The DTV 64 is essentially a retro-style Joystick with a hardware emulation of a Commodore 64 embedded inside. It is shipped with a flash ROM that contains 30 Games. Many people on the net have transformed the C64 from a joystick retro toy into a really usable C64-clone with keyboard connector, 2 joystick ports and a IEC port for a 1541 floppy. Recently, I did the same mod to my DTV 64.

I got all ideas for my mod from the this very comprehensive DTV 64 Mod Links list at Forum 64

The DTV 64 Box seen from above without the DTV “main board”.

I started with an empty box and drilled holes for the connectors on the front and back side. On the front side there a 2 joystick connectors, a PS/2 keyboard connector, a power switch and a reset button. On the rear side there is an IEC connector, the cinch video and audio connectors and a power connector.

Inside the box I placed a small circuit board with a 5V stabilized power converter (7805) that is connected to the power connector. Furthermore the board has two rows of connector pins. They are all wired to the connectors.

Now the DTV “main board” is prepared. First remove it from the original joystick case and determine the necessary connections to the connectors (see link above). I soldered thin wires to each required point on the main board and connected them to a socket port. These ports are later simply plugged on the connector pins of the box board. This allows me to remove and work with the “main board” without soldering.

The DTV64 Box with “main board” and plugged in connectors.

Fortunately, after connecting the power the board still worked as expected. I tested the new features by connecting a keyboard, 2 joysticks and 1541 floppy drive via IEC. All went well and so the box could be closed for now… Now the software part can begin, including flashing a new kernel, a new filesystem and hacking DTV code…

The DTV 64 Box Front Side with nice retro-style printed labels

The DTV 64 Box Rear Side with nice retro-style printed labels