XP,DOS, and the X31

[jtt3011]

I suspect this is a lost cause, but not as weird as Linux (though I've an awful feeling I might have to eat that comment).

After 3 weeks hard labour, my new (to me) X31 is now up to speed.
It has a USB floppy which works on boot-up, an X3 dock with a CD/DVD which is equally cooperative, a 2nd hard drive, a CF reader which works to order ...... and, well ...... aint life wonderful? Well, not quite:

One of my main reasons for wanting a nice small laptop, is so that I can measure the performance of loudspeakers out in the garden, as far away as possible from nasty reflections. For this I use an outboard piece of kit (IMP/MLS) connected via the parallel port (and that's a dying breed these days). The s/w control and display program is MSDOS, and, would you believe, occupies slightly less than 640k ...... There are more advanced options around these days, but at £200 - £300 a throw I'm not too enthusiastic about going that way. My IMP system worked fine on the TP240 (now gone), and on the A22m, which I still have.

So on to the problem:

I can load and run the IMP s/w, both from XP, and from a DOS boot floppy. The splash screen is fine, but as soon as I enter the main program, some lines of the the text dissolve into unreadable hash. I've tried the display options in the bios; taken the 'run in VGA mode' following XP boot; and set the video resolution as low as it will go on the ATI Radeon (640 x 480). None of these make any difference.

I suspect the DOS control program might like 320 x 240, which doesn't seem to be on offer.

Can anyone donate a helpful twopence worth?

JohnT

[DVormann]

Which DOS do you boot? A boot floppy created by XP or a standalone MS-DOS (like 6.22)? They are different. Software may behave different.

[jtt3011]

It's a Win98 start up disc containing the IMP/MLS files. Works OK with every other laptop/desktop I've got (or any I've ever had!).

JohnT

[ajkula66]

I'm fairly certain that you can't push an A22m into 320x240 resolution for more than 15 seconds, no matter what you do with it, so I would tend to believe that your problem lies elsewhere.

Not being up-to-date on DOS myself, I can't really point you in the right direction, but suggestion that you might need a different version of it for a newer machine like X31 does make sense...

Good luck.

[pgoelz]

Just a guess, but a DOS startup disk isn't a full DOS package is it? I would imagine you need a copy of DOS with all the other files that come with it. It's more than command.com.

Paul

[proaudioguy]

Technology has come a long way.
You should consider a Dual Channel FFT so you can measure your speakers in the room they are used in. It will let in the LF reflections, which our brains tend to integrate, while rejecting HF reflections, which cannot be EQ'd. The added benefit is that you can use music as the source. I use SMAART Live. There are other offerings these days, that are much cheaper, such as SAT Live. Praxis is a favorite among speaker designers on a budget. All three have demos available. SMAART and SAT Live have 30 day unrestricted demos while Praxis is restricted.

I've been using SMAART since 2001.
http://www.eaw.com/frontrow/2007/11/ins ... by_ha.html

[jtt3011]

One or two replies to cover here:

1 The DOS boot works fine on the A22m, either simply booting to Command.com from the floppy, or activating from XP. The rest of the files are in the floppy or XP folder, and can be accessed as normal from c: prompt to run the IMP control routines, and the displayed text is fine. But the floppy route does result in a big "Yuk!" if I try to access the (NTFS) hard disk!

2 I'm quite happy with my dedicated IMP/MLS hardware set up, which was produced by Bill Waslo, who I think is the brains, if not the owner, behind the Praxis system - and there have been other developments in between. Ominously, I cannot quickly pin down a price for Praxis, but I know early versions were not cheap .......... And of course, there's a pretty wide selection of audio measurement software available now, but mostly at a cost if it can really cut the mustard. Speaker Workshop is actually pretty good, and free .................. .but m.a.a.a.a.n as weird an interface as you could come across, and development ceased 2 or 3 years ago, with no signs of resurrection.

However, I don't think this thread will cut much mustard with the moderators of this forum, so I think I'd better tug my forelock and disappear into the fog!

But thanks for the input

JohnT