Commodore 16 repairs and restorations

[@ralfs_welt]

I'm from germany. The C16 was my first computer in 1985. Today I'm still fascinated by this machine, and I have restored some of them, including upgrading to 64k. The TED-chip always had problems with overheating, as well as the CPU. So mounting heatsinks is essential when restoring this computer.

[@IDPhotoMan]

I agree - i also put a tiny little 5v fan in to circulate the air a bit over the heatsinks

[@sammy61187]

This makes me want to get a black case for my breadbin!! Never heard of a Commodore 16 nor have i seen one

[@alexshepherd]

About the 9:00 mark, I’m thinking to myself - I bet the dirty old one works fine, and the clean new one is in the box because it was returned as faulty when it was new 😊 ok, so not on this occasion :D but I’m sure I’ve had things that way around before! The Rolf Harris picture builder sounds fascinating. Trust British Paints - sure can! I think we see the strength of the bundle here (a Commodore hallmark from their later years). This seems like it would have been a nice machine for someone to learn BASIC programming. A better BASIC than the C64, without the distraction of abundantly-available games, no need for a disk drive because BASIC programs are small. The whole setup must have been a lot cheaper to buy than a C64, yet more modern than a VIC-20. A nice gift for a kid, as their own computer, perhaps a second computer for the family. Wonder if it could be used with a printer as a word processor. And 121 colours! Not all at once though ;) A friend at school gave me the joystick for one of these once - a black version of the brown joystick that came with my C64. I cut off that weird round plug and soldered the wires to a plug from another broken joystick. The things we do that we regret 33 years later

[@Rick_Todd]

I was 14 years old when i got a C16 for Xmas here in the UK. A big mistake actually as everybody else at school got a ZX Spectrum. So i had to wait a whole year until the next Xmas to get my ZX Spectrum. but then it was also too late as everybody else got a C64 . I then had to plead and beg my Mother & Father to get me my C64 for my birthday which was only 6 months away in June. LOL I guess i was a bit spoiled. I also liked the black and gray look of the C16 compared to the C64 so without even thinking i just swapped the top half of my C16 keyboard and case and placed it on the bottom half of the C64 and to my amazement it worked. Only in my adult years did i find out the matrix was completely different but the most important keys still functioned i only used QWERTY and return the F keys also still worked. I guess it was just a case of the C64 still thinking it was a C64 keyboard ?

[@Rick_Todd]

Very much looking forward to part 2. Please show best way to apply heat sinks.

[@dennisneo1608]

I bought a Plus4 from Myer in 1987. $99. It was compatible with the C16.

[@stuartcastle2814]

I am uk based, and despite having a lot of friends who were into computers, not one of us had a commodore 16 or plus 4. We had the normal selection of 64s, spectrums and amstrads. A couple of us even managed to have Orics and one of us had a Phillips G7000 games console (the model with the keyboard) and a basic cartridge. The only place I ever got to play with either a Commodore 16 or plus 4 was in shops. Ok, so that’s hardly conclusive proof, but is an indicator..

Thanks for this video. I’m looking forward to part 2. And I’m very interested in upgrading the RAM to 64K. The C16 was my first computer, but the cassette recorder stopped working after a while. Hopefully I can fix it one day.

[@andiisyn]

I recently got a C16. It all works & is in great condition like your 2nd one. Looking at ways to ensure it will last & avoid failures in the future.

[@KolliRail]

The faulty TED was to be expected. ;-) To do: upgrade to 64K and connect something like a PI1541.

[@herbertwongsanimations6266]

Even though I've never had a C16, I've always liked the black and grey case colour scheme. The VIC 20 always looked like it needed more iron in it's diet.

[@GamSin1981]

As soon as I saw those C16's I knew at least one the TED chip wasnt working. I wish there was a replacement so we could get rid of them.

[@cjr118]

They are a nightmare

[@SerialExperimentsTim]

The Commodore 16 was my first computer and I remember it... fondly. We "upgraded" to a C64 a few years later and I was so mad when I discovered that it lacked a lot of the useful BASIC commands the C16 had. So yeah, they definitely were around in Australia :) EDIT: You're right not to use the power supply. Ours failed after a year or so and we replaced it with a universal power supply from Tandy that worked fine for some years.

[@herbertwongsanimations6266]

When I was a kid, the kid next door (a few years older than me) got a C16 and then not long after sold it to his mum and upgraded to a C64. So yep, were definitely in Australia.

[@IDPhotoMan]

I live in NTSC land, so in order to run newer PAL demos and games, i got a super cheap PAL C16 and upgraded the RAM to turn it into pretty much a Plus/4 (I already have an NTSC Plus/4). Never had one growing up, i got a C64 for Christmas 1984. The graphics on these things is a nice change from the C64's muted pallet. Sound... sucks though lol.

[@strunapl6103]

CPU can be replace with 6502/8500 with adapter and mod Kernal. And colour case in C16 I have two with different colour shade so it is ok.

[@JamesPotts]

For those individual yellower keys, I'd try setting them out in that bright Aussie sun (maybe not in winter). It's a lot slower than retrobrite, but "gentler" for keycaps.

[@loudscotsbloke]

Hello mate, great video as always! I love the C16, it was quite a popular machine in the UK, purely because it was cheap!! - Upgrade wise, definitely up to 64K, as well as a SD2IEC. Also get the joystick adaptors so that you can use normal DB9 joysticks!! Rather than the wee DIN efforts :)

[@timrb]

I'll love to see your 64K upgrade video when it comes along.

[@Colin_Ames]

You have to try the Rolf tape!

[@mattsword41]

😬😬

[@eugenekiselev]

Love videos like this one! A lot to learn from :) thanks a lot for sharing and I'm looking forward to the second part

[@stevesmusic1862]

I saw Rolf!!

[@TheRetroChannel]

I'm sorry

[@cjr118]

Rolf Harris 😳😳

[@digitalarchaeologist5102]

I was given a C16 back in about 1988 - something like that. Was curious about it, but didn't have a datasette or anything like that so for me back then, I couldn't do much except write BASIC programs that I couldn't even save. Even a mates C64 datasette wasn't compatible. Dunno what I ever did with it in the end.... also looks like red dirt to me. So aussie....

[@idahofur]

I remember finding out about the c16. Then I found out what it was mfg for. If you wanted to purchase a computer you could be looking at $1,200. You could also be looking at $600.00 for a system. This was still out of the price range for most. So now enters the $300.00 system and $100.00 system. What was not expected is that the price of $600.00 systems would drop pretty fast. Thus, why would one pay 100.00 to 200.00 to when you could get a better computer for $300.00 or less.

[@GerbenWijnja]

I used to have a C16 in the late 80s, and I remember everything was yellow/brown/green. There was no white, no blue, no red. As if the B in RGB was gone. Does anyone recognize this? I didn't know better, so I was happy with my machine, and learned my first programming steps on it.

[@timmooney7528]

I recall the C-16 and the Commodore 264. I already had a C-64 and heard they weren't C-64 compatible. I lost interest after hearing that. A few years later the C-16 keyboards were sold as a "project keyboard" at Radio Shack.

[@kyorin6526]

Haha Rolf...

[@Stefan_Payne]

Just for funsies you should plug in the old Original PSU and measure it while idle and then again while under load. You might get surprised (the SEGA 10V Power Supply for my Mega Drive 1 is at almost 12V under load for example and I think it was almost 14V no load).

[@Stefan_Payne]

Its not. Its something many people don't know and something that you could show to make sure that people know, so that you can show why modern PSU are much better than older ones in case of voltage regulation. And it also shows that you might have to go up in voltage with modern PSU replacements and can't just go by the label. @Gurudumps

[@Stefan_Payne]

@Gurudumpswhy so aggressive?! Just because someone suggested to measure the voltage of the (unregulated) Power Supply?! As for the Mega Drive. It does NOT have an integrated Power Supply at all, as it does not directly connect to the wall... The thing that converts the voltage from the wall to the voltage(s) of the device, is what we call a "Power Supply", as it supplies the power to the device. An integrated Power Supply would suggest that you plug the device directly to the wall, which you do not.

[@wimwiddershins]

I've seen one or two here (Aus). It was a confusing time to my child brain when C= kept bringing out new 8bit machines that were "worse" than the C64.

[@alexshepherd]

Indeed - the Amiga was what we really wanted, the C64 was a cheaper older alternative, although the C64c was newer than the first Amiga, and then there were these other machines which were even cheaper than the C64… why? It would be like BMW making the 7-series, the 5-series, and the very-popular 3-series, and then deciding to launch a 1-series that was worse in every way. Oh, they did

[@MitzaMaxwell]

When the C16 came on the market in Europe, the C64 was still for sale and apparently there was not much interest in buying a downgraded computer, even if the price was low.

[@ctchich4469]

Hi, could you say what plastic polish you use please?

[@TheRetroChannel]

Chemical guys VRP. I bought it because it was half price at the time but it seems to do a good job

[@ctchich4469]

Thanks for the response, much appreciated. Really enjoy your content and good to see a fellow Australian with a unhealthy fixation with these machines

[@winstonsmith478]

NICE camera framing, zooming, panning, and speedup. CRAP MOS Technology IC fabrication strikes again.

[@shangrilai1990]

🍪

[@TheRetroChannel]

❌🧸

[@Jimblefy]

Gets demonetized because of a paint application cassette :|

[@TheRetroChannel]

😅 Not gonna lie, it took me a second to figure it out

[@herbertwongsanimations6266]

My first C64 (which we got in 1988 and I still own) came with Intro to BASIC, Money Manager, and RH Picture Builder. They went missing at some point so I got the set years later off ebay. I needed to downsize and I listed the set on ebay but Picture Builder was the only one that sold. About a week later the "news" broke.

[@strunapl6103]

There is ThED project at retrohax with working prototype. I hope it will be finished.