Anyone have a retro PC build?

[MrFancyPants]

It's funny how things come around full circle after being phased out, even technology. I never in a million years thought I'd be buying another super socket 7 or Intel slot 1 motherboard, yet here I am. I've been wanting to build a retro Windows 98 PC build for awhile now, because I have a brand new unopened copy of Windows 98 SE in my computer desk drawer, and I was 20 in 1998 so I got to enjoy the "golden era" of PC gaming. My very first PC was an AMD K6 200 MHz beast with 16 MB of RAM and a 2 GB hard drive running Windows 95. I think I paid just shy of $1,000 for it.

I've decided to build a few PCs so I can have a few different setups since there's not really a good "one size fits all" solution for what I want to accomplish. I haven't finished one yet since some of the parts I want are hard to come by these days, but so far I have a 3dfx Voodoo 5500 AGP, a Diamond Monster 3D Voodoo 1 PCI, a Pentium III 667 MHz slot 1 (new in the box), and a couple new IDE hard drives. My goal is to have 3 3dfx PCs, one with the 5500, one with the Voodoo 1, and another with 2 Voodoo 2 12 MB cards in SLI which I don't have yet. Why 3? Because the 3dfx games can be finicky with compatibility with different video cards.

I'm probably going to pick up a super socket 7 board and an AMD K6-2 or K6-3 CPU, and a slot A board with an AMD Athlon, or maybe a socket A with an AMD Tbird. Also going to pick up a couple SoundBlaster Live! cards and really want to go 100% legit and put everything in a beige tower, but those things are hard to find now. Anybody know of a good source besides eBay?

Just curious if anybody else has any retro gear laying around, and what you use it for. Yeah I'm pretty geeky, but I love this stuff and it's real fun taking this nostalgic trip down memory lane. I can't wait to finish building and fire up the first one and get Windows 98 SE installed along with Plus, and get back to the "inside your computer" theme, load up the original Quake and Need for Speed II SE just like the old days. Good times!

[the86d]

I run a NES (OG 8-bit) emulator on a Core2 Duo (but with bluetooth controllers). I still have an XT board in the garage (8086, or 80286, I can't remember which), and use REAL CLI DOS (no windows GUI) multiple times per year for BIOS updates, and she's MAX-out at 8GB of RAM. My Linux box doesn't boot to a GUI, ALL CLI, and I just upgraded to a DUAL-CORE proc. on her last week. My Secondary monitor here on my desk is 4:3 VGA, and the MAIN is about 13 years old. My eBay label printer, the TLP 2844 was discontinued in 2009. My PC board was release 2008, latest BIOS is 2010. I use a PS/2 KVM. My notebook is the 2008 model.

Does that all count as retro?

I seem to recall trading my 486DX/2-50 Laptop for some 1st edition D&D PHB, a DMG, and some modules with my local ISP's president.

[LuckyGuy]

What?

I run a NES (OG 8-bit) emulator on a Core2 Duo (but with bluetooth controllers). I still have an XT board in the garage (8086, or 80286, I can't remember which), and use REAL CLI DOS (no windows GUI) multiple times per year for BIOS updates, and she's MAX-out at 8GB of RAM. My Linux box doesn't boot to a GUI, ALL CLI, and I just upgraded to a DUAL-CORE proc. on her last week. My Secondary monitor here on my desk is 4:3 VGA, and the MAIN is about 13 years old. My eBay label printer, the TLP 2844 was discontinued in 2009. My PC board was release 2008, latest BIOS is 2010. I use a PS/2 KVM. My notebook is the 2008 model.

Does that all count as retro?

I seem to recall trading my 486DX/2-50 Laptop for some 1st edition D&D PHB, a DMG, and some modules with my local ISP's president.

Let me fire up my CP/M machine with a Z80 CPU.

[Rorge Retson]

Recently tossed my Sound Blaster 16 ISA card that must have been a foot long...

[the86d]

Let me fire up my CP/M machine with a Z80 CPU.

What is funny about your post is that last night I had a dream that someone acquired an OG Kaypro running CP/M, and I was super jelly.

About 4 years ago I wiped a 486 SCSI drive for my stepmom she had sitting in the garage before dropping the machine in scrap, BUT hording the Adaptec SCSI controller, of course.

[sfpcservice]

None of these are complete without prodigy dial up internet...

[MrFancyPants]

None of these are complete without prodigy dial up internet...

Haha, I did think about getting a US Robotics ISA modem just for the hell if it. I don't even have a land line at home but all my old computers had a dial up modem. They can't be more than a few bucks. I remember being so stoked upgrading my 33.6k to a 56k.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

[Rorge Retson]

None of these are complete without prodigy dial up internet...

I know someone who still has a @cs.com email addy.

[sigfan91]

I have a Pentium MMX 200 overclocked to 233. I forgot what else is in there. It's definitely an AT board. It also has a 5 1/4" floppy drive. It runs Win98SE and Firefox 2. IE4 just doesn't cut it any more.

[rivraton]

Here's one for you, my older brother still has an Amiga as his only machine... Those things are amazing...

[Dirtlaw]

DOS

I still use an XT running DOS on a regular basis.

[Dirtlaw]

My parents lived through the Great Depression so I suffer from hording syndrome. I've got old parts going back to the original PC. If I ever get a chance to clean up my storage areas I'll try to remember your interest in such things.

[Marauder2003]

FWIW, the Computer History Museum near San Jose has 2 working 55+ year old IBM 1401 systems.

And in a great melding of ages they can take your picture with an iPhone, transfer it to a PC which then transfers it to the 1401 which prints it on the 600 line per minute 1403 printer. I have mine framed.

[Dragunov]

I'm currently collecting parts for a retro build. I have the video card, ram, sound card, RLL controller, and several 50mb MFM/RLL hard drives. Currently hunting for a 486DX2, or 4, or an old 386DX40, that doesn't have an exploded CMOS battery. Will install DOS 6.22, and Windows 3.11 for work groups. I already have all the software, and drivers for whatever hardware I need.

I also have my all time favorite business suite, PFS First Choice!

I also have Enhanced Deluxe Paint II, and thousands of old DOS games.

[the86d]

I'm currently collecting parts for a retro build. I have the video card, ram, sound card, RLL controller, and several 50mb MFM/RLL hard drives. Currently hunting for a 486DX2, or 4, or an old 386DX40, that doesn't have an exploded CMOS battery. Will install DOS 6.22, and Windows 3.11 for work groups. I already have all the software.

As I recall, with building 80286, 80386, and 80486's, 16 bit IDE(/IO) cards were already available, so are you limiting yourself with MFM/RLL, as they can be troublesome in and of themselves?
(Especially if you can use a small flash card to emulate the rusty drive with longer life?)