SyntaxBomb - Indie Coders

I have a few 80's retro computers, but my very first computer back then was the ZX Spectrum 16K, quickly upgraded to 48K.

Now it hasn't worked for years so I bought a working one from Ebay (which included a mod to allow composite rather than RF TV output) to plug into my 14 inch CRT.  It also came with a modern power supply and on/off cable switch.  I can load from tape as normal, but I also have a Joystick Adaptor/SD Card Reader:

https://www.thefuturewas8bit.com/shop/sinclair/divmmcfuture.html

Anyway, I was looking at the Ebay Speccy today and I thought, well that's not really my old computer there.  The 'ZX Spectrum' lettering in the top left looks like it's faded or has totally faded and has been touched up.  In comparison the lettering on my original still looks great, it's just soo very dusty, a little bit of dirt on a couple of keys and a few tiny scratches.

So I thought I'd prefer to have my original authentic speccy case and keyboard, the one I typed on all those years ago.  Much soapy water and cleaning later and my old computer case came up very nicely.

I'll let it dry out and take the circuit board out of the Ebay one tomorrow and swap it for the non-working one.   

Well I swapped the circuit board and keyboard membrane by taking the front panel off - as Mark Fixes Stuff recommends.  I didn't have a plastic gadget so used a plastic ruler instead, the glue used on my speccy was quite a bit stronger though!  Then put everything into my original speccy case and reattached the original old keyboard.

Some would question why I did it, but apart from the fact the ZX Spectrum text on the new one didn't look quite right it wasn't my very first computer, it wasn't authentic.  The new circuit board had some very subtle updates and actually works.  But at least now from the outside those were the very same keys I typed on from 1982, a tiny scratch or 2, a very slight fading on the CAPS SHIFT key, and even the 2 little stickers on the back where they'd put a '16K' sticker on and when I had it upgraded (internally) a '48K' one over the top of the old one.  Memories.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PJLPEI8RW8&t=522s&ab_channel=MarkFixesStuff

Upgrade the Capacitors there well over 30 years old, now. This will stop Ram chips from getting the wrong voltage and Frying them! There is also A voltage regulator mod well worth doing. This will prolong it's life and stop over heating. And check out the composite mod so you can see the screen on a monitor.

Kind Regards Baggey

That's all been done already.

Quote from: Steve Elliott on August 13, 2021, 18:33:31
That's all been done already.

Yep, the case and keyboard are from my original 1982 speccy, but the 1983 board inside has the composite mod to allow composite output to a CRT TV or flatscreen monitor.  The modern voltage regulator and heatsink on the z80 means it stays cool so you can't warm your hands on it like you did back in the day lol.  It has a modern power supply and an on/off cable switch with new capacitors - plus a joystick adaptor/SD Card loading as well as tape loading.

Ooo well cool Don't forget to play a couple of rounds of Jet Pac for me

What power supply do you have?

Baggey

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What power supply do you have?

Not sure, I'll update this post tomorrow (it came with the speccy).

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Ooo well cool Don't forget to play a couple of rounds of Jet Pac for me

A classic!  And one that has to be loaded from tape.  Just playing this, it looks much better on a CRT:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6nPqgR0PK8&ab_channel=RZXArchive