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8088/8087 XT Retro Computer Build Log

M

moritzp73

Member
Joined
Jun 20, 2018
Messages
21
Location
Germany
Hi everyone,

while I am waiting for the last components and parts for my retro computer build to arrive, I have started to write a build blog. It is far from complete and I will update the page and add more information in the next couple of days. If you are interested in the early draft, please visit Intel 8088/8087 Retro Computer Build and feel free to share your ideas, comments and critics with me.

The complete retro computer comprises the following components

  • 8 Bit ISA backplane,
  • 8088/8087 processor card,
  • IDE hard disk controller with embedded CompactFlash Card support,
  • SVGA graphics adapter,
  • Floppy disk controller incl. RS232 for serial communications
  • Game port controller incl. 82C55 for later parallel communications
  • Sound card



IMG_1530.jpg

Have a nice day!
Moritz
 
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moritzp73 said:
Hi everyone,

while I am waiting for the last components and parts for my retro computer build to arrive, I have started to write a build blog. It is far from complete and I will update the page and add more information in the next couple of days. If you are interested in the early draft, please visit Intel 8088/8087 Retro Computer Build and feel free to share your ideas, comments and critics with me.

The complete retro computer comprises the following components

  • 8 Bit ISA backplane,
  • 8088/8087 processor card,
  • IDE hard disk controller with embedded CompactFlash Card support,
  • SVGA graphics adapter,
  • Floppy disk controller incl. RS232 for serial communications
  • Game port controller incl. 82C55 for later parallel communications
  • Sound card



View attachment 46929

Have a nice day!
Moritz
Click to expand...

Looks great. Good build set.
Will you add the 8087 ?
What are your plans for a case ? Maybe something unique you will made of timber ?
 
Wow.. you weren't kidding. You're literally building an XT, not merely assembling one like us normal folks! Very impressive
 
Hi there,

yes, I have already added the 8087. So, to be honest, it is a NEC V20 and i8087 combo running with up to 10Mhz.

Regarding the case I still haven't made my mind up yet. Timber-Plexiglas-sth. maybe.

BR
Moritz
 
moritzp73 said:
Hi there,

yes, I have already added the 8087. So, to be honest, it is a NEC V20 and i8087 combo running with up to 10Mhz.

Regarding the case I still haven't made my mind up yet. Timber-Plexiglas-sth. maybe.

BR
Moritz
Click to expand...

as a suggestion with measurements of it on paper, go to a few different thrift shops, goodwill stores, junk secondhand furniture and like shops, and maybe you can find a really neat vintage wooden case/cabinet/box/sewing machine cover for a few $'s that you can adapt easily.
 
That is a good idea. I think I now where I can find an old sewing machine with box ...

In the meantime the last parts arrived and I put everything together. The machine POSTs, recognises the Universal XT IDE ROM and tries to boot. I call that a success.

Have a nice day

Moritz

IMG_3102.jpg
 
Great to see so many of Sergey's designs being used in one place. He is a member here. I had the pleasure of meeting him and his son Michael at the first ever VCF PNW (Vintage Computer Festival, Pacific North West). He had a demo of a setup almost identical to the one you built there in his booth at the VCF. Michael was programming with Turbo C on it if I remember correctly.

Greg
 
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Where did the Gameport controller design come from and what is the purpose of the 40-pin DIP socket? Shameful design in any event like the XT-IDE Optima. One sees a theme here, everything designed by Sergey = good, everything designed by anyone else = lazy. Why not use Sergey's Adlib clone as well? It functions identically but doesn't try to look like a clone.
 
I personally love those Gotek USB floppy emulators flashed with the HxC or FlashFloppy firmware. You can emulate crazy floppy geometries with thing, i.e. 6.8MB HD or 2.5MB DD (you need to use HFE images) but I personally use standard floppy disk images (1.44 or 2.88 MB) because I connect the pendrives to a modern computer and use the same floppy images with PCem when I don't have the real thing at hand. I have an old Turbo XT without HD and a couple of those Goteks. All my disk boot PC/MS-DOS 3.2 + 2M-XBIOS of the first one and I can access the 1.44/2.88 floppy images in the second (for some reason PC DOS 3.2 cannot access 2.88 floppy images it keeps saying 'Bad FAT' but MS-DOS 3.2x works fine). You can fit a lot of 808x software on 2.88 MB !!
 
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