This is the device I mentioned on one of your other videos, (Does This Monster-Mashup Deliver?). You are so lucky to have one. It's just what I need. I have a lot of 8 bit systems I write games and utilities on, some of which don't have SD card options. :)
Informative, I will get one of these. Since many of the named machines use KCS (Kansas City Standard) so it would likely work with even more than stated here. Good work!
Great video! We had users report problems _saving_ to Compute Computers and I was able to get it working by adding a resistor to my Radio Shack cassette cable. Adding this resistor solved the problem for everyone who tried it, plus a different device i was previously unable to save to. 👍 I made a video. Duncan apparently told one of his customers he was going to drop CoCo support because he couldn't replicate the problem. Hope that doesn't happen, it's an easy fix.
The mc-10 is a TRS-80 branded "colour computer" but not really a part of THE line of TRS-80 colour computers. SVI-CAS looks useful in either case, though.
It's fairly likely the reason some machines require an out-of-phase signal is because there's an inverting amplifier in the signal path. I can only guess at why that might be, but it may have something to do with how they've implemented the analogue to digital conversion.
While I do use SD Card solutions with my retro systems, I sometimes put a cassette on for the fantastic authentic nostalgia of the loading screens on my CRT, and certainly the sounds of the Speccy...A nice solution but entering text needs addressing.
That is a really cool device, however, while I'm nostalgic about playing games and such on my retros, I'm not nostalgic about starting a load and going to dinner while I wait! :P
I’m with you on that one :) Personally, I’m too old to be waiting around for stuff :) However I do recognise the charm of it all and can see how other people like it :)
It appears not; from the user manual: "This is not an Arduino based product and makes no use of any source code or design aspects of the known existing public domain image player projects. This product does not make use of a boot-loader. The SVI-CAS firmware and hardware design, plus fundamental operational characterisitics are alien to all existing Arduino designs."
@@TheRetroShack Strange as 3:37 looks exactly like one of these www.aliexpress.com/item/32804483834.html - they could be writing the code directly rather than with the Arduino framework but that seems like extra effort :)
Had a look in the manual and it's exactly that I think. I wonder if that was a performance thing, or to avoid using anything open source perhaps. Who knows!
the UI Could use a lot of improvement. As you mentioned a better keyboard, but also the machine selection should go to a menu (like the file browser) when you tap on it and not just cycle through.
What about those Multi Load Games that after the main game load's in they tell you to reset the counter to zero and then continues to load the 1st level then when you make it to the 2nd level if you die it will then ask you to rewind to zero to load in the 1st level again ?
@@TheRetroShack If its firmware is based on the Tapuino project then it will be no good. That's why i had to buy the Cute32 from Manosoft as you can do anything a real Datassette can do.
@@Rick_Todd Since I have no tape based Commodore kit, it's not really that useful - TI-99/4a, ZX81, and Acorn Electron are my toys. The issue with SD disk solutions is that some games converted from tape to disk image and are complex enough to need saving - Elite for the Elk, for example, - don't save reliably if it's not the right media type.
I wished I knew about this before I stuck an Android phone inside my Amstrad CPC 464, it records and plays too. Thumbs up and subscribed. It would be cool if the developer of this device could pull the "SAVE" filename as it was encoding and use that instead of having to type it in, just a thought.
It looks like whatever you're using to capture video is applying a ridiculously excessive sharpening filter, which would explain why all the text has a horrible white halo around it. You might want to turn the sharpness down. Preferably to zero. (or maybe that's a property of RF output and I just don't remember how bad it was?)
Without motor control feedback this device will struggle with many games on the C64 as some games start and stop very briefly upon loading and without this the game will fail to load.
I would like to see sofware like this to run on an M5Stack, as it is better hardware-wise: it has an IPS screen in 4:3, so it can show thumbnails of programs near pixel perfect with good viewing angles, 3 buttons seem better than pen input, and it has a battery module. And it is not beeeeeiiiigggeeeee.
Why could you not have used a module that can send and receive SPDIF data that can be recorded on a MAGNAVOX DCC900 Cassette Deck or for that matter can be played back into the module that will convert it back to parallel data to be loaded back into memory and then executed.
@@TheRetroShack the unit needs to convert the data words (eight bytes at a time) into a SPDIF signal that can be recorded onto any DAT or DCC tape deck which can then output the SPDIF signal back to the unit to convert back to a data words (eight bytes at a time)
Why do none of these things have rewind/fast forward or a tape counter. Some games need tape counters reset at certain points & be able to rewind to that point etc
Yes , Speccy is a UK thing. One thing that always makes me lol is when the Americans Refer to the ZX Spectrum they pronounce it Zee Ex Spectrum. lol In the UK we say Zed Ex Spectrum.
An interesting bit of kit, very versatile to work with so many machines.
Yes I was pleasantly surprised with how nice it is to use :)
I had no idea that the SVI-CAS even existed, I think I want one now.... Great review!
Thanks! It’s a nice device :)
This is the device I mentioned on one of your other videos, (Does This Monster-Mashup Deliver?). You are so lucky to have one. It's just what I need. I have a lot of 8 bit systems I write games and utilities on, some of which don't have SD card options. :)
Neat piece of kit that needs some UI refinements. In my head it was only yesterday that I was swapping C90s with my mates. Right On Commander!
Me too! I remember having such a huge collection of tapes and lord knows what happened to them all!
Informative, I will get one of these. Since many of the named machines use KCS (Kansas City Standard) so it would likely work with even more than stated here. Good work!
Yeah it has a wave file “generic mode” too so other machines can be supported, eg TI99/4A.
Glad you enjoyed the review - and yes I'm sure this works with a ton of other machines too :)
Great video!
We had users report problems _saving_ to Compute Computers and I was able to get it working by adding a resistor to my Radio Shack cassette cable.
Adding this resistor solved the problem for everyone who tried it, plus a different device i was previously unable to save to. 👍 I made a video.
Duncan apparently told one of his customers he was going to drop CoCo support because he couldn't replicate the problem. Hope that doesn't happen, it's an easy fix.
Good review of an interesting device.
Thanks - glad you enjoyed it.
Nice bit of kit
Yes indeed! :) Thanks for watching :)
The mc-10 is a TRS-80 branded "colour computer" but not really a part of THE line of TRS-80 colour computers. SVI-CAS looks useful in either case, though.
Yes, it's a really nice device to use :)
Great review, thanks. This looks just like the sort of thing that I NEED. :-))
Thanks! It's a fabulous piece of kit! :)
Keep up the great work
Thanks, will do!
It's fairly likely the reason some machines require an out-of-phase signal is because there's an inverting amplifier in the signal path. I can only guess at why that might be, but it may have something to do with how they've implemented the analogue to digital conversion.
Wry interesting - I’ll have to look that up and have a read :)
Now that is cool, add Atari XL and Apple2 and I'm sold!
Drop Duncan a note and see if there are plans to include those in future models (or even if they might work now?)
While I do use SD Card solutions with my retro systems, I sometimes put a cassette on for the fantastic authentic nostalgia of the loading screens on my CRT, and certainly the sounds of the Speccy...A nice solution but entering text needs addressing.
Me too, occasionally ;)
Nice product, want to get one now !
Yep, it’s really nice to use and very reliable :)
@@TheRetroShack is the loading time shorter or the same from a normal tape ?
@@galamoonretrogaming unfortunately this will only load as fast as the individual machine’s tape loading would be.
Strange they went with the touch arrows instead of being able to touch directly on what is displayed in the menus
It's probably a limitation of library code used to generate the user interface with only gadgets providing a touch response input.
@@IanPtv you only have to asign the x y coordinate data to what is entered when you tap the accept choice area
We are spoiled by phone devices these days. Basic touchscreens have accuracy issues so arrows can be a wise choice.
That is a really cool device, however, while I'm nostalgic about playing games and such on my retros, I'm not nostalgic about starting a load and going to dinner while I wait! :P
I’m with you on that one :) Personally, I’m too old to be waiting around for stuff :) However I do recognise the charm of it all and can see how other people like it :)
That is one sexy bit of kit.
From the look of the PCB that's a mini mega 2560 so may well be Arduino.
It appears not; from the user manual: "This is not an Arduino based product and makes no use of any source code or design aspects of the known existing public domain image player projects. This product does not make use of a boot-loader. The SVI-CAS firmware and hardware design, plus fundamental operational characterisitics are alien to all existing Arduino designs."
@@TheRetroShack Strange as 3:37 looks exactly like one of these www.aliexpress.com/item/32804483834.html - they could be writing the code directly rather than with the Arduino framework but that seems like extra effort :)
Had a look in the manual and it's exactly that I think. I wonder if that was a performance thing, or to avoid using anything open source perhaps. Who knows!
Nice device, can't we rename tape file names once we insert the sdcard on a (current gen) pc ?
Yes - you can do that :)
the UI Could use a lot of improvement. As you mentioned a better keyboard, but also the machine selection should go to a menu (like the file browser) when you tap on it and not just cycle through.
Definitely - it's the only negative comment I had on the whole device.
What about those Multi Load Games that after the main game load's in they tell you to reset the counter to zero and then continues to load the 1st level then when you make it to the 2nd level if you die it will then ask you to rewind to zero to load in the 1st level again ?
There’s a memory function according to the manual but to be brutally honest I didn’t look into that as I didn’t consider that scenario :)
@@TheRetroShack If its firmware is based on the Tapuino project then it will be no good. That's why i had to buy the Cute32 from Manosoft as you can do anything a real Datassette can do.
@@Rick_Todd Does it work with just Commodore kit?
@@rog2224 Cute32 yes just commodore. they do a cut down cheaper version now as well without a fancy case. Called Core32. Both have WiFi
@@Rick_Todd Since I have no tape based Commodore kit, it's not really that useful - TI-99/4a, ZX81, and Acorn Electron are my toys. The issue with SD disk solutions is that some games converted from tape to disk image and are complex enough to need saving - Elite for the Elk, for example, - don't save reliably if it's not the right media type.
I wished I knew about this before I stuck an Android phone inside my Amstrad CPC 464, it records and plays too. Thumbs up and subscribed. It would be cool if the developer of this device could pull the "SAVE" filename as it was encoding and use that instead of having to type it in, just a thought.
Lol - at least you can recover your phone now :)
@@TheRetroShack So true! I'm tired of holding the 464 up to my ear everytime the phone rings!
It looks like whatever you're using to capture video is applying a ridiculously excessive sharpening filter, which would explain why all the text has a horrible white halo around it. You might want to turn the sharpness down. Preferably to zero.
(or maybe that's a property of RF output and I just don't remember how bad it was?)
Capturing from these older machines is always hit and miss, and I refuse to capture from an emulator! :) :)
Without motor control feedback this device will struggle with many games on the C64 as some games start and stop very briefly upon loading and without this the game will fail to load.
The motor control function of this works really well - no issues so far :)
cool love it :)
It is kinda cool :)
I would like to see sofware like this to run on an M5Stack, as it is better hardware-wise: it has an IPS screen in 4:3, so it can show thumbnails of programs near pixel perfect with good viewing angles, 3 buttons seem better than pen input, and it has a battery module. And it is not beeeeeiiiigggeeeee.
Why could you not have used a module that can send and receive SPDIF data that can be recorded on a MAGNAVOX DCC900 Cassette Deck or for that matter can be played back into the module that will convert it back to parallel data to be loaded back into memory and then executed.
Well, you probably could :) :)
@@TheRetroShack the unit needs to convert the data words (eight bytes at a time) into a SPDIF signal that can be recorded onto any DAT or DCC tape deck which can then output the SPDIF signal back to the unit to convert back to a data words (eight bytes at a time)
Why do none of these things have rewind/fast forward or a tape counter. Some games need tape counters reset at certain points & be able to rewind to that point etc
mmmmmm load tunes 🤣🤣🤣
:) :)
Nice device with awful UI. Would be great to have this as open source hardware.
Not sure we’ll see it as open source but hopefully the UI will get a rethink at some point. Thanks for watching :)
I have never seen anyone call a spectrum spechi
Often used to hear them as a specki in the UK
Speccy is the correct terminology for a ZX Spectrum in the UK :) :)
@@TheRetroShack well, i learnt something today
Yes , Speccy is a UK thing. One thing that always makes me lol is when the Americans Refer to the ZX Spectrum they pronounce it Zee Ex Spectrum. lol In the UK we say Zed Ex Spectrum.
@@Rick_Todd in Hungary we only use ZX Szpectrum