DCTV Question for Amiga 2000

[AmigaPixel]

Yes much agreed, I spent many good hours with my DCTV. Infact it was the first time I did a full digital painting was on DCTV paint. I used Image FX and Scenery Animator on the the DCTV buffer a lot too. My wife did some really cool paintings with it too. I'll post the some of the artwork as soon as I can find it.
I kept it around even though I haven't used it in a long time because I always new I would come back to it. Since I sold my A1200 (why oh why!) :boohoo: and I am seting up my A2000 with a Video Toaster, I think I'll pickup an A500 just for DCTV. :-)

[AmigaPixel]

Very Good thread, here...

OK, @AmigaPixel: Well, If you try to get a 500 for your DCTV, at least try to get some mem. expansion beyond 1MB, and if possible, an accelerator...will make using dctv much nicer... I used my DCTV originally with an A500 030/50MHz, 32 MB RAM, worked quite nicely...

@AmigaDave: I think the game you recall was actually for the OpalVision card, never saw a game for DCTV, though theoretically there should be no reason it wouldn't be possible, IMHO.

Oh, and to whoever mentioned about why the DCTV was not more sucessful....original price was $495.00 at indroduction, just checked an old issue of .INFO... Wasn't the A500 about $500 retail itself?

Ridiculous, I just got a DCTV unit, software, and a non-working sound sampler for $4.99 on EBay....

 :roll: [/quote]
 :-o $4.99 for a DCTV! WOW! I paid about $300, and that was a price drop. Of course that was in 1993.

Yes indeed I agree as far as the upgrades you mentioned. The Amiga and DCTV are efficient, however 512K isn't much to work with. Although if I remember correctly, there is a second icon to launch a version for low ram Amigas. Now that I think about it, I would probably shoot for a stock A1200 with a little extra ram.  :-D

[AmigaPixel]

.....At one point I know that Digital Creations, and their partners from Progressive Image, had talks with Commodore about selling CBM the DCTV technology for installation into upcoming Amiga products (this would have been about the time the A4000/1200 was in development).  I think CBM compared DCTV to the AGA concept, which they owned, and decided not to pay Digital for the rights to use DCTV technology.

Not sure if this story every made it beyond the backroom at Digital but, since it's so long and all the companies are gone, what the heck.  I feel like Cheney, lets declassify it!

Bob[/quote]
 ;-) Now that is the background history I love to find out about. :-D

[AmigaPixel]

.....I thought there was one game that came out in DCTV format, but can't think of the name. Maybe I am confusing it with the 24bit game that came with the OpalVision card?

Yes it was called something like King Karate. It was 24bit game too if I recall. I played only a few times when I had an Opalvision in my A2000. :-)

[AmigaPixel]

 

Ami_GFX wrote:
A few more words about the DCTV:

......."The DCTV has a really saturated color output which is really apealing for graphics, animation and games. It is more intensely colored than real life for sure. I love DCTV paint. I personally find it's compsite out on a modern LCD monitor much better than the RGB out of an Amiga on a 1084 monitor."

I agree, I always liked the saturated look of DCTV too. I never found a paint program on the PC that has the nice mixing palate like DCTV paint except for Mirage, which I was told was developed by former Amiga developers. :-D I have to ask, are you also known as DavidDB on the Newtek Amiga Toaster forum. :-)

[AmigaPixel]

Ami_GFX wrote:
Yes I am. Not much action on that forum these days.

I suspected when I saw your hardware listing the Merlin RTG Card and the SouthWest location. Cool! :-D I am mysticpixels on that forum. Yes it seemed to die down after I joined it. That figures.

[AmigaPixel]

Reading this old thread come back to life makes wish I had working Amiga for my DCTV! Actually the DCTV is in storage at a location I unable to get to for the time being. So I need to get the A2000 fixed up and buy another DCTV. Speaking of the PAR card I had one installed in my A2000 for a few years and I often had wished I could use it with the DCTV.
 
The patents should have have expired, I wonder if anyone would be interested in reverse engineering a DCTV unit and seeing what expansion or upgrading could be done with it? I am not sure a company even like Individual Computers would want to spend the resources on such a project.  However maybe some one here with the technical knowledge and skill not to mention the time and inclination, might be interested in such a project

[AmigaPixel]

What for though?  For folks still using classic hardware?  Composite video has kinda had its day.  It's pretty horrible looking on flat panels.  Even VGA signals look bad on them now.

I wonder if we'll ever see some hipster start-up creating new CRTs.  I've still got my first 1080-HD CRT I ever bought, all 200lbs of it, and I'm not giving it up until it simply doesn't work anymore.

Good point! Composite video is history. I just like the idea of taking a DCTV and seeing what could be done with it further. Even though there would be no point anymore. It was/is really a fun add on to the Amiga.

[AmigaPixel]

@desiv

I forgot about HAM-E until you mentioned it. My DCTV is in storage and I can't get to it for now, so I think I will pick one up on Ebay along with the RGB converter. I  use to play Caligari 24, Scenery Animator and later LightWave animations through the DCTV, first on my 030 A2000 and later my 060 A1200. They played really well on the latter.

I need to get my A2000 (my only remaining Amiga) up an running first.