Friday, September 26, 2008

Sega Master System MIDI Interface Update

I have finally had a chance to work on the interface for the Sega Master System. Major updates include:

• A classic startup sound to indicate that the interface is plugged in and that the Sega is ready for music making. To listen to an example of what this sound could sound like, please click here.

• A much simpler MIDI mapping.

• A much simpler circuit.

• The envelope handler has been rewritten from scratch. The interface now features a simple attack-release type volume envelope for each voice.

• The amplitude modulation has been rewritten from scratch. The new functions can produce frequencies that are a little higher than the old version, with slightly cleaner results when playing more than one channel with AM set to on.

• A vibrato effect, whereby the user can select the frequency and depth of the effect.

• A polyphonic handler has been written for the three pitched voices. The point is that this makes the Sega Master System easier to use during live performance without a computer.

There are also a few other ideas I want to implement.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm exited about the prospect of this. I just came up with this dream to play the chip in my old sega with a midi keyboard. seems like this may be the way. Thanks! hope its all going well!

Unknown said...

Can see code anytime soon, i would really love to get my SMS online.