1088 XEL : UAV / Ultimate 1MB required?

[Thelen]

I'm curious about the 1088XEL; There is a 64K sram chip onboard - does it run without the Ultimate 1Mb installed, so it uses the 64Kb Sram. And, if I install the Ultimate 1Mb, can the 1088XEL run without this sram chip?

Also, does it work without the UAV upgrade - is then the video output just like a stock XL/XE machine?

Thanks!

[flashjazzcat]

U1MB and UAV are both mandatory, as is the base SRAM. You could probably get away without UAV if you installed a VBXE or Sophia and used the RGB/DVI output exclusively.

[Thelen]

Thanks! I ordered them both... - but know I'm reading(I found a topic with the '1088 Missing Manual') that it probably needs special firmware.. Or does it work with the 1088XEL out of the box? (Probably I ordered it to fast without seeing that manual)... ?

 

 

Edited September 6, 2021 by Thelen

[flashjazzcat]

47 minutes ago, Thelen said:

I found a topic with the '1088 Missing Manual'

Still missing, for the most part, then.

48 minutes ago, Thelen said:

it probably needs special firmware

It'll work with the stock U1MB, but sub-optimally and you'll have no access to the special features (VGate, etc) and the on-board CF adapter won't work. The 1088XEL firmware is here, along with the firmware manual:

 

https://atari8.co.uk/firmware/1088xel/

 

[Thelen]

Thanks again for your quick reply! When I'm finished populating the 1088PCB (And hoping it will work ) I will try to update to your firmware- really cool!

[flashjazzcat]

Flash the entire 512K 'XEL.ROM' file to the top entry (flash chip name) using UFLASH. This will replace the redundant 'high speed patched' OS (the high speed code is now built into the U1MB firmware) and update the doubtless ancient SpartaDOS X build supplied on the stock boards.

 

[Thelen]

??