C256 Foenix Project - The C64/C128 long lost brother


That format of website annoys the crap out of me, they are slow, buggy and lock up my browser. And there's little in the way of content too.
Keep us posted when any actual information turns up... I might be interested.
 
Ugh, a wix-site that's a PITA the navigate. Well, here's the goodies.
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The specs:
Alright, this is a very preliminary specification of what the C256 will be:
(Always Subject To Change)

CPU
65C816 @ 14Mhz (working in 16Bits Expended Mode)

Memory
3MBytes installed, this is the memory optimized for Code/Data.
1MBytes Installed for Video/Graphic on VICKY's local side.
Total of 4Meg of memory in system.
For more memory, an expansion card will be required.

Video
Graphic Chip - Code Name: VICKY
Standard Graphic (bit map) Resolution 640 x 480 @ 60FPS 256Colors out of a 24Bits Palette, DVI (Digital & Analog) Output
Sprites (Number and Resolution TBD)
80 Color Text Mode (Feratures: TBD)
Blitter.

And it's going to be a 3d print jobbie (possibly in both senses of the word).

Seems to me like whatever it is is at an extremely early stage, and thus far is little more than a vanity project. But nobody's asking for any money yet, so I'm fine with that for now.
 
How can that be produced cheaper than it could be emulated on modern hardware? I get the case design, but why not put a sub $50 SoC with a couple GB of RAM and a 32GB eMMC and an SDXC port with HDMI output then emulate?
 
Well that's been true about a lot of the ZX Spectum sequels that have already been emulated perfectly fine under Zesaurux. Emulators are fine for what they are, but lots of people seem to have a real hankering for something more real.

The biggest question for me is where this Vicky chip is going to come from. It's got to be something fairly modern to address 1MB of VRAM, and presumably be somewhat compatible with the commodore OS. I can see that needing to be an FPGA for the first few thousand or so units, or the entire lifespan of something like this in other words. And you'll need a FPGA for the SID chip because I wouldn't bet on finding a dozen working SID chips on ebay and the likes these days. Testing them to identify duds is a skilled job as well.

I don't really want to put a downer on this though, it just needs more than a render and a specs wishlist to make these things happen. But maybe our 'stef' has skills to show, or maybe it's just a teaser to gather interest
 
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