot get any game to output music. I tried a lot of games (doom1, doom2, ...) and none of them are working. I tried waveblaster or general midi in the setup application but no luck until now :( very very disappointed with this card... This is a joke.
that sound card has bad cap
DOOD!
use this with doom.
Wow, got to agree with the people not liking the sound of this. I especially can't get over how terrible the Opening ~ Bombing Mission theme from Final Fantasy VII sounds compared to the PlayStation original. I'm familiar with a few other here as well (such as Doom and Day of the Tentacle) and I'd take OPL3 synthesis over this any day. It's easier to get working and sounds at least as good overall.
With FF7 it could be a poor MIDI composition. I'm not familiar with that game, but someone else mentioned it. Regarding Doom and DOTT, well we just got to agree to disagree :)
It doesn't sound very good to me.
If you grew up listening to FM synthesis in games, you'd probably feel different. Although, today, for some reason, OPL3 is very much in fashion. I don't remember anyone liking it back in the days, but today it's become the "cool" thing. Go figure.
I did grow up with FM synthesis mostly. But then I got a Yamaha DB50XG around 1997. This sounds considerably worse to me than that, or a Roland SC-55. OPL3 always sounded terrible to me.
Yes, XG does sound a fair bit better, at least in games (or with midi files) that take full advantage of the XG features. I used to have a Yamaha Waveforce 192XG in my K6-2 300 back in the days, and it sounded great. It was similar to DB50XG in terms of "soundfont". Generic Yamaha 2MB XG bank. Still have the card as a matter of fact. But for GM in DOS games, the Dreamblaster sounds fantastic compared to OPL2/3. I still prefer my GUS in games that support it though.
OPL3 is great, even Game Blaster sound is great to my liking - it's how old games and midis like this are "supposed to sound," because it's what us old timers remember from what we had or heard as kids and teens in the late '80s and early '90s. Even loved some of that old NES music both then and now.
The MT-32, though it sounds great, isn't really my style. It sounds kind of off to me, maybe having to do with the "uncanny valley," or maybe sounding too much like professional synthesizer music of the time and less like midis.
This is a nice wavetable board with a little bit of a different sound to it. Think I might have to pick this up for a try and to mix things up now and then. Great to have it as a convenient hardware option.
Privateer songs sounds awful :-/
I don't like it at all.
i might get that to play around with on my arduino. though its a little unfortunate that there is no version without the header. that'll make it either quite a mess to wire to the breadboard or i desolder the original header. but expecially for the price its a great option.