I really didn't plan on being a vintage computer collector. I was happy with my rather robust game console collection(Atari Jaguar anyone?). But then I was given an 800XE in part because it was like the 5200. Then I saw a VIC20 for $30 in box at a local store and thought it was too good to pass on. A couple Goodwill scores and a hoarder's ad on craigslist later now here I am with 13 different systems and a burning desire to use them.
I have never once sought out and bought a vintage computer. Sounds crazy right? Every single one of these has been a different circumstance acquisitions. The only computer I ever wanted to actually buy was an IBM 5160 and a matching EGA monitor. I have yet to scratch that itch though.
So here's the list, with pictures and some backstory
Tandy Color Computer 3 + Cloud 9 512k
DSC_0830.jpg
I decided to put all the accessories in this shot first since I'll always end up using this one. There is a 4th CoCo3 that escaped the picture.
I need to get some new thermal paper for the TP-10 but it works great. I already made a cable that rewires the 4-pin din to a DE-9 for use with a "modern" computer.I may replace the Cloud 9 512k with the TRIAD version because it runs so hot and I don't want to discolour the case.
Tandy Color Computer 2
DSC_0832.jpg
Not much to say here. I got all my Tandys for less the $8 each so I got one of every kind. The CoCo2 will probably never get any use since I have a CoCo3.
Tandy Color Computer
DSC_0833.jpg
The manuals are actually for a CoCo2 but they don't fit in my box and I have compared them to original CoCo1 versions and the are page for page the same just B&W printing.
Tandy Micro Color Computer
DSC_0835.jpg
The one running only out puts in black and white for some reason. The one off to the side works fine. This is, unsurprisingly, much better than the Sinclair 1000.
Tandy 1000 TX
DSC_0840.jpg
This is a very frustrating computer. I was unaware of the stupid power delivery method through the floppy connector and damaged a Teac FD-505 5.25" + 3.5" dual drive with with it. I'd like to find a compatible floppy card to put in it to use for other drives since I don't have any other ribbon powered drives.
VTech Laser 128
DSC_0837.jpg
I sort of sought this one out... I was with someone else who was looking at local craigslist ads for vintage computers and saw it on their screen. At first I though it was a dumb expensive apple clone and monitor(the one in all the pictures)for the $125 they wanted for it. There was no box and they said some of the disks didn't work. So I decided to move on. Then I got curious about it and looked it up and thought the whole story of it being the only legitimate apple clone was pretty neat. I started to come around to it. The other problem is it was 35 miles away. Not a horrible distance but I wasn't really that into it. Then I realized it was made by the same VTech who made all the horrid kids computers and that made it too funny. So I decided to go for it and try to talk them down to $100. When I got there it turned out that it was complete in box(but no manual), came with a controller, and the monitor was complete in box. They didn't show any of that in the pictures. So I gladly payed them the $125 for all that. It needs the drive trimed so I've stopped putting disks in for now. I'm having problems loading software over ADTPro, it times out on the directory listing. But I am enjoying it.
Commodore 64C
DSC_0836.jpg
A goodwill score, it crashes at random after startup right now so I haven't got a lot of time on it yet.
Commodore PET
DSC_0827.jpg
Easily my favourite. I love this thing. It just screams "I AM COMPUTER". I've written a couple of programs on it but am looking forward to it being more usable as I just got 8050 today. Unfortunately I had to get an IEE488 cable from the UK and I'm in the Western US. So it's gonna be a little while before I get that started. I really want to get a tractor printer for it to complete the setup. I would get great satisfaction from printing everything I give to other people on green bar paper from a PET.
Commodore VIC20
DSC_0839.jpg
This is the real start of my collection. The Atari 800 was first, but this was the first computer I decided I wanted. Unfortunately, it has never worked. The main power cap inside was fuzzy with corrosion and I have been unable to find a matching axial leaded part. I put a same value capacitor with the usual through hole on one side in it's place but I still get a garbled output. This is on and running through a JVC Super VHS player that won't pass a unstable signal through. So I get no video this way.
Sincliar 1000
DSC_0841.jpg
This computer sucks. I mean, this is a great computer for people who couldn't afford something like the PET at the time. But the keyboard, man. Just, no.
Sincliar ZX Spectrum+
DSC_0842.jpg
This one has never worked for me. I haven't started the trouble shooting process on it yet. The only thing I know is that the speaker on the bottom makes a faint high pitch buzz when it's powered. I haven't hooked it up to a pure analog TV yet to see what the video is like.
Atari 800 130XE
Atari 800 65XE
DSC_0843.jpg
At this point I got tired of moving everything around to take pictures and my PSU for these has sprouted legs and wandered off... My 130XE is in much better cosmetic shape but put up right now so with no PSU I didn't see much sense in bringing it out. It worked as a the graphics generator for a Channel Guide TV station in Kentucky and I even got the cartridge that they used to generate the listing. It gets data fed in from an outside source through the cartridge that I haven't reverse engineered yet.
and 8 Model Ms for good measure.
DSC_0844.jpg
I like these rather a lot and had an opportunity to get some prime specimens for a good price so I nabbed a bunch. Not pictured is a collection of three keyboards worth of caps that I got for a steal at $6 for the lot. I plan on using and servicing these as my goto keyboard for life.
I'm working on repairs for the down units and may eventually make some threads for help here. There is a wealth of information out there already and I don't want to start a new thread for a known issue.
By far the PET is my favourite. Most people seem to like them as decorations, but I am looking for every opportunity to use it right now. There is something about the simplicity and the idea that it is a computer that I can understand what every chip dose and how the ROM works without reading dozens of schematics and layers of software abstraction.
I'm also pretty into Big Box software.
IMG_20170206_175605.jpg
I've knocked quite a few holy grails off my list, Doom registered is just about all that's left that is hard.
As a software/embedded systems engineer by trade I am taunted by the prospect of programming all these wonderful machines. Learning 6502 assembly is one of the next things on my todo list. I'm younger than most people into this stuff, but I was born in the wrong era. To give you an idea of the type of nerd I am, I typed this whole post in vim before pasting it into the form.
I've never been great at keeping up with a forum, but I find myself coming back to this one over and over again. So I thought it was worth joining and trying to add my knowledge to the collective.
I have never once sought out and bought a vintage computer. Sounds crazy right? Every single one of these has been a different circumstance acquisitions. The only computer I ever wanted to actually buy was an IBM 5160 and a matching EGA monitor. I have yet to scratch that itch though.
So here's the list, with pictures and some backstory
Tandy Color Computer 3 + Cloud 9 512k
DSC_0830.jpg
I decided to put all the accessories in this shot first since I'll always end up using this one. There is a 4th CoCo3 that escaped the picture.
I need to get some new thermal paper for the TP-10 but it works great. I already made a cable that rewires the 4-pin din to a DE-9 for use with a "modern" computer.I may replace the Cloud 9 512k with the TRIAD version because it runs so hot and I don't want to discolour the case.
Tandy Color Computer 2
DSC_0832.jpg
Not much to say here. I got all my Tandys for less the $8 each so I got one of every kind. The CoCo2 will probably never get any use since I have a CoCo3.
Tandy Color Computer
DSC_0833.jpg
The manuals are actually for a CoCo2 but they don't fit in my box and I have compared them to original CoCo1 versions and the are page for page the same just B&W printing.
Tandy Micro Color Computer
DSC_0835.jpg
The one running only out puts in black and white for some reason. The one off to the side works fine. This is, unsurprisingly, much better than the Sinclair 1000.
Tandy 1000 TX
DSC_0840.jpg
This is a very frustrating computer. I was unaware of the stupid power delivery method through the floppy connector and damaged a Teac FD-505 5.25" + 3.5" dual drive with with it. I'd like to find a compatible floppy card to put in it to use for other drives since I don't have any other ribbon powered drives.
VTech Laser 128
DSC_0837.jpg
I sort of sought this one out... I was with someone else who was looking at local craigslist ads for vintage computers and saw it on their screen. At first I though it was a dumb expensive apple clone and monitor(the one in all the pictures)for the $125 they wanted for it. There was no box and they said some of the disks didn't work. So I decided to move on. Then I got curious about it and looked it up and thought the whole story of it being the only legitimate apple clone was pretty neat. I started to come around to it. The other problem is it was 35 miles away. Not a horrible distance but I wasn't really that into it. Then I realized it was made by the same VTech who made all the horrid kids computers and that made it too funny. So I decided to go for it and try to talk them down to $100. When I got there it turned out that it was complete in box(but no manual), came with a controller, and the monitor was complete in box. They didn't show any of that in the pictures. So I gladly payed them the $125 for all that. It needs the drive trimed so I've stopped putting disks in for now. I'm having problems loading software over ADTPro, it times out on the directory listing. But I am enjoying it.
Commodore 64C
DSC_0836.jpg
A goodwill score, it crashes at random after startup right now so I haven't got a lot of time on it yet.
Commodore PET
DSC_0827.jpg
Easily my favourite. I love this thing. It just screams "I AM COMPUTER". I've written a couple of programs on it but am looking forward to it being more usable as I just got 8050 today. Unfortunately I had to get an IEE488 cable from the UK and I'm in the Western US. So it's gonna be a little while before I get that started. I really want to get a tractor printer for it to complete the setup. I would get great satisfaction from printing everything I give to other people on green bar paper from a PET.
Commodore VIC20
DSC_0839.jpg
This is the real start of my collection. The Atari 800 was first, but this was the first computer I decided I wanted. Unfortunately, it has never worked. The main power cap inside was fuzzy with corrosion and I have been unable to find a matching axial leaded part. I put a same value capacitor with the usual through hole on one side in it's place but I still get a garbled output. This is on and running through a JVC Super VHS player that won't pass a unstable signal through. So I get no video this way.
Sincliar 1000
DSC_0841.jpg
This computer sucks. I mean, this is a great computer for people who couldn't afford something like the PET at the time. But the keyboard, man. Just, no.
Sincliar ZX Spectrum+
DSC_0842.jpg
This one has never worked for me. I haven't started the trouble shooting process on it yet. The only thing I know is that the speaker on the bottom makes a faint high pitch buzz when it's powered. I haven't hooked it up to a pure analog TV yet to see what the video is like.
Atari 800 130XE
Atari 800 65XE
DSC_0843.jpg
At this point I got tired of moving everything around to take pictures and my PSU for these has sprouted legs and wandered off... My 130XE is in much better cosmetic shape but put up right now so with no PSU I didn't see much sense in bringing it out. It worked as a the graphics generator for a Channel Guide TV station in Kentucky and I even got the cartridge that they used to generate the listing. It gets data fed in from an outside source through the cartridge that I haven't reverse engineered yet.
and 8 Model Ms for good measure.
DSC_0844.jpg
I like these rather a lot and had an opportunity to get some prime specimens for a good price so I nabbed a bunch. Not pictured is a collection of three keyboards worth of caps that I got for a steal at $6 for the lot. I plan on using and servicing these as my goto keyboard for life.
I'm working on repairs for the down units and may eventually make some threads for help here. There is a wealth of information out there already and I don't want to start a new thread for a known issue.
By far the PET is my favourite. Most people seem to like them as decorations, but I am looking for every opportunity to use it right now. There is something about the simplicity and the idea that it is a computer that I can understand what every chip dose and how the ROM works without reading dozens of schematics and layers of software abstraction.
I'm also pretty into Big Box software.
IMG_20170206_175605.jpg
I've knocked quite a few holy grails off my list, Doom registered is just about all that's left that is hard.
As a software/embedded systems engineer by trade I am taunted by the prospect of programming all these wonderful machines. Learning 6502 assembly is one of the next things on my todo list. I'm younger than most people into this stuff, but I was born in the wrong era. To give you an idea of the type of nerd I am, I typed this whole post in vim before pasting it into the form.
I've never been great at keeping up with a forum, but I find myself coming back to this one over and over again. So I thought it was worth joining and trying to add my knowledge to the collective.