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The ZX Files 3
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ZX Files 3 (Disk 3 of 3).adf
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102
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1995-11-06
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276 lines
[1
@5
THE 1996 SPECCY BUYERS GUIDE
@6
A quick guide by ZX to help you waste all your hard earned
cash.
Just the other day when I was walking into town, a youth of
somewhat spotty complexion shouted over to me in a high pitched
voice and said "Yo Zed, whass 'appenin man? I needs your advice
man, like I've seen this bitchin' Speccy gear in the paper
right, an' I don't know 'ow much I should offer like". Well how
could I refuse, so with PJ in mind here is ZX's "1996 Rough
Guide To Buying A Spectrum", a quick no-nonsense guide to going
retro. Take into consideration that I am only giving a rough
price for the complete unit and you must also take into
consideration any extra software or hardware that comes with
the machine. At the end of the day it is upto you. @7
_______________________________________________________________
@5
SPECTRUM 48K
YEAR OF ISSUE:@6 1982
@5ORIGINAL PRICE:@6 ú129.99
@5COST NOW:@6 ú5
@5HISTORY:@6 Sir Clive's finest invention, a computer that was
affordable for Mr Joe Public. Probably the first true great
home computer, and although originally intended as an
educational tool, it became one of the best games machine for
it's time. Even other computers that had better graphics and
sound (everyone probably) could not compete with the dominance
of the Spectrum for years to come, and it wasn't till the dawn
of the 16-bit that the Spectrum began to fade.
@5TECH SPEC:@6 Trying to keep the cost as low as possible meant
that the Speccy had to endure the infamous rubber keyboard, a
single sound channel with a woefully inadequate internal
speaker, 48K memory (stating the obvious there really), and the
minimum of interfaces, these been power supply socket, cassette
input and output sockets, an aerial lead socket and a
straightforward input/output port.
The rubber keyboard was the source of many a laugh for C64
owners and was not suited to the professional programmer but
was ideal for the bedroom hobbyist, especially with the BASIC
commands been shown on each key.
@5ESSENTIAL PERIPHERALS:@6 A TV, cassette deck, a joystick and
joystick interface (go for Kempston compatible if possible).
@5DISADVANTAGES:@6 Well ye olde rubbery keyboard is the worst
offender as it makes typing a nightmare. It is rumoured that
the keys were made of rubber to help the Speccy suffer less
damage when been thrown at walls by irate owners. Secondly
there is no reset switch, which means if you can't be bothered
to reach for the plug socket switch then the only other option
was to pull the power lead out of the computer, which is not
very sophisticated to say the least and can lead to damage. If
you have a Speccy emulator and can run it a full whack then
there is very little to recommend you buying a Speccy 48K. Mind
you, the power pack is great for keeping your feet warm on cold
winter evenings.
@5ADVANTAGES:@6 It's cheap, very portable, handy if you want to
take it to your mates house to get laughed at, and you can play
around 99% of all Speccy software. If you haven't got an Amiga
with extra Ram and an accelerator to play all those emulator
games at 100% speed then consider this only if you can't buy
any of the other Spectrum models. Highly unlikely if you've
ever gone around your local carboot or read the local free ads. @7
_______________________________________________________________
@5
SPECTRUM 48K+
YEAR OF ISSUE:@6 1983
@5ORIGINAL PRICE:@6 ú129.99
@5COST NOW:@6 ú5 - ú10
@5HISTORY:@6 This is basically the same as it's predecessor, except
it doesn't bounce as well.
@5TECH SPEC:@6 Same as it's older brother except for an improved
keyboard and a better internal speaker, only a little bit
better mind you. It's best feature however is the addition of a
reset button on the left hand side which removes any need to
keep pulling out the power lead.
@5ESSENTIAL PERIPHERALS:@6 Same as the rubbery one.
@5DISADVANTAGES:@6 Hard keys on a rubber membrane do not make for
happy key bashing. Also the sound output is still woefully
inadequate. Again only buy if you cannot get your grubby mitts
on a 128K model.
@5ADVANTAGES:@6 Same as the 48K. Though if you have a choice
between this model or the original 48K model then go for this,
if only for the reset button. @7
_______________________________________________________________
@5
SPECTRUM 128K
YEAR OF ISSUE:@6 1986
@5ORIGINAL COST:@6 ú200
@5COST NOW:@6 ú10 - ú15
@5HISTORY:@6 Sir Clives final attempt at updating the Spectrum. Now
with a whopping 128K (well it was before ST came out or these I
need 8MB to run properly PC games). Also included was a three
channel sound chip which was capable of producing far better
sound. A new era in Spectrum gaming was beckoned in with the
promise of no more multi-load games and stacks of 128K only
games. Unfortunately this was never the case.
@5TECH SPEC:@6 For the first time the sound is put through the TV
speaker and coupled with the inclusion of three channel chip,
some natty tunes could be heard. Some years later the ST was to
incorporate the same sound chip, much to the laughter of Amiga
owners to be (some things never change, next they'll be saying
"my PC's better than your Amiga").
It was apparent by looking at the back of the 128K that Clive
wanted this machine to be taken seriously. A composite/RGB
Monitor port is there to allow better picture quality through a
monitor, a MIDI port for connection to most music equipment and
a RS232 port, so you can interface with all manner of machines.
Unfortunately these internal extras meant some incompatibility
with older 48K software and hardware, a problem many A1200
owners will know only too well.
@5ESSENTIAL PERIPHERALS:@6 Same as the 48K models.
@5DISADVANTAGES:@6 Same lousy keyboard as the 48K+.
@5ADVANTAGES:@6 The 128K memory, if put to good use by the software
manufacturer, can eliminate the need for multi-load games. Only
buy if you can't get a 128K+2 or 128K+3. @7
_______________________________________________________________
@5
SPECTRUM 128K+2
YEAR OF ISSUE:@6 1986
@5ORIGINAL COST:@6 ú200
@5COST NOW:@6 ú15 - ú20
@5HISTORY:@6 Although Clive Sinclair is an undoubted genius, his
marketing skills let him down. So he sold the Spectrum along
with the Sinclair name to Amstrad. Alan Sugar then released
this, the 128K+2, which to many was a disappointment.
@5TECH SPEC:@6 Same in many ways to the 128K but with some major
enhancements. Finally on the fourth attempt the Spectrum got a
keyboard it deserved, an honest to god, no frills keyboard. But
the most notable change was the addition of the built in tape
deck. This is great if you don't want your desk to look like
spaghetti junction, but Amstrad, in the first of many short
sighted decisions, didn't include a tape counter, which is
essential if you have compilation tapes or even tapes with a
lot of pokes or saved game positions on them. Also included are
a printer port and some joystick ports. Unfortunately the
joystick ports are Sinclair compatible only, which means that
you need an Amstrad joystick, which tended to be crap, or if
you could, a decent joystick that has a +2 connector or a
purpose built +2 joystick attachment, or even better, get a
Kempston compatible interface.
@5ESSENTIAL PERIPHERALS:@6 A Kempston joystick interface, or a
decent Sinclair compatible joystick.
@5DISADVANTAGES.@6 No tape counter will mean all the carefully
numbered compilation tapes you have are thrown into turmoil.
Having no volume control as well means that some games will be
a real bugger to load. Also, if the tape deck goes kapput you
are left with a useless piece of plastic. Still a worthwhile
investment if you don't want to pay the extra for a 128K+3 and
cassette deck. Until the Amiga gets a decent 128K emulator this
is the only way you'll get to play the brilliant Land Before
Time. @7
_______________________________________________________________
@5
SPECTRUM 128K+3
YEAR OF ISSUE:@6 1987
@5ORIGINAL COST:@6 ú250
@5COST NOW:@6 upto ú30
@5HISTORY:@6 The end of an era. When originally released it's price
put it in competition with 16BITS. Big mistake.
@5TECH SPEC:@6 Basically the same as a 128K+2, but with the
cassette deck ripped out and replaced with a 3 inch Amstrad
disk drive. Not content with trying to get the Speccy public to
buy Amstrad joysticks, Mr Sugar now wanted you to buy Amstrad
floppy disks, which were more expensive and somewhat inferior.
It is true that Speccy games load quicker off disk, but
software houses rarely took advantage of this option. Maybe if
the disk drive had taken 3.5 inch floppies instead it would
have been a different story. Also included on this model is the
self explanatory Disk B port.
@5ESSENTIAL PERIPHERALS:@6 Same as for the 128K+2 plus a cassette
deck with a +3 lead.
@5DISADVANTAGES:@6 The power pack is absolutely huge. Also not
exactly swamped with +3 software.
@5ADVANTAGES:@6 For me the best of the bunch. If you are fortunate
to pick up a cheap +3 with cassette deck then you've got the
best of both worlds. You can play all those lovely 48K and 128K
games as well as any +3 software, if you are lucky enough to
get hold of any that is. Should your cassette deck break down,
no problem, just replace it. If your disk drive breaks down, no
problem, you've got absolutely loads of cheap Spectrum
cassettes to choose from. @7
_______________________________________________________________
@5 CONCLUSION @6
For the best gaming set up then a decent Amiga with a Speccy
emulator is essential. Playing any games at less than full
speed is not worth it. Forget it, it would be like boxing
underwater. With the right leads you can copy games running on
an Amiga to tape to play quite happily on a Spectrum. Indeed,
that's what I did before I could afford extra ram and an
accelerator. For many people though all that is really
necessary is an emulator because there are literally thousands
of games in the PD sector to play. But if the Speccy bug does
grab hold of you, or just relights an old flame, then try and
get hold of a +3. Loading games from tape may be a bit of a
shock for the old system, 3-5 minutes to load a game, multiload
games and having to rewind some tapes to reload levels would
probably have most of todays super-console playing youth
breaking down in tears. Relax, set the old tape rolling, then
go put the kettle on or pour yourself a beer from the fridge.
It's much more enjoyable this way. If you are really, really
serious about the Spectrum then try and get hold of a +2 (grey
model) and a +D interface and disk drive. That really is the
bee's knees for spectrumming in the 90's. @7
_______________________________________________________________
@5 BUYING TIPS @6
Good places to pick up cheap Speccy hardware are carboot sales
and local free ads. A lot of people are quite embarrassed at
owning a Speccy and will quite happily sell them for next to
nothing. A friends rubbery chum went kapput and I picked up a
replacement for him, a boxed 48K with manuals and a carrier bag
full of games for ú3. But always, where possible try to check
the merchandise works properly. Even if you are only spending a
fiver it's always worth checking, because a broken Spectrum is
of no use for playing games. Unless of course you use it as a
frisbee. If replying to a free ad get the person to come to
your house or preferably go to their house and insist on seeing
the Spectrum up and running. Try loading a few games and see if
the joystick works properly. If visiting somebody's house, try
and take a friend or relative as support. Should you pick up a
Speccy from a carboot make sure you are nearby to return it
should it not work. You could ask for an address but who's to
say it's not a false one. At the end of the day it is your
choice and your money. You might think that it is only ú5 that
you've lost on a duff Spectrum but if you saw ú5 on the
pavement would you walk by saying "I aren't picking that up,
it's only a fiver?". Of course not, you'd pick it up and take
it to the nearest police station like the law abiding citizens
you all are. Yeah right, and monkeys might fly out of my butt.
#8 ZX 10/05/96
