Z80 Emulation used for TRS-80 Clone

[Jeff Conrad]

Hi. 

First time poster, long time vintage computer follower. Just built my first Altair-Duino experimenter kit and it's GREAT! Totally enjoy learning how this important part of computing history works. As a teenager back in 1977, when I seen a Radio Shack catalog with the new TRS-80 listed, I wanted one bad. I was taking computer science in school with a teletype terminal connecting through a phone handset modem, learning BASIC and APL. would be so cool to have my own computer running BASIC. Unfortunately my family just could not afford such luxuries. 

Now I'm retired and getting back into vintage computers, looking for a TRS-80 that I had always wanted back in the 70's. But it is crazy some of the prices these things are going for. I know original equipment  is getting rarer and there are emulators that you can use on modern PC's, but I would like to have a stand alone unit running it's own ROM and software through it's own terminal. That where my question comes in. 

Is there a way to use the Z80 emulation in Arduino Due to run the ROM images of TRS-80 but still keeping the Altair ROM working. I guess like adding another profile in Z80 mode? Then I would have both machines in one cool unit. Thanks for suffering through my long life story LOL!

[Walt Perko]

Hi, 

Have you tried searching on CraigsList.org or ShopGoodwill.com?  

https://cnj.craigslist.org/sys/d/trenton-trs-80-model-iii-computer-32k/7920509566.html

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/sys/d/sunnyvale-vintage-trs-80-model-level-ii/7919378539.html

https://cnj.craigslist.org/sys/d/trenton-tandy-trs-color-computer-works/7918366354.html

OTOH, I have a TRS-80 Model 100 I'd sell for $175 including shipping within the USA.  

.

[Jeff Conrad]

Yeah. I have been keeping my eyes on local thrift and such but nothing has turned up yet that I can work with. The Model 100 is very interesting but for now I'm focusing on between Model 1 and 3. That is a good offer though and will definitely keep it in mind.  Thanks  😊 

[sunnybo...@gmail.com]

Don't neglect the TRS80 Model 4P. That was possibly the pinnacle of TRS80s IMO. Not only luggable, but the later versions featured a FPGA (gate array) that allowed it to be either a TRS80 or a full-featured CPM machine (the FPGA reconfigured memory map for full 64K memory if I remember correctly). 

I still have mine plus plenty of software (Aparat's ADOS as well as TRSDOS and CPM plus several compilers and such). I modified mine to hold two dual-sided 40 track Panasonic disk drives, so I had double the disk space. I was never able to afford the HDD controller and HDD so don't have that. Bonus - mine still runs, last time I checked.

Most sadly, there was a project some years ago to create a software HDD controller/disk that allowed IDE drives (again, as I recall). I say sadly because the person who developed it dropped out of site and has not been replying to emails ever since. I would have loved that modification.