F.A.Q. - Frequently Asked Questions

Product | SoundSystem Maestro 32/96
Last update | 01/26/2000
Version | 1.3
Questions and Answers | 23

Please ensure that you are using the latest driver versions.
You can obtain the latest drivers from our BBS or from our webpage.

TerraTec ReActor BBS | Internet | TerraTec Electronic GmbH
+49-(0)2157-817924 (analog) | http://www.terratec.net | Herrenpfad 38
+49-(0)2157-817942 (ISDN) | ftp://ftp.terratec.de | D41334 Nettetal

An Overview of the Questions ...

Question 1:
The Maestro 32/96 is correctly recognized by the PnP BIOS but it cannot be installed under DOS or is not
recognized by games.
Question 2:
With which sound card standards is the Maestro 32/96 SoundSystem compatible under MS-DOS?
Question 3:
After rebooting the computer by pressing [CTRL]-[ALT]-[DEL] or quitting the BIOS the system hangs and does
not finish booting.
Question 4:
While booting the computer or when running the TERRATEC.EXE file you receive the message 'WSS is not
working'!
Question 5:
What settings in the BIOS of the computer are relevant if I have a Plug and Play BIOS version?
Question 6:
How can I configure the Maestro 32/96 SoundSystem under MS-DOS?
Question 7:
There is no sound output in an MS-DOS game.
Question 8:
Sound volume under MS-DOS is not loud enough.
Question 9:
A CD-ROM drive connected to the IDE interface cannot be accessed and is not recognized by the driver.
Question 10:
Even though the audio cable is connected to the sound card I cannot hear the audio CDs I am playing.
Question 11:
A keyboard connected to the sound card does not react when I hit a key.
Question 12:
When starting a DOS application that supports sound (a game, for example) under Windows 95 you receive
the following message: "The Windows Sound System is already in use by another Application"
Question 13:
After starting Windows 95/98 the following message is displayed 'Couldn't find Maestro 32/96'.
Question 14:
Windows 3.xx start-up gets aborted and you are back in the MS-DOS environment.
Question 15:
You cannot record from a microphone.
Question 16:
When I send MIDI data to my keyboard the sound card also produces the sounds.
Question 17:
'In TTMIXER we accessed memory that does not belong to us'
Question 18:
When restarting Windows 95/98 after installing the drivers, the error message 'Windows General Protection Fault when initializing the IOS device' is displayed.
Question 19:
In the Device Manager there is a yellow exclamation mark beside the MIDI-1 driver.
Question 20:
How can I enable the second MIDI interface on the Maestro 32-96?
Question 21:
After installing the DirectX 5.0 drivers some devices named Crystal are listed in the Device Manager.
Question 22:
I cannot send any Sysex data over the Maestro 32-96 MIDI interface.

Question 23:
When i start the setup "Mix3296.exe" the system hangs up.

Question 1:

The Maestro 32/96 is correctly recognized by the PnP BIOS but it cannot be installed under DOS or is not
recognized by games.

Answer 1:

Check your motherboard settings in the setup (BIOS) of your PC and make sure that no typical sound card
interrupts (5, 9, 12) are reserved for ISA cards.
On most motherboards you will find these options under PCI / PnP Setup. You may have to refer to your
motherboard documentation. Although the Maestro 32/96 Sound System is an ISA card it cannot use any
interrupts or DMA channels that are reserved for common "non-plug-and-play" cards because it adheres to
the Plug and Play standard.

y

Question 2:

With which sound card standards is the Maestro 32/96 SoundSystem compatible under MS-DOS?

Answer 2:

Under MS-DOS the TerraTec Maestro 32/96 is
• SoundBlaster and
• SoundBlaster Pro compatible.
Just configure the corresponding settings for the memory address, IRQ and DMA channel in the setup
program of each application and sound support should not be a problem. We recommend that you select
SoundBlaster or SoundBlaster Pro as the sound card and the music card. Some applications require a
BLASTER environment variable to be set.
For example, insert the following line into the AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
SET BLASTER = A220 I5 D1 T4
T4 = SoundBlaster Pro model ID
D1 = DMA channel number
I5 = Interrupt number
A220 = I/O address of the sound card
If you have configured the sound card with different settings, you will have to adjust the line
correspondingly. T4 stands for SoundBlaster Pro compatibility, this parameter should be left unchanged.

    y

Question 3:

After rebooting the computer by pressing [CTRL]-[ALT]-[DEL] or quitting the BIOS the system hangs and does
not finish booting.

Answer 3:

This is due to the modified timing behavior of some new motherboards. In this case, a minor modification
has to be made on the sound card. Send us the sound card with a description of the error, the exact name of
the motherboard and the chipset used. If you are not sure if your details are sufficient please contact our
technical support team (support@terratec.de ) because some motherboards require special modifications.

    y

Question 4:

While booting the computer or when running the TERRATEC.EXE file you receive the message 'WSS is not
working'!

Answer 4:

This is a definite indication that a resource that is assigned to the sound card is already taken by another
component. With modern PnP-BIOS versions you can reserve interrupts and DMA channels.
In this case, it is important to ensure that the DMA channels and interrupts assigned to the sound card
really are available. For example, interrupts 5 and 9 and DMA channels 1 and 3 in the BIOS must not be set
to "Used by ISA". You will usually find these setup options under a menu called 'PnP Configuration' in the
BIOS setup.
In this context the menu option 'Chipset Configuration' or 'Peripheral Setup' is also important. In recent
BIOS versions you can configure an enhanced transmitting mode for the parallel port. It is called ECP and
uses a DMA channel which may also be in use by the sound card. Windows usually doesn't detect this
conflict. The best thing to do is to set the parallel port to Normal / SPP or EPP mode, so that it doesn't use a
DMA channel. If you do need to use EPP mode (e.g. Zip Drive on the parallel port) make sure that you
configure the sound card's resources in such a way that no conflicts with other components in the PC can
occur.

y

Question 5:

What settings in the BIOS of the computer are relevant if I have a Plug and Play BIOS version?

Answer 5:

All PCI motherboards, i.e. motherboards with PCI slots, have an option in their BIOS with which interrupts
and, increasingly, also DMA channels can be assigned to ISA cards or PCI cards.
This can be done in two different ways:
1. Like the AWARD BIOS, for example. There, under the 'PnP and PCI Setup' menu option you have the
option of assigning a fixed interrupt to the individual PCI slots. Furthermore, you can check if any interrupt
request lines are reserved for an ISA card. By default, the sound card occupies interrupts 5 and 9 and DMA
channels 1 and 3. In this list, these values should NOT be set to 'YES'. If this is not the case you should
change the settings to 'No/ICU'.
2. In some AMI BIOS versions, for example, you only have four options that are named 'First available IRQ',
'Second available IRQ', 'Third available IRQ' and 'Fourth available IRQ' The first available interrupt is the
first interrupt being used by a PCI card. The first PCI card takes the first available interrupt, the second PCI
card takes the second one and so on. So, if you only have a PCI graphics card in your system, you should set
the first available interrupt to 11, unless it is being used by something else. The graphics card will then take
interrupt 11. Depending on the number of PCI cards you have, you should, if possible, set all the other
options to 'NA' (Not Available).

    y

Question 6:

How can I configure the Maestro 32/96 SoundSystem under MS-DOS?

Answer 6:

In the sound card directory you will find a program called TERRATEC.EXE (Mix3296.exe as of driver version
2.5). Run the program with the parameter '-S' to configure the sound card under MS-DOS. The command
line with the parameter should read as follows: "terratec -s" ("Mix3296 -s" if driver version 2.5 or higher).
With this program you can assign specific interrupts, DMA channels and port addresses to the sound card.

    y

Question 7:

There is no sound output in an MS-DOS game.

Answer 7:

Before starting the game, run the 'terratec.exe' program with the parameter '-I'. To do this, enter the command 'terratec -i'. Then start the game. If sound output now works, you should place the 'terratec -i' command in the 'Autoexec.bat' file. To do this, type 'edit autoexec.bat'. Then type the command into a new line or, if the line "Terratec.exe -w" already exists, modify it to read "Terratec.exe -I". In driver version 2.5 and higher the parameter "-i" is automatically set during the installation.

    y

Question 8:

Sound volume under MS-DOS is not loud enough.

Answer 8:

In this instance, you can start the MS-DOS mixer with the 'terratec' command ("Mix3296" in driver version 2.5 and higher). Set the individual volume sliders in the mixer according to the volume you want and then press [ALT]-[S] to save your settings.

    y

Question 9:

A CD-ROM drive connected to the IDE interface cannot be accessed and is not recognized by the driver.

Answer 9:

In this case, you should definitely make sure that you don't already have two active IDE interfaces on your system. If you have a Pentium system you certainly have two IDE interfaces on your motherboard and therefore you cannot use the interface on the sound card unless you switch off the second interface on the motherboard in the BIOS (or perhaps even by setting jumpers on the motherboard). Then all you have to do is to connect the CD-ROM audio cable to the sound card. The reason for this is that Enhanced IDE can only support two active IDE interfaces. We would definitely recommend that you use the second IDE interface on the motherboard because this makes the installation easier.

    y

Question 10:

Even though the audio cable is connected to the sound card I cannot hear the audio CDs I am playing.

Answer 10:

Even though the audio cable is connected to the sound card I cannot hear the audio CDs I am playing.
Answer 10:
The cause of this problem can really only be an audio cable that is connected incorrectly.
When looking for the correct audio interface on the sound card it is important to note that current IDE CD-
ROM drives are usually connected to the Panasonic interface.
In most cases this is due to incorrect polarization of the cable. A flat, wide connector that has the correct
polarization is available on nearly all cables and CD-ROM drives. It is also important to know that you can
try out the different interfaces without concern (but do please switch off the PC beforehand). Then reboot
the computer and start playing the CD. If you hear the sound of the CD you have found the correct interface.
Here is an overview of the interfaces used for CD-ROM audio connections:
Interface standard Used by
Mitsumi Signal Ground Signal Ground
Panasonic Ground Signal Ground Signal
SONY Signal Ground Ground Signal
If you are running Windows 3.xx please ensure that a driver called 'MCI-CD AUDIO' is installed in the driver
section of the Control Panel group. If necessary, add it to the list.

    y

Question 11:

A keyboard connected to the sound card does not react when I hit a key.

Answer 11:

1. First, ensure that the driver for communications with the keyboard has been installed. The relevant driver for this card is called 'Maestro 32/96 Midi-1', you should be able to find it in the Device Manager in the Control Panel. If this is not the case please reinstall the Windows 95 drivers again.
2. If the driver is installed, it must be selected as the MIDI input device in the sequencer software. Please see your sequencer handbook for details on this. Most sequencer programs have a menu item labeled "Setup/MIDI Devices", where you can select MIDI input and MIDI output devices.
3. Check the setting of the "Game Port MIDI Routing" option in the TerraTec mixer. If this switch is set to "OFF", no MIDI signals are being sent to the GAME-/MIDI port or received from it (the GAMEPORT, of course, is still available). If you set "Game Port MIDI Routing" to MIDI-1, all MIDI data will also be sent to any devices that may be connected to the GAME-/MIDI port. If you are using external MIDI devices, it is best to set "Game Port MIDI Routing" to MIDI-2.
If these three conditions are satisfied and the problem persists, in other words the software does not react when you hit a key or no sound is audible, the MIDI connecting cable is almost certainly the cause of the trouble. Experience has shown that there's an enormous number of different MIDI connector cables which unfortunately are all identical externally. These cables should contain a so-called optocoupler suitable for the sound card's levels. As it's not possible to check this from the outside, always use the sound card manufacturer's MIDI cable. Our product range includes such a cable which you can obtain from your equipment retailer.

y

Question 12:

When starting a DOS application that supports sound (a game, for example) under Windows 95 you receive
the following message: "The Windows Sound System is already in use by another Application"

Answer 12:

You can easily solve this problem by simply disabling the VU meter in the TerraTec mixer. You will find the VU meter on the right hand side of the mixer. It displays two level control sliders and thus is using the sound card, meaning that any games you start cannot access the sound card.

y

Question 13:

After starting Windows 95/98 the following message is displayed 'Couldn't find Maestro 32/96'.

Answer 13:

Boot your system into the MS-DOS environment by pressing the [F8] key while booting.
Select the menu option 'Command-line only' (NOT 'PREVIOUS VERSION OF MS-DOS').
Change into the directory you used for the installation. (By default ='C:\M32') Type in the command 'terratec'.
Now the TerraTec mixer should be displayed. In the TerraTec mixer you can activate the configuration menu by pressing ALT-P. All the resources assigned to the sound card are displayed. These are divided into IRQs, DMA channels and port addresses.
All of these may only be used by one card in your system. So, if you can see immediately that there is an overlap of the values set here and the settings of other cards in your system, you should reconfigure the settings. You can either reconfigure the sound card, or better still, the other conflicting cards. You should only enable the second MIDI port if you really need it!

y

Question 14:

Windows 3.xx start-up gets aborted and you are back in the MS-DOS environment.

Answer 14:

Edit the System.ini file with a text editor (e.g. EDIT.COM). Then look for the line that reads UsesPnP=1. Change the line to UsesPnP=0. Save the file and then restart Windows. Windows should now start correctly. If you discover that the line UsesPnP=0 in the system.ini file keeps getting reset to 1 you should get the latest driver version (see above).

y

Question 15:

I cannot record from a microphone.

Answer 15:

First check if the microphone is battery-operated and whether the battery is charged and properly seated in the microphone.
Then connect the microphone to the 'MIC' input. Open the Maestro 32/96 mixer. Make sure that the 'Input Selection' switch in the mixer is set to 'Mix' so that you can record using the microphone.
If you still cannot record from the microphone the reason could be that the input sensitivity of the micro socket is too low for your microphone. In this case, you should use the 'In2' input socket on the sound card and then set the Input Selection switch to 'In2/Mic'. You should definitely be able to record using one of these input sockets.

y

Question 16:

When I send MIDI data to my keyboard the sound card also produces the sounds.

Answer 16:

In this case, you should enable the second MIDI interface on the sound card. Then you can access the external device without the sound card always outputting the sound too. To enable the second Mpu401 interface start the TerraTec mixer, click on setup and enter an available address and interrupt under Midi2. After rebooting the computer you can select Midi2 as the output device in your sequencer program.

y

Question 17:

"In TTMIXER we accessed memory that does not belong to us"

Answer 17:

If you have any programs on your taskbar (e.g. virus scanner, graphics card tools, etc.), the mixer does not receive the amount of contiguous memory that it needs. Programs that can cause this problem place an icon beside the clock in the taskbar. Disable these programs by clicking on them with the right mouse button and then selecting the Autoload or Autostart option.

y

Question 18:

When restarting Windows 95/98 after installing the drivers, the error message 'Windows General Protection Fault when initializing the IOS device' is displayed.

Answer 18:

You can solve this problem by renaming the 'rmm.pdr' file in the \Windows\System\IOSUBSYS subdirectory to 'rmm.bak'. The Windows Protection Fault will no longer occur. The easiest way of renaming the file is by using Windows Explorer.

y

Question 19:

In the Device Manager there is a yellow exclamation mark beside the MIDI-1 driver.

Answer 19:

In this case, the MIDI interface on the sound card is definitely disabled. You can enable it by opening the Maestro 32-96 mixer and clicking on the setup button in it. Now you can enter a value for MIDI-1 I/O (e.g. 330) and a free IRQ for MIDI-1 (e.g. 9). Press the OK button to confirm and then reboot when you get the message "It's time for a cold boot". After the reboot the MIDI-1 driver should no longer be listed as problematic.

y

Question 20:

How can I enable the second MIDI interface on the Maestro 32-96?

Answer 20:

By default the second MIDI interface on the Maestro 32-96 is disabled to free up one interrupt. If, for example, you want to access an external synthesizer using this interface, you must first enable it. To do this, open the Maestro 32-96 mixer and click on the Setup button in it. Now configure an I/O address (e.g. 320) and an available IRQ (e.g. 12) for MIDI-2. Confirm the changes by clicking OK. Restart the system when you get the message "It's time for cold boot". After rebooting, the Maestro 32-96 MIDI-2 driver will be available.

y

Question 21:

After installing the DirectX 5.0 drivers some devices named Crystal are listed in the Device Manager.

Answer 21:

Crystal is the name of the chip used on the Maestro 32-96. When you install the DirectX drivers this chip is automatically detected and the corresponding drivers assigned to it. You can use these drivers without a problem because they are also valid for the Maestro 32-96. Unfortunately, you will not be able to use the full-featured Maestro 32-96 mixer together with the Crystal DirectX driver because the Maestro 32-96 mixer requires the Maestro drivers. The Maestro 32-96 mixer also is the source of the following error message at boot-up "Couldn't find Maestro 32-96" because it loads during boot-up and tries to access the Maestro 32-
96 drivers. You can get rid of this error message by clicking on the Windows Start button and selecting Ausführen (Run). Then type in "regedit". Double-click on HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, then on \SOFTWARE, \Microsoft, \Windows, \CurrentVersion and \Run and delete the line calling the TerraTec.exe program. After that, you can close the Registry Editor. The next time you boot, you will no longer see the error message "Couldn't find Maestro 32-96". If you have access to the Internet you should download the latest driver from our homepage. It is DirectX-compatible.

y

Question 22:

I cannot send any Sysex data over the Maestro 32-96 MIDI interface.

Answer 22:

The MIDI-1 interface on the Maestro 32-96 filters out Sysex data and therefore cannot be used in this instance. If you want to send Sysex data to an external synthesizer, for example, you must enable the MIDI-2 interface on the sound card and use it for data transmission. (See Question 20).

y

Question 23:

When i start the setup "Mix3296.exe" the system hangs up.

Answer 23:
This is a problem with PII/III sytems. Please use the programm "TerraTec.exe" that you will find in the ReActor Mailbox or on the TerraTec Homepage.

y

TerraTec Electronic GmbH
Herrenpfad 38
D-41334 Nettetal
tel: +49-2157-81790
fax: +49-2157-817922
bbs 28.8: +49-2157-817924
bbs isdn: +49-2157-817942
hotline: +49-2157-817914
ftp: ftp://ftp.terratec.de
web: http://www.terratec.net