============================================================================== --------- -------- ----- -------- ------ ------ ----- | | | | / ___| |___ | | __ | | __ | / | --- --- | [] / | |_ _____ _| | | || | | || | | _ | | | | \ \_ \ \____\ / __| | || | | || | | | | | | [] | ___\ | | /___ | || | | || | _| |_ | | | | | / | | | -- | | -- | | | ----- -------' ----- `------' `------' `------' `------' ============================================================================== a.k.a. Tropez Plus Version 1.1 Release Notes README.TXT Copyright (c) 1995 Turtle Beach Systems. All rights reserved. Tropez Plus is a trademark of Turtle Beach Systems, Inc. This file contains important information that became available after the printed documentation went to press. To move through the document, press the PG UP or PG DOWN keys or click the arrows at the top and bottom of the scroll bar along the right side of the window. To print the document, choose the Print command from the File menu. Customer Support via CompuServe, America Online, or Internet ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ An excellent alternative to customer support via phone or mail is using CompuServe, America Online, or Internet, three of the leading online systems in the world. Turtle Beach maintains several active forums on CompuServe. For customer support contact Turtle Beach at 71333,2432 in forums MIDIVEN Section 2 and MULTIVEN Section 16 or GO TURTLE (multimedia vendors' forum) and GO TBMIDI (MIDI vendor’s forum). For Turtle Beach customer support via America Online, use Keyword 'Turtle Beach.' For support via Internet, visit our World Wide Web page at, HTTP://WWW.TBEACH.COM or our FTP site at, FTP.TBEACH.COM or send email to SUPPORT@TBEACH.COM. Customer Support via BeachComber Bulletin Board ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ The BeachComber bulletin board is available 24 hours a day. The bulletin board can be reached at (510) 624-6279, up to 38,400 baud, eight (8) data bits, No parity bits, one (1) stop bit via modem. The BeachComber bulletin board maintains product demonstrations, sound files, MIDI files, and helpful information for Turtle Beach products. Customer Support via Faxback ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ The Turtle Beach Faxback service can eliminate most common user problems and is an excellent alternative for off-hours support. Call (510) 624-6296 for assistance with the Faxback System. Customer Support via Telephone ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ If you encounter problems or have questions about installing the Tropez Plus, call the Turtle Beach customer support staff at (510) 624-6265. ******* Windows 3.1, Windows 3.11, and Windows for Workgroups Installation Note ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ If you are performing the Tropez Plus DOS installation program, be sure you are starting from a native DOS prompt, and not a MS-DOS box. Installing from the enhanced mode DOS box will lead your Windows to repeatedly crash. Installing the Tropez Plus in Windows 95 ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ The Tropez Plus is fully Plug and Play compatible. Please follow the instructions outlined in the manual for Windows 95 installation. Tropez Plus Applications in Windows 95 ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ Most of the applications supplied with the Tropez Plus work in the Windows 95 environment. There are some exceptions as noted: 1. The Sierra audio rack does not work in Stealth mode. 2. Microwave may cause problems when used as an OLE server. 3. The Turtle Beach CD player shows a white rectangle to the right of the main controls. This does not affect the operation of the program. Low Priority on the TB Mixer ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ In general, you will not need to use the "Low Priority Input" button on the TB Mixer. There are a few applications (such as "Voice Pilot," included with the Windows Sound System software) that make use of the input levels shown after clicking on the Low Priority Input button, but most applications do not. If you wish to set input levels for applications such as Sound Recorder, Quick Recorder, Wave SE, or MicroWave, click on the Wave Input button and adjust the levels shown. MicroWave and OLE ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ MicroWave is functionally compatible with OLE 1.0, and with the identical functions in OLE 2.0. However, MicroWave will not function with OLE 2.0 specific calls. Problems Recording or Playing Back .WAV Audio ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ If you are experiencing problems recording or playing back .WAV audio, enter the Windows Control Panel and open the Drivers section (Win 3.1x) or open the System icon in the Control Panel (Win95). Tropez Plus driver and choose Half Duplex. Restart your machine and try recording or playing back .WAV audio. NOTE: In this configuration, simultaneous .WAV record and playback is not available. Recording Through Multiple Inputs ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ Although Tropez Plus has multiple inputs, you can only record through one audio input at a time. Using the Line In Jack on Tropez Plus ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ If you are using headphone out jack on your CD-ROM drive through the Line In jack on the back of Tropez Plus, you may notice that the volume is quite loud. To remedy this, adjust the output level on the input mixer or turn down the volume knob on your CD-ROM drive. ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Ý Tropez Plus Questions & AnswersÞ ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß The following are common questions and answers pertaining to the installation and use of the Tropez Plus. ÉÍÍËÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍËÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º º Table of Contents º º º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ º º º I. Installation Issues º º º º 1. Can't enter Windows 3.1x after installation... º º * Windows95 users see section IV, #7. º º º º II. Dos Application Issues º º º º 1. Audio levels in Dos games are not matched... º º 2. Music in games sound unrealistic... º º 3. General MIDI/SETUPSND fails... º º 4. Changing DOS settings... º º 5. Changing DOS default startup volumes... º º 6. Hot-Key Mixer doesn't work... º º º º III. Windows 3.1x Application Issues º º º º 1. Changing Windows settings... º º 2. Recording Problems/ Phase-shift... º º 3. Enabling Full Duplex... º º º º IV. Windows 95 Configuration º º º º 1. Windows 95 compatibility... º º 2. Problems entering Windows 95... º º 3. Gameport problems in Windows 95... º º 4. MIDI files sound unrealistic... º º 5. Monitor/Record Monitor button & its function... º º 6. Low audio levels in Win95 DOS-Box games... º º * 7. Uninstalling/Re-installing the Tropez Plus... º º º º V. SampleStore/MIDI Questions (Win3.11 & Win95) º º º º 1. SampleStore RAM not recognized... º º º 2. External MIDI Keyboard won't play... º º 3. Advanced MIDI editing features... º º º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ I. Installation Issues ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 1. Once my installation was completed, I was unable to boot into Windows 3.1x. ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß Chances are, you have a hardware conflict with another card in your system. Boot into DOS and enter C:\TBEACH\DOSAPPS. Once in the TBEACH\DOSAPPS directory, type TBSDIAG. This will run the DOS diagnostics. Run the diagnostics and write down the settings that fail (Marked in red in TBSDIAG). Insert your Tropez Plus drivers disk 1 in your floppy drive and type: Install. Select 'Configure' from the Main menu and change the settings that were failing diagnostics. After the configuration procedure, reboot the system and try TBSDIAG again. Repeat this procedure until you find working settings. II. DOS Application Issues ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 1. The audio levels for my DOS game's sound effects and MIDI music are not matched? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß Use the TBSMIX.EXE utility to set the relative sound levels to more appropriate levels. Type TBSMIX /? at the command line prompt to see the available options. Once in the TBSMIXER, the WAVE slider controls sound effects and the SYNTH slider controls MIDI music (both FM and Wavetable). ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 2. The music in my DOS games sounds "tinny" and unrealistic. ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß The Tropez Plus has two synthesizers built on to the board: An OPL3, FM Synthesizer and the ICS WaveFront, Wavetable Synthesizer. For more realistic, sampled sounds, you should use the wavetable synthesizer. Most games have a separate choice for "Music Device" or "Music Board." You should choose General Midi, Roland MPU-401, or Waveblaster. The port setting you select should correspond to the WaveFront I/O setting that you selected during the installation. If you chose 'Quick Install,' the default is 330. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 3. I try to select General MIDI in one of my games, but it says that it cannot detect a General MIDI device. What's going on? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß The WaveFront Synthesizer needs to be initialized before it can be used in DOS. This is taken care of during bootup in your Autoexec.bat file. The SETUPSND program will run and initialize the synthesizer, the effects processor, and any RAM that you have on the Tropez Plus. The default port address setting for the Wavetable synthesizer on the Tropez Plus is 330 and the default IRQ is 9. The settings that your card is initializing at will be shown while the SETUPSND program is running. If you hear a 'triple beeping' sound during boot-up, there is a good chance that the synth is not being initialized and you may have a resource conflict. To fix this, insert disk 1 of your Tropez Plus drivers disks and type 'Install.' Select 'Configure' from the opening menu and proceed to the settings screen. Choose alternate settings for either the 'WaveFront Port Setting' or 'WaveFront IRQ Setting.' It is better to only change one of these at a time for troubleshooting purposes. After making the changes, you will need to let the Configure program update the appropriate files. Reboot the system to try the new settings. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 4. How do I change the DOS configuration settings for the board? (Win 3.1x installtion Only: Windows 95 users see Appendix B) ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß Insert your Tropez Plus drivers diskette and type 'install.' Choose 'Configure' from the menu and follow the directions to change your settings. You can choose to reconfigure DOS, Windows, or both using this utility. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 5. How do I change the DOS default startup volumes for the Tropez Plus? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß Once your computer has booted to DOS, enter the TBEACH\DOSAPPS directory and type the command TBSMIX. All of the default levels will be displayed. Adjust the levels with the mouse our the keyboard and the tab key. Click on 'Save' to keep the settings. You can also insert default volume levels in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file with the TBSMIX utility. Type TBSMIX /? in the TBEACH/DOSAPPS directory for the parameters. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 6. In some of my DOS games, the DOS Hot Key Mixer does not function? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß Some DOS games do not allow the DOS Hot Key Mixer to effect the volume levels. Many of these games have their own level adjustments. III. Windows 3.1x Application Issues ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 1. How do I reconfigure my Windows hardware settings? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß You can reconfigure your Windows settings using the 'Configuration' utility on your original install disk. Exit Windows and return to a DOS prompt. Insert your Tropez Plus drivers diskette and type 'install.' Choose 'Configure' from the menu and follow the directions to change your settings. You can choose to reconfigure DOS, Windows, or both using this utility. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 2. When I am preparing to record and I want to check the levels in the mixer, I notice a slight phase shift (fading in and out of sound) in the audio from my speakers. What is causing this phase shift? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß The Turtle Beach mixer is designed for maximum user control. One capability allows you to switch between Master Out and Wave Input and hear the audio signal as output and input simultaneously. This means you can mute the sound in Master Out and switch to Wave Input to adjust the signal to an appropriate level for recording. This capability may lead to a slight phase shift in your output, but it will not be detectable in any .WAV file recording. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 3. I have an application that can utilize Full Duplex capability. Can the Tropez Plus take advantage of this? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß The Tropez Plus is fully capable of handling Full Duplex (Simultaneous playback and Record) if you have the resources free to use it. To enable Full Duplex, exit Windows and insert disk 1 of your Tropez Plus Drivers Disks and type 'Install.' Choose the 'Configure' option from the main menu. After answering several path related questions, you will be asked if you want to enable Full Duplex. Press the space bar to toggle the answer to 'yes.' You can also find this screen if you choose a 'Custom Install' rather than the 'Quick Install.' IV. Windows 95 Configuration ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 1. Does my Tropez Plus work with Windows 95? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß Yes, the Tropez Plus works with Windows 95 and is fully Plug and Play compatible. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 2. My computer locks when I try to enter Windows 95. ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß The first step in solving this problem is to see when the lock-up happens. To do this, reboot your system and hit the F8 key when the "Starting Windows 95" message appears. You will see a menu of choices; choose "Step by Step Confirmation." Answer Y to the individual lines and try to isolate the line that is locking the system. If the TBS2001.EXE line is causing the system to lock, either move it to the top of the Config.sys or make sure that EMM386.EXE is not being loaded. You can edit the Config.sys by choosing F8 and entering Win95 in Safe Mode. If the computer locks on another line, use the troubleshooting procedure in the manual for assistance. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 3. I chose not to install the Tropez Plus gameport, but now there is a yellow symbol next to "Tropez Plus" in the Device Manager section of my System icon. ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß Since the Tropez Plus is a Plug and Play card, all five of the devices on the hardware are detected by Windows 95 (Tropez Plus PnP hardware, Tropez Plus WaveFront Synthesizer, Microsoft compatible Gameport and Microsoft MPU-401, and Tropez Plus PnP Control Registers). By using the yellow symbol in the Device Manager, Windows 95 is simply telling you that you have either chosen not to install a possible Plug and Play device or all of its components are not working. You can remove the Gameport from your current Windows95 configuration by going to the Device Manager and double clicking on 'Gameport Joystick' from the 'Sound, Video, and Game controllers' section. "Uncheck" the Gameport Joystick from the 'Current Configuration' and restart the computer. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 4. When I play MIDI files in Windows 95 they sound "tinny" and unrealistic. ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß The Tropez Plus has two synthesizers built on to the board: An OPL3, FM Synthesizer and the ICS WaveFront, Wavetable Synthesizer. For more realistic, sampled sounds, you should switch to the wavetable synthesizer. This can be done by choosing 'MIDI' in the 'Multimedia' icon from the Windows 95 Control Panel. Select 'Tropez Plus WaveFront Synth' and press O.K. to confirm your selection. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 5. What is the 'Record Monitor' fader in the Windows 95 mixer or the 'Monitor' fader in the Turtle Beach Mixer used for? Normally, when you are ready to record something (via line input or microphone), you will want to hear or "monitor" what you are about to record through your speakers. There are certain applications, however, in which you will want to either mute or minimize the amount of signal that is sent through your speakers. For example, there are a growing number of Internet communication programs that allow you to use a microphone and your sound card to actually talk to another user through your Internet connection. In this situation, many people prefer not to hear themselves when they talk into the microphone. Also, if you are using any of the Full Duplex features of the Tropez Plus (ability to simultaneously record and play digital audio), you may want to mute the Record Monitor to avoid feedback. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 6. When I play a DOS game through Windows 95, the audio levels are very low. When Windows 95 is running a DOS application, it is responding to different mixer settings then when it is running a true Windows 95 application. To compensate for this difference, you can either manually adjust the mixer settings using the TBSMIX.EXE program in the TBEACH/DOSAPPS directory or use the supplied 95DOSMIX.PIF file on Disk One of the Tropez Plus install before you run the application. The .PIF file should have also been copied to your Windows 95 desktop directory during installation. Double-click on the icon to reset the DOS mixer levels. Note: The 95DOSMIX shortcut assumes that the installation files were copied to the following path: C:\TBEACH\DOSAPPS. If your hard drive letter is different, you will need to edit the .PIF file accordingly. Use the Windows 95 Help system for assistance with editing shortcuts. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 7. I've tried installing the Tropez Plus several times without success. How do I uninstall the card in Windows 95 so I can start from scratch. ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß We have provided a "Cleanup" INF file on your Tropez Plus Install Disk 1 that will remove the Tropez Plus files from Windows 95. The file is called CLEANTBS.INF and is located in the \ALTINF directory on the Tropez Plus Installation Disk #1. This file clears out all "media-related" devices from Windows 95, so caution should be used before you run this INF. If you already have another Sound Card in the system, do not use this file unless you are willing to re-install the other Sound Card after removing the media devices. Using the CLEANTBS.INF 1. Insert your Tropez Plus Installation Disk #1 in your Floppy drive. 2. Click on 'My Computer' and double-click on your Floppy drive. 3. Double-click on the /ALTINF directory 4. Click on the CLEANTBS.INF file with your RIGHT mouse button. 5. Choose 'Install' from the list of options. 6. Once you shut down the computer after running the CLEANTBS.INF file, the Tropez Plus drivers will be removed from the system. If you turn the computer back on with the card still in the computer, your system will recognize the Tropez Plus as a new install. If you do not wish to re-install the Tropez Plus, be sure to remove the card from the computer after running the .INF and shutting down. V. SampleStore / MIDI Questions ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 1. I added RAM to my Tropez Plus, but it doesn't seem to register in the Tropez Plus Control Panel. ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß By default, the Tropez Plus Control Panel is set to "Quick Start." This is useful if you only want to adjust settings for the Tropez Plus like effect's levels, tuning, and auditioning features. If you want to take advantage of your own sampling ram, though, you will need to uncheck the "Quick Start" option under the "Synth" choice in the Control Panel. Close the Control Panel, open it again, and the RAM will be recognized as the Control Panel does a full initialization. ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 2. How do I hook up an external MIDI keyboard to the Tropez Plus? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß A MIDI keyboard can be attached to the Tropez Plus using a standard 15-Pin MIDI/Joystick adapter. This adapter can be purchased from any major multimedia dealer or music store. With the computer turned off, connect the cable labeled MIDI IN on the adapter to the MIDI IN on the keyboard. This will allow you to play the Tropez Plus synthesizer with the external keyboard. If the keyboard has its own internal sounds and you want to control them from the computer, you can also connect the cable labeled MIDI OUT on the adater to the MIDI IN on the external keyboard. The routing of the MIDI signal is controlled through software in the computer. The example below shows how to play the Tropez Plus synthesizer from an external keyboard using the Stratos Sequencer program that was included with the Turtle Beach Applications. 1. Turn on the MIDI Keyboard. 2. Open up the Sequencer program. 3. Select 'Options' from the pull-down menu. 4. Highlight MIDI IN and choose "Tropez Plus External IN." 5. Highlight MIDI OUT and choose "Tropez Plus Sample Player." 6. Make sure that MIDI THRU has a check mark next to it. 7. Make beautiful music... ÜÜÜ ÝQÞ ßßß 3. Are there any advanced patch editing programs available for the Tropez Plus? ÜÜÜ ÝAÞ ßßß Turtle Beach has a program called WavePatch that allows the user to edit all aspects of the WaveFront synthesizer (both embedded and uploaded samples) such as envelope, LFO, multisampling, and other patch parameters. WavePatch is available free of charge on Turtle Beach's BBS (510-624-6279) or from our WEB/FTP site (http://www.tbeach.com or ftp.tbeach.com). The current version of WavePatch as of this README is v1.3. There is no further information available at this time. 6/21/96