Tech refresh 2026: Successful (DOSBox Staging) candidate part 1 (0-F)
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- 5 min read
This is a guide updating the various DOSBox configs produced for many of the guides, to the latest DOSBox Staging v0.83.0 release candidate 1. This version is a huge change over previous versions and includes:
100% authentic Roland Sound Canvas SC-55 emulation.
Authentic CRT colour emulation.
Totally overhauled frame presentation.
Disk noise emulation.
Improved mouse emulation.
DOS command improvements, such as merging the IMGMOUNT and MOUNT commands.
In short it's a huge release, and it can't be understate just how important the frame presentation changes are. The previous frame presentation discussed in Tech refresh 2026: DOSBox best practice, is now available out of the box with v0.83.0-RC1.
This guide will be updating the existing DOSBox configs of earlier guides to make them fully v0.83.0-RC1 compatible. Each config will only detail the changes from the default DOSBox v0.083.0-RC1 config file.
Strategy
Each game will receive an example config that has been tested, particular points of note will be discussed. These configs are example configs so they will need changing to take account of:
Mixer volume personal preferences.
Mixer reverb and chorus personal preferences.
MT32 ROM folder.
Soundfonts folder.
Mount command folders and floppy/cd-rom image names.
Joystick settings dependant on hardware.
However, you will be starting with a complete DOSBox config that can be changed as required, instead of starting with an empty config.
Overhauled frame presentation
DOSBox Staging v0.82.2 required changing a few settings, so the DOS frames can be presented at a legacy friendly and more constant 70Hz rate identical to VGA card on CRT monitors . Early DOS sims seem to benefit greatly from this by running the game free of subtle timing issues which affected the subjective feel of the game. The settings were:
[sdl]
host_rate = sdi
vsync = off
presentation_mode = cfr
[dosbox]
dos_rate = defaultDOSBox Staging v0.83.0-RC1 has overhauled frame presentation providing the same 70Hz VGA rate 'out of the box'. The default settings are now:
[sdl]
vsync = off
presentation_mode = auto
[dosbox]
dos_rate = defaultMixer master volume
The mixer master volume is now set to 50% to provide headroom to increase the volume without distortion. If the sound/music is too low it can be increased in the DOSBox cmd line or [autoexec] section of a config with:
mixer master <percentage>[:<percentage>]
# Some examples:
mixer master 100 # 100% vol on both stereo channels (prev default)
mixer master 75:85 # 75% vol on left, 85% on rightThe games
688 Attack Sub
Original article. Mixer reverb and chorus settings follow the DOSBox Staging recommendations.
A-10 Tank Killer
Original articles. MT32 device set to mt32_old, as recommended in the VOGONS List of MT-32-compatible computer games.
Air Power: Battle in the Skies
Due to the involved installation and setup process, it's recommended to use this config with the setup guide, Air Power: Battle in DOSBox. The joystick is configured as a ch stick as the Flightstick Pro is supported.
Apache (Longbow)
Original article. These config files are for the Sound Blaster 16 and Gravis Ultrasound. The joystick is configured as a ch stick as the Flightstick Pro is supported.
AV-8B Harrier Assault
Original article. Cycles changed to reflect the new refresh rate.
Black Knight: Marine Strike Fighter
Original article. Black Knight does not support the MT32 properly but does support general MIDI (see List of MT-32-compatible computer games), so fluidsynth is used for music. The joystick is configured as a ch stick as the Flightstick Pro is supported. A revised menu is also provided allowing the setup utility to be run.
Chuck Yeager's Air Combat
Original article. There are two configs for Sound Blaster 16 and the Gravis Ultrasound. The joystick is configured as a 4 axis stick to allow a TSR to enable a throttle. A menu is also provided allowing the game or throttle setup utility to be run.
EF2000 V2.0
The optimum way to run EF2000 remains the EF2000 Reloaded app utilizing a custom built DOSBox based on vanilla DOSBox. However a previous article covered running EF2000 with DOSBox Staging. This config updates the previous DOSBox Staging config.
The joystick has been changed to a ch joystick type as the game supports the Flightstick Pro. The MIDI is provided by fluidsynth as the game does not properly support MT32 MIDI (see List of MT-32-compatible computer games).
Elite Plus
Original article. The autotype command is added as recommended in AUTOTYPE candidates. The Sound Blaster type is set to sbpro1 as the game was originally written for an Adlib OPL2 as noted in List of MT-32-compatible computer games. The joystick is set to 2axis as only 2 axes are supported.
F-117A Nighthawk Stealth Fighter 2.0
Original article. The are two configs for the VGA and EGA version. Both versions use the F-117 menu from the mod article, F-117A Nighthawk Stealth Fighter 2.0 & Black Knight: Marine Strike Fighter: A PixelWings update.
F-15 Strike Eagle II: Deluxe Edition
Original article. The MT32 model is set to mt32_new and the Sound Blaster type is set to sbpro1 as the game was originally written for an Adlib OPL2 as recommended in List of MT-32-compatible computer games.
F-15 Strike Eagle III
Original article. The MT32 model is set to mt32_new as recommended in List of MT-32-compatible computer games. The joystick is set to ch as the Flightstick Pro is supported by the game.
F-16 Fighting Falcon
Original article. The joystick is set to ch as the Flightstick Pro is supported by the game.
F-19 Stealth Fighter
Original articles. The MT32 model is set to mt32_new and the Sound Blaster type is set to sbpro1 as the game was originally written for an Adlib OPL2 as recommended in List of MT-32-compatible computer games. The Innovation sound card is enabled as it is supported by the game.
Cycles are adjusted to 3000 for the new refresh rate which seems to increase the effectiveness of weapons which never seemed to work properly as shown in this short video:
F-22 Lightning II
Original articles. The joystick is set to ch as the Flightstick Pro is supported by the game.
F29 Retaliator
Original article. The joystick is set to 2axis as only 2 axes are supported by the game.
Falcon 3.0/Gold
Original articles. The joystick is set to ch as the Flightstick Pro is supported by the game.
There are two configs, the first using the new frame rate settings only, which doesn't sync the intro videos properly but is less intensive on the graphics card. The second changes the dos_rate and vmem_delay settings to sync the videos but at a higher graphics card usage. Both configs improve the subjective feel of the sim bringing it closer to the legacy hardware experience.
A separate config is added for the Art of the Kill video app.
Fleet Defender Gold
Original article. The joystick is set to ch as the Flightstick Pro is supported by the game.
There are two configs, the first is for the DOS only version of the game while the second is for the Gold version and supports a Win3.x install to run the video presentation app.
Both versions set the joystick to ch as the Flightstick Pro is supported by the game. MIDI support is configured for external (to DOSBox) port devices (e.g. VirtualMidiSynth), MT32/CM32L, FluidSynth and Sound Canvas. Once the Sound Canvas ROMs are obtained the Jukebox app provides a useful way of comparing MIDI music.
There is an enhanced launcher menu which allows the selection of MIDI output.
Flight Unlimited
Original Article. The joystick is set to 4axis as the Flightstick Pro, supported by the game, does not support a throttle. The animations in the FBU seem much improved with this DOSBox version.
Finally..
Huge thanks to John Novak and the rest of the DOSBox Staging team for such a significant DOSBox Staging release!
Good hunting!
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