Category:Drivers

A driver (also known as an audio/music/sound engine) is a special software program designed to make it easier for composers to make music and sound effects that can play on the various types of audio hardware found on video game platforms. Drivers work by taking abstract audio information--like a series of notes, or a digital sound file--and converting that into instructions understood by an audio device.

In the 1980s and early 1990s, many of the composers of video game music were expected to write their own audio drivers. However, as the video game industry matured, it became more common for development studios to have dedicated programmers for their audio drivers, or to purchase an audio driver from a third party. By the mid-1990s, several companies existed that did nothing but manufacture audio drivers for other game studios.

Links

• github.com/cadaver/sidid/blob/master/sidid.nfo - Commodore 64 drivers.
• gdri.smspower.org/wiki/index.php/Famicom/NES_Sound_Driver_List - Famicom/NES Sound Driver List on GDRI.
• gdri.smspower.org/wiki/index.php/Mega_Drive/Genesis_Sound_Engine_List - Mega Drive/Genesis Sound Engine List on GDRI.
• gdri.smspower.org/wiki/index.php/Super_Famicom/Super_NES_Sound_Driver_List - Super Famicom/SNES Sound Driver List on GDRI.