SVI-738
Encyclopedia
The Spectravideo SVI-738 X'Press was an MSX1 compatible home computer
manufactured by Spectravideo
from 1985. Although compatible with the MSX 1.0 standard, it incorporates several extensions to the standard (80-column display, serial RS-232
, built-in 3.5" floppy drive); many are hardware-compatible with the MSX 2.0 standard but the system as a whole is not, leading to it being referred to as an "MSX 1.5" computer.
Along with the Sony HB-501 (which includes a cassette player), it the only attempt to make a portable computer based on the MSX standard, hence the title "X'Press" it came packaged with its own carrying bag in addition to the manuals, booklets and software (CP/M
2.2 and MSX-DOS
1.0) a disk containing a special demonstration program featuring an astronaut flying about on the screen, demonstrating the computer's graphic capabilitites and listing facts about the computer's ROM and RAM sizes.
Along with the disk drive and integrated serial port, what stood out the most was the use of the graphics chip specified by the MSX-2 standard, although the use of only 16 KB of VRAM allowed you to add only an 80 column mode. This, together with bugs in the first model's design (Konami SCC-sound based cartridges do not work or have bad sound) are among the reasons for the "MSX 1.5" moniker.
It ran Microsoft Disk BASIC 1.0 from ROM when turned on if no disk or an empty disk was inserted.
it was marketed by Centralna Składnica Harcerska at a price of 590 000 Polish złotys (the average salary for two months at that time), which equipped several schools. This version of the SVI-738 was sold with an altered keyboard and ROM in order to provide Polish-specific characters. It could also be found in schools in Finland
. In Spain
it was initially distributed by Indescom until the creation of a Spanish subsidiary. In United Kingdom
it was sold for £399.95. The SVI-738 was also are sold in the USA.
Memory
Video
Sound
Connectors
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
manufactured by Spectravideo
Spectravideo
Spectravideo, or SVI, was a U.S. computer company founded in 1981 as "SpectraVision" by Harry Fox. They originally made video games for Atari 2600 and VIC-20. Some of their computers were MSX-compliant or IBM PC compatible...
from 1985. Although compatible with the MSX 1.0 standard, it incorporates several extensions to the standard (80-column display, serial RS-232
RS-232
In telecommunications, RS-232 is the traditional name for a series of standards for serial binary single-ended data and control signals connecting between a DTE and a DCE . It is commonly used in computer serial ports...
, built-in 3.5" floppy drive); many are hardware-compatible with the MSX 2.0 standard but the system as a whole is not, leading to it being referred to as an "MSX 1.5" computer.
Along with the Sony HB-501 (which includes a cassette player), it the only attempt to make a portable computer based on the MSX standard, hence the title "X'Press" it came packaged with its own carrying bag in addition to the manuals, booklets and software (CP/M
CP/M
CP/M was a mass-market operating system created for Intel 8080/85 based microcomputers by Gary Kildall of Digital Research, Inc...
2.2 and MSX-DOS
MSX-DOS
MSX-DOS is a Disk operating system developed by Microsoft for the 8-bit home computer standard MSX, and is a cross between MS-DOS rev 1.0 and CP/M.-MSX-DOS:...
1.0) a disk containing a special demonstration program featuring an astronaut flying about on the screen, demonstrating the computer's graphic capabilitites and listing facts about the computer's ROM and RAM sizes.
Along with the disk drive and integrated serial port, what stood out the most was the use of the graphics chip specified by the MSX-2 standard, although the use of only 16 KB of VRAM allowed you to add only an 80 column mode. This, together with bugs in the first model's design (Konami SCC-sound based cartridges do not work or have bad sound) are among the reasons for the "MSX 1.5" moniker.
It ran Microsoft Disk BASIC 1.0 from ROM when turned on if no disk or an empty disk was inserted.
Marketing
The computer was marketed mainly in Europe. In PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
it was marketed by Centralna Składnica Harcerska at a price of 590 000 Polish złotys (the average salary for two months at that time), which equipped several schools. This version of the SVI-738 was sold with an altered keyboard and ROM in order to provide Polish-specific characters. It could also be found in schools in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. In Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
it was initially distributed by Indescom until the creation of a Spanish subsidiary. In United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
it was sold for £399.95. The SVI-738 was also are sold in the USA.
Technical specifications
MicroprocessorMicroprocessor
A microprocessor incorporates the functions of a computer's central processing unit on a single integrated circuit, or at most a few integrated circuits. It is a multipurpose, programmable device that accepts digital data as input, processes it according to instructions stored in its memory, and...
- ZilogZilogZilog, Inc., previously known as ZiLOG , is a manufacturer of 8-bit and 24-bit microcontrollers, and is most famous for its Intel 8080-compatible Z80 series.-History:...
Z80A with a clockspeed of 3.58 MHz.
Memory
Computer storage
Computer data storage, often called storage or memory, refers to computer components and recording media that retain digital data. Data storage is one of the core functions and fundamental components of computers....
- ROM: 56 KB
- RAM: 64 KB
- VRAM: 16 KB
Video
- Graphical processorGraphics processing unitA graphics processing unit or GPU is a specialized circuit designed to rapidly manipulate and alter memory in such a way so as to accelerate the building of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display...
: YamahaYamahaYamaha may refer to:* Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services** Yamaha Motor Company, a Japanese motorized vehicle-producing company...
V9938 (NTSC/PAL) - Graphical resolutionImage resolutionImage resolution is an umbrella term that describes the detail an image holds. The term applies to raster digital images, film images, and other types of images. Higher resolution means more image detail....
: 256 x 192 pixels - text modeText modeText mode is a kind of computer display mode in which the content of the screen is internally represented in terms of characters rather than individual pixels. Typically, the screen consists of a uniform rectangular grid of character cells, each of which contains one of the characters of a...
s: 80 characters x 24 and 40 characters x 24 lines and 32 characters x 24 lines - colors: 16
- sprites: 32
Sound
- General InstrumentGeneral InstrumentGeneral Instrument was an electronics manufacturer based in Horsham, PA specializing in semiconductors and cable television equipment. The company was active until 1997, when it split into which was later acquired by Vishay Intertechnology in 2001, CommScope and NextLevel Systems General...
AY-3-8910-soundchip - 3 sound channels
- 1 noise channels
- 1 envelope controller
Connectors
- 1 data recorder/Cassette deckCassette deckA cassette deck is a type of tape recorder for playing or recording audio compact cassettes. A deck was formerly distinguished from a recorder as being part of a stereo component system, while a recorder had a self-contained power amplifier...
- 2 joystickJoystickA joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Joysticks, also known as 'control columns', are the principal control in the cockpit of many civilian and military aircraft, either as a center stick or...
s MSX - 1 cartridge
- 1 RS-232RS-232In telecommunications, RS-232 is the traditional name for a series of standards for serial binary single-ended data and control signals connecting between a DTE and a DCE . It is commonly used in computer serial ports...
c DE-9 - 1 DB-25 external disk drive
- 1 Audio/Video set (two RCA connectorRCA connectorAn RCA connector, sometimes called a phono connector or cinch connector, is a type of electrical connector commonly used to carry audio and video signals...
s) - 1 UHF modulator TV NTSCNTSCNTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
(USA) / PALPALPAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
(Europe)
External links
- Roger's Spectravideo page with a photo of the motherboard.
- El Museo de los 8 Bits
- Upgrading to a MSX2
- Hans Otten have two conversion methods, image of disk, manuals and more.