Archives of Genesis8 Amstrad Page from 1999 to 2024 about hardware






Amstrad CPC Revision zero and new Gate Array by Bread80

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Bread80 has several projects at the moment, he is working recently on two interesting ones.

First project in two parts, the presentation of the Amstrad CPC Revision Zéro, yes the one base on a 6502 processor which was never finished. It was shown by Roland Perry at a spanish meeting, and Deepbf was able to take photos. So Bread80 did analyse in a first part the working of this prototype card which was clearly non functionnal. In the second part, he is starting to design a working 6502 Amstrad CPC (with a 2 Mhz model like the BBC computer).

Second project which is the following of the one started in 2020 by designing a new Gate Arry using a Rasperry Pi Pico 2040, but now that the new Pico model is out, he is starting using the Raspberry Pi Pico 2350 more powerful and which has more GPIO, in three technical parts (first part, second part, third part).



A new demo of the V9990 Powergraph video graphic card by HAL6128

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The V9990 Powergraph video card for MSX (cartridge) can be used on an Amstrad CPC with an AMSDAP card (MX4 ports and two MSX cartridge ports but only those using IO of the Z80, not those using memory functions, so you can use for example a V9990 and a sound cartridge).

Everybody knows the robot demo moving in a forest, well now thanks to HAL6128 you have something else to chew. You can download the DSK and see for yourself the result in this video by Poulette73 (see below).

HAL6128 bought a V9990 a moment ago but didn't use it, till recently to learn using it. He downloaded a non playable demo of a fighting game using the V9990 for MSX and adapted it for Amstrad CPC. It looks like a mode 1 screen but with 16 colors instead.




Minesweeper v1.03, an Amstrad CPC reflexion game by Under4Mhz

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Minesweeeper by Under4Mhz is a reflexion game for Amstrad CPC released in January 2024. It's a remake of the classic game for windows.



mTCP NetDrive (16th August 2024) by Michael B. Brutman

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New version (16th August 2024) of mTCP NetDrive, an utility by Michael B. Brutman which lets you connect under ms-dos a network drive which is in fact an image disk hosted on a windows or linux server (disk drive or hard disk image) for only 6 Kb of RAM (adds the RAM for the packet driver though).

A nice utility to use with the PicoMem card by FreddyV.





Deported ISA riser for Sinclair PC200 by Dedion30

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Dedion30 is showing his Sinclair PC200 configuration, the first one to the left in qwerty (not on), the PC200 in the middle is his latest buy in Azerty which is using his ISA riser showed in the System.CFG link.

Nice configuration including a MIDI tower at the start of the video avec Roland expanders MT-32 and SC-88 pro, and a Yamaha expander at the top. The riser is a prototype and isn't yet available.




WIP Tindy Dash by Abalore, FM sound with the Play2CPC on Amstrad CPC

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Tiny Dash by Abalore is an Amstrad CPC game using the Play2CPC (for something like FM sound) in overscreen, multiplayer with 2 joysticks, a remake of Boulder Dash like the name suggest. The game is finished but levels must be created and may some more music will be added.



CheshireCat, blog, youtube, CRTC5 ... what ?

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The Cheshire's is an interesting character of the world of Lewis Caroll, which let me think that I still didn't read this book yet...

So I invite your to go quickly read the blog CheshireCat's basket including the article about the ... CRTC5 (no no no, sorry but at Amstrad we count only from 0 to 4) and the two following articles :



Two Dandanator models by the Rancanuo Team

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I am not up to date about all the differents models of Dandanator, but the Rancanuo Team is proposing two models which can also be used on CPC+ with an adaptator (not sure if it's included, I just asked the question) :

  • CPC Dandanator Mini Dual aka the plain model with two banks of 512 Kb internal memory, choosable with a commutator
  • New Dandanator Elite + with one 512 Kb internal memory bank plus the ability to insert its own in house cartridges which looks like 3 inch disks


Amstrad CPC CRTC Compendium v1.8 by Longshot (May 2024) and his blog

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Longshot has released version 1.8 of the Amstrad CPC CRTC Compendium (8th May 2024) which is a documentation about the CRTC 6845 (and some others circuits). Note that the CRTC is a generic component used in several computers including the IBM PC.

It is possible to check if an emulator is good with the SHAKER tests by Longshot. SHAKER is a program designed to run on CPC machines produced by AMSTRAD in the 80s-90s. The objective of this program is to carry out extensive tests on the video circuits of this machine. These video circuits are the GATE ARRAY and the CRTC 6845. AMSTRAD produced several series of GATE ARRAY and used CRTC models produced by different manufacturers (HITACHI, MOTOROLA, UMC, AMSTRAD). This has been causing compatibility problems on operations that exceed the functional specifications of these circuits. The identified CRTCs are numbered from 0 to 4.

And last, if you like reading, don't hesitate to go check Longshot's blog.




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