website/content/museum/spectravideo-svi-738-x-press.md

---
title: Spectravideo SVI 738 - X'press
categories:
- Computers
types:
- Home Computer
origins:
- Hong Kong
years:
- '1986'
cpus:
- Zilog Z80A
params:
  name: SVI 738 - X'press
  image: /media/museum/photos/spectravideo_738_1.jpg
  company: /companies/spectravideo
  company_name: Spectravideo
  specs:
  - label: NAME
    value: SVI 738 - X'press
  - label: MANUFACTURER
    value: Spectravideo
  - label: TYPE
    value: Home Computer
  - label: ORIGIN
    value: Hong Kong
  - label: YEAR
    value: '1986'
  - label: BUILT IN LANGUAGE
    value: MSX Basic (Microsoft Extended)
  - label: KEYBOARD
    value: Full-stroke keyboard
  - label: CPU
    value: Zilog Z80A
  - label: SPEED
    value: 3.58 MHz
  - label: RAM
    value: 64 KB (up to 144 KB)
  - label: VRAM
    value: 16 KB
  - label: ROM
    value: 64 KB (32 KB BIOS/Basic, 16 KB RS232 BIOS, 16 KB DISK ROM)
  - label: TEXT MODES
    value: 40 x 24 / 32 x 24 / 80 x 24 (only for MSXDOS)
  - label: GRAPHIC MODES
    value: 256 x 192 / 64 x 48 dots
  - label: COLORS
    value: '256'
  - label: SOUND
    value: AY-3-8910 chipset, three channels, 8 octaves
  - label: I/O PORTS
    value: Joystick (2), ROM Cardridge, Tape recorder, Monitor, Centronics, Expansion port, Mono sound output, Keyboard, Floppy, RS232
  - label: BUILT IN MEDIA
    value: Internal 3.5'' disk drive
  - label: OS
    value: MSX DOS or CP/M
  - label: POWER SUPPLY
    value: External power supply unit
  - label: PRICE
    value: £400
  tabs:
  - photos
  - adverts
  - software
  - links
  photos:
  - title: SVI-730 X'PRESS
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/photos/spectravideo_svi738xpress_2.jpg
  - title: DISK-DRIVE CLOSE-UP
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/photos/spectravideo_738_diskdrive_1.jpg
  adverts:
  - title: U.K. AD (AUG. 1986)
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/pubs/svi_xpress738_pub_1.jpg
  screenshots:
  - title: BOOT-UP SCREEN
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/software/spectravideo_738_ss_1.jpg
  - title: CP/M BOOT SCREEN
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/software/spectravideo_738_ss_2.jpg
  links:
  - title: Memory upgrade from MSX1 to MSX2
    url: http://8bit.yarek.pl/upgrade/svi.msx2/
    text: ''
  comments:
  - author: Niels Roskam (Australia)
    date: Friday 29th May 2020
    text: 'P.-S.: What''''s harder to find is a TV with a composite port to connect it to. And more specifically supports the low resolution.'
  - author: Niels Roskam (Australia)
    date: Friday 29th May 2020
    text: Just last year I brought my 35 year old Spectravideo 738 X''Press from my parents attic to my home in Australia. Still in its original ''laptop'' bag, books, orginal floppies for CPM, MSXDOS, etc. Surprisingly it booted up without problem after all those years. I don''t think they make technology like it anymore.
  - author: Jan Nadorp (Nederland)
    date: Thursday 10th January 2019
    text: I’am searching for a Spectravideo svi-738 Xpress, who have onze for sale?
  - author: Murray (New Zealand )
    date: Saturday 25th June 2016
    text: |-
      Hello I,m looking to buy a msx 738,and any software I can get ,,\
      Murraykellyjacob@gmail.com

      Also any 728 with disk drives
  - author: Niels Roskam (Australia)
    date: Monday 4th April 2016
    text: My first owned computer. My dad never thought I''d pass my high-school exams, so promised to buy me a computer if I did. And I did... what a great computer it was in 1985 with floppy. Only bought one KONAMI cartridge called Kings Valley, and then got into the whole game trading business with mates, of which I could squeeze a whole bunch of 16kb and 32kb games on a single sided 3.5" floppy with 360KB capacity. Was replaced by an Amiga 500 in 1988.
  - author: Jan Nadorp (Nederland)
    date: Sunday 12th October 2014
    text: |-
      Hee Robin ik zie nu pas je reactie, maar ik ben nog steeds interesse. wat Heb je nog, is hij compleet met alle kabels en werk de drive nog etc.\
      Groeten Jan\
      jannad@kabelfoon.nl
  - author: Robin van Kaathoven (Netherlands)
    date: Wednesday 22nd January 2014
    text: |-
      Hey Jan,

      I just found one in the attic. Drop me a line if you''re interested.

      gr
  - author: Jan Nadorp (Nederland)
    date: Monday 4th November 2013
    text: I am looking for a Spectravideo SVI-738. I had one many years a go, and now Iwant to collect one.
  - author: Stefano Jodice (Italy)
    date: Friday 21st June 2013
    text: im back on the topic after just a few years... :D the floppy disk only has one head, one side.
  - author: Roger Jowett (Ulster Londonderry)
    date: Saturday 6th April 2013
    text: |-
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v$zsjTpFR0oYQ

      please help we have zx spectrum 48k and one 128k program running at 6mhz using external ram and snapper discs from velesoft site
  - author: Jarek Adamski (Poland)
    date: Tuesday 19th May 2009
    text: |-
      The SVI 738 was sold in Poland by Skadnica Harcerska and the price was 590 000 ZLP, about two times the average monthly income at the time. Many schools have had such machines. However, not much sofware were available and from my experience this is the only MSX known in Poland.\
      Machines sold in Poland had diacritical signs on keyboard (keys ACELNOSZ were replaced) and the character codes were equal to semigraphic codes generated with CODE/GRAPH keys.
  - author: Stefano Jodice (ITALY)
    date: Thursday 13rd October 2005
    text: |-
      If someone wants to read/write under LINUX the MSX-DOS floppies formatted by this machine, it's enough to use the device /dev/fd0u360:

      \# mount /dev/fd0u360 /mnt/floppy -t vfat

      it's also nice to create an entry into /etc/fstab.

      this works for me , though floppy disks formatted under linux\
      (command: fdformat /dev/fd0u360 ; mformat A , /note: i had to temporarily rename /dev/fd0 and replace it with a symbolic link to /dev/fd0u360 since I can't force mformat to open it-mformat always looks for /dev/fd0) cannot be read with the svi738 (and I still dont know why).

      floppy disk geometry: 2 heads, 80 tracks, 9 sectors per track, 512 bytes per sector.\
      who needs images of the boot disks (cp/m 1.1, 2.2 && MSX DOS v.1) can drop me a couple of lines.\
      everyone who can correct me is sincerely welcome.
  oc_id: 266
  source:
    url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230609190800/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=266
    date: '2023-06-09'
---

This computer was a [MSX 1](/museum/msx-1/) computer equipped with V9938 Video chip, which was quite unusual. It was probably meant to become an MSX 2, thus first versions were prepared to hold a CLOCK-IC chip. Thanks to its V9938 it could display 80-column text.

It was called SPECTRAVIDEO XPRESS because it was delivered with a bag to easily carry it around in. The XPRESS designation was also used in a [MSX 2](/museum/msx-2/) and PC hybrid (X'PRESS 16, for 16-bits) SPECTRAVIDEO computers. This machine is in fact pretty much a "MSX 1.5". Converting it into an MSX2 machine is not difficult at all and as a result many MSX hobbyists have done it. For example in Finland, when it came out many people converted it simply because there were no MSX2 machines widely available in the country. The main selling point was the ability to show 80-column text even on normal TV's without problems, you just had to adjust the colors a bit. It was also very well priced and had much better specs than the other machines in it's price range.

But the SVI 738 also has many quality problems like all SVI machines. The keyboard is just as bad as in the 328 and 728 computers. The original disk drive is noisy, unreliable and only single sided. The screw holes are not in standard locations, but other ways it can be replaced with standard DD disk drive. The first versions of disk ROM could not format 720KB "PC-disks" but reading works. Almost all MSX2 and up computers had internal disk drive, and it’s also possible to use external disk controllers with this machine. Disk expansion port for external drive has however nonstandard DB25 connector, just as the RS-232 connector (DB9 female).

The machine also suffers from the same problems (won't work at all or bad sound) as the earlier 728 model with Konami's SCC-sound chip games.

\_\_\_

Contributors : Taneli Lukka, Nyyrikki