CV-NUC+ A Miniature CV Motherboard is in the Works

[+mytek]

I'd just like to point out one more thing that The Brewing Academy is going to be selling, and that is the pre-flashed CPLD that acts as the MMU in this new system (TBA: DIY-ATF1500A-10JU+Socket). Since this particular CPLD requires a very expensive programmer, it is not practical for an independent DIY builder to purchase one of those programmers in order to build just a system or two. So for those that wish to do this project completely from scratch, this will still give you an avenue to do so even if you opt out of buying the DIY Bare Board Kit with the pre-programmed and hard to get chips included. However I would still urge you to consider also buying the Bare Board Only Kit (TBA: DIY-Bare Boards), since it would be hard to beat the $15 price on the 4 board set any other way you approached it.

 

[+mytek]

Opps there was a formatting error on the BOM that got uploaded to my website. It's now been corrected. So for those that already downloaded it, please do so again. It has the exact same file name as the previous one, and thus will over write it which is a good thing.

 

I knew there might be a few glitches to iron out

[OurVision]

mytek,

I just wanted to commend you for your work on this project. It's really a huge contribution to the Coleco  and retro-gaming community - thank-you. To everyone else who contributed - thank-you. I'm just floored by how cool this is.

Edited June 9, 2023 by OurVision

[+mytek]

5 hours ago, OurVision said:

mytek,

I just wanted to commend you for your work on this project. It's really a huge contribution to the Coleco  and retro-gaming community - thank-you. To everyone else who contributed - thank-you. I'm just floored by how cool this is.

You can thank my grand kids as well, since they were my original inspiration behind doing this. Although they're still not quite old enough, I do plan on setting each one of them up with their own CV-NUC+ eventually. They just gotta get past the throwing toys when they get mad stage (oldest is going to be 4 years old in November). I'm thinking 5 years old might be the appropriate time to introduce this to them.

 

Yeah it got so much cooler when I started developing the MSX Module for it, and then when I figured out a way to use a wireless mouse that was like icing on the cake. The mouse came out of an open source project I found HERE which was originally aimed at the Atari. I've always loved when you can take something that has been released as open source, and then with a bit of extra fiddling and circuitry integrate it into an entirely different use case. And the MSX Module stretched me into an area that I had been avoiding for way too long, that being CPLD development.

 

Anyway it makes me feel good that this project obviously impressed you. Thank you as well for acknowledging that

[Atari Nut]

Very nice Michael.  I'm looking forward to getting one of these!  I have been waiting for an acquaintance to get back to me for printing a resin case.  It's been several weeks now but I have not heard from him.  This could mean he is not interested or just doing one would be too costly.  In the meantime, I tried that site you linked to again and chatted with someone.  They weren't much help.  I told them I didn't know how to answer some of their questions to get a quote.  I was told to register on the site and a sales rep would reach out and be able to help.  I didn't do that yet.  I figured I would try to find another company who does it that has an easier quote system but no luck with that yet.

[+mytek]

I added a zipped test utilities folder to my CV-NUC+ webpage that has some useful roms for testing your unit (I really recommend getting an AtariMax Ultimate SD Cart to make this easy). I also expanded the PCB Assembly Manual, adding another page, so it might be good to download the updated version dated 6-9-2023 for those building their own boards. In fact this will probably be an ongoing process with occasional updates and worth checking if you have the latest version. The date can be seen by mousing over the download link and checking the browser window down towards the bottom.

 

Also @MacRorie from TBA will be adding the ability to just buy the 3D printed case all by itself -- look for that to happen probably this evening. And for those buying completely assembled systems, you will be getting the case inclusive of the assembled and tested boards already installed and buttoned up. Nothing else to buy aside from an A/V cable and controllers if you don't already have those, and of course a USB Mouse

[+LarryL]

_{finally - so excited…}

_{ordered the boards with CPLD at TBA and starting to source missing components}

_{this will be my project for the summer} 

 

_{@mytek excellent documentation, as usual. Many thanks!}

 

[+mytek]

On 6/9/2023 at 10:28 PM, LarryL said:

_{finally - so excited…}

_{ordered the boards with CPLD at TBA and starting to source missing components}

_{this will be my project for the summer} 

 

_{@mytek excellent documentation, as usual. Many thanks!}

 

Have fun building your CV-NUC+ 👍

 

The CV-NUC+ can use the same A/V cable as used for the Atari 8-Bit computers.

 

So I've been trying to source a High Quality Atari A/V cable with a 4-pin Mini-Din S-Video plug, that needs to have individually shielded cables to avoid Luma/Chroma cross-talk (e.g.. Jail Bars). Attempting to work with a US based company to do this, has so far produced nothing concrete. I did discover a UK source just a few days ago that has what appears to be the perfect cable but being based in the UK might make shipping to the US quite costly, and apparently they are currently out of stock.

 

Company: Retro Gaming Cables

 

The 8-Bit Classics Atari XL/XE 5-Pin DIN S-Video & Composite AV Cable offering with a Mini-Din S-Video plug uses a multi-conductor commonly shielded cable for all the signal wires which unfortunately normally causes Jail Bars in the S-Video output. So I can not recommend that cable for use with the CV-NUC+.

 

However there are readily available Atari A/V cables going from a DIN-5 plug to 4 individually shielded RCA plugs which is good for composite video out of the box, or S-Video on something like a Commodore 1702 CRT monitor.

Amazon: Buy Link

 

In order to adapt the previous cable to a Mini-Din S-Video plug, add this adapter cable and two double female RCA couplers.

Amazon: Buy Link

 

Amazon: Buy Link (4 pack)

 

And finally for those that wish to roll their own, here is a schematic showing a cable with both a composite and Mini-Din S-Video connection as well as a single audio output. Please note the use of individual shielded cables for all signals.

 

 

EDIT: I purchased all the Amazon items above and gave it a test, and everything worked together to create a Mini-DIN-4 S-Video output from my CV-NUC+. Picture quality was excellent, with no jail bars present. Below you can see my cable interconnections, with each RCA plug signal defined.

 

 

I was actually amazed that the yellow plug turned out to be Composite video, since so many of the other cables I have gotten over the years usually had some color other than yellow being Composite. And since black turned out to be audio, I knew that red and white had to be Chroma and Luma, but unfortunately that definition got reversed on the S-Video adapter cable. Still works of course, but I was really hoping that red would go to red, and white would go to white.

 

So if you got Amazon Prime the grand total = $23 with free shipping.

[Tornadoboy]

Just ordered one from TBA, thanks for designing this! I've been bumbling around in recent weeks trying to find decent composite mods that aren't overpriced, out of stock or come unassembled with parts that one needs an electron microscope to solder. For the price of the kit this is a steal, it even is SGM compatible! 

 

If somebody wants to take a shot at modding this to be a full Adam I'd be interested in one of those too! 

Edited June 15, 2023 by Tornadoboy

[+mytek]

2 hours ago, Tornadoboy said:

Just ordered one from TBA, thanks for designing this!

You're very welcome

 

2 hours ago, Tornadoboy said:

If somebody wants to take a shot at modding this to be a full Adam I'd be interested in one of those too! 

This requires a lot of extra circuitry, and probably if the expansion port and slots weren't a part of it, people would be complaining. I think this comes from the fact that the Adam is a computer and not just a game console. People just expect more from it because of that. Whereas with the CV-NUC+ I was all about making it the best stand-alone game console that I could, while greatly minimizing it's size in the process. Pretty much the only thing that was given up was the expansion port, which didn't seem all that useful with the MSX Module already being built-in.

 

As for not being able to plug in the 2600 adapter because of that lack of an expansion port. It really didn't make a whole lot of sense to try to keep that feature. Likely people would be better served to just pick up a 2600Jr and play your 2600 stuff that way. Besides with that adapter being as large or larger than the CV-NUC+ it would be cumbersome to have that hanging off the side.

[Tornadoboy]

How tough would it be for someone to wire in the expansion port for experimentation purposes? Is it just a matter of making the right connections or is there missing hardware that would be needed too? I'm tempted to see how small I might be able to redesign the Atari adapter PCB. This is all an aside on my part, I'm not implying design changes to your board.

Also is there a way to disable the Atari adapter while still plugged in so it would go back to CV mode? I've been wondering in general how to do that with a stock CV to save the wear and tear of unplugging it all the time.

Edited June 15, 2023 by Tornadoboy

[+5-11under]

19 minutes ago, Tornadoboy said:

Also is there a way to disable the Atari adapter while still plugged in so it would go back to CV mode? I've been wondering in general how to do that with a stock CV to save the wear and tear of unplugging it all the time.

That has nothing to do with the CV-NUC+... but feel free to read/respond here:

 

[+mytek]

3 hours ago, 5-11under said:

That has nothing to do with the CV-NUC+... but feel free to read/respond here:

 

Agreed

 

3 hours ago, Tornadoboy said:

How tough would it be for someone to wire in the expansion port for experimentation purposes? Is it just a matter of making the right connections or is there missing hardware that would be needed too? I'm tempted to see how small I might be able to redesign the Atari adapter PCB. This is all an aside on my part, I'm not implying design changes to your board.

Wow would that ever be a mess of wires

 

To answer both your questions, anything is possible, but trying to do so on the CV-NUC+ would not be easy or pretty, and yes depending upon what you want to do via the expansion port some logic is missing. Personally I don't see this as feasible, or practical. And I find myself asking why?

[Tornadoboy]

Yeah you're probably right, I'll leave well enough alone with the NUC and just enjoy it as-is, I've got a couple of original consoles around so if I feel the compulsion to experiment I'll save it for one of them. 

[+mytek]

For those that are purchasing the DIY+Chips Kit from @MacRorie at TBA...

 

It's my understanding that the kit will come with the following chips already socketed on the supplied boards (only where applicable -- SMD chips will be soldered directly to the board instead). The QUAD board will also come with a few other components installed which allows the CH554G MCU to be firmware flashed in place. All of these added components should be subtracted from the BOM when ordering parts.

 

LM1889N (DIP 18 socket), TMS9128NL (DIP 40 socket), AT28C64B-15PU (DIP 28 socket), FMS6400 (no socket)

 

SN76489AN (Mini-DIP 16 socket), YM2149F (DIP 40 socket)

 

ATF1500A-10JU (PLCC 44 socket)

 

CH554G (no socket), and the following components to enable pre-flash of U2: C12, C13, R15, J4 (Boot Jumper), and J5 (USB Jack)

 

PIC16F630-I/P (MINI-DIP 14 socket)

 

This should cover all the chips requiring programming, as well as all the hard to get no longer manufactured chips.

 

So for you DIY people getting this kit, there will be no need to get programming hardware and/or cabling. And no DIY SMD soldering required.

 

All the other components are still available from the regular vendor sources listed on the BOM.

 

EDIT: The AT28C64B-15PU is an 8K EEPROM which will come pre-flashed with a custom 3 second delay version of the BIOS. Meaning instead of leaving the Game Title on screen for 12 seconds as the original BIOS does, this will only do so for 3 seconds which is still sufficient time to read the title. There are other alternative BIOS ROM images out there such as Fire-Skip and No Delay, any of which the user can flash to the EEPROM with a suitable programmer (e.g., TL866II Plus). Since the chip is electrically eraseable, no UV light is required.