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Author Topic: To Minimig or not to Minimig?  (Read 14005 times)

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Offline amigadave

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Re: To Minimig or not to Minimig?
« on: July 20, 2009, 03:52:33 PM »
Quote from: skilgannon;516255
Thanks Tone but it's really the form factor I was after as I only recently got rid of my A1200 setup (was a nice setup too as it was accellerated and had 32mb ram and I also had it networked).  Because my Amiga monitor (Microvitec Multisync) died and I couldnt find another one (on eBay or anywhere else) I ended up not using it any more, so sold it.  The thought of a nice small form factor machine to be able to play my favourite games on the actual machine is a nice one but I'm stuck with the monitor issue again, as none of my TV's (All LCD) will run with it so I would need to again try and find one or get the old Philips MK2 style (which is really just a CRT tv).

Sounds like you should just replace the A1200 just like the one you used to have and add an IndivisionAGA for the A1200 to it to solve the monitor/LCD problem.  The Indivision is a great piece of hardware and a great addition to any A1200 that is not already in a tower with a Zorro board and graphics card.
How are you helping the Amiga community? :)
 

Offline amigadave

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Re: To Minimig or not to Minimig?
« Reply #1 on: July 22, 2009, 06:24:50 PM »
Quote from: skilgannon;516557
OK, Here's what I've done do sate my Amiga lust once and for all (hopefully lol).  I've agreed to buy a 3.1 ROM version of an A1200 from someone on Amibay; I'm ordering the Indivision Scan Doubler from Amigakit and I'm ordering a Minimig for the downstairs TV :)  Maybe sounds like overkill but what the hay, it will give me what I want (and in life that's imprtant hehe).

I made my decision based on all the good advice from you lot so just wanted to say thank you for taking the time, but if you would indulge me a little further, would you be able to advise on what PCMCIA adapter to get to use an SD / Compact FLash card as a hard drive please?  This will alleviate the need for me to get the Amiga networked.  Also does anyone know if when I fit the Indivision card, if I can still get an accellerator into the machine too?  

Cheers

Skilgannon

Congrats on your decisions, I think you made the right choices and you are absolutely right that life is short and you should enjoy it while you can and get what you want when you can.  

The A1200 is the easiest Amiga to expand as it has a high number of peripherals available at a lower cost than the same items for other Amiga models (usually).  The MiniMig is a little bit pricey for what you get, but you are paying for new hardware opposed to old used hardware and it has the great small form factor, built-in scan doubler and it is just plain cool that it was even created the way it was.

To answer some of your questions, the Indivision will not interfere with the installation of an accelerator and depending on what your use of the A1200 is going to be like, a 68030 may be sufficient for your needs, or you may want a full on 68060 plus a fast 603e PPC card with as much memory as you can install on it.  I have a 68060 with a SCSI-II controller and the ability to add up to 256mb of Fast RAM, but no PPC chip and I am very happy with it, specially after I have installed the Indivision video.

I am not sure I understand your statement about using a Compact Flash card instead of a hard drive having anything to do with aleviating the need to network your A1200, but maybe you meant that if you keep your PCMCIA slot free you will be able to use it for a wired or wireless networking device, instead of a PCMCIA to Compact Flash adapter.

Lastly, if you have not already ordered your MiniMig, you might want to look at Illuwatar's Mini-ITX (or is it Nano-ITX) form factor redesigned MiniMig v2.0 board.  I know that he has some available as bare boards right now as he just had a new production run completed.  But then you would have to find someone to build it for you unless you are very skilled with a soldering iron.
How are you helping the Amiga community? :)
 

Offline amigadave

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Re: To Minimig or not to Minimig?
« Reply #2 on: July 23, 2009, 05:03:57 PM »
Quote from: JC;516573
I have a toastscan scandoubler that I use with my A4000 and a cheap refurbished monitor both of which I bought from Software Hut. I was just curious, do these things ever show up on ebay? It couldn't be easier, it just plugs into the monitor port and then the monitor plugs into it.

Yes, they used to show up on ebay regularly and command high prices, but since the Indivision was released I have not seen them for sale or auction as often.  It would be interesting to see how much the price has dropped for the external Toastscan (which by the way was developed by the same person who does the Indivision).

Last year at AmiWest 2008 I demonstrated the improved image quality of the Indivision compared to the Toastscan from my A1200 using a vga switch box and the output of both devices going to the same CRT monitor.  I had both the Indivision and the Toastscan running at the same time from the same A1200 and just switched back and forth to show the difference between the two displays on the same monitor.  The Toastscan is good, but the Indivision is better.
How are you helping the Amiga community? :)