OK, mega necro bump here.
Announcing that after years of delays called real life, not one but two gadgets to drive the rare SFX Sound Expander have been produced!

First one features approx 100 sounds from the original C64 Software and some from PC Land, a DIN MIDI in and a 16 x 2 LCD.

Photos are here:

https://github.com/sparx266/Commodore-6 … o-MIDI-V1/

A video of the uncased prototype in action is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-odjSdDEEhQ

Documentation and V1.5 to be released soon......

An update!
After months of nothing, hooked up an Arduino to a C64 connector, picked an organ sound and wrote a very rubbish program to play the first lines of a well known tune.  Have a look and listen at:

Arduino plays an SFX Sound expander

I know its a bit basic, but its a start.
Feel free to comment, but please make them constructive!

OK here is my BASIC listing, taken from the same document Akira^8gb used.  It makes a noise and that's it!

But just in case its useful to someone:

10 POKE 57152,32
20 POKE 57168,1
30 POKE 57152,64
40 POKE 57168,16
50 POKE 57152,96
60 POKE 57168,240
70 POKE 57152,128
80 POKE 57168,119
90 POKE 57152,160
100 POKE 57168,152
110 POKE 57152,35
120 POKE 57168,1
130 POKE 57152,67
140 POKE 57168,0
150 POKE 57152,99
160 POKE 57168,240
170 POKE 57152,131
180 POKE 57168,119
190 POKE 57152,176
200 POKE 57168,49

I've just looked at the datasheets for both chips (YM3812 and YM3526),
3526 says: "The mode selector enables switching between the sounding of all nine tones at one time, and of six melodies and five rhythms.  In either case, the tones can  (be) varied."
3812 says: "Mode selection of simultaneous voicing of 9 sounds or 6 melody sounds and 5 rhythm sounds is possible.  Both modes can produce various sounds."

How did you get to the conclusion that there is no percussion mode?  (I don't know, hence why I am asking!) 
What the 3526 lacks is waveforms.

Regards

Spikes

Hello again all!

Real life got me side tracked with other things but haven't forgotten about this great cart and what I want to do with it, will try to dig out the couple of programs I wrote and post here.

Regards

Spikes

5

(2 replies, posted in Trading Post)

Yes I found that supplier earlier today, thanks for the positive news of them.  Just wondered if anyone had some "hanging around"!

6

(2 replies, posted in Trading Post)

As the title says!
Possibly 2 of each, am in the UK.

TIA

Spikes

7

(6 replies, posted in Commodore Computers)

What model interface do you have there?  Mine has 20-0001 printed on a silver label on the back, but the manual mentions a sequential 242 and a Sequential C64 card with firmware.

8

(6 replies, posted in Commodore Computers)

I have one of these, as far as I can tell it is compatible with Passport & Sentech (Syntech) MIDI interfaces.
Am not an expert but what would you like to know?

9

(12 replies, posted in Commodore Computers)

What would you like?

Regards

S

Yes, that is exactly it!  But unfortunately for me, it doesn't seem to want to go into Percussion mode, let alone sound like a snare drum!

I'll try to post the BASIC listing of what I have done so far.

Thanks for the input though guys, someone on here will know the answer...I hope!

Hi all

I've been messing about with the SFX Sound Expander for the C64 recently.
Have read pretty much all I can find.

Using the documents widely available from Lee and Totto (I think!), I cobbled together a rough BASIC program which produces a noise.  All's fine.

I'm trying to use Percussion mode now and am getting noises which sound like someone spitting!
Can anyone give me some pointers as to how to trigger the drum sounds available on this chip?
Ideally, what is the sequence that sets the chip into percussion mode and triggers say a snare drum?

TIA

Spikes

Hi all, just been thinking about getting a TI-99A speech synth, does anyone know what the speech chip inside it is?  It seems to sound a bit better than a speak'n'spell.

TIA

Spikes