Replies: 0
Views: 61023
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Fri Mar 09, 2012 12:14 pm
Topic By: RWAP ON: Fri Mar 09, 2012 12:14 pm
Thanks to work by Daniele Terdina and Jiri Dolezal, we have now released the Sinclair QL Games Collection 1.

This is a set of 10 commercial games for you to play on a Windows based PC, running under Q-emulator for £10

We hope this will help distil the comments that the QL was only ever a business machine and will hopefully help promote the QL itself.

The games included are:

* Cuthbert in Space by Steve Bak and S J Proctor
* Deathstrike by Damon Chaplin and T. Bovingdon
* Hoverzone by R G Riley
* Jungle Eddi by Stefan Kuhne
* QL Hopper by Steve Bak and S J Proctor
* QL Pengi by Jochen Merz and R. Bieniek
* QL Vroom by Daniel Macré
* Stone Raider II by Alex J Herbert
* The King by C H Robertson Consultants
* The Lost Pharaoh by Stefan Kuhne

More details appear at:
http://www.sellmyretro.com/offer/detail ... ion_1-2152

Replies: 1
Views: 46581
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Thu Feb 23, 2012 7:44 pm
Topic By: RWAP ON: Thu Feb 23, 2012 7:44 pm
I missed this post - not really something I have any experience of...

I should imagine it would initialise OK, but may be only useable from 48K BASIC.

Best bet is to ask on the World of Spectrum forums - lot more Spectrum users on there!

Replies: 1
Views: 46581
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Thu Feb 23, 2012 7:44 pm
Topic By: prolog ON: Thu Jan 26, 2012 3:05 pm
Hi
Does anyone know if the currah microspeech synthesizer would initialise directly with a +128 or +2? Obviously there's no opportunity to select 48k before switching on!
cheers

Replies: 2
Views: 63953
Last Post By: prolog ON: Wed Dec 21, 2011 10:27 am
Topic By: prolog ON: Wed Dec 21, 2011 10:27 am
Hi Rich,
Yes this does seem most likely. I had a quick look last night - the tails seem good (sinewy as opposed to brittle) and securely attached to the connectors, though the outer layer of plastic on the tails has come away a bit from the cable itself. I can't see any cracking, but then I guess it's not always visible, and I haven't looked at the entire thing. Since I got this only last week I've contacted the seller suggesting a new membrane. I'll see what he says (as this wasn't the cheapest item I've got off the bay!) I'd rather just replace the membrane than have to send the whole thing back. Hopefully you'll be hearing from me with a membrane order soon!!

Thanks for the quick reply!
all the best
Jeff

Replies: 2
Views: 63953
Last Post By: prolog ON: Wed Dec 21, 2011 10:27 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Wed Dec 21, 2011 8:45 am
It could be that as the keyboard membrane has heated up, the cracks have opened up to damage the keyboard membrane tails (presuming it is not a new membrane!)

Replies: 2
Views: 63953
Last Post By: prolog ON: Wed Dec 21, 2011 10:27 am
Topic By: prolog ON: Tue Dec 20, 2011 8:51 pm
Hi,
I wonder if there are any simple solutions to this - I actually have a technical problem! I got the new toastrack out tonight as, having played with it only twice for a total of 20 minutes, I decided to wait until my new scart lead arrived. So, having set up I loaded a few tapes fine and tried a bit of programming all fine. Then I loaded the 128+ companion tape and was going through the tutorial when it got stuck in the extended mode. So I reset and then none of the keys worked except enter and break! So, I turned off and re-booted a little later got the menu and again none of the keys worked! So, can't choose a menu option except tape loader! Weird! Ouch!!

Any ideas out there?

Cheers

Replies: 3
Views: 257491
Last Post By: prolog ON: Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:50 pm
Topic By: prolog ON: Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:50 pm
Ah! cheers Rich that's useful. And also for the scart/rgb info yesterday - looks like the leads are still available.

I hope I'm not distracting you too much from meeting the publication deadline for the AY manual!

all the best

Replies: 3
Views: 257491
Last Post By: prolog ON: Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:50 pm
Topic By: RWAP ON: Fri Dec 16, 2011 2:34 pm
As for joysticks - the ports on the +2, +2A, +2B and +3 are all Sinclair joystick ports (as per the ZX Interface 2).

They will not work with a standard Atari joystick

You therefore need a joystick adaptor - Sintech offer these (I used to, but they are now too expensive!)

Replies: 3
Views: 257491
Last Post By: prolog ON: Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:50 pm
Topic By: RWAP ON: Fri Dec 16, 2011 2:28 pm
The startup menu on the +2, +2A and +2B all show +3 BASIC from memory
No idea why - it should show 128K basic really !

There were extra manuals for the Spectrum +2A - I have one here at least - or you can download them from
WorldofSpectrum

Replies: 3
Views: 257491
Last Post By: prolog ON: Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:50 pm
Topic By: prolog ON: Fri Dec 16, 2011 12:34 pm
Hello!
I am a zx81 person and have annoyed people on that forum, so I thought I'd come and spread my ignorance here. I've also been bothering Moggy too much and he needs a rest. Unlike the 81 I never had a spectrum in the 80s so the world of colour is all new to me. I've now acquired a couple of spectrums and my query is for the one I've just been given last night, this is a black amstrad which tells me it believes that it's a +2a. That comes up at the top of the menu. However, the manuals with it are very clearly first issue rubber key manuals. But the odd thing is that the startup menu shows a 48k option but also a +3 Basic option. So, I'm checking on my hunch that someone has re-ROMed this machine??
What do you think? And if so any thoughts on requirements for joysticks on the onboard 9pin ports?

Many thanks
Prolog

Replies: 0
Views: 7186
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Wed Dec 14, 2011 10:25 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Wed Dec 14, 2011 10:25 am
An upgraded / replacement ULA for the Sinclair ZX81 is now available.

The ZX-ULA2 is a direct replacement for the standard ULA used in the Sinclair ZX81 home computer.

The ULA is a custom chip designed by Sinclair Research Limited and is responsible for control of the functions of the ZX81, including the screen. Early ULAs were dogged by the lack of a back porch signal, which results in black text on a dark background on modern colour and LCD TVs. Until now, if you had one of these chips, you were stuck with either looking for one of the later ULAs (which are rare), or installing a modification, such as the ZXvid module, which alters the composite video signal and adds a back porch signal.

However, the ZX-ULA2 has now been designed to replace both of these ULAs and provide extra functionality for the Sinclair ZX81 at the same time. It will also work to turn a ZX81 in ZX80 mode (with a suitable ZX80 ROM), and also works with the Timex-Sinclair TS1000 computers (but not the TS1500).

Features include: -
• Built in composite video circuit, complete with back porch signal
• Switch between 50Hz and 60Hz output for testing of software which may be used in the USA and Canada
• Switch between black no white or white on black screen output
• Enable the M1Not modification - this allows machine code routines to run in the 32K-48K RAM region of memory.
• Turbo function, which enables the machine to operate at 6.5Mhz compared to the original ZX81 speed of 3.25Mhz. In SLOW mode, the computer will automatically drop out of TURBO to generate the display and switch back when performing another operation.

Each feature can be controlled from within software using a simple POKE command, thereby allowing you to disable Turbo for some programs, and enable it for others.

You can purchase the ZX-ULA2 from SellMyRetro.com

Replies: 3
Views: 27135
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Wed Nov 09, 2011 3:23 pm
Topic By: RWAP ON: Wed Nov 09, 2011 3:23 pm
There are now some more ZXpand and ZXpand-AY modules available for sale -

http://www.sellmyretro.com/offer/details/1930

and

http://www.sellmyretro.com/offer/details/1929

Replies: 1
Views: 3721
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:52 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:52 am
We have now released this fix as the ZXvid - see viewtopic.php?f=6&t=69 for more details

Replies: 0
Views: 8840
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:51 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:51 am
We have now launched the ZXvid module for the Sinclair ZX81.

This replaces the inner workings of the UM1233 TV UHF modulator built into the ZX81 to provide a stable composite video out, plus fixes the missing back porch latch issue on some ULAs (which causes black text on a very dark screen).

Compatible with all types of TV, including LCD and LED television sets.

Buy the ZXvid module on sellmyretro.com

Replies: 15
Views: 199710
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:48 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:48 am
We still have a couple of DivIDE Plus units available for sale

Replies: 24
Views: 366341
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Tue Oct 25, 2011 8:34 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Tue Oct 25, 2011 8:34 am

gtsamour wrote:I am under the impression I have a lesser version than 1.2 but i have to check on that...

You are emailing the latest versions to people that bought the fw selector right?

Replies: 24
Views: 366341
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Tue Oct 25, 2011 8:34 am
Topic By: gtsamour ON: Tue Oct 25, 2011 6:15 am
I am under the impression I have a lower version than 1.2 but i have to check on that...

You are emailing the latest versions to people that bought the fw selector right?

Replies: 0
Views: 9740
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Thu Oct 20, 2011 11:33 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Thu Oct 20, 2011 11:33 am
The plug-in sound module has now been released for the Sinclair ZX81 ZXpand.

The module cannot be used on its own, as it plugs into the rear of the ZXpand interface.

The ZXpand-AY Sound Module is a full AY sound interface for the Sinclair ZX81, and Timex-Sinclair TS/1000, TS/1500 Home Computers which plugs into our own ZXpand interface to provide the computer with AY sound output and a joystick port.

The ZXpand-AY Sound Module comes complete with a full Yamaha YM1249 sound chip (equivalent to the AY-3-8910) and an Atari style DB-9 joystick port. The ZXpand-AY module is fully Zon-X compatible, and uses a mixer circuit to provide stereo output.

Files can be converted using MIDI2AY and then using a custom ZX81 player.

More details and to order - see http://www.sellmyretro.com/offer/detail ... odule-1859

Replies: 24
Views: 366341
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Tue Oct 25, 2011 8:34 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Thu Oct 20, 2011 11:31 am
It is rather quiet....

I have been busy on other projects I guess.

The latest version of the firmware selector is v1.2 - although I know Tygrys was working on v1.3 so I have emailed him to see where it stands.

Replies: 24
Views: 366341
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Tue Oct 25, 2011 8:34 am
Topic By: gtsamour ON: Wed Oct 19, 2011 10:22 am
WOW
this forum is a real ghost town...

So, whats the latest version of the Firmware selector? I think I'm still left with v1.0 on mine but its been a while since i used it so im not sure...

Replies: 15
Views: 199710
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:48 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Sat Aug 20, 2011 2:10 pm
Finally, we have a small batch of DivIDE Plus interfaces available - http://www.sellmyretro.com/search?keywo ... zip=&type=

Replies: 3
Views: 27135
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Wed Nov 09, 2011 3:23 pm
Topic By: RWAP ON: Mon May 30, 2011 4:29 pm
We are pleased to announce the launch of the ZXpand Interface for the Sinclair ZX81 Home Computer.

The ZXpand interface is a brand new interface for the Sinclair ZX81 Home Computer which provides the following facilities:

• SD Memory Card reader - for instant loading from / saving to .p files (used by ZX81 emulators)

• 32K of configurable RAM memory, which can then be set up to use the various hi-resolution graphics schemes for the Sinclair ZX81

• New keywords are added to the system ROM to allow you to load and save programs, produce a catalogue of files on the memory card, configure the ZXpand Interface, and delete files.

• You can still load programs from cassette as well as using the interface, to allow you to copy files onto the SD memory card

• Sub-directories are supported on the memory card.

• The new ROM can be switched off once a program is loaded for full compatability.

• There is a built in reset button to reset the ZX81 without having to pull the power lead.

• You can connect a 9 pin joystick socket to enable you to use it with specially written games, or converted games, such as the latest game, 'Nanako in Classic Japanese Monster Castle '81' by the Mojon Twins.

• We are working on a daughterboard which will plug into the ZXpand and provide an AY sound card!

The current version of the ZXPand EPROM is v3 - we are still working on v4, which main feature is for instant start-up of the ZXpand. If you have an EPROM programmer, we can supply the upgrade files as they are released, or else can offer an upgrade service for a small fee (£5 plus postage)

The manual (in English and Spanish) can be downloaded from http://www.rwapsoftware.co.uk/zx812.html

Price Only £50 plus postage

Available only through SellMyRetro.com - the trading platform for retro computer enthusiasts - http://www.sellmyretro.com/search/naturalSearch?keyword=zxpand

Replies: 5
Views: 25147
Last Post By: straycat ON: Sun May 15, 2011 11:26 am
Topic By: straycat ON: Sun May 15, 2011 11:26 am
I've seen some of these cases before - there's some good ideas about.

I'll be gauging interest before progressing my design - if anyone's interested in a refined version of the case I'm offering (for horizontal CFs only at the moment) drop me an email or pm. Cost will depend on how many produced and materials, I'd estimate around £15.

Replies: 5
Views: 25147
Last Post By: straycat ON: Sun May 15, 2011 11:26 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Sat May 14, 2011 9:25 am
You might also want to check out the thread on the worldofspectrum.org forums -

http://www.worldofspectrum.org/forums/s ... hp?t=34354

There are some nice alternatives there too!

Replies: 5
Views: 25147
Last Post By: straycat ON: Sun May 15, 2011 11:26 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Fri May 13, 2011 12:26 pm
I guess it all depends on cost really and how many people have the horizontally mounted CF card adaptors.

I could of course help you market this product if you wanted to do it for some profit.

Replies: 5
Views: 25147
Last Post By: straycat ON: Sun May 15, 2011 11:26 am
Topic By: straycat ON: Fri May 13, 2011 11:55 am
My case design needs some refinement to smoothen the edges. It doesn't overlap the Spectrum itself though so there's very little contact between the case and the computer.

The vertical mounting CFs make for a slightly greater challenge. The main problem is I don't have one to work with at the moment so I only have ideas.

I'm thinking of doing a small run of a refined version of the case in the future, if there's enough interest

Replies: 5
Views: 25147
Last Post By: straycat ON: Sun May 15, 2011 11:26 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Thu May 12, 2011 10:45 pm
Actually, a lot of people ask about cases for the original DivIDE - I quite like the appeal of a perspex case, but have two reservations:

a) The sharp edges and possibility of scratching the ZX Spectrum!
b) Whether a version would be possible which allowed for vertical mounting of the CF slot also as this seems quite popular.

Replies: 5
Views: 25147
Last Post By: straycat ON: Sun May 15, 2011 11:26 am
Topic By: straycat ON: Thu May 12, 2011 10:59 am
I thought sharing some photos of my prototype perspex case may interest some of you - I've put some pictures on my website:

http://www.loftcatsoftware.com/tech/DivIDE/divIDE.html

I have an old DivIDE board with a horizontal CF adapter.

I'd be very interested to hear what other DivIDE owners think of it!

Replies: 1
Views: 4804
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Tue Apr 19, 2011 9:30 am
Topic By: RWAP ON: Tue Apr 19, 2011 9:30 am
There is now a much more readily available and easy option for anyone who needs to replace a disk drive on an old computer, or even industrial equipment.

The HxC Floppy Disk Drive emulator connects to any standard Shugart compatible floppy disk controller (as used on most floppy disk drives since the mid 1980s) and allows you to store floppy disk images on an SD memory card.

So far as the equipment is concerned it is simply talking to a standard floppy disk drive. The interface can even replicate having two disk drives attached at the same time.

The interface needs an external floppy disk drive power supply connector (5V only) and the cable from your computer disk interface. You will also need any SD memory card (64MB to 32GB). Software is provided which can run under Windows to allow you to convert various disk image formats into the special disk image files used by the emulator card.

Tested on a range of computers and industrial equipment, this interface is known to work successfully with the following:

* Any computer / piece of equipment that uses PC formatted floppy disks (3.5", 5.25" or even 8" drives)
* Atari ST/STF/Falcon
* Amstrad CPC6128
* Commodore Amiga (currently write only)
* Dragon 32 / 64 (VDK or JVC disk format, which should also therefore work with the Tandy CoCo)
* Emax and Emax II Sampler
* Ensoniq Mirage Sampler
* Korg DSS-1 Synthesizer
* MSX2
* Oberheim DPX1 Sampler
* Oric Computer (with MicroDisk)
* PC
* PC88
* SAM Coupe *.MGT and *.SAD formats
* Sinclair QL raw disk images
* Sinclair ZX Spectrum +3 or Sinclair ZX Spectrum with PlusD disk Interface
* Super Wildcard DS-SWC3201
* Thomson TO8D
* TI99/4A
* x68000

Best of all, it is a low cost solution, with the The HxC Floppy Disk Drive emulator costing just over £70 - compared to other solutions which cost over £200 !!

Replies: 3
Views: 27135
Last Post By: RWAP ON: Wed Nov 09, 2011 3:23 pm
Topic By: RWAP ON: Sat Mar 05, 2011 10:14 pm
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the launch of the ZX81 (5th March 1981), we have now released more details of the ZXpander interface and uploaded the draft manual onto our website:

http://www.rwapsoftware.co.uk/zx812.html