Emulator evaluation tools

Quick evaluation

• From Scratch demo with reference images (CRTC 1): Media:From Scratch logo.png Media:From Scratch tetris.png Media:From Scratch ovl.png
• DSC4 v2 demo with reference images (CRTC 1): Media:DSC4 reference1.png Media:DSC4 reference2.png Technical explanation
• Other World 3 demo with reference image (CRTC 0/1): Media:Other World 3.png
• BSC7 Interlace demo with reference image (CRTC 0/2/3/4): Media:BSC7 reference.png

Z80 CPU

• 🔥Raxoft tests (CPC port of z80test) Redcode Z80 tests list with expected results Z80 XCF Flavor ZEX Z80 CPU instruction set exercisers
• Arkanoid Boulder Dash The Great Escape Using Z80 Interrupt Mode 2
• Trailblazer (using HALT) L'anneau de Zengara (using Z80 register R) Light Corridor (Z80 useless instruction prefixes) Dogsbody (accessing non-standard I/O ports) Pinball Dreams (Z80 NMOS only)
• Weird Z80 behaviour I/O port allocation RAM/ROM mapping Technical documentation

Diagnostics

• Amstest Amstrad Diagnostics [1] STS SysInfo Test CRTC type [2] Identifying CRTC visually Basic Program Status Window Version du Firmware Basic
• SymbOS RAM Expansion Test MemTest RAM Test CRTC4 Test RAM de McLeod Ideafix RAM Check Testprogram For All ERAM Test RAM Basic Xenon 2 Take On Me Trololo Experiments Still The One Post Scriptum Onescreen Colonies #2 256K A tribute to the sisters Chany 512K cracks Anti-Multiface Expanded RAM software list RAM exercisers
• FutureOS CP/M Plus Phortem Pac-Man Emulator Behaviour of RAM mode &C3 More on the issue RAM expansion hardware bug on CPC464/664
• 🔥Kevin Thacker's "Acid tests" suite Older version Forum thread Tests results in ACE Collection of tests which are used to verify emulators operation against real CPC, Plus and expansions
• 🔥Richard Wilson's Plus Test suite [3] CPC and CPC+ Emulator test suite (including Instruction and Interrupt timing tests)

Amstrad Plus

• Arnold 5 Diagnostic Cartridge Software Demonstrator 4096 Colors Preview 4096K tester File:Roudoudou CPR tests.zip [4] No Exit (uninitialised stack pointer) Tennis Cup 2 (analogue joystick) Plus testing tools
• Delirium Tremens Delirium Tremens running on real hardware Bulles Funerapolis X-mas 2008 USS Cygnus 192 To test hardware sprites
• 6128 Plus DMA Fairy Soundtracker DMA To test DMA sound
• CRTC3 To test RAM expansion compatibility with ASIC Source
• Arnoldemu T&J Sylvestre Longshot [5] Offset [6] Plus Vectored Interrupt Bug Plus hardware bugs documented
• L'Aigle d'Or le Retour Bumpy's Arcade Fantasy Kick Boxing Gold D.Day Striker in the Crypts of Trogan Prehistorik II CPC Demos with Plus features To test Amstrad Plus enhancement of CPC software
• Plus Games Demos for Plus only Search filters to verify the entire Plus software library

Colorimetry

• CPC DiAG Raster Toutes les couleurs du CPC Couleurs Les split-rasters Mir'Color Test Interlace Color Infinite Colours Mode 1 Tramage et Choix des Couleurs FED Colour calibration
• Minor difference in colorimetry between CPC and Plus On CPC (not Plus!), green half-intensity is significantly higher than red and blue half-intensities
• Major difference in colorimetry between the real Amstrad displays and emulators display. CPC DiAG shows clearly why, by demonstrating the weak response of Amstrad monitors to the Red component:

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  Border 8 on real CPC

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  Border 8 on real Plus

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  Border 8 on emulators

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  Palette on real CPC

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  Palette on real Plus

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  Palette on emulators

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  Still The One on real CPC

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  Still The One on emulators

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  CPC DiAG on real Plus

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  CPC DiAG on emulators

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  Scanlines on GT65

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  Slot mask on CTM

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  CRT mask types

• CPC DiAG also shows that the primary colours themselves are a bit different. Blue is more vivid and Green is less fluorescent on Amstrad displays.
• Colours are less saturated and black is not as profound on CRT monitors than they are on modern displays.
• On CRT displays, bright pixels will spill on their neighbours while dark pixels will get eaten by their neighbours (ie. bright pixels are bigger than dark pixels on CRT displays), affecting dithered colours. This effect is absent on LCD displays.
• The usual scanline effect of CRT monitors is barely noticeable on the Amstrad CTM colour monitor. But it is very pronounced on Amstrad monochrome monitors.
• The slot mask is the texture that is visible in the CTM colour monitor. CRT masks do not exist on monochrome monitors.
• To test emulators VSYNC (screen-tearing and frame skipping): Source

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