First I would like to say that I have not gone to the pawns, though I did visit a few thrifts. After sifting through the tape bins, the vinyl (for old EA jacket-style cases), the books and magazines, the keyboard bins, looking through the "dump" shelves, and getting the cashiers to let me look through the games (reluctantly they do so) I didn't find anything. Not so bad, as I didn't think I would find success quickly.
I got a C64 (pictures coming in Small Scores, tonight or tomorrow, I swear!). Actually two from the same person along with a dataset, a 1541 (also working), as well as some tapes, books, and disks. I was told it previously belonged to a collector, and I could have the lot for a decent price. I snapped it up and took it home, brimming with excitement. Do you see where this is going? Well, let's not get too ahead of ourselves. After the kiddies were asleep I had a closer look at my new stash. Broken down:
1x CIB C64 Breadbox (gray function keys)
1x loose C64 Breadbox w/ no power supply (gray function keys)
1x Data.Corder (off-brand dataset)
1x 1541 Disk Drive with serial cable, Demo disk, and operators booklet
4x tapes (three games and one xx)
2x disks marked "Game Disk 1" and "Game Disk 2"
4x financial productivity programs (two unopened)
2x 300ohm switch box
1x 75ohm converter
1x Book called, "Commodore 64 Troubleshooting & Repair Guide" (guides and schematics)
Assorted programming books
First thing I opened the CIB C64, plugged it in, and power it in. I was greeted by the expected C64 screen with very strange flashing, multicolored text. Hmm. I plugged in the dataset and queued up Forbidden Forest. After the expected amount of time the game loaded and I started playing. The screen exibited the same flashing text as well as some sprites which slightly obscured the action. Hmm. The Internet suggests either a bad power supply (very common), or bad graphics chips. The power supply can be replaced, but I was cautioned against this, as most C64 power supplies are now serious fire hazards that tend to fry their own hardware. The chip is currently beyond my ability to fix. Not great in my case, really.
I decided to try the 1541 next. After reading the booklet I hooked it up and got it ready. Loading up a disk gave me a FILE NOT FOUND error. A quick Google suggested a drive alignment problem, a drive head that needs cleaning, or a mixture of both. That's fine, as I can do this quite simply. To be honest I didn't expect the drive to work, and had thought about investing later in a
SD2IEC, which will solve the problem of the drive going out again while still providing realistic loading times (i.e., slow) for the disks. The only problem is this things must be imported from the UK and with shipping will cost about $80 USD. Does anyone experience with importing from Europe? Should I expect import taxes? At any rate this is a ways off.
Onto the second C64: I figured the only reason a person would have more than one C64 was because one was broken. I wasn't disappointed. Upon powering up the system throws a "Out of Memory at 0" error. The Internet suggests either bad RAM chips or a bad PLA. Either requires tools and skills that I do not currently possess (though from that I gather it's not hard). I did notice that the text does not flash colors like the other C64. Hmm.
I decided to call the person I bought the lot from. She was very nice, but firm on no returns, which was a little disappointing. In retrospect I imagine when she said working she meant it powers on. Well, that is my fault for not listening to the Lazy Game Reviewer and not buying from a collector I know. It also turns out the previous collector was her father, which judging by the age of the seller likely means this is stuff that belonged to a dead guy. Luckily I don't believe in that sort of thing, but still is a bit creepy (pasta).
With this information in hand I decided to really start looking for solutions. Turns out that the C64 community is quite thrifty and extremely resourceful. I came to this conclusion after reading through many forums where people recommend completely rebuilding stock C64 Breadbox power supplies, as well as nonchalantly telling each other to check the 4164 IC with the oscilloscope. Possible solutions would be to replace the RAM in the "Bad RAM?" unit with the RAM in the "Flashing Text" unit (assuming the RAM is the problem). At any rate, I will have another unit inbound within the week (also broken, but with a "humming" PSU, so who knows).
Conclusion? Well, I don't really have one quite yet (too early in the game). I will admit I am a little bummed out that both C64s are busted (maybe), but at least I got to load up a game (on tape!). I did manage to come up with a short list of possible next steps to help focus my efforts:
Possible next step #1: Sell broken C64s on ebay. This would allow me to partially recoup my losses and move forward to getting a working unit. In this scenario I would next be purchasing from a collector (whom is alive), so I could at least expect the system to work. I would also look into rebuilding C64 PSUs and purchase a soldering iron. Later, though. After I played some games first.
Possible next step #2: Purchase a soldering iron to fix at least one of the C64s. This will end up costing a bit more up front (a okay iron will cost $50) with no guaranteed returns. Especially if I nuke all three units. However, this could end up being better in the long run, as I could possible end up with three working systems. Seems unlikely, but who knows? Especially since I have that C64 repair guide. This step would have me playing my purchased games via the Vice emulator whilst working on a solution. Not ideal, but at least I will get to play some games.
Possible next step #3: I suppose a pessimistic person would have "give up" as their third step. Since I'm a realist I will put no such thing, and will instead simply put, "We shall see."
Thanks for reading.
