Vintage CompuPro SC816A S - 100 Computer Hard Disk 8 " Floppy
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:585261 | Model: SC816A |
| Brand: CompuPro / Godbout / Viasyn | Type: S-100 |
Working vintage S-100 computer made by CompuPro/Godbout, later named Viasyn,
model SC816A, motherboard has 20 slots for S-100 cards, with 6 cards:
CPU card that has both 8085 and 8088 CPUs, RAM 20 card with 256KB
(kilobytes NOT megabytes), Interfacer 4 card, System Support card,
Disk 1 floppy controller card, Disk 3 hard disk controller card.
In a separate case with its own power supply: Qume 8-inch floppy drive,
Quantum Q540 40MB hard disk - that's 40 megabytes NO...T gigabytes.
Hard disk interface to controller is ST-506 compatible.
1 centronics parallel/printer port and 4 25-pin RS-232 serial ports.
Comes with a version of Microsoft PC-DOS adapted for Compupro which runs
text-based IBM PC software, but input and display are through a text-only
RS-232 serial port, there's NO way to plug in a PC keyboard or get any graphics
other than ASCII graphics, no graphic software will work, though if I recall
correctly there were S-100 boards made that emulated IBM PC graphics so that
might be possible if you can find one of those.
This system predates VGA, any normal modern monitor will NOT work.
If you don't have an RS-232/serial/ASCII terminal/monitor/display/keyboard you
can run terminal emulator software on another computer that has a serial port
and display and keyboard, or various programs designed for serial-port modems
may work. Hyperterminal/hypertrm that comes with Windows 98 and Windows XP
work, you can also try open-source TeraTerm.
Windows 7 Pro comes with a version of Windows XP.
The RS-232 cable needs to connect straight through - a null-modem does not work.
It worked with 9600 bps 8 bits no parity 1 stop, no flow control;
other flow control options may also work.
If you don't have a serial port try an RS-232/serial-to-USB adapter.
The last 3 photos show screenshots demonstrating it boots and runs PCDOS
and can access the hard disk and shows the amount of RAM and shows you can
type a command into Hypertrm and it executes it, but the monitor they are
displayed on is not for sale. The hard disk has multiple partitions (both
MSDOS/FAT and CP/M) so the chkdsk output does not tell the hard disk size.
This particular computer was purchased after the IBM PC came out, but this
line of computers came on the market before the IBM PC did, so their design
and architecture pre-date the PC.
With boot floppies and manuals/documentation for Disk 3, Interfacer 4,
Support 1, PC-PRO, Quantum hard disk.
Original cost $7040 in 1983 + $395 for PC-PRO.
The battery to keep the clock is dead but included so you can see the exact
type to get.
The original fan filter material disintegrated and has been replaced by nylon
netting.
Worked fine on normal AC power of the type in practically all homes & offices,
but if you plan on using a different type of power such as a non-sine-wave
inverter (which may be part of some off-grid solar systems) be aware that the
CompuPro power supply is NOT a switching supply as practically all modern
computers have; it has a big transformer and may be linear or may be
ferro-resonant? I'm not sure of the type but with a different ride-through
characteristic it may or may not like a modified pulse waveform that sits at
zero for a significant part of the cycle, so before plugging it in to a
non-sine-wave power source it should be figured out whether it's compatible.
The total weight is over 84 pounds - there's a lot of metal in there.
Photos are zoomable for a close-up view.
model SC816A, motherboard has 20 slots for S-100 cards, with 6 cards:
CPU card that has both 8085 and 8088 CPUs, RAM 20 card with 256KB
(kilobytes NOT megabytes), Interfacer 4 card, System Support card,
Disk 1 floppy controller card, Disk 3 hard disk controller card.
In a separate case with its own power supply: Qume 8-inch floppy drive,
Quantum Q540 40MB hard disk - that's 40 megabytes NO...T gigabytes.
Hard disk interface to controller is ST-506 compatible.
1 centronics parallel/printer port and 4 25-pin RS-232 serial ports.
Comes with a version of Microsoft PC-DOS adapted for Compupro which runs
text-based IBM PC software, but input and display are through a text-only
RS-232 serial port, there's NO way to plug in a PC keyboard or get any graphics
other than ASCII graphics, no graphic software will work, though if I recall
correctly there were S-100 boards made that emulated IBM PC graphics so that
might be possible if you can find one of those.
This system predates VGA, any normal modern monitor will NOT work.
If you don't have an RS-232/serial/ASCII terminal/monitor/display/keyboard you
can run terminal emulator software on another computer that has a serial port
and display and keyboard, or various programs designed for serial-port modems
may work. Hyperterminal/hypertrm that comes with Windows 98 and Windows XP
work, you can also try open-source TeraTerm.
Windows 7 Pro comes with a version of Windows XP.
The RS-232 cable needs to connect straight through - a null-modem does not work.
It worked with 9600 bps 8 bits no parity 1 stop, no flow control;
other flow control options may also work.
If you don't have a serial port try an RS-232/serial-to-USB adapter.
The last 3 photos show screenshots demonstrating it boots and runs PCDOS
and can access the hard disk and shows the amount of RAM and shows you can
type a command into Hypertrm and it executes it, but the monitor they are
displayed on is not for sale. The hard disk has multiple partitions (both
MSDOS/FAT and CP/M) so the chkdsk output does not tell the hard disk size.
This particular computer was purchased after the IBM PC came out, but this
line of computers came on the market before the IBM PC did, so their design
and architecture pre-date the PC.
With boot floppies and manuals/documentation for Disk 3, Interfacer 4,
Support 1, PC-PRO, Quantum hard disk.
Original cost $7040 in 1983 + $395 for PC-PRO.
The battery to keep the clock is dead but included so you can see the exact
type to get.
The original fan filter material disintegrated and has been replaced by nylon
netting.
Worked fine on normal AC power of the type in practically all homes & offices,
but if you plan on using a different type of power such as a non-sine-wave
inverter (which may be part of some off-grid solar systems) be aware that the
CompuPro power supply is NOT a switching supply as practically all modern
computers have; it has a big transformer and may be linear or may be
ferro-resonant? I'm not sure of the type but with a different ride-through
characteristic it may or may not like a modified pulse waveform that sits at
zero for a significant part of the cycle, so before plugging it in to a
non-sine-wave power source it should be figured out whether it's compatible.
The total weight is over 84 pounds - there's a lot of metal in there.
Photos are zoomable for a close-up view.
