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Conference noted::ibmpc-95

Title:IBM PCs, clones, DOS, etc.
Notice:Intro in 1-11, Windows stuff in NOTED::MSWINDOWS please
Moderator:TARKIN::LINND
Created:Tue Jan 03 1995
Last Modified:Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:3023
Total number of notes:28404

2937.0. "connecting sound card - cable required?" by PTOVAX::PEARLMAN () Mon Mar 03 1997 11:24

    Do I need a sound cable if I want PC sound and audio CD sound to go
    through the speakers connected to the sound card?
    
    I am going to add a sound card to an existing system.  The system
    presently has an IDE CDROM.  From the device manager it says it is a
    NEC type 280.  I am going to put in one of the SB16 cards and there are
    a couple of variants.  
    
    I assume if I just add the sound card and appropriate software I get
    PC sound (games etc.).
    
    If I want to play an audio CD do I need to add a special cable from the 
    sound card to the CDROM?  I remember having to need this cable on some 
    older CDROM's.
    
    Creative Labs has a SB16 with an IDE interface.  Is this a proprietary
    IDE interface that only supports a few devices or is a general IDE
    interface?
    
    Can I connect the CDROM to the SB16 IDE interface?  Why would I do it 
    this way?
    
    Might their be a conflict with the disk IDE addresses?
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2937.1QUARK::LIONELFree advice is worth every centMon Mar 03 1997 11:558
Yes, you need the audio cable to listen to audio CDs.

There is no such thing as "proprietary IDE".  As for IDE "addresses", the only
choices are master and slave - be sure that if you have another device on that
IDE connector that one is set to master and the other slave.  You want to
avoid having a disk and a CD-ROM sharing the same IDE channel.

				Steve
2937.2WhyUSDEV::CLEMENTSmells like NirvanaMon Mar 03 1997 16:024
> You want to
> avoid having a disk and a CD-ROM sharing the same IDE channel.
    
I have this configuration @ home.  Why avoid it?  Thanks.  Mark 
2937.3skylab.zko.dec.com::FISHERGravity: Not just a good idea. It's the law!Mon Mar 03 1997 16:099
The main reason you want to avoid it is because transfer modes that end up being
used is the lowest common denominator of the two devices on the IDE channel.

In addition, some IDE cards think they understand the protocol being used and
intercede to buffer data etc etc.  However, the CD uses a different protocol and
it may confuse some of these "think they are smart" IDE cards.  I suspect now
that IDE CDs are common this is less of a problem.

Burns
2937.4USDEV::CLEMENTSmells like NirvanaMon Mar 03 1997 16:2414
>The main reason you want to avoid it is because transfer modes that end up 
>    being
>used is the lowest common denominator of the two devices on the IDE channel.
    
    ok.  I assume this also is true for two hard drives on the same channel? 
    My new system (1/1/97) came with a 1.0gb HD and 8x CD-ROM connected to
    the first EIDE socket on the MB.
    
    I added an older second HD (@ 250mb) to the second EIDE socket.
    
    If I move the two HDs to EIDE socket 0, is it possible to make it even
    slower if the older HD has a slower transfer rate than the new CD-ROM?
    
    Thanks.
2937.5Getting beyond me...skylab.zko.dec.com::FISHERGravity: Not just a good idea. It's the law!Mon Mar 03 1997 17:4016
This is getting out of my depth, but...

I think the "least common denominator" business is not necessarily the actual
bytes/second rate, but rather the "transfer mode".  In other words, CDs are not
likely to have the extra transfer modes that make EIDE "E".  Thus (my understanding
is that) a disk on the same IDE channel would not use them either.  If you put
another disk on the same channel with the first disk, the same thing should be
true.  However, then you get into exactly what features (transfer modes etc) the
old disk has versus the CD, and I just can't guess.

Perhaps someone reading has more detailed info...

OTOH, give it a try...if it seems faster stay with the change.  If it seems slower,
go back to the old configuration.  If you can't tell, who cares?

Burns
2937.6only on some boardsCSC32::J_MANNINGMon Mar 03 1997 18:166
    
    If this is a Pentium using the 430(FX,HX,VX,TX), then each device on
    the EIDE channel can run using a different PIO(or DMA) mode.
    
    John
    
2937.7430 VXUSDEV::CLEMENTSmells like NirvanaMon Mar 03 1997 19:404
    Yes, my MB uses the 430 VX chipset.  Therefore you are saying it does
    not matter where the devices are attached?
    
    Thanks, Mark
2937.8WRKSYS::TATOSIANThe Compleat TanglerMon Mar 03 1997 20:165
    re: .6/.7
    
    That's a bios issue. If the mainboard manufacturer Did The Right Thing,
    the best PIO mode for each device will be used. Otherwise the slowest
    device rules the cable...
2937.9Yes, it is BIOS.CSC32::J_MANNINGTue Mar 04 1997 12:398
    re: .8
    
    Yes, you are correct.  The Award 4.51 BIOS will allow each device on
    the EIDE channel to run at the appropriate PIO/DMA mode for best
    performance.
    
    John
    
2937.10what about cdrom on sb sound card and SCSI boot?SUBSYS::MSOUCYMentalmETALMikeTue Mar 04 1997 16:0712
    
    What about if I am going to use straight SCSI for boot and storage
    devices and a DAT on the SCSI and have a 16 bit Sound Card with IDE and
    a 12x CDROM on this interface, thus nothing on the MB's EIDE ports.
    Will I have to make any changes in the BIOS to see the CDROM or will it
    run fine on the sound card? MB will be a Pentium of one form or
    another. Not sure what chipset will be there at this time.
    
    Thanks in advance,
    
    Mike
    
2937.11WRKSYS::TATOSIANThe Compleat TanglerWed Mar 05 1997 05:3116
    The "IDE" interface on the SB card is not controlled by the system
    bios. It uses it's own set of drivers, doesn't it (something like
    SBIDE.SYS perhaps?) So the procedures are essentially identical with or
    without the SB card installed.
    
    You'd tell your system bios to disable both IDE channels (if for no
    other reasons than to prevent the bios from spending time scanning for
    devices - and to free up an IRQ or two) then install a *real* SCSI host 
    adapter that has an on-board bios (or if your mainboard bios supports a
    bios-less SCSI adapter eg: that has a  Symbios 8XX PCI/SCSI chip on it
    - you'd just plug that in). 
    
    Make sure your boot drive is set for ID 0, then connect up the SCSI 
    chain and you should be off and running...
    
    /dave
2937.12A real life experience...NQOS01::tunsrv2-tunnel.imc.das.dec.com::WernerStill crazy after all these years...Fri Mar 07 1997 12:1335
I recently struggled through the soundcard with IDE controller issue on my new 
system. The system came with two dual EIDE channels, with the 3 GB disk drive on 
one and the 12X CD on the other. Cool, as long as I had no sound card. Tried to 
put a SB16 PnP card in and got immediate conflicts between the card's IDE 
controller and the slave (second set of EIDE controls) EIDE on the MB. 

After some putzing I doscvoered where under Device Manager to disable the second 
EIDE channel and moved the CDROM over tot he SB IDE control. Worked fine, UNTIL 
I decided to run a dual-boot, with WIN95 and Windows NT V4.0. NT doesn't 
recognize the CDROM IDE controller, so I couldn't see or use the CDROM - bummer! 
After much research I concluded (says so right on the Creative Labs site) there 
is no resolution, with the SB cards. When I called the company that made my PC 
they indicated that it was a problem with all newer systems that they make and 
that they order their Sb cards  from Creative with the CDROM conteoller already 
disabled.

So I returned the SB16 and got a Turtle Beach 32-voice WaveTable card. Turns out 
Turtle Beach still has jumpers on the card that allow you to turn off the card's 
IDE control. Since I really only needed the sound capabilities of the card, this 
allowed me to turn back on the second EIDE channel, reconnect the CDROM to that 
channel and "see" it from both boots. I could not find a utility for SB cards 
that would disable the IDE control.  

More good news was that the TB card came with the required cable to attached to 
the CDROM for musiuc playback, whereas the SB16 came with nothing and required 
that I go buy a cable at CompUSA. 

Ain't this stuff fun! The reason that Ive switched to NT, BTW, is that my WIN95 
setup had become so unstable that it was crashing at least once per day. I will 
admit that I run lots of Beta stuff and tons of utilities running in the 
background (all the Norton stuff), but that was still indicative of the lack of 
OS maturity and stability.  NT almost never crashes ( I did say that I have lots 
of Beta stuf running, so even NT isn't immune).

Norm