Tomodachi X2 Modern Retro System
As the number of still working Commodore 64 & 128, MSX, Sinclair and Atari systems dwindle, there is still a lot of demand for such systems, both by those who used such systems back in the 80s and 90s, and those who have discovered such systems later on.
The Tomodachi ('friends' in Japanese) X2 project intents to capture all that makes such retro systems so attractive to use along with all of the nostalgic bits, while adding a dose of modern electronics that nevertheless should not get in the way of enjoying all the good that 8 and 16-bit systems had to offer.
Along with hardware 6502 and Z80 compatible processors and integrated C64, C128 and MSX2+ modes, the Tomodachi X2 system can also be used as its own multi-processor, multi-architecture system, with many interfaces including PS/2, Ethernet, serial & parallel, 3.5" floppy drive support, a Yamaha OPL3 synthesizer chip, high-resolution graphics and much more.
Details
The project's PCB is being designed in KiCad, with a custom enclosure in progress that will fit the custom PCB form factor. At this point in the project's development the specifications are:
- Custom form factor
- W65C816 MPU (x2)
- eZ80-190 MPU (x2)
- RISC-V soft core (in FPGA)
- 256+ MB of DDR3 SDRAM
- "Alice" chipset
- Yamaha OPL3 synthesizer
- Commodore 8580 SID (x2)
- Commodore 6581 SID (x2)
- 100 Mbit Ethernet
- SD card reader
- Parallel port (SPP, EPP & ECP)
- RS-232C port (x2)
- PS/2 mouse & keyboard ports
- C64, C128 and MSX2+-specific ports
- DVI output (VGA compatible)
- Stereo audio out, microphone input
- Single 3.5" floppy drive
Current status
The project development status as of the last update is:
- Developing the "Alice" chipset using a Lattice ECP5-based development board.
- Sampling a number of (Microchip) Super-I/O ICs (SCH5027, SCH5627) that are 3.3V & LPC compliant.
- Board layout and schematic are progressing into the final stages before review.
Images
The bare PCB, still under development. Here facing the back of the board with most of the connectors.
Block diagram of the system.
Links
This project is also featured at Hackaday.io: https://hackaday.io/project/165156-tomodachi-x2