Thanks everyone for watching, I hope you enjoy the episode and we'd love to hear your ZX81 memories, suggestions for software to try and upgrades we should get hold of. Thanks as always to kzread.info for his talents. Neil - RMC

@TMQ1888

2 жыл бұрын

My very first computer 🖥 😍

@brianm6337

2 жыл бұрын

Someone needs to come up with an acrylic display, showing that Spectrum kit in an exploded view.

@TheTurnipKing

2 жыл бұрын

Mazogs, 3D Monster Maze... And I found out the other day that there was a version of Oregon Trail for it, based off one of the very early Mainframe versions of the game.

@arthurmann578

2 жыл бұрын

@@TheTurnipKing I still have Mazogs somewhere in my storage closet with a bunch of other ZX81 programs. Cool game for its time! 👍👍

@lazyhominid

2 жыл бұрын

This was my first computer. One thing you can do, which will improve the lifetime of the keyboard, is get a replacement for the voltage regulator. The one with the aluminium plate for a heat sink. The original one is basically dumping voltage as heat to regulate it. A modern regulator will use less power and, more importantly, keep the inside of the ZX81 a lot cooler. Well worth the effort. There are also hires mods, and nice internal memory expansion mods. But that is heading into more advanced uses. The power mod is well worth it though.

Oh this brings back memories. I would purchase ZX81's in kit form form WH Smiths for £49.99, build them, and then sell them as new for £59.99, which was £10 less than the £69.99 WH Smiths were charging for the build versions.... Earnt enough for my first holiday the following year :)

@CH4NNELZERO

2 жыл бұрын

Amazing. How long would each one take you to build ?

@MalcolmCrabbe

2 жыл бұрын

@@CH4NNELZERO From memory around 60-90 minutes. I was an Electronics Technician at the time, working at British Aerospace Dynamics, so soldering PCs was quite natural. It started off building them for a few mates, but when word spread I was doing around a dozen a week, making more than I was earning at BAe at the time !

@cleverhardy5230

2 жыл бұрын

@@MalcolmCrabbe Nice. It's like scalping, but for a lower price and a good cause. I mean, building kits and selling them as built for the fraction of the price? I guess you've met customer demand for people that neither have the engineering skills to build a computer, nor to he money to buy it pre-built.

@reggiep75

2 жыл бұрын

@@MalcolmCrabbe - Nice hustle and it was great you were making more cash than your main job. 😅

@MrDuncl

2 жыл бұрын

@@MalcolmCrabbe Which site was that ? I was an apprentice at Filton and during the same 8 week stint in Antenna Design I got one of the first ZX81 kits (which a more experienced engineer had to debug as there was an error in the build instructions) and watched the very first flight of the Space Shuttle on a half broken TV someone had brought in to fix in their lunch hours. By December I was in a different department and my boss was interested in the ZX81. I took mine in, hooked it up to the departments TRS80 monitor and he was so impressed he decided that was what his kids were getting for Christmas. After phoning around all the local W H Smiths to find one who had stock he took the afternoon off and drove to Weston-Super-Mare to get it. He then discovered there was a design for a 16K RAM pack that was circulating site. However, with no equivalent of PCBWay he couldn't get a PCB so gave me the job of building one on Veroboard ! So I spent the last week of work in 1981 building part of his kids Christmas present. One of the joys of being an Apprentice :-) I never did get a ZX81 RAM pack myself, as I soon moved on to a TI99-4A, but did spend £12 upgrading my ZX81 to 2K so I could type programs longer than the screen.

I had one for Christmas in 1981 at the age of 10. 40 years later I have a career in IT spanning a quarter of a century, and more importantly still a massive geek 😊

@CooChewGames

2 жыл бұрын

OMG - I have a twin :-D

@xPowerdriverx

2 жыл бұрын

Same here!

@1pcfred

2 жыл бұрын

I had to buy my ZX81 myself. I got one when they were closing them out for $19.95. I had fun with it. Never turned into any career for me though. I think I might have been about 19 at the time? I can't remember it was so long ago.

@magua-zf4md

Жыл бұрын

First ever computing machine under my fingers (borrowed by a professional) and...oh boy those keys... moved to a zx16 soon after (it costed here in Italy one month salary of my beloved daddy) It was really the start of my IT lifetime

RIP Clive Sinclair. Thank you for all Sir !

This was my first computer, which i got for Christmas in 1981, and spent the next week hassling my parents to use the tv for the computer, I ended up using all my Christmas money, and help from my dad to purchase a second hand B&W portable tele so i could use ii in my room !

@joefish6091

2 жыл бұрын

It's amazing how expensive electronics was back then (compared to average UK wages), even for basic stuff like 14" b&w TVs.

"They can go into storage for when the world switches back to RF." Now I know what a true retro enthusiast dreams about at night.

RMC with a ZX81 thumbnail. Be still my heart

ZX81 started my interest in computers and a Software Engineering career to continues to this day. My Dad made a wooden clamp to hold the RAM pack still. RIP Sir Clive.

A friend of mine got one for Christmas way back when. He got into programming and got me inspired to learn. It lead me down the path of buying a Sinclair QL - not too many kids at the time wrote school work on computers back then...

Manufactured literally 10 minutes walk from my house, in the Timex factory in Dundee.

My good friend had a ZX81 and soon got himself a ZX Spectrum and these devices were my introduction to computers and programming.

Still have my model 😋 mint condition in the box, I bought mine when I was 10 with paper round money 💰 thats why I've looked after it so well, hard earned money

The ZX81 was my first computer and the only reason we could ever get a computer... an amazing piece of hardware that still really kicks in the nostalgia like nothing else does.

I recently had a fairly big project restoring mine recently, I found it sans casing and keyboard in a box at my Parent's house when cleaning things up. Decided to make a 3D printed casing and a keyboard using MX cherry key switches, found some ZX81 keycap stickers. Replaced the 7805 regulator to a more efficient switching type which allowed me to lose the large heat-sink, Upgraded the memory to 16k internally using a hardware hack I found online, gave it Composite video with a slighty different mod than the one you guys used. I could have easily just bought one for cheaper than all the work I put into it, but this was literally the computer that sparked my interest in computers, so felt it needed a little love.

@wmcbrine

2 жыл бұрын

I saw someone claim that since the output of the regulator was just 5V, they replaced it with just a USB connector for power. I can't vouch for it though.

@PuffyRainbowCloud

2 жыл бұрын

@@wmcbrine That's so clever! You could even run it off of a power bank or the USB port on the back of a modern TV if you wanted to.

@roygillotti4615

2 жыл бұрын

@@wmcbrine Suppose that would work and I know the current draw is not much. I'd only really be concerned if plugging it into USB AC adapter as those can be dodgy at times.

@1pcfred

2 жыл бұрын

That 7805 sure got hot. That scrap of aluminum was not a large heatsink either. Not for how hard that chip was working.

The ZX81 was my first home computer, it was actually a ZX80 that had been upgraded. Loved to use the 16k ram pack but always careful not to knock it as they always crashed easily. Lovely memories. Thanks Guys

It is so satisfying to see how cautiously you make computers repairs. Thanks !

My first computer. Dad bought it for my 5th birthday. Loved coding in Basic (started out following those guide books for animations and simple games). Gutted when it and the Ram pack melted for no reason a few months into owning it.

@1pcfred

2 жыл бұрын

Ah computers. Bring dejection to users for decades now. So much disappointment with them.

I really like the back and forth between you both as you describe the work on the board, keeps it interesting. Great job guys

My first computer , tip for anyone that wants to use one with the 16k ram pack.... get a BIG block of blutack you will need it , stick a lump under the ram pack and a lump under the rear part of the ZX ( I rolled it out into a "sausage" so it didn't wobble the case ) and press fairly firmly into the blutack ( with the ram pack plugged in so its all secure ) it you don't do this you WILL be playing a game and you will touch the computer and it will wobble the ram pack and reset the entire machine......... been there done that got fed up with it and eventually bought a Spectrum lol

This is arguably the first episode I watched that featured Mark, and I absolutely love him and the editing job done to make the video and banter flow. Wonderful work, as always.

Thanks for making me feel old. 😉 I was 12 in 1981.

@Jaw0lf

2 жыл бұрын

Same here!! Borrowed one from school for a weekend and filled the 1k memory with a plane bombing game!

@Regaljester75

2 жыл бұрын

In 1981 you were twice my age. In 2021, six years difference is pocket change, relatively speaking. I forget my point…. But there is a point…I think 🤔 Namaste 🙏

@1pcfred

2 жыл бұрын

I was 4 years older than 12 in 1981. I do feel old today too. But only if I think about it, or try to move.

Two top blokes with two great KZread channels working together to bring us amazing videos. THANK YOU!!!

My first ever computer at the age of 4 (1981) and still have in my room today. Fond memories as I came home from playschool to play Space Invaders and an another side scrolling shooter game. In 1985 my brother and sister bought an Atari 800 XL which was an awesome machine I used for many years up until 1992 and still have today also.

The very first computer I ever used was this little beauty.

Loved this episode, thanks guys! And love the ZX81, my first computer was a Spectrum later on but my friend's dad had a ZX81 and when I saw him play 3D Monster Maze my mind was blown.

I know a few people are saying they didn't like the banter but I enjoyed it. Great video guys.

@sircompo

2 жыл бұрын

Agreed. Whilst I was an early skeptic I'm coming around to it, especially with the innuendo dialed back.

My First computer :) Bought it myself - Saved up for ages :) My Pals Dad had a Sharp MZ80K which was the first computer I used. BUT THE ZX81 WAS all mine !!! I cant wait to watch this... :)

I remember getting one of these for Chrismas, my first computer, classic, I also had a 16k memopak

Proper, proper nostalgia! I was 7 in 1981 & a family friend had a ZX81 he'd built from kit form. It was all baffling and exciting, as I'd never had any exposure to computers before that. I remember thinking it was a similar thing to what an electronics or CB radio enthusiast would have been tinkering with. I eventually got my own ZX Spectrum a few years later.

I remember my first view of one on a school fair. Was instantly swooned i then became obsessed with news of the soon to come spectrum. The style of that case though I really thought it was the future. Thanks

I really enjoy this channel I love to learn new things about older computers & seeing them get refurbished & brought back to life .

Sports-Style commentary is spot on ;-) Almost feels like hearing a cricket or snooker match on the radio!

Great restoration and review. As I live in the US I had the Timex Sinclair 1000. It is basically the same machine with NTSC and 2 KB or RAM. There were two issues that I was able to fix: 1) It was famous for overheating so I went to a local metal shop and got a new heat sink created that is twice is long. There is plenty of space inside the computer and it made a significant improvement. 2) The RAM pack wobble was fixed by going to the same metal shop. I had the man cut down a sheet of stainless steel, not quite as wide as the expansion port. It was bent so that the stainless steel extended to the bottom of the chassis and was riveted on it. There was a small bent part that went inside the chassis about 0.5-1.0 inches that acted as a tension spring to hold the expansion module steady. I do not have the machine anymore. I hope that this explains what was done.

Way back in the 80's when I got my ZX-81, I opened the case and immediately modified the RF modulator turning the video output into composit. It worked great and it lasted for a very long time.

I got a TS-1000 for Christmas in 1985 when I was in 3rd grade. It was a fun little system and I spend hours typing in programs out of books. Fast forward to today it is amazing what the demo scene has done for this little computer.

You two are always a delight to watch

My dad started on a ZX81 before being instead offered a Spectrum from the store because the 81 kept failing. I remember one particular all-text adventure game I never managed to track down as to try on an emulator. The game name was a fictitious city where you had to escape over the city wall once you had acquired a ladder from a store. Before that something about a lamp in a sewer I think. To a rather young me it was amazing, like a book, creating the imagery while reading and typing those simple commands. That's how I learned to read English before we had it in school (not my native language). You already covered the most memorable games so I don't have anything else to add.

Never had a 81, somehow it makes me want to pick one up and restore it.

Enjoyed this one. The very first computer I had - I was given it as a Christmas present when I was 6. The fact that I've gone from Darlington, to Silicon Valley is down to this machine and the fascination with electronics it started for me. I was given a refurbished one for Christmas last year. I still love it.

@realhumanist71

Жыл бұрын

I got mine for Christmas, too! I loved that little computer. It wasn't the first home computer I used (my brother had a TRS-80) but it was the first one *I* owned. I'm jealous that you got a refurb model! They're quite expensive now if you can locate them.

Awesome video, guys! I *REALLY* enjoyed it! I had a ZX81 when I was a teenager, here in Canada. I believe my big brother gave it to me (bought it for me?). The years have NOT been kind to my memory, unfortunately. I didn't have the RAM expansion, but, boy, I LOVED that little computer to death! That was my FIRST 'PC,' and I was OVER THE MOON! Before that, my only experience with computers was 'computer camp' up at the university one summer, when I was 10 or 11 maybe (maybe a little older)? It was a mainframe, of course, and you inputted data using punch cards. It was SOOOOO EXCITING for a little, geeky kid!

wow zx81 was my fist delve into computers when i was 13

Awesome episode guys… these repair to play vids are the best

Neil is settling into the new cave quite nicely thankyou

The ZX81 (or TS1000 as it's known here) is my favorite retro gaming computer. Especially with the ZXpand with its ram upgrade, reset button, and sdcard slot.

Thanks for making me feel old, I was 25 in 1981. I bought the ZX81 kit for £79.99 directly from Sinclair and the wobbly 16k RAM pack and thermal printer from WH Smith. Soldering the chips to the board was pretty exacting work, I doubt I could do it now. Happy days.

I had Timex 2048 ,loading games from polish tape recorder Kasprzak. Later upgrade to double floppy drive. It was in 1987. It was was my first computer..Beautiful times

ZX81 was the computer that got me into computers. I saved my $150 for computer, 16 KB RAM and some games. I ended using the computer mostly for programing in BASIC and machine language (yes, I poked numbers representing instructions into memory locations individually). I was a finalist in a science fair creating graphical represent of the gas laws (the user press keys to move a graphic of top of piston to increase or decrease the volume and the screen printed out the pressure in the piston) and simulation of a virus attacking cell. Thanks for an excellent video.

Wow, I still have my one, somewhere in the garage with a thermal printer and paper! And a few accounting programs. Loved the episode, thanks guys.

OMG that was my first computer!! I paid $99 for it from my job at McDonalds in 1982. Over the next year I spent most of my checks on it!!! First I got a flat black and silver cassette recorder from Radio Shack. Next I got a 16K add on but it wasn't Timex's 16K block. Mine was form fitted along the whole back side of the unit. Next I bought a full size real keyboard for it that was a bit heavy in a metal case and sat right in front of the unit with a thin cable from it into the unit right above the 5 & 6. Next I bought the Timex 2040 printer and the last thing I bought was an io device that was form fitting along the whole back behind the 16K pack. I can't even remember what I got the io thing for? Then it all came to a stop in September or October 1983 when I saw a full page add for the Commodore 64 in a home computer magazine. I had seen adds before but it had cost $595 and I thought Id never be able to buy it. This was the same full page add I had seen before but across the top was something about a price drop to $229!!! I had at least $400 into my Timex/Sinclair and it could never be as good as the C64!! I remember the two biggest things that the C64 had that I wanted was color and sound (Awesome sound chip!). That is my story of loving my Timex/Sinclair 1000 to being all in as a Commodore 64 lover and my Timex/Sinclair being all boxed back up (OCD about taking care of all my items boxes!!!) and sitting in the back of my closet.

My first computer at age 21 was a ZX81 prebuilt. I “solved” my ram pack wobble with an elastic band. Incidentally I have a book-49 Explosive Games for the ZX81. My connection with the little machine continues as I have a ZX81 app on my IPad so I can have a bit of old style fun when I want to.

Brill vid …..it’s the first home computer I ever used and it blew my mind back then …I’d love to own one now if I’m honest …beautiful design

Another great video. Thanks Neil.

@RMCRetro

2 жыл бұрын

Thank YOU!

Our first computer. Dad was the default computer teacher at his school so we did get e.g. a Commodore PET (portable) at home on loan for a while whilst he tried to stay one lesson ahead of the class, but this was the first one we owned. Yes we had the 16k ram pack.

I got a ZX81 from a distant relative when I was a kid. It didn't work, and all I could do was peer at the components in amazement. Years later after all my engineering degrees, I remembered the ZX81 and realized I had the skills to fix it myself. But I could never find it at my parents' house. Watching this video brought back bittersweet memories :sigh:

My ZX81 is sitting on my bookshelf right next to a Raspberry Pi 400. I lived in Massachusetts at the time and purchased the kit out of the UK (of course). If I remember correctly the add was on the back page of an electronics magazine. I could have sworn that I ordered it in late 1980, though that was a long time ago and I'm getting old. I have 2 ZX81's, a Timex Sinclair 1000, a 1500, a Sinclair QL, a Timex Sinclair printer and a few RAM modules in my collection. Those were the days :-)

"It belongs in a museum!"

@sixdegreesofcrispybacon

2 жыл бұрын

I *knew* someone would get here before me! Curse my metal body. I wasn't fast enough.

This is how I started back in 1982

You would be amazed how you can get used to typing on that keyboard. I used to have mine just sitting on carpet, never really had to worry about the wobble for whatever reason. I would just swipe my finger back and forth over the surface, just briefly stopping and pressing slightly to get keys to activate. I could code surprisingly fast that way. You can get used to anything I suppose is the message there.

@TheFusedplug

2 жыл бұрын

Cool man ! Just going to mention wildly exaggerated "things" : ZX81 Wobble thing "Bag of cement stopped the Ford Capri arsing out" "Spectrum games took an hour to load then crashed" Mostly said by non owners of all 3 :) They just wanted to "join in" on something they were never part of

@gabrielirlanda

7 ай бұрын

I remember my brother welded each key to a second hand Amstrad qwerty keyboard, that was pretty clever.

your show has gotten to the point where my scalp tingles when i watch you guys!

@RMCRetro

2 жыл бұрын

Blimey...I hope that's a good thing!?

@demonsty

2 жыл бұрын

@@RMCRetro it is i love your show!

Wow! There were very few of these in kit form here in the USA but I bought one (well my dad since I was twelve and didn't have the just over $150 USD purchase price for one) - it was my second kit I'd put together with my father and it was great fun. I don't know where that Sinclair ever went to but a couple years later after I'd gotten my first VIC-20 I'd been able to get a Timex Sinclair from a friend who didn't want his after he'd "upgraded" to an Atari 400. Great times. I think I only had a few pieces of software purchased - the majority was from BASIC books either from the library or computer magazines at the time. The membrane keyboard made any sort of game play a bit difficult but heck it was a computer and that was something until color and more advanced graphics became more obtainable...

Hello Gents - First computer was a Timex/Sinclair 1000 over here in the US. My Dad got it for me when I was 13 in a supermarket of all places in 1983! I still have two of them, not really a complete kit but I also have the 16K ram pack. It started it all for me. Also had a T/S 2068 that I wish I still had oh well. Gotta give a huge thumbs up. I learned BASIC and machine code on it. Made some software and played games of course too. Great little machine. I even tried my own keyboard mod by taping keys from an old kids typewriter I had to it (lots of sanding and filing) until I got an aftermarket keyboard for it.

My first computer when I was 10!

In the middle 80's I was at a concert where the lighting rig was controlled by a ZX81 through some kind of expansion pack. It was really fun to see the lighting engineer type the commands to load up the next sequence on the "horrible little keyboard" (his words, not mine!) A couple of months later at the same venue, a different band was using a BBC micro to play the kick drum parts because the drummer was still learning and couldn't work the hi-hat and the kick drum at the same time!

This reminds me of the TV show This Old House, but with computers.

Ram pack wobble, 3D Monster Maze and Catacombs.... ah the nostalgia... :-)

First home computer - I used it to learn to program, play flight sim and yes, monster maze. I had the Memopak (16k) and I hated it when I sold it to finance an Oric. I still have the replacement I bought and it still works. Never programmed anything as much as I programmed my little ZX. Interested in Marks gadget though - I'd love to get the thing out and back in use

With my grandparents' help, I bought one of these the summer of 1982. I used to have the 16k ram pack. I'm in the process of restoring it, as that keyboard ribbon tore, and I've lost the case screws. The guy at assembled it at the factory signed and dated the 7805 heat sink. It was assembled on Christmas Day, 1981.

Still loving this format with the two of you :) And the hairdryer joke had me in fits of laughter :-D

@14:08 I used to have that exact version of Space Invaders on my ZX81 along with a game called Bomber on the same cassette. Oh the memories! :)

Zx81 was my first machine. Exchanged for a Spectrum. Rampack wobble memories...

excellent video!

Yes it had its faults but it got me started on a computing/electronics career which I have to thank it and Sinclair for.

My first ever computer followed up by a real keyboard and Ram pack, they used to run quite warm so I replaced the heatsink with a bigger piece of metal !!

I had 2 x 16k Memotek RAMPAKs and a Memotek keyboard. Living the dream!

Even though it was older than me by a few years, this was my first computer. I don't remember any games for it, as we didn't have a RAM pack or a tape deck. But we did have a chunky manual filled with code and we had to type in our own games on the thing... every time we wanted to play. We didn't get much use out of it before we got an NES and Amiga, honestly.

The very first game I played on a home computer was Viper on the ZX81. Happy days :)

ZX sinclair spectrum and BBC Micro both are my favourite computers.

One simple hack on the ZX81 was to switch between FAST and SLOW mode multiple times. This would generate sounds on a machine that has no speaker. If you selected the sequence of FAST/SLOW changes correctly, you could play different notes.

@TheTurnipKing

2 жыл бұрын

Would that still work on a modern TV though?

@joernc

2 жыл бұрын

@@TheTurnipKing I didn't get the details on the replaced modulator, but I guess that will be a problem for this specific machine.

I like how you even have Mark doing your ad's now....:-) Just giving shit. I love when you and Mark collab!

Another fine episode from the Cannon and Ball of 8 bit restoration ;)

This was my first computer, I did get the 16K RAM PACK, I was a very young lad and my parents got it for me from Debenhams, back then they had a computer sections. Had 3D maze and flight simulator and the chess game most of the time I spent typing in games from books. Actually sold it to a chap that was going to use it for accounting for his business, then I moved to Vic20 that gathered dust as I didn't like it much then I went ATARI 8-bit and never looked back. Had almost all the machines ATARI made. But I did like the simple ZX81, will get one again one day just to hang on the wall.

What a lovely video. The ZX81 was our first computer, bought second-hand by my Mum. Type-ins on the ZX81 were fun... RAM Pack wobble was bad so I would just stick to the 1K games. But the games were fun. Dodgems was excellent. We loved Rocket Man with the AMAZING graphics... when we could get the bastard thing to load. And when it DID load it would crash. Loading on the ZX81 was SO SLOW....

Back in the day the old RS Catalogue sold kits for the ZX81. A sound board and a Hi-Res board. Worth a look if you can still find an old 80's RS Catalogue.

Another excellent video and I was happy to see the ZX81 get some TLC. My ZX81 typically has a myriad of add-ons bolted onto it to the point where the only thing the machine is doing is running the ROM while everything else does the heavy lifting. The peripherals I use are the ZXpand SD Card reader, the Chroma 81 for RGB colour output, RAM and joystick port as well as the Quicksilva character set for their arcade games. One of which was featured on this video as it was wrongly described as a type in game of asteroids. Finally I do use a Memotech external keyboard to avoid using the dreaded touch panel thing that the ZX81 has as its primary interface.

That poor ZX81, spending its entire long existence in bits.

You can fix the keyboard membrane connection by trimming it with scissors, I've had to do it multiple times on the Spectrum.

@wmcbrine

2 жыл бұрын

I was going to say this... as long as the cable's not already too short (or maybe brittle with age), you can trim it repeatedly and reinsert it. At some point, it does get too short (ask me how I know).

@1pcfred

2 жыл бұрын

I fixed the keyboard by grafting a surplus keyboard from Radio Shack onto my ZX81. I replaced that flat ribbon with a rainbow ribbon cable. It all worked great but spewed out RF interference. So it was not exactly an approved mod.

When I was a kid, my dad and mom agreed to allow my father to purchase a Timex Sinclair shortly after they were released in the US. He was very excited and I remember when he hooked it up and loaded Flight Simulator, which I believe was the real reason he bought the system, just to play this sim. Between the RF and the old black and white TV we were using, I thought Load "Flight" said "Lord of Flight". It is great to see you get your model working and some games loaded, but you cannot really experience the Sinclair unless you program your own games from the Sinclair magazine. I would love to see you release a video of you trying to get a few of the games from the magazines programmed and working. I remember a version of Asteroids with square rocks which was still amazing because I personally keyed the program.

Bel video,hai fatto un buon lavoro allo ZX81

The Timex-Sinclair 1000 was my first computer. I dabbled in machine language back then and had a piggyback device that allowed you to connect an Atari 2600 joystick with a little bit of code to use it in homebrew games. BTW, I found this for your TZXDUINO. I can probably print one up for you if you like.

My first computer.

Protip: there are dupont test cables with male and female connectors, they are excellent for testing and allow skipping the tedious part of cutting, stripping and tinning cables. Said that, nice restoration.

I remember the ram pack wobble well after long periods of typing programs from input magazines to loose it all and start over again if I remember I got a DK Tronics keyboard upgrade many hours of fun and also my first computer for a Xmas gift at the age of 7 years old that began my love if computers

You can tell what I thought of my ZX81 (which was my first proper computer after using my Grandfathers Tandy Scorecard) which I received as a Christmas present in 1983 (I was 10) as its final resting place was in the swimming pool in the garden (sounds grander than it was, it was a 5ft tall circular metal ring with a thick plastic inner which was dug into the garden, took ages to fill from the hose pipe) after I threw it from my bedroom window.... I hated it and thankfully Christmas 1984 resulted in the spangly new ZX spectrum which I still love to this day.

Nice vid. I have a beautiful 1 owner from new early issue one with no back porch, bugged rom, and the “piggy back” board that fixes the bug sitting over the CPU. It’s completely original and works perfectly. Also got a MemoPak 16k for it.

My first computer I mail ordered from England. (came assembled). I wrote so many programs with that thing even with the glitchy 16k memory pack. I only had one program for it (a flight sim).

Ah this brings back memories. There was a great flight SIM game made for this, think it was by Psion, who made a fair few games for the Zx81 and Speccy back in the day.

my dad made me a wooden board that my zx81 and 16k ram pack clicked into when i was 11 (1981), thing is i never heard of ram wobble until i was in my 40s so my dads idea fixed a problem we never knew about.

The exterior colour scheme of red, white and black and flat touch sensitive keys is iconic.

blimey that modulator box was pristine condition..

Another great ‘Mark is Neil’s Treasure’ episode.