Questions from a returning fan

[blanning]

Hi Everyone.  I have a few questions.  But first some background.  Back in 1987, I worked for more than a year making minimum wage to save up enough money for an amiga.  I ended up getting a 500 with the memory expansion and a 1084s.  As part of my mid-life crisis, I'm starting to collect some  of the things I had or couldn't have back then.  And an amiga is at the top of the list.  

I could go to ebay and get another 500.  Or I could get a 2000 which is what I really wanted at the time.  But I think in order to get the most out of the amiga experience for me, I think i'll go with a 1200, mainly for the expandability and the aga chipset.

I discovered amigakit.com   :-D

So here are the questions:

I'm thinking of getting their new old stock a1200.  Is this thing for real?  I'm guessing these are amiga technologies machines.

It doesn't come with a power supply.  But they have an upgraded power supply for what seems like a high price, although it's probably worth it.  Should I go with their beefed up power supply or pick one up from ebay?

What is the video situation on the 1200?  The 500 had that weird 23-pin thing and an rca with the annoying black and white output.  I was thinking of getting an a520 and using a tv to play games.  But really, I'd rather use a modern monitor.  Will I need a flicker fixer for this?  or is there a weird-amiga-to-normal-vga adapter somewhere?  The amiga-hardware.com site shows something that looks like what I want on the back of the a1200.  What's a quick solution that I can use until I get the good solution?

Is the composite out on the 1200 still black and white like the 500 or is it color?

What's the rca connector next to the power connector?

Which os version should I get?  3.1 or 3.9?

Is the mouse a standard 9-pin serial mouse or is it proprietary?

Should I get the memory upgrade from amigakit or will I not notice the difference?

tia

brian

[mike-]

I'd go for 3.1, you need it to run 3.9 anyway, but 3.9 sucks the living life out of my amiga4k, even with an 060, a mediator and a voodoo5. However, there are parts of 3.9 which are nice, the amiga rom update can be used with 3.1, that really really gives 3.1 that little extra push it so badly needs ( browsing directories is updated as you scroll ) and the some updated libraries and binaries.

Its not black and white no.
http://www.amiga.org/gallery/index.php?n=2515
http://www.amiga.org/gallery/index.php?n=2514

Amigakit probably has the best rep. any amiga retailer can get, so yah, its real.

Where o where have i left my brains today, you dont need wb3.1 but kick 3.1 to run 3.9.

[Ilwrath]

Wow... that's a lot of questions.

For the ones I know the answers to...

I discovered amigakit.com

Amigakit seems to be reputable vendor

Should I go with their beefed up power supply or pick one up from ebay?

The stock A1200 power supply is wimpy.  A beefed up one is helpful, especially for any expansions (030, internal hard drive, pcmcia cards, etc.)  Now, you can buy a newer custom supply, or just use an A500 power supply. (The A500/1200 power supplies are pin-compatible, and the A500 ones had a decent output.)  That choice is yours.  Personally I just use an old A500 supply on my retro A1200.  It works for the 030 and CF/HD just fine.

What is the video situation on the 1200?

The 1200 has the 23-pin RGB port, plus color composite and color RF built in.  (No need for the A520.)  There are cheap DB23->HD19 converters.  These will allow you to plug in a VGA monitor.  The problem is, you'll need a scandoubler or a monitor that can accept a 15khz Horizontal sync to be able to display the NTSC and PAL screens.

Is the composite out on the 1200 still black and white like the 500 or is it color?
What's the rca connector next to the power connector?

See above.  There's a color composite output as well as a color RF output.  :-)

Which os version should I get? 3.1 or 3.9?

Which do you want?  3.1 is probably more suited for a retro setup.  3.9 has some more things built in, but needs some more hardware to use it fully...

Is the mouse a standard 9-pin serial mouse or is it proprietary?

Amiga mouse ONLY.  Don't even think of plugging in a serial, unless you want to cause some damage.  There are PS2->Amiga mouse adaptors available, though.

Should I get the memory upgrade from amigakit or will I not notice the difference?

The A1200 LIVES for Fast RAM!  It's quite a dog without it.  Even better if you can get a 030 card and fast ram.  Really makes the little bugger a retro-speed demon.  Just the Fast RAM alone makes a big difference, though.

[BuzzBrain]

Hi and welcome back

blanning wrote:


I'm thinking of getting their new old stock a1200.  Is this thing for real?  I'm guessing these are amiga technologies machines.
-----

Yes this is amiga techologies amiga. A1200AT






It doesn't come with a power supply.  But they have an upgraded power supply for what seems like a high price, although it's probably worth it.  Should I go with their beefed up power supply or pick one up from ebay?
------------------------------------

You can use the same power supply as Amiga a500
So just get a a500 power brick cheap from you local area og ebay.

PS: the orginal A1200 power supply have low power output.
so if you want a cpu oppgrade and memory, you have too change this anyway. like a A500 power supply.



What is the video situation on the 1200?  The 500 had that weird 23-pin thing and an rca with the annoying black and white output.  I was thinking of getting an a520 and using a tv to play games.  But really, I'd rather use a modern monitor.  Will I need a flicker fixer for this?  or is there a weird-amiga-to-normal-vga adapter somewhere?  The amiga-hardware.com site shows something that looks like what I want on the back of the a1200.  What's a quick solution that I can use until I get the good solution?
------------

A1200 and A500 use same monitor output. same RGB kabel.
So if you have a 1084 monitor you can use that.

You have no need for a A520, as the 1200 have a RF modul this build in.



Is the composite out on the 1200 still black and white like the 500 or is it color?
-------------------------------
A1200 have a color compsite out.




What's the rca connector next to the power connector?
--------------------
RF modul?




Which os version should I get?  3.1 or 3.9?
---------------
If you have a stock a1200 go for 3.1
If you plan to upgrade it. go for 3.9



Is the mouse a standard 9-pin serial mouse or is it proprietary?
----------------------¨
Is proprietary, you need a amiga mouse.



Should I get the memory upgrade from amigakit or will I not notice the difference?

------------------------
You will get some speed improvment with more fast mem.
As a1200 comes with 2mb chip mem default (slower mem)

But if you upgrade too a blizzard 030 you will get fully 32bit memory and a lot more speed


Buzz

[blanning]

Thanks for all the info.  

I'm still not quite sure what I want to do with this thing.  I definitely want to play the old games I had plus many others, but I'm just as interested in discovering new uses for it.  I eventually want to get a cpu/memory upgrade and a mediator in a tower case.  But this seems like a good place to start.

ok, so it looks like I want an a1200 with the memory upgrade, an amiga mouse, 3.1, ethernet, and a hard drive.  I'll pick up an a500 power supply from ebay.  And start out with the composite monitor connector.

Any idea where I can get the 23-pin to vga adapter and a scan doubler?

And is there a list of compatible monitors that I can walk into a store and buy?

Thanks again for all the info.  I'm full of questions.

brian

[SamuraiCrow]

In order to answer your questions about monitors, I'll have to ask a question regarding where you live.

Do you live in Europe or some other country where the PAL or SECAM signals are standard?

If so you can get an LCD TV with a built-in scan doubler.  The color might not be as good as a 1084S used to be but it has deinterlaced graphics that the 1084S never had.

Also, the systems that AmiKit sells may be European PAL systems so if you try to hook it up to the composite signal of an NTSC monitor/TV you WON'T get a color signal due to the fact that PAL and NTSC have incompatible chromanence signals.

If you live in a country that uses the NTSC standard, things aren't so rosy.  NTSC systems are more rare than PAL and you'll have to buy an external or internal scan doubler for your A1200 because LCD TVs sold here don't support PAL/SECAM scan rates and, therefore, won't be able to play most of the games written for a PAL Amiga.

In short, if you're in a PAL or SECAM standard country you've got it made as far as monitors are concerned.  If you live in the U.S.A., Japan, or Canada you're in trouble.  

[mbrantley]

Buried deep inside a long a.org thread about scandoublers came the recent news that Individual Comptuers will soon market an internal scandoubler for the 1200. I assume AmigaKit will sell it, and I don't know if we know yet how much it will cost or when exactly it will be available. My impression was sooner rather than later, and I'll be buying this when I can. Somebody chime in with updated information if you have it.

I think you should order the machine configured as you described and make do with composite color for the time being. Then plan on getting the new scandoubler and use an ordinary (meaning cheap and easy to find) VGA monitor with that. Get the fast ram expansion for sure and an accelerator with fast ram if you can find one and can afford it.

When you get it all set up, you'll soon discover you can use a shareware program called WHDLoad to install lots of Amiga games to the hard drive with minimal fuss. A PCMCIA networking card (can be wireless) with EasyNet from AmigaKit will get the 1200 online with minimal fuss for downloading software. Browsing the Web on a 1200 with AGA video is not a barrel full of fun, however.

My NEC3D on my 1200 is dying, so I'm anxious for that scandoubler.

Oh, welcome back to the fold! A lot of us are having a midlife crisis like yours.

[blanning]

I'm in chicago.  So it's ntsc.  amigakit lets you choose between pal and ntsc 1200s.  Sounds like i need a scan doubler.

brian

[Nlandas]

Amigakit.com is very reputable. I've ordered from them three times now. Awaiting my USB Deneb right now.

The A1200 still has the Amiga RGB 23-pin output. You'll either need a monitor that does 15KHz, an old multisync, or a scandoubler/flicker fixer that is 24-bit. Supposedly Individual Computers will be releasing an internal one for the A1200. Otherwise, rely on the RF(ch 3/4) or Composite outputs to a TV.

For the power supply, I recommend getting a cheap ATX power supply and building an adapter or if you aren't technically inclined an adapters from ATX to A1200 from AmigaKit.

You need OS 3.1 ROMs and disks to install 3.9. (You'll also need a CDROM to install 3.5 or 3.9 from CD.)

The Mouse is an Amiga mouse with the Atari Joystick connector on it.

I'd recommmend looking for an accelerator card with memory for it. At least an 030 processor. I think AmigaKit just got some in for a reasonable price but they may be sold out by now. So you'll have a faster processor and more ram.

-Nyle

[TjLaZer]

A 2000 would be a great start and more fun expanding.  You can also get a 1200 for AGA/games.  A 2000 can be aquired cheap too.  I would check Craigs List.  I got one for free.

A external scan doubler will cost you a lot.  One sold for $900 on ebay recently.

[blanning]

That's not a bad idea.  Maybe pick up a 2000 from somewhere with a 1084 monitor and switch between the two machines for amiga goodness.

brian

[mbrantley]

blanning wrote:
I'm in chicago.  So it's ntsc.  amigakit lets you choose between pal and ntsc 1200s.  Sounds like i need a scan doubler.

brian

On Chicago Craigslist....
Here are two 2000's and whole bunch of other vintage video editing goodies...
http://chicago.craigslist.org/nwc/sys/682343156.html

And here's a 1000 for $30...
http://chicago.craigslist.org/sox/sys/685227736.html

[blanning]

I saw those.  I think for $450, I'd probably rather start with a 1200.  But i agree that it's a great deal.  Although he wants to extort video work from people as a condition of sale.  lol.

brian

[amigadave]

blanning wrote:
I saw those.  I think for $450, I'd probably rather start with a 1200.  But i agree that it's a great deal.  Although he wants to extort video work from people as a condition of sale.  lol.

brian

I would buy a bunch of the video related items and sound mixer, or exchange some of my Amiga gear if you buy that lot.  I have an A1200 w/030 accelerator card and extra RAM for sale right now that I would trade and you could have the A2000s in the sale and the A1200 you want to get?

What do you think?

[mfletcher]

TjLaZer wrote:

A external scan doubler will cost you a lot.  One sold for $900 on ebay recently.

Also - a fool and their money are easily separated; I saw an external scandoubler sell for $179. As soon as Jens Scandoubler comes out expect these prices to drop further.

I really hope that Jens scandoubler sells in sufficient quantities for him to produce versions for other models.

There are some disreputable sellers out there (check the Doomy threads) that try to profit from others lack of knowledge on the current amiga scene.