Indivision ECS V4 Flickerfixer/Scandoubler for Amiga A600

Indivision ECS V4 is the successor to the Indivision ECS V3 however at this time is not feature-complete, all new features will be rolled out via flash updates over time. All flash updates will be free. Please note that for using all planned/future features, you may need commercial software that’s separately available. For all current features, the product is self-contained.

Indivision ECS V4 is designed for Amiga models with OCS or ECS and a socketed Denise chip ( Amiga A500 (Plus), Amiga A2000, Amiga A3000[T] and CDTV). The Amiga 600 is also supported if an A603, A604 or A604n Memory Expansion is installed(*).

All screen modes are converted to frequencies of 60Hz or more (output optionally at 50Hz for compatible monitors), and the S-Hires mode of the ECS chipset is displayed in full resolution and colour depth. Indivision ECS V4 can display ECS screen modes even on systems that previously had an OCS Denise chip; the only requirement is an ECS Agnus chip (which is usually present in all Amiga models made in 1990 or later).

Non-interlaced modes can be ‘downgraded’ with the built-in scanline emulation to achieve the retro feeling that your old 1084 monitor provided over 30 years ago. The effect can be carefully adjusted: Anything from a very soft scanline effect to almost black lines in every other line is possible. Scanline emulation has never been so precise on a flicker fixer before.

Indivision ECS V4 also has built-in Graffiti emulation. Software that makes use of the Graffiti modes can display 256 out of 4096 colours without HAM artefacts. In this 2024 version of the flickerfixer, we have added further heuristics to keep programs from switching to Graffiti mode when the running program isn’t a program that really targets the Graffiti hardware (false-positive avoidance).

While all iComp flicker fixers before have passed the exact number of pixels that the Amiga generates, Indivision ECS V4 has a scaler! This makes sure that the scaler inside the VGA-monitor is never activated, so the picture will not get any more blurry than necessary. The scaler of Indivision ECS V4 is geared towards preserving the pixel-art appearance of low-res graphics, but can carefully be tuned to blur just enough to make it easy for the eye to believe that the flat screen you’re looking at shows exactly what the vintage 1081/1084 monitor would have shown.

The scaler is also the universal answer to the ever-recurring question that we previously had no satisfying answer for: How can I set a certain screen mode to be full-screen on my TFT? Combined with the Workbench/GUI-based configuration tool, this is easier than with any other product on the market: Moving the picture, zooming in/out and doing pixel-exact changes to the output can be verified in real-time. Made a wrong setting? Press ESC at any time, and your output is reset to a safe default. Saved the wrong settings? No worries, the easy-to-create rescue disk will boot and reset the flicker fixer to factory defaults even if your monitor does not like the current settings at all.

Still not enough retro? Indivision ECS V4 allows V-Sync to overcome tearing effects. Given that your VGA monitor supports V-Sync, you can enjoy silky-smooth animations without the slightest flicker or tearing. Monitors that support V-Sync are mostly gaming-monitors, but some office monitors and most CRT monitors are also compatible with this pixel-exact synced output mode. While the predecessors Indivision ECS V3 and V2 required V-Sync to be supported by the monitor, Indivision ECS V4 only requires the monitor to support 50Hz vertical frequency for PAL, or 60Hz for NTSC, thanks to a more sophisticated clock generation circuit. This makes a lot more monitors compatible with the feature.

An additional adapter for a CIA chip routes keyboard signals to the flicker fixer. This gives way for a huge practical improvement over previous versions of the flicker fixer: You can now make small adjustments to the output picture format, including positioning and re-sizing of the output picture without the need to load the configuration tool. While Indivision ECS V4 predecessors required the user to exit a game, load the config tool, make adjustments and then re-boot into the game, you can now open a simple menu using a hot-key combination, make adjustments with the keyboard or mouse and then exit this live configuration menu – all this without leaving the game or demo that’s currently running.

The Fine Print:

The graphical configuration tool requires Kickstart 2.0 or higher. If you have Kickstart 1.3, you will only be able to upload a configuration (created with a different computer) with a command line tool.

Indivision ECS was designed to work with all OCS/ECS Amiga models with as little hassle as possible. This is the reason for it’s funny shape. However, due to the multitude of different boards, there are a few cases where additional modifications are required:

Amiga 600:
A603, A604 or A604n Memory Expansion required for operation. If you only have an A603, you’ll have to remove the floppy drive. To avoid short circuits, the metal shield must either be cut or removed entirely (most Amiga 600 computers were delivered without the shield in the first place, so this is a minor issue). If you have an Apollo accelerator card, you will need an A604 or A604n as carrier card. The A603 will cause a mechanical conflict with the Apollo accelerator. With A604 or A604n, the bottom cover will have to be left open, otherwise the keyboard will not fit.

Amiga 3000:
Due to space constraints, the backup battery for the real-time clock must either be moved or removed.

Amiga 3000T:
Indivision ECS needs at least two additional sockets as risers. The video slot is partially covered, so there could be space problems with a long Zorro card in the upper slot. We recommend to use a short cart in the upper slot.

Amiga 2000 (Rev. 4.1 and 4.3 only, other revisions have no such limitation):
Due to space constraints, one electrolytic capacitor must either be moved or replaced by a lower-profile version.

Amiga 1000 without piggy back:
There’s an adapter required, because the power supply is in the way (adapter available separately).

Amiga 1000 with piggy back:

We’re sorry, this is the only computer that we currently don’t have a solution for. Please check back regularly, because we’ve got have something in the pipeline!