It has a few extra abilities compared to the Sound Blaster from what I read. It offers a midi interface that is either additional to or supercedes the Sound Blaster's. It has a software master volume control. It also stores its settings in EEPROM, so the drivers are necessary to configure the card. ---- ATI STEREO F/X-CD Ease of installation and ease of use obviously ranked high on ATI's list of priorities as its engineers set about the task of designing the STEREO F/X-CD audio board. They've succeeded admirably in both areas. The three-quarter-length card has no jumpers or DIP switches; you configure the card completely through the software, making the installation simply a matter of inserting the card into any available 8- or 16-bit slot and running the installation software. Interrupt 2, 5, or 7 is available for audio use, and you can select either 220 or 240 as the address. The board uses pin connectors, and there's a cable for routing the PC's speaker sounds through the STEREO F/X-CD. Another channels a CD-ROM drive's audio output through the board. You'll also find a 40-pin interface for Mitsumi and compatible CD-ROM drives. The backplane mounting bracket houses a 15-pin D connector for attaching joysticks or the optional MIDI connector box. Three jacks handle microphone and line level input and speaker or headphone output. The mounting bracket also contains a rotary knob for controlling volume. The Yamaha YMF262-M (OPL3) synthesizer chip provides the sonic heart of the board, delivering 20 stereo voices with 8-bit sampling rates up to 44 kHz in monophonic and 22 kHz in stereo. This board offers full Ad Lib and Sound Blaster compatibility, along with full programming support for software designed to conform with these standards under DOS and Windows. The accompanying software comes provided on two 5 1/4-inch high-density disks, with no mention of the availability of 3 1/2-inch disks. Universal DOS and Windows drivers are provided, as well as several utilities and sound applications, including WinDAT and DOSDAT, two programs developed by Voyetra Technologies to provide an interface similar to the controls found on a stereo system and high-end tape deck. The DAT portion of these program names stands for Digital Audio Transport; the programs run from Windows and DOS, respectively. For full, rich sound on applications written for mono FM synthesis, the STEREO F/X-CD has a feature which can add a stereo effect. I was somewhat skeptical of this feature until I actually tried running some mono FM sound samples through the card with and without the Stereo Effect feature active. I must admit that the effect made a noticeable difference in the sound and definitely added some dimension to it. You'll also find mixer programs for DOS and Windows which permit actively mixing and blending the signals of six different sound sources (FM, Wave, CD audio, PC speaker, line input, and microphone). In addition to controlling the individual volume of each sound source, these mixer applications also regulate the left-to-right balance and overall volume. In the bundled software, ATI includes a generous selection of MIDI song files and a DOS MIDI player utility. The ATI STEREO F/X-CD provides a good means of adding stereo FM sound synthesis and audio capabilities at an affordable price. Circle Reader Service Number 372 ---- ATI Stereo F/X Sound Board * Platform: PC XT or AT - DOS, Windows 3.0, 3.1 * Cost: $120 Canadian * Description: Input - 8 bit ADC, 44.1 kHz mono, 22.05 kHz Stereo. Output - Dynamic range = 48 dB, 32 anti-aliasing filters. Adds Stereo effect to existing mono Adlib or Sound Blaster apps. 11-voice YAMAHA FM Music Synthesizer. Built-in 8 watt power amplifier, 4 watts per channel. Volume ctrl on rear. 2 Joystick input, software setup (no switches), software included. "AdLib" and "Sound Blaster" compatibility. DMA support for high speed digital audio. ADPCM decomp @ 4:1, 3:1, 2:1. Will play .WAV files. Optional MIDI I/O port $79. (MIDI IN, OUT, THRU, and sequencer). * Contact: ATI Technologies Inc. 3761 Victoria Park Avenue, Scarborough, Ontario CANADA, M1W 3S2 Ph: (416) 756-0711 Fax: (416) 756-0720 BBS: (416) 764-9404 (9600 baud N.8.1) ----