Windows Sound System Supports ISA/EISA, Not Micro Channel (89996)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Windows Sound System 1.0
This article was previously published under Q89996

SUMMARY

Windows Sound System supports standard ISA/EISA architecture; it does not support Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) used by most PS/2 machines.

MORE INFORMATION

The Windows Sound System is an ISA board that can be plugged into the slots of AT-compatible buses. The ISA bus provides 8- or 16-bit data transfer at 8 mHz, allowing about 1 MB of data to be transferred every second. This data transfer rate is sufficient for audio data that may be as high as 176K per second for 44 kHz 16-bit stereo.

Because the Windows Sound System is an ISA board, it will fit into EISA slots, although it will not take full advantage of the EISA compatibility. EISA is backwards-compatible with ISA boards but also allows faster 32-bit transfers, allowing several megabytes to be transferred per second.

The Windows Sound System board will not work in a Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) machine.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:9/11/1999
Keywords:KB89996
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