Fix? Its the same if the c64 is turned on or not. Only on chroma luma.

As noted in the title, I woke up this morning with an idea- it is a family member's birthday and I thought it would be a fun exercise to code a program that outputs their age if you put in the current year and their year of birth. After a failed attempt and some troubleshooting, I wrote a simple program that works great. It's not anything elaborate or amazing, but it's mine and so I'm a bit proud of it and would like to share here.

1 REM AGE CALCULATOR

5 PRINT "{CLR/HOME}"

10 PRINT "CURRENT YEAR": INPUT A%

20 PRINT "ORIGIN YEAR": INPUT X%

30 PRINT "AGE ="; A% - X%

40 GOTO 10

I only started with BASIC yesterday so seeing an original creation come to life and work is so cool for me. Hope others will share their fun/useful programs here too!

I live in australia.

Hi i have been wanting my dads old c64 to work for years, I tried once when I was younger and got a pinn border and garbled text, today i tried once again, I took out all the chips i could, cleaned the pins and sockets with ipa and put new thermal paste on the vic chip, made a jank cable to get compsite video and got this image after and then a black screen the next time, I measured the power brick, it gives 4.96v on the 5v dc pins and 10.5v ac on the 9v ac pins i'm assuming the pla could be the main problem after some reasearch, but I thought i'd ask here for any advice and ideas.

So i got my commodore 64 with a kung fu flash i ordered from the internet and somehow it just boots up straight to commodore basic. Ive cleaned the contacts hoping it was that but it didn’t do anything. Im planning to go get another SD card but even without an sd card it doesn’t go to the black and purple screen. Should i get another one or should i keep messing around with it? Any help would be appreciated.

Back in my childhood (about 35 years ago) I had this awesome game on a copied / cracked version on a disc.

Can't remember which group cracked it, but I loved the group's intro music upon starting the game.

Does anyone have it by any chance and could provide me the music being played? It would fullfill one of my core childhood memories. ❤️

Real-time Strategy Game

Features:
- 64 units, buildings
- Any number of units on screen
- Multicolor graphics, 1 sprite
- 4 direction scrolling battlefield
- Build bases, produce units

Enemy Ai:
- Manages its own economy
- Builds and produces units
- Defends its base
- Counter-attacks when provoked
- No mercy!

Future developments:
more maps, units, gameplay improvements

gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SILhafNKU8c

After much sitting on the fence I recently put the order in for a Commodore 64 Ultimate from commodore.net. I never owned a C64 back in the day (my family had a MSX), but after a career working as a software developer and loving all things retro, eventually caved.

I've also found a half-decent condition Philips CM8833 II monitor on eBay, and ordered it. Yes - I know the C64 ultimate has HDMI, but half the experience is the monitor - and I wanted a monitor that I could use with an Amiga too (eventually - little does my other half know lol).

Anyway - this leaves me with the natural problem of how best to connect the C64 to the Phillips 8833 II - I know there are several companies that make the conversion cables - I just wondered if anybody has experience of doing something similar, and has any pointers or recommendations.

Hey folks,

I wrote a memory piece on our favorite, the venerable C64, here at Goto 10:

https://www.goto10retro.com/p/i-owe-my-life-to-the-commodore-64

It begins with a familiar backpage ad and ends with a C64 on the floor. Hope you enjoy it.

I've been working (for a while) on an IDE for a programming language meant as an extension of Scratch (scratch.mit.edu), but it also has a Commodore 64 aspect - which allows generating compiled multi-tasking code. That part has been a bit neglected for a while but I'm returning for some focus with the addition of C64 specific graphics editors (character/sprite/bitmap). In this video I talk about my current progress (if you check the website there is some further info on the C64 aspect hidden away, but the general language stuff applies to the C64 side)

Video, and Project Website

Salix8 Sunset - Full Playthrough (Commodore 64)

Salix8 Sunset is an abstract Commodore 64 puzzle game developed by Tim Koch (and produced by DataDoor). Commissioned by ACMI (Australian Centre for the Moving Image), it tasks players with exploring a colorless, abstract world and completing puzzles to restore vibrant colors to the landscape.

Concept/Design/Graphics/Fonts/Charset/Music - Tim Koch
Coding/Sprites/Design - Eryngi (Brandon Williamson)

What are some good demos to stress-test an emulator?

Does anyone have SVG files of the various CBM 8-bit keyboards? Plain line-art preferred, but any is helpful.

I'm currently fixing up a 1530 cassette player but noticed a wire not going to anything. At first I assumed it was part of the main loom and had snapped off further into the main cable but this is not the case.

From the images I've found on a general internet search, this appears to be a non standard wire soldered to the back of a ceramic capacitor.

Does anyone know what this is and/or what it should be connected to?

thought should give my PETSCII raycaster an ominous/mysterious production vibe to build suspense for next update...

what does this mean? This is a version i have downloaded from the internet archive.
(i mean the "remember, kill ya cartridge...")

I had this C64 for a couple of years and I need a starting point to try and get it working. Every socketed chip has been tested in a different machine and works fine. I replaced two capacitors I had on hand that matched and I’m gonna order the rest today. The RF modulator was swapped out with an S-Video board when I first got it as I suspected it was an RF modulator failure. The fuse has been replaced as well.

Sucker DJ by IKV, one of the most respected Aussie scene groups.

If the link timestamp doesn't work, things get rather nice around 4m13s.

Great sampling.

We want r/c64 to be about both original hardware and newer emulation products like the Commodore 64 Ultimate (C64U). But the shipping of the C64U is resulting in C64U posts flooding out much of the other content in the subreddit. To maintain a balance between what's old and new, we are setting up a weekly MEGAPOST for C64U-related issues, questions, and posts.

If your post is regarding the use of a Commodore 64 (i.e. how to load a game from disk, how to print, etc.), regardless of the model, you may post your question as a standalone post in the subreddit even if you have a C64 Ultimate.

If your post relates to ONLY the Commodore 64 Ultimate, you should comment in this post. Please note, this is not a replacement for official support from Commodore regarding order or shipping issues (late or damaged shipments). We realize that some questions may be obscure, unique, or straddle the line between C64U-only and a "general" question. In those cases, please post in this thread FIRST. If your issue isn't answered or addressed after 48 hours, you may submit a stand-alone post in the subreddit. WARNING! Moderators will be checking post and comment histories to make sure people are actually posting in this thread first. Repeated violations may result in temporary or permanent bans.

We don't anticipate this being a permanent situation, but for now there are just too many C64U posts being submitted. Once the volume of posts about the C64U decreases, we may discontinue this practice.

Please also check the information below to see if your issue is listed. We are also working on a C64 Ultimate Wiki Page. If you would like to be a Wiki Contributor, please let the mod team know.

Use the following link to view current and past Commodore 64 Ultimate Weekly Posts.

Official resources:

Firmware/manuals: https://www.commodore.net/downloads

Common Issues and Known Fixes

Black screen, no video, or rolling picture

The most common issue reported so far.

• Reseat the internal board — some units have arrived with it slightly loose from shipping.
• Set video to NTSC mode, then press Shift + Left Arrow to store settings.
• Try a different HDMI lead — several users fixed display problems this way.
• Some monitors won’t sync at 50 Hz; if possible, test another screen.

Uneven keyboard keys

A cosmetic but noticeable fault.

• Keys such as Caps Lock, D, and J may sit higher than others.
• Gently press the affected keys down to reseat them on their stems.
• Space/Return issues are often a stabiliser bar not fully seated – carefully reseating the bar fixes many ‘only works in the middle’ reports.

Startup problems or unit freezing on boot

• Turn the unit off and leave it off for a few seconds.
• Hold RESTORE while powering on to perform a factory reset.
• If that fails, re‑flash the latest firmware from the official Commodore site.

REU or extra memory not detected by the software

• Install the most recent firmware — newer builds enable proper REU initialisation and detection.

Settings or storage are lost after reboot

• Perform the RESTORE reset to clear any corrupt configuration.
• Re‑enter Wi‑Fi and storage details once booted cleanly.

Physical marks or loose panels on delivery

• Report the issue directly to Commodore support.
• All units ship directly from Commodore — there are no official resellers.

Buzzing or humming audio output

• Usually caused by grounding noise between HDMI and the connected display.
• Try another HDMI port, cable, or power socket to isolate the problem.

Starlight edition

• Starlight keyboards have some ‘bounce’/flex by design; noticeable mainly if you hammer the keys, but not usually a functional fault.
• The Caps Lock LED lights when caps is active; the beige unit does not have an indicator.
• For Starlight LED audio visualiser with a real SID: enable UltiSID 1 but set its volume to Off in the mixer; this keeps the LEDs driven while only hearing the real SID

Games Freezing / Compatibility

• If cracked/trainer releases hang after the Y/N cheat prompt, try switching to PAL or NTSC‑50; many cracks are PAL‑only and will lock up in NTSC.
• For compatibility with some games/demos, try disabling drive B: in the Ultimate’s drive settings

Cartridges

• Virtual fastload carts (e.g. Final Cartridge III) are supported; mount the cart, then mount and load the disk from BASIC, rather than using ‘Run disk’ from the firmware menu.

Disk and cassette backup / storage notes

• To back up the bundled cassette USB to an internal SD: it’s just files on exFAT – copy them via your PC; no imaging/cloning needed
• Backing up real floppies: UltiCopy is very fast, but some protected titles (e.g. Skate or Die, Contra) have been reported to hang part‑way through; expect improvements in future firmware

Running Multi-Disk Programs

Some programs are distributed on multiple disk images, similar to how they were originally distributed on multiple floppy disks. At some point in the process of using the program, the program will prompt to insert one of the other floppy disks. You can use the Disk File Browser to swap disk images while the program is running. When the program prompts for a new disk, press upward on the Multi Function Switch. This pauses the program. Start the Disk File Browser, navigate to the disk image for the disk that the program is requesting, then select “Mount Disk.” The C64U mounts the new disk image in the virtual drive, then resumes execution of the Commodore 64 program. Continue to use the program with the new disk." -- https://downloads.commodore-international.com/documentation/C64U/c64u-user-guide-1st-edition.pdf

General Notes

• r/Commodore is for discussions about Commodore, other Commodore computers, and possible new productions.
• r/c64 is for everything Commodore 64 including the ultimate.

If you’ve come across a new issue or found a working fix not listed here, add it in the comments below.