Episode 73 - In celebration of SepTandy 2022, here's basically everything you might want to know about the Tandy 1000 TL/2. This computer was another Craigslist find, back around Christmas of 2020. I honestly don't remember what I paid for it, but I'm sure it was around $200 or so. Even though I already had (and still have) a 1000SX, this newer style of T1000 is what I more closely associate with the series, so I didn't hesitate to scoop it up when I saw it for sale.

After doing a standard overview of the computer, I installed a new Noctua power supply fan to help cut down on the noise a bit. Most (but not all) full-sized Tandy 1000 desktops take a standard 80mm 12V fan so replacing them is a cinch. I ended up using a 2200 RPM fan however so it is still fairly loud. I should replace it with a 1200 RPM model.

I also showed the process of installing an XT-IDE card along with a compact flash adapter. A compact flash card then becomes the computer's silent, solid-state hard drive, and set up the way I have it here, is accessible from the outside of the computer so that you can easily take out out to add more software. If it's not set up precisely correctly however it will not work properly, so I demonstrate the entire process.

The video finishes up with us checking out the Tandy DAC chip in Deskmate, and then spending quite a bit of time playing games. If you're looking for a computer for playing 80's CGA and EGA PC games from the era before VGA graphics and sound cards became standard, you can't go wrong with any of the computers in the Tandy 1000 line. In fact, I would say that they're the best computers to have for that application due to their enhanced graphics and sound capabilities when compared to other IBM PC clones.

While I doubt he'll see this anyway, I have to give a huge shoutout to @vwestlife who makes my favorite videos about old computers, and was the inspiration for this one. If anyone watches this video and picks up on a vwestlife vibe, that was my intent when I made it.

This video is super long, so let's do chapter markers, shall we?

00:00 Beginning
00:45 Intro & Overview
05:11 The 1991 Radio Shack Catalog
07:40 First vs. Second Generation Tandy 1000's
19:00 Installing a New Fan and XT-CF Card
26:03 Setting Up a Compact Flash Card
36:27 Disabling the Joystick Ports and Adding a Game Port Card
40:05 BIOS Settings
47:05 Sound and Music in Deskmate with the Tandy DAC
53:47 Deskmate Solitaire
56:30 Three Versions of Tetris
01:13:17 Star Trek 25th Ann. w/ Enhanced Tandy Graphics
01:16:01 Stunts
01:22:09 Arkanoid & Revenge of Doh
01:27:15 Jack Nicklaus Greatest 18 Holes
01:34:45 Space Quest 3 w/ The Tandy DAC
01:40:55 Frenkel's Tandy 1000 Commander Keen 4 Port
01:45:03 Test Drive II: The Duel
01:47:59 Outro

Show Notes:

- At just under 35GB, I think this is the largest video file I've ever uploaded to YouTube.

- I mentioned this at one point in the video, but the segments for this episode were shot out-of-order, which made things challenging because I would often repeat myself and then have to edit things out.

- The "syncroscan" feature of the Panasonic GH5 gets all the credit for the footage of the CRT looking so clean. That camera was the best show purchase I ever made.

- Most of this video was shot with me wearing an older lapel mic of mine, so that I could move around and not have to worry about talking into a mic, but I hate the way this particular microphone sounds. A better one would have been more effective at rejecting the background noise (primarily the fan in the computer.)

- Zed, this one's for you.

Support CGQ on Patreon:   / cgquarterly​  

The new CGQ Fan Shop: http://www.cgquarterly.com/shopcgq​

Send me a postcard:
Classic Gaming Quarterly
PO Box 73126
Davis, CA 95617

#SepTandy #Tandy1000