Using a Roland MT-32 with Windows 7 and DOSBox

[@TheRetroRoadshow]

I just lucked out and bought a real MT-32 for a very reasonable price, and I'm really excited to follow your guidance and get it going with my modern PC. Feels like finally achieving something I only dreamed of as a kid

[@wilbo26]

I'm glad you demo'd Ultima 6 for this. The intro scene with the gargoyle ritual is probably my favorite musical piece from a PC game.

[@africanmarty]

A very big help. Thank you SO0o much beigemore I used this video to setup my Roland SoundCanvas SC-55ST so I can hear general MIDI with my old dos games and it worked like a charm. I especially liked how you showed how to edit the config so you don't have to change the settings every time you launch dos dox. Regards Marty.

[@pip5528]

Cool. I want to get an SC-55mkII sometime. I personally don't really like the SC-55st because even though it is a cheaper version of the SC-55mkII, I don't like it because it lacks the LED screen which is useful if you are playing it with a keyboard and not just using it for games.

[@eriktwice3589]

Thanks a lot for this video. I think gaming owes a lot to people like you, who spend their time to help others with these obscure topics :)

[@BeastOfSoda]

i'll be honest: i love the MT-32's sound quality, however having grown up as a sound blaster owner, the audio i have the fondest memories of is still the OPL3 synth. i do strive to achieve results similar to the MT-32 by using soundfonts and whatnot, though, but the one that tugs at my nostalgia strings remains the yamaha chip :3

[@DonBrowne]

I'm not sure if this tip will help anyone with a different model of the MT-32 ( I don't use my for games but for midi music composition) but after turning it on, hit "master volume" and "part 5" simultaneously and then push "part 1." This sets the midi channels on the MT-32 to 1 through 8 instead of 2-9. This might solve any problems when a model you have doesn't play the game music correctly with the right sounds.

[@mattalki]

I know this video is a couple years old, but to connect the MT-32 to the line in on the computer with a minimum of cables, use a 1/8" to dual RCA cable + two RCA to phono plug adapters. The adapters are cat no 274-320 at RadioShack. That's how I've connected mine, and it works perfectly. Great vid, btw!

[@pip5528]

If you want even fewer cables, use a phono to 1/8" Y cable which would look something like this: musiciansfriend.com/accessories/live-wire-3.5mm-dual-1-4-y-cable

[@cavegames]

Thank you very much for this guide! I have found a good offer on a well-preserved MT-32 unit, but was unsure whether I would even be able to connect it to my modern system and get it running with DOSBox. I could only ever dream of having that nice little synth as a boy, and I'm keeping your video handy for when I finally get one =)

[@SimonDufour]

Really great video! I'm 26 and I never realized how important important synth were to PC gaming in the early days. Thanks for you video, it was a bit like traveling back in time. Too bad that MT-32 emulation is not legal. Those soundtrack deserve to be heard. If you're interested, I made a MT-32 vs SoundBlaster video where I crossfade the music of Wing Commander 1 with both synth.

[@romein138]

Great video. I found this video after researching MT-32 stuff and you did a great job of showcasing the hardware and connectivity. I've installed Munt (an MT-32 emulator) and tinkered with it a bit, but it just sounds all wrong and off-key compared to how the real hardware should sound. Subscribed and liked!

[@0zfer]

Great tutorial good overall history and guide on how to use this.

[@bassanddestroy6807]

I just want to get this to make music lol. But I did grow up playing many of these games and enjoying the music on that little PC speaker. Good times.

[@elaborate-press]

thanks for showing this setup! I honestly think that midi in / out is based on a logical setup. sending midi commands from the midi output of source A to the midi input of source B and back. wanne use a midi keyboard to play notes in your daw, connect just the midi output of the keyz to the midi input of your computer / midi interface, so the keyboard can send and the computer can receive. wanne both send and receive notes and commands, like from a synth and playback the arrangement from your daw with the sounds from your synth, you additionally connect the midi input of the synth to the midi output of the computer / midi interface. that's no biggie ;-)

[@rhampton1914]

kool video...i just got a used one for $20 off of Craigs list...awesome...sounds great..

[@Shendue]

Thank you, the video is incredibly helpful.

[@MrTibbs90]

I liked that the version of DOS Box you ran had a menu. What version is that? I noticed it was a SVN Build.

[@edumafra82]

Simply AMAZING! 👏

[@nFiveTech]

Can it also play through my speaker in my monitor from the usb??

[@mustangmckraken1150]

Thanks for the upload, I've just discovered this and I'm thinking about doing it myself :D A quick question, though, could you run the MIDI Out off of the actual MT32 back through your computer (assuming the MIDI IN/OUT cable is USB) and just run sound back through your sound device that's already in your PC? Just to get sound through my speakers that are already plugged into my computer? It'd be such a pain to have to re run speaker wires every time I wanted to use it :(

[@keyboardonly]

+Mustang McKraken The MIDI out/in ports just transmit MIDI information like which instrument to use, volume, velocity, etc, of the notes to play. So your computer sends the MIDI data to the MT-32, the MT-32 plays the sounds, then you run the sounds from the audio out on the MT-32 back to your PC through the line-in port on the computer. Some games will use the MT-32 for both music and sound effects, while others will use the MT-32 just for music and then the Sound Blaster or whatever for voices and sound effects. You run the audio back in to the PC so all of that can be mixed via your sound card and then spit back out through your computer's audio out to your speakers so you hear everything. Once you connect the MT-32, you don't really ever have to disconnect the wires or anything unless you're wanting to use your line-in port on your PC for something else.

[@mustangmckraken1150]

beigemore Ahh, okay, makes sense now. It's just like having a mixing board and you're using the PC speakers as an output device and an input device at the same time haha. Thanks a lot!

[@captainmay9033]

Where can I hear the rest of that Life Force boss music that plays in the beginning? Sounds fantastic

[@keyboardonly]

+shantd1 Sorry for the very late reply, but it's from the Gradius V soundtrack.

[@purduecoz]

I am seeing a lot of 1 x 1/8" to 2 x 1/8" adapters/cables that seem designed to duplicate a stereo signal. Will these cables work in the reverse direction to merge a left and right mono signal into a single stereo signal going into line in on my PC? I can't find an adapter like what you're using anywhere on Amazon. Thanks!

[@keyboardonly]

+Purduecoz Yes, the signal will go the other way, as well. You don't need to use as many adapters as I used in the video. I just didn't have the right individual cables at the time. Try searching Amazon for "1/8" TRS Stereo to 1/4" TS Mono".. or see if this link works: www.amazon.com/GLS-Audio-Y-Cable-Splitter-Cord/dp/B0062QPERU

[@webfischi]

I wondered why using this horrible stereo 1/4" (it had 2 black rings on this end and it can damage your device) to mono 1/8" with this adapter which will creating more sound problems then it solves. Those cables without adapters are much better and there is no big plastic thing blocking ports.

[@haz939]

Would any USB to midi adapter work with the MT-32? Or does it have to be the Roland one you are using? Thank you.

[@keyboardonly]

+haz939 Most adapters should work as long as they are compatible with Windows. I recently bought an iConnectivity Mio adapter and it works just the same. I also tried a really cheap one off Amazon that was only $7 and it didn't work, which was more of an issue of a cheap product.

[@AxeBlack84]

I'm probably going to have to pickup one of these. I still have my privateer, Wingcommander games I'd like to play again. I'm not sure how well it works with the old school joysticks though.

[@chgwwh]

I got a 2nd hand MT 32 (ver 2) and connect from the headphone jack to speaker. More convenient :D

[@renanbernardes6545]

Good morning dear friend Congratulations on the roland-mt32 tutorial. But I have a question: Does roland mt-32 synthesize the FX sounds of the dosbox games? That is, I want to know if the Roland MT-32 will play only the songs of the games or it also plays the sounds of the games. How does this distribution work?

[@keyboardonly]

Some games will use the MT-32 to play sound effects, but they aren't digitized samples. This is why you want to run the MT-32's audio output into the line-in of a Sound Blaster card. The Sound Blaster will handle mixing the MT-32's audio with the Sound Blaster's digital or FM sound effects, and then send it all out through the Sound Blaster's line-out/headphone jack.

[@nFiveTech]

Will a VicTsing usb to midi work with this????

[@calach2924]

2 Questions Question 1) can this run on a mac? Question 2) what is the software used to control the synth and create music?

[@keyboardonly]

+Calach ThePict The synth works with MIDI signals so if you set your computer up to send MIDI data through a MIDI cable and have an MT-32 attached to that cable, the MT-32 will respond.

[@victorbart]

Cool video! I just got my second MT32 unit in. So maybe this one is gonna be connected to my workstation. My first MT32 is connected witht he MPU-IPC-T to a real dos machine. I also got a S-MPU/at so I need to test that one out too.

[@lomaymen9polnosty]

Why you connected USB MIDI IN and MT-32 MIDI OUT? MT-32 is sending some MIDI info to USB and PC? Why need this connection? Maybe USB MIDI IN is for piano synthesizer or something?

[@BurnedPinguin8630]

How the Heck did you get this i can't find one ANYWHERE! Can you tell me where did you get yours?

[@maio290]

Actually nice to see a real MT-32 working, but personally, I'd just use Munt.

[@keyboardonly]

+maio290 MUNT's MT32 emulation wasn't as good back then as it currently is. I agree that MUNT is an acceptable replacement now.

[@maio290]

Good to know, thanks!

[@alexandrebouvier7731]

Yeah same here, I wanted to purchase a MT-32 first but it is really hard to find... So Munt give 90-95% the same experience IMO. DOSBox + Munt is a good choice for retrogaming.

[@ferdinandoportel]

pelo teor dos comentários dos brasileiros no video, parece que eles não conseguiram entender nada. até porque o cara escondeu o setup todo. ele não está usando nenhuma placa isa pra interfacear com o mt-32 mas um acessório usb que possui dois conectores midi. um original desses da Roland custa em torna de 200 reais no mercadolivre mas funciona perfeitamente. por último, uma sounblaster tem uma mpu-401 compatível que opera somente em modo UART e não vai funcionar com os jogos antigos da Sierra. além do mais, a imensa maioria das sounblasters tem um bug nessa porta que produz o infame "hanging note bug". Num pc antigo, a única forma de garantir o funcionamento perfeito com 100% dos jogos é usar uma placa isa do tipo da que ele mostrou, que usa o modo inteligente.

[@aridisantunez9209]

I have one of those things, first model, it's collecting dust for like 20+ years, shame it doesn't work with the PS3.

[@amogussus8281]

Can I do it with windows 10 too

[@aridisantunez9209]

You need any General Midi capable Synthethizer to play "Sound Canvas" audio, MT-32 is not GM.

[@imperia777]

I am wondering the same

[@lunitaproductions8290]

i wish how to sounds jazz jackrabbit whit that

[@TheRetroRoadshow]

I followed your guidance and got my own MT-32 working! THANK YOU so much for making this video - I'm not sure I'd ever have figured all this out on my own. Here's a video of my successful setup earlier today, for anyone who's curious: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hoLXZ3Z5aqt5mJY

[@XX-121]

thanks for the vid man cool shiz

[@sfsdgdrfgdf]

Oh, The Elder Scrolls and many others interesting game ^_^

[@speedyblupi]

WAAAAT? I'm pretty sure it's not illegal to emulate it, but it's illegal to take the exact same samples that were used in the original as they're copyrighted. You are allowed to replicate the sound though with other methods though. ScummVM and DOSBox would have been closed down by now if it was illegal to emulate MT-32 because both a very high profile and offer MT-32 emulation.

[@stevenyjtsai]

cool~

[@zummone]

I came here for the swan...

[@topsykrett4439]

great information, but the focus on your camera sucks! grrrr

[@keyboardonly]

+Topsy Krett Sorry, the autofocus was kind of weird. It's recorded using a Nikon D7000. I normally have autofocus off.

[@KarjamP]

No such thing as a bad musical instrument. Even something like those songs composed for the MT-32 can sound full of life, just as a General MIDI-supported instrument can do so. There's no such thing as a bad sound quality; that's just a subjective term, in either case. The real reason why many songs seem artificial i some manner isn't because of the instrumentation choice. Rather, it's because the song's composers didn't put in the proper thought into their own songs. In other words, they did not treat the projected thought correctly, did not have the right attitude towards it. You'd be surprised as to how many DOS-era games happen to have ill-thought out music. Anything from ID Soft, for instance (which includes Doom). Games from Sierra and LocusArts are also guilty of this. (Take note, I'm not speaking on subjective terms; the fact remains that many enjoy these songs, but the fact also remains that they weren't properly thought through.) If proper thought was out into these songs, it would be obvious, no matter which device plays which songs. The only thing that changes is what the instruments sound like, as well as how it plays. This has far less of an impact than what it seems at first glance; what an artist is actually doing, including when making music, is the projection of thoughts. Thoughts are forms of truth, complete with what that implies, and no amount of seeming differences can ever make this fact different. The only time the MIDI file ceases to be itself is when it gets directly edited in some manner.