Reply 40 of 58, by Trashbytes
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dionb wrote on 2024-05-02, 09:31:So Windows 95 only, no DOS? […]
drone16 wrote on 2024-05-02, 08:31:> OP should clarify use cases.
1. Aesthetics and immense satisfaction turning it on
2. Key games of the era, Quake 2, Unreal, Age of Empires and so on.So Windows 95 only, no DOS?
3. Tinkering with HW and SW. I made perfect boot floppy, DEVICEHIGH and oakcdrom 😀
That does sound like DOS.
Just got USB case brackets and ordered PS/2 ones.
USB... for anything more than HID, that implies Win98SE with patches.
So I'm afraid it's still not clear which OS' you're going to be running. Win95 vs Win98 doesn't really matter in terms of relevant hardware, but DOS does.
Trashbytes wrote on 2024-05-02, 09:05:[...]
I'm aware of what the 128 is ..I'm also aware the vast majority of 128 cards suffer from the Vaseline screen effect unless you are willing to shell out more than what the card is worth for one of the few models that have better quality. I own several cards in both 128 and 128ZX variants, the good ones do cost more than they are worth and I wont recommend anyone go buy them.Let's not make assumptions about what is available to TS and how much it is going to cost. Anything from a premium brand will cost an arm and a leg on famous auction sites with 'buy it now', but it's often possible - if less predictable - to get stuff locally for far less.
For DOS gaming some concessions will have to be made, any GPU modern enough here to also have windows acceleration will likely have issues with some DOS games, If I wanted both then a TnT PCI or TnT2M64 PCI would be a good option and its what I have run in a similar build before, DOS compatibility with either card is excellent, mode X stuff will still have a few issues.
The TnT is 98 era so would be just fine alongside the Voodoo2 which is also 98 era.
Indeed. But everything you said about potentially awful image quality applies just as much to TNT(2) cards. There are some really good ones out there and there are too many downright awful ones. The good ones tend to be from brands that command premium prices.
But if DOS SVGA isn't needed it's simple: that Millennium II is a perfect 2D card to pair with a Voodoo.
If DOS SVGA is needed, it gets complicated and IMHO OP needs as many good options a possible so he can jump on the first one that seems affordable. Basically I'd go for anything with good DOS VESA support and Windows 2D acceleration (eg. Ark 2000, Cirrus Logic GD543x/4x, nVidia Riva 128 or TNT, S3 Trio or Virge) that pops up as a good deal.
Drone will need a PCi variant as no AGP .. so prices will be high unless its from a flea market or a local seller, my experience is that anything really good in PCI is going to be very expensive, nVidia more so than other brands.
I base my assumptions on the fact they are based in Australia where I live, I know what's generally available here, being from Sydney will help but retro parts are not as readily available here as elsewhere in the world.
