SpecAY Documentation

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0. Contents

1. Introduction
2. So what is it?
3. How do I use it?
4. Where do I get AY files from?
5. Notes for +2 (grey), +3 and +2A users
6. Some important notes
7. Acknowledgements - the people who made it possible.
9. Contact the Author

1. Introduction

Welcome to SpecAY (formerly called Speccy-Player) - the AY Music File Player for a Real Spectrum.

This program is designed to take a standard AY music file (which are really intended for use with Emulators) and allow it to be played-back on a genuine, physical Sinclair Spectrum machine. It's been tested on the original Spectrum 128, +2 and +3, but should run on any 128k Spectrum.

This document refers to Version 0.3a of SpecAY.

2. So what is it?

Basically, it consists of two programs - one for the Spectrum, and another which runs on a PC under DOS (or in a command-prompt window in MS Windows).

The PC-based program really just takes any old PC file, and converts it into a Spectrum datablock to be loaded into a particular location in the Spectrum's memory. That really is all it does, so the file need not be an AY file at all - it can be used to load any type of file into the Speccy (provided it will fit in RAM, of course!). The file is output as a TAP file, for output using a utility such as Taper or HypraLoader.

The Spectrum-based program loads the datablock into Spectrum memory, and if it is a valid AY file, it will examine it, display the author, title and other details, and let you choose a particular tune from the file to listen to. It then loads the relevant datablocks from the AY file into the right places in memory, and calls the Z80 code to play the tune.

There is also a BAT file "wrapper" which can be used to convert the AY file, and add the player, and produce a TAP file containing both in one operation.

3. How is it used?

Really, really easy, but note that this is slightly different from previous versions - you no-longer give the ".ay" extension on the command-line.

1. Extract the contents of the ZIP file to a suitable directory on your PC. (I suggest C:\AY2TAP)
2. Copy the AY file you wish to play into the same directory.
3. From a command-prompt window, cd to the directory.
4. Type the following command:
    AY2TAP <filetoplay>
this produces a file called "filetoplay.tap"
5. Start Taper or HypraLoader, and load the resulting TAP file, and play it out as normal!

Note that the following files must all be in the current directory for the batch file to work properly:
    FILE2TAP.EXE    (this converts a PC file into a Spectrum-loadable TAP file)
    LOADER.TAP    (this is the Spectrum-based loader and player program)
Also note that, in order to handle long filenames, the batch file creates two temporary files in the current directory, which will normally be deleted if the the operation is successful.
 
I plan to produce a native MS Windows version at some point which should do away with all this mucking about, but that hasn't happened yet.

4. Where to Get AY Files

There are many AY files on the WOS archive at ftp://ftp.worldofspectrum.org/pub/sinclair/music/
Also check out the Project-AY pages for both files and further details of the format.

5. Notes for +2 (grey), +3 and +2A users

If you have any of these machines, then you'll notice that the sound output quality is not very good. The +2 is generally OK but very noisy, while the +3 and +2A sound awful due to a well-known design flaw.

The fix for the grey +2 is very straightforward, does not even require any soldering to the main circuit board, and gives beautiful noise-free sound output.

The fix for the +2A and +3 is not quite so simple, but anyone with basic soldering skills should be able to tackle it.

6. Some Important Notes

(i)    I should point out that I am a cr@p programmer. This program may not be particularly well-written, but it just about works, and as far as I know it is unique.
(ii)    This software is provided strictly "as-is", with no warranty, expressed or implied, as to its suitability for any particular purpose. The Author cannot be held responsible for any consequences, howsoever caused, that may result from using this software. In English - "Don't blame me if you blow up your computer!".
(iii)    Please don't laugh at my programming, er... (ahem) "style". If you have any comments (preferably constructive ones), drop me a mail!
(iv)    With the exception of some of the machine code routines (see below), the code is Copyright of Tim Fardell. Feel free to do with it as you will, but an acknowledgement would be nice if you decide to use any part of it for any other project.

7. Acknowledgements

The following people have made this project a reality.

Sergey Bulba - for producing the best PC-based AY player there is, and also for his documentation on the AY file format. This has been the single most useful reference work throughout the project!

The many good folks on the WOS Forums and c.s.s, who have assisted with machine-code problems - there are now too many to list, and attempting to list everyone who's helped would risk leaving someone out, so I won't list you all. You know who you are, and I am very grateful to all of you!

Some of the machine code routines are lifted (but slightly modified) from the z88dk source tree: specifically this project makes use of  the zx_setstr routine by Stefano Bodrato.

And, of course, not forgetting Patrik Rak, who came up with the AY file format in the first place :-)

8. Contact

Contact the Author - Tim Fardell - tim.fardell@virgin.net

If you have any comments, or feature requests for future versions, don't hesitate to drop me a mail! I can't promise to reply to every single e-mail, but I will read them all and make an effort to respond to specific queries. Before mailing with questions, check the Release Notes to see if your problem is a known issue.

This page was last updated on 7th May 2009 (just to fix a broken link).
Copyright Tim Fardell.