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Apple ][ identifying

Jorg

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Messages
1,323
Location
Switzerland
Some time ago I rescued an Apple ][ from being dumped, but as I know nothing at all from them, I'd be happy if someone could help me identify what exactly I got.

Some pictures (I'll try to make better ones later) are here http://s1083.photobucket.com/albums/j387/stufffs/Apple2/

Serial number is A2S1- 27928
I'm not sure where to find the serial of the motherboard - maybe I have to take it apart more.
There seem to be quite some mods to the machine, that I can't make too much of yet.

Included are two diskdrives and a /// monitor+ stand, as well as a small custom made LCD screen.

DSCN0417.jpg


Any help appreciated!
 
This looks like an early Rev 0 unit (home) upgraded to II+ and has quite a few alterations done to it. Personally I wouldn't try to take it apart with all the wires going everywhere...
Few things are pretty apparent (16k card, Z80 card, 80 column card etc.) The alterations... not so much.
 
Well, I wasn't planning to do that :)

Found the serial on a hand written sticker top left (7912)

I'll try make some more detailed pictures later.
 
My early Apple ][+ is a Rev 4, the serial number on the board is 8010. Yours has the 16k enclosed memory blocks, not the individual wired ones, and the dark green slots, just like my Rev 4. Yours is probably rev. 3 or 4, if you look closely just forward of the slot 4 connector, it may have the revision number printed on the board (my Rev. 4 does). Though I can understand if you don't want to pull the card from slot 4... that's quite a rat's nest. Are all the yellow wires going to the connector for the custom LCD display? It looks like they're tapping the video RAM directly on the motherboard....
 
I've made some better pics of the two cards I can't really figure out what they do, and the mainboard.
I couldn't find any Rev number near slot 4 - but I saw I made a mistake with the handwritten sticker - it seems to read 7921 instead of 7912.
Not sure what that means.

Yes, the yellow cables go to a connector for the lcd screen. The white ones on the right just seem to provide external connectors for the speaker.

Hi-res versions of the pictures are here:
Board
card1
card2
 

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If you pull the 6502 CPU chip, the revision number should be printed underneath it. I'm pretty sure it's earlier than rev. 4 if it doesn't have the revision near slot 4.

Careful prying with a small flat screwdriver from each end, a bit at a time, seems to be the safest way to pull the 40 pin DIP CPUs.
 
The 03 in the part number shows it's a rev 3 board.

That's a pretty amazing LCD interface setup, I've seen a few mods on Apple ][s, but yours has to be one of the most modified I've seen.
 
sure, np. You mean as its working?
Anything in general, but working would be awesome too.

I am curious what they were doing with it, if they were feeding it exactly what was on the main display, or if they used it for debugging purposes.
 
It was used to make the system 'portable', to give demonstrations on fairs and the like.
 
Ok some more pictures added to http://s1083.photobucket.com/albums/...tufffs/Apple2/

It seems to work, although I think I should not wait too long with copying the system disks..
Main display doesn't seem to work when the LCD is in use. Seems it wasn't meant to use both - which is quite logical, as its use was to make the thing portable.

Does anyone know what the usage of the modded 0/P/N switches on the Disk II's is?
 
I'd expect the switch is to toggle the write protect (forced on, normal, forced off) on the disk drives. Pretty common mod.

Do the disk drive LEDs change color when writing? Normal Disk ][s have red LEDs and yours are green, so maybe they have the bi-color LED read/write indicator mod as well.

The display may not be LCD, it looks a lot like the orange gas-plasma displays that were fairly common in the 80's. I used to have a Compaq Portable III that used one, and I worked on test benches in the Navy that used them too.
 
yeah, he referred to it as LCD, but I had not seen it working yet.
LEDs could be- I didnt write anything yet - will try :)
Thx!

I'm thinking of maybe keeping some of the cards seperate, when I sell it - the Disk controller, the Z80 card, etc.
 
Ok some more pictures added to http://s1083.photobucket.com/albums/...tufffs/Apple2/

It seems to work, although I think I should not wait too long with copying the system disks..
Main display doesn't seem to work when the LCD is in use. Seems it wasn't meant to use both - which is quite logical, as its use was to make the thing portable.

Does anyone know what the usage of the modded 0/P/N switches on the Disk II's is?
That's pretty dang cool that screen.
 
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