Gus Compatible Motherboards - a note in choosing the right board for you
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I have been collecting the data a short time and have already found patterns. 
It would appear to me that the safest option is to aim for a motherboard with 
AMI BIOS. No matter who the manufacturer or chipset, the AMI BIOS seem to 
have/require the NMI needed for SBOS/Windows MIDI operation.

Although the OPTi and UMC chipsets have been problematic for some users, I 
have found that avoiding these boards altogether is not entirely necessary. 
As many of you will have read in the gus FAQ (available from most gus sites), 
there are a certain number of faulty chips around. However, some people have 
reported that the UMC chipsets are not only problem free, but are also 
pretty good/fast. It seems that the newer the chipset, the less likely it 
is you will encounter the NMI problem.

On another note, though, it seems that some more recent revisions of the 
AWARD BIOS are causing problems. This is because the NMI is not used and the 
maufacturers do the keyboard emulation etc, in the chipset itself. 


A few words of advice when buying a new motherboard ....
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Firstly, go to a retailer that knows what they are talking about. This 
isn't always easy as a lot of them are full of stupid stories and know 
very little about computers. If you are lucky, the person you deal with 
will know what they are talking about and will be able to recommend a 
motherboard that will offer you trouble free usage.
       
Secondly, don't be frightened to ask the retailer to demonstrate the 
board for you. Take your GUS (and install disks!!!) with you to the 
store and ask them to set it up for you. This is hard if you are buying 
by mail order, but don't be frightened to phone up the supplier and ask 
them if they have had any returns/problems with the board, especially GUS 
related.

Thirdly, if it doesn't work, send the damn thing back! Don't sacrifice  
your soundcard because your motherboard isn't 100% IBM compatible, etc. 
GUS support is really starting to take off and games/applications have 
never sounded so good! If you are stuck with a board, sell it or swap it. 
There is quite a market for motherboards and you will be suprised how 
easy it can be to get rid of your unwanted boards (mail me, I might be
able to help you ... ;->).

In conclusion, I would like to thank all of those who replied to my mail 
in the digest, the digest readers, Advanced Gravis for their soundcard 
and to all of those happy GUS owners.

Here's to a brighter future with the GUS!!

Best Wishes,

Kieran .\\ Hoban
kmh@kid01pml.icl.co.uk
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GUSMBDOC.TXT - 19th January MCMXCV
