C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

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PhilC
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C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by PhilC »

Evening All.

I've just finished fixing up an old C64 out of a pile of boards, cases etc, to be added into my personal collection.

So I have a tape drive emulator and am now looking at getting a disk drive emulator. Can you guys please let me know your opinions of what's good to get.
If it ain't broke, test it to Destruction.
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by rubber_jonnie »

PhilC wrote: Mon Apr 19, 2021 9:52 pm Evening All.

I've just finished fixing up an old C64 out of a pile of boards, cases etc, to be added into my personal collection.

So I have a tape drive emulator and am now looking at getting a disk drive emulator. Can you guys please let me know your opinions of what's good to get.
Also interested as once I get my workshop and retro area set up in the new house, I'm looking too.

I am aware of uDRIVE and SD2IEC, but are there more?
Collector of many retro things!
800XL and 65XE both with Ultimate1MB,VBXL/XE & PokeyMax, SIDE3, SDrive Max, 2x 1010 cassette, 2x 1050 one with Happy mod, 3x 2600 Jr, 7800 and Lynx II
Approx 20 STs, including a 520 STM, 520 STFMs, 3x Mega ST, MSTE & 2x 32 Mhz boosted STEs
Plus the rest, totalling around 50 machines including a QL, 3x BBC Model B, Electron, Spectrums, ZX81 etc...
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by PhilC »

@rubber_jonnie there is also a pihat for pi v3b and up but I have no idea which is the best or easiest to use.
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by rubber_jonnie »

PhilC wrote: Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:10 am @rubber_jonnie there is also a pihat for pi v3b and up but I have no idea which is the best or easiest to use.
There seems to be a lot of Pi based stuff lately, but as you say, what is the ease of use like? If it was like a CosmosEx I'd definitely be in.

There are some useful cartridges too, the Easyflash looks like a pretty good solution overall.
Collector of many retro things!
800XL and 65XE both with Ultimate1MB,VBXL/XE & PokeyMax, SIDE3, SDrive Max, 2x 1010 cassette, 2x 1050 one with Happy mod, 3x 2600 Jr, 7800 and Lynx II
Approx 20 STs, including a 520 STM, 520 STFMs, 3x Mega ST, MSTE & 2x 32 Mhz boosted STEs
Plus the rest, totalling around 50 machines including a QL, 3x BBC Model B, Electron, Spectrums, ZX81 etc...
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by PaulJ_2.0 »

I dont bother with disk emulators nowadays.
Kung Fu Flash is fast and simple and less than half the price of similar carts.

Or you could just build your own.
https://github.com/KimJorgensen/KungFuFlash
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by rubber_jonnie »

PaulJ_2.0 wrote: Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:32 am I dont bother with disk emulators nowadays.
Kung Fu Flash is fast and simple and less than half the price of similar carts.

Or you could just build your own.
https://github.com/KimJorgensen/KungFuFlash
Oh yes, that rings a bell now you mention it.
Collector of many retro things!
800XL and 65XE both with Ultimate1MB,VBXL/XE & PokeyMax, SIDE3, SDrive Max, 2x 1010 cassette, 2x 1050 one with Happy mod, 3x 2600 Jr, 7800 and Lynx II
Approx 20 STs, including a 520 STM, 520 STFMs, 3x Mega ST, MSTE & 2x 32 Mhz boosted STEs
Plus the rest, totalling around 50 machines including a QL, 3x BBC Model B, Electron, Spectrums, ZX81 etc...
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PhilC
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by PhilC »

@PaulJ_2.0 that's not a bad suggestion, I'll take a look at that too since it's able to use disk files etc.
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by tin »

I‘d recommend the Ultimate 1541II+ - apart from the drive emulation it also allows you to change the OS ROM, use fastloader ROMs, use cartridges, emulate REU and Easyflash, network, tape etc. etc. It copes with (afaik) everything out there regarding fastloaders/media, and you can even upload your own cross-assembled binaries via network. Oh and it even emulates a dual SID if needed.

I played alot with other solutions and they are often either a) not that compatible or b) miss features like ROM switching. So the U1541II+ is well worth the price imho, as it really emulates the whole 1541 including it‘s CPU (which is used by fastloaders and some demos/games).

Here‘s an overview: http://c64os.com/buyersguide/1541UltimateII
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by PhilC »

Thank you @tin I'll have a read about that as well but may be a little on the expensive side for a bit of retro gaming.
If it ain't broke, test it to Destruction.
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Re: C64 disk drive emulator. Which one?

Post by PaulJ_2.0 »

Yeah those Ultimate carts are the gold standard and I would love one.
Maybe when I'm feeling frivolous and flush.
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