Audio problems with Sega System 16/18

[darksaviorx]

These bugs also exist in mame2003. Bootleg versions are used if the main version won't load at all due to its protection. I'm using a Pi3b+.With the little I've tested, this is what I've noticed:

Moonwalker bootleg (moonwlkb.zip): Higher pitched audio.
Shinobi (shinobi.zip) : Drum audio channel stops working a few seconds into the second level.
Shinobi (shinobl.zip): Music plays at a lower volume than the sound effects/voices. Voices don't play all the way. Example, when you jump, instead of saying "OOOH!", he says "OOH". Drum audio channel is fine on the 2nd level. Since the main version works, it's not really needed to be fixed, but it's weird how the drum channel works.
E-Swat bootleg (eswatbl.zip): No voice audio. Music plays at a lower volume than the sound effects.
Golden Axe (goldnaxe.zip): Music plays at a lower volume than the sound effects/voices.

I compared them to lr-fbalpha which emulates them fine for the most part..except Shinobi. FBA has lower pitched voices and music.

[darksaviorx]

@grant2258 Oh, there's no doubt the audio pitches are wrong, I just wanted to have an example for people to compare if they had their doubts. You're right, mame is a better benchmark.

[anuruk313]

Ok.

[anuruk313]

Thing

[darksaviorx]

@grant2258 Woops, my bad. I used shinobi2.zip to test it with lr-fbalpha. I re-tested with shinobi.zip and the only flaw is the same incomplete voice effects problem that shinobl.zip has with mame-2003-plus.

[darksaviorx]

@grant2258 I'll test on latest mame when I can. Briefly looking at that video, it has the right pitch, the voices don't get cut, but amazingly it has the missing drums in level 2. I wonder if a board revision fixed that.

[darksaviorx]

@grant2258 As I mentioned in my starting topic, the exact same bugs happen on plain lr-mame2003 as well.

Also, to summarize:
Using 2003 normal or plus: shinobi.zip = Everything fine except for the drums that get cut off in level2.
Using 2003 normal or plus shinobl.zip (bootleg) = voices cut near the end. I get drums.
Using lr-fbalpha shinobi.zip = voices cut near the end. I get drums. Same voice cut bug as bootleg.

Using 2003 normal or plus: moonwlkb.zip has high pitched audio. No need to compare it to anything. It's easy to tell.

[darksaviorx]

@grant2258 I've only tried the real moonwalker in fba and the audio is fine. I do get slowdowns on my poor pi..the whole reason I prefer 2003-plus when I can.

[darksaviorx]

@Arcadez Moonwalker audio issue is fixed. Thanks!

[darksaviorx]

I'll paste/refine what I said in the retropie forum. I totally forgot I opened this issue:

@grant2258 level 2. Around 10-12seconds in. Beats will suddenly disappear.

Re-testing with mame2003-plus (might be a few weeks old): shinobi.zip = missing audio channel in level2 if you wait a few seconds. shinobl.zip= Music low, Jump audio cuts out. Volume for sfx seems high. Audio channel intact. By audio channel I mean the drums/beats whatever. I prefer shinobi.zip fixed and not use bootlegs.

mame-2010 (0.139). shinobi.zip= Jump audio has pop/static. Audio channel intact. shinobi2.zip seems perfect.

For e-swat I used the bootleg version eswatbl.zip since eswat.zip gives me a black screen. I used mame2003-plus. Missing voices.

My suggestion, if possible, being ignorant in coding, is backporting the non-bootleg sets of system16/18 along with newer driver from 2010 or beyond since that seems to work fine with both shinobi and eswat. Maybe others but I haven't done extensive testing in the rest.

[darksaviorx]

I understand. Thanks for taking the time of looking into it.