From components to classic: assembling the Amiga 500+ with project ROT

Project ROT, created by Matze and Scrat, is a DIY initiative to build a brand-new Amiga 500+. This kit includes all necessary components such as custom chips, CPU, and RAM at an affordable price, but requires good soldering skills to assemble. The Amiga 500+ itself is an enhanced version of the original Amiga 500, released in 1991, featuring updated versions of Kickstart, Workbench and offers minor improvements in the custom chips known as the Enhanced Chip Set (ECS). The ECS consists mainly of updated versions of the Agnus and Denise chips, which bring several improvements over the original chipset. These include support for more Chip RAM (1MB instead of 512KB), new graphical modes like Productivity VGA (640×480 non-interlaced) and SuperHiRes modes, as well as the ability to switch between 50 Hz and 60 Hz video modes, catering to both PAL and NTSC standards. The ECS was initially introduced with the Amiga 3000 in 1990, and later used in the Amiga 500+ and Amiga 600 models. The enhanced chipset improved the system mostly for productivity use rather than gaming and was backward compatible with most older Amiga software. Project ROT essentially allows enthusiasts to build a complete Amiga 500+ replica from scratch, including these custom ECS chips, giving a fresh start for classic retro hardware with modern DIY manufacturing approaches.

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