CPC on a VGA Monitor

[Bryce]

RGB / SCART is fine if you own an old CRT TV, but a lot of LCD / Plasma TVs wont accept the SCART signal the converter produces.

Bryce.

[robcfg]

Hey guys,


I just saw this on the World of Spectrum and maybe it could be used with a CPC (or with some minor redesign).

[MacDeath]

My brother was thinking about a CRTC emulation througu some kind or programmable chip (FPGA or whatever) that would fit the existing CRTC slot.


This would be a small board that would be pluged on the CRTC (which is then removed and replaced with a socket) and would enable the usual CRTC config but also a VGA output.



The main issue with modern Monitors is that most of them are 16/9.

Yet I know some good old 4/3 can still be found for the industry (I installed some big machines at a factory which used such external modern flat 4/3 VGA screens...), but average consumer electronnic market put us the 16/9 everywhere.

At retroMadrid I was surprised that so many poeples used old machines directly on 16/9 modern screen, thus getting some sort of natural Mode0 feeling, a shame with arcade Metal Slug, actually...

Also from what I saw, a few 16/9 TV set/monitors Actually feature a correct picture re-dimension... to accurately emulate the 4/3.
Most of time they even don't bother, as 16/9 is the new standard.


Could a CPC re-done CRTC manage the 16/9 dimensions accurately ?
CPC could redimension its screenfrom what I remember...(full screen per exemple... overscan or whatever) but the main goal is to get resolutions that match the actual monitor Pixels... round multiples, something like Pixels X2 or X3 or even x4... not x2,333

[robcfg]

Hey guys,


take a look at this. I think you can feed it with a RGBS signal like the CPC one, and it would be useful for many other systems.

[Gryzor]

Hm, interesting for a lot of stuff. But $40...

[MacDeath]

30€uros then, but what about the shipping fee ?

[robcfg]

Apparently is shipping free, I've double checked it.


Quite surprising, but for people in Taiwan and Hong kong it doesn't cost too much to send items abroad.

[Gryzor]

If you take into account that you can order a $1 trinket from DealExtreme and have it delivered to you, via registered mail, for free, you'll see that there's some anomaly there

[OCT]

take a look at this. I think you can feed it with a RGBS signal like the CPC one, and it would be useful for many other systems.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250658934921 seems to be the same just flipped 180 degrees and with shipping billed separately (just about one dollar less on the grand total, but since MacDeath asked and it might make a difference to customs limits in some jurisdictions).
Waiting for the moment they'll sell these things with HDMI output! (For much more convenient wiring, and not as weird as it sounds, since the interconnects between video ICs tend to be DVO anyway, which can feed transceivers to DVI and hence HDMI, cf. http://www.dbox2-tuning.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=368135#p368135 - as we wouldn't want HDCP to be applied to analog outputs anyway).

[mr_lou]

Sorry for reviving an old thread like this.

I need to connect my CPC464 to a VGA monitor. I find it a little confusing with all these links to different solutions. Did anyone ever find out which solution is the best?

In my case, I already have the external power-supply for the CPC. So "all" I need is the CPC->VGA cable/box thingy.
The monitor is a Lenovo ThinkVision L220x widescreen.

What would you recommend?

[Ynot.zer0]

In my case, I already have the external power-supply for the CPC. So "all" I need is the CPC->VGA cable/box thingy.
The monitor is a Lenovo ThinkVision L220x widescreen.

What would you recommend?

I received this yesterday: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250675162632&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT#ht_3605wt_1154


It works fine from my 464 and 6128.  I did find that it does not display on my new 22" lcd monitor but it did work okay on an older 17" lcd.  I seem to remember it's to do with the ability to render 50Hz (or something like that).


I also bought one of these: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=370362881310&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT  but I couldn't get it to work (might have just been user error?)

[mr_lou]

Thanks for the reply.

After a bit thinking though, I ended up running downtown and buying a LCD TV with VGA and DVI and SCART input....

* mr_lou has no patience.

[dawe]

Sorry - I do not speak English.
ScanDoubler need to test the CPC. Although I have the CPC on which I opened a hardware, but I do not how to load any programs. Neither the CPC as the computer know.
HW:
http://velesoft.speccy.cz/zx/zx-vga/index.html
Firmware:
http://pandora.idnes.cz/part/2011/6/2850
Preview (that's about all I can do with the CPC):
http://pandora.idnes.cz/part/2011/6/2853

(DL)

[arnoldemu]

welcome to cpcwiki!

Please visit this page, it will give you answers:
http://www.cpcwiki.eu/index.php/A_guide_to_running_software_on_a_real_Amstrad_CPC/CPC_Plus_computer


For disk use this tool:

http://www.cpcwiki.eu/index.php/CPCDiskXP

For tape the method is the same as spectrum: NOTE: cdt = tzx

[dawe]

I'm home alone CPC 464 motherboard with the keyboard without a tape player. Then I have a CPC 6128 partially defective motherboard (spilled battery acid). It works even if unreliable. There's no 400010 and the keyboard, but it can be used by the 464.
I need about a dsk file to make my floppy disk. It should be a program that uses up graphics capabilities, even non-standard graphic mode, non standard sync, as many colors, etc...

How do I say to the CPC, I never did anything.

(DL)

[arnoldemu]

I'm home alone CPC 464 motherboard with the keyboard without a tape player. Then I have a CPC 6128 partially defective motherboard (spilled battery acid). It works even if unreliable. There's no 400010 and the keyboard, but it can be used by the 464.
I need about a dsk file to make my floppy disk. It should be a program that uses up graphics capabilities, even non-standard graphic mode, non standard sync, as many colors, etc...

How do I say to the CPC, I never did anything.

(DL)

no tape player help: http://www.cpcwiki.eu/index.php/DIY_464_External_Audio_Socket
battery acid in 6128: from where? (no battery inside 6128). lemon juice can help clean battery acid?

you want a test program to check 464/6128 are working?

do you know z80?

[dawe]

Plate 6128 looked like some old MB 286 of spilled battery. She had to be somewhere where it spilled battery acid.
Ask where should I download a demo of a disk image, which the CPC graphics tests.

CPC get as wrecks. Like this one:
https: / / picasaweb.google.com/106583848211842323255/CPC464Druhe
but that is quite ok, even if the tape deck was not going to save.

[Devilmarkus]

Woooooow.....
This hurts!!!

What did happen with it?
Has it been used in WW-II?

Or has it been stoned because it kissed a C64?

[Bryce]

That's what happens when you play Daley Thompsons Decathalon for three hours.

Bryce.

[arnoldemu]

Plate 6128 looked like some old MB 286 of spilled battery. She had to be somewhere where it spilled battery acid.
Ask where should I download a demo of a disk image, which the CPC graphics tests.

CPC get as wrecks. Like this one:
https: / / picasaweb.google.com/106583848211842323255/CPC464Druhe
but that is quite ok, even if the tape deck was not going to save.

I understand now

464: connect some wires to pcb and 3.5mm socket (
http://www.rapidonline.com/1/1/7894-3-5mm-mono-pcb-jack-socket.html
).
then load files from pc soundcard into 464 using (

http://www.google.co.uk/products/catalog?hl=en&biw=1292&bih=766&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&q=cassette+adaptor&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=9893953273661136529&sa=X&ei=h4fwTdQi0722B8_Q4egC&ved=0CDoQ8wIwAg)
)

this will help with loading data.

cdt/tape needed here.

then you can load programs

do you have picture of the 6128?

[dawe]

I tested the 6128 demo from this link:
http://genesis8.free.fr/frontend/demos/mops.zip
Options 1,3,4,5,6,7 are OK. No flicker, no distortion - and with the on-screen frequency 72Hz.
Option 2 but appears at the top of the screen, two images of each other. It's about using non-standard signals and vsync hsyc from the CRTC in this demo.
(DL)

[Gryzor]

Dawe, just a note: although you can post as a guest, your posts have to be approved before they appear. Please do consider signing up!

[Devilmarkus]

Well option 2 directly writes into the CPC's CRTC register.
I am sure not all modulators / connectors can support this.
Where an oldschool monitor plays it well, a modern TFT monitor could fail here.