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THE FOENIX WIKI
Welcome to the Foenix Project! Here you will find a series of brand new computers lovingly made by Stefany Allaire in the style of the early 16 and 32 bit machines of lore! This is your chance to be a participant in the development of a new platform -- to start with a brand new machine akin to a high-end Atari or Amiga, write its very first programs, see what it can do, push its limits, and experience something new! Models are available with a 65C02 CPU, 65816 CPU, a 680x0 series CPU, or both, with more CPU options planned for the future.
| F256 Jr | C256 Foenix FMX | C256 Foenix U | A2560U | A2560K | Gen X | |
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| Released Year: | 2022/2023 | 2019 | 2021 | 2021/2022 | 2021 | 2022 |
| Active: | Yes | Discontinued | Hold* | Hold* | Yes | Yes |
| CPU: | W65C02 @ 6Mhz | W65C816 @ 14Mhz | W65C816 @ 14Mhz | MC68SEC000 @ 20Mhz | MC68040V @ 25Mhz | W65C816 @ 14Mhz + 32bits CPU** |
| System Memory: | 256K SRAM | 4M SRAM | 2/4M SRAM | 4M SRAM | 4M SRAM/64M SDRAM | 4M SRAM/64M SDRAM |
| Video Memory: | Shared | 4M SRAM | 2M SRAM | 2M SRAM | 8M SRAM | 8M SRAM |
| Graphic Chipset: | TinyVICKY - CFP9599 | VICKY + GABE | FATVICKY - CFP95168B | FATVICKY - CFP9171-68k | VICKY III - CFP95179K | VICKY III - CFP95179X |
| Media IO: | IEC/SDCARD | SDCARD/IDE/FLOPPY | SDCARD/IDE | SDCARD/IDE | SDCARD/IDE/FLOPPY | SDCARD/IDE/FLOPPY |
| COM IO: | Simple Serial/WIFI*** | 2x Serial/ 1x Parallel | 1x Simple Serial | 1x Simple Serial | 2x Serial/1x Parallel/Eth | 2x Serial/1x Parallel/Eth |
| Joystick Posts: | 2x ATARI + NES/SNES Port**** | 4x ATARI / 2x NES/SNES^ | 2x ATARI And/Or NES/SNES^ | 2x ATARI And/Or NES/SNES^ | 2x ATARI And/Or NES/SNES^ | 4x ATARI & 4x NES & 4x SNES |
| PCB Form Factor: | STD Mini-ITX | 10" x 6.2" | 7.13" x 4.4" | 7.13" x 4.4" | 12" x 5.5" | 9" x 9" |
| Power Supply: | ATX PS Plug | +12V 2.5mm Barrel | +12V 2.5mm Barrel | +12V 2.5mm Barrel | 4pins +5V/+12V | ATX PS Plug |
(*): Due to FPGA's availability and abusive cost, those models are presently on hold.
(**): The concept behind the GenX is its ability to support different processors through a modular system.
(***): The WIFI communication is achieved through a ESP32/WIFI (Feather) Type board and it is optional.
(****): The RevA of the board doesn't have an extra 9Pins connector to interface with NES/SNES Adapter.
(^): An external NES/SNES interface box is needed, so this is extra.
All Foenix systems include the following base features:
| Graphics | Layers | Sound | Ports | ||
| 320x240x60fps | 16x16 mouse pointer | 2x Gideon FPGASID | SD Card slot | ||
| 400x300x60fps | 8x8 character plane | 16-bit stereo CODEC | 2x PS/2 (kbd/mouse) | ||
| 640x480x60fps | 64 16x16x256 sprites | TI SN76489 (Sega, Cabinets) | Stereo 1/8" headphone | ||
| 800x600x60fps | 4x 16x16x256 tile planes | Yamaha OPL3 (Sound Blaster) | Stereo RCA Line In/Out | ||
| 24-bit RGB color space | 2x 256-color bitmap planes | 3KHz piezo beeper | 2.5" internal IDE HDD |
Additional features vary by class of unit:
| 65816 | 680x0 | ||||
| Basic | C256U | A2560U | Basic units with 3-wire serial and an expansion port. | ||
| Luxury | C256FMX | A2560K | Expanded units with MIDI, floppy, 9-wire serial, 25-pin parallel, and more! | ||
| Explorer | Gen-X | All of the above plus support for two CPUs! | |||
Get Started
Compare the different models: F256JR, C256-FMX, C256U, A2560U, A2560K, Gen-X
Explore the documentation: C256, A2560, ICs
Join the Discord,
Order your computer at https://c256foenix.com, and
Join in the fun!
FAQ
Is this another FPGA Retro like the MiSTer?
- No! These machines are the real thing. You'll be running on a real 65816, 68000, 68040, i486dx2, etc. :).
Are these machines compatible with the C64? C128? Amiga? Atari-ST? IBM-PC?
- No! This is not a MEGA65, a Vampire, or an Ultimate64. We already have those platforms. This is something new and different!
Is there an emulator?
- Yes! See the Emulators page!
Is the hardware "Open Source"?
- The schematics are available for download from the Discord. The FPGA code is presently closed-source to keep the platform from becoming fragmented.
Are there any programming tutorials for the Foenix?
- Stefany Allaire's videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNX2L8_enbRUAb8zKaR2KzQ
- Tail Recursive's videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMNLxfepc0xAZodcvOlVenQ
- You can also follow along with the development of the Gen-X on Stefany's Patreon page.
Happy hacking!
