Commodore Flyer

After checking out Sean’s Commodore Flyer speed tests using the SX-64 Christmas Demo, I wanted to do my own using a variety of other programs and games.

For my speed tests I used the Top 5 voted games on Lemon64 comparing the Flyer against the 1541 Ultimate (1541u):

1. IK+ (sequel to International Karate)
2. Maniac Mansion
3. Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders
4. Pirates!
5. Last Ninja 2

For the setup, I used my C64 that has the option to enable or disable JiffyDOS and since the Commodore Flyer and 1541u both support JiffyDOS, this seems to be a fair test.

My time results are in the following order: Flyer (no JiffyDOS), Flyer (JiffyDOS on), 1541u (no JiffyDOS) and 1541u (JiffyDOS on). Take a look:

IK+ (sequel to International Karate) published in 1987 by System 3:

Flyer	Flyer (JD on)	1541u	1541u (JD on)
1 minute 33s	9 seconds	1 minute 55s	21 seconds

Maniac Mansion published in 1987 by Lucasfilm Games:

Flyer	Flyer (JD on)	1541u	1541u (JD on)
20 seconds	2 seconds	25 seconds	5 seconds

Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders published in 1988 by Lucasfilm Games:

Flyer	Flyer (JD on)	1541u	1541u (JD on)
50 seconds	5 seconds	1 min 2 seconds	11 seconds

Pirates! published in 1987 by MicroProse Software:

Flyer	Flyer (JD on)	1541u	1541u (JD on)
30 seconds	6 seconds	39 seconds	12 seconds

Last Ninja 2 published in 1988 by System 3:

Flyer	Flyer (JD on)	1541u	1541u (JD on)
26 seconds	3 seconds	33 seconds	7 seconds

As you can see from my speed tests above, the Flyer is definitely faster than the 1541u on all counts. It seems to be twice as fast when JiffyDOS is enabled.

Something to note is the 1541u is 100% emulation of a real 1541 disk drive and since Flyer by design is faster then a real 1541, it makes sense for it to be a little faster.

Flyer firmware version 1.1.7 has been in beta testing since February 23, 2012 however it’s now ready for public distribution as a maintenance release with the following updates:

• Directory formatting fixes
• NET-AVAIL command fix: Now includes IEC cached byte in count (if any)
• TCP channels now send packets on EOI (was per byte)
• New NET-STAT command: Returns bytes available and connection status
• New status: Firmware command – returns current firmware version
• Added additional TCP error handling

To update your Commodore Flyer firmware, check out an earlier post of mine where I provide details on how-to update your Flyer firmware over the internet.

You can also check out the Flyer Firmware release notes page for specific updates and fixes from previous versions.

Thanks to Commodore Flyer user Marc Honey for creating the network Flyer modem PDF cheat sheet:

The Commodore Flyer modem cheat sheet is in the Adobe PDF format. If you do not have a PDF viewer already installed, please download a free copy of Acrobat Reader.