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Two easy +2 hardware questions

richardhunt500richardhunt500
edited July 2009 in Hardware
I'm thinking about getting some extra hardware for my grey +2. First of all, one or two Kempston interfaces:
- Do many games actually support two Sinclair joysticks?
- I have a C64 competition pro, will this work with the Kempston interface?

I would also like to get some kind of flash drive, something like the DivIDE/DivIDE Plus:
- Are any of these actually available at the moment? The sites mentioned on the DivIDE site don't have any stock.
- Is there anything similar that uses SD cards instead of Compact Flash?

Thanks,
Richard
Post edited by richardhunt500 on

Comments

  • Zetr0Zetr0
    edited July 2009
    Hiyas Richard,

    Imma new around here but I can help you with some of those questions.

    Joystick Interfaces,

    a kempston interface allows you to use regular joystics from atari / amiga / megadrive etc.

    I think its more the fact that there are Kempston joystick games than Sinclair specific joystick games. I believe most games offer a Define your keys option and this is easly mapped to an sjs Joystick

    I think the hardest thing to come-by is a working sinclar compatible joystick... As most joysticks are not compatible with the port (they have a differing pinout) your stuck in a lot of reguards..

    Instead of suffering with no-joystick or crappy non-fully-working sinclair pap, I opened up my Specky +2 and wired on 2 more 9pin ports converting them as I went using an atari pinout from the sinclair ports underneath. this means I can use regular 9pin Joypads even megadrive pad etc... I have a PSX pad to Amiga convery here somewhere I must try that LOL. I will say that this doens't make it Kempston ports, just an atari compatible sinclair ports :D

    Recently I received my DivIDE, (the DivIDE+ is for the Spectrum +2A/2B & +3) I think that these models have a different pin out on the expansion bus and requre the DivIDE+, but i could be wrong so please check.

    I have my DivIDE connected to a 2GB Compact Flash, it is AWESOME! although you could get an and SD to IDE converter for a few pennies

    3.5" version ?5.98 + ?2.66 pnp

    40pin female IDE to SD ?8.48 free PNP

    Compact flash is a lot cheaper to be fair and its a proven technology with a good explaination on how to get it running.

    I got my DivIDE from Nobby over at http://www.divide.cz/

    But you can also order them from http://baze.au.com/divide/ and http://www.rwapsoftware.co.uk/spectrum/spectrum_storage.html

    hope that helps.

    if you need pinouts to add atari compatible ports to your +2 let me know and I will rustle them up.
  • stevestorrstevestorr
    edited July 2009
    Richard,

    On the DIVide...there are 2 active on ebay but be quick...

    http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/zx-spectrum-divide-57c_W0QQitemZ130315734848QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_VintageComputing_RL?hash=item1e576c4f40&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A12|66%3A2|39%3A1|72%3A1683|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50

    they come with CF adapter (with PSU mod) and 1gb CF card.

    Hope this helps...:-)

    Steve Storr
  • richardhunt500richardhunt500
    edited July 2009
    Thanks a lot for your advice, I have ordered a Kempston to SJS-1 adapter from RWAP services, and I'll see how it goes with my joystick.

    I'm going to hold back on the DivIDE just now, I think I probably want a DivIDE+ but I'm finding it hard to get a hold on exactly what I'd be getting with these devices apart from convenience. Is loading from .tap images significantly faster than loading with a tape adapter and WinTZX?

    Thanks,
    Richard
  • HerculesHercules
    edited July 2009
    richardhunt500 wrote: »
    Thanks a lot for your advice, I have ordered a Kempston to SJS-1 adapter from RWAP services, and I'll see how it goes with my joystick.

    I use same adapter. Any 9 pin atari wired joystick will work. I use an old atari vcs joystick :-)
    richardhunt500 wrote: »
    I'm going to hold back on the DivIDE just now, I think I probably want a DivIDE+ but I'm finding it hard to get a hold on exactly what I'd be getting with these devices apart from convenience. Is loading from .tap images significantly faster than loading with a tape adapter and WinTZX?

    DivIDE + is like searching for the holy grail. RWAP did them, but Jarek / Jurek who was suppose to be building them on behalf of RWAP software is very unreliable. I waited 10 months and ended up cancelling my order with them and got a standard Divide from zaxon.

    Compared with WinTZX and Otla that offer ultra high fast loading via high sampling rates and a reliable sound source, Divide 57c interface loads stuff instantly :-)
  • richardhunt500richardhunt500
    edited July 2009
    Just posting to say thanks for the advice. I also ordered a divide from the ebay link above.

    Of course, the first couple of games that I tried didn't support Sinclair joysticks or redefined keys, but Dynamite Dan has a sensible default, so I'm happy.

    I had a couple of scares with the divide before I got it working properly. It's working now and it's extremely impressive, although I haven't managed to load every tap that I tried. Getting straight back into Zeus assembler after I make a silly mistake is good, but am I right that it is not possible to use my tape machine to save while the divide is plugged in?

    My problem now is that with instant loading it's just too tempting to switch between games when I get frustrated. Five minute loads were quite an incentive to stick with a game...
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