The FM synthesizer uses FM modulation to perform tone generation. The FM synthesizer supports OPL3 mode (2 or 4 op + stereo mode) or the older OPL2 mode (Adlib mono mode). FM syn- thesis interface to the device driver is provided through ioctls. The following sections deal with the basic FM synthesis programming techniques.
FM Synthesizer Specifications:
FM synthesis uses a modulator cell and a carrier cell. The modulator cell modulates the carrier cell.The FM synthesizer provides 36 cells comprising of 18 modulator cells and l8 carrier cells that result in 18 simultaneous channels being generated. In essence, the 18 channels can generate any 2 operator note.
There are basically 2 modes supported by the FM synthesizer: OPL-2 and OPL-3 modes. OPL-2 mode consists of nine 2-operator note channels with mono output. OPL-3 mode consists of eighteen 2-operator note channels with stereo output or six 4-operator and six 2-operator channels. Both OPL-2 and OPL-3 modes support 5 percussion instruments and when the rhythm mode is selected, the percussion instruments occupy 3 channels (l channel for bass drum, l/2 channel for the other 4 percussion instruments).
The FM synthesizer uses three structures for FM tone generation. The data structure dm_fm_voice sets the voice parameters for the FM tone. The parameters do not change for a given type of voice. The second data structure used is dm_fm_note. This data structure sets the frequency and octave and sounds the tone when activated for a particular channel. The final data structure is dm_fm_param. This data structure controls the rhythm section as well as global parameters for the FM synthesizer.
struct dm_fm_voice
{
unsigned char op; /*0 for modulator and 1 for carrier */
unsigned char voice; /*Channels of 2-op notes*/
unsigned char am; /*Tremolo or AM modulation effect flag - 1 bit*/
unsigned char vibrato; /*Vibrato effect flag - 1 bit*/
unsigned char do_sustain; /*Sustaining sound phase flag -1 1 bit*/
unsigned char kbd_scale; /*keyboard scaling flag - 1 bit*/
unsigned char harmonic; /*Harmonic or frequency multiplier - 4 bits*/
unsigned char scale_level; /*Decreasing volume of higher notes - 2 bits*/
unsigned char volume; /*Volume of output - 6 bits*/
unsigned char attack; /*Attack phase level of the note - 4 bits*/
unsigned char decay; /*Decay phase level of the note - 4 bits*/
unsigned char sustain; /*Sustain phase level of the note - 4 bits*/
unsigned char release; /*Release phase level of the note - 4 bits*/
unsigned char feedback; /*Feedback from op 1 or op 2 - 3 bits*/
unsigned char connection; /*Serial or parallel operator connection - 1 bit*/
unsigned char left; /*Left channel audio output*/
unsigned char right; /*Right channel audio output*/
unsigned char waveform; /*Waveform select - 3 bits*/
};
The next data structure consists of parameters such as octave, channel and frequency. These parameters vary compared to the dm_fm_voice characteristics.
struct dm_fm_note
{
unsigned char voice; /*18 channels of 2-op notes*/
unsigned char octave; /*Octave number of the note - 3 bits*/
unsigned int fnum; /*Frequency of the note - 10 bits*/
unsigned char key_on; /*Output sound flag - 1 bit*/
};
The following is a description of the data structure used for the rhythm section and global FM parameters.
struct dm_fm_param
{
unsigned char am_depth; /*AM modulation depth for AM modulation effect*/
unsigned char vib_depth; /*Vibrato depth for Vibrato effect*/
unsigned char kbd_split; /*split keyboard for kbd_scaling*/
unsigned char rhythm; /*turn on rhythm mode*/
unsigned char bass; /*bass - occupies channel 7(modulator & carrier)*/
unsigned char snare; /*snare - occupies modulator of channel 8*/
unsigned char tomtom; /*tom-tom - occupies modulator of channel 9*/
unsigned char cymbal; /*cymbal - occupies carrier of channel 9*/
unsigned char hihat; /*hihat - occupies carrier of channel 8*/
};
In this section we will examine the ioctls that are used to generate FM tones. Before you can issue the ioctls you must first obtain the file descriptor using an open call on the /dev/sbpfm0 device described in section 1. In the following examples we will use the file descriptor fmfd for the FM synthesizer device.
In this section we will write a simple program to play random notes on the FM synthesizer. This example will demonstrate the ability of the FM synthesizer.
#include <stdio.h>
#include <fnctl.h>
#include <math.h>
#include <sys/dm.h>
#define VOICES 18;
#define RAND(bits) (random() & (1<<(bits)) -1))
main()
{
int fmfd;
struct dm_fm_voice modulator, carrier;
struct dm_fm_note note;
struct dm_fm_params param;
int channel_num;
/* First we open the FM device using an open call */
fmfd = open("/dev/dmfm0", O_WRONLY);
if (fmfd < 0)
perror("open");
/* Now we reset the FM synthesizer using the RESET ioctl */
if (ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_RESET) == -1)
perror("reset");
/* Now set the FM synthesizer in OPL3 mode */
if (ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_SET_MODE, OPL3) == -1)
perror("mode");
while (1) {
/* set global parameters but do not turn on percussion section */
param.am_depth = RAND(1);
param.vib_depth = RAND(1);
param.kbd_split = RAND(1);
param.rhythm = 0;
param.bass = 0;
param.snare = 0;
param.hihat = 0;
param.cymbal = 0;
param.tomtom = 0;
/* send the param structure to the FM synthesizer */
ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_SET_PARAMS, ¶m);
/* Play the note on all channels at the same time */
for (channel_num = 0; channel_num < VOICES; channel_num++)
{
/*
* Now fill in the modulator cell structure using randomly gener
* ated values and masking off the bits. Look at the definition
* of RAND(bits)
*/
modulator.voice = channel_num;
modulator.op = 0;
modulator.am = RAND(1);
modulator.vibrato = RAND(1);
modulator.do_sustain = RAND(1);
modulator.kbd_scale = RAND(1);
modulator.connection = 0;
modulator.attack = RAND(4);
modulator.decay = RAND(4);
modulator.sustain = RAND(4);
modulator.release = RAND(4);
modulator.octave = RAND(3);
modulator.volume = RAND(6);
modulator.scale_level = RAND(2);
modulator.feedback = RAND(3);
modulator.waveform = RAND(3);
modulator.left = RAND(1);
modulator.right = RAND(1);
/* Send the modulator structure to the FM synth */
if (ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_SET_VOICE, &modulator) == -1)
perror("modulator");
/*
* Now fill in the carrier cell structure using randomly gener
* ated values and masking off the bits. Look at the definition
* of RAND(bits)
*/
carrier.voice = channel_num;
carrier.op = 1;
carrier.am = RAND(1);
carrier.vibrato = RAND(1);
carrier.do_sustain = RAND(1);
carrier.kbd_scale = RAND(1);
carrier.connection = 0;
carrier.attack = RAND(4);
carrier.decay = RAND(4);
carrier.sustain = RAND(4);
carrier.release = RAND(4);
carriers.harmonic = RAND(4);
carrier.volume = RAND(6);
carrier.scale_level = RAND(2);
carrier.feedback = RAND(3);
carrier.waveform = RAND(3);
carrier.left = RAND(1);
carrier.right = RAND(1);
/* Send the carrier structure to the FM synth */
if (ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_SET_VOICE, &carrier) == -1)
perror("carrier");
/*
* Now fill in the note structure with random octaves and frequencies.
* Before sounding the FM tone turn the note off and then key_on the note.
*/
note.voice = channel_num;
note.octave = RAND(3);
note.fnum = RAND(10);
note.key_on = 0;
if (ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_PLAY_NOTE, ¬e) == -1)
perror("note");
note.key_on = 1;
if (ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_PLAY_NOTE, ¬e) == -1)
perror("note");
/* sleep between notes */
usleep(100000);
} /*for loop*/
} /*while loop */
}
FM synthesis requires many parameter fields to be set and sometimes it is simpler to use "patches" to simulate various instruments. The Sound Blaster Instrument (SBI) format provides a uniform approach to programming the FM synthesizer. The SBI format only handles sound characteristics. The program has to provide the frequency and octave values. Sounding of the FM tone occurs when a key_on it is set on a particular voice channel. The following is a description of the SBI file format:
Note: The names in parenthesis denote the dm_fm_note structure parameter. OFFSET (hex) Description
00 - 03 File ID - 4 Bit ASCII String "SBI" ending with 0x1A 04 - 23 Instrument Name - Null terminated ASCII string 24 Modulator Sound Characteristics Bit 7: AM Modulation (am) Bit 6: Vibrato (vibrato) Bit 5: Sustaining Sound (do_sustain) Bit 4: Envelop Scaling (kbd_scale) Bits 3-0: Frequency Multiplier (harmonic) 25 Carrier Sound Characteristics Bit 7: AM Modulation (am) Bit 6: Vibrato (vibrato) Bit 5: Sustaining Sound (do_sustain) Bit 4: Envelop Scaling (kbd_scale) Bits 3-0: Frequency Multiplier (harmonic) 26 Modulator Scaling/Output Level Bits 7-6: Level Scaling (scale_level) Bits 5-0: Output Level (volume) 27 Carrier Scaling/Output Level Bits 7-6: Level Scaling (scale_level) Bits 5-0: Output Level (volume) 28 Modulator Attack/Decay Bits 7-4: Attack Rate (attack) Bits 3-0: Decay Rate (decay) 29 Carrier Attack/Decay Bits 7-4: Attack Rate (attack) Bits 3-0: Decay Rate (decay) 2A Modulator Sustain/Release Bits 7-4: Sustain Level (sustain) Bits 3-0: Release Rate (release) 2B Carrier Sustain/Release Bits 7-4: Sustain Level (sustain) Bits 3-0: Release Rate (release) 2C Modulator Wave Select Bits 7-2: All bits clear (0) Bits 1-0: Wave Select (waveform) 2D Carrier Wave Select Bits 7-2: All bits clear (0) Bits 1-0: Wave Select (waveform) 2E Feedback/Connection Bits 7-4: All bits clear (0) Bits 3-1: Modulator Feedback (feedback) Bit 0: Connection (connection) 2F - 33 Reserved for future use
The above description requires you to declare the following structures:
struct dm_fm_voice modulator;
struct dm_fm_voice carrier;
struct dm_fm_note note;
Now stuff the corresponding values from the SBI file into the respective structures. From the above description, the programmer needs to provide are the following parameters:
modulator.voice = carrier.voice = x (where x is a channel number between 0 and 17)
modulator.left = carrier.left = x (where x is the left audio output flag 0 or 1)
modulator.right = carrier.right = x (where x is the right audio output flag 0 or 1)
modulator.op = 0 (modulator’s op number is 0)
carrier.op = 1 (carrier’s op is 1)
note.voice = x (where x is a channel number from 0-17)
note.fnum = x (where x is a frequency number from 0-1023)
note.octave = x (where x is an octave number from 0-7)
note.key_on = 1 (the note must be keyed off and then keyed on)
The following code explains the mechanism to read an SBI format file and play the note at frquency 800 in octave number 5.
#include <stdio.h>
#include <fcntl.h>
#include <errno.h>
#include "dm.h"
struct dm_fm_voice op0, op1; /* the voice struct to hold the SBI file */
struct dm_fm_note note; /* the note struct to make the sound */
int fmfd, fd; /* fmfd - FM dev handle; fd - SBI file */
char instrument_buf[16]; /* buffer to hold the SBI data from file */
main (argc, argv)
int argc;
char **argv;
{
fmfd = open("/dev/dmfm0", O_WRONLY); /* open the FM device */
ioctl(fmfd,FM_IOCTL_RESET); /* reset the FM device */
ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_SET_MODE, OPL3); /* set mode to OPL3 */
set_params(); /* set global FM params */
fd = open(argv[1], O_RDONLY); /* open the SBI file */
/* now verify that it is truely an SBI instrument file by reading the
* hearder
*/
if (!verify_sbi(fd)) {
printf("file is not in SBI format\n");
exit (0);
}
get_instrument(fd); /* fill the voice structs */
play_instrument(); /* play the sound */
}
/* check for "SBI" + 0x1A (\032) in first four bytes of file */
int verify_sbi(fd)
int fd;
{
char idbuf[5]; /* get id */
lseek(fd, 0, SEEK_SET);
if (read(fd, idbuf, 4) != 4)
return(FALSE); /* compare to standard id */
idbuf[4] = (char)0;
if (strcmp(idbuf, "SBI\032") != 0)
return(FALSE); return(TRUE);
}
get_instrument(fd)
int fd;
{
lseek(fd, 0x24, SEEK_SET);
read(fd, instrument_buf, 16);
/* Modulator Characteristics */
if (instrument_buf[0] & (1<<7))
op0.vibrato = 1;
else
op0.vibrato = 0;
if (instrument_buf[0] & (1<<6))
op0.am = 1;
else
op0.am = 0;
if (instrument_buf[0] & (1<<5))
op0.kbd_scale = 1;
else
op0.kbd_scale = 0;
if (instrument_buf[0] & (1<<4))
op0.do_sustain = 1;
else
op0.do_sustain = 0;
op0.harmonic = instrument_buf[0] & 0x0F;
/* Carrier Characteristics */
if (instrument_buf[1] & (1<<7))
op1.vibrato = 1;
else
op1.vibrato = 0;
if (instrument_buf[1] & (1<<6))
op1.am = 1;
else
op1.am = 0;
if (instrument_buf[1] & (1<<5))
op1.kbd_scale = 1;
else
op1.kbd_scale = 0;
if (instrument_buf[1] & (1<<4))
op1.do_sustain = 1;
else
op1.do_sustain = 0;
op1.harmonic = instrument_buf[1] & 0x0F;
/* Modulator Scale/Volume Level */
op0.scale_level = instrument_buf[2] >>6;
op0.volume = instrument_buf[2] & 0x3f;
/* Carrier Scale/Volume Level */
op1.scale_level = instrument_buf[3] >>6;
op1.volume = instrument_buf[3] & 0x3f;
/* Modulator Attack/Decay */
op0.attack = instrument_buf[4] >> 4;
op0.decay = instrument_buf[4] & 0xF;
/* Carrier Attack/Decay */
op1.attack = instrument_buf[5] >> 4;
op1.decay = instrument_buf[5] & 0xF;
/* Modulator Sustain/Release */
op0.sustain = instrument_buf[6] >> 4;
op0.release = instrument_buf[6] & 0xF;
/* Carrier Sustain/Release */
op1.sustain = instrument_buf[7] >> 4;
op1.release = instrument_buf[7] & 0xF;
/* Modulator Waveform */
op0.waveform = instrument_buf[8] & 0x03;
/* Carruer Waveform */
op1.waveform = instrument_buf[9] & 0x03;
/* Modulator Feedback/Connection*/
op0.connection = instrument_buf[0xA] & 0x01;
op1.connection = op0.connection;
op0.feedback = (instrument_buf[0xA] >> 1) & 0x07;
op1.feedback = op0.feedback;
/* byte 0xB - 20 Reserved */
}
play_instrument()
{
/*
* Set the FM channel to channel 0. Fill in the rest of the fields and
* Issue an ioctl to set the modulator parameters
*/
op0.op = 0;
op0.voice = 0;
op0.left = 1;
op0.right = 1;
ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_SET_VOICE, &op0);
/*
* Set the FM channel to channel 0. Fill in the rest of the fields and
* Issue an ioctl to set the carrier parameters
*/
op1.op = 1;
op1.voice = 0;
op1.left = 1;
op1.right = 1;
op1.volume = 63;
ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_SET_VOICE, &op1);
/*
* Fill in the note structure and first key_off the note and then key_on.
*/
note.voice = 0; /* select channel 0 */
note.octave = 5;
note.fnum = 800;
note.key_on = 0; /*Key off*/
ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_PLAY_NOTE, ¬e);
note.key_on = 1; /*Key on*/
ioctl(fmfd, FM_IOCTL_PLAY_NOTE, ¬e)
}
set_params()
{
struct dm_fm_params p;
p.am_depth = 0;
p.vib_depth = 0
p.kbd_split = 0;
p.rhythm = 0;
p.bass = 0;
p.snare = 0;
p.tomtom = 0;
p.cymbal = 0;
p.hihat = 0;
ioctl (fmfd, FM_IOCTL_SET_PARAMS, &p);
}
In th 4-op mode, the FM synthesizer uses 4 ops which actually comprize of two 2-op channels. From 18 2-op channels, we can get six 4-op channels, with 5 channels for percussion (as described above) and three 2-op channels used for FM voices. The diagram below describes how 18 2-op channels are organized:
4-Operator Schematic for Modulator/Carriers
The ioctl FM_IOCTL_SET_OPL is used to set the 4-op connection mask. This ioctl requires a 6 bit mask. If the mask is 0 then all the FM voice channels default to 2 op mode thus yielding 18 channels or 15 voice plus 5 percussion channels. If the mask is set to 0x3F then the FM synthesizer is configured for six 4 op voice channels plus six 2 op voice channels. The six 2 op voice channels can be configured for 5 percussion channels a 3 voice channels or 6 voice channels. In the case of the 4 -op channels the above diagram shows which two op channels go into building the six 4 op channels.
With 4 ops, the following diagram shows how the ops can be connected. The connection bits from the first two ops is designated as C0 and the connection bits from the remaining two are designated as C1.
Connection Possibilities with 4 operators