A sound card is an internal expansion card that provides input and output of audio signals to and from a computer under the control of computer programs. The term sound card is also applied to external audio interfaces used for professional audio applications.
Sound Blaster is a family of sound cards and audio peripherals designed by Creative Technology/Creative Labs of Singapore. The first Sound Blaster card was introduced in 1989.
The YM2612, a.k.a. OPN2, is a sound chip developed by Yamaha. It is a member of Yamaha's OPN family of FM synthesis chips, and is derived from the YM2203.
Video game music (VGM) is the soundtrack that accompanies video games. Early video game music was once limited to sounds of early sound chips, such as programmable sound generators (PSG) or FM synthesis chips. These limitations have led to the style of music known as chiptune, which became the sound of the first video games.
The X68000 is a home computer created by Sharp Corporation. It was first released in 1987 and sold only in Japan.
The digital sound revolution refers to the widespread adoption of digital audio technology in the computer industry beginning in the 1980s.
The FM Towns is a Japanese personal computer built by Fujitsu from 1989 to 1997. It started as a proprietary PC variant intended for multimedia applications and PC games, but later became more compatible with IBM PC compatibles. In 1993, the FM Towns Marty was released; it is a game console compatible with existing FM Towns games.
The Gravis UltraSound or GUS is a sound card for the IBM PC compatible system platform, made by Canada-based Advanced Gravis Computer Technology Ltd. It was very popular in the demoscene during the 1990s.
The YM2413, a.k.a. OPLL, is an FM synthesis sound chip manufactured by Yamaha Corporation. It is related to Yamaha's OPL family of FM synthesis chips, and is a cost-reduced version of the YM3812 (OPL2).
There have been various families of Yamaha audio controllers labelled as YMF7xx.
The AY-3-8910 is a 3-voice programmable sound generator (PSG) designed by General Instrument (GI) in 1978, initially for use with their 16-bit CP1610 or one of the PIC1650 series of 8-bit microcomputers. The AY-3-8910 and its variants were used in many arcade games—Konami's Gyruss contains five—and Bally pinball machines as well as being the sound chip in the Intellivision and Vectrex video game consoles, and the Amstrad CPC, Oric-1, Colour Genie, Elektor TV Games Computer, MSX, Tiki 100 and later ZX Spectrum home computers. It was also used in the Mockingboard and Cricket sound cards for the Apple II and the Speech/Sound Cartridge for the TRS-80 Color Computer.
Moonsound is the name of a sound card released for the MSX home-computer system at the Tilburg Computer Fair in 1995. It was designed by electronic engineer Henrik Gilvad and produced by Sunrise Swiss on a semi-hobby basis.
A programmable sound generator (PSG) is a sound chip that generates audio wave signals built from one or more basic waveforms, and often some kind of noise. PSGs use a relatively simple method of creating sound compared to other methods such as frequency modulation synthesis or pulse-code modulation.
The Yamaha Y8950 is a sound chip, produced in 1984. It is also known as MSX-Audio as it was designed for inclusion in an expansion cartridge for the MSX personal computer.
The YM2203, a.k.a. OPN, is a six-channel sound chip developed by Yamaha. It was the progenitor of Yamaha's OPN family of FM synthesis chips used in many video game and computer systems throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. It was used in a variety of NEC computers, along with various arcade game machines.
The YM2608, a.k.a. OPNA, is a sound chip developed by Yamaha. It is a member of Yamaha's OPN family of FM synthesis chips, and is the successor to the YM2203. It was notably used in NEC's PC-8801/PC-9801 series computers.
The Yamaha YMF278B, also known as the OPL4, is a sound chip that incorporates both FM synthesis and sample-based synthesis by Yamaha.
The Yamaha YMZ280B, also known as PCMD8, is a sound chip produced by Yamaha Corporation. It is an eight-channel PCM/ADPCM sample-based synthesizer designed for use with video game machines, packaged in a 64-pin QFP.
The OPL series are a family of sound chips developed by Yamaha. The OPL series are low-cost sound chips providing FM synthesis for use in computing, music and video game applications.
