Things you’ll need

The following items are included in your MEGA65 box:

  1. Your MEGA65 personal computer

  2. Power supply

  3. The MEGA65 User’s Guide

  4. Your personal registration code, on a piece of paper (possibly tucked into the User’s Guide)

  5. The internal SD memory card (installed inside the MEGA65)

For this Guide, you will also need:

  1. A monitor that supports either DVI (HDMI) or VGA, with an appropriate cable or adapter

  2. If not using a monitor that supports audio over HDMI, speakers or headphones with a mini audio plug

  3. A PC running Windows, Mac, or Linux, with Internet access

  4. An Ethernet cable that can run from your MEGA65 to either your network router or connect directly to your PC

The following are optional but will be fun additions to your MEGA65 experience:

  1. A joystick or gamepad compatible with Commodore computers, with a nine-pin (DE-9) connector

  2. A Commodore 1351 mouse, an Amiga mouse, or a modern replacement such as a mouSTer USB mouse adapter

  3. A watch battery: for MEGA65s made in 2022, use type CR1220; for MEGA65s made in 2024 or later, use type CR2032

  4. 3-1/2” floppy disks, either type DD or HD

  5. A microSD memory card, type SDHC, between 4 GB and 32 GB

  6. An SD memory card reader for your PC, with microSD card support or an SD-to-microSD adapter

  7. A Phillips head screwdriver

And if you want to get really serious:

  1. The XMOD FTDI JTAG Adapter TE0790-03

  2. Mini USB B to USB A cable, to connect between your PC and the JTAG adapter

Tip

As an alternative to a JTAG adapter, you can use a more common USB UART adapter, with important caveats. See Use of an USB UART adapter as alternative to a JTAG adapter. A misconfigured or mis-wired UART adapter may damage the computer.

Tip

A minority of MEGA65 units built in 2022 have an issue with the built-in Real-Time Clock (RTC). There is an official solution to install a replacement. See The Real-Time Clock doesn’t advance the time for how to test for this issue and request a replacement part if needed.