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Known as the C64-mini, this has a scaled down exterior of a commodore-64, which came with a bog standard A20 SoC inside, running an emulator.

Identification

Retro Games Ltd RGL001
Manufacturer	Retro Games Ltd
Dimensions	105mm x 205mm x 35mm
Release Date	February 2018
Website	http://thec64.com
Specifications
SoC	A20 @ XGhz
DRAM	512 DDR3 @ xxxMHz
NAND	2/4/8/16GB
Power	DC 5V @ 1A
Features
Video	HDMI (Type A- full)
Audio	HDMI
Storage	Internal
Headers	UART, VCC (Unpopulated but drilled)

On the back of the device, the following is printed:

The C64 Mini
RGL001

The PCB has the following silkscreened on it:

THEC64 V1.0
Retro Games Ltd 2018

Under Settings->System, you will find:

Build: theC64-1.0.1-argent
Build Date: 02-01-2018 19:08:23

Sunxi support

Current status

Unknown

Images

Optional. Add MANUFACTURER DEVICE specific sunxi ROM images here. E.g. a livesuit image or some other linux image which uses linux-sunxi code. Do not put non-sunxi images here, they should live under See also. If no sunxi based images are available, this section can be removed.

HW-Pack

Optional. Add MANUFACTURER DEVICE sunxi HW-pack specifics here. When empty, this section can be removed.

BSP

Optional. Add MANUFACTURER DEVICE sunxi BSP specifics here. When empty, this section can be removed.

Manual build

You can build things for yourself by following our Manual build howto and by choosing from the configurations available below.

U-Boot

Sunxi/Legacy U-Boot

Use the MANUFACTURER_DEVICE build target.

Mainline U-Boot

Use the MANUFACTURER_DEVICE build target.

Linux Kernel

Sunxi/Legacy Kernel

Use the MANUFACTURER_DEVICE.fex file.

Mainline kernel

Use the FAMILY-CHIP-DEVICE.dtb device-tree binary.

Tips, Tricks, Caveats

There is a remote button that will start FEL mode, located underneath the device manufacturer's sticker, allowing you to enter FEL without disassembling the case.

Obtaining a root shell

Root shell can be obtained by using the UART: Connect the UART and establish a terminal session. Insert a USB thumb drive in either of the two USB host ports. It doesn't matter what is on the thumb drive, as long as it has a mountable filesystem (FAT is fine). Power on the board while continuously sending 's' via the serial console to interrupt u-boot.

At the u-boot prompt, the process is as follows:

redquark#setenv nand_root /dev/sda
redquark#boot
read boot or recovery all
[     48.085]sunxi flash read :offset 1000000, 11549075 bytes OK
[     48.100]ready to boot
[     48.103][mmc]: MMC Device 2 not found
[     48.107][mmc]:  mmc  not find,so not exit
NAND_UbootExit
NB1 : NAND_LogicExit
[     48.111]
Starting kernel ...

[    0.991847] rtc_hw_init(416) err: set clksrc to external losc failed! rtc time will be wrong
[    1.001419] sunxi_rtc_gettime(34): err, losc_err_flag is 1
[    1.076451] [hdmi]hdmi module init
[    1.082448] ##fb init:w=1280,h=720,fbmode=0
[    1.099610] sunxi_rtc_gettime(34): err, losc_err_flag is 1
[    1.105737] sunxi-rtc sunxi-rtc: hctosys: unable to read the hardware clock
root=/dev/sda
wait /dev/sda ready
wait /dev/sda ready
wait /dev/sda ready
wait /dev/sda ready
[    4.953983] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] No Caching mode page present
[    4.960123] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Assuming drive cache: write through
[    4.984607] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] No Caching mode page present
[    4.990741] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Assuming drive cache: write through
[    5.014615] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] No Caching mode page present
[    5.020950] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Assuming drive cache: write through
e2fsck /dev/sda return 8
mount /dev/sda return 255

/ # insmod /lib/modules/3.4.39/nand.ko 
/ # mount /dev/nandb /mnt
[   65.852040] EXT4-fs (nandb): couldn't mount as ext3 due to feature incompatibilities
[   65.944133] EXT4-fs (nandb): couldn't mount as ext2 due to feature incompatibilities
/ # passwd
Changing password for root
New password: 
Retype password: 
Password for root changed by root
/ # mv /mnt/etc/shadow /mnt/etc/shadow.old
/ # cp /etc/shadow /mnt/etc
/ # umount /mnt
/ #

Power off the board and boot normally. You should be able to log in as root using the password you set.

Default root password

The default root password for the TheC64 (Mini and full size) as well as the The VIC 20 is "chuckpeddle".

FEL mode

FEL can be entered by holding the remote button or the on board button labeled UBOOT. It can also be entered using the serial console by sending "2" on boot.

Board observations

There is a button on the board marked "Recovery" however it seems to have no effect. There is are many unpopulated solder pads including an SD card slot and second DRAM chip. The resistors are also unpopulated.

Adding a serial port (voids warranty)

The UART is very easy to interface. It has standard 0.01" American pin spacing and is already drilled. You can use standard header pins or a JST connector.

Pins are, in order from top to bottom as per photo; 3.3v, Rx, Tx, GND

In this photo, the customer has already added the UART pins. The board mounts upside down so the pins were placed on the reverse side to allow ease of access.

See UART howto

Device disassembly

There is no need to remove or damage the device manufacturer's sticker unless you wish to access the u-boot switch without disassembling the case. The four screws are located under the friction pads.

Locating the UART

The UART is immediately West of the processor and very easy to see.

Retro Games Ltd RGL001

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