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Altair MITS S-100 System
- Thread starter wmmullaney
- Start date
Terry Yager
Veteran Member
It's a com-putin' mo-chine, d00d. You toggle in some binary numbers with the switches, and it solves all your problems for you, while simultaneously amusing you with pretty blinkenlights. Dat's real computing!
--T
--T
Ole Juul
Veteran Member
He's including that famous PopTronics issue. That's worth a few bucks in itself. I used to subscribe to that and had that issue but someone stole it. /sulk
wmmullaney
Veteran Member
Oh Terry you amuse me. Of corse I know how it works, I was just wondering, since it's Altair, what a model it was if someone recognized it.
I had the same question. I've only seen one before that had a non-blue front cover which was evidentally an optional purchase.. but this one doesn't look like it. I'm guessing it's legit but I really can't tell and haven't seen one that looks quite like this.
wmmullaney
Veteran Member
It's kinda cool... <wishing I had $500 to spend>
lol so the bad news? I've never won an Altair and I've bid up to $2000 in the past. Since this one looks different it may just go for around $1200, but it'll be interesting. If you're bored watch the last hour of the auction and see it unfortunately skyrocket.
wmmullaney
Veteran Member
OK, but an unnamed model? Do ya think it's like a 680 or the 8800?
Well, I'm absolutely not familiar enough with the systems to know for sure. Going off a few pictures, the front panel matches an 8800 (http://www.vintage-computer.com/altair8800.shtml) and not the 680 (http://www.computercloset.org/MITSAltair680.htm) but that's meer guessing on my part.
It's definitely an Altair 8800 or 8800a. The front panel could be for either. If the On/Off switch is not inverted (in other words, if "On" is up), then it's an 8800a front panel. If "Off" is up, then it could be for either model. The aluminum trim strip, with embossed "MITS Altair 8800" or "MITS Altair 8800a", has not been installed on the lower front panel, so no differentiation is possible by those means.
The minimalist photos don't show the motherboard, but I suspect that it's a single large 16-slot board as used in the model A, rather than several 4-slot boards jumpered together as used in the original. That would mean that it's an 8800a system, or an upgraded 8800.
The case has been repainted. If you look at the closeup photo of the the serial number, you can see where the white paint has been worn away and the original blue is showing through.
It's not an "upgraded" CPU board- that's what was supplied with the kit.
The minimalist photos don't show the motherboard, but I suspect that it's a single large 16-slot board as used in the model A, rather than several 4-slot boards jumpered together as used in the original. That would mean that it's an 8800a system, or an upgraded 8800.
The case has been repainted. If you look at the closeup photo of the the serial number, you can see where the white paint has been worn away and the original blue is showing through.
It's not an "upgraded" CPU board- that's what was supplied with the kit.