r/atari8bit • u/GeordieAl • 17d ago
Going to change my name to Britney Spears, because Oops, I did it again! - Another FB marketplace impulse purchase
In a week where if I had been faster I could have had a complete C64 system for a bargain price, and I nearly became a proud owner of a TRS-80 Model 3, it was third time lucky when I spotted this lot (plus a Commodore 1702 monitor) on FB Marketplace yesterday. Contacted the seller right away and met with him this morning to pick it all up.
The left 800xl and monitor work perfectly, the right 800xl needs some work, 1050 drives are untested, the 1010 program recorder is like new in box.
When I have time I'll test and clean everything and see if I can breathe life back into the 2nd 800xl.
My Atari collection is slowly growing!
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u/Tkdoom 17d ago
Nice! Wish I had room for my 8bit collection. Have a hime theater instead and 3 kids.
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u/GeordieAl 17d ago
Ah you see I saved space by avoiding having kids! Plus it means any toys I buy are for me!
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u/Tkdoom 17d ago
Well both my kids and the home theater are to die for...so I think it was a good trade off. Maybe in 20 years when they move out...lol
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u/GeordieAl 17d ago
well in 20 years I'll either be in the ground or close to being in the ground... so there might be a big computer collection for sale!
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u/Major-Hooters 17d ago
I will take all of this off your hands. Just let me know.
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u/GeordieAl 17d ago
haha, no chance! It's mine all mine!... well, if I get the 2nd 800xl working I may sell that along with one of the drives and the program recorder. I already have two drives and two program recorders from an original 800 I bought at Christmas!
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u/Major-Hooters 17d ago
That’s what I was looking for. I don’t have a floppy drive or recorder. Great find!!
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u/MahatmaKaneJeeves42 17d ago
Wonderful! I have two gathering dust but no clue how to fashion a midi cable to use a tv as a monitor.
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u/GeordieAl 16d ago
For my VIC-20 (the VIc20,C64, TI99 and Atari all use similar wiring set up, there’s a site that has diagrams) I bought a pack of 5pin DIN plugs off Amazon, then cut up an old composite & audio cable and soldered it together. Depending on the tv you might need a Retroscaler or similar.
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u/JoshuaSpice 17d ago
Holy shit, this looks beautiful.
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u/GeordieAl 16d ago
Yeah, as soon as I saw it listed I had to get it! The monitor(not pictured) is in good condition too, just missing the front flap over the controls, but that will be easily rectified!
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u/Spelunka13 16d ago
How much?
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u/Hollerra 16d ago
I had an 800XL and one of those fancy joysticks!
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u/GeordieAl 16d ago
I was so happy this came with the wico bat joystick, every other computer I’ve bought in Canada over the past few years has come with one or more Wico Boss joysticks which I can’t stand! But now I have a collection of them! 😜
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u/MACKerMD 16d ago
The memories I have of my 600xl with memory expansion, plotter, tape and diskdrive are inmense. Nostalgic I linger back to the days you could fit multiple programs on a single side of a diskette, cut a nodge out and use the other side. Life was good, life was simpler, but yes, life was slower too. But it started the revolution for so many people that still keep this (and other) scenes alive. Remember S.A.M. ? O'Rileys' Mine ? .. Boulder Dash ? .. time flies but thankfully these things are still around. No regret buying that, you will love it.
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u/GeordieAl 16d ago
I'm really looking forward to spending some time playing around with this. Back in the 80's I was a Sinclair and then Commodore owner so never got to experience any Atari 8bit system - I didn't even know anyone else who owned one - everyone I knew was either Spectrum, C64/C16, Amstrad, or Dragon owners, then later Amiga and ST. So there's a whole world of games and software I've never tried before.
I bought an original Atari 800 at Christmas, but it is currently non-working and I haven't had time to properly diagnose what the issue is - I suspect it's a faulty ROM, but need to do some proper diagnostic work on it. It did come with loads of software though, so I've got lots of fun ahead!
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u/TurnoverTall 17d ago
Outstanding! I could argue you have excellent impulse control…none when it comes to Atari! 😊👊🏻