The F18a DIY alternative with HDMI :)

[retrocanada76]

didn't touch it. if aint broke aint fix it. But try the v2 9918 on the coleco now

 

[retrocanada76]

you can try the v2 9958 as well

 

[retrocanada76]

the audio seems to have improved substantially. I changed the inputs from pullups to pulldown. at least on MSX que quality is visible, I mean, audible  

 

both v2 version have been fixed

[retrocanada76]

3 hours ago, craftsman1234 said:

Quick question could the sync issue also be in Version 1.  Asking due to the crashes in the ColecoVision.

You can just run the versions v2_9918 without the VGA breaker, It should work without any audio just like the v1. The vga output is not good either so i am not changing it there is no point.

 

[Duewester]

Software version 2.01 is still noisy but sound does play through it. I played several games without issue other than the background hiss.

I found an older model LG TV/Monitor at Goodwill and it's newer than the Emerson one I have been using. The issue is it has a background his as long as the HDMI is plugged in and the TV on even when the Ti-99/4a is not on. Even the FAT board hisses some. So, back to the old Emerson TV/Monitor.

The good news is, I can use a slightly longer cable now and that makes placement in the case a little less restrictive. I'm also now for unknown reasons able to hook up my HDMI flat cable and bulkhead connection.

Turning down the TV volume to about 25% reduces noise and still allows some sound to come through.

Removing the amplifier didn't benefit me any.

[retrocanada76]

@Duewester Did you get my latest core ? I improved the sound and fixed the screen tearing. Try adding a 0.1uf or 0.01uf ceramic cap in series with audio and the connector. See if we can filter anything.

 

On my MSX the sound is pretty decent now.

 

Try also the V2 9958 just for the fun of it. I fixed it too.

[craftsman1234]

 

23 hours ago, retrocanada76 said:

didn't touch it. if aint broke aint fix it. But try the v2 9918 on the coleco now

 

It would not be the best solution for me as I want to use the VGA but I did give it a test and still had the same crashes.

[Duewester]

On 7/11/2023 at 7:12 PM, retrocanada76 said:

@Duewester Did you get my latest core ? I improved the sound and fixed the screen tearing. Try adding a 0.1uf or 0.01uf ceramic cap in series with audio and the connector. See if we can filter anything.

What I referred to as Version 2.01 is your latest core.

I loaded it up yesterday and got the best results so far. 

This morning I tried the capacitor trick  from Pin3 to Audio and saw no improvement. I moved back to the 9904 chip Pin 7 (Sound Out before the caps, choke and resistor) and even without the capacitor there was nearly no static. When I started messing with the volume on the TV the static seemed to reach a threshold and go away completely but the volume did not increase.

I was ready to button up this Ti and went to lunch first.

I had made up a n HDMI breakout earlier with the intent of making my installation a little more flexible. Long story short, the breakout didn't work and was even a little noisier so I took it out and installed the flat cable. Dang if all the issues didn't come back.

So, I'm back to the shortest cable I can make, the volume is turned down on the TV and I have a 100mm flat HDMI cable connected to a bulkhead connector and it is workable but low volume.

9958 won't load onto my Tangs. ID incorrect warning

I have two Tangs now. One gives random "Not Supported" warning on TV without even turning on the Ti. The other is fairly reliable. One more note - the led on the Tang all alone must be on steady for the system to boot and the other led's must be steady in some state. If they are flashing around it's a no go for stability.

[retrocanada76]

3 hours ago, Duewester said:

What I referred to as Version 2.01 is your latest core.

I loaded it up yesterday and got the best results so far. 

This morning I tried the capacitor trick  from Pin3 to Audio and saw no improvement. I moved back to the 9904 chip Pin 7 (Sound Out before the caps, choke and resistor) and even without the capacitor there was nearly no static. When I started messing with the volume on the TV the static seemed to reach a threshold and go away completely but the volume did not increase.

I was ready to button up this Ti and went to lunch first.

I had made up a n HDMI breakout earlier with the intent of making my installation a little more flexible. Long story short, the breakout didn't work and was even a little noisier so I took it out and installed the flat cable. Dang if all the issues didn't come back.

So, I'm back to the shortest cable I can make, the volume is turned down on the TV and I have a 100mm flat HDMI cable connected to a bulkhead connector and it is workable but low volume.

9958 won't load onto my Tangs. ID incorrect warning

I have two Tangs now. One gives random "Not Supported" warning on TV without even turning on the Ti. The other is fairly reliable. One more note - the led on the Tang all alone must be on steady for the system to boot and the other led's must be steady in some state. If they are flashing around it's a no go for stability.

it should be V2 9958. The V3 is for the Tang 20K. I will test some audio improvements the people from MSX makers are helping me out.

[retrocanada76]

@Duewester i am trying this and i am getting a good audio.

[Duewester]

 

@retrocanada76. I've buttoned up this project for a little bit.

I have managed to squeeze the Tn-VDP with version 9918 V2 on it into the Ti-99/4a case and connect it up to the TV with a bulkhead connection.

Every once in a while the TV will report something about Version not supported. Cycling the TV power and then turning on the Ti will clear it up. 

There is still some background hiss and it changes depending on the TV I have hooked up. This particular TV doesn't appear to have left and right balance and sounds better than the LG with stereo output. The LG sounds best with left or right but not balanced.

I have not messed with your new setup for the MCP3202. I'm guessing these are the same setup with added channel squeezed in.

For now, this is my Audio Setup

For now though I'mma gonna leave be what is working and try to figure out what all this has cost me 🙂

I hope the video plays for you.

[retrocanada76]

Great, then try a simple hack: add a 102 cap between GND and the ADC input pin 2(put under the board it's easier) it will filter a lot of hiss. You can try other values.

 

 

[Duewester]

Well that was a long wait. I misread the post, ordered some 103 caps. They came in an d long story short - no difference. Now to get it all back out and try a 102.😵‍💫

[Duewester]

Well 102 made no difference. Button up the unit and play some more chess.

[doode968]

Great project!

 

I just got the v2 BOM from DigiKey and v2 socket board from OSHpark.  Need a bit of help to clarify if there is a v2 slim version of the main board?

 

Thanks

Edited August 23, 2023 by doode968

[Duewester]

WOOT! Very happy to see someone else building one of these.

I'm assuming you're building for Ti/99-4a?

@doode968For reference here is a pic of the two boards I built. Neither is a "Slim" version.

The V2 Board on the right is a two part reasonably low profile setup and I strongly recommend you keep that ribbon cable a short as possible to reduce 'noise' on the HDMI. This board will give sound out on HDMI.

The "Fat" board on the left needs two dip sockets on the bottom in order to clear the clock crystal. I use the Audio Pin out on the 5 pin din to get sound out of the TI. The VGA header pins are only needed for original board that used VGA and or HDMI.

 

Raw materials wise I built the FAT board (less VGA) for about $26.15 (USD) and the V2 Board for $39.09 (USD)

If I knew more about KiCad I'd have redone the original V1 board with the VGA removed and everything offset to the opposite side so that it clears the crystal and uses the space between the 9901 and 9918. If I had @retrocanada76's electrical drawings I'd venture into it more willingly but I'm not much on reverse engineering a KiCad project when I can barely use it. Besides, this is his project and I'm not into stepping on anybody's project. I'm just chillin out with my two Ti/99-4a's with the Tang in them (I also have two with both versions of F-18a in them and they work quite well too). 

[doode968]

Yes, building for TI99/4a. I have resurrected two setups with PEB, monitor, 32k, speech, serial port, printer, controllers, etc... with two other units that are the computer itself only which are waiting for 32K+TIPI setup. Neat to pass time by tinkering with 42+ year old technology and re-discovering.  I have boxes of power supplies, keyboards, dozens of ROM cartridges (mostly games), software titles on disk and tape.

 

 

Just pushed an order for three v2 main boards to OSHPark.

 

The slim units look neat, but if the v2 main board fits in the 99/4a box without much drama then will just stick with that. I do know my way around KiCAD so.. who knows, maybe I'll contribute back to the effort with slim version if things could be improved.

 

 

[Duewester]

33 minutes ago, doode968 said:

The slim units look neat, but if the v2 main board fits in the 99/4a box without much drama then will just stick with that. I do know my way around KiCAD so.. who knows, maybe I'll contribute back to the effort with slim version if things could be improved.

 

 

The V2 board needs the smallest hole cut in the RF Shield of the three boards I have built. You can get by with a cutout the size of the 9918 underneath.

[Dantaipan]

@Duewester Do you have more detailed build pics of the two-board (v2) setup? I think I have everything I need together here but the assembly instructions on Git are very general and the only build pic I can see is the one you have above with everything all together. I was going to try this in a Sega SG-1000ii FYI - anyone have any reason to believe it would not work in that context? Also I don't see anywhere on git where it talks about what the 6424073a connector is for vs. the other connector. Any direction and photos welcome, thanks.
PS. I am in Canada. If anyone else up here wants a copy of these boards let me know as I likely will not use the other 4 sets.

 

The BOM on Git has angled pin headers and I don't see anywhere those make sense here. It also seems to be missing the 8-pos header for the jumpers. No big deal but should probably be updated if so.

 

This is all headers and sockets just sitting in place without solder where I assume they go:

Edited August 25, 2023 by Dantaipan

[Dantaipan]

Also, this SG1000ii has non the non "A" version in it. Will this matter? 

 

[Duewester]

@Dantaipan, I hope this isn't too 'busy' to understand. I'm not not much of a Photoshop person but I can annotate a Picture in PowerPoint and turn it into a .PNG 🙂

 

I tried to upload an Excel File but I don't think it worked. It has all my BOM and a Pivot table to break out the costs.

 Okay, dang if it doesn't load up. Cool. Anyway, it's a Excel 2010 xlsx without macros or anything and it will open in LibreOffice but I don't know about the Pivot Table functionality.

 

tANG pROJECT.xlsx

 

OBTW @Dantaipan, You links don't open for me.

Edited August 25, 2023 by Duewester

[Dantaipan]

21 minutes ago, Duewester said:

@Dantaipan, I hope this isn't too 'busy' to understand. I'm not not much of a Photoshop person but I can annotate a Picture in PowerPoint and turn it into a .PNG 🙂

Thanks, I actually found the render back in the thread and went ahead and built it. The only real challenge was getting those SN74s in the machined sockets.

Next challenge seems to be programming the FPGA. I can't get the Gowin programmer to recognize the device over USB on Windows 11. I installed the drivers and run it and it just keeps saying no USB connection. I guess I need to pour through some more documentation for that thing.

[Dantaipan]

So it seems the programmer does not work in Windows 11. They broke support a couple versions back and don’t let you download previous versions. Has anyone successfully programmed this with Windows 11?

[Dantaipan]

Well that was a friggin journey. Anyway, here is the SG-1000ii outputting HDMI via this project.

[doode968]

V2 FAT board and socket assembled.

 

Case1: standalone mode (usb-c powered tang nano 9k to HDMI alone, not mated to fat board) displays the debug screen.

 

             TN-VDP

       RETRO to HDVIDEO

----------------------------------

TANG NANO 9K  TMS9918 VDP

   16KB RAM - HDMI/AUDIO

           VERSION 1.03

----------------------------------

 

Case2: Tang Nano 9K mated to the FAT board, powered by USB-C results in blank screen. (not connected to socket board)
 

Case3: Tang Nano 9K mated to the FAT board, connected to socket board installed in the 9918 socket on the TI99/4a results in HDMI OUT OF RANGE 31.4KHz / 950Hz displayed on an LG monitor.  Samsung TV does not detect a signal. Verified ribbon cable orientation pin 1-1, 2-2, 3-3 etc...

 

Audio and Mode1 not connected.

5 outer LEDs on the tang board are on.

Tested with short (3") and long(12") ribbon cable.

Pressing the S1 button on the Tang during Case3 results in corrupt debug screen.

 

TI99/4A functional in its stock composite video mode. HDMI cable tested good with

 

Anyone experienced this behavior?

 

This is the first build... will assemble a second setup.