Questions tagged [hardware-mods]
For questions about modifications to retro hardware.
21
questions
13
votes
1
answer
700
views
Is there a way to trick my 386SX laptop into thinking there's a floppy drive installed?
I have a 1991 vintage AST Premium Exec 386SX/20 laptop, which is in excellent condition apart from that the original hard drive and the floppy drive are both dead.
I've replaced the hard drive with a ...
- 345
4
votes
0
answers
143
views
CDTV board rev 2.3 can OCS Denise be upgraded to ECS
I came across this post from a user 18 years years ago, where he had some luck in upgrading chips on the board 2.3. is it possible? He says he was able to get 2MB chip ram and ECS Super Denise, can I ...
- 4,144
10
votes
2
answers
700
views
Extending C128D Keyboard cable
I need to make a 25 pin Sub-D extension cable for my C128D keyboard. I think it may be as easy as connecting male pins from one side to corresponding female pins on the other side, but need ...
- 4,144
4
votes
1
answer
244
views
What is the interface of the proprietary memory card connector in CDTV
Is this an IDE or something completely different. Could it be used to connect gotek?
- 4,144
5
votes
2
answers
955
views
How to build an ATA controller for the AT bus?
I would like to replace the ST502 MFM disk controller in my Schneider Target PC 7640 (about which I asked earlier) with an ATA (IDE) controller as it gets harder and harder to find replacement MFM ...
- 1,562
4
votes
2
answers
393
views
What is the purpose of ROM switcher mods in CDTV
I've seen a lot of information on CDTV ROM switchers, but it is still unclear to me what is the actual purpose of it. As I understand it allows some compatibility with A500 games, but this disables CD ...
- 4,144
4
votes
0
answers
191
views
How can I connect a PIA or VIA chip to the Apple IIc?
I have an early Apple IIc, model A2S4000 with the 342-0272 motherboard
and ROM 255. (I am considering upgrading the ROM, perhaps with a
switch that would let me switch between different ROM versions.)
...
- 23k
-1
votes
1
answer
134
views
Fan for old socket A Athlon cooler [closed]
I put together a retro gaming setup with a 2000ish spec (can post specs if required) and it's come together pretty nicely except the CPU fan is insanely shrill (it's a Coolermaster something).
If I ...
- 391
4
votes
1
answer
168
views
ACA1221 cooling
I have an ACA1221 accelerator (not EC). The card is clocked at 28MHz and get's VERY hot. Even when running on default 17MHz the temperature can go as high as 65'C. Is there any way to use any of the ...
- 4,144
2
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Physically emulate Gameboy cartridge using Raspberry Pi? [duplicate]
This is an extension to the question NES cartridge rom emulation with arduino or pi?, which asked whether it would be possible to physically emulate a NES cartridge using an Arduino/Raspberry Pi (RPi)....
user8833
6
votes
1
answer
542
views
Timex Sinclair 1500 and screen "jail bars"
I have tried to eliminate "jail bars" on the screen after UHF mod to video out (based on that: http://zx81stuff.org.uk/zx81/ts1500_video.html) by adding 460uf 16V capacitor between +5V and GND but it ...
- 163
64
votes
14
answers
23k
views
Why did some early CPUs use external math chips?
While enjoying the response to "Why did CPU designers in the 70s prioritize reducing pin count?" In 1979 IEEE was hard at work at coming up with a standard for handling floating point numbers, and ...
- 4,399
15
votes
3
answers
3k
views
Replacing 80286 with 68000
Suppose you wanted to take a 286 PC and replace the CPU with a 68000, not at the initial design stage, but actually modifying the finished machine, on the theory that they both have 24 bits of address ...
- 55.3k
15
votes
6
answers
5k
views
Can a 16K computer be upgraded to 64K?
A slightly odd question, but is it possible to take an old 16K computer that wasn't designed for memory upgrades, such as a Commodore 16 or PET 4016, and upgrade it to 64K as a hardware hack?
I'm not ...
- 55.3k
7
votes
2
answers
717
views
Is it safe to provide 5V to CMOS RAM from PSU instead of CR2032 battery?
I have a motherboard which stores BIOS settings in a DS12887 chip with internal battery. The battery is long dead, and the pin of chip's socket is not connected to any power supply so the chip doesn't ...
- 1,344
9
votes
1
answer
476
views
Does this Nova rack have historical value?
I wish to modify my rack, in order to mount some modern rackmount servers.
Am I damaging a piece of history and will incur the wrath of historical computing librarians ?
It is an old 19" rack that ...
- 359
13
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Upgrades for the TRS-80 Model 100 portable
The TRS-80 Model 100 portable officially allowed for RAM expansion to 32k and an external acoustic coupler for the model. What other upgrades and peripherals exist for the Model 100? I had one of ...
- 2,272
39
votes
11
answers
5k
views
What prevents faster versions of old architectures from being created?
Showing my ignorance about hardware here — I noticed there is still a community developing Amiga accelerator cards. Giving substantial boost versus the original memory for example.
However the ...
- 493
11
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Black Amiga 500 Keys
I am creating a black Amiga 500 casing for my retro pi unit. I have already bought the casing, a 1200 keyboard and keyrah unit to convert the keyboard to USB.
I have some vinyl dye paint for the ...
- 323
36
votes
3
answers
12k
views
What modification is required from a PC floppy for use in Amiga?
Around the end of the time of Amiga popularity, obtaining a replacement Amiga floppy drive was a nuisance, while PC drives were ubiquitous and cheap. One could install a PC drive in Amiga after ...
- 6,735
20
votes
1
answer
1k
views
How does the 4MB mod for 8-bit Atari work?
On the local auction portal I have spotted ads for some "supercharged" 8-bit Ataris (800XL, 65XE etc) - modified to support 4 megabytes of RAM.
The auctions were scarce in details, more concentrating ...
- 6,735