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Newsgroups: comp.sys.cbm,comp.answers,news.answers Subject: COMP.SYS.CBM: General FAQ, v3.0 Part 3/4 Summary: This posting contains answers to questions that commonly surface in comp.sys.cbm. This posting will tell you enough to get your computer connected to a network, fixed, and/or enhanced. This file should be read by new users of comp.sys.cbm before posting to the group. It should also be proofread by users who are currently active in comp.sys.cbm. Keywords: CBM FAQ Help List C64 C128 VIC Modem Followup-To: comp.sys.cbm Organization: Brain Innovations, Inc. Reply-To: brain@mail.msen.com Message-ID: <cbmmainfaq30895@msen.com> Supersedes: <cbmmainfaq30795@msen.com> Expires: 05 Sep 1995 Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDU Archive-name: cbm-main-faq.3.0.p3 Comp-answers-archive-name: commodore/main-faq/part3 News-answers-archive-name: commodore/main-faq/part3 Comp-sys-cbm-archive-name: main-faq/part3 Version: 3.0 Last-modified: 1995/08/04 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents (for this file) --------------------------------- 8. Operating Systems 8.1. What Operating Systems are available? 8.2. What is GEOS? 8.3. What is UNIX? 8.4. What is CP/M 9. Demonstrations 9.1. Just what is a demonstration, or demo? 9.2. What does NTSC and PAL mean? 9.3. Where do I get demos? 9.4. What is a demo competition? 9.5 What does FLI, DYCP, etc. mean? 10. Emulators 10.1. What is an emulator? 10.2. What platforms do 64 emulators exist on? 10.3. What platforms do 128 emulators exist on? 10.4. Are any other Commodore computers emulated? 11. Troubleshooting 11.1. What do I do for my ill disk drive? 11.2. What do I do for my ill computer? 11.2.1. What do I do for my ill Commodore 64? 11.2.2. What do I do for my ill Commodore 128? 11.3. What do I do for my ill keyboard? 12. Modifications and Cabling 12.1. How can you alter which side a 1571 reads from? 12.2. How do I open a C128 power supply? 12.3. How do I make a cable to hook my CBM 1902A to my 64 or 128? 12.4. How do I build a simple RS-232 interface cable? 12.5. How do I build a 2400/9600 bps RS-232 interface cable? 13. Enhancements 13.1. How do I increase my disk drive's transfer speed? 13.1.1. What is a Fastloader? 13.1.2. What is a ROM replacement? 13.1.3. What are the disadvantages to using a drive enhancement? 13.1.4. What other things can I do to speed up the drive? 13.2. How do I expand my disk drive's capacity? 13.2.1. What is a Hard Drive? Who sell them? 13.2.2. What is 64NET? 13.3. How do I expand my computer's RAM capacity? 13.3.1. What is a Ram Expansion Unit? 13.3.2. What is a geoRAM Unit? 13.3.3. What is battery backed GeoRAM (BBGRam)? 13.3.4. What is a RAMLink? 13.3.5. What is a RAMDrive? 13.3.6. How do I expand my C128 Video RAM? 13.3.7. How do I expand my C64 internally? 13.3.8. How do I expand my C128 internally? 13.4. How do I increase my computer's speed? 13.4.1. How do I increase my Commodore 64's speed? 13.4.2. How do I increase my Commodore 128's speed? 13.4.3. Can I speed up other Commodore computers? 13.5. How do I increase my computer screen's resolution? 13.5.1. How do I increase my Commodore 64's screen resolution? 13.5.2. How do I increase my Commodore 128's screen resolution? 13.5.3. How do I increase other CBM computers' resolutions? 13.6. How do I increase my computer's serial transfer speed? 13.7. How do I increase my computer's sound quality? 13.8. What other ways can I expand my Commodore computer? --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8. Operating Systems Most Commodore users aren't aware that each machine has an operating system. Since all Commodore systems come complete with a built in operating system and BASIC programming language, the need for an operating system is minimized. However, Commodore's internal OS is not always the right tool for the job, so alternate OS systems are available for the CBM. 8.1. What Operating Systems are available? Well, Commodore computers come with a standard operating system built in ROM. They also contain a built in BASIC interpreter which is normally activated after switching on or resetting the computer. If you want alternative options to replace the existing OS, there are a few that may suit your needs. GEOS is the best known, but a number of people have made UNIX-like operating system replacements for the Commodore 64 and 128. Also, on the 128, CP/M is available out-of-the-box. (see below for details on different OS types.) 8.2. What is GEOS? GEOS stands for Graphical Environment Operating System. It is a Graphical User Interface (GUI) style of OS, and it brings to the Commodore 64 and 128 integrated applications. The graphical nature of GEOS allows applications to use fonts of any size, bitmaps, and menus and mice. The system was Designed by Berkeley Softworks, now GEOWorks, and is supported now by CMD. There are a number of graphical style GEOS applications, like GEOWrite, GEOPaint, GEOPublish, GEOTerm, etc. The system is very easy to use, and is very fast, even when compared to other GUIs like Windows and OS/2. GEOS can make very effective use of a Ram Expansion Unit, a RAMDrive or RAMLink, or GEORam. GEOS allows you to configure your REU to appear just like another (very fast) disk drive, although it does not keep its contents when you turn your computer off. So, any GEOS software that works off of a disk will work out of your REU. Since GEOS is very disk-intensive, this greatly improves the performance of your system. Indeed, some firm GEOS adherents have said that they would not use GEOS without a RAM device of some sort. GEOS will not work with a stock 1700. To have a RAM drive, in GEOS, you must have at least 256K of expansion. Thanks to patches developed by Jim Collette(configure2.1), GEOS also supports 1 Meg, 1.5 Meg, and 2 Meg REUs. GEOS files are structured differently from standard Commodore files. They cannot be uploaded or downloaded directly. Before you upload a GEOS file, use the freeware GEOS application convert2.5 by W.C. Coleman to convert it to Commodore format. When you download a GEOS file, you must use the same program to convert it to GEOS format. By convention, GEOS format files converted to standard Commodore format have a .cvt on the end; however, many converted GEOS files just have the same name as the original GEOS file. As a rule of thumb, any GEOS file you download, regardless of the extension, must be converted to GEOS format with convert2.5. If you download an archive of GEOS files (e.g. a .arc or .sda file containing GEOS files), you must first dissolve the archive using your C64 or C128 in native mode. The constituents of the archive will be converted GEOS files, whether or not they have the .cvt extension. Each of these constituents (which are GEOS files) must be individually converted to GEOS format with convert2.5. If you need some help with GEOS or any aspect of it, I refer you to Myles Skinner at mskinner@julian.uwo.ca. He is one of many people who use GEOS every day and can be of help. 8.3. What is UNIX? UNIX is an OS that was developed by Bell Laboratories in the 1960's and is now used on many workstations. It is a multi-user, multi-process OS that has extensive support from the educational and commercial communities. Internet and Usenet are primarily a collection of UNIX workstations networked together. The UNIX-like OS replacements for Commodore computers mainly emulate the shell of UNIX, where programs are run by merely typing in their name. Other aspects of UNIX, such as multiple processes are supported by some of the offering, which are: Asterix. - A UNIX-Look-and-feel Shell replacement for 64 UNIX128. - A small implementation of UNIX for the 128. ACE 128/64.- A new offering which borrows the UNIX shell look for 64 and 128. It is available at ftp.funet.fi in /pub/cbm/csbruce. 8.4. What is CP/M CP/M stands for Control Program for Microcomputers and is available on every Commodore 128. There is also a CP/M cartridge available for the Commodore 64, but it cannot read CP/M disks, just 1541 formatted disks, and there are questions concerning its ability to work with all revisions of the Commodore 64. CP/M was very popular in the early eighties before MS-DOS became popular. It requires a Z-80 microprocessor, which the 128 has, or an 8080 processor, and a disk drive capable of reading CP/M disks, such as the 1571. If you don't need to read existing CP/M formatted disks, then a 1541 could also be used. This operating system is the one that MS-DOS was modeled after, so there are a lot of similarities. If you are interested in using CP/M as your primary OS, then please check out the newsgroup comp.os.cpm, as they have more info on the current events concerning CP/M. The version of CP/M used on the 128 is 3.0, commonly called CP/M Plus. It is compatible with earlier versions of CP/M but adds some new features. The copy of CP/M 3.0 that ships with the 128 was specially modified to allow use of the features of the 128, such as the Ram Expansion Unit as a RAM disk, the SID chip, and the extra RAM of the 128. In the March 1994 issue of dieHard, Mike Gordillo gave an overview of the CP/M operating system. It is one of many such articles that should be read by anyone new to CP/M. 9. Demonstrations Very few Commodore enthusiasts have never seen a demonstration, yet many aren't really sure what one is. Well, since these programs are still alive and strong in the 1990's, we need to answer some of their mysteries (but not all of them, as their job is to amaze). 9.1. Just what is a demonstration, or demo? A demonstration, or "demo" as they are known, is a piece of software that is designed to provoke a visually and aurally pleasing effect from the computer. This usually involves large amounts of multi-colored graphics, complex synthesized or digitized sounds, and orchestrated movement of shapes or color schemes on the screen. Demos originated as introductions to "cracked" games, games in which the copy protection had been rendered useless. As time wore on, the standard abilities of the computer were all used in demos, and rival "cracker" teams raced to bring out the best demo. In the search for the "best demo", demo authors, or "coders", tried to maximize the use of the computer in a demo program. Also, they exploited any undocumanted feature the computer could provide. Since most of the circuits in the Commodore computers were multi-purpose, experienced coders could use some of their features in non-standard ways. Some examples: Removing the top and bottom border. Removing the side borders. Placing text (text mapped sprites) in the open borders. More than 8 sprites on screen at once. pseudo interlacing to create illusion of up to 640*400 resolution. Since the commercial game market has shrunk significantly over the past few years, and since demos are sometimes too involved to be classified as a game into, many demos are packaged so they can "stand-on-their-own". Users can download a demo, load it up, and run it like any other program. As demos got more involved, some coders produced cutting-edge technology demos intended to "one-up" their rival coders, while others made artistic, but less technically challenging demos for arts sake. Either way, it is important to note that demos are not usually interactive. They are meant to be viewed and listened to. Demos are mostly passive entertainment, and appreciation for the effects generated in a demo increases as one realizes the normal limitations of the Commodore line of computers. So, sit back, load up a demo, run it, and enjoy. 9.2. What does NTSC and PAL mean? These two acronyms refer to the type of TV broadcasting signals used to create the video picture on your TV or monitor. American, Japanese, and Canadians use NTSC, while a good part of Europe uses PAL. This usually makes no difference to programs, as the C64 and C128 in C64 mode always present 200 lines of pixels to the video display. However, since the PAL standard allows more lines to be displayed on the screen and has a slower screen refresh time, the PAL computer has more time before screen refreshes to perform other operations, and also can put more information on the screen in some cases, since there are more lines in a PAL dislpay. Since demos use highly optimized timing and complex routines to perform the effects, some demos can only be written for PAL machines. Sometimes, a demo is written for a PAL machine, but it can be made to run on an NTSC machine. Demos that can run on both machines without any code modification are called regular demos, those that can only run on PAL machines are PAL demos, PAL demos that have been modified to run on NTSC machines are called NTSC-fixed demos, and NTSC demos that have been modified to run on PAL machines (rare) are called PAL-fixed demos. 9.3. Where do I get demos? There is a whole site full of demos. They are located in the /pub/cbm/c64/demos directory of nic.funet.fi. See section 5.4 for directions on how to transfer files from this site. 9.4. What is a demo competition? This is a "convetion" where people from the demo "scene" get together. They are usually held in Europe, although other countries do have them. Coders get together and exhibit previously unreleased demos in a competition where the best ones are ranked according to a subjective scoring system. At the end of the competition, the demos are released to the public. To make things somewhat fair, demos are judged according to computer type, so Amiga demos do not get judged alongside 64 demos. These competitions are usually held in conjunction with music or art competitions. Most demo competitions are held within Europe due to copyright laws and stuff. Previous pardies (demos parties, or competitions) held were:- Event Location Date ----- -------- ---- Radwar Pardy Germany January 1994 Pardy III Denmark Decemeber 1993 Chormance & Faces Pardy Hungary December 1993 Elysium Pardy Poland Decemeber 1993 Entropy Pardy Holland June 1993 Assembley '93 Pardy Finland May 1993 The Computer Crossroads Sweden April 1993 Radwar Pardy Germany January 1993 Duration 1993-1994 (March 1994) Most pardies are held when all the schools are on hoildays. The point of a copy pardy is to go there with your computer, meet other computer friends from other groups and swap different warez, meet other members of your group and using the combined skills from the members (graphics/coding/musix/spreading), write a demo before the closing time for the pardy so it can get voted on. The winner comes away with about 300 Kronar or similar. 9.5 What does FLI, DYCP, etc. mean? Here is a small incomplete list of acronyms used to describe the different effects used in demos: Compiled by: Chief/Padua MAD/Padua Virus/The Acient Temple (UK) Jargon Description ------ ----------- Different Y/X Routines: DYCP Different Y Char Position. Can run 4 sinus tables though it. Each letter can have a sperate sinus tables per character. DYPP Different Y Pixel Position. DYSP Different Y Sprite Position. DYXCP Different Y/X Char Position. Like DYCP with coordinate X/Y movement. Works with Bobs. (Well is a bob routine really). DYPPTT Different Y Pixel Position Tech Tech. Same as a DYXPP. TT means tech tech. FPP/FPD Flexible Pixel Posistion/Fexible Pixel Distance FLD Flexible Line Distance. AFLIFPP Advanced Flexible Line Interpretation Fexible Pixel Position. Graphics: Graphics In the upper/lower border (Bitmap/4 Colour) FLI Fexible Pixel Posistion. Full screen. AFLI Advanced Flexible Line Interpretation. Hi-RES same as amiga graphics. Gives all 16 colours in an 4x8 character block unlike usual 3 found in bitmap. Morphing Picture Coverting from One image to another. Ray Tracing Maths graphics. Scrollers:- Bob Scroll Using character to display a text based scroller with light source. Sprite: Zoomers Sprite based stretching. Serious side border routines. Sprite stretching above the standard Double Y expansion Sprite Multi-Plexing Vector: Standard Lots of vector routines, too many to mention. Shade TV Box Shadow Vector Under Rubber Morphing Glenz Light Source Pixelized Solid Filled Plamsa Rubber Fractal Shade Bobs Shade Line Plotting: Star Balls 3D Star Field. Dot Potters Just dot plotters. Plot Scroll Dot Plot scrollers. Maths: Plasma Very hard to explain Fractals You know these. D011/D018 D011 Split Charset on one side of the screen - Vectical splits in which is Vecticaliy impossible - an on the other side of the split you get a FLI or Bitmap Image). Flexer Bit like a Sprite stretcher. Bitmap Hardware Swing/Scroll Swing. Veritcal Rasters 10. Emulators As time moves on, people move to other computer systems, for business resons or otherwise. However, many still long to play Commodore games, use Commodore software, and enjoy Commodore demos. Thus, emulators were born to bring the non-Commodore computer owner the enjoyment of owning a Commodore. 10.1. What is an emulator? An emulator is a piece of software that runs on a given platform and emulates, or mimics, the operation of another machine. When the emulator loads up a program, the programs runs as though it were running on the emulated platform. For more information on emulators and their use, please see the emulator faq, located in the same directory as this one, under the name of cbm.emulation.faq. The Commodore emulator FAQ is maintained by Russell J. | Alphey and can also be obtained from him at + Russell_Alphey@muwayf.unimelb.edu.au or R.Alphey@agriculture.unimelb.edu.au. For those with WWW browsers, the CBM Emulation FAQ is at: | http://hangar18.acns.nwu.edu/users/aforte/cbm/cbm.emu.faq.toc.html 10.2. What platforms do 64 emulators exist on? Well, C64S exists for the IBM, and X64 is available for anyone running X over UNIX. There is also some development on a C64 emulator for the Macintosh. If you own an Amiga, you can purchase A64 to allow the Amiga to run C64 applications. 10.3. What platforms do 128 emulators exist on? There is a very basic Commodore 128 emulator bundled available for the UNIX platform under X. It is bundled with X64. 10.4. Are any other Commodore computers emulated? There is a commodore product called the PET emulator that remaps a Commodore 64 to emulate a PET 40 column unit (i.e. PET 4032). You can run this program on a C64 to emulate a PET, or you can run this program on a 64 emulator to emulate a PET on an IBM, for example. You can also emulate a VIC-20 on some machines. 11. Troubleshooting 11.1. What do I do for my ill disk drive? If your drive won't even accept input from the computer, and the drive light is making some blinking pattern, then the drive may be telling you what is wrong. No Blink Kernal (E000-FFFF) ROM or 6522 VIA Failure One Blink 6116 RAM Failure Two Blinks Possible Zero Page RAM Failure Three Blinks DOS (C000-CFFF) ROM Failure Four Blinks DOS (C000-CFFF) ROM Failure Five Blinks 6116 RAM Failure Six Blinks 6116 RAM Failure Seven Blinks 6116 RAM Failure Eight Blinks 6116 RAM Failure 1541 The most common problem facing the 1541 disk drive is alignment. If your 1541 has trouble reading commercial disks, or reading disks written some time ago, but has less trouble reading recently written disks, chances are that your 1541 is out of alignment. C= service centers will typically align a 1541 for anywhere from $20 to $45. There are also 1541 alignment programs, (e.g. Free Spirit's "1541/71 Alignment System") which allow you to align a 1541 yourself. There are those who claim that this does not produce good results, but there are others who claim to have had satisfactory results with these programs. There were a couple of articles in COMPUTE Gazette and I think RUN on how to do this. The real problem is mechanical in nature and can be over come. Other products are PHYSICAL EXAM 1541 and 1571 versions. 1571 The C=1571 drive is normally a double sided drive. However, it can also emulate a 1541 and read single sided disks. Some of the earlier 1571's had older system chips (ROMs) which caused a couple of problems. One, these older drives were typically very slow when writing to the back side of a disk. Two, it would take these drives ~30 seconds to go into single sided mode. To check your ROM version, read the error channel of the disk drive right after startup. On the 128, just PRINT DS$. On the 64, use: 10 open15,8,15:input#15,a,a$,b,c:close15:printa,a$,b,c Run the program; if the message says v3.0 or v3.1, you have the newer ROM. If it has a version <3.0, you probably have the older ROM. One problem that might occur is not having the head close enough to the disk as required because of the light tension of the spring that pulls the head down. Somewhere I remember that there was supposed to be a replacement part. However, one of the alignment programs suggesting using pennies to weight it down and lo and behold it started working. 1581 The C=1581 drive is a 3.5" drive that uses DSDD 800K disks. It is compatible with both the C64 and C128, although some programs will not work correctly with the 1581. A small number of 1581's were shipped with an early version of a controller chip which has problems with some software. 11.2. What do I do for my ill computer? At times, every computer must be serviced. As the parts supply of Commodore equipment dwindles, servicing becomes harder. However, there are many sources in Section 16.2 that can service your Commodore machine, and here are some things you can do to service it yourself. 11.2.1. What do I do for my ill Commodore 64? A common problem with the C-64 is it's power supply. The C64 power supplies are not especially powerful, and have this disturbing tendency to fail. If your computer stops working, first check the power supply. Replacement power supplies can be obtained from a number of mail order places (e.g. Tenex, Parsec, Inc.). Additionally, several places advertise "heavy-duty" power supplies that come with warranties, and give the C64 enough power to run a REU. If your power supply goes, it can sometimes take other parts of the computer with it. If your power supply has died, but the C64 continues to fail with a known working power supply, it is likely that a few of your chips got fried. Also, another common problem with the C64 is the fuse inside the computer. If the system power on light comes on, but you get a blank screen, suspect the fuse. It is usually blown by misinsertion of devices into the computer. 11.2.2. What do I do for my ill Commodore 128? Like the 1571, the C-128 has an older ROM and a newer ROM. The differences between the two are less serious than is the case with a 1571. The easiest way to tell the difference is to click down the CAPS LOCK key and hit Q while in BASIC direct mode. If you see a lower case q, then you have an older ROM. If you see an upper case Q, then you have a newer ROM. New ROMs can be ordered from (e.g. the Grapevine Group) for about $25. The ROM chips in the 128 are all socketed, so replacing the chips is relatively easy. 11.3. What do I do for my ill keyboard? Clean it: Materials you will need: Denatured (rubbing) alcohol, a clean pencil eraser, cotton swabs, a small Phillips head screwdriver, a jewellers size Phillips screwdriver, a solder iron of some type, and a Commodore 64 computer keyboard. Procedure: 1. FIRST AND FOREMOST. Make certain that you have discharged any static electricity in your body by grounding yourself to something like a cold water pipe. Otherwise, you could blow chips in your computer if you were to touch the wrong things. 2. Turn off your computer and unplug any and all cords and connectors, fast-loaders, modems, etc. (just have yourself a naked (if you will excuse the expression) computer). 3. Thoroughly clean all external connectors and ports with the swabs and alcohol. Also, clean all plugs that go into those ports. If the problem you had persists, proceed with the following: 4. On a clean surface, turn your key-board upside-down. Remove the screws in the bottom. 5. CAREFULLY, separate the two halves about an inch. Unplug the connector to the "power" LED on the top of the C-64. 6. Place the two halves flat so that the keyboard is facing you. The two halves will be connected by a wire harness. This harness may be held down by tape that must be removed in order to place the unit flat. 7. Remove the 15 or so brass screws that hold the circuit board under the keyboard. 7a.Unsolder the wires going to the shift-lock key. 8. Turn the circuit board over. You will see the bottom of the keyboard with a rubber "U" under each key, which makes contact with the board. You will also see on the circuit board, a pair of gold contacts for each key on the C-64. 9. CAREFULLY wash ALL the rubber "U"'s and the gold contacts with the swabs and rubbing alcohol. Allow the alcohol to DRY. 10.Gently, clean each gold contact with the eraser. BRUSH AWAY THE ERASER CRUMBS (I use a small hand-held, battery-powered vacuum cleaner). 11.Re-clean the gold contacts with the swabs and alcohol to ensure that you have removed ALL traces of the eraser. 12.Reassemble the C-64 in the reverse order of disassembly. 12. Modifications and Cabling As time wears on, many Commodore owners are turnign to themselves to manufacture small interfaces, modify their systems, and perform other enhancements. Here are some common things the user can construct himself or herself. 12.1. How can you alter which side a 1571 reads from? On a 128, you can force the 1571 to go into single sided mode with the drive command "u0>m0". (Issue such a command with open15,8,15,"u0>m0":close15.) On the 64, a 1571 defaults to single sided mode, but you can convert it to double sided mode (and read full double sided disk in 64 mode) with the drive command "u0>m1". While in single sided mode, you can actually format both sides of the disk as separate file systems. The command "u0>h0" selects the regular side of the disk, and "u0>h1" selects the flip side of the disk. Note that the flip side, when formatted this way, cannot be read by a 1541; neither side will be readable by a 1571 when the disk is inserted upside-down. 12.2. How do I open a C128 power supply? First, unplug both leads running from the power supply and turn it upside down. Locate four (4) small circles in the bottom; two are in the corners and two in the other end a bit nearer each other. Find some sharp tool, e.g. pin or nail. In turn, poke it inside each of the cirles, firmly, and pull the caps off gently. They'll come out easily. Breaking the caps should not matter, but there is no need to destroy the casing in process. Unsrew the 4 Phillips headed srews with an appropriate tool. Notes: This does not apply to the C64 brick! Some 128 power supplies do not have rubber feet; rather, they have "L"- shaped extensions on the casing. The caps on these extensions are not made of rubber, but can be removed. 12.3. How do I make a cable to hook my CBM 1902A to my 64 or 128? Here is the diagram used to make a replacement Chroma / Luminence 40 column cable, that the 1902A uses, to connect to the 64 or 128. _______ ________ / 3 \ 1. Not Used / 2 \ *1. Luminance / 2 4 \ *2. Audio / 4 5 \ *2. Ground ! ! *3. Ground ! ! *3. Audio out ! 6 ! *4. Chroma ! 1 6 3 ! 4. Video out ! ! 5. Not Used ! ! 5. Audio in \ 1 5 / *6. Luminance \ 7 8 / *6. Chroma \____n____/ \____n____/ 7. Not used 8. Not used 1902A 64/128 * Actually used 12.4. How do I build a simple RS-232 interface cable? RS-232 interface | <Transistors are 2n2222> <24 pin edge connector> N <-----------------------+-----------+ / ! 22k !-!>+ ! M <----/\/\/--------! ! !---+ ! 1k \ ! <male db25 connector> 2 <----/\/\/--------------+------------>-------------------> 2 ! +-----------------+ \ +<!-! 22k !---------------/\/\/------------> 8 +---! / H <-----------------+ E <--------------------------------------------------------> 20 C <---+ ! B <---+-------------+ \ +---! 22k !---------------/\/\/------------> 3 +<!-! / A <-----------------+--------------------------------+-----> 7 ! +-----> 4 ! +-----> 1 If you are having problems with this circuit as it stands, you may wish to modify it in this way to reverse the clock signal: Disconnect the emitter and collector on the middle transistor of the diagram (the one that goes to the H line on the computer side) Connect the collector to pin 2 on the 24 pin edge connector (the 5v Vcc line), connect the emitter to pin H on the same connector, then connect a 1k ohm resistor to the same pin H and the other end of the resistor to pin N or A. 12.5. How do I build a 2400/9600 bps RS-232 interface cable? + A new programming technique makes it possible to acheive 9600 bps on an + unexpected Commodore 64 without the use of a Swiftlink cartridge. + Daniel Dallmann of Germany is the originator of this technique and is + currently writing modem drivers for some of the popular C64 terminal emulation programs to take advantage of this new technique. + The interface described below is a little more complex than the one + in Section 12.4, but has many advantages: + * The interface generates proper EIA232 (RS-232) voltage levels. + The one in Section 12.4 relies on the ability of most newer RS232 + equipment to handle lower voltages. + * The following interface can be used as a direct replacement for the + interface in Section 12.4, and will work will all existing + telecommunications programs at up to 2400 bps, while providing the + necessary interfacing to allow suitably equipped applications to + operate at up to 9600 bps. + * if you currently own a normal RS232 interface, that interface can be + modified to incorporate the new interfacing for 9600 bps operation. + (in some cases one line of the old interface has to be disconnected, + see note **1 ) + 9600 bps is the maximum limit this type of technique due to the timing + limitations of the C64. The delay between the activation of the NMI-handler + and the falling edge of rxd is too long. The handler must be called in + less than 100 cycles. That's no problem at 9600 bps, but for 19200 baud + (the next higher baud rate), you have only 50 cycles, and that's impossoble + (because of VIC-DMA ). On a C128 in fast mode 38400 baud may be possible, + but I don't have a C128, so someone else has to try it out. + Schematic of a very simple RS232-Interface: + userport MAX232 rs232 9pin 25pin + +----------+ + ! ! + (C) pb0--+ ! ! + ! ! /! ! + (B) flag2--*--------------------O< !--------- rxd 2 3 + ! 9! \! !8 + *7* sp2--+ ! ! + ! ! + *6* cnt2--+ ! ! + ! ! ! + *L* pb7--+ <NOTE **1!> ! ! + ! !\ ! + (M) pa2--*--------------------! >O--------- txd 3 2 + ! 11! !/ !14 + *5* sp1--+ ! ! + 74ls00 ! ! + +-----+ ! ! + ! ! ! !\ ! + (D) pb1-*------>O-------------! >O--------- rts 7 4 + ! 1! !3 10! !/ !7 + +----! ! ! ! + 2! ! ! /! ! + (K) pb6--------O<-----*-------O< !--------- cts 8 5 + 6! !4 ! 11! \! !13 + ! !--+ ! ! + (1) gnd------! !5 ! !--- gnd 5 7 + 7! ! ! !15 + (2) +5V------! ! ! ! (dsr 6 6) + 14+-----+ ! ! + ! ! (dcd 1 8) + ! ! + ! ! (dtr 4 20) + ! !+ ! ! + (1) gnd------------! !-----! ! (ri 9 22) + ! ! 2! ! + ! ! + +! ! ! ! + (1) gnd------------! !-----! ! + ! ! 6! ! + ! ! + ! !+ ! ! + +-! !-----! ! + ! ! ! 1! ! + ! ! ! + +---------! ! + 3! ! + ! !+ ! ! + +-! !-----! ! + ! ! ! 4! ! + ! ! ! + +---------! ! + 5! ! + ! ! + (1) gnd--------------------! ! + 15! ! + ! ! + (2) +5V--------------------! ! + 16+----------+ + (x) - connections required for a normal RS232-Interface. + *x* - additional connections to go up to 9600 baud. + remark: The MAX232 needs 4 capacitors (22uF each) + to generate +/- 10volts signals. + notes : + **1 Some other interfaces use this pin. In that case you have to cut + the connection and change it to new way. PB7 is normally used to + receive the DSR (Data Set Ready) signal from the modem, but this + signal isn't supported by all terminal programs. Because of the new + wiring DSR will seem to be active to all 'old' programs, so that + there won't be any troubles. + Top view of the used ICs: + 74 LS 00 MAX232 + +------+ +------+ + inA -!1 \/14!- vcc +cap1 -!1 \/16!- Vcc + inA -! !- inC +cap2 -! !- GND + outA -! !- inC -cap1 -! !- RS232/txd + inB -! !- outC +cap3 -! !- RS232/cts + inB -! !- inD -cap3 -! !- TTL/^cts + outB -! !- inD -cap4 -! !- TTL/txd + gnd -!7 8!- outD RS232/rts -! !- TTL/^rts + +------+ RS232/rxd -!8 9!- TTL/rxd + +------+ + 4 X NAND + 2 X RS232 transmitter + 2 X RS232 receiver + user port (view on C64s backside) + 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 (top) + ------------------------------------ + A B C D E F H J K L M N (bottom) + 1 - GND A - GND + 2 - +5V B - ^flag2 + 3 - ^reset C - pb0 + 4 - cnt1 D - pb1 + 5 - sp1 E - pb2 + 6 - cnt2 F - pb3 + 7 - sp2 H - pb4 + 8 - ^pc2 J - pb5 + 9 - atn in K - pb6 + 10- 9V AC L - pb7 + 11- 9V AC M - pa2 + 12- GND N - GND 13. Enhancements If you like to tinker with your Commodore to get the best possible performance out of it, these suggestions and products may help you in your quest. 13.1. How do I increase my disk drive's transfer speed? Since the introduction of the Commodore VIC-20 and the slow serial bus, Commodore owners have been plagued by slow disk access. There are two ways to allevaiet this problem, fastloaders and ROM replacements. 13.1.1. What is a Fastloader? The Commodore 1541 drive and any drive attached to a VIC-20, C64, Plus 4, C116, or C16 suffer from very slow read and write times. This is caused by Commodore's haste in "economizing" the IEEE-488 bus used in the PET series of Commodore computers into the serial bus. The IEEE-488 bus transferred 8 bits of data at a time, and performed some synchronization steps, or handshaking, between bytes. Commodore reduced the path to 1 bit but kept most of the original handshaking, most of which is redundant when transferring 1 bit at a time. Early on, some developers noted that, since the 1541 drive was intelligent enough to execute a program loaded into its RAM, and the Commodore operating system calls to do disk I/O could be bypassed, they could write software that sped up the loading process by modifying or completely changing the protocol used on the serial bus. This is the idea behind fastload cartridges like FastLoad, Mach 5, etc... 13.1.2. What is a ROM replacement? As programs became more complex, some programs would not operate with this approach. Thus, the developers then rewrote parts of the Commodore operating system on both the computer and the disk drive, and replaced the parts of them that did disk I/O with new pieces of code. This is the idea behind JiffyDos and others. The basic idea in speeding up the disk drive is to use more than 1 line to transfer data, effectively doubling the transfer speed. Then, reduce synchronization requirements in the protocol to a bare minimum, as synchronizing time is time not being used to do transfers. The fastload cartridges are handicapped somewhat by the need to transfer the portion of the program that runs in the disk drive to the drive using the slow speed evry time the drive is used. This can be alleviated somewhat, but the replacement operating system replacement products like JiffyDos win the race since they do not need to load code into the drive, as it is already there. 13.1.3. What are the disadvantages to using a drive enhancement? The products are not 100% compatible, as they sacrifice reliability for speed somewhat. That means that a program that does not load due to an error while using a fastload product will probably load without the fastloading enabled. Also, some programs can not handle the change in loading or reading speed, so these enhancements yield about 90% compatibility. 13.1.4. What other things can I do to speed up the drive? You can also increase the speed of disk drive operation by organizing consecutive parts of a file on disk to fall a certain number of disk sectors apart. This is called the interleave or interleaving factor. Normally, a 1541 disk drive space consecutive parts of a file 10 sectors apart, but you can change that a little to minimize the time needed to find consecutive parts of a file. Also, the C128 in 128 mode hooked up to a 1571 or 1581 has a built-in fastloading scheme called burst loading. Therefore, if you are in 128 mode and hooked up to a 1581 or a 1571, you already have this feature. However, the 128 in 64 mode reverts back to the old slow serial routines, and the 128 in any mode using a 1541 cannot use the burst load routines. 13.2. How do I expand my disk drive's capacity? CMD sells hard drives for the Commodore 64 and 128. They range in sizes from 50 Megabytes to 200 Megabytes. You can also expand your disk drives on board RAM capacity, and use that extr a memory for better archiving performance. Software Support International sells the 1541 RAMBoard, which will increase you 1541's memory. SSI used to market a similar board for the 1571, but they have depleted stock and no longer carry it. If you have access to an IBM of some kind (preferrably with a hard drive), you can use a product called 64NET to hook the drive up to the Commodore. 64NET consists of a cable which connects the CBM User Port and the IBM Parallel Port together, and a program that runs on both machines. The program on the IBM is a standard application, but the CBM part is a wedge, so it should integrate seamlessly with some programs. There is now just one copy of the product. Registered users simply receive a 64NET.KEY file that enables SAVING. There is a student discount of AUS$40.00. The product is at version 1.68.03 BETA and has full OPEN/CLOSE/READ/READST support, can support 4 gigabyte IBM partitions, and have a built-in off-board monitor which includes some dos wedge functions. The IBM programs have link-based helpsystems and will run on any IBM machine. The registered version allows saving of files, wheras the PD version does not. The registered BETA version is available (with upgrade to final version free) for AUS$50.00, while the unregistered version is free. These prices do not include the cable that is required for operation. The cable, program, and more information can be received from Paul Gardner-Stephen at gardners@ist.flinders.edu.au. Also, the system can be ordered from: In Europe: Performance Peripherals Europe Germany +49 2227 3221 Michael Renz +49 2227 3221 And in Australia from: Russell Alphey +61 3 4278558 (A/H r.alphey@dce.vic.gov.au Paul Gardner-Stephen +61 8 277 7479 (A/H) The C128 version is close to completion, as is a version for the C65. 13.3. How do I expand my computer's RAM capacity? 13.3.1. What is a Ram Expansion Unit? The original form of RAM expansion available to the C64 and C128 were the Commodore REUs (Ram Expansion Units). These REUs plug into the cartridge port, and provide 128K (the C=1700), 256K (the C=1764), or 512K (the C=1750) of additional RAM. This RAM is not true system RAM however; simply adding a 512K REU to your system does NOT mean that your word processor will suddenly be able to edit 512K larger documents. A REU will only be used by a program that was written to take advantage of an REU. As a caveat on this, you can use your REU as additional RAM for a RAMLink . An REU can be used as a Commodore Disk Drive by running the program RAMDOS. This will allow users to save and load files from the REU. If you are using CP/M, the REU can be configured to act like a disk drive under CP/M. Although the C=1764 was originally advertised for the C64, and the 1700 and 1750 for the C128, any of the three RAM expanders will work with either the C64 or the C128. Note that if you want to use any of them on the C64, you need a heavy duty power supply. The 1764 comes with such a power supply. There are hardware hacks that will expand a 1700 or a 1764 to 512K; additionally, a 512K REU can be expanded to 1 Meg or more. The plans are at ftp://ccnga.uwaterloo.ca/pub/cbm/hardware. While it appears completely safe to upgrade your REU to 1 Meg, there have been some reports of problems with REU's upgraded to 2 Megs. Sometimes the REU will work fine for a while, then fail. If you are upgrading your REU, it would probably be wise to stop at 1 Meg. If you are still memory hungry, consider a CMD RAMLink. If you don't wish to do it yourself, there are people who will do it for you, for a fee. The following individual will do RAM expansions on the 17xx series. He Has lots of experience doing these modifications. His current quoted price for expanding a 1750 from 512k to 1 meg is $60. Call for the latest prices. In addition he can do repairs on the RAM. Raymond Day 9601 Morton Taylor Road Belleville, MI 48111-1328 r.day@genie.geis.com (Contact) (313) 699-6727 On a similar note, Software Support International sells a device called the 1750 clone, which functions just like a 1750. It is not as expandable as the real 1750, but can be used where a 1750 is recommended or required. 13.3.2. What is a geoRAM Unit? When Commodore REUs became hard to find several years back, Berkeley Softworks introduced geoRAM, which is a 512K RAM expander. This RAM expander gives you all of the advantages of a 1750 with GEOS. However, it is not 1750 compatible, so it will not work like a 1750 outside of GEOS; it is transparent to other programs. (As a caveat on this, see the info on RAMLink)). DesTerm128 2.0 will not work with a geoRAM plugged in. A special version of GEOS 2.0 (which is bundled with geoRAM) is necessary to use geoRAM. No additional power supply is necessary to use geoRAM. The geoRAM can be upgraded to 2MB also. Contact Jens-Michael Gross at grossibr@buran.fb10.tu-berlin.de for information on upgrading the geoRAM. The geoRAM can be used without GEOS if it is installed in a RAMDrive or RAMLink. See Section 13.3.4 for information. 13.3.3. What is battery backed GeoRAM (BBGRam)? Battery Backed GeoRam is a products marketed by Performance Peripherals International, and distributed by both them and other retailers, like LynnCarthy Industries, Incorporated. The unit is actually a geoRAM clone, but has battery backup included within the unit. The unit can be ordered in the following configurations: 512kBytes $92.97US 1MBytes $123.97US 2MBytes $165.97US 13.3.4. What is a RAMLink? RAMLink (RL) is a RAM expansion devices from CMD. The RAM in these devices can be partitioned into native mode partitions (with dynamically allocated subdirectories), or 1541, 1571, or 1581 emulating partitions. Thanks to the 15x1 emulating partitions, software does not have to be specifically written to run with a RL. The RL devices should appear as a disk drive to most programs. One notable exception is DesTerm v2.00, which does not work with the RL. There are few other exceptions, and no major commercial program has a problem running with an RL . The deciding factor seems to be whether or not the program uses a drive's internal ram. The RL does not 'mimic' having this type of internal drive ram, and if a program relies upon this it will not run. The heavily copy protected Digital Solutions' programs use this drive ram for its burst loading routines. So, even though a Maverick/RamBoard combination will write a copy of it to the RL, it will fail to boot. However, these programs, once booted from a 1571, will use and access all of RL's many functions for lightening fast loads and saves. RL has ts own power sources, separate from the computer. When you turn off the computer, the power to the RL is left on, leaving its contents intact. This power supply always remains on. (For safety from power outages, battery backups are also available.) RAMLink is a powerful, large device. It can be configured from 0 to up to 16 Megs of RAM, using industry standard 1x8 (100ns) 1 Meg and 4 Meg SIMMs.(1x9, and faster Simms can be used.) The RL is constructed so that the user may easily add additional SIMMs at any time. RAMLink has a port into which you can plug a Commodore REU or a geoRAM. You can configure RAMLink to either leave this RAM device alone, or to use the REU/geoRAM's RAM just as if it were part of the RAMLink's RAM. A RAMLink also has a pass-through port, in which you can plug a normal C64/C128 cartridge, and a parallel port for a CMD hard drive. The latter greatly improves the transfer speed of data between your computer and the hard drive. If you have a geoRAM, the geoRAM can be plugged into the RL . the geoRAM then acts as an extra piece of ram-based disk storage. The RL comes with a very well documented, thorough, and easily referenced User Manual. Contact CMD for more details. Nhat-Viet Phi is compiling a list of RAMLink and RAMDrive owners around the world. The resulting list comprises the RAMLink User's Group (RUG), and those individuals are called "RUG-Bees". Email nhatviet@nucleus.com for more information or inclusion in the group. 13.3.5. What is a RAMDrive? The RAMDrive is similar in function to the RAMLink sold by CMD (see Section 13.3.4). The main differences are the smaller amount of memory (1-4 MB) and the smaller size. At one time, the RAMDrive was sold by CMD, but is no longer available through them However, Performance Peripherals, Inc. still sell the RAMDrive unit. 13.3.6. How do I expand my C128 Video RAM? The original, "flat" C128's came with an 80 column display that had it's own display RAM that was separate from the system memory of the computer. This "VDC RAM" was 16K in size. After Commodore introduced the C128D, they changed the design and marketed some versions of the Commodore 128D with 64K of VDC RAM. Since them, some programs (e.g. I-Paint, Dialogue128) have come out that either need or support 64K of VDC RAM. Owners of flat 128's can upgrade their video RAM to 64K either by ordering an upgrade plug-in board(e.g. from Software Support International), or by replacing the RAM chips themselves. All that needs to be done is, the two 4416 RAM chips next to the VDC chip need to be replaced with 4464 RAM chips. Note, however, that since this involves soldering in tight quarters on your 128's motherboard, it is very easy to damage the motherboard or the nearby VDC chip. Whenever you wish to use the extra RAM, be sure to set bit 4 in the VDC register 28 (0 = 16kB, 1 = 64kB). 13.3.7. How do I expand my C64 internally? THE TRANSACTOR magazine published two articles written by Paul Bosacki on expanding the Commodore 64. The first article (in Transactor 9.2) described how to expand the 64 to 256kB by swapping RAM chips and contained switches to perform some special options. The second (in Transactor 9.6) describes how to expand the Commodore 64 to 1MB, using a 512kB REU and 512kB on the motherboard. In additiopn, this expansion needs no switches to enable options, which is an enhancement to the first article. The Nordic/Finnish MicroBITTI magazine published a two part article by Pekka Pessi on expanding the Commodore 64. Pessi's design (in MicroBITTI Issues 1 and 2 for 1987) split the C64 memory map into 4 16kB pages, which could be each mapped to any 16kB page in 256kB of memory. It uses the same approach of swapping the 64kB DRAMs for 256kB ones, but does the addressing somewhat differently. In 1993, Marko Makela, with help from Pekka Pessi, translated Pessi's article into English and made it available via the Internet. It is now available from nic.funet.fi in the directory /pub/cbm/documents/256kB. 13.3.8. How do I expand my C128 internally? Marko Makela has written an article on how to expand the C128 and C128D's memory up to 1024kB. It is compatible with his earlier article on expanding the C64 to 256kB, so programs written for the expanded 64 should run on the expanded 128 in 64 mode. The plan and schematic is available via ftp from nic.funet.fi in directory /pub/cbm/documents/1028. The C-256 and C-512 Twin Cities 128 issues #30 and #31 have a hardware scheme for expanding your 128 to 256K or 512K. To people who understand banking on the 128, the 256K modification adds RAM blocks 2 and 3 to your system. The 512K modification adds four more RAM blocks that can be accessed as alternate RAM blocks 2 and 3, or as a completely separate set of RAM blocks 0-3. As with Commodore REUs, software must specifically support the expanded RAM. Since these modifications are relatively new, there is not much software out yet that supports the additional RAM. However, ACE 128 does support this expansion without any special drivers. The hardware modification, while simple from software's point of view, is rather difficult to perform in hardware. Richard Curcio, the designer of the memory modifications, can modify your 128 for you. See Twin Cities 128 issue #31 for more information. 13.4. How do I increase my computer's speed? There are a number of products that can increase the operating speed of the Commodore 64. These products work by turning off the on-board 6510 and turning on a compatible microprocessor, usually a 65C02 or a 65C816 in 6502 emulation mode. These products will work with any software that does not mind running up to 4 times faster and does not use any of the undocumented opcodes of the 6502 IC. Also, for a quick way to gain a small speed increase, please see Section 17.2. 13.4.1. How do I increase my Commodore 64's speed? Please note that some of these products are no longer offered for sale by the original companies, but can be purchased from individuals as used equipment. Turbo Master Accelerator for C64. The Turbo Master Accelerator is for a C64 (or C64 mode of C128) only, uses a Rockwell R65C02P4 microprocessor clocked at 4.09 MHz, has its own 64K of fast static RAM and a 32K EPROM, has hardware/software switchable speed between 4.09 and normal, and has an enhanced ROM with faster disk routines that can also be disabled. A JiffyDOS compatibility option was available. Turbo Process Accelerator for the C64. This accelerator, made by Rossm"oller, uses a 65C816P-4 microprocessor to operate the 64 at three speeds: 1MHz, 4 MHz, or anything between 50kHz and 4 MHz. The 65C816 is a 16 bit version of the 6502/6510, so it is possible to write software for the new IC that takes advantage of the 16 bit opcodes. Flash 8 This accelerator, the only one being currently produced, is also the fastest such accelerator for the Commodore 64 to date. The module, which plugs into the expansion port of the Commodore 64, increases the CPU processing speed from 1MHz to 8MHz. It uses a 65816 CPU (The 65816 is a descendant of the 65XX series) running at 8MHz to enable the increased speed. Also, it can be optional expanded to 4 or 8 MB RAM onboad. This product is the successor to the Rossmoeller TurboAccess 4MHz accelerator card. The unit has the capability to provide 10x speed disk access via a parallel cable and has a CP/M option. GEOS compatible requires the special patches that are available from the manufacturer, and games or demos which do very intensive timing or raster effects might not fucntion correctly. At present, the accelerator only works on PAL 64s of certain revisions and will not function on a C128 in 64 mode. Currenlty, the REU is not supported. From the advertisement: "FLASH 8 is a GEOS-compatible module for the expansion port with a 65816 CPU that speeds the C64 to 8Mhz by highest compatibility with existing software. Additionally to the original Commodore Kernal a JiffyDos kernal is available. You can choose between two different kernals via DIP-switch. Flash 8 comes either with 256 Kbyte or 1 Mbyte RAM onboard. A CP/M-emulator for running Z80-CP/M-Software, a macro-library and assembler for the 65816 in native-mode are included." The prices are: 349 DM (~$245.00 US) for the unit with 256kB RAM. 449 DM (~$315.00 US) for the unit with 1MB RAM. It is being manufactured and sold by Discount 2000 and Performance Peripherals, Inc. 13.4.2. How do I increase my Commodore 128's speed? The ZIP card for your C128. This accelerator was not produced. Its development has been stopped due to miscellaneous problems. There are no accelerators for the 128 or 128D at this time. 13.4.3. Can I speed up other Commodore computers? Although it is possoble to accelerate just about any Commodore machine, no commercial products exist to speed up other Commodore computers. 13.5. How do I increase my computer screen's resolution? Although the Commodore computers once reigned in terms or screen rsolution and number of colors available, newer machines have surpassed it in both areas. Depending on whether you want more characters on the screen or more colors at one time, these products might help. 13.5.1. How do I increase my Commodore 64's screen resolution? Since the Commodore 64's VIC-II cannot be expanded, the only way to increase the resolution of the Commodore 64 is to turn off the on-board video and replace its output with one from another IC. The simplist approach involves attaching an 80 column video chip (6545, 6845, etc.) to the C64 via the expansion port. This will provide 80 columns of monochrome text. However, this is only useful for text applications, as most of these video devices are not capable of doing high resolution graphics. Also, none of the following are currently produced, but many are sold as used equipment by users. Batteries Included BI-80 This unit combined an 80 column monochrome text video display (using the 6545 IC) and BASIC 4.0. Either options could be turned on or off via software control. DATA 20 80 column unit This unit preceded the BI80 unit, and was produced from 1982-1984. Protecto Enterprizes Protecto-80 This was basically a repackaged DATA-20 unit. Some circuitry was changed to permit price reduction, but the same functionality is there. 13.5.2. How do I increase my Commodore 128's screen resolution? The Commodore 128 comes equipped with an second video display controller in addition to the 40 column VIC chip. This chip can be used while in 64 mode through clever programming, and the controller's standard 640*200 pixel size can be expanded to 640*400. However, there is no way to completely overcome the color limitation of 16 colors 13.6. How do I increase my computer's serial transfer speed? If you wish to operate serial devices at speeds faster than what the internal software emulated UART can handle, you will need to purchase a UART interface. There are a couple of different kinds, and each has its advantages. To use these hardware UARTs, the appliaction must be written to take advantage of the device. SwiftLink the SwiftLink cartridge is manufactured by CMD and allows speeds up to 38.4 Kbps. This device contains a 6551 UART and plugs into your cartridge port and supplies you with a standard 9-pin serial port. You then connect the desired modem. Dialogue128, Novaterm64, and Kermit(v2.2s) support the SwiftLink. HART Cartridge The HART cartridge is a device similar to the Swiftlink in size. However, the HART unit conatins an 8255 UART IC and can handle speeds up to 57.6Kbps. The unit is manufactured by Hatronics. DataPump DataPump is a set of plans used to build a device that functions just like a Swiftlink. The plans are available at many FTP sites. 13.7. How do I increase my computer's sound quality? SID Symphony The C64 and C128 come equipped with 1 Sound Interface Device (SID) IC. This provides 3 channels of output. For more channels, one can purchase the SID Symphony cartridge from CMD to provide 3 extra channels. Most newer sound playing and editing software is able to use the extra channels. There are also a number of units one can purchase or build that will provide MIDI capabilities for Commodore 64 and 128 users. 13.8. What other ways can I expand my Commodore computer? There are many hardware items that you can use. Below is a list of a few of them. Note that some of these items may no longer be in production, and thus are only available as used equipment. 80-Line Simplified Digital I/O Board This unit has 40 TTL input lines and 40 separate buffered digital output lines plus an expansion socket that could support a standard ROM or clock/ calendar cartridge. It works on the C64 and all modes of the C128 (including CP/M mode). Its model number is the SS100 Plus. "Original Ultimate Interface" This is a universally applicable dual 6522 Versatile Interface Adapter board with four 8-bit fully bidirectional I/O ports, eight handshake lines, and fou r 16-bit timer/counters. It has IRQ interrupt capability and is expandable to four boards. It works on the C64 and all modes of the C128 (including CP/M mode). Its model number is the 641F22. A/D Conversion Module This unit is 16 channel, 8-bit, 100 microsecond conversion time. Piggy-backs on the 641F22 and thus requires it to operate. Works on the C64 and all modes of the C128 (including CP/M mode). Its model number is 641F/ADC0816. The Spartan Apple ][+ emulator for the C64, by Mimic Systems, Inc. In addition to allowing the use of Apple ][+ hardware/software, this device boasted four software selectable C64 cartridge slots, a non- dedicated 8-bit parallel port, and standard audio cassette deck capabilities for the C64. ROM upgrades are available for the C-128 and the 1571. C64 Games Port Expander (Model #8401) 40/80 column converter. Switchable, it has 4 independent cartridge sockets plus a 5th switch position accessing an 80 col. character set ROM - (limited usability because it *apparently* accesses a C64 Ram location which interferes with a lot of stuff, I forget where or how) - and a 6th switch position independent of the cartridge port for general use stuff. It was built into a neat steel housing designed to sit flat on the desktop and slide into the cartridge port at exactly the right height.