SerdaVision HDMI (pre-order)

Pre-order - ships in 2-3 weeks.
The firmware can be updated over USB-C at any time.

An 8-bit ISA video card for IBM PC compatibles, from the 5150/XT to Pentium-class machines. A Raspberry Pi RP2350 functions as the video chip: it emulates the original hardware in firmware and outputs HDMI. One firmware file supports thirteen video standards; the card runs as one at a time, selected from DOS or with an on-screen menu.

Video standards supported :

• VGA
• EGA (256 KB)
• CGA, Hercules, MDA
• VGA-XT and EGA-XT for 8088/V20 machines
• SVGA: VGA + VESA 1.2, up to 800x600x16 and 640x480x256, 320x200 hi-colour, optional ET4000 mode
• Experimental: Plantronics ColorPlus, Olivetti PC1 (V6355D), Tandy 1000/PCjr, Hercules InColor

Specifications

• Bus: ISA 8-bit, fits 8- and 16-bit slots, 4.77-8.33 MHz (12 MHz reported working)
• Screen memory: up to 1.9 MB/s write and 1.5 MB/s read with zero-wait-state (0WS) on supporting chipsets such as the Intel 430HX; up to 1.1 MB/s without
• Video memory: 256 KB, 320 KB with the VESA modes
• Output: HDMI or DVI, 640x480 at 60/70 Hz, 800x600 at 56 Hz; analog VGA via a powered HDMI2VGA dongle
• Settings, kept in flash: scanlines, phosphor colour, aspect, refresh, composite colour model (CGA)
• Power from the slot or USB-C; firmware updates over USB-C

On-screen menu

Press the menu button on the bracket and the card draws its own menu over the picture - in a game, in the BIOS setup, or when the PC shows nothing because it is set up for another card. Short presses move through the menu, a one-second hold chooses. From the menu you switch the personality and set scanlines, monitor colour (colour, white, green, amber), refresh rate, composite colour, vertical fill, BIOS in RAM and XT/AT bus, or go back to the factory settings. Holding the button for five seconds always brings the card back to VGA with factory settings.

DOS tools (included)

• SVSET - switches the personality and changes every setting from the DOS prompt or a batch file (for example SVSET /M:CGA), and saves them to flash
• SVKEY - a small resident program (752 bytes): Ctrl+Alt hotkeys change scanlines, phosphor, refresh, vertical fill and composite colour while a game runs
• SVTEST - self-test of video memory and registers, with read and write speed figures
• SVMODES - draws and checks every screen mode of every personality and writes a report
• RASTER - measures the picture timing
• HICOL - shows the VESA hi-colour modes
• ZWSLOAD - measures the bus speed

Limitations

8-bit only; VGA/EGA text is 8 dots wide; mid-frame palette changes are not shown; no light pen.

Doom with scanlines, and on screen menu :