flip
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Posts posted by flip
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Okay, the github version of Invaders now has no LBanything LSanything or NOP. I don't think there are any other three cycle 1802 instructions. I've played it a bit and it seems to work fine. You might want to test it but I can't see any reason it should be problematic, it works okay in emulation.
I wrote that sixteen years ago ... makes me feel very old. Interesting coding, I appear to have written it as one long bash ... not very modular ... and just used long branches to work round the paging .... still those three were about the first 1802 code I wrote.
I notice Combat and Hockey have had some not all of the LBRs fixed. Are the glitches if any in these barely noticeable ? If so, I will just leave them alone if they work okay, so you can get your carts out.
Hi again
I can confirm it runs perfect now on the real thing as well. Greatly appreciated Paul, thanks!
The long branches that are left in the others don't seem to do any harm. As long as they are not in the main loop, where a lot of screen updating happens, it doesn't seem to matter - or it's at least not noticeable/disturbing.
Thanks for the hints on how to tackle Flappy Bird - I'll try and get this cart out the door before having a go at that ;o)
FliP
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Yes - I am only decoding the lower 4 address lines so the cart only 'knows' A0-A11, which gives it 1K addressable space...
That should actually say 4k of addressable space - $000-$FFF = 4096 bytes...
FliP
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Okay, I have set up a repository at https://github.com/paulscottrobson/studio2-games. The three problematic games are the old ones, Combat, Hockey and Invaders which were written before I knew about the 3-cycles issue. I probably won't have time tomorrow but should get it done over the weekend - hopefully !
I've forked the patches in for Hockey and Combat... Hope that's OK.
FliP
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Hi again,
The plan was to start shipping late next week. But since I've not asked anyone for money yet, the timescale is still 'when they are ready'. I still need to build at least half a dozen and I'm waiting for some more parts to build the composite mod.
If you could come up with a fix, that would obviously be worth the wait/delay!
Cheers,
FliP
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Question : if I write any more Rcas2 games, to make them compatible with this what memory can I use, beyond the obvious (400-7ff) ? Is it just c00-Fff ?
Hi Paul,
Yes - I am only decoding the lower 4 address lines so the cart only 'knows' A0-A11, which gives it 1K addressable space... $800 to $BFF is used by the different consoles, so that leaves the addresses you quote. I guess that adding a second latch is possible, which would give 64K to play with, but there's no way to add RAM to the cart, as the MWR signal isn't there...
Not sure you saw my message some time ago: on real hardware, using long branches causes timing issues for the 1861, because it loses sync due to the three CPU cycles these instructions use. I've managed to patch Pong/Hockey and Combat, so they play fine. Invaders is giving me more problems, as it has a lot of long branches and 2 really long routines as far as I can see that go beyond the 256-byte pages. At the end of every cycle, the screen flickers as a result... Since Emma doesn't show the problem, testing can only be done by burning new versions to EEPROMs, which is rahter cumbersome.
As for ideas for new games: I was going to try and see whether I could adapt your Scramble code into a Flappy Bird clone - haven't gotten around to it yet, so I hope you can beat me to it!
There's a complementary cart reserved for you - if you PM me your details, I'll send it out with the rest of them...
regards,
FliP
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you get the Euro Star Wars game? I've been dying to see some footage of how that plays
Hi,
It's on the multicart in the clone collection (MPT-02, etc). It plays on the Studio II, as do all the other clone games, though not in color obviously.... Sound is also limited to the one-tone beep.
Here's the full list of what is currently planned: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/125ahew2f4_KOlsxCCyaZjRYw7kr0ISLbvOgCLkTXUj8/edit?usp=sharing
The games for the Toshiba Visicom don't work: that system seems to have been organised completely differently (it had more RAM and the video page is somewhere else). Only one game is dumped at the moment, but there's no point in having it on the cart, as the pinout is different for the cartridge slot as well....
FliP
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I'm interested in the multicart and composite out board, although I didn't see any pricing or what installation of the composite out board involves. Is there info I'm missing outside of the post #1?
The composite board is complementary, so no extra cost - it's a small PCB that needs to connect to the console in three points: GND, 5V and the video signal. You'll need to supply the cable to video out yourself, but an audio cable with an RCA plug will normally do...
I'll put up some pictures when I have the final board, but there's a (hopefully) elegant way to attach it to the PCB...
You'll need some basic soldering skill, but the board will come assembled...
FliP
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I'd want a multicart + composite board (unless it is dead easy to mod a Conic M1200 - feel free to point me to a page in that case). I think I can live without a shell, or reuse my spare Blackjack cartridge.
Hm.. so we're filling in our details on the Google sheet? I'll look it up right away.
Can't guarantee that the video mod works on an M1200... I've not seen a mod as such, but the CDP1864 should put out a composite signal somewhere, so I imagine it could well work...
You can't edit the list, but I've added your name to it...
FliP
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Quick update: thirteen carts built, waiting for their EEPROMs. Still waiting for the composite boards...
Only one cartridge shell left, so if you want one, better be quick...flip
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Very nice work!
What is that lcd module youre using to test with?
It's an Adafruit NTSC/PAL TFT panel - a bit small (1,5") but they have bigger ones: https://www.adafruit.com/category/110
The idea was to make a 'portable' Studio II
, but in the meantime, I've found this on e-bay... That would only require a little stereo socket on the console that could double as video out... -
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Darn - it seems I can't edit the 2nd post to update the orders... I'll try to come up with another system to track what going on (probably Google Sheets) and post that here...
FliP
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Well, well, it has indeed sold for $3,500, plus $6 for shipping. Let's see what follows, and who the lucky new owner turns out to be...
Didn't think anyone would be that crazy
If it helps, I've build an Arduino ROM dumper that I would be happy to donate to the new owner (possibly with a $6 shipping fee
), so we can finally cross this off the list. TBH, I completely expect it to be the same as the known dump for the Victory. I've seen the theories here, but another possibility is that it was made in anticipation of the Studio III - hence the absence of the Studio II branding on the box. It could be made to be 'backwards' compatible.Meantime, pretty excited to announce this!
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Order list - © = complementary
toymailman 1 (C) eKeefe 1 (C) paulrobson 1 (C) Mpt02 1 (C)
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Hi everyone,
It has taken longer than expected, but I am happy to announce I have a final version of an RCA Studio II Multicart. The newer system board versions were crippling a signal on the cartridge port, which meant that larger games (using $c00 and higher) would not work. Thanks to Ed Keefe (also active here), the cart now fixes this signal, meaning that no modification is needed to the console itself!
Using 2 hex encoders, 128 slots are available on an EEPROM - this is plenty for the existing games, both official ones and homebrew. The cartridge is compatible with clones, such as the Victory MPT-02 (though not with the Toshiba Visicom, as the slot/pinout is different). Should new games come out, or found, they can be added by flashing the EEPROM. Some photos are attached showing the cart playing Pong and Asteroids (both games by Paul Robson).
It's been designed to fit the original cartridge shells. Two holes are needed in the front for the rotary selection switches (and some internal tabs need to go as well). I have some spare shells of broken carts, courtesy of toymailman. I probably won't have time to modify them for the carts, but I'll add the shells on a first-come basis (i.e. until they run out).
The design is open source - see the schematics and the board file attached. You're welcome to build your own of course, but these are not intended to be used in a commercial product. If you'd rather have a ready-made one, I am happy to ship one anywhere in the world for US$40. Leave your username, whether you need a shell (on first come basis only - you'll have to modify it yourself to fit the cart). For those interested, I can add a small PCB that gives you composite out at no extra cost (but you need some soldering skills to add it to the console of course). Put that in your post as well...
I'll keep a list below this post with orders, to keep track of things. When your cart is ready to ship, I'll send you a PM with further details.
Any questions, feel free to ask!FliP
RCA_Studio_II_multicart_eagle.zip
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I had not thought to check the part numbers, but from that list it looks as though everything is accounted for, with the exception of the Tester I cart- what part numbers would that be? Curious too as to why the first few numbers at the bottom use a different numbering scheme, and why RCA switched.
Posted above somewhere: the test cart part number is 5009339, and the power supply it needs is 5008333. Source of that info is the service manual...
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Now, there's hints of more, possibly. The entry on the old Digital Press Rarity Guide indicates that Bingo has only been seen a few times among collectors. What it doesn't specify is if all of those sightings are from PC2K1, or not. Someone else could have seen or found a copy back in the day. That's how the Tester I/"Diagnostic" and Demonstration cartridges came to be on the earliest versions of the old collection checklists, lists that seem to have originated with Dean Dierschow and Andrew Krieg around '96. I messaged both and never got responses, somebody had to have had those titles for them to have gotten added to all of the lists, and it may be the same case with Bingo.
Sorry to move slightly away from the Bingo find, but does anyone know what the Tester/Diagnostic cart did exactly? I have written a test program for inclusion in the multicart that has three tests: calculate the checksum of the ROMs ($0000-$03FF), check the RAM from $0800-$08AF and $0900-$09FF and a keypad test that shows which keys are pressed. Works pretty well, but if other tests were included in the official one, it'd be cool to try and implement those as well...
Checksum:
Memory test:
keypad test:
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Seller also teased me with a bit of info: apparently the daughters of the RCA employee who had this (it doesn't seem to be Dan's copy from 2K1) had the system in their house a year BEFORE retail release, which actually does sync with the otherwise bizarre Wikipedia article claim of select executives having it way early.
If that's so, it would also sync with the hints that Bingo only got as far as a few samples, and really never was sold at retail!
If that's the case, then it would be interesting to see the internals of the Studio II machine itself. It might be an earlier iteration than the two versions we know exist to date! If this is ever re-listed, I am guessing it'll be with a heftier price tag - and we'll all be bidding against each other
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IMO there is no reason why serial numbers should match in this case the S/N of the shells.
S/N serve the purpose of identifying and tracking a piece. The PCB S/N is for the hardware, so that if the system need to be serviced, you have a reference for various models to know the hardware variations.
The shell S/N is for commercial purpose and is to keep track of a finished product.
It would have been tedious at the time to make both S/N match as it would require to note and transmit every S/N from the factory where the boards were finalized to where the boards would be placed in the shells.
This mean that if a batch of PCB was discarded due to a manufacture issue, lot of damaged chip, etc... You'd have to wipe out the corresponding shells (especially if the S/N is engraved in them or printed on the shell rather than affixed on a sticker).
Applying S/N per shell is more streamlined and require no care about the PCB numbers.
I'm sure that high end product receive more care, and computerization today would allow to do this for any product, but I doubt that such meticulous care was given for such a product. Not that I suggest that the RCA Studio II is a cheap product, but matching S/N everywhere is a frivolity that you can do only on very high end products.
Hadn't thought of it that way - makes perfect sense. The boards up to at least ±65,000 had handwritten SNs, but at some point, they switched to stickers on the PCB as well, which would have made it easier to align. Sadly, these came off easily - so did the stickers on the shells.
There's also a color change in the PCBs along the way: early models are olive green. At some point, they became something between blue and green. And the auction shows a 'proper' green one.
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Now that, I hadn't noticed. You're right though, they are different. Would this board variation have any effect on a multicart design or function?
Thinking about this further, it seems a safe assumption that at least 154K Studio II boards were manufactured, which aside from the factory recollections might not have been clear before. It also seems as though RCA had set aside an unknown amount to be used as replacements, possibly from each batch.
Multicart: yes, the multicart works 'out of the box' with the earlier revision. On the newer ones, they chose to mix two signals which messes with the address selection on the expansion port... I developed the multicart on my only Studio II at the time, which was an early machine... The newer version (up to 140,000 machines it seems) need to have this signal restored - either by modifying the board or by generating the signal on the multicart. That's still being looked at: it will need some additional circuitry.
My revision D is in the 6000 serial range. So the one on ebay is only the second one I've ever come across! I am guessing that versions A, B and C never went into mass production and that they switched to E after the first 10,000 or so... I assume the other one is a revision E, but the serial number is unreadable on the pictures. I can't rule out it could be a revision F ;o)
Also: i've never seen the serial number on the back match the PCB one. It's possible that some board didn't make it through testing/into a production machine and that the actual number of consoles leaving the factory was lower. Lastly, I don't think there's any cosmetic differences outside that distinguish the different PCB versions - but I could be wrong there...
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Fascinating listing here, reminds me of the spare power adapter and RF switch that appeared recently. Spare Studio II parts don't show up often. I asked the seller if there's any more...
Very interesting indeed, especially as one seems to be a relatively low serial number [10,929] and a high one [154,024]. They are two different PCB versions - D and E. The main difference is that they use a different latch circuit to select the high address lines.
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All the chips seem to be RCA, Motorola or Mitsubushi
Apollo80
Incredible that they opted for a single sided board, with an insane number of jumpers. Can't imagine that having been cheaper than making it double sided?
Question: does anyone know where to find spare CDP1864 chips? There are a few sites that list them, but when you inquire, they come back saying they're unavailable...
flip
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Hi,
I would be interested in three (3) carts with shipping to Belgium. I realise it'll be a bit of a wait, but well worth it as I understand!
Thanks
Flip
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It's funny you say that because earlier this year (okay, *last* year
) I actually did have it out for a little while, set up on the big CRT in my game room with my PlayStation 2 and Atari XEGS. I actually wish I could set it up in its own little corner somewhere with one of my old b/w CRTs because every once in a while I get an itch to mess around with it, but not enough to bother getting it out and setting it up (hooking up the switchbox is sort of an inconvenience).Or maybe I should just leave it hooked up and displayed with the big LCD in the living room.
It's actually easy enough to get a decent composite signal from the console without big modifications. If anyone is interested, I'll put a post together explaining how to do this...
flip
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RCA Studio II Multicart
in Classic Console Discussion
Posted
Hi,
See the first post - Cart is $US40, which includes shipping from Belgium to anywhere in the world...
FliP