Tetroid.

Please post user feedback when you buy or sell.
Post Reply
User avatar
Dave
SandySuperQDave
Posts: 2765
Joined: Sat Jan 22, 2011 6:52 am
Location: Austin, TX
Contact:

Tetroid.

Post by Dave »

I just wanted to leave some feedback on two Tetroid products I bought.

The first is the ROM switcher. This is a very simple design, very well executed. There are SMD components on both sides of the board. The main components are a 29F040 flash and a 74HCT00 for /CE & /OE inversion. It has an optional adapter board for reprogramming it, and I strongly recommend you buy this board when you buy your ROM switcher - I didn't and I already regret it. The quality of assembly is high. Five stars.

The second is the backplane. This is a 2-part black PCB. The first PCB is the buffer board, which contains a small 78M05 D-PAK voltage regulator and three 74HCT245s. This means only 12 lines are being buffered, by level shifting to 5V and using the characteristics of the IC to clean up the edges of the signal on transitions. I did not check which signals are being buffered, but the usual suspects would be most of the control signals, /ROMOE, etc. The PCBs are black, which is a nice touch as they're visible outside the QL. One small cosmetic blunder is that on the backplane board, the silk layer word "<-QL" is printed inverted, so when it's inside your QL it is upside down. However, this is the most trivial of distractions. If it bothers me too much, I can use a black paint pen (not a sharpie!) to hide it. :) There is a 20 pin DIP socket that is unpopulated and I do wonder what goes there and what it does.

Overall, the packaging was excellent. It came from Russia with tracking in a right-sized box, in anti-static plastic sealed to the perfect size. The overall presentation when opening the box was excellent.

A simple half sheet of paper explaining the functions and features of each product would have been useful for some customers. Their absence was no problem to anyone who's owned a QL for years, but for new or returning QLers knowing where to put a replacement ROM cannot be taken for granted.

Overall, 5 out of 5 stars!


Derek_Stewart
Font of All Knowledge
Posts: 3932
Joined: Mon Dec 20, 2010 11:40 am
Location: Sunny Runcorn, Cheshire, UK

Re: Tetroid.

Post by Derek_Stewart »

Hi,

I bought one these and works really well, good for trying new software on old QL Roms.

The programming adaptor board was included with the ROM board.

Build quality excellent as normal from Tetriod.

I would not not hesitate in buying more from Tetriod.


Regards,

Derek
User avatar
Cristian
Aurora
Posts: 960
Joined: Mon Feb 16, 2015 1:40 pm
Location: Veneto

Re: Tetroid.

Post by Cristian »

Tetroid: a name, a guarantee 8-)

Excellent product;
truly professional fabrication;
fast shipment;
solid and sheltered packaging;
great support before and post sale;
great quality-price ratio.

Thank you very much Tetroid!


User avatar
grafvonb
Bent Pin Expansion Port
Posts: 80
Joined: Sat Jan 05, 2019 7:54 am
Location: Frankfurt/Germany

Re: Tetroid.

Post by grafvonb »

I own all Tetroid's products (yes, as my wife says "my next husband will be normal" :D) and I can just confirm all above.

Due to Corona however the latest delivery from Russia to Germany took exactly TWO months. It was painful...


Loving QL & ZX Spectrum & Amiga...
User avatar
Pr0f
QL Wafer Drive
Posts: 1298
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:54 am

Re: Tetroid.

Post by Pr0f »

Given he lives in the outlying regions, it's not suprising it takes a while - but I have to say I have several products from Tetroid - and all have been packed really well, documentation included to get you going, and the boards themselves are excellent build quality.

Top Marks! :D


User avatar
Chr$
QL Wafer Drive
Posts: 1304
Joined: Mon May 27, 2019 10:03 am
Location: Sachsen, Germany
Contact:

Re: Tetroid.

Post by Chr$ »

Nothing on offer on SMR at the moment. You going to be coming back Tetroid? I've been eying up a Qubide.


https://QXL.WIN
Collector of QL related computers, accessories and QL games/software.
Ask me about felt pads - I can cut them to size and they have proved excellent for mdv data recovery.
RWAP
RWAP Master
Posts: 2834
Joined: Sun Nov 28, 2010 4:51 pm
Location: Stone, United Kingdom
Contact:

Re: Tetroid.

Post by RWAP »

Tetroid is just having a well-deserved break for a couple of weeks :)


User avatar
Chr$
QL Wafer Drive
Posts: 1304
Joined: Mon May 27, 2019 10:03 am
Location: Sachsen, Germany
Contact:

Re: Tetroid.

Post by Chr$ »

RWAP wrote:Tetroid is just having a well-deserved break for a couple of weeks :)
Was hoping that might be the case.


https://QXL.WIN
Collector of QL related computers, accessories and QL games/software.
Ask me about felt pads - I can cut them to size and they have proved excellent for mdv data recovery.
Post Reply