USBSID-Pico: Bridging Real Commodore 64 Sound to Modern USB
Summary
USBSID-Pico is a hobbyist hardware project that connects real SID chips from the Commodore 64 to modern USB hosts using a Raspberry Pi Pico. The article details the hardware evolution from initial v0.1 to v1.5, explains the firmware approach using RP2040 PIO and DMA for cycle-accurate SID timing, and catalogs the growing software ecosystem and community contributions. It also highlights multi-protocol connectivity (CDC, WebUSB, USB-MIDI, ASID), OSHWA certification, and open-source hardware design.