+mytek Posted September 18, 2017 Author Share Posted September 18, 2017 Started assembly this afternoon... Discovered an error in the BOM having to do with a duplication of the same ID assigned to two parts (very minor). Also I need to get some more parts on order (R36,R37, RN3, RN4) for the ones that I am missing. Looks like I have everything else, just need to keep stuffing and soldering. - Michael 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariNerd Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 Anticipation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavalamp Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 Excitement 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 20, 2017 Author Share Posted September 20, 2017 Anticipation. Excitement How about now? - Michael 16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+MrFish Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 Looks great; too bad the sub-boards can't be had in green also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+kheller2 Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 It looks too great. It's almost as if it was put together by a machine and not a human. Hmm... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Stephen Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 I see it's time to order a second Relan case. Damn I wish I would have ordered two for my initial order. Shipping is insanely bad for getting them one at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 20, 2017 Author Share Posted September 20, 2017 Looks great; too bad the sub-boards can't be had in green also. Agreed, but then again it delineates what's specifically XEL and what's not. It looks too great. It's almost as if it was put together by a machine and not a human. Hmm... I never said I was human . I see it's time to order a second Relan case. Damn I wish I would have ordered two for my initial order. Shipping is insanely bad for getting them one at a time. Yea I was thinking the exact same thing. We could buy 2, and then split the cost... might be a bit cheaper even considering the nearly $8 USPS would likely charge. ----------------- And now for the even more exciting news... First Test Success!!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBUb2C1yRww Please excuse the mumble mouth, I tend to mush my words together when I'm lost and confused, and/or deep in thought, which was pretty much the case when doing the video (I was winging it). The screen image was a bit contrasty due to being in low light conditions, so my camera over compensates. In reality the screen image looked great... too bad it isn't the case in the video. - Michael 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariGeezer Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 I'll buy that one today 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+MrFish Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 Agreed, but then again it delineates what's specifically XEL and what's not. Yes, I was thinking the same thing as well; A little too much contrast though. I'm not partial to them being white. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 I'll buy that one today Nice to know in case I decide to sell it. But don't hold your breathe waiting . Actually it'll be taking the place of my original prototype, which just went into retirement today after giving up all of it's chips and modules. Yes, I was thinking the same thing as well; A little too much contrast though. I'm not partial to them being white. I think they would look better in black (edit: just tried the black Candle U1MB - looks great!). - Michael 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+MrFish Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 I think they would look better in black (edit: just tried the black Candle U1MB - looks great!). Part of what I don't like is that most of the components are facing down. I'm sure I'd like it better if it was flipped the other way -- although it's obviously impractical. Does Lotharek sell them in black or it's an older one? Good to see you got this one running well out of the gate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 Part of what I don't like is that most of the components are facing down. I'm sure I'd like it better if it was flipped the other way -- although it's obviously impractical. Does Lotharek sell them in black or it's an older one? Good to see you got this one running well out of the gate. Could have mounted it the other way around since I had to change out the headers for straight ones anyway, but having the battery always accessible is nice. Lotharek doesn't sell in any other color than white, but back when Candle was making them they were black. That is also the best way to gauge the age, and the likelihood of having to re-flash the CPLD to a more current version. I just happen to have a black one due to accidentally frying Stephen's during the XEL development (still looking for someone that can replace the CPLD on it). Yea I was quite happy seeing things work, although I got an initial scare when the video's color was very sporadic and there were flashes. Then I adjusted the color pot (which was all the way to one side) and everything was fine. - Michael 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brentarian Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBUb2C1yRww Michael, unless my eyes are playing tricks on me, it sure does look like a Galaxian passed right through your ship. You might want to check it again or another game to make sure collision detection is working. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 Michael, unless my eyes are playing tricks on me, it sure does look like a Galaxian passed right through your ship. You might want to check it again or another game to make sure collision detection is working. Yep when I reviewed the video I saw that too. I'll have to check that out tomorrow for sure. Might just be a fluke, or a bug in the program, but it could be hardware related as well. Interesting thing is that I never moved or fired, which might possibly have something to do with it as well (assuming its a bug in the game program). - Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillC Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 (edited) Could have mounted it the other way around since I had to change out the headers for straight ones anyway, but having the battery always accessible is nice. Lotharek doesn't sell in any other color than white, but back when Candle was making them they were black. That is also the best way to gauge the age, and the likelihood of having to re-flash the CPLD to a more current version. I just happen to have a black one due to accidentally frying Stephen's during the XEL development (still looking for someone that can replace the CPLD on it). Yea I was quite happy seeing things work, although I got an initial scare when the video's color was very sporadic and there were flashes. Then I adjusted the color pot (which was all the way to one side) and everything was fine. - Michael You couldn't have mounted it the other way, at least not without an adapter, revising the XEL PCB or using cables. Moving the headers to the other side of the U1MB PCB changes their pinouts. Edited September 21, 2017 by BillC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 You couldn't have mounted it the other way, at least not without an adapter, revising the XEL PCB or using cables. Moving the headers to the other side of the U1MB PCB changes their pinouts. Yes you are correct from a present day perspective, but I was speaking hypothetically, as in when I was first designing the 1088XEL. So in that initial design phase everything was a blank slate, and any layout was possible, including flipping things top to bottom. Keep in mind that I had to create the schematic and PCB components for much of the custom stuff (such as the U1MB) from scratch, so making a version that was flipped wouldn't have been any more difficult. However to do it as a flipped version would have meant that all of the original Candle boards would have also needed to have their headers removed and reinserted from the other side. Which would have been a pity, since they currently are the only board that requires no modifications and will drop straight into both XEL version motherboards. Speaking of which, I and several others would love to see Lotharek go back to using the straight headers as was done by Candle, or at least offer that as an option (i.e.,sell an XEL version). FJC also presents a good case of why this should have never been changed, and routinely changes out the right angle for straight ones in the customer builds he does involving U1MB installations. The way the XEL is currently interfaced to the U1MB board with the battery on top was the best way to go. So other than presenting alternative scenarios, this will not be changing on my watch. I just noticed that I used the word 'change' or 'changed' a lot - need to expand my vocabulary . - Michael 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 Michael, unless my eyes are playing tricks on me, it sure does look like a Galaxian passed right through your ship. You might want to check it again or another game to make sure collision detection is working. I checked it out again with Galaxian, but also with a few other games and it looks like collision detection is working properly. But with Galaxian, it appears that if the enemy clips the edge of your wing at an angle (and not too far in) no collision is registered. So I pulled up an online video for Galaxian and I can see this same phenomenon. Check this out at about 10 seconds into video (just after the first collision destroys the ship)... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpYBZ0EbAfk So I think this is normal. - Michael 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+MrFish Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 (edited) I checked it out again with Galaxian, but also with a few other games and it looks like collision detection is working properly. But with Galaxian, it appears that if the enemy clips the edge of your wing at an angle (and not too far in) no collision is registered. So I pulled up an online video for Galaxian and I can see this same phenomenon. Check this out at about 10 seconds into video (just after the first collision destroys the ship)... [YouTube Video] So I think this is normal. I think collisions may just be taken from the blue, center portion of the player ship. I tested this out a little, and the other parts of the ship don't seem to cause a collision. The source code is available, so it could be verified. I prefer collision that's a little forgiving like this... Edited September 21, 2017 by MrFish 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 I think collisions may just be taken from the blue, center portion of the player ship. I tested this out a little, and the other parts of the ship don't seem to cause a collision. The source code is available, so it could be verified. I prefer collision that's a little forgiving like this... Thanks for the confirmation . - Michael 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wood_jl Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 Good Lord, I am behind the times. But I want this! I'm not sure that I'm even worthy. I haven't read the rest of the 40 pages yet, but I see that I need to, in order to even understand this. I see mentions of specific cases for the motherboard that I need. I see mentions of other things. I just want this and I want to be put down for 2 of the "most assembled" things I can. I will self-educate and reply later. This is so awesome that I can't believe it!! Bravo, mytekcontrols!!!!! 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 22, 2017 Author Share Posted September 22, 2017 Good Lord, I am behind the times. But I want this! I'm not sure that I'm even worthy. I haven't read the rest of the 40 pages yet, but I see that I need to, in order to even understand this. I see mentions of specific cases for the motherboard that I need. I see mentions of other things. I just want this and I want to be put down for 2 of the "most assembled" things I can. I will self-educate and reply later. This is so awesome that I can't believe it!! Bravo, mytekcontrols!!!!! There's more to it than meets the eye. As an example... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=434apvj0K8g I'll have to give credit to Simius for his Sophia board that is producing the RGB video stream (although it did require a slight mod - one resistor change - to drive into the SC1224 monitor). The XEL was designed to allow his board to directly plug in and the video to be sent out through the built-in DIN-13 jack. Also the XEL's dual Pokey STEREO sound is being routed to this jack as well. So with the right monitor (or a modified one as shown in the video) a single stock SC1224 monitor cable connection gives you superb video and audio. - Michael 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Stephen Posted September 22, 2017 Share Posted September 22, 2017 There really is no substitute for a good CRT when it comes to running these old machines. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+MrFish Posted September 22, 2017 Share Posted September 22, 2017 There's more to it than meets the eye. As an example... [YouTube Video] I'll have to give credit to Simius for his Sophia board that is producing the RGB video stream (although it did require a slight mod - one resistor change - to drive into the SC1224 monitor). The XEL was designed to allow his board to directly plug in and the video to be sent out through the built-in DIN-13 jack. Also the XEL's dual Pokey STEREO sound is being routed to this jack as well. So with the right monitor (or a modified one as shown in the video) a single stock SC1224 monitor cable connection gives you superb video and audio. It looks like the 4 screws holding each speaker are indenting the plastic -- due to that metal lip surrounding the speaker housing. You might want to find some appropriately sized washers -- or some solid gasket material -- to put between the case and speaker housing to prevent that. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted September 22, 2017 Author Share Posted September 22, 2017 It looks like the 4 screws holding each speaker are indenting the plastic -- due to that metal lip surrounding the speaker housing. You might want to find some appropriately sized washers -- or some solid gasket material -- to put between the case and speaker housing to prevent that. Dam I can't get nothing past your keen observing eyes . Yea I noticed that too, but only after I had fully assembled the unit and took pictures. It was such a B_tch getting it back together due to the fly-back transformer being in the way, I really don't look forward to taking it apart again, but I suppose I should to make things right. Perhaps not today . - Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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