Linux and the SoundBlaster AWE64 PnP So you finally sprung for that bitchin SB AWE64 PNP?? Cool deal. Now you wanna configure it?! HAHAH GOOD LUCK!! Just kidding. PnP Configuration First thing's first. We're going to take care of the PnP-ness (hhehe say that fast :) of the card. Inever had luck with the new PnP driver in Linux, so I'm not even going to talk about it here other than to say don't use it. Since we can't use the driver and we're too lazy to boot to DOS, blah, blah, we need to use isapnptools. Here's the URL: ftp://ftp.redhat.com/pub/pnp/utils/isapnptools-1.10.tgz Got it? Good. Untar it, compile it, install it. READ ALL THE DOCUMENTATION!! Done? Good. Now do this: bash$ pnpdump > pnpconf That will dump all of the possible settings for all of the ISA PnP cards in your system. Now you have to edit that file so that it identifies what devices you want to use. Now would be a good time to go back and READ ALL THE DOCUMENTATION!! if you didn't before. If you need a clue, here's what mine looks like, with all the comments removed: (READPORT 0x0203) (ISOLATE) (IDENTIFY *) (CONFIGURE CTL009d/268451217 (LD 0 (INT 0 (IRQ 5 (MODE +E))) (DMA 0 (CHANNEL 1)) (DMA 1 (CHANNEL 5)) (IO 0 (BASE 0x0220)) (IO 1 (BASE 0x0330)) (IO 2 (BASE 0x0388)) (ACT Y) )) (CONFIGURE CTL009d/268451217 (LD 1 (IO 0 (BASE 0x0200)) )) (CONFIGURE CTL009d/268451217 (LD 2 (IO 0 (BASE 0x0620)) (IO 1 (BASE 0x0A20)) (IO 2 (BASE 0x0E20)) (ACT Y) )) (CONFIGURE CTL009d/268451217 (LD 3 )) Looks real pretty, eh? Don't sweat it. LD 0 is the SoundBlaster. IRQ: 5 DMA: 1 16bit DMA: 5 PORT: 220 MIDI: 330. LD 2 is the AWE synthesizer. PORT: 620. LD 1 is the Game/Joystick Port and LD 3 is the IDE port on the card. Now, move this file someplace handy. I put it in /etc/isapnp.conf. Now you can configure your PNP devices with isapnp. bash$ isapnp /etc/isapnp.conf If you still need help my /etc/isapnp.conf is at http://www.i-plus.net/~nega/linux/isapnp.conf. Kernel Configuration AWE support in the stock soundblaster driver isn't very good, so we're going to go get a new one (AWE driver that is). http://bahamut.mm.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~iwai/awedrv/ is the AWE driver homepage. Go there, because you're going to get really familiar with it. Get the driver. Here's the URL: http://bahamut.mm.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~iwai/awedrv/awedrv-0.4.0.tgz Put it somewhere handy (I put it in /usr/src) and unarchive it. CD into its directory. Now, READ THE DOCUMENTATION!! Finished? Good. Run install.sh and answer any questions it asks you. bash$ sh install.sh Now, all you have to do is rebuild your kernel and modules, and you're all set! Be sure you include "AWE synth" under "Low Level Drivers" of the "Sound Configuration" section. If you dont know how to rebuild your kernel, the go read the Kernel-HOWTO. In fact, read it a couple of times. Hints and Further Help Put isapnp /etc/isapnp.conf into one of your boot files. (Mine is in /etc/rc.d/rc.local). Read everything on the AWE Driver Homepage and get your software and software patches rom there. Trust me. It will make the use of your card much more enjoyable. If you still need help configuring your Soundblaster AWE64 PnP, or just want to talk about Linux stuff feel free to email me at nega@vt.edu. Alternativly, you can find me on EFnet IRC as tryst on #linux. Disclaimer Standard disclaimer applies... if you broke it, it ain't my fault!! Bucky LaDieu Last modified: Wed Jun 25 00:42:58 EDT 1997 with XEmacs Copyright 1997 Donald V LaDieu