Atari STE vs ST and the best TOS

[Alek Bediorv]

Hi,
I would like to set STE in the settings. Which TOS for gaming you would recommend me (most stable and compatable with all the games)? Or it's better to use default ST as preinstalled one?
I used to have 520 STE in UK when I was a kid therefore would like to stick with this machine.
Would I notice any difference in games and in games music/sound vs. standard ST?
Thanks

[STeven]

Hi,
For TOS compatibility, from the manual:

Getting emulation started
To use Steem, you need a copy of an Atari ROM with the operating system, called "TOS", and image disk files. A TOS file is 192KB long for the STF, 256KB for the STE. The extension is img or rom. When you first launch Steem SSE (no ini file), you must point to a TOS file, and you can change that later. One important point is to match ST model and TOS (see further), for example STF + TOS 1.02, STE + TOS 1.62.

Your other questions are interesting but I won't answer them, in fact I think you should check Atari forums where you could get various opinions (or from other users here, but it's not really a forum).

[graceava]

"Atari STE vs ST:
Graphics & Sound: The STE has better graphics and sound (more colors and improved audio channels).
Memory: STE comes with 1MB RAM (expandable to 4MB), while the ST usually has less, giving the STE a performance boost.
Compatibility: STE is backward compatible with ST, but newer software takes advantage of the STE's upgrades.
Best TOS for Gaming:
TOS 1.04 is good for general compatibility and stability on the ST.
TOS 2.06 is best for the STE, offering better performance and support for its extra memory and sound features.
By the way, I was curious and looked up the furious chicken subway price—it's pretty interesting how that compares to other options out there!"