Re: vic20 / vic 20 version 2 / c64

From: Anders Carlsson <anders.carlsson_at_sfks.se>
Date: Sun, 5 Apr 2015 02:03:34 +0200
Message-ID: <C93DCBF9670D4A7F81105A05D81BEB41@ZAPACASUS>
David Wood wrote:

> The 'CR' release had a rainbow on the vic20 badge, while the older style 
> did not.

This might often have been the case, but I'm not sure it always is 100% 
true. Currently at home I've got four different VIC:s.

Two of them are two-prongs of which one is stored away in its box so I 
didn't check it, but the other two-prong has a rainbow VIC-20 paper badge 
just like this one:

http://ajovomultja.hu/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/commodore-vic-20.jpg

Given that machine has additional engraving into the case, I have no reason 
to think the case or label has been manipulated over the years.

The other two VIC's are loose CR models. One of them I have modified by 
removing a PAL CR motherboard from reseller's old stock and installed an 
NTSC CR board in, so it is no longer original. That case has the same 
rainbow badge as above. It is possible that it once was a two-prong case 
which had been reused to fit a CR board when I acquired it, but I doubt so.

The fourth VIC-20CR looks the same as Peter Krefting's VIC, down to the fact 
that just like him, I have installed a fresh C64C keyboard instead of the 
original, worn keyboard. As you see, this has a more metallic label with a 
rainbow in the middle, which again I think is an original CR case.

http://www.softwolves.pp.se/cbm/minaburkar/pics/vic20-exterior.jpg

This however seems to be a reasonably early two-prong with the other type of 
metal label.

http://www.computermuseum.li/Testpage/CommodoreVIC20.htm

However it neither has the "PET style" nor the Eurostile type of keyboard, 
although I have a feeling the components used in assembly had more to do 
with what each factory had at hand than the exact age of the computer. I 
seem to recall that some of the last VIC's had C64 keyboards with grey 
function keys, while some of the first C64's had VIC keyboards with brown 
function keys. :-) For that matter, I believe the CR machine I mention above 
that I swapped the PAL motherboard for an NTSC one originally had an 
Eurostile keyboard with a few keys broken off.

But even then if you could determine motherboard revision by looking at the 
label, rather few people outside the circle of true geeks would spot the 
fact that a computer had a different label and think "wow, this must be a 
different revision". I realize there a few motherboard revisions on the old 
breadbox C64 too, although in daily speak you might not refer to them as 
different models, as opposed to the visually apparently different C64C etc.

Best regards

Anders Carlsson
 


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Received on 2015-04-05 01:00:06

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