What new "gizmos" to get?

[the KING]

Hi there!
I have been away from here for several years, but did contribute to the wiki quite a lot some years ago.

The last days I have been reading up on what has been going on since the last time I was active here, and I see there have been quite a lot of new hardware development. I do have some questions, though....

I have decided to get a HXC Floppy Emulator from Lotharek. Could this be used together with the FD1 on my 464? Can the HXC be drive A, and the 3" drive B?
Then there is the question of monitors. I don't want to use my old green CRT, but rather a smaller and lighter full colour LCD. I have seen various discussions on how to use the CPC's with LCD TV's and monitors. Is there a "final solution" as to what works best? I don't need every fancy demo to work, I just need a good and stable picture.

Are there any other new gizmos I just "need" to have?

BTW I currently have a 464, a 472 and a FD1. I might try to get myself a 664 or 6128 in the near future.

Tom

[CraigsBar]

Hi Tom,

Yes the HxC will work fine with a ddi-1, just move the 3 inch drive onto the other connector and put the HxC where the a drive currently sits.

As for new gizmos....

I'd recommend everything @TotO makes

1. Xmem for additional ram and ROM.
2. Mini booster for easy wireless data transfer.
3. Xmass for mass storage and symbos.
4. Play city for 9 channel sound and more.
5. Mother4x to plug it all into.

After that then an rtc and multiface remake are both on the horizon.

Once the plus SD cart arrives then your new CPC should ideally be a 6128 plus.

Craig.

[Bryce]

Yes the HxC will work fine with a ddi-1, just move the 3 inch drive onto the other connector and put the HxC where the a drive currently sits.

Ehhh, no. Then the FD-1 isn't getting 5V and will do pretty much nothing.

As for other hardware, it all depends on what you intend doing with your CPCs. I'd definitely recommend getting some sort of ROM board. RAM expansion (especially as you only have 64K computers) would be useful too. The x-mem is probably your best choice here because it offers both. Whether you buy any of the other hardware expansions depends on your focus.

As for TV solutions, there is no "final solution", but there are many solutions depending on what inputs your TV/Monitor has. SCART is the first choice, due to picture quality and cost (1 simple cable is all that's needed). If your TV/Monitor doesn't have SCART, then S-Video would be the next choice. Connection to a VGA monitor is also possible, but it needs quite a bit of additional hardware.

Bryce.

[the KING]

Ok, thanks to both of you.


@CraigsBar,
That was right in my theories as well, but I have learnt that Bryce is the DiscLord here, so if he says other, I guess he's right.
I will definately have a look into TotO's products. And the Multiface repro looks promising too.
Thanks for your tips!


@Bryce,
So there is no way connecting a HxC as drive A: and the FD1 as drive B: ? No workarounds?
Regarding what I'm going to use it for.... I guess playing some games, programming some Basic, freshing up on my z80 assembly etc. Not really needing any more than my 64K's, actually. (and then I have the 472 with 72K's..... or not, hehehe).
The good thing is that I haven't bought a monitor/TV for this purpose, yet. So if I understand you right, I could buy a small LCD TV with scart, and just use my same scart adapter that used to work with my old CRT TV, back in the day? I thought I read somewhere here that using the CPC with scart on a flat screen didn't work too well?
Thanks for your input!


Tom

[Bryce]

The DDI-1 gets its power from the FD-1 and the pins that do it are only connected in the second connector (the one at the end of the flat cable). If an FD-1 isn't connected here the DDI-1 isn't getting power and will do nothing. The HxC doesn't supply 5V on these wires, in fact they are connected to GND, so you need to be careful about what you connect to the DDI-1 cable generally. You can convert the DDI-1 to work without an FD-1 connected, but this involves making changes inside the DDI-1. Instructions here: DDI Modification - CPCWiki
If you are shopping for a TV for the CPC (or any retro computer), the most important thing to check it that the SCART has RGB inputs. Some cheap TVs have SCART but the RGB isn't connected, only composite. Modern LCD can still be fussy about what RGBS signal they will sync to, so even with RGB inputs it's not 100% certain that they'll give you a decent picture.

Bryce.

[the KING]

Thanks Bryce,
That's a good explanation of the problem.
Will this be a problem if I use HxC as drive B: , apart from maybe running some disc programs from the HxC (drive B: ) that might want to access drive A: by default?

[CraigsBar]

Well I guess as Abba switch will solve it?

[Bryce]

Exactly. Connect the HxC to the header nearest the DDI-1 and then make an ABBA switch. However, an ABBA switch for a DDI-1 is also quite complicated.

Bryce.

[TFM]

Are there any other new gizmos I just "need" to have?

PlayCity!

[the KING]

Exactly. Connect the HxC to the header nearest the DDI-1 and then make an ABBA switch. However, an ABBA switch for a DDI-1 is also quite complicated.

Bryce.

Would it be easier with a 664 or 6128?


Tom

[the KING]

PlayCity!

I have no idea what that is, but I'll check it out!
Thanks.


Tom

[CraigsBar]

Would it be easier with a 664 or 6128?


Tom

yes. 4 wires one switch and 2 cut tracks or solder points.

[simondo]

I have a DDI-1 with FD-1 as drive A at end of DDI-1 Cable. I am planning on getting a Gotek USB and connecting it to the DDI-1 at the the B drive connector on the DDI-1 cable.

Can the Gotek be made A drive via it's jumpers or do I need an ABBA switch on the DDI-1? If so what modifications are required to install an ABBA switch on the DDI-1?

[TFM]

I have no idea what that is, but I'll check it out!
Thanks.

Tom

Nice page in the CPCWiki:
PlayCity - CPCWiki

[CraigsBar]

Nice page in the CPCWiki:
PlayCity - CPCWiki

Nice device too. Mine is plugged into my just CPC 128k