A few questions on what hardware to buy...
Hello
First post here. I never had a Spectrum as a kid, but a few of my friends had one. I used to love playing the games on them - I have very fond memories of playing Cronos, Booty and Penetrator, to name a few.
I'm looking at trying to get hold of a Spectrum so I can play all the games again. I've heard that buying a DivIDE is the best way to go these days, but I'm unsure what Spectrum model to go for, for the best games compatibility (48k, +2, QL etc).
Any advice will be much appreciated.
Cheers
First post here. I never had a Spectrum as a kid, but a few of my friends had one. I used to love playing the games on them - I have very fond memories of playing Cronos, Booty and Penetrator, to name a few.
I'm looking at trying to get hold of a Spectrum so I can play all the games again. I've heard that buying a DivIDE is the best way to go these days, but I'm unsure what Spectrum model to go for, for the best games compatibility (48k, +2, QL etc).
Any advice will be much appreciated.
Cheers
Post edited by Agent4125 on
Comments
schombi.de/my-retro-collection.html"
Till very recently there was indeed no alternative to the DivIDE.
schombi.de/my-retro-collection.html"
The +2 and +3 models do have 2 built in joystick ports. However you can't just plug in a standard Atari joystick to these sockets. This is due to Amstrad wiring the sockets up differently and try to make you use there own SJS joysticks, which there plugs are wired correctly for these Spectrums. There is a few work arounds though. Some joystick are fitted with 2 plugs. 1 Black and 1 grey. The grey plug is wired for +2/+3 Spectrum's. You can also buy an interface with a plug on 1 end and a socket on the other. This converts the wiring so you can use then any Atari standard joystick.
With the +2 being a 128K machine, you will be able to enjoy AY tunes and other extras in 128K games too. They also have a built in cassette recorder which is all preset so no messing around with volume and tone controls.
www.Zxjoydapter.info :)
As a general question, whats the best way to get a picture on a +2b ?
I always thought that was the better machine.
A Spectrum 128k +2 A/B (or +3)
Add a mass storage device like a DivIDE (ESXDOS) or 8bit IDE +3eDOS and its a dream!
and relatively cheap, one could easily get a working 128k +2B (black) and an 8bit IDE mass storage device for the price of a DivIDE these days.
It has its downsides like the idiotic removal of the EAR pin from the tape/sound connector meaning you have no alternative to the crappy datacorder but generally speaking I would agree. The design and build quality of the Amstrad machines is so much better than Sinclair's for example the machine doesn't melt its ram and die horribly when you bump into it and knock a peripheral out of the expansion slot ;)
There are quirks and mistakes on the first couple of board revisions but the final version, the ISSUE 4, is pretty close to perfect in my opinion. As you say, they fixed the glaring error with the sound that the +2A/+3 had.
There are caveats such as the disabled tape input and the incompatibilities with some software that abused the cheap and nasty nature of the sinclair design. They're not really faults as they're caused by improvements to the hardware but it puts some people off.
Not mentioned yet in this thread, but a QL is not a Spectrum!
schombi.de/my-retro-collection.html"
thanks for the answer,
my +2A / B has a mic-ear socket too! it must have been a mod?
I went for a +3, because I wanted to "quickly" load games from disk. This is all well and good, but you don't need to worry about loading from disk (or indeed from tape) if you get yourself a DivIDE.
I bought a tape deck, too. My plan was buy the games I used to know and love, then load them, then save them to disk. Again - no real need to load from tape/disk if using a DivIDE; moreover no need to buy a tape deck at all if you have a laptop with mic and ear sockets since you can use software to load TZX files (from the archives here) directly from your laptop. I found this out only after realising that my tape deck wasn't actually suitable for loading games (although the eBay seller refunded me my purchase, which was cool). I also needed to spend a couple of quid on a tape lead for the +3 (the lead is different to other models) - I still use it for connecting up my laptop to the +3 so not a waste as such, but if since I'm not using a tape deck I could have probably avoided spending those extra couple of quid too.
I also bought a multiface 3 - I intended to use this to save to disk after having loaded my game from tape. It's quite a cool gadget, but personally I've found it to have limited use. I suppose I might still use it for pokes etc, and it's cool for saving snapshots of adventure games (so I can create a save point, rather than either needing to finish the whole game or abandon and have to restart from scratch later). But on balance, I'm not sure it was worth me spending the money on it.
I also bought a DivIDE setup. However - I didn't research properly, and bought the first one I found. Then I needed to buy a CF card, and a CF card to IDE adaptor. In fact I could have bought a newer revision of the DivIDE - in fact I could have bought the whole package (including CF card and adaptor) - for less than I paid for my old-skool DivIDE. So the moral is: check out your options. There are at least 2 versions of DivIDE - there's the 57c (the old-skool one which I have) and there's the 2K11 version (I think). I believe a board member here - velesoft - has made limited run of an updated version of the 57c, but I can't remember what it's called. So essentially: 2 or even 3 versions. At least.
If you get a DivIDE, get small capacity and SLOW CF card. The transfer rate will have a negligible affect on load times, since the data involved is so small. You need very low capacity cards, otherwise you may need to provide power to the CF card. I got a 4GB card (not quite the cheapest I could find, as I went for a slightly faster one - I should have saved my money and got the slower one) but I still need to modify my DivIDE to provide power to the card. If you can get 2GB or under, you'll probably not need to worry about providing power to the card.
Finally - as has already been said - whatever else you buy, totally totally buy yourself an RGB cable to plug into your TV. I started using the TV out, and the picture was as I remember from when I was a kid: blurry, and not particularly clear. Plugging in the RGB cable to SCART was like a breath of fresh air. Instant clarity. It's just not worth bothering with TV out for the sake of a ?10 (or so) cable.
Finally finally - though not really hardware related - it seems that you don't really need to buy the games on tape/disk that you used to own. I actually bought several games (and am still buying some) because that's the sort of nerd I am. But in most cases you don't need to. Check the archive here, and you'll see distribution status of games. Many are allowed which means you legally don't need to buy the original. There are a few notable exceptions, but in general you should be sorted. In my case I quite like the Dizzy series of adventure games - but sadly Codemasters have denied distribution, so if you want these then technically speaking you should obtain the originals and load them from tape (or rip them to a format suitable for a DivIDE).
My +3 was kind of an impulse buy, as was quite a lot of the kit I initially bought. Hopefully there's some experience in there that'll help you make your decisions :)
Dan.
The +2A/B (Black) cost me ?15 and the IDE Adaptor kit (including 256MB CF Card) is about ?28.
I wrote a small launcher for games
With thanks to our fellow forum chummy nuggetreggae - I was able to include some generally thought incompatible games (like JetPac)
There are some great threads on here with lots of help so have a read on
Adding IDE to your Spectrum
Adding / converting TAP files to your IDE hard disk
Adding Snapshots and General Files to you IDE equipped Spectrum
I will say that the 8/16bit IDE solution is a lot more hands on compared to the DivIDE, however out of the box the IDE solution allows you to SAVE as well as LOAD, so if you are inclined to write programs on the target machine or even prefer to play Disk based games then - the simple IDE solution could be for you.
Thanks for all the replies. I'm quite happy paying a little more to get a rubber-key 48k, since I'm a bit of a nostalgia freak - I believe though that I'd need to hack the machine to get an RGB connection?... which I'm fine doing as long as its fairly simple :) I actually have 2 choices for video... I have a 14" sony trinitron TV, and a philips CM8833-II monitor.
Would a 48k run a DivIDE ok? The newer version sounds the best bet and I'm fine getting a low-capacity slow CF card for it. I had a quick look on ebay for the newer version of the DiVIDE but didn't find any. Are they hard to come by?
Also, that 1bis interface looks good too. I take it this is quite a newcomer? Has anyone used one of these? Is this now generally preferable to the DivIDE? I'm not planning on using the Specrtrum for anything more than playing the old games I used to play as a kid.
Thanks again!
you are most welcome =)
if you are thinking of a humble rubber key 48k spectrum, then the DivIDE is certainly for you IMHO - I would also look out for a Joystick (Kempston) interface with a through port.
I believe Ben (Beverstee) has a solution for this and maybe able to sell you the full kit. Alternatively - Lotherek produces the DivIDE 2011 and I believe is available to buy in his online store.
I would humbly suggest that you consider upgrading the DivIDE to also run EXSDOS - this is a OS environment of sorts and allows all many of fun and mischief as mounting disk images, tap files with the ability to load and save - while its only a ROM upgrade, its bloody fantastic one!
My sincere thanks, it will be released FREE very soon.
The one in the picture is proof-of-concept and is hard coded, the one I have nearly finished loads game lists in, can make game lists (like favourites) add / remove games and has a game search function =)
In terms of use its very similar to AG-Launch I wrote for the Amiga.
LMAO!!!!
1) its not my monitor
2) its a junk one LOL
Keep in mind if you do go for a 48K or a Plus model, that you may well need to fit a new keyboard membrane, as these have a limited life. Yes! :smile: On a 48K machine, all versions of the DivIDE will work okay. They are manufactured in small batches, so availability is variable. Not all sellers use eBay. I can post some links to two sources later if you wish ;)
Mark
Repair Guides. Spanish Hardware site.
WoS - can't download? Info here...
former Meulie Spectrum Archive but no longer available :-(
Spectranet: the TNFS directory thread
! Standby alert !
“There are four lights!”
Step up to red alert. Sir, are you absolutely sure? It does mean changing the bulb!
Looking forward to summer in Somerset later in the year :)
@Zetr0 - PM sent! :)
http://www.fruitcake.plus.com/Sinclair/Spectrum/Spectra/SpectraInterface.htm
I intend to buy one at some point soon.
the later amstrad machines are easier to faff around with.. and the grey +2's are probably the most common one I see / have (I have about maybe 15 of them I guess).. the +3 has a sound issue and a lot of the +2's I get have tape deck problems
although forget divide's .. you want real tapes ;-) haha.. joking aside I have/use both.
New YouTube Demo - Featuring the +3e Launcher
(click to play)
=)