music making apps or sample code to program sound?

[madscijr]

I have a Classic II and used to use Sound Edit to make noises for recording. It would be cool to find a virtual keyboard or synth app so I could use this old machine to make live noises with. I still have Pascal for it and C also - are there any good sound programming examples online for old 68k Macs? Does this thing have a sound chip that can be programmed like a basic synthesizer - ie attack/decay/waveform/etc - like the SID chip in the Commodore 64?

 

[Mac128]

Does this thing have a sound chip that can be programmed like a basic synthesizer - ie attack/decay/waveform/etc - like the SID chip in the Commodore 64?

Nope. Apple was specifically prohibited from doing this under the terms of their settlement with Apple Corps. The closest Apple ever came to something like this was the Apple IIGS which included an Ensoniq 5503 sound chip (leading to another lawsuit), and would be better suited for this kind of thing.

But for all the details about what the Classic II can do, check out this Apple Developer Note.

 

[register]

The Classic II is capable enough to control a rig full of midi eqipment. Professional musicians did use it for this purpose. Appropriate software should still be available somewhere, as well as interface modules are available and supported by recent digital instruments. Using the Classic II as a synthesizer would create a retro style sound experience, but using it as a controller for external synthsizers still should be fine.

The Mathematica software allows to produce sound output from calculations. Just define a periodical function and listen to it. Version 2 should run well on a Classic II.

 

[Mac128]

madscijr, search the forum for MIDI and music software, and you will find a number of threads discussing available MIDI software. The Macs did have a 4-voice chip built-in, but only one "instrument". However, the Classic II will run QuickTime software synths. Some software took full advantage of these voices, however dated they sound. There are of course other software synthesizers you can install as well of much higher quality, if this is your goal.

The Mac has been capable of MIDI since the original 128K, and has been used as a professional tool since. So if that's you're goal, you'll have no problems setting up a full rig, the sound just won't come from the Classic II. Also, the sound quality of the Classic's 22K mono amp won't be great for reproducing even the best software samples. Especially if you don't have one with the speaker grille cut into the side.