Oh man, this took me back to 1981 big time! We sold these at the first company I worked for in the U.K. I owned one and spent hours programming EPROMS with custom character sets. I have such great memories of that time. Every day was a voyage of discovery. Fast forward 20 years and while clearing the garage my wife convinced me to throw it away. I’ve regretted it ever since. Thanks for your great video. It really took me back.
I've always wanted to see these 70s SBCs reproduced. Way before my time, but historically significant. Really nice to see. Despite its age, you'd still be learning a lot about low-level computing, something you rarely see anymore.
its pretty fun to go back to our first machines. In 1977 our school district was donated an HP2000 from HP to be shared among the three high schools. In the next three years we had a variety of micros that we learned on, SOL-20, PET, and a SWTPC 6809. It was a lot of fun.
Great video Jeff! I had never even heard of the Superboard II (though I had seen the Challenger somewhere -- i think) until I met Vince Briel at the Maker Faire in San Francisco in 2012. He told me he was thinking of making a PET replica but when he saw that I was working on one (Propeddle) he started on making the SuperBoard III. I had the honor of assisting him with some of the Propeller code. The SuperBoard II is a simple machine but it's remarkably versatile. I would have loved to have owned one back in the day.
Always great to see another OSI machine replicated. At this rate, we'll have the whole product line back in production within the decade! Stellar work.
My dad brought an early one back from the States and we built up a 32K system over time - eventually with an RX-01 8" floppy drive from a PDP-11 which fell off a truck. Good times. It drew so much power, when overclocked to 2MHz, I had to cool the thing with fans and heatsinks! I think, from memory, we were paying about $25 for each 2114 memory chip - at only 512 bytes per chip!! Edit: with help from the local gurus at DIGITAL I believe we were able to get the RX01 drive to RW at 480KB per side for a total of 960K, on each IBM diskette. After 1KB/s via cassette, it was miraculous.
Nicely presented. About the same time (very early 80’s), my first disk operating system was OS-9 on a home built 6809 system. Those were exciting times, when getting everything going was always a challenging (and fun) experience of building and debugging your own hardware and software. 🤓
I lusted after a 610 board + floppy for my SB-II back in the day... Well out of my price range. Nice to see a replica board out in the world. I managed to get one of Mr Briels SB-III machines a few years ago, and have wondered if there would ever be a 610 add on for it. Cheers for putting this video out. Much Nostalgic :)
A very nice presentation. A couple of minor errors I noticed: 1) Both ports of the PIA on the 610 board are used by the floppy disk interface, and 2) Pico-Dos as shipped required 13 k, some RAM was needed on the 610 board. (OSI claimed it would run with 12 k, but that was only true if the sector on Track 1 was shortened to just 6 "pages".)
Thank you for posting the video. I remember wanting to buy this model of computer and had begun sourcing parts for the power supply beginning with a whopping big electrolytic capacitor given to me by a company that was making switching power supplies for the IBM personal computer. I now remember I had seen the computer at Arkon on Queen St. They had a demo running on the computer which consisted of a few characters simulating a Star Trek beam up. That's what enticed me.
Excellent - many thanks. The SBII was my first machine; I think that at the time I was the youngest kiwi to have their own computer. I had to get a friend to buy it for me overseas and then 'sneak' it into NZ, wrapped in foil, stuffed under his jacket. I'm glad he was able to do this, as the duty and tax would have been horrendous. I couldn't afford a TV or monitor for a while, so I had to entertain myself by sitting a radio on the PC board and typing in FOR...NEXT loops to make sounds. So manmy happy hours of discovery. later on, after leaving school, I purchased a C4PMF at a cost of NZ$4400 in 1980. It took me a long time to pay that off!
@@RetroDawn He was able to buy it for me in Austrailia - no personal computers were available at all in little old New Zealand at the time. I've since managed to buy a rather rough UK101 as well as a new SBII PCB, so eventually I'm going to try to transfer over the components and cross my fingers that it will go...
It was my first computer before the AP II clone, good old days, my one got problem with the character generator ROM and replaced, and I 'overclock' the thing later.
This is good work. I never see Superboard 600 with 3,5“ Floppy drive. If I reactivate my board I will use SD-Card for saving Programs. I think its possible to take an ESP8266 and transfer the data from SD over serial port to the superboard.
Excellent Video Jeff. I have recently dusted off my Challenger C1P and in the middle of a restoration of it. I also have a 610 board I purchased about the same time (1979 I believe), and re-working it back to its original configuration. So many broken traces... On both boards... If you don't mind, could you post any resource links to the items you purchased, like the data separator board, 610 and 600 boards, key caps, etc... And any other documentation / resource links you used. Do you have a URL link or contact for Grant? Thanks again, very cool.
Compared to its competitors from the same era, the Ohio Scientific Superboard II offered more to the customers then many others, and still they did nor survive. The board was complete, for that time, but expanding and improving was not that easy. Other computers, like the Apple II had a bus for expansions and that made it possible to change the compete nature of the computer in minutes. The Ohio Scientific was build with the idea that you had to buy a newer en better computer soon. All singleboard computers have the same problem. Maybe if they had a bus like the Apple II things would have been different now. Then Ohio Scientific wouldn't be a brand for the cheapest of the cheapest Chinese action camera's and clock-radio's.
Cool! I never saw one of those back in the day (OSI exited the market just as I was getting into computers), so I found this a super interesting piece. Thank you for sharing! Sidenote: That power rocker on the front seems super-bumpable. I wonder why the replica creator decided to add it in that location? If I were making a replica case, I'd definitely want to add a plastic button guard over that switch given how likely it is to be accidentally flipped.
If it were going in a case, I would run a toggle somewhere safe, the footprint is for a tiny slide switch. The superboard was a caseless version of a C1P
Yes, I've seen that done. Would need to find room on the existing PCB for the circuity. A switch has the advantage that it remembers the state when powered down.
i haven't had boards for a while , but if there is enough interest i could do some more, keycaps is another story, i believe there is a 12-18 month wait for the custom double shots.
BASIC rom #4 is required. I spent all weekend repairing one a friend gave me and I just got it working. It had a bad monitor eprom and it was a 2708 custom rom to allow 48 columns. I burned a new one onto a 2716 and rerouted the pins as needed. It’s all working perfectly and has 48columns 😀
I got mine running and now I’m making it into a “laptop” or portable. It’s almost done. I’ll make a video of it when completed and post on the OSI forum.
Oh man, this took me back to 1981 big time!
We sold these at the first company I worked for in the U.K.
I owned one and spent hours programming EPROMS with custom character sets.
I have such great memories of that time. Every day was a voyage of discovery.
Fast forward 20 years and while clearing the garage my wife convinced me to throw it away. I’ve regretted it ever since.
Thanks for your great video. It really took me back.
I've always wanted to see these 70s SBCs reproduced. Way before my time, but historically significant. Really nice to see. Despite its age, you'd still be learning a lot about low-level computing, something you rarely see anymore.
Same, I'd love to be able to build my own Ohio Scientific Superboard
I still have my first computer, an OSI Challenger 1P MF, which my parents bought for me in the late 70's. I really need to dig it out and restore it.
Thank you for sharing this. My dad and I watch videos like this together. He's still a software developer, and I he passed it down to me.
its pretty fun to go back to our first machines. In 1977 our school district was donated an HP2000 from HP to be shared among the three high schools. In the next three years we had a variety of micros that we learned on, SOL-20, PET, and a SWTPC 6809. It was a lot of fun.
Great video Jeff!
I had never even heard of the Superboard II (though I had seen the Challenger somewhere -- i think) until I met Vince Briel at the Maker Faire in San Francisco in 2012. He told me he was thinking of making a PET replica but when he saw that I was working on one (Propeddle) he started on making the SuperBoard III. I had the honor of assisting him with some of the Propeller code.
The SuperBoard II is a simple machine but it's remarkably versatile. I would have loved to have owned one back in the day.
Thank you for the video. The superboard II was my first computer. I wish I still had it 😢
Always great to see another OSI machine replicated. At this rate, we'll have the whole product line back in production within the decade! Stellar work.
My dad brought an early one back from the States and we built up a 32K system over time - eventually with an RX-01 8" floppy drive from a PDP-11 which fell off a truck. Good times. It drew so much power, when overclocked to 2MHz, I had to cool the thing with fans and heatsinks!
I think, from memory, we were paying about $25 for each 2114 memory chip - at only 512 bytes per chip!!
Edit: with help from the local gurus at DIGITAL I believe we were able to get the RX01 drive to RW at 480KB per side for a total of 960K, on each IBM diskette. After 1KB/s via cassette, it was miraculous.
Nicely presented. About the same time (very early 80’s), my first disk operating system was OS-9 on a home built 6809 system. Those were exciting times, when getting everything going was always a challenging (and fun) experience of building and debugging your own hardware and software. 🤓
I lusted after a 610 board + floppy for my SB-II back in the day... Well out of my price range. Nice to see a replica board out in the world.
I managed to get one of Mr Briels SB-III machines a few years ago, and have wondered if there would ever be a 610 add on for it.
Cheers for putting this video out. Much Nostalgic :)
A very nice presentation. A couple of minor errors I noticed:
1) Both ports of the PIA on the 610 board are used by the floppy disk interface, and
2) Pico-Dos as shipped required 13 k, some RAM was needed on the 610 board. (OSI claimed it would run with 12 k, but that was only true if the sector on Track 1 was shortened to just 6 "pages".)
Nice! I had a Challenger 1P also. But do not have it anylonger.
Thank you for posting the video. I remember wanting to buy this model of computer and had begun sourcing parts for the power supply beginning with a whopping big electrolytic capacitor given to me by a company that was making switching power supplies for the IBM personal computer. I now remember I had seen the computer at Arkon on Queen St. They had a demo running on the computer which consisted of a few characters simulating a Star Trek beam up. That's what enticed me.
When I was a child, this was the computer I wanted to get!
Excellent - many thanks. The SBII was my first machine; I think that at the time I was the youngest kiwi to have their own computer. I had to get a friend to buy it for me overseas and then 'sneak' it into NZ, wrapped in foil, stuffed under his jacket. I'm glad he was able to do this, as the duty and tax would have been horrendous. I couldn't afford a TV or monitor for a while, so I had to entertain myself by sitting a radio on the PC board and typing in FOR...NEXT loops to make sounds. So manmy happy hours of discovery. later on, after leaving school, I purchased a C4PMF at a cost of NZ$4400 in 1980. It took me a long time to pay that off!
Great story! What country was it purchased from?
@@RetroDawn He was able to buy it for me in Austrailia - no personal computers were available at all in little old New Zealand at the time.
I've since managed to buy a rather rough UK101 as well as a new SBII PCB, so eventually I'm going to try to transfer over the components and cross my fingers that it will go...
It was my first computer before the AP II clone, good old days, my one got problem with the character generator ROM and replaced, and I 'overclock' the thing later.
Ohhh.... I see you have used quality turnpin sockets. Top notch. 👍👍👍
Looking good Jeff . you just need to add the 630
Very nice setup.
This is good work. I never see Superboard 600 with 3,5“ Floppy drive. If I reactivate my board I will use SD-Card for saving Programs. I think its possible to take an ESP8266 and transfer the data from SD over serial port to the superboard.
Excellent Video Jeff.
I have recently dusted off my Challenger C1P and in the middle of a restoration of it. I also have a 610 board I purchased about the same time (1979 I believe), and re-working it back to its original configuration. So many broken traces... On both boards...
If you don't mind, could you post any resource links to the items you purchased, like the data separator board, 610 and 600 boards, key caps, etc... And any other documentation / resource links you used.
Do you have a URL link or contact for Grant?
Thanks again, very cool.
I love your Videos, so many Informationen, thanks for that❤
Compared to its competitors from the same era, the Ohio Scientific Superboard II offered more to the customers then many others, and still they did nor survive. The board was complete, for that time, but expanding and improving was not that easy. Other computers, like the Apple II had a bus for expansions and that made it possible to change the compete nature of the computer in minutes. The Ohio Scientific was build with the idea that you had to buy a newer en better computer soon. All singleboard computers have the same problem. Maybe if they had a bus like the Apple II things would have been different now. Then Ohio Scientific wouldn't be a brand for the cheapest of the cheapest Chinese action camera's and clock-radio's.
Nice stuff sir, on a side note how do you like that power supply with the LCD display, I gotta buy a few but I'm still searching the web
Reminds me of the old days when I was young with my Timex Sinclair which I removed from it's case to add a mechanical keyboard and coding pong. 😂
Arkon computers! Was that the store on Queen Street West and Spadina Ave? I bought a lot of stuff from that store back in the day too!
Cool! I never saw one of those back in the day (OSI exited the market just as I was getting into computers), so I found this a super interesting piece. Thank you for sharing!
Sidenote: That power rocker on the front seems super-bumpable. I wonder why the replica creator decided to add it in that location? If I were making a replica case, I'd definitely want to add a plastic button guard over that switch given how likely it is to be accidentally flipped.
If it were going in a case, I would run a toggle somewhere safe, the footprint is for a tiny slide switch. The superboard was a caseless version of a C1P
"If I can obtain a 5 1/4" drive" How I regret just tossing all of the old hardware I've owned over the years when I upgraded.
Shiftlock should be routed through a flip-flop.
Yes, I've seen that done. Would need to find room on the existing PCB for the circuity. A switch has the advantage that it remembers the state when powered down.
I saw on at auction a while back, made a bid but the end price of 300+ was too much for me
Back when "building a computer" meant more than connecting a few components and installing windows.
Very cool! Where did you get the boards for the replica, though? You mentioned Grant Clyball... Clighball... Clayboll... I'm not sure how to spell it.
i haven't had boards for a while , but if there is enough interest i could do some more, keycaps is another story, i believe there is a 12-18 month wait for the custom double shots.
@@klyballsvintagecomputers5531 Oh, I see.
Next to TTS, reading a script is probably as worst !
Are the basic roms required in order to get the monitor to come up ?
The monitor should work without the BASIC ROMs.
BASIC rom #4 is required. I spent all weekend repairing one a friend gave me and I just got it working. It had a bad monitor eprom and it was a 2708 custom rom to allow 48 columns. I burned a new one onto a 2716 and rerouted the pins as needed. It’s all working perfectly and has 48columns 😀
I got mine running and now I’m making it into a “laptop” or portable. It’s almost done. I’ll make a video of it when completed and post on the OSI forum.
Where did you get the keycaps?
A user on the OSI web forum had some made. I don't know if any more are available. Seeosiweb.org/osiforum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=418
There seem to be no PCB or commercial parts sources. And Briel computers don't make anything any more. Shame really.
Only in Ohio 💀
12:10 While watching this, I've set the welcome message in my .bashrc to "The system is now open for modification."