Atari 800XL: Sophia 2 DVI video upgrade

My Atari 800XL had been modded to at least give Svideo output - which is at least a slight upgrade over composite.
But we can do better with the Sophia-DVI mod.
Both the Sophia and Sophia 2 were designed by Jacek Żuk (known as Simius)
My parallel port cover: www.thingiverse.com/thing:485...
which is based on: www.thingiverse.com/thing:426...
The Sophia config utility: mrlurch.com/wp-content/uploads...
The main Sophia DVI thread on Atari Age seems to be here atariage.com/forums/topic/307...
Merch: www.redbubble.com/people/MrLu...
Patreon: / mrlurch
Discord: / discord
Twitter: / mr_lurch
Facebook: / mrlurchsthings
Instagram: / mr_lurchs_things

[@ironhead2008]

Yoomp! still blows my mind. Something like that on a device that is a late 70's 8-bit pc at the core. Imagine if it had been released back then...

[@MrLurchsThings]

UPDATE: So it turns out this is the Sophia *2*. Thank you to user PG for pointing it out in a comment below. It looks identical to the Sophia DVI aka Rev C. And there is multiple, confusing threads on AtariAge. But I *think* the thread in the (edited) description is now correct. Quick one, that I forgot to mention in the video. The FPGA board sits too high to reinstall the top RF shield. Not that Adrian would complain about such things 😂 Also.... it seems the longest TE make those Micro-Match cables is 25cm. Which is a little too short, hence the extension. But you can buy the connectors separately and make your own cable. I just left ordering them too late, thus the tedious job of soldering in the extra cable. Not neat, but works.

[@graealex]

You can reuse the connectors, and any old IDE cable should do fine.

[@MrLurchsThings]

@@graealex true. But wasn’t game enough given it was the only set I had. And yeah, it’s just regular ribbon cable I used to extend.

[@MaksymilianParadys]

It's a shame that you didn't mention about the author of the Sophia2...

[@ropersonline]

@@MaksymilianParadys If that's such a shame, then it's a shame you didn't either. ;-P So what about them? Serious question.

[@MaksymilianParadys]

@@ropersonline And why should I do it? He could always put it in the video description anytime, could he...? Sophia (and Sophia2 too) was made by Jacek Żuk (known as Simius).

[@ctrlaltrees]

Always nice to see innovation in the Atari hardware world - I hadn't come across this particular mod before, now I'm severely tempted! This would be great for a machine with a dead GTIA as well, which is sadly becoming more common.

[@twoodall88]

This is the FPGA stuff I'm personally really excited about. Integrating them into old system to restore/expand functionality.. Very exciting stuff!

[@dazman76]

You should look into the BBC Micro if you haven't already - it has a frankly ludicrous number of modern upgrades to play with, partly because it was already designed to be heavily expanded back in the day.

[@twoodall88]

@@dazman76 Will do! I haven't gone deep into the world of 8-bit micros yet (I've mostly been playing with 286-486s), but I will have to keep a look out for one.

[@anonymoususer3099]

Looks great excellent work!

[@markperreira5889]

Great walk through and comparison - immediately bought one after seeing this. Thanks.

[@ClassicGamerB]

I really enjoyed your video. It answered my questions very clearly. Now to just wait until they are in stock due to the chip shortages. I initially thought my 800XL might not be socketed, but it was made in Hong Kong and opening the lid, removing the heat shield resulted in seeing sockets everywhere.

[@farhanyousaf5616]

This is amazing. I have an XE in a box that I bought brand new but never used. Would love to buy the mod and that SD drive!

[@doktor6495]

Really nice picture quality! Greetings, Doc64!

[@geoffreymorin8148]

I cannot wait until these are available again.

[@tomscomputerchannel2925]

Great solution. There are great electronics to keep the retro-computer running. 👍

[@toniamagnisali8214]

My first computer was Atari 65XE....so many memories...

[@fourthhorseman4531]

Holy cow, I'm sold! Time to see if my GTIA is socketed and then find the Sophia in stock somewhere.

[@robertplestenjak]

Sophia2 rocks. Awesome piece of equipment.

[@mjp29]

The DVI is noticeably better. Good job!

[@SONNYemc]

The red frame made me think that I have watched the video, while I never did 😬

[@matthewsmith4574]

That could have been mine but you outbid me 😂 Happy trails Mr Lurch 😁

[@MrLurchsThings]

?

[@matthewsmith4574]

@@MrLurchsThings From memory you picked this machine up on eBay awhile ago now yeah? When you first showed it I remembered the listing. Not many 800xl come up as I was trying to get one at the time 👍

[@PeBoVision]

Alas, I rekindle my 800XL flame through emulation these days, but I remember the day I replaced the VDP in my TI-99/4A and the jaw-dropping upgrade to VGA from composite. Rock-solid emulator quality graphics from real iron. In the age of multicarts, it makes an XL a very tempting purchase indeed. Great content. Thank you.

[@mjp29]

I can only get about half (or less) of my games to work with my Atari800 emulator. My main problem is that I can't get my logitech gamepad to work with only about half the games. So that's why I'd like to buy an Atari 800xl, like I had in the 80s.

[@tenminutetokyo2643]

Excellent, dood.

[@RetroSteamTech]

A great mod to a great mod 👍👍 I'm with you on the case front, I really don't like cutting holes in retro kit.

[@haraldhimmel5687]

Sacrificing the PBI is a little unconventional though as there are various fancy upgrades for it. I guess you can push it to the side if one actually needs it however. I am all for not cutting holes though. One could maybe remove the RF-modulator after all and make an insert for a mini-displayport connector.

[@mjp29]

Best 8 bit computer ever !

[@gamedoutgamer]

Great job with the install and routing to PBI! How secure is the new PBI bracket? 13:40 I think that Boulderdash is corrupted file. The sound is glitched and there is static on the right edge (DVI video).

[@activemotionpictures]

Thank you so much for not cutting away at the installation. I would really like to try this on my setup. What is the name of the sockets adaptors to easily pull and remove the chips? Also: what's your sound setup? Do you have a video explaining that as well? Great video!

[@MrLurchsThings]

First, check to see if you’re GTIA chip is already socketed. If it’s not, that’s a whole different ball game. If it is, I just (carefully) use a small screwdriver. I know a few other KZbinrs have a tool, but cannot remember it’s specific name. As for sound, it’s just a 5 pin DIN plug into the monitor port, but just using the Audio and Ground pins to two RCA/Phono jacks. Nothing special.

[@VJFranzK]

Wow, it's almost too clear! We're used to a bit of roundness on the corners

[@EsaKarjalainen]

I agree that it's kinda too crisp... except that quality of signal would probably be great if you feed it to a CRT. so maybe not after all.

[@helldog3105]

Great video. Sorry to ask a bunch of questions, but I have an Atari 800 original, and an Atari 130XE. I'm just getting into trying them after all these years. To be able to do chroma/luma output on these, do I need to do a mod like what is needed for the 800XL? I ask because when I try to do a search with those model names, all I get back are results for the 800XL. And from prior experience with mucking up things from not finding all of the info, I know this doesn't necessarily mean no mod is needed. The other question I have is this, is there a repository of manuals the the various Atari items for reading? I have several peripherals, but I don't know how to access them, and as such I don't even know if they work. Tape decks, and disk drives and a printer when I can confirm works with LPRINT at least.

[@brianv2871]

No Print Shop for you now that you blocked the printer port! :) So, I get the HDMI issue, but I think i'd rather pay the few cents for an hdmi license then have to buy a DVI to HDMI converter (assuming one didn't have a few already). In any case, love how simple this whole solution is to implement.

[@gamedoutgamer]

Well that's not a printer port. The adapter blocked the PBI port that is rarely used.

[@miroslaw5615]

Egg shaped cicrcle in DVI mode! (see the last game in comparision).

[@NotMarkKnopfler]

Hmmm... I'm undecided. It's probably great for text stuff, but for games, I actually prefer the imperfect reproduction of a modulator over RF. The low-resolution pixel count on these old machines looks harsh and unpleasant when reproduced faithfully. The imperfect old RF system had a nice side effect where it smoothed some of this out and produced aliasing effects with adjacent pixels etc. I had an 800XL back in the day - I don't remember the RF TV output being that bad TBH.

[@richardknezevic7371]

Where would i get the sophia DVI mod , need one for my 800 and 800 xl

[@temporarilyoffline]

That HDMI licensing thing is a pain. You can get HDMI adapters from amazon for near pennies. (I get it, but I don't like it) Great vid!

[@saddiqkhan5821]

all about money and corporations screwing people!

[@brostenen]

So many lovely monitor solutions for all the old machines these days. One thing confuses me though. Why do people call these for HD? I know it is upscaling, but the software are still original resolution? Or?

[@gregskuza7166]

Great video. Could you use an old style IDE HDD cable (cut down) to replace the extended cable you built?

[@MrLurchsThings]

possibly, but the cable has got some funky connectors that a) i couldnt source, and b) seem to need a proper tool

[@gregskuza7166]

@@MrLurchsThings you are right, after looking closely at the board it looks like these are some none standard connectors. I would like to use the Sophia in my modified 600xl once they are available. Thanks you!

[@angrydove4067]

I FINALLY was able to buy a Sofia 2 and came back to this video, I didn't know the utility existed. But I think I will terminate the RF modulator and install the DIV port there. Now if I can just get a Kawari II for C=64. Is yoomp best played with a trackball? Thanks for the video.

[@MrLurchsThings]

Never tried it with a trackball to be honest, but being a bit of a rhythm game possibly not.

[@BobbyCharlz]

Wow, I realize that the games you used to demo this device were not the main point of your video, but Yoomp looks simply awesome; I have never seen or heard of this game before. Is the music actual in-game music? If so, very impressive. Seems like there might be a stereo soundchip going on. Was this a native feature to the Atari 800 XL?

[@MrLurchsThings]

The (awesome) music is from the machine. But it is mono.

[@PG-gs5vb]

By the way, there is now a new model called simply Sophia 2. See this thread: atariage.com/forums/topic/307175-sophia-2-improved-gtia-replacement

[@Doug_in_NC]

That should be what he is showing. You can’t change the resolution on the original Sophia DVI board without reprogramming the figs, as far as I know. If you can, I would love to know how - I bought an 800XL with one already installed.

[@MrLurchsThings]

@@Doug_in_NC I’m going to find out where Henry got them from. The devices we have don’t match the photos in the Atari Age thread. Did the design change at some point?

[@MrLurchsThings]

PG. I think you are correct. I got this via Henry, so details are a little vague. See the pinned post, but this is indeed a Sophia 2 and not a Sophia Rev C. Thank you!!

[@ulisesgomezd.3405]

This update is weird and interesting, but i preffer the old TV/AV output, in fact, i still owe two 21" CRT tv's, one of them, a SHARP with stereo sound, where i also play all my NES and PlayStation games; specially all those with a Light gun; i love from NES, Duck Hunt, Wild Gunman, and Operation Wolf; From the PSX, i love Maximum Force, Lethal enforcers, and the Japanesse version of Resident Evil Survivor, cause the american don't support the Namco GunCon; and from ATARI, i love Bug Hunt, Banyard blaster, and specially, Crossbow; so, i would mod one of my two XE systems, and the othe i would let it as it came from stock; and this weird update would be a nice candidate. By the way, which is the joystick that uou used to test the ATARI?

[@saddiqkhan5821]

Where do you purchase Sophie mod kit from pls? Your description doesnt have any links to purchase.

[@pcuser1541]

Very nice and sharp! How's about graphic #8 mode? is it artifacting or non? Try Flight Simulator, Castle Wolfenstein, A.E. other games which support a high resolution.

[@MrLurchsThings]

Castle Wolfenstein seems to run

[@pcuser1541]

@@MrLurchsThings I want to see the Castle Wolfenstein introduction screen If it is artifacting or non-artifacting.

[@MrLurchsThings]

If this is correct, then this is how it appears on my machine. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rpTWYat8ltBrl6s

[@gamedoutgamer]

Artifacting is completely broken with Sophia 2.

[@pcuser1541]

@@gamedoutgamer thank you! That s what I am looking for.

[@ljkerr3]

More info on the gamepad paddle mod, please?

[@FD-ze1xg]

Hello everyone! Is there a software version for Altirra emulator or other? On real hardware how to program graphics with Atari Basic, Turbo Basic etc etc? Thanks for an answer...

[@wimwiddershins]

I don't mind the s-video output. I have memories of playing 8bit stuff through blurry/fuzzy RF input. Crap video quality is part of the deal for me.

[@haraldhimmel5687]

On a CRT this looks pretty much alright but modern displays def benefit from it. Then you start playing with upscalers which would do much better with RGB.

[@gamedoutgamer]

Yes this upgrade is overrated imo. Ruins artifacting as well. However having a DVI signal does open up many more monitors/displays for use.

[@haraldhimmel5687]

@@gamedoutgamer Games that rely on artefacting were badly programmed to begin with and essentially required users to use the worst display outputs the machines had. This isn't an apple II, artefacting was for the most part nothing desirable.

[@VA7LFD]

Sophia DVI is amazing. Will Sophia work on a 600XL? I would like to install the UAV upgrade too on my 600XL. Will Sophia work in conjunction?

[@MrLurchsThings]

I cant comment if it will work with the UAV, but it should work find in the 600

[@buriedbits6027]

I have a question or two. This appears to be 100% backward compatible, yes? Can I use an HDMI to VGA to feed the signal to a Sony Multiscan CRT? This would be Atari nirvana for me.

[@muttBunch]

The Sophia is awesome but it’s a shame I can’t find one :/

[@xoxide1017]

where to buy the Sophia 2 DVI?

[@RobReynolds]

laughed at the Action Retro comment

[@aaroncheah2088]

Any similar mod for the ST?

[@MrLurchsThings]

Not that I know of, unless some one designs a RGB2HDMI board similar to that on the Amiga.

[@copperdragon9286]

The s-video comparison actually misses the point, as the Sophia is now also generating the s-video signal (with the GTIA completely removed). A better comparision would be to see the difference between the original GTIA-generated s-video and the Sophia DVI output.

[@MrLurchsThings]

If the Sophia is doing it’s job, then it should be producing the same svideo signal as the GTIA, yes? I can’t say I really noticed that much difference between the original svideo and the Sophia svideo.

[@tron3entertainment]

Correct me if I am wrong, but Atari 800XL does NOT support S-Video natively. So, was it added later? S-Video wasn't very prominent in the 80's. Pity, as the "cutting edge" picture quality might have added years to the life of so many consoles.

[@MrLurchsThings]

It was a while ago now, but I think I had to make a small mod to get svideo out of this machine.

[@CoolDudeClem]

While is does look better with DVI, I'd still settle for s-video or even composite. I'm just nostalgic about fuzzy pixels.

[@MrLurchsThings]

Like I said in the outro - perhaps a little too crispy. It's *almost* emulator-sharp. But it does depend on the age of the screen you're plugged into too.

[@mikeb2575]

I thought Clive Sinclair was dead ??? 😅😂

[@RalfZille]

DVI is very old. Why don't get HDMI?

[@MrLurchsThings]

It’s explained why in the video.

[@madigorfkgoogle9349]

the S-Video is day and night nicer, sorry...

[@MrLurchsThings]

Oh, completely agree, but mid-livestream you go with what works.

[@Madgitty2]

Just so hard to get hold of one