VOGONS


First post, by dionb

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Always on the lookout for something that could be an EGA monitor, I spotted something stranger the other day:

An "NCR 9295-210 14" TTL colour monitor with display adapter".

Couldn't Google anything sensible on that part number. Turns out the "9295" is a typo and it should be "3295", which doesn't do anything more than find an old eBay listing for possibly this same stuff.

There are a couple of potatocam pics of the hardware, so nothing better than the fact the card has "NCR" on it and appears to be a late CGA clone with integrated controller chip and two EPROMs - but a clear one of the specs page of the manual. That had some interesting stuff in it:

"Technical Data
[...]
Resolution
Horizontal: 640 dots
Vertical: 400 lines
[...]
Scan Standard
Horizontal 23.4kHz"

23.4kHz and 640x400? :o2

Also, the pic has the bracket of the (8b ISA) display adapter with a legible warning on it: "Connect only CRTs with CI. No. 3277 or 3285 <something> on monitor name plate"

Those numbers correspond to the NCR PC4i and PC6. That bit of info provided the clue that this is NCR NCA stuff, bascially doubled up CGA. There's what looks like a newer card with that 'standard' here. It sounds a lot like the Olivetti hi-res mode offered by their M24 and the derived AT&T 6300, but it's not compatible. It's been discussed briefly on Vogons a few times, but never in depth:
Obscure enhanced CGA clones with 640x400 monochrome mode
Re: Planet X3 by 8-Bit Guy nearing completion! New teaser & music

Two things I'm wondering now:
1) would this NCR card work in a regular PC or would it require specific NCR BIOS support?
2) would it be possible to get regular 21.8kHz hi-res EGA to display on that monitor?