Which Amstrad CPC / Which ZX Spectrum Add-Ons

[Smack2k]

All,

Which Amstrad CPC would you recommend getting if I was to only get one? Would it be the CPC6128?

Any other items with it?

Also,

IF I were to get a 48K ZX Spectrum, what additional things would be worth getting for it, be it newer created items for the system or older original add-ons.

Thanks!

 

[mnbvcxz]

Yes, the CPC6128 is the one to get, the 464 is more common, but when you add a disk drive and extra 64KB ram expansion, you will spend far more money than if you bought the 6128 in the first place.

Other items you may consider are HxC2001 floppy disk emulator which is an SD card that holds the equivalent of hundreds of disks worth of data, you could get a 3.5" floppy disk drive as the disks are cheaper and easier to find than the 3" type, but to use full capacity you would need a new DOS such as Parados (ROM) which will need a ROMBOX, there are DOSes that load from disk but I don't know much about them. These items will make it easier to use.
If you want to get less "necessary" bits, there are many, ranging from memory expansions, ramdisk, speech synthesiser, real time clock to hobbist produced things like the Megaflash which is 512KB flash rom which can hold the contents of 32 ROMS.
There is a lot of information in the CPC Wiki here http://www.cpcwiki.eu/index.php/Main_Page

 

[Oscar]

Which Amstrad CPC would you recommend getting if I was to only get one? Would it be the CPC6128?
Any other items with it?

For the vintage experience, yes. But if you want the fanciest Amstrad, it's actually this FPGA version:
http://www.symbos.de/trex.htm. With all the new power comes an optional OS that (in my humble view) is the high point of Z80 OS development.

IF I were to get a 48K ZX Spectrum, what additional things would be worth getting for it, be it newer created items for the system or older original add-ons.

The original 48K Speccy is the nicest looking.

if you're thinking of add-on possibilities, a ZX Spectrum 3 is much more interesting to play with. Disk Drive, RS-232, Parallel all built in already. Plus the tinkering around the +3 ROM and CF cards adds to the fun much more than the original Spectrum's expansion options like the Microdrive, for which modern-day users really will not have the patience anymore. Oh yeah - it also comes with a proper keyboard.

Cheers,

Oscar.

 

[Smack2k]

My goal for the Spectrum is to play games on it...

Do either the Original ZX Spectrum or the 3+ have any peripherals made for them that allow you to hook them up to an "SD" card and run the games, or something like that?

 

[Oscar]

My goal for the Spectrum is to play games on it...

Do either the Original ZX Spectrum or the 3+ have any peripherals made for them that allow you to hook them up to an "SD" card and run the games, or something like that?

Yes, divIDE is what you look for. Runs on all Spectrums; the latest version I know of is from Lotharek (here). I just bought an Atari ST SDcard drive from him, he is a very dependable seller. But I have no experience with the divIDE itself.

Cheers,

Oscar.

 

[Smack2k]

Perfect!!

Now to find my 48K Speccy first...

Will come back for the CPC on the next pass...