Shawn Jefferson Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 I'm in for one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brentarian Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Mark me down for one, please! Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradd1978 Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Put me down for one, thanks!! :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+David_P Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 I'll add myself to the list (or to the list of someone in Canada who starts building them). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Umberto Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 i want one also Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey Z Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 I really want one, but not for the price. I'll be looking into seeing if I can manage to make it cheaper, and doing my own run, based in the US. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electrotrains Posted August 19, 2015 Author Share Posted August 19, 2015 I really want one, but not for the price. I'll be looking into seeing if I can manage to make it cheaper, and doing my own run, based in the US. Joey - I hope you can make them cheaper. You won't have to pay e.g. VAT or import duty on the parts, though I guess the US has sales tax too? Bear in mind when you are costing it that the parts, especially the FPGA are very fragile. I dropped one about an inch onto the desk when I was building the prototypes and it bent all the pins in one corner. £20 gone. Do remember to factor in a cost for parts written off like this, boards that don't work, etc or you'll find that you're running at a loss pretty quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kazmat Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Great cart ! I will take one !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey Z Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Joey - I hope you can make them cheaper. You won't have to pay e.g. VAT or import duty on the parts, though I guess the US has sales tax too? Bear in mind when you are costing it that the parts, especially the FPGA are very fragile. I dropped one about an inch onto the desk when I was building the prototypes and it bent all the pins in one corner. £20 gone. Do remember to factor in a cost for parts written off like this, boards that don't work, etc or you'll find that you're running at a loss pretty quickly. sales tax is a state only thing, and does not apply to interstate commerce. So if I live in illinois, and the electronics distributor has a warehouse in, say, wisconsin and indiana, headquartered in wisconsin, then I pay no sales tax. However, if I were to live in indiana, then I'd pay sales tax because they do have a location in the state I reside in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 I really want one, but not for the price. I'll be looking into seeing if I can manage to make it cheaper, and doing my own run, based in the US. If you can build a few domestically cheaper, sign me up! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 I'll be in for 1 at that price.. Two if Joey Z can get them made cheaper (with cases even better) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danwinslow Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Put me down for 2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvas Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Interested in one. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aking Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 1 for me please Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 1 for me please Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+MacRorie Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 I am down for one, please. Possibly two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baz67 Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Hi All, The Ultimate Cart is an SD-card based multicart for the Atari 8-bit, which I've been developing for the last few months. It allows you to browse the SD card on the atari and launch cartridge images from ROM and CAR files from the menu. The PCB is designed to fit in a standard grey cartridge case (after a bit of modification with some clippers and a file). P1140125.jpg It supports most ROMs up to 1 megabyte in size, including standard 8k and 16k cartridges, XEGS, AtariMax 1 & 8mbit ROMs, SIC! Cart, Bounty Bob, OSS, SDX & Williams. ROM dumps can be easily converted into CAR format with my conversion utility. To learn more about the hardware and development, the original thread is here. The project is open source. PCB files, programming files and source files will be available on github shortly, and I'll open a technical thread for discussion when this has been done. The hardware includes an FPGA and could be used for a lot more than a multicart - co-processor & SD-card based hard disk are two possible future avenues for development. There is a JTAG header to allow the cartridge firmware to be reprogrammed in the future. P1140132.jpgP1140108.jpgP1140109.jpg Now that I've assembled and tested the second board I think its probably time to open a pre-orders thread so I can get some idea of interest. The price will be £70 (+postage) for the cartridge board (ready to use, but uncased). If you are interested in one, please reply to this thread. At the moment, this is only to give me some idea of numbers and to reserve your place in the queue. It is not a commitment to buy or for me to supply one. I'm not sure how many of these I'm prepared to make, and it may take me some time, so I will contact people as I make the boards, and check they are still interested. Since its open source, I'm hoping some others may make the boards too, and might be able to charge less than me. Initially, I've got 3 more PCBs on the way, and I will prioritise any UK or European orders, since it will be easier to post/return if there are any unexpected teething problems. Beyond that I'll see how much interest there is. Robin Cheers, Robin. Definitely interested and probably up for buying one... 8Bit Baz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baz67 Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Cheers, Robin. Definitely interested and probably up for buying one... 8Bit Baz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vazquezrick Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 I'll take one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen J. Carden Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 Hi All, The Ultimate Cart is an SD-card based multicart for the Atari 8-bit, which I've been developing for the last few months. It allows you to browse the SD card on the atari and launch cartridge images from ROM and CAR files from the menu. The PCB is designed to fit in a standard grey cartridge case (after a bit of modification with some clippers and a file). P1140125.jpg It supports most ROMs up to 1 megabyte in size, including standard 8k and 16k cartridges, XEGS, AtariMax 1 & 8mbit ROMs, SIC! Cart, Bounty Bob, OSS, SDX & Williams. ROM dumps can be easily converted into CAR format with my conversion utility. To learn more about the hardware and development, the original thread is here. The project is open source. PCB files, programming files and source files will be available on github shortly, and I'll open a technical thread for discussion when this has been done. The hardware includes an FPGA and could be used for a lot more than a multicart - co-processor & SD-card based hard disk are two possible future avenues for development. There is a JTAG header to allow the cartridge firmware to be reprogrammed in the future. P1140132.jpgP1140108.jpgP1140109.jpg Now that I've assembled and tested the second board I think its probably time to open a pre-orders thread so I can get some idea of interest. The price will be £70 (+postage) for the cartridge board (ready to use, but uncased). If you are interested in one, please reply to this thread. At the moment, this is only to give me some idea of numbers and to reserve your place in the queue. It is not a commitment to buy or for me to supply one. I'm not sure how many of these I'm prepared to make, and it may take me some time, so I will contact people as I make the boards, and check they are still interested. Since its open source, I'm hoping some others may make the boards too, and might be able to charge less than me. Initially, I've got 3 more PCBs on the way, and I will prioritise any UK or European orders, since it will be easier to post/return if there are any unexpected teething problems. Beyond that I'll see how much interest there is. Robin I would like two please. I want to do a review of them and post it on my web site. http://www.realdos.net Thanks! Stephen J. Carden Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jungsi Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 Interested in one cart! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+rdemming Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 I'm interested in one. Since its open source, I'm hoping some others may make the boards too, and might be able to charge less than me. Maybe you can team up with Lotharek. He has experience in making/selling various Atari hardware for years including designs made by others (officially licensed). Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atariboy Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 (edited) So this doesn't support disk or tape images? For the uninitiated, is there some sort of option to workaround that like disk to cartridge conversions of popular titles, or perhaps even a converter program? I've been hoping to see something that's plug and play. I place my downloaded game images, regardless of their original format, onto some sort of memory card like a SD card. That's inserted into the multicart prior to inserting the entire cartridge into my XEGS. From there, I just select my game from an auto-generated on-screen menu and play. How close does this get me to that? Reading about the AtariMax cartridges always just left me more confused than anything. And I see terms and other things that I don't really understand in this thread (And the development thread), along with the other thread for The!Cart. As someone that just has a XEGS and a small cartridge collection, I don't really know many of the particulars with this platform and just want to enjoy some classic games on it. So I just know I want something simple and straightforward like a console Everdrive cartridge and such, that requires little experience with the ins and outs of the Atari 8 bit line while offering wide game compatibility. Edited August 20, 2015 by Atariboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianoid Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 I'd like one. Question: is there a way to use disk images with it? Is that a planned functionality? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electrotrains Posted August 20, 2015 Author Share Posted August 20, 2015 (edited) Atariboy, This plugs in the cartridge port, and lets you play software designed for cartridge. For disk-based software, you'd be better of with SIO2SD. In fact, with both you'll have easy (SD card) based access to pretty much all atari software. Having said that, there is software e.g. MaxFlash cartridge studio + others, that will convert ATRs/XEXs into cartridge images. If you want to ask more questions, maybe we could move discussion this to the development thread? Robin Edited August 20, 2015 by electrotrains 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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