Re: 2024 - End of the era of Retro Computing Youtube channels?

Posted on 2024-01-04, 13:55

by

by Lutsoad

in Milliways

in Milliways

What? Isn't 2024 going to be the time when WW3 hits so we have to start selling all our retro stuff and invest in mad max gear and ammo?? Same with poor AVGN: people either hate him for not ending it sooner or mock him for his lack of effort. Nothing in between. In the meantime: people who have zero …

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Re: Question about a Robotron Optima typewriter

Posted on 2023-12-21, 15:04

by

by Lutsoad

in Milliways

in Milliways

Thank you very much, I'll put the translated script here, maybe someone can understand it better than me. :D "Decimal tabulator: The decimal tabulator is a further development of the tabulator (see above), with which it is usually used in addition. It allows numbers to be written one below the other …

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Question about a Robotron Optima typewriter

Posted on 2023-12-20, 19:43

by

by Lutsoad

in Milliways

in Milliways

What are the numbers for on the top row? 1-10-100-1000-10000-100000-1M-10M-100M When I press any of these keys they just push the carriage right a little without doing anything else. I tried multiple combinations but these keys always do the same thing, move the carriage by a certain amount, …

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Re: How old are these tyres?

Posted on 2023-12-14, 16:17

by

by Lutsoad

in Milliways

in Milliways

Thank you guys, I knew I can always count on this forum no matter the subject. I'll put them up on Marketplace and hope they will find a new home but I doubt a 30+ year old set is safe to use even if it's never been used before. They are in pristine condition though, no cracks or blisters.

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How old are these tyres?

Posted on 2023-12-14, 13:15

by

by Lutsoad

in Milliways

in Milliways

Found these unused set of tires in my late grandpa's garage but I'm having trouble determining the date of manufacture. Could you help me? Are these winter or summer tires? I don't know anything about them.

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Re: Advice on CD-Rom drive to read old CD-Rs

Posted on 2023-11-30, 09:32

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

According to my tests the best and fastest drive is the Ultima WRA-KA40. None of my drives came even close to it's access time and read speeds. I tested it with all kinds of old and scratched up discs and it worked like a charm (CD-R and CD-RW). Honorable mentions: LG GCR-8520B, LG CRD-8522B, LG GCE …

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What's the difference between miniature and standard Rubycon caps?

Posted on 2023-11-30, 08:12

by

by Lutsoad

in Milliways

in Milliways

I'm looking for replacement caps for my old audio amplifier and noticed that miniature models are almost always cheaper than standard size models with similar or the same rating. https://hu.farnell.com/rubycon/35zlj100m6-3x11/cap-100-f-35v-20/dp/1831279?st=100uf%2035v https://hu.farnell.com/rubycon/ …

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Re: Were low prices a part of the fun?

Posted on 2023-11-26, 17:35

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

It's a hobby so you'll have to do a budget first and stick to it. If you have like $300 disposable cash each month then buying a $400 V5 doesn't sound crazy at all. If your budget is $30 then it's probably a very bad idea. The rest all depends on your location, opportunities and patience. A high-end …

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Re: Bought these (retro) hardware today

Posted on 2023-11-20, 19:39

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Nice. I've gotten a nice collection of NOS CD-RW and DVD-RW disks myself and today i feel totally safe that i can still play around with retro machines and optical drives even decades into the future. Yeah, no joke, I thought finding legacy CD-RW discs is going to be super easy but nope, all gone, …

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Re: Bought these (retro) hardware today

Posted on 2023-11-20, 15:18

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Finding a local store that sold old 1-4X CD-RW discs was impossible so I put up a marketplace ad looking for NOS discs.. and had a few locals hit me up within the hour. Should've tried that sooner, one of them had 10 Maxells that work flawlessly with older drives. Took me long enough.

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Re: I recently found this hardware, AKA the Dumpster find thread.

Posted on 2023-11-12, 17:56

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Are you tired of your boring old Aztech 2X CD-ROM but can't afford a new one? No problem, just spray-paint your drive to give it a much needed makeover! Courtesy of my friend who gave me this Aztech CDA 268-031 2X drive. Surprisingly it can read a new Verbatim 700 MB CD-R written at 52X speed, it …

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Re: Can a 4x CD-Writer write on 12X CD-RW?

Posted on 2023-11-11, 07:38

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

I don't see the point in writing CDRW discs at 1x-4x speeds. Life is too short. My 2 cents worth of an opinion . My knowledge of optical drives is quite limited but I want to test if my drives are fully functional or not. I have a bunch of combo drives that have either the CD or the DVD part broken …

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Re: Can a 4x CD-Writer write on 12X CD-RW?

Posted on 2023-11-10, 17:06

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

darry wrote on 2023-11-10, 16:31: These are unlikely to work, even at 4x on your older drive unless there is a firmware update to allow it. Please see @mkarcher 's comment (and mine). I appreciate it, trying to find a place that sells these. I didn't think it would be so difficult.

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Re: Can a 4x CD-Writer write on 12X CD-RW?

Posted on 2023-11-10, 17:04

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Media like these should work in all 4x CD-Rewriters. Thank you, funny that you mentioned the Maxell 1-4X because I've been trying to find a legit store that sells this exact same model, zero success so far. I checked like 20 local stores and they all have fake or non-existent stock. Scary. I still …

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Re: Can a 4x CD-Writer write on 12X CD-RW?

Posted on 2023-11-10, 07:38

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Thank you all guys, I guess I'll just buy a CD-RW disc from an available manufacturer and see how the older drives deal with it. Found these, could they work in an older 4X CD-Rewriter or is it still dependent on the surface of the disc or the firmware/laser of the drive used? philips-8710101710242. …

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Can a 4x CD-Writer write on 12X CD-RW?

Posted on 2023-11-09, 20:07

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

I'm planning on testing my old CD-RW drives and ran into a problem with disks: there are only a few brands available (TDK, Verbatim, Maxell, Acme) and they are only available at 12X speed. No more 8X or 4X disks. Some of the drives are 2X, 4X, 8X only for CD-RW. Will I be able to test them with a …

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Re: Bought these (retro) hardware today

Posted on 2023-11-08, 20:10

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

But now i know why the drive was "untested"...Always the same thing with these seller idiots. Can you see it? I feel so stupid for not seeing it. Don't feel bad. I once bought two Pentium Pro boards and failed to notice that one didn't have the PAL chip and the other had like 10 components …

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Re: Bought these (retro) hardware today

Posted on 2023-10-31, 20:24

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

cde wrote on 2023-10-30, 20:49: A wonderful discovery, congratulations! Thank you!

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Re: Bought these (retro) hardware today

Posted on 2023-10-30, 07:18

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

I have such nostalgia for these beautiful amber displays. What a wonderful find. Thank you, they have a special place in my heart too. I've been trying to find one for ages. Back then the amber tube version was the cheapest option available for $70 and the white tube version cost $120, mostly for …

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Re: Bought these (retro) hardware today

Posted on 2023-10-29, 17:37

by

by Lutsoad

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

in Marvin \ General Old Hardware

Bought this untested beauty for $15, turned out okay with nice and bright picture and no burn-in. My first monitor was also an amber monochrome and I'm happy I finally get to experience it again!

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