[CPC] AMSpiriT 0.863b Beta 13/05/2023

AMSpiriT v. 0.863b  Beta 13/05/2023

This version mainly brings corrections on various small bugs that were reported to me following the release of the previous version of AmspiriT.
On the program of this version:

• Various small fixes on FDC and CRTC emulation
• Fixed a bug on PSG emulation.
• Improved management of Additional Roms
• Implementation of parameters to facilitate the automatic launching of a program via a command line.
• New visual on the internet portal (thanks @CED for this beautiful graphic).

The corrections made to the level of the FDC emulation make it possible in particular to pass the detection test present in the game "Open Tower Defense".

AMSpiriT v. 0.845b  Beta 16/04/2023

• Full Pre-Asic CRTC 4 (Pre Asic) Emulation
• Add Extended ROM management
• Improvement of CTM emulation (CSYNC signal management)
• Emulation Core is now available as a static library (.lib/.h)
• Better HSYNC emulation (all CRTC)
• CDT file: Add BLOC_ID 0x15 management: Direct Recording 

AMSpiriT v. 1.0  RC1 02/04/2024

• PF and HFE file formats are now supported.
• Binary files (with AMSDOS header) can be loaded into ram by dragging them onto emulator's window.
• More and better command line options. Common file formats are automatically detected.
• Improved UX and interface
• Extended RAM support, up to 4MB

Note: "Insert" key has been replaced by "ALT" key for emulating 'COPY' key on CPC keyboard
Note: Disks are protected by default. It will be changed in next release. You can change this option in configuration page.
Note: In some (rare) cases, you'll have to select hardware mixer instead of software mixer to get sounds - in particular with digitalized sounds. And as always, some bug fixes, including a major AY emulation fix, FDC timings adjustments, and a better handling of a couple of Z80 opcodes.

AMSpiriT v0.704b Beta 22/10/2022

• This is a "minor" version essentially bringing some corrections to CRTC emulation, Gate Array and ergonomic adjustments (menu in English because yes, AMSpiriT has fans outside of France). A little optimization work has also been done to relieve the CPU load, but there is still a lot of work to do on it.

AMSpiriT v0.677RC Beta 5/08/2022

After a (relative) long absence during which I spent a lot of time fine-tuning the emulator, I'm giving you a preview of a brand new version of AMSpiriT v0.677RC Beta.

Among the features that have been added:

• the unloved CRTC type "2" (motorola) is now fully emulated, including its poorly documented functions (interlace),
• floppy disk and cassette write functions are now implemented. You can make backups of your favorite creations. :)
• Slight improvement of the CTM emulation in order to manage "waves" effects
• Ability to make screenshots via the function keys F2 and F3

And a few fixes have been made along the way:

• Various fixes in the emulation of CRTCs 0 and 1
• Small fixes in FDC emulation (engine management)
   

AMSpiriT 0.677b Beta

Features that have been added:

• the unloved CRTC type "2" (motorola) is now fully emulated, including its poorly documented functions (interlace),
• floppy disk and cassette write functions are now implemented. You can make backups of your favorite creations. :)
• Slight improvement of the CTM emulation in order to manage "waves" effects
• Ability to make screenshots via the function keys F2 and F3

A few fixes have been made along the way:

• Various fixes in the emulation of CRTCs 0 and 1
• Small fixes in FDC emulation (engine management)

The bulk of the work has still and always been focused on the precision of the emulation and thanks to the technical assistance of CPC enthusiasts (and especially Longshot, author of the famous compendium I mentioned previously). Thanks to this contribution of new technical knowledge, and without any pretension, I think that AMSpiriT is becoming very mature and has now reached a very high level of emulation.
At this stage, there is no more spectacular progress, the bulk of the work now consists of perfecting small details, sometimes insignificant, in order to tend towards what is the ultimate goal of any emulator, namely to emulate our machine perfectly. favorite vintage.

Cybernoid 2 w AMSpiriT - całkiem miły, młody emulator maszynek CPC

Some technical details:

• Fully written in c++ (Microsoft visual studio 2019)
• Accurate emulation of the Z80A: written in T-States. Passes the most famous z80 tests (Zexall, z80 fulltest from Raxsoft).   
• Accurate CRTC emulation (type 0/1 for the moment). Based on @Longshot's fabulous Compendium (LOGON SYSTEM), the CRTC emulation has been recently rewritten to include all the specifics written in this guide. It emulates the extreme breaks at R0 = 0 (1µs) as well as the "interlace" mode (register R8) with great accuracy. I spent a lot of time to stabilize this part which is the "core" of the CPC emulation.
• A precise emulation of the Gate Array with a pixel display speed of 16Mhz which allows a realistic behavior like the advance of a pixel in "Mode 2". 
• Emulation of the AY-3-8912 for sound generation.
• Partial emulation of the FDC. Amspirit only reads ".DSK" files (and some protected dsk files).
• Precise emulation of tape files with a counter and sound generation during playback, like a real 464 CPC. It reads *.CDT, and *. WAV FILES.