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QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 7:59 pm
by MIST
First results:
https://youtu.be/tdZv0u2SDv0

This is the TG68k CPU core which is also used for the Minimig Amiga core and the MISTs Atari ST core. It's using microdrive images in QLAY format which are uploaded into some unused part of the 32MB SDRAM.

It's currently using a HDL implementation of a very basic IPC. In the long term it'd be nice to implemen tthe real 8049 as well.

I have tested minerva 1.98 and the js rom and only the psion pograms and a few games from the GamesCart.mdv i got from this forum.

I'll clean up the mess a little bit and then publish the code. How much more time i'll spend on this mainly depends on the feedback if you understand ;)

Get your own board here: http://lotharek.pl/product.php?pid=96

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 8:30 pm
by MIST
Binaries for the MIST owners will appear here:
https://github.com/mist-devel/mist-bina ... r/cores/ql

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 9:05 pm
by XorA
One more reason to buy a MIST now, don't suppose anyone knows tomorrows lottery numbers?

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 9:42 pm
by Paul
This is really great news. Congratulations!
Can I read somewhere what you have implemented?
Is it a 68020 core? How much RAM? What processor speed approximately?
Can't wait to read more!!!
kind regards Paul

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 10:01 pm
by MIST
The CPU Core is a tg68k. I am running it as a 68000 equalling circa 14mhz. But I'll reduce that so it gets closer to the 7.5mhz. In my Atari St and in. The Amiga setup the same core runs in 68020 mode at roughly the speed of a 32mhz 68030. This is probably close to the limit of this particular core.

Ram is currently 128k. The board has 32mb and it shouldn't be too difficult to give the ql a significant portion of this.

But next I'll cleanup code first for a first source release. And I think very soon there will be an implementation of the 8049.

Till

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 8:48 am
by Derek_Stewart
Hi,

I notice you have USB ports on the MIST board, do you have a QL USB driver.

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 9:15 am
by MIST
Derek_Stewart wrote: I notice you have USB ports on the MIST board, do you have a QL USB driver.
I don't need to. There's an arm controller doing all the USB magic and also booting the FPGA and doing SD card, controlling the on-screen-display etc. To the FPGA keyboard and mice look like ps/2 devices and gamepads look like standard db9 joysticks.

That's the MiSTs philosophy: The FPGA implements the original hardware as precise as possible. The arm controller maps modern peripherals onto something the FPGA can easily deal with. It would be a waste of FPGA space or target power if i'd move USB handling into the FPGA or even onto the embedded target.

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 11:14 am
by tofro
Derek,

just consider the ARM on the MIST as a kind of second I/O coprocessor (like the IPC on the QL) that would transfer external hardware into something the native HW would understand.

It could, for example, be used (provided we can convince Till to do a bit more work ;).....) to present an SD card connected to the MiST as QubIDE or QL-SD to the running QL - Thus using existing hardware concepts, I/O adresses and drivers.

This is exactly what Till has done with regards to the micro drives - The QL on the FPGA is presented with micro drive circuitry that it knows and has drivers for, the ARM and FPGA work together to feed this hardware with the right signals at the right time.

Tobias

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2015 2:27 pm
by MIST
I am using that concept everywhere. E.g. the Atari ST core can use USB-Ethernet dongles to go online. To the Atari ST this looks like an old ne2000 based ethernat so the original network drivers from 20 years ago can be used.

And yes, adding sd-ql support should actually be quite simple. So should be mouse support.

The hardest part is currently to get some interesting software in qlay mdv cartridge images.

Yesterday i added support for a 512k ram expansion. And the video clock is now 10.5Mhz resulting in a video that's pretty close to the original machine. Before at 14Mhz the image was rather square with wide black borders left and right. Now it nicely uses the complete screen.

BTW: Were there different ULAs for PAL and NTSC? It seems bit 6 in $18063 on US machines can be used to switch into a 60 Hz mode. I have this currently hard wired and you can manually force the video into a 60 Hz mode at any time.

What happens if a european QL is used with a US rom in TV mode? Does it run at 60 Hz?

Re: QL on MIST FPGA board

Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2015 9:08 am
by MIST
The latest binary can be found here:
https://github.com/mist-devel/mist-bina ... r/cores/ql

The source code has been released at:
https://github.com/mist-devel/mist-boar ... r/cores/ql