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The Commodore 64 personal computer, released in August 1982, became the best selling single computer model of all time, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. The Commodore 64 is commonly referred to as the C64; other less common names include CBM 64/CBM64, C= 64. The Commodore 64 casing has affectionately been nicknamed the "breadbox" and "bullnose" due to its shape.

The C64 competed in the fractured personal computer industry with the Commodore PET and the VIC-20, among others. Introduced by Commodore Business Machines in August 1982 at the low price of States dollar|US$" target="_blank" >*595, it offered 64 kilobytes of RAM with sound and graphics performance that compared favourably with later IBM compatible computers of that time. During the Commodore 64's lifetime (between 1982 and 1994), sales totaled around 17 million units * (Marc Walters, citing 1993 Commodore Annual Report) web site - URL last accessed 30 April 2006..

Unlike computers that were distributed only through authorized dealers, Commodore also targeted department stores and toy stores. The unit could be plugged directly into a television set to play games, giving it much of the appeal of dedicated video game consoles like the Atari 2600. Its affordable pricing contributed to the 1983 crash of the video game market.

Approximately 10,000 software titles were made for the Commodore 64 including development tools, office applications, and games. The machine is also credited with popularizing the computer demo scene. The Commodore 64 is still used today by many computer hobbyists and emulators allow anyone with a modern computer to run these programs on their desktop (with varying degrees of success and functionality).

History

Origins

In January 1981, MOS Technology, Inc., Commodore's integrated-circuit design subsidiary, initiated a project to design the graphic and audio chips for a next generation video game console. Design work for the chips, named MOS Technology VIC-II (graphics) and MOS Technology SID (audio), was completed in November 1981.

A game console project was then initiated by Commodore that would use the new chips was called the Ultimax or alternatively the Commodore MAX Machine, engineered by Yashi Terakura from Commodore Japan. This project was eventually cancelled after just a few machines were manufactured for the Japanese market.

At the same time in mid-1981, Robert Russell (system programmer and architect on the VIC-20) and Robert "Bob" Yannes (engineer of the SID) were critical of the current product line-up at Commodore, which was a continuation of the Commodore PET line aimed at business users. Instead, with the support of Al Charpentier (engineer of the VIC-II) and Charles Winterble (manager of MOS Technology) they proposed a true low-cost sequel to the VIC-20 to Commodore CEO Jack Tramiel. Tramiel dictated that the machine should have 64KB of RAM memory since prices on the memory market were declining. Although 64 kB of RAM cost over US $100 at the time, he knew that DRAM prices were falling, and would drop to an acceptable level before full production was reached. Tramiel also set a deadline for the 1982 Consumer Electronics Show, in the first weekend of January. The meeting was in November so this gave the engineers about two months to complete working prototypes for the show.

The product was codenamed the VIC-40 as the successor to the popular VIC-20. The team that constructed it consisted of Robert Russell, Robert "Bob" Yannes and David A. Ziembicki. The design, prototypes and some sample software was finished in time for the show, after the team had worked tirelessly over both Thanksgiving and Christmas weekends.

When the product was to be presented, the VIC-40 product was renamed C64 in order to fit into the current Commodore business products lineup which contained the P128 and the B256, both named by a letter and their respective memory size.

The C64 made an impressive debut, as recalled by Production Engineer David A. Ziembicki: "All we saw at our booth were Atari people with their mouths dropping open, saying, 'How can you do that for $595?'" The answer, as it turned out, was vertical integration; thanks to Commodore's ownership of MOS Technology's semiconductor fabrication facilities, each C64 had an estimated production cost of only $135.

Winning the market war

The C64 faced a wide range of competing home computers at its introduction in August 1982. With an impressive price point coupled with the 64's advanced hardware, it quickly out-classed many of its competitors. In the United States the greatest competitors to the C64 were the Atari 400/800, IBM PC and Apple II. The Atari 400/800 was very similar in hardware terms, but it was very expensive to build, which forced Atari to redesign their machine to be more cost effective. This resulted in the 600XL/800XL line and the transfer of their production to the Far East. The IBM PC and the now aging Apple II were no match for the C64's graphical and sound abilities, but they were very expandable with their internal expansion slots, a feature lacking in the 64.

All three machines had a standard memory configuaration of 16K, 48K less RAM than the C64. At US$1,500, the IBM PC and Apple II were 3 times more expensive, while the Atari 800 cost a mere $899. One key to the C64's success was Commodore's aggressive marketing tactics, and they were quick to exploit the relative price/performance divisions between its competitors with a series of television commercials after the C64's launch in late 1982. *

Commodore sold the C64 not only through its network of authorized dealers, but also placed it on the shelves of department stores, discount stores, and toy stores. Since it had the ability to output composite video, the C64 did not require a specialized monitor, but could be plugged into a television set. This allowed it (like its predecessor, the VIC-20) to compete directly against video game consoles such as the Atari 2600.

Aggressive pricing of the C64 is considered to be a major catalyst in the video game crash of 1983. In 1983, Commodore offered a $100 rebate in the United States on the purchase of a C64 upon receipt of any video game console or computer. To take advantage of the $100 rebate, some mail-order dealers and retailers offered a Timex Sinclair 1000 for as little as $10 with purchase of a C64 so the consumer could send the computer to Commodore, collect the rebate, and pocket the difference.A contemporary rumor stated that while Commodore scavenged most trade-in computers for spare parts, its employees used the TS1000s as door stops. Timex Corporation departed the marketplace within a year. The success of the VIC-20 and C64 also contributed significantly to the exit of Texas Instruments' TI-99/4A and other competitors from the field.

In 1984, Commodore released the Commodore Plus/4. The Plus/4 offered a higher-color display, a better implementation of BASIC (V3.5), and built-in software. However, Commodore committed what was perceived by critics and consumers as a major strategic error by making it incompatible with the C64. To top it all off, the Plus/4 lacked hardware sprite capability and had much poorer sound, thus seriously underperforming in two of the areas that had made the C64 a star.

In the United Kingdom, the primary competitors to the C64 were the British-built Sinclair ZX Spectrum and the Amstrad CPC464. Released a few months ahead of the C64, and selling for almost half the price, the Spectrum quickly became the market leader. Commodore would have an uphill struggle against the Spectrum, it could no longer rely on undercutting the competition. The C64 debuted at £399 in early 1983, while the Spectrum cost £175. The C64 would later rival the Spectrum in popularity in the latter half of the 1980s, eventually outliving the Spectrum (which was discontinued in 1992).

Despite a few attempts by Commodore to discontinue the C64 in favour of other, higher priced machines, constant demand made its discontinuation a hard task. By 1988, Commodore were selling 1.5 million C64s worldwide. All though demand for the C64 dropped off in the US by 1990, it continued to be popular in the UK and other European countries. In the end, economics, not obsolescence sealed the C64's fate. In March 1994 at CeBIT in Hanover Germany, Commodore announced that the C64 would be finally discontinued in 1995. Commodore claimed that the C64's disk drive was more expensive to manufacture than the C64 itself. Although Commodore had planned to discontinue the C64 by 1995, the company filed for bankruptcy a month later, in April 1994.

The C64 family

1982: Commodore releases the Commodore MAX Machine in Japan. It is called the Ultimax in the US, and VC-10 in Germany. The MAX was intended to be a game console with limited computing capability. It was discontinued months after its introduction, because of poor sales in Japan.

In 1984 Commodore released the SX-64, a portable version of the C64. The SX-64 has the distinction of being the first full-color portable computer. The base unit featured a 5 inch (127 mm) CRT and an integral 1541 floppy disk drive.

Commodore was determined to avoid the problems of the Plus/4, making sure that the eventual successors to the C64—the Commodore 128 and 128D computers (1985)—were as good as, and fully compatible with the original, as well as offering a host of improvements (such as a structured BASIC with graphics and sound commands, 80-column display capability, and full CP/M compatibility).

In 1986, Commodore released the Commodore 64C (C64C) computer, which was functionally identical to the original, but whose exterior design was remodelled in the sleeker style of the C128 and other contemporary design trends. In the U.S., the C64C was often bundled with the third-party GEOS GUI-based operating system. The Commodore 1541 disk drive was also remodelled resulting in the 1541-II.

In 1990, the C64 was re-released in the form of a game console, called the C64 Games System (C64GS). A simple modification to the C64C's motherboard was made to orient the cartridge connector to a vertical position. This allowed cartridges to be inserted from above. A modified ROM replaced the BASIC interpreter with a boot screen to inform the user to insert a cartridge. The C64GS was another commercial failure for Commodore, and it was never released outside of Europe.

In 1990, an advanced successor to the C64, the Commodore 65 (also known as the "C64DX"), was prototyped, but the project was cancelled by Commodore's chairman Irving Gould in 1991. The C65's specifications were very good for an 8-bit computer. For example, it could display 256 colours on screen, while OCS based Amigas could only display 64. Although no specific reason was given for the C65's cancellation, it seemed that it was an conflict of interest with lower end Amigas. The Amiga 600 was released in mid 1991, eventually taking the C65's place as an advanced C64 upgrade.

C64 clones

In the summer of 2004, after an absence from the marketplace of more than 10 years, PC manufacturer Tulip Computers BV (owners of the Commodore brand since 1997) announced the C64 Direct-to-TV (C64DTV), a joystick-based TV game based on the C64 with 30 games built into ROM. Designed by Jeri Ellsworth, a self-taught computer designer who had earlier designed the modern C-One C64 implementation, the C64DTV was similar in concept to other mini-consoles based on the Atari 2600 and Intellivision which had gained modest success earlier in the decade. The product was advertised on QVC in the United States for the 2004 holiday season. Some users have installed 1541 floppy disk drives, hard drives, second joysticks and keyboards to these units, which give the DTV devices nearly all of the capabilities of a full Commodore 64. The DTV hardware is also used in the mini-console/game Hummer, sold at Radio Shack mid-2005.

As of 2006, C64 enthusiasts still develop new hardware, including Ethernet cards, specially adapted hard disks and Flash Card interfaces.

An active demoscene

At the time of its introduction, the C64's graphics and sound capabilities were rivalled only by the Atari 8-bit family. This was at a time when most IBM PCs and compatibles had text-only graphics cards, green screen monitors, and sound consisting of squeaks and beeps from the built-in tiny, low-quality speaker.

Due to its advanced graphics and sound, the 64 is often credited with starting the computer subculture known as the demoscene (see Commodore 64 demos). As of the turn of the millennium, it is still being actively used as a demo machine, especially for music (its sound chip even being used in special sound cards for PCs). For all other than die-hard enthusiasts, however, the C64 lost its top position among demo coders when the 16-bit Atari ST and Commodore Amiga were released in the mid-80s.

The demoscene is far from being dead even more than 20 years after the C64 was invented. New games are still being developed. A noteworthy one is Enhanced Newcomer, which took almost 10 years of development.

The differences between PAL and NTSC C64s cause compatibility problems between US/Canadian C64s and those from most other countries. Most demos run only on PAL machines.

Hardware

Graphics and sound

The C64 used an 8-bit MOS Technology 6510 microprocessor (a close derivative of the 6502 with an added 6-bit internal I/O port that in the C64 is used for two purposes: to bank-switch the machine's ROM in and out of the processor's address space, and to operate the datasette tape recorder) and had 64 kilobytes of RAM, of which 38 kB were available to built-in Commodore BASIC 2.0.

The graphics chip, VIC-II, featured 16 colors, eight sprites, scrolling capabilities, and two bitmap graphics modes. The standard text mode featured 40 columns, like most Commodore PET models; the built in font was not standard ASCII but PETSCII, an extended form of ASCII-1963. Computer/video game and demo programmers quickly learned how to exploit quirks in the VIC-II to gain additional capabilities, like making more than 8 sprites appear, and move, simultaneously.

The sound chip, SID, had three channels with several different waveforms, ring modulation and filter capabilities. It, too, was very advanced for its time. It was designed by Bob Yannes, who would later co-found synthesizer company Ensoniq. Yannes criticized other contemporary computer sound chips as "primitive, obviously (...) designed by people who knew nothing about music." Often the game music became a hit of its own among C64 users. Well-known composers and programmers of game music on the C64 were Rob Hubbard, David Whittaker, Ben Daglish and Martin Galway, among many others. Due to the chip's limitation to three channels, chords were played as arpeggios typically, coining the C64's characteristic lively sound. The original "breadbox" model had the SID6581 sound chip. The newer versions had the SID8580. The sound was a little bit more crispy on the SID6581-chip and many Commodore 64 fans still love the sound of it. The main difference between the SID6581 and the SID8580 is that the 6581 run with 12 volt, and the 8580 run with 9 volt. That made it more difficult to switch them, yet it is still possible.

The SID chip has a distinctive sound which retained a following of devotees. In 1999, Swedish company Elektron produced a SidStation synth module, built around the SID chip, using remaining stocks of the chip. Several bands use these devices in their music.

Hardware revisions

Cost reduction was the driving force for hardware revisions to the C64's motherboard. Reducing manufacturing costs was vitally important to Commodore's survival during the price war and leaner years of the 16-bit era. The C64's original (NMOS based) motherboard would go through two major redesigns, (and numerous sub-revisions) exchanging positions of the VIC-II, SID and PLA chips. Initially, a large proportion of the cost was lowered by reducing the number of discrete components used, such as diodes and resistors.

The VIC-II was manufactured with 5 micrometre NMOS technology, clocked at 8 MHz. At such a high clock rate, it generated a lot of heat, forcing MOS Technology to use a ceramic DIL package (called a "CERDIP"). The ceramic package was more expensive, but it dissipated heat more effectively than plastic.

After a redesign in 1983, the VIC-II was encased in a plastic DIL package, which reduced costs substantially, but it did not eliminate the heat problem. Without a ceramic package, the VIC-II required the use of a heatsink. To avoid extra cost, the metal RF shielding doubled as the heatsink for the VIC, although not all units shipped with this type of shielding. Most C64s in Europe shipped with a cardboard RF shield, coated with a layer of metal foil. The effectiveness of the cardboard was highly questionable, and worse still it acted as an insulator, blocking airflow which trapped heat generated by the SID, VIC and PLA chips.

The SID was manufactured using NMOS at 7 and in some areas 6 micrometres. The prototype SID and some very early production models featured a ceramic DIL package, but unlike the VIC-II, these are extremely rare as the SID was encased in plastic when production started in early 1982.

In 1986 Commodore released the last revision to the "classic" C64 motherboard. It was otherwise identical to the 1984 design, except that it now used two 64 kbit ×4 DRAM chips rather than the original eight 64 kbit ×1.

After the release of the C64C, MOS Technology began to reconfigure the C64's chipset to use HMOS technology. The main benefit of using HMOS was that it required less voltage to drive the IC, which consequently generates less heat. This enhanced the overall reliability of the SID and VIC-II. The new chipset was re-numbered to 85xx in order to reflect the change to HMOS.

In 1987 Commodore released C64Cs with a totally redesigned motherboard commonly known as a "short board". The new board used the new HMOS chipset, featuring new 64-pin PLA chip. The new "SuperPLA" as it was dubbed, integrated many discrete components and TTL chips. The 2114 color RAM was integrated into the last revision of the PLA.

Power problems

The C64 used an external power supply. While this saved valuable space within the computer's case, the supply itself was barely adequate for the C64's power requirements and occasionally failed from overheating. Some users purchased heavier-duty, better-cooled, third-party power supplies. Later in the Commodore's lifetime, third-party power supplies became increasingly important when used in conjunction with Creative Micro Designs' peripherals. Of particular note, a C64 coupled with a RAM expansion or CMD SuperCPU required more power than the original Commodore power supply could provide.

External hardware

Main article: Commodore 64 peripherals

Software

Main article: Commodore 64 software

Representative screenshots

Image:C64_Multiplan.png|Multiplan
Microsoft (1983) Image:C64_Koala_Painter.png| Koala Paint
Koala/Audio Light (1983) Image:C64_GEOS.png|GEOS (desktop)
Berkeley Softworks (1986) Image:C64_Geowrite.png|geoWrite
Berkeley Softworks (1987) Image:C64_Donkey_Kong.png|Donkey Kong
Atarisoft (1983) Image:C64_Winter_Games.png|Winter Games
Epyx (1985) Image:C64_IKPlus.png|International Karate+
System 3 (1987) Image:C64_Creatures_II.png|Creatures II
Thalamus/Apex (1993) Additional screenshots can be found on the Commodore 64 software page.

Specifications

Internal hardware

  • Microprocessor CPU:
  • Video: MOS Technology VIC-II 6567/8567 (NTSC), 6569/8569 (PAL)
    • 16 colors
    • Text mode: 40×25 characters; 256 user-defined chars (8×8 pixels, or 4×8 in multicolor mode); 4-bit color RAM defines foreground color
    • Bitmap modes: 320×200 (2 colors in each 8×8 block), 160×200 (3 colors plus background in each 4×8 block)
    • 8 hardware sprites of 24×21 pixels (12×21 in multicolor mode)
    • Smooth scrolling, raster interrupts
  • Sound: MOS Technology 6581/8580 SID
  • RAM:
    • 64 kB (65,536 bytes), of which 38 kB minus 1 byte (38911 bytes) were available for BASIC programs
    • 0.5 kB color RAM (1 k nybbles)
    • Expandable to 320 kB with Commodore 1764 256 kB RAM Expansion Unit (REU); although only 64 kB directly accessible; REU mostly intended for GEOS. REUs of 128 kB and 512 kB, originally designed for the C128, were also available, but required the user to buy a stronger power supply from some third party supplier; with the 1764 this was included. Creative Micro Designs also produced a 2 MB REU for the C64 and C128, called the 1750 XL. The technology actually supported up to 16 MB, but 2 MB was the biggest one officially made. Expansions of up to 16 MB were also possible via the CMD SuperCPU.
  • ROM:
    • 20 kB (9 kB BASIC 2.0; 7 kB KERNAL; 4 k character generator, providing two 2 k character sets)

I/O ports and power supply

  • I/O ports:
    • 8-pin DIN plug containing composite video output, separate Y/C outputs, and sound input/output. (Some early C64 units utilized a 5-pin DIN connector that omitted the Y/C output.)
    • Integrated RF modulator antenna output via a RCA connector
    • 2 × screwless DE9M game controller ports (compatible with Atari 2600 controllers), each supporting five digital inputs and two analog inputs. Available peripherals included digital joysticks, analog paddles, a light pen, the Commodore 1351 mouse, and the unique KoalaPad.
    • Cartridge expansion slot (slot for edge connector with 6510 CPU address/data bus lines and control signals, as well as GND and voltage pins; used for program modules and memory expansions, among others)
    • PET-type Datassette 300 baud tape interface (edge connector with cassette motor/read/write/sense signals and GND and +5 V pins; the motor pin is powered to directly supply the motor)
    • User port (edge connector with TTL-level RS-232 signals, for modems, etc; and byte-parallel signals which can be used to drive third-party parallel printers, among other things; with 17 logic signals, 7 GND and voltage pins, including 9 V AC voltage)
    • Serial bus (serial version of IEEE-488, 6-pin DIN plug) for CBM printers and disk drives
  • Power supply: 5 V DC and 9 V AC from external "monolithic power brick", attached to computer's 7-pin female DIN-connector

C64 trivia

  • One out of three Commodore 64's during its launch were defective. Many of the early units had video problems causing a blurry effect that made alphanumeric characters difficult to read.
  • On address $FFF6-$FFF9 (65526-9) in the C64 KERNAL, right before the hard-coded jump vectors for the processor, you can find the letter sequence "RRBY". This is indeed the initials of Robert Russell and Bob Yannes, the two main engineers that created the C64.
  • The Commodore 64's BASIC V2, the programming language which came built-in with the computer, can be crashed by executing PRINT""+-* (where x is any integer), or by attempting to create a BASIC program with an initial line number near 350800.
  • Due to a quirk in the C64's BASIC operating system, an Easter egg or screensaver of sorts may be activated: Begin by pressing the RUN/STOP and RESTORE keys in unison; then enter "POKE781,96:SYS58251" on the subsequently cleared screen. The result is shown below:


  • In the American animated sitcom, Family Guy, on the episode Jungle Love, Peter gets his new job (at the Pawtucket Brewery) from an unemployment office worker who uses a Commodore 64.
  • Headkicker II: The Final Kick spoofs the Commodore 64's startup screen, replacing the computer's name with "Adult Swim", a Cartoon Network line-up with The Brak Show, which the game is based off of.
  • Population: Tire, a game from animated flash site Homestar Runner, also starts up with a spoofed screen of the Commodore 64, called "Compydore 64."
  • The Commodore 64's startup screen was spoofed in the startup sequence of the 2002 computer/video game Vice City.
  • In the 1984 film The Philadelphia Experiment, a room full of Commodore 64 computers sitting in front of monitors is used as a control room. The computers sit unconnected by any wires or cables to anything, but Stewart Raffill, the director stated that they made a "cheap prop."
  • "Weird Al" Yankovic sang about the Commodore 64 in his song "It's All About The Pentiums."
  • In one of the films Police Academy, a women interpreting a police dispatcher follows a police car in some kind of satelite tracking device, which actually was a Commodore 64 without wirings.
  • In the UK SciFi-Comedy TV show Red Dwarf, a number of Commodore-based computers make an appearance. In series 1 episode 5 Confidence and Paranoia, Holly the ship's computer asks Dave Lister to erase a part of his memory by utilising a previously non-existent Commodore 64 keyboard to issue the command, subsequently rendering Holly unable to remember that he had just asked for this. In later episodes, an Amiga 500 is seen being used as another control port for the Red Dwarf ship, as well as a few more of these computers residing in a passing Holoship.

Notes

See also

References

Books

  • Bagnall, Brian (2005). On the Edge: the Spectacular Rise and Fall of Commodore. Variant Press. ISBN 0-9738649-0-7. See especially pages 224-260.
  • Commodore Business Machines, Inc., Computer Systems Division (1982). Commodore 64 Programmer's Reference Guide. Self-published by CBM. ISBN 0-672-22056-3.
  • Angerhausen, M.; Becker, Dr. A.; English, L.; Gerits, K. (1983, 84). The Anatomy of the Commodore 64. Abacus Software (US ed.) / First Publishing Ltd. (UK ed.). ISBN 0-948015-004 (UK ed.). German original edition published by Data Becker GmbH, Düsseldorf.
  • Tomczyk, Michael (1984). The Home Computer Wars: An Insider's Account of Commodore and Jack Tramiel. COMPUTE! Publications, Inc. ISBN 0-942386-75-2.

Magazine articles

  • Perry, Tekla S.; Wallich, Paul. "Design case history: the Commodore 64". IEEE Spectrum. March 1985. *
  • Jeffries, Ron. "A best buy for '83: Commodore 64". Creative Computing, January 1983. *
  • Amiga Format News Special. "Commodore at CeBIT '94". Amiga Format, Issue 59, May 1994.

Video

  • Computer Chronicles; "Commodore 64 - Interview with Commodore president Max Toy", 1988. *

External links

Emulators

Link portals

Archives

  • The Digital Dungeon (TDD) – FTP site full of old and recent C64 software
  • www.c64.ch – An archive of C64 demos
  • GameBase 64 – C64 game software information site
  • Lemon 64 – Site with general information, game reviews and a forum
  • Games That Weren't 64 – Large project archive dedicated to finding and researching lost C64 games.
  • C64HQ – Graphically nice site with interviews of famous C64 game creators & sceners, game- and demodownloads and more
  • C64 Walkthrough Site – Walkthrough and solution archive for C64 adventure games with discussion forum
  • Project 64 – Manuals for C64/128 games and software
  • The Ultimate C64 Tape Page – Large preservation archive of C64 cassettes. Also contains scans of cassette covers and manuals
  • The C64 Internet Games Database – over 30000 entries! After a 64 game? Then find it here!
  • The-Commodore-Zone – Archive of C64 games, speech box, legends of the 64, discussion forum, online databases, links
  • The Commodore Billboard - Archive of Commodore related stuff - Commercials, magazines, userguides, merchendise etc.

Music

  • Machinae Supremacy- Swedish "Sid Metal" band. They play originals and recreate C64 hits.
  • Mini Melodies – German band that produces records using C64 machines
  • SIDPLAY – A freeware SID music player (a "SID chip emulator")
  • HVSC - High Voltage SID Collection – Large collection of SID files which can be downloaded as a complete archive for use with SIDPLAY
  • C64 Music – Commodore 64 music in the real world & other related SID stories blog
  • Press Play on Tape – Danish 'C64 revival' band
  • Mr. Pacman – American band that performs C64 covers & re-workings; band member Silver Ghost uses a SX-64 as a bass synthesizer
  • SLAY Radio – Radio with live DJs playing Remixes of C64 game and demo music
  • remix.kwed.org – Remixes of C64 game music in mp3-format
  • Remix64 – Online magazine and community centre for the C64 music remixing scene
  • Sidstation by Elektron – Swedish company Elektron makes the Sidstation, a synthesizer using the C64 SID chip, with midi support and realtime tweaking
  • Tree Wave – American band that creates original and sophisticated music and video using Commodore 64 machines and other 8-bit computers and peripherals, often for live performances.
  • Erdball – German bitpop group who credit their beefed-up C64 as a band member
  • Kawasaki Synthesizer & Rhythm Rocker – One of the first standalone(no additional hardware required other than C64/PC itself) music software ever written for personal computer history which became widely accepted and commercially successful. The page is provided by the author Ryo Kawasaki himself.
  • Goto80 – Incredible music made with the Commodore 64
  • The SID Homepage – Information on the SID chip.

History

Other

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