Hardware| Hardware Overview - RetroCade MegaWing - Papilio Pro
Hardware Overview
The RetroCade Synth is a combination of the Papilio Pro FPGA board, the RetroCade MegaWing, and an optional control dashboard that runs on a computer. The full feature set of the RetroCade Synth requires the expanded memory available in the Papilio Pro FPGA board, we recommend that new users purchase the Papilio Pro and RetroCade MegaWing combo. For users that already have a Papilio One and just want to purchase the RetroCade MegaWing take a look at the Feature Matrix to determine what is supported.
RetroCade MegaWing
The RetroCade MegaWing provides all of the audio hardware needed to make sweet retro music in one convenient and easy to connect circuit board. It snaps into the Papilio Pro and gives it the necessary hardware resources to communicate with the outside world.
- 2 – ¼” Stereo Audio Jacks with 18 bit Delta Sigma DAC
- MIDI – In, Out, Through
- uSD Card for MOD, MIDI, YM, SID, and config files
- MicroJoystick – 4 directions, Select
- 2x16 LCD Display
- 16 Analog inputs for sliders and knobs
- 16 Digital inputs for switches and peripherals
Papilio Pro LX9
The Open Source Papilio Pro LX9 FPGA board is a powerful and flexible platform that provides the core for exciting projects such as the RetroCade Synth and the Papilio Arcade. It acts as the empty canvas that classic audio chips and arcade motherboards can be recreated on. Its flexible nature means that it can be re-used with future Papilio projects by simply purchasing the MegaWing portion of a project.
- Xilinx Spartan 6 LX9 FPGA
- 64Mbit (8MByte) SDRAM
- High Speed USB port for programming and communication
- ZPUino Soft Processor
- YM2149
- MOS 6581 (I.E. C64 SID)
RetroCade Feature Matrix
RetroCade Synth Feature Matrix
| RetroCade Synth Features | Papilio Pro LX9 | Papilio One 500K | Papilio One 250K |
| SID Audio |  | | |
| YM2149 Audio | | | |
| MOD Files | | ||
| SD Card Support | |
| Open Source FPGA Synths | Papilio Pro LX9 | Papilio One 500K | Papilio One 250K |
| Gateman Poly Synth* | | | |
| SK Synth* | | |
Note 1: The Open Source Gateman Poly and SK Synth will be ported to the RetroCade hardware soon.
NOTE: The RetroCade hardware does not require the Control Dashboard or a computer. All features of the RetroCade Synth are hardware based and only require the Papilio and RetroCade MegaWing combo.