Q. When colours are used on my Spectrum, why do they not appear as expected, e.g. red comes out as dark green, and green is dark brown.

I have tried the machine on two separate TVs - one of them brand new - and the same thing happened on both.

Robert Crowe
Ashton-on-Ribble, Preston

The short answer is no, we can't tell you why. That you've checked it on two TVs makes it sound like a hardware problem, but it's highly unlikely that a hardware fault could produce a systemic translation of colours.

The earlier Spectrums liked Sony TVs best, so if you can check it with one of these make sure you are still getting the same effect. If you are, then it depends on the sort of colour variation you're getting.

If you're getting these wrong colours in near perfect definition, contact Sinclair Research - Sir Clive could well give you a job.

If, as is more liekly, the colour you're getting in unstable, contact whoever sold you the machine. They'll check it out, and if they get the same effect they should replace it.

We assume you haven't been putting up with this effect for long, so your machine will still be under guarantee. Even if it isn't, what you've got is so bizarre the dealer may stretch a point.