ZX Spectrum issue 1 testing
Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2018 2:55 pm
Hi all,
After years of trying to find one, I finally bought an issue 1 Spectrum last year along with an original Sinclair RAM 32 board. The Spectrum itself was in nice physical condition and after a very careful opening of the case I was able to detatch the original keyboard membrain which was still intact without damaging it. It hasn't been tested at all so I wanted to make sure to do the initial tests before attempting to power it on. I've never worked on an issue 1 before, are there any different steps I should take testing the board compared to the later Spectrum boards?
The RAM 32 board was separate and both of its connectors had some broken pins, one of the connectors had a poor repair with a thicker wire soldered offset to the original pin by the original owner. I'd like to replace both the connectors. I haven't yet found anything suitable in the UK although I did find one that could possibly be suitable on digikey but they are extremely expensive:
https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/ ... -ND/473245
I suppose I should look at dealing with the RAM 32 once I know that the Spectrum itself is functional.
Here's a photo of the worst of the two connectors with its previous poor repair of several pins
After years of trying to find one, I finally bought an issue 1 Spectrum last year along with an original Sinclair RAM 32 board. The Spectrum itself was in nice physical condition and after a very careful opening of the case I was able to detatch the original keyboard membrain which was still intact without damaging it. It hasn't been tested at all so I wanted to make sure to do the initial tests before attempting to power it on. I've never worked on an issue 1 before, are there any different steps I should take testing the board compared to the later Spectrum boards?
The RAM 32 board was separate and both of its connectors had some broken pins, one of the connectors had a poor repair with a thicker wire soldered offset to the original pin by the original owner. I'd like to replace both the connectors. I haven't yet found anything suitable in the UK although I did find one that could possibly be suitable on digikey but they are extremely expensive:
https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/ ... -ND/473245
I suppose I should look at dealing with the RAM 32 once I know that the Spectrum itself is functional.
Here's a photo of the worst of the two connectors with its previous poor repair of several pins