Ensoniq
Contents
Cards
Soundscape S-2000
Based upon the Otto/Sequoia/MC68EC000 chipset and an AD1848KP DAC/ADC, the Soundscape S-2000 was a high quality wavetable sound card in 1994. I/O ports are configured by jumpers. DMA, IRQ, SB emulation and some other settings are software configurable.
Soundscape DB
This is a Waveblaster-compatible daughtercard with the Otto/Sequoia/MC68EC000 chipset on board with 1 or 2MB ROM.
Soundscape PnP / OPUS
This card is an OEM cost-reduced product with similar specifications to the S-2000 but with some changes. It uses the AD1845JP and a MIDI chipset consisting of Cow and Opus. It has some compatibility problems with games because of the use of I/O ports atypical for the S-2000 (games don't always support them). Settings are configured by PnP and by the SSINIT program.
Soundscape Elite
Essentially revision 2 of the S-2000, but with the addition of an effects DSP daughtercard and a revised sample ROM. Based upon the Otto and Sequoia MIDI chipset and an Analog Devices AD1848KP DAC/ADC. Released in 1995. I/O ports are configured by jumpers. DMA, IRQ, SB emulation and some other settings are software configurable.
Soundscape VIVO 90
This card uses the Mark 5 / OttoR2 MIDI chipset and an AD1845JP DAC/ADC. This card replaced the Opus card as an OEM favorite. It was also available at retail. It is less capable and less flexible than the large Soundscape boards based on Otto and Sequoia. Settings are configured by PnP and by the SSINIT program.
AudioPCI
The final sound card from Ensoniq is a very cost-reduced PCI card that is almost entirely host-driven (software-based). MIDI is a soft-synth in both Windows and DOS and has limitations that make it impossible to produce a patch set that rivals the older cards with 2 megabyte ROMs.
When Creative purchased Ensoniq, a driver update was released renaming the card to Sound Blaster PCI 64. This also added some new features. In Windows 9x it has rudimentary DirectSound3D 4-speaker support and minimal A3D/EAX emulation.
Soundscape S-2000
Soundscape OPUS
Soundscape Elite
Soundscape VIVO 90
AudioPCI
Comparison table
| Name | Model | Release Date | Bus | Chipset | PCM | MPU-401 | Patch Set | EMM386 req'd | Standards | SNR | I/O | CD Interface | OS Support | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundscape S-2000 | S2016 | 1994 | ISA | OttoR2B, Sequoia, MC68EC000, AD1848KP | 16-bit 48 kHz | hardware | 1, 2 MB | No | SB 2.0, Adlib, MT-32, General MIDI, WSS | 83db | aux-in, line-in/mic, line-out, gameport/MIDI | Panasonic, Sony, Mitsumi | DOS, W3.x, W9x, NT4, OS/2 | CD interfaces optional. OEM models may have 1MB ROM. |
| Soundscape DB | SSDB | 1994 | - | OttoR2, Sequoia, MC68EC000 | 16-bit 48 kHz | hardware | 1, 2 MB | No | General MIDI | waveblaster port | - | - | ||
| Soundscape OPUS | S3016 | 1995 | ISA | Opus, Cow, MC68EC000, AD1845JP | 16-bit 48 kHz | hardware | 1 MB | No | SB 2.0, Adlib, MT-32, General MIDI, WSS | aux-in, line-in/mic, line-out, gameport/MIDI | - | DOS, W3.x, W9x, NT4, OS/2 | PnP | |
| Soundscape Elite | S2016-II | 1995 | ISA | OttoR2C, Sequoia, MC68EC000, AD1848KP | 16-bit 48 kHz | hardware | 2 MB | No | SB 2.0, Adlib, MT-32, General MIDI, WSS | 83db | aux-in, line-in/mic, line-out, gameport/MIDI | IDE, Panasonic, Sony, Mitsumi | DOS, W3.x, W9x, NT4, OS/2 | effects processor daughtercard. New 2MB ROM. |
| Soundscape II | S2016-II | 1995 | ISA | OttoR2, Sequoia, MC68EC000, AD1848KP | 16-bit 48 kHz | hardware | 2 MB | No | SB 2.0, Adlib, MT-32, General MIDI, WSS | 83db | aux-in, line-in/mic, line-out, gameport/MIDI | IDE, Panasonic, Sony, Mitsumi | DOS, W3.x, W9x, NT4, OS/2 | Elite minus ESP |
| Soundscape VIVO 90 | VIVO-90DB | 1996 | ISA | Mark 5, OttoR2C, AD1845JP | 16-bit 48 kHz | software | 1 MB | Yes | SB Pro 2, Adlib, MT-32, General MIDI, WSS | 90db | aux-in, line-in/mic, line-out, gameport/MIDI | - | DOS, W3.x, W9x, NT4 | PnP |
| AudioPCI 3000 | 1997 | PCI | ES1370, AK4531 | 16-bit 48 kHz | software | 2, 4, 8 MB | Yes | SB Pro 2, Adlib, MT-32, General MIDI, WSS, Soundscape | 90db | aux-in, line-in/mic, line-out, gameport/MIDI | - | DOS, W3.x, W9x, NT4-6, OS/2 | MIDI FX in W9x. DS3D 2/4-speaker, EAX and A3D with SBPCI64 driver. |
