MIST - Atari ST / Amiga fpga CLONE

[Gryzor]

Lotharek is now taking preorders for MiST, an ST/Amiga FPGA.


Already implemented ( ATARI ST)

   
• 8Mhz CPU (faster core slowed down by memory interface)
• Up to 14MB DMA and video capable ST RAM
• ROM cartridge support
• Support for 256k and 192k ROM images
• TOS versions 1.00, 1.02, 1.04, 2.06 and EmuTOS
• All three ST video modes
• Scan doubler for color modes for VGA compatibility
• PAL 56 HZ for VGA compatibility
• Floppy disk emulation via SD card (.ST formats incl. HD (1.44MB) and ED (2.88MB))
• AHDI compatible ACSI/HDD emulation via SD card. Hatari compatible images
• MFP (Timers, RS232 redirection, IRQs, ...)
• Sound
• IKBD emulation (joysticks, mouse, keyboard)
• USB mice and keyboards

Planned/Possible (ATARI ST)

   
• Faster CPU (by using already existing fast ram interface, perhaps cache)
• Extended video modes (e.g. 1280x960 monochrome, 640x480 16 colors)
• MIDI add-on board
• Support for STX (copy protoected) floppy disk images
• STE video (4 bit per color, soft scrolling)
• STE DMA sound
• Blitter (Optional for ST, mandatory for STE)
• USB joysticks and gamepads
  

Strangely, Lotharek doesn't give the Amiga specs. But I'm tempted...

[Aquillae]

Hmm how could I convince the wife this would be a good idea? 

[Gryzor]

My thougths exactly, she's sitting right next to me and giving me creepy looks...

[Gryzor]

Lotharek just told me that in terms of Amiga horsepower it is "like Minimig, "but better".

[Bryce]

Hmm how could I convince the wife this would be a good idea? 

Tell here you need it to fix her Hairdrier or something. Don't tell her what it really does, that just confuses them and they start trying to explain the difference between "want" and "need" to you (as if we didn't know already)

Bryce.

[Gryzor]

But I *do* need it; I recently got  a VGA cable[nb]can you believe it? I was out of VGA cables?!![/nb] to connect her work laptop to the monitor at home[nb]seriously, a modern business laptop with no HDMI?[/nb] and I've got one cable just hanging there... maybe I could tell her I need it to keep the circuit clean and closed?

[TFM]

So ein MIST 

[Bryce]

So ein MIST 

That's exactly what I thought when I read it, but non-German readers won't get the joke

Bryce.

[Gryzor]

mist = crap, if you trust Google.

[Bryce]

Yes, in this case you can trust Google

Bryce.

[TheCorfiot]

It's far too expensive

You can buy a real ST and Amiga for a hell of a lot less.

Not for me sorry
TC 

[TFM]

Lotharek is now taking preorders for MiST, an ST/Amiga FPGA.

Well, when surfing to the site I see this...

[Gryzor]

Yes it's expensive, but it'll fit very nicely on my desk. That's a huge plus


@TFM: your uni's filter is as crappy as them all. Nothing wrong with the site...

[TFM]

Sadly true, it works from home though.

We would need such a nice card for the CPC and 6128 Plus, but sadly in the World of Amstrad there is nothing comparable (TRex is &DEAD and the C-One is way to expensive and outdated).

[ralferoo]

We would need such a nice card for the CPC and 6128 Plus, but sadly in the World of Amstrad there is nothing comparable (TRex is &DEAD and the C-One is way to expensive and outdated).

I'm working on my FPGA board, just finishing up the disk emulation code at the moment.

It'll be substantially cheaper than this MIST emulator (although also only really able to emulate 8 bit things as I only have an 8-bit static RAM on board).

[redbox]

TRex is &DEAD

But it's AWESOME 

[TFM]

I'm working on my FPGA board, just finishing up the disk emulation code at the moment.

It'll be substantially cheaper than this MIST emulator (although also only really able to emulate 8 bit things as I only have an 8-bit static RAM on board).

With all respect to your great project - and I may haven't read the Mist Projekt precisely enought - such an hardware emulator of a computer makes IMHO only sense if it has some basic features like this:
- Turbo mode: The new machine is singificant (at least 1000%) faster than the original
- Expansions: The new machine contains the most used expansions, for the CPC this would be RAM and Flash-ROM expansion alt least
- I/O: Connections to actual pheripherial units have to be there: monitor, keyboard. But it also needs to be able to connect to the original hardware (CRT, maybe keyboard) for compatibility reasons.
A redo a existing hardware is a nice project of course, but it has to really improve the old machine while staying compatible. That's just my opinion, not the law.

[TFM]

But it's AWESOME 

C-One too! And it can run the Z80 with something like 80 MHz!

[Gryzor]

Till, the MiST dev, told me it wouldn't be hard to bring over CPC cores to his board, since they're similar. Having no idea about FPGAs I wouldn't know what to make of this statement, but for what it's worth...

[ralferoo]

With all respect to your great project - and I may haven't read the Mist Projekt precisely enought - such an hardware emulator of a computer makes IMHO only sense if it has some basic features like this:
- Turbo mode: The new machine is singificant (at least 1000%) faster than the original
- Expansions: The new machine contains the most used expansions, for the CPC this would be RAM and Flash-ROM expansion alt least
- I/O: Connections to actual pheripherial units have to be there: monitor, keyboard. But it also needs to be able to connect to the original hardware (CRT, maybe keyboard) for compatibility reasons.
A redo a existing hardware is a nice project of course, but it has to really improve the old machine while staying compatible. That's just my opinion, not the law.

Just to clarify, the Mist project isn't my project. And as I've mentioned numerous times here, my board offers all the things you care about:

   
• I don't currently have a turbo mode as I was (and still am) more concerned about emulation accuracy, although I plan to add a turbo mode in the future. I gone into more detail before: FPGA CPC thread and FPGA CPC thread. The actual core in my board runs at 48MHz, but I deliberately slow it down to maintain compatibility.
• Yes, I support standard expansions. My board has 512KB of RAM, which appears as 64K + 448KB expansion pack and a 32 slot ROM board (minus a 2 for system ROMs and 1 for support ROM).
• My board has a PS/2 keyboard socket and SCART connector. The SCART out can be directly wired up to a CTM and there is a header on the board that is pin compatible with a standard CPC keyboard. There also numerous extra IO pins brought out to rows of headers.

[TFM]

That sounds good, now I will just be patient and wait until you manage to introduce some kind of Turbo mode.

BTW: It would be great if software (using some I/O address) can switch between an accurate real-time-mode and and turbo mode. Just an idea.

I thought for a while about getting the C-One which offers a mode in which the Z80 can run with 80 MHz. Does anybody here have deeper experiences with that board?

[mr_lou]

I'm curious to know, how is the display?
I notice there's only VGA output, and in my opinion, retro games are simply best on CRT displays.
I agree with this video:
Is CRT The Best Display For Retro Gaming?

Is the VGA output the same pixelated stuff as seen on that video, or does the MIST somehow include some kind of antialias stuff thingy?

[Gryzor]

Well yes, that's an often discussed topic. But this is supposed to be a modern solution, adding a modulator to it would be over the top I think.


Combined with the scanlines filter it incorporates I think the image it gives is very, very nice. Like an old, but high quality monitor.


I normally really dislike playing old games on LCDs, but in this case I think the feeling is very good.

[Bryce]

You can connect a CRT to the VGA output, it doesn't have to be an LCD.

Bryce.

[mr_lou]

You can connect a CRT to the VGA output, it doesn't have to be an LCD.

haha, that's true of course. Didn't even think about that. My mind was on TV sets.

But it has a scanline filter you say? But no antialias filter? No other filters? Can you remove the scanline filter?