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yann64andClaude Opus 5.5 b274874139 All machines linked to their forum thread (full comment import) 
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Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01YDRjtmAiNpo5mK5N3d7QwZ
2026-10-13 17:26:43 +02:00

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---
title: Sony Hit-Bit 55
categories:
- Computers
params:
name: Hit-Bit 55
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hitbit55_system_s3.jpg
company: /companies/sony
company_name: Sony
tabs:
- photos
- adverts
- hardware
- emulators
- links
forum_thread: 765
photos:
- title: SILVER MODEL
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hitbit55_system_s4.jpg
- title: RED MODEL
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hb55_red_1.jpg
- title: LEFT & RIGHT SIDES
subtitle: ''
text: Two joystick connectors are located on the right side.
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hitbit55_sides_s1.jpg
- title: KEYBOARD CLOSE-UP
subtitle: ''
text: In spite of its flat keys, the keyboard has a goof typing feeling.
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hitbit55_keyboard_s1.jpg
- title: REAR CONNECTORS
subtitle: ''
text: |-
**(1)** Expansion connector, protected by a plastic lid\
**(2)** RF/aerial video output\
**(3)** Parallel printer connector\
**(4)** Tape recorder DIN socket (In, Out and remote control).\
**(5)** Composite PAL video output, some models had a RGB output, depending on the country they were sold.\
Pal pinouts:\
1 - +12v\
2 - Composite video out\
3 - Ground\
5 - Not used\
6 - Audio out
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hitbit55_rearside_s1.jpg
- title: MOTHERBOARD
subtitle: ''
text: |-
**(1)** Z80 microporsessor, here a Sharp version\
**(2)** Yamaha sound generator chip, AY-8910 equivalent\
**(3)** 16 KB user RAM (8x4116)\
**(4)** 16K BASIC and 8K built-in applications ROMs\
**(5)** TMS 9929 video chip and its heat sink\
**(6)** 16 KB video RAM (8x4116)\
**(7)** Keyboard connectors\
**(8)** Power supply connector\
**(9)** 8255 I/O chip\
**(10)** Provision is made for a SCART interface and socket.
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hitbit55_mainboard_s1.jpg
- title: INSIDE ELECTRONICS
subtitle: ''
text: One can spot the power transformer and a rather complicated add-on card which holds the power regulation and video output components.
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hitbit55_inside_s3.jpg
- title: BOOT SCREEN
subtitle: ''
text: |-
Boot screen allowing to select built-in firmware options or the Basic interpreter.
Thanks to **Jorge A. Gutiérrez**
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hitbit55_bootscreen_s1.jpg
- title: BUILT-IN SOFTWARE
subtitle: ''
text: This is the HB-55 running the built-in schedule software...
image: /media/museum/photos/sony_hb55_in-use.jpg
adverts:
- title: JAPANESE ADVERT (1984)
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/pubs/sony_hb55_jap-pub_1.jpg
hardware:
- title: SONY EXPANSIONS
subtitle: ''
text: This is a most complete HB-55 system with a Sony monitor, disk-drive, printer, joystick and infra-red controller, game cartridges, memory cartridge, etc.
image: /media/museum/hardware/sony_hb55_complete.jpg
- title: NATIONAL CF-2131
subtitle: 16 KB RAM expansion
text: ''
image: /media/museum/hardware/national_cf2131_16k-cart.jpg
- title: CASIO OR-216 - 16 KB RAM EXPANSION
subtitle: Box
text: ''
image: /media/museum/hardware/casio_or216_16kbramexpansion_box.jpg
- title: PHILIPS RAM EXPANSION
subtitle: ''
text: |-
RAM expansion and LOGO language cartridges.
Thanks to Daniele from Italy
image: /media/museum/hardware/philips_vg8020_cartridges_s1.jpg
- title: MEGA RAM DISK 256
subtitle: from DDX (Brazil)
text: This is the famous Megaram cartridge made in Brzail, used to play all Konami cracked Megarom games.6401999243
image: /media/museum/hardware/msx_megaram256-ddx_1.jpg
- title: PANASONIC FS-IFA1 & FW-RSU1W
subtitle: Scanner/Printer interface
text: The FS-IFA1 is the printer/scanner interface (left on the picture) and the FW-RSU1W is the handheld scanner (right on the picture). These expansions are for MSX2 systems.
image: /media/museum/hardware/msx_fs-ifa1_fw-rsu1w.jpg
- title: SONY HBI-232
subtitle: RS232c cartridge
text: Used to connect serial printers.
image: /media/museum/hardware/sony_msx_rs232c-cartridge.jpg
- title: 'YAMAHA MOUSE #1'
subtitle: ''
text: |-
This mouse was compatible with all MSX systems. It connects to the first Joystick port.
Thanks to **www.zonadepruebas.com**
image: /media/museum/hardware/yamaha_mouse_s2.jpg
- title: 'YAMAHA MOUSE #2'
subtitle: ''
text: |-
Brand new!
Thanks to **www.zonadepruebas.com**
image: /media/museum/hardware/yamaha_mouse_s1.jpg
- title: PHILIPS VW0020
subtitle: 80-col dot-matrix printer
text: |-
This printer was a rebadged version of the Seikosha GP-500.\
It was a 80-column, 50 CPS model with a 7x5 dot matrix head.\
Commodore and Atari used same hardware basis for their MPS-801 and 1029 printers.
image: /media/museum/hardware/philips_vg8020_printervw0020_s1.jpg
- title: SANYO PHC-DR II
subtitle: Side
text: ''
image: /media/museum/hardware/sanyo_phc-drii_side_1.jpg
- title: SANYO PHC-DR II
subtitle: Front
text: ''
image: /media/museum/hardware/sanyo_phc-drii_front_1.jpg
- title: SANYO DR-202
subtitle: ''
text: The ADSS system allowed to quickly search a specific program in a cassette tape and load it. Seach time for a C60 cassette was less than 1 minute.
image: /media/museum/hardware/sanyo_phc28_dr202tapedrive_s1.jpg
- title: NATIONAL RQ-8030
subtitle: tape-recorder
text: ''
image: /media/museum/hardware/national_tape_rq8030.jpg
- title: BIT-CORDER
subtitle: ''
text: Cassete recorder dedicated to Hit-Bit MSX systems, though it could be used with any home computers.
image: /media/museum/hardware/sony_hb201_bitcorder_1.jpg
emulators:
- title: fMSX for MS DOS Homepage
url: http://www.komkon.org/~dekogel/fmsx.html
platform: MS DOS
text: ''
- title: BlueMSX
url: http://www.bluemsx.com/
platform: Windows
text: Excellent free MSX emulator
- title: BrMSX
url: http://www.lsi.usp.br/~ricardo/brmsx.htm
platform: Windows
text: A Bresilian MSX Emulator written in 100% assembler
- title: CompuJunk's MSX Emulator
url: http://ftp.castel.nl/msx/
platform: Windows
text: A MSX1 and MSX2 Emulator
- title: RuMSX
url: http://members.eunet.at/lexlechz/msx.html
platform: Windows
text: A MSX Emulator for Win95 and Win NT + Direct X
- title: fMSX for MAC OS Homepage
url: http://www.emulation.net/msx/index.html
platform: Apple
text: ''
- title: fMSX official Homepage
url: http://www.komkon.org/fms/fMSX
platform: Multiplatform
text: 'fMSX is a portable MSX emulator ported on : Amiga OS, Mac OS, MS DOS, OS/2, Sony Playstation, Risc OS, Towns OS, Unix / X, Win95 / NT, X68K.'
- title: openMSX - The MSX emulator that aims for perfection.
url: http://openmsx.sourceforge.net/
platform: Multiplatform
text: This new MSX emulator can reproduce, among many other MSX, MSX2and MSX2+ machines, both Panasonic Turbo-R models. Be sure to get the catapult frontend and the system roms from FUNET.
links:
- title: Baboo!
url: http://www.baboo.net/baboo.shtml
text: MSX dedicated Yahoo clone. Essential !
- title: FILE-HUNTER.COM
url: http://www.file-hunter.com/
text: Excellent! All MSX emulators, sources and utilities!
- title: FTP da MSXBr-L/MSX.Org.Br
url: http://www.caetano.eng.br/msxsoft/
text: Excellent brasilian software archive
- title: MOAI TECH
url: http://www.moai-tech.com/
text: Spanish/English website with interesting content
- title: MSX Hardware List
url: http://www.faq.msxnet.org/hardware.html
text: An impressive list of MSX hardware. The Bible !!!
- title: MSX Ressource Center
url: http://www.msx.org/
text: Essential site !
- title: Possi's Konami MSX Page
url: http://dynamo.geol.msu.ru/MSX/
text: Nice page dedicated to all Konami MSX games (roms, scans, mids, etc.)
- title: The MSX Games Box
url: http://www.msxgamesbox.com
text: All about MSX gaming (games, covers.etc.). More Fun, Less Mhz!
- title: The MSX Museum BOX
url: http://www.msxmuseumbox.com
text: More than 190 different MSX models in pictures.
- title: The ultimate MSX Faq
url: http://www.faq.msxnet.org
text: Here, you can find near all hardware pieces related to MSX.
- title: Web Wiz CAPTCHA
url: http://www.webwizcaptcha.com
text: The MSX home computer system
related:
- /museum/canon-v-10
- /museum/canon-v-20
- /museum/canon-v-8
- /museum/casio-mx-10-mx-101
- /museum/casio-pv-16
- /museum/casio-pv-7
- /museum/epcom-sharp-hotbit-hb-8000
- /museum/fujitsu-fm-x
- /museum/general-paxon-pct-50
- /museum/goldstar-fc-80-fc-200
- /museum/gradiente-expert-plus
- /museum/gradiente-expert-xp-800
- /museum/hitachi-ah-200
- /museum/hitachi-h1-h1e
- /museum/hitachi-h2
- /museum/mitsubishi-ml-f110-ml-f120
- /museum/mitsubishi-ml-f48-ml-f80
- /museum/mitsubishi-ml-fx1-fx2
- /museum/mitsubishi-ml-g10
- /museum/msx-1
- /museum/national-cf-2000
- /museum/national-cf-2700
- /museum/national-cf-3000
- /museum/national-fs-4000
- /museum/national-fs-4500
- /museum/olympia-phc-2
- /museum/panasonic-cf-2700
- /museum/philips-nms-801
- /museum/philips-vg-8000-8010
- /museum/philips-vg-8020
- /museum/philips-vg-8235
- /museum/pioneer-palcom-px-7
- /museum/sanyo-mpc-100
- /museum/sanyo-phc-28
- /museum/sanyo-phc-30
- /museum/sanyo-phc-33
- /museum/sanyo-wavy-10-mpc-10
- /museum/sanyo-wavy-23
- /museum/sanyo-wavy-3
- /museum/schneider-philips-mc-810
- /museum/sony-hit-bit-10
- /museum/sony-hit-bit-101
- /museum/sony-hit-bit-20
- /museum/sony-hit-bit-201
- /museum/sony-hit-bit-501
- /museum/sony-hit-bit-75
- /museum/spectravideo-svi-728
- /museum/toshiba-hx-10-pasopia-iq
- /museum/toshiba-hx-20-hx-21-pasopia-iq
- /museum/toshiba-hx-52
- /museum/victor-hc-6
- /museum/yamaha-cx5
- /museum/yamaha-cx5m-music-computer
- /museum/yamaha-sx-100
- /museum/yamaha-yis-303
- /museum/yamaha-yis-503-diabolik
- /museum/yashica-yc-64
- /museum/yeno-dpc-64
- /museum/yeno-mx-64
oc_id: 784
source:
url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230328221645/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=784
date: '2023-03-28'
---
The Hit-Bit 55 was a classic [MSX1](/museum/msx-1/) computer. It was very similar to the [Hit-Bit 75](/museum/sony-hit-bit-75/). Its most distinctive sign was its flat but good quality keyboard. It was one of the few MSX with the [Philips VG-8000](/museum/philips-vg-8000-8010/) to have a low-cost keyboard.
Unlike the HB-75, it had only 16 KB RAM. There was a built-in software (scheduler and memo) which was a kind of cut-down version of the one built-in the HB-75, program size was only 8 KB against 16 KB on the HB-75, it seems that some version had the 16 KB version though. To save files made with this apps, a 4K S-RAM non-volatile cartridge was used (called HBI-55).
The Hit-Bit 55 was clearly marketed as the low-range MSX model of the Hit-Bit serie. It was also available in a red and black cases.
<table> <tr> <td></td> <td>We need more info about this console ! If you designed, used, or have more info about this system, please send us pictures or anything you might find useful.</td> <td></td> </tr> </table>
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