Getting started in chess: DGT board vs Mephisto Exclusive

[kf6vci]

Hi All

I'm a beginner and would fancy a game without the laptop or pc. For that I am looking to buy a long-lasting computer, not some toy made in China. Would the Mephisto Exclusive be a good choice? As a beginner, I don't care about the modules' ELO numbers But I would like to have a board which is compatible to the Revelation module

Would the use of a DGT board make sense? I don't have a chess partner and would like to practice and learn...

Please excuse my ignorance:
Q1: which engine should I buy?
Q2: Is there something like a world standard out there?
Q3: When I spend a lot, I would like to buy something which lasts and is a quality product.

Q4: Is there any solid quality stand alone chess computer which is good but cheap? I saw a Mephisto II on Ebay and may try to buy that one as well...

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and suggestions!

Chris

[Monsieur Plastique]

Pretty much all the dedicated chess computers - no matter how well built - will need maintenance at some stage in their lives. The Mephistos are now getting on a bit. Just recently we even had an Exclusive board blow a reed switch and the surgery to fix something like that is actually very involved (and the machine cannot ever be returned to absolute original condition with all original factory parts). And then there was an Elegance which needed a lot of patience, diagnosis and part searching to get back to playing condition with a number of parts needing to be replaced, including capacitors and the piezo buzzer.

Since you seem to want something that is long lasting, high quality and trouble free I think you might be better off getting something contemporary and with a warranty.

As much as I am a dedicated fan I think you would be better off going the laptop / USB /DGT board route. Engines like HIARCs and Shredder remain very adaptable to any playing strength.

On the other hand, despite being made in China, I think something like the Mephisto Chess Challenger or Mephisto Master Chess (still available new) are also good buys. These seem to have decent reliability and will also handle low rated opponents, though in my opinion not as well as the engines mentioned above. But bear in mind that, for example, the Mephisto Master Chess - despite being the strongest dedicated currently on the market and a fairly strong dedicated in absolute terms is based on a very old Fritz engine without hash tables that is around 10 generations old by now compared to the latest Chessbase software versions.

If you go the eBay route, especially if the computer is an old one, then you will need to be prepared that it may break down at any point in time and that it may or may not be repairable. There are members here who despite best intentions have had no option but to bin old chess computers and salvage them for spare parts for working examples.

[kf6vci]

Electronic components degrade, and there is corrosion etc. Well, I already jumped in and can now only hope for the best.

Hope DGT's collaboration with the makers of the Revelation II will yield some new boards.

Chris

[shiv]

You can also experience the "best" of both worlds via picochess. It needs a DGT board, a DGT clock and a small mini computer about the size of a finger. Details at http://jromang.github.com/Stockfish/

This can turn the DGT board into a dedicated computer without the need for a PC or screen.

[kf6vci]

Thanks for sharing!

I have fantasies about use of a $ 150 netbook as a hidden "black box"... Why reinvent the wheel? Even PDAs are capable of running chess software at the > 2,700 ELO level.

Have fun!

Chris

[shiv]

The picochess project is exactly that, you can use a $50 mini pc or a $150 quad core mini pc as indicated on the web page. Both devices are very small, and can fit on one hand. The rikomagic is smaller than a PDA by far.

Notably both of these devices do not have a screen, or keyboard, allowing them to be so compact. The operation is relatively seamless and good for dedicated chessboard fans.

Disclaimer: I am contributing code to this project but am trying to be objective in my views on the project merits. I thinks it's worth trying if you want to replicate a dedicated board. My latest changes support engine analysis, book moves and scores that one can see on the clock while in analysis mode.

[kf6vci]

Keep pushing yourself to the limit!

Fantastic work you all are doing here...

There is a French team offering new boards which are compatible to the Mephisto Exclusive's (and Revelation II) series. Then there are new chess pieces for sale @ Niggemann (?) a dealer in Germany. In addition, there is a Phoenix project in NL etc.

I began being interested in chess computers this month and am impressed how much individuals have been contributing!

Thank you. And keep up the good work!

Chris

[Theo]

The picochess project is exactly that, you can use a $50 mini pc or a $150 quad core mini pc as indicated on the web page. Both devices are very small, and can fit on one hand. The rikomagic is smaller than a PDA by far.

It definitely looks like a very interesting project, and also on the pics the setup looks like a cable spaghetti.

[shiv]

Let me know if you have suggestions to improve the cable spaghetti image. Maybe explaining what each cable does will make it less scary?

I was not aware of the French team offering boards compatible to Revelation II, any more details?

Thanks, Shiv

[kf6vci]

First, the website with many links: http://www.schachcomputer.info/links/br ... ks.php?c=3

And here the link to the French team who came up with new chess boards which are compatible to Mephisto Exclusive boards:



http://www.digital-chess-system.com/

[Theo]

The boards look very nice but unfortunately, this project looks dead since the latest news is from 2009.

[kf6vci]

Greetings from Thailand, where the daily minimum wage has been doubled from 150 to 300 Baht ($ 10.10). Maybe such a board could be produced over here?

It would be a shame to let this all go to waste

Cheers,
Chris

[gl]

Hi All

I'm a beginner and would fancy a game without the laptop or pc. For that I am looking to buy a long-lasting computer, not some toy made in China. Would the Mephisto Exclusive be a good choice? As a beginner, I don't care about the modules' ELO numbers But I would like to have a board which is compatible to the Revelation module

Would the use of a DGT board make sense? I don't have a chess partner and would like to practice and learn...

Please excuse my ignorance:
Q1: which engine should I buy?
Q2: Is there something like a world standard out there?
Q3: When I spend a lot, I would like to buy something which lasts and is a quality product.

Q4: Is there any solid quality stand alone chess computer which is good but cheap? I saw a Mephisto II on Ebay and may try to buy that one as well...

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and suggestions!

Chris

The DGT board isn't likely to meet your criteria of "cheap". Plus, I am unsure of their longevity: electronics don't last, and I think the DGT boards have a Lithium-Ion battery, which will wear out in 3-5 years; with luck the board will still run with external power at that point, but information is scarce.

Purely personal opinion: I dislike the look of most of the DGT boards: I don't like alegbraic markers on a wood board, and don't like most of DGT's pieces either. But that's just my opinion.

I'd suggest you consider a basic wooden chess board with a set of pieces (plastic or wood, according to taste and budget) and a smart phone, if you don't have one already. Cheap Android phones run quite respectable chess applications (my favourite, again personal preference, is "Chess Genius"). Or there is Droidfish (Stockfish on other platforms) but I've had it fail to run on a low end phone.

Yes, transferring moves from a phone to a real board is kinda painful. But if you want cheap, that's the way I'd go. The board and pieces will last; the phone won't, but is easily replaced. After you've installed the chess program it doesn't even have to have a paid-up account.

If you're the handyman (handy-person?) type, search for "sishfish". Again, Stockfish but with do-it-yourself USB connected boards of less sophistication than the DGT boards, but also less cost.

Good luck!

[ricard60]

Here there is also a link of a build it your own dedicated chess machine. With the drawings and instrucción manual and a good support from the administator of the site i build my own also. It is something like the Phoenix chess machines but if you want you can even have astronger hardware.

http://www.miclangschach.de/forum/viewf ... df49fb6e09

Mysticum Regards
Ricardo

[pearlofbag]

Hi everyone. I have found that about 4 hours after being up I am so tired and sleepy that all I can do is relax in recliner fir a while. Is that normal??