Audio
FM audio board
For playing PC-98 games you will need a FM audio card.
We will explain here which model to get and how to install it.
PC-9801-26
This is the most common audio board for PC-98. It works with most games and it is easy to install. 26 means that 26 musical instruments can be played by the card. If you think that "midi" sound was retro, then you have never heard real retro sound ;)
some cards variant
Little Orchestra-L (SNE)
This is a good card, that accepts stereo, and can take advantage of EMS memory for advance options (with an electronic piano, I think). For installing : just put the card in the bay on the back side of your PC-98. No driver needed.
PC-9801-86 (Nec)
This is THE card for all gaming fan on PC-98. It is compatible with all games I know until now, and especially with Policenauts, for lipsync.
You can play Policenauts with a PC-9801-26 model, but as there is no PCM chip on PC-9801-26, the game will use the PCM on the PC9821 which is only compatible with new drivers ; drivers that are not fully compatible with Policenauts. PC-9801-86 has a PCM onboard which is perfectly compatible with AVSDRV.SYS 47kb, the driver needed for lipsync on Policenauts.
MIDI Boards and decoders
If you want to get into the higher level of what PC-98 can do in sound, you can try to start entering the MIDI world. This is the top of the top for getting exactly the sound as it has been played by the composer of the game. Why ? Because when the composer is playing a sound on a keyboard, he creates a Midi file. And playing the midi file with the same settings give exactly the same sound. And it is great ! On the other hand, FM sound is very different, as it is only a digital recording of the sound, with all the loss you can get in this case. For playing Midi sound in the best condition, you need :
- a compatible game.
- a MIDI board on you PC98
- a MIDI decoder recommanded by the game.
MPU-PC98II (Roland)
The best midi board is the MPU-PC98II, because the setup is the easiest and well recognized by most PC98 games. In 90% of the case, just put it on a C-bus at the back of the PC98, and have fun! There are 2 channels out and 1 in. Roland is a renowned brand for MIDI.
CM-64 (Roland)
The CM-64 is a Midi decoder. One of the best. Because It is compatible with a lot of games. It is also able to get the original sound from games that usually requires MT-32. So it can replace MT-32.
SC-88 (Roland)
Some people say using SC-88 will not perfectly fit with all games, but in my humble opinion, it does a good job if you need a compatible decoder for games which needs :
MT-55 mode
GS mode
GM mode
The decoder is also not so expensive.
Video
Adding a video card on PC-9821V12 wil have no improvement for original PC-98 games. Why ? Because the video chip on this model is far better than any video accelerator of older PC-98 models.
But if you are running windows games on a PC-98, a video card will give you better result. See this site for reviews of acceleration cards :
MGA-2064W (Matrox)
Also called Millenium. This is one of the best cards to get high resolution graphics with million of colors on you windows games and desktop. The very interresting thing is also the large possible resolution of the card. From 320ｘ240. 2D results are very good. The card has no 3D acceleration.
For using it on a PC-98 there is a little trick explained here :
http://www.p-green.jp/pc/final/final.htm
If you can't read japanese, please ask me !
