by McVenco:
Exactly what (standard Amiga) screenmodes can the 1438 display? I bought one this week off the internet for a meree 30 Euro, but I'm only able to collect it at the end of this month. Does it also have a standard RGB connector or do I need some converter to hook it up to the A1200?
That's a good deal!
As far as I can understand the Microvitec 1438 can display ALL Amiga modes as it can sync down to 15Khz horizontal refresh.
The 1438, 1538 and 1764 had a cable coming out the back which attached directly to the Amiga's video port utilising RGB signals. The 1701 wasn't Amiga badged and had a VGA plug but was still Amiga 15Khz compatible if I remember correct.
You won't need a converter but do remember that screenmodes that are interlaced will still flicker like they would on a TV. This is because the image is made up of two seperate interchanging meshes of pixels to form a higher resolution screen. I think this was used because the chipset wasn't powerful enough to handle 640x512 in one field... could be wrong. I know 640x480 in Multiscan:Productivity mode is not interlaced but is dead sluggish.
You might need a set of speakers too as I'm not sure if all 1438/1538 had integrated speakers. If you get PC speakers be sure to get a small 2xphono-3.5mm adaptor.
I don't have a 1438 etc. so can't say for sure what connectors it has... there is one on eBay being used on an A4000/PIV setup which is odd as the PIV had a VGA connector. Maybe someone can clear this up.
