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So where did all the Sensations go?

LiqMatrix

LiqMatrix

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So the Tandy Sensation. I remember when those machines came out in the early 90s and they were common as dirt and now you can't find any. Did all the collectors hoard them? Did they not sell well and most ended up at the recycling plant? Just curious. They were pretty cool machines for their time and very reminiscent of the Commodore Amiga in how it was marketed by Radio Shack. A go to machine for all your multimedia needs. I remember seeing Doom for the first time on a Sensation when I walked into a Radio Shack back in the day. Any of you have a nice minty model to show off?
 

Speaker's name is Michael Money. Bernie Appel must have loved that guy!
 
I was under the assumption that the first Sensation was the last machine built and designed by Tandy. It included WinMate which was supposed to be "deskmate for windows" so all of the normal PIM / family collaboration apps and a voice modem that provided a interesting voicemail / IVR system. IIRC WinMate became AST Works after AST purchased the Tandy computer divisions. Oh and the Sensation still has the PSSJ in it!
 
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pski said:
Speaker's name is Michael Money. Bernie Appel must have loved that guy!
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Oh yeah, I am familiar with the video and a very cool video at that. Great time capsule.

JonB said:
I sort of hoped it was a workstation of some sort, but it's a PC with Windows 3.1 on it.

What made it special?
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It was the very early 90s when it came out and it had millions of colors when most PCs were still standard VGA and CD-ROMs were still a novelty to have on your computer and most people were still using floppy disks. It brought together a full multimedia package to the mainstream with easy to use software and custom interfaces for the family. I was surprised it didn't sell better, but it was a tad pricey leaning towards the mid $2000 range, but still not bad considering what it offered. Remember, these were the days when a CD burner was $1000 and half the time pumped out drink coasters. I remember because a friend of mine ponied up the cash for one and media was really expensive as well. So I went looking for one on Ebay out of curiosity and nada. Not a one out there. I was just wondering if any of you had one in their collection that was still mostly original. They were kind of cool even though most people I knew were building their own by then for cheaper. Radio Shack did a good job, I think, putting together a package that sold an easy to digest next gen system even though the CPU was a bit underpowered for what it was trying to accomplish. I believe you could upgrade them to a DX2/66 IIRC.

Edit: Actually I just checked completed auctions and holy crap, they go for money. Which leads me to believe there are not many around anymore or most are just sitting in a closet rotting. I see the CPU is not upgradeable and there is an open mathco socket which I read will take an overdrive.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/Computers-...lc=1&_salic=1&_sop=12&_dmd=1&_ipg=50&_fosrp=1
 
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4 Sensations have been sold on ebay in the past 12 months. Search completed auctions and you'll see the most recent two (4/1 and 3/24) which went for $621.11 and $449.44.
 
I gave away a first-generation Sensation! system late last year. Still have yet another.

It's certainly interesting, and important for being one of the first multimedia systems, but combines several poor design decisions, most of which were addressed with the second-generation model.
 
Pretty sure there is one up at a goodwill. Its called a Tandy MMPC Model 20. I cant remember if they say Sensation on all of them or not, but hey, its there.
 
Tibs said:
Pretty sure there is one up at a goodwill. Its called a Tandy MMPC Model 20. I cant remember if they say Sensation on all of them or not, but hey, its there.
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If it doesn't say Sensation isn't that an AST built Tandy machine. That's how I understand it. The Sensation was built by Tandy from what I am hearing. Also, can't seem to find that machine you are referring to on Goodwill's auction site.

Edit: Maybe this one on Ebay? Pretty rough shape.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rare-Vinta...206902?hash=item467bd41376:g:~WYAAOSw-H1a6iUB
 
liqmat said:
If it doesn't say Sensation isn't that an AST built Tandy machine. That's how I understand it. The Sensation was built by Tandy from what I am hearing. Also, can't seem to find that machine you are referring to on Goodwill's auction site.

Edit: Maybe this one on Ebay? Pretty rough shape.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rare-Vinta...206902?hash=item467bd41376:g:~WYAAOSw-H1a6iUB
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Just to clarify the Sensation II (250-1651), Tandy 3100, MMPC Model 10 and MMPC Model 20 all share the same motherboard. Technically the Sensation II was designed by Tandy but none were built before the AST purchase. They are more or less just generic 486 AT systems.

The Sensation I (250-1650) internally is quite different from the Sensation II. The modem is the same as was in the VIS and connected via a daughtercard. The sound card was built by Tandy, emulated an Adlib-Gold and still contained the PSSJ but it only supported playback. There were a lot of integrated components and the system was impossible to upgrade which lead to the II.
 
dlightman said:
...and the system was impossible to upgrade which lead to the II.
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So the Sensation in this completed auction...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Tandy-Sens...D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

...is actually a II which was built by AST? Because I see there is a mathco slot on the mobo which I have read could take an overdrive upgrade. Thanks for the clarification as I missed the entire Sensation line back in the day when I was building my own vanilla machines.
 
That is a Sensation I, you can tell by the part number which is 25-1650, floppy bezel molded into case, joystick port, modem and RCA jacks inline (onboard) with the keyboard/mouse ports and it has a non-zif overdrive socket.

This is a Sensation II: https://www.ebay.com/itm/232710326817

You can tell because it has a zif overdrive socket, standard floppy, 5 ISA slots vs 3, modem is in an ISA slot, no joystick, modem or RCA jacks onboard, the model number is 250-1651 and its on the bottom of the case instead of the back.

25-1650 / 250-1650 = Sensation I
25-1651 / 250-1651 = Sensation II

Frank Durda posted a lot of information about these systems and their differences on comp.sys.tandy if you're interested.
 
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The SENSATION! currently on ebay (item #: 292577285445) is a Sensation II and is the same as a Tandy 3100 aside from a few cosmetic differences. It does not have the PSSJ, onboard Modem (same as VIS), Joystick port or Tandy Adlib gold clone. It's a run of the mill 486 with sound blaster and isa modem. Bidding has already reached $840...
 
This is nostalgia at its finest. The Sensations were mediocre systems at best (486sx-25), except for the built-in Adlib Gold hardware (12-bit DAC), although the advantages of that DAC were lost because the system was so noisy you could hear it operate by turning up the volume when nothing was playing.
 
Trixter said:
This is nostalgia at its finest. The Sensations were mediocre systems at best (486sx-25), except for the built-in Adlib Gold hardware (12-bit DAC), although the advantages of that DAC were lost because the system was so noisy you could hear it operate by turning up the volume when nothing was playing.
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Plus you don't even get the Adlib and DAC in the Sensation II. It's just a 3100/MMPC 10/MMPC 20 with a different bezel and Sound Blaster.
 
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