Dave goes Back to the Future and powers up his old 1980's vintage Tandy 1000 computer.
Will it work?, will it choke?
And how to channel your inner Woz to design your own Turbo Board.
(Check out the ROM BIOS version 1.00.00 !!)

Avatar photo

By YTB

24 thoughts on “Eevblog #32 – tandy 1000 retro computer time!”
  1. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Damon Gardens says:

    Hey Dave, could you cover powering the Tandy 1100FD LCD (without the computer)? I'm looking to connect a raspberry pi zero to one for a low powered vector tablet.

  2. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars James Priest says:

    Is there a episode about that dev board? I wanna know more about it.

  3. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars GadgetUK - Retro Gaming Repairs & Mods says:

    Thanks again =D

  4. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Hannes Olsson says:

    CLASSIC IN SO MANY DIMENSIONS!!

  5. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Vega 128 says:

    funny how yout turbo button actually does ehat is says also why didnt you increese th voltage and added a cooler on it

  6. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars circuitsmith says:

    My first home computer was a Tandy 1000A. I added a V20 and a small add on board that raised the processor clock to 7.15MHz, but not switchable.

  7. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars pikachu 922 says:

    my dad's old trs-80 mc-10 still works, at least 34 years old. thing runs at 890khz.

  8. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars BlackEpyon says:

    My first computer was (and I still have it) a Tandy 1000 HX, just a couple models down the line from this one. It was manufactured in August 1987, just one month before I was born.

  9. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Andrew Bonica says:

    My first computer was a Tandy 1000 (RL, I believe) I would still have it if my family didn't give it away without me knowing many years later! I loved the games on there. My neighbor loaded a ton of great stuff on there for us. Those were the days! 😉 Hoping the emulators out there can be of help. The music program is what originally opened my eyes into the world of computer audio and MIDI. I'm now an audio engineer, electrical and computer engineer, and music producer. Time flies! Your mods are cool as heck! Repping my OpAmp t-shirt at work, by the way.

  10. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Salem Salem Oh says:

    I have one serial 004600, how much it worth do you think

  11. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Martin D A says:

    That is f@ing brilliant! Dave that was genius and you probably know it ))

  12. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars sci3ntologist says:

    I love these machines! I had the exact same machine. 
    It was my second computer, my first being a tandy coco3.
    I played railroad tycoon on it for hours!
    Growing up in the 90's was awesome because I got these old machines 
    as free hand-me-downs.

  13. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Jeff E says:

    Awesome retro, Dave!
    When I was twelve, I had a TRS-80 Color Computer 2 w/ tape drive… back in the 80's.  And when ever I went to my local Radio Shack, I used to drool over the Tandy 1000's on display!  LOL
    "wow… floppy drive!"   😉

  14. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Alex Smith says:

    I love my Tandy 1000 , Great video nice mod`s , They are a great computer , The first time they can take time to warm up longer if you got those old retro hard drives

  15. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Bob Jones says:

    The Tandy 1000 is the first PC most of us could really afford that allowed us to learn coding and other skills.  The world was a simpler place back when we used to tell ourselves that if we could ever afford that 20MB hard drive mod we would have more storage memory than we could ever use in a life time.  Thanks Dave for sharing this bit of history.

  16. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars VE3KNT says:

    Great to see these old machines still working.  I'm an original TRS-80 Model 1 owner, still have, still works, including the monitor 🙂

  17. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Quixoom says:

    ehh a 20Mhz crystal.. not like that is 4x the machines power. Overclock by a factor of 4 with one switch.. 

  18. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Dan Lott says:

    The new intro is bang on!

    The turbo board brings back memories of begging the parents to take me to the proper store to get parts to mod my first PC to run at 2X speed. Perhaps unfortunately, the newer IBM PC (or clone, I can't remember) did not have the timing differential limitations as yours.

  19. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars ibm5170 says:

    Hi.
    Can you send BIOS of 01.00.00 image by PM.
    I have 01.01.00. I want to downgrade it.

  20. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Kamel Mohammed Ali Khan Siddiqui says:

    Can u explain me sigma delta modulation technique ? And can I design chip with mentor graphics and please let me know the practical use of Matlab and how it is helpful in today's market?

  21. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Junkers says:

    How old were you when you came up with that?

  22. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Jeremy Hong says:

    hahah inner woz!

  23. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars needlove1982 says:

    Check the memory under dos chkdsks, on the Tandys if you used a Non Tandy Memory board, the extra memory does not show up in the POST

  24. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars needlove1982 says:

    It was a great machine minus the horrid keyboard.

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