tones on new soundcards without opl (Jim Stevenson )

Subject: tones on new soundcards without opl
From:    Jim Stevenson  <jims(at)EOS.ARC.NASA.GOV>
Date:    Tue, 31 Jul 2001 07:13:08 -0700

Is it possible to tell soundcards without opl fm chips to play simple tones
other than using midi or .wav files?
How are volume and panning controlled?
How about tamber and special effects like reverb and chorus?

Please elaborate.

Thanks.