Building the Checkmate Amiga 1200 Plus Computer

I've wanted to restore my Commodore Amiga 1200 for years now and this Checkmate A1500 Plus case is a great excuse to do that! The case is designed to house all sorts of computer systems, but in this video I'm building an A1200, complete with several upgrades for games using WHDLoad.
Thanks to Stephen Jones of iMica Ltd for supplying the Checkmate case for review!
● Informative linkage:
www.checkmate1500plus.com
• The Amiga 1500 Story |...
● LGR links:
/ lazygamereviews
/ lazygamereviews
/ lazygamereviews
● Music courtesy of:
www.epidemicsound.com
#LGR #Amiga #Build

[@Checkmate1500]

Thanks for putting together such a great video about my little case project. I loved the "Self Proclaimed" comment and have to admit when I aproved the design from Paul it did not click with me, very funny though. I will look into adding some tips based on the video for the manual. For the people out there, I slide the case over the edge of desk to remove the tray screws and when you push the tray back into the corner it locates the screws. On the Blizzard 1230 mk4, mine fits but has to be connected to motherboard first then the whole lot screwed in. Thanks again Clint. PS I will comment on the lid, this was a dificult design decision. The reason is I wanted the lid to fold round the case so you did not see a cut edge. Add to this the rear panels fixing method meant a simple slide on lid was impossible if it was to be aesthetically pleasing. Once you know how to slide on and off it is liveable, but the cut edge would not have been.

[@LGR]

Hehe, I thought it amusing that the extra disassembly step was described as such. "It's not a bug, it's a feature" kinda thing 😄 Thanks again for the review unit! Quite looking forward to making some changes and upgrades as more parts I've ordered arrive.

[@Commodore4eva]

I approve of this case. Great job with this project. You've always done amazing work.

[@plan7a]

A courteous and professional response to customer/consumer feedback! Just what more people and companies should do these days! It is sadly lacking from many nowadays!

[@Checkmate1500]

@@LGR I hope you do not mind, I added an explanation for the lid design to my pinned comment, although it does not seem to be pinned since I did :-(

[@andrewvanwinkle2758]

I'd love to get my hands on one of those systems and play with it for sure. They look unique

[@xerzy]

woah, 3D computer LGR intro, we really are living in the future

[@Micro-Lander]

Makes you feel old already doesn't it

[@ValgarYellowKnight]

LGR first 3d intro too.

[@pwnt39]

I personally feel like a retro high frame pixel animation would've honestly been better

[@xerzy]

@@pwnt39 I like it as-is, but I see where you're coming from. Maybe a more colorful, lower-res version of the animation could do the trick?

[@seoulpurpose]

I feel like the little spin it does might be a vague Sims reference? Which, if intentional, that's clever--and if accidental, it's a happy accident.

[@rorykurek643]

"Looked somewhat tired - and, I mean, don't we all." "Still makes the occasional cranky noise with irritation, but who can blame it?" Wow, I didn't expect to have so much in common with a 30-year-old computer.

[@seamusoblainn4603]

Well, most of us are older than the machines again!

[@jolyan1100]

I hear you, brother!

[@Hellwyck]

In that case, I have more in common with an 8086.

[@aretard7995]

can relate even tho I'm half as old :(

[@ninosummers]

"The extension spring on top looked somewhat tired, and I mean, don't we all." That quote, man.

[@mychemicalbromance97]

2020 mood

[@UpstreamNL]

2020 in a nutshell

[@abbasraza2493]

Look at this fancy guy with a CG intro!

[@sonixthatsme]

Hey, that was my thoughts.

[@SoulStealerJay]

that's the RTX and threadripper in his beastly PC😎

[@aimwell8813]

@@SoulStealerJay I thought he would have a Pentium MMX and a Voodoo 2 in his PC.

[@SoulStealerJay]

@@aimwell8813 fair assumption

[@ranjanbiswas3233]

@@aimwell8813 He doesn't have just one PC 😁

[@googleBot89]

aw man. I wish they would produce a tiny version of this for the RPi. I just love the asthetic.

[@LGR]

Now THAT would be awesome. EDIT: LOOK www.ebay.com/itm/Amiga-3000-Mini-Housing-for-Raspberry-Pi-4/133162967592

[@user-pi5xz5je4y]

I guess someone could 3d print one?

[@sneekeruk]

I think there is one thats been 3d printed and theyre on ebay as well as here amiga68k.com/?product=amiga-3000-mini-housing-for-raspberry-pi-4

[@miketam9017]

I will definitely get it if it exists then the rpi4 will be a nice little pc

[@sonixthatsme]

O lord, I can only imagine.

[@crism8868]

Never touched or used an Amiga, just think it's so cool how hobbyists are keeping the platform alive

[@Muffynz]

1:54 “Enough with the contextual foreplay though, let’s go ahead and dive into this package.” 2:35 “Chock full of tasty info.” 7:34 “Once you are inside, though, it is quite pleasant.” 14:21 “…awkwardly hold it in place while screwing…” 17:04 “…on it’s knees, begging for relief.” Friend, you've been in quarantine too long.

[@LGR]

Ha! You should've seen all the innuendo that _didn't_ make the final script.

[@rorykurek643]

I'd argue there's a little displacement going on here...

[@simonRTJ]

@@LGR that's so much innuendo, one would be convinced you were British!

[@rizkaarifiandi5670]

@@LGR some behind the scene for this episode would be very.good 😅

[@RiksVids]

@@simonRTJ Exactly what I was thinking....too many Carry On films ;-)

[@RyanLelek]

LGR: "Until I can retrobright that..." *The 8-bit Guy has entered the chat*

[@CptJistuce]

Stop that. This is already the third YouPotato I follow doing Amiga projects right now. Is there a "summer of Amiga" celebration I wasn't informed of? (YouPotato because a potato is a tuber and I think I'm witty)

[@adventureoflinkmk2]

Don't forget odd tinkering too 😏

[@Vintersemestre00]

@@adventureoflinkmk2 Nostalgia Nerd, Tech Tangents (Akbkuku), Druaga1, RetroManCave, Modern Vintage Gamer... there are so many good ones.

[@Weird.Dreams]

@@Vintersemestre00 Minus clickbait Nostalgia Nerd and RetroManginaCave, then yeah.

[@adityasanthanam1945]

From filming on a VHS camera to having a 3D intro, you have changed a lot over the years. But the videos are always top notch. The best. Thank you for your great videos.

[@MJ-uk6lu]

I wouldn't mind if he used VHS camera again, it should have a nice aesthetics.

[@1leggeddog]

I woke up, grabbed a coffee and plunked down to watch LGR build a retro PC. Today is a good day.

[@TaylorBlack0]

"Contextual foreplay" I'm loving this existential wordplay.

[@spatulasnout]

9:23 - Guru Meditation 81000005 seems to be: "Corrupted memory list" While it's usually software errors that corrupt memory, the way your system was acting it might actually be bad RAM.

[@LGR]

Good to know, thanks! Could very well be memory, the on-board memory chips have never been tested on that system.

[@mattx5499]

Some games didn't like expansion cards because they were often coded to work on particular configuration and that may be the reason of Guru Meditation. I remember using a so called 'degrader' tools to load an older Kickstart version and set it up to 'emulate' A500 configuration including amount of RAM just to run some old games on my A1200.

[@derekrucker377]

"That warm, marigold hue of stale urine". I wish I could create something this beautiful.

[@boheyo]

I mean, I kind of do every morning, sometimes the afternoon if I haven't been hydrating.

[@hycron1234]

unwise to be eating when watching an LGR video it seems.

[@philtkaswahl2124]

There's something about your sheer enthusiasm for vintage computing that can make me covet a new take on a computer design almost three decades old even more than I would the latest computers.

[@FlyboyHelosim]

"Once you are inside though it is quite pleasant." Oh I say.

[@yeahthatkornel]

That's what she said!

[@jipillow1]

When Clint does a project like this, he does it right. It’s just like pimp my ride or any number of house upgrade show

[@plan7a]

Hmm, an idea for a Tv show under "lockdown" perhaps? "Pimp My Drive", or similar title? Where Clint provides a makeover to a vintage (or at least classic) computer using a variety of parts... Hmm. Things you can do with computer parts and peripherals you may have at home?

[@mik4k6]

15:41 - "So, for now, I'm gonna boot from the C.F. card and _C.F._ we've got a working system." Nice!

[@dotmatrixmoe]

That new intro! Reminds me of your growing channel, rolling in content when it can. Thanks for being here. You nerding out is just so relaxing!

[@Micro-Lander]

Nice new logo it makes me feel old that you're replacing the old one already.

[@AgsmaJustAgsma]

The previous logo only lasted a year or so, which kinda bums me out because I think it got retired a bit too soon. Not that I dislike the new logo, but I'd like to see them co-exist under different contexts. Like, the CGI logo for hardware-related videos and the monochrome one for software/game-related videos.

[@TechBaffle]

I just love the aesthetic of it - how a modern case can fit effortlessly with your CRT and speaker set

[@DragonNexus]

The price for this really surprised me, for sure. I expected £250+ The price they've quoted is incredibly reasonable when you factor in what you're getting and the circumstances of production. LGR always surprises me. Even when I see a video and I think "Eeehhh, I dunno...I don't know much about the subject and I don't know if I'll get anything out of this." I end up clicking and thoroughly enjoying the ride due to the editing, the story-telling style script and just the general LGR vibe.

[@exidy-yt]

"In Memory of Jay Miner: Thank you for the Amiga" Amen. Fuggin' AMEN, Checkmate. Very classy. I think I might just want to transplant my Amiga 500 into one of these now. The drive door ejecter was dying on it anyway, why not fix it even better with a modern case?

[@linksbro1]

"Thanks for the A1200 stuff, Maximilien!" That name kicks so much ass.

[@MaximilienNoal]

Why, thank you !

[@lucidnonsense942]

"I had to awkwardly hold it in place while screwing..." Clint Basinger, 2020 Don't we all mate, don't we all...

[@jurviz]

Just act assertive, and try to remain confident. It doesn't have to be awkward. :)

[@ArionRDAW]

@@jurviz "Screw with confidence." --Bitwit

[@I_am_Allan]

@@ArionRDAW wasn't it The Verge who said it, and everyone is just mocking him, or was it Ly... I mean Kyle who said it?

[@MrButtonpresser]

In Australia, Checkmate was the name of a popular condom brand...

[@sq1rlsqu4d]

I usually get my girlfriend's mum to hold it in place. She knows where to put it if it falls out.

[@3dlabs99]

5:35 8-bit guy is literally drooling peroxide looking at that yellow case

[@adventureoflinkmk2]

And so is odd tinkering 😏

[@newkfromrotterdam]

i kinda love that yellowed old plastic... and find retro-bright a bit... i dunno.. a history remover?

[@3dlabs99]

@@newkfromrotterdam Yeah very true.

[@kh-lf7wh]

Great content as always has really helped me the last month being in hospital for cancer treatment and having plenty of stable content to watch even the nurse and doctors have started watching

[@mattx5499]

We need more LGR videos about Amiga. This amazing machine deserves all the love.

[@ArcticFox63]

Yesss, I never tire of seeing Amiga content.

[@cleanycloth]

I am LOVING the new intro! That's awesome!

[@onlineamiga]

Heys, great to see an Amiga video on your channel :) Putting Amigas into cases is no new thing. There was a batch of re-hashed PC cases with adapters back in the late 90s, which not only for asthetic reasons, but also to increase upgrade options. Such as the Power PC with a Bvision video card for the A1200, would never have fit in the original keyboard case. The power supply woulndn't have run it either. Back then 3.5" drives were much cheaper than 2.5" drives, so it gave the option to use them in a desktop/tower case as well a CDROMS. This case looks so slick tho. Much better than the bodge jobs we were doing back then. But i think its tightness may restrict some of the above upgrades we got cases for in the past. Awesome video again!

[@mattx5499]

Amiga was very popular in Europe, because it had the best graphics and sound you could get out of the box and because of crazy cracking scene that pirated every game that came out. The funny stuff about Amiga is that most of people i knew rarely had any original games. We just had boxes full of floppies of cracked games and were copying them with X-Copy from each other. My cousin was like 6 years old and knew how to copy a game which was actually pretty easy on the Amiga. I remember that sometimes you could fix a game with faulty disk by just copying it to another one. X-Copy was a very good tool.

[@jacobsekela8691]

Wow, that new logo at the start was smooth af 🔥😂

[@zaxchannel2834]

Amigas are so cool, I love watching videos on them and seeing how far they can be upgraded

[@005AGIMA]

Great coverage of the checkmate case Clint. Stephen has done such an awesome job and it still amazes me how much is being built new for the Amiga community thanks to guys like him.

[@charlesjmouse]

Lovely! And awesome to see Green Amiga Alien's distro - A great guy from the English Amiga Board. Sadly no longer with us.

[@DarkWiNKenzo]

Dude, I love the "New intro", Clint did a fantastic job with it!

[@LGR]

I didn't make it, but thanks!

[@DarkWiNKenzo]

LGR first of all, thanks for clarifying, second of all, it’s still superb! And finally, who did it then?

[@leonid900]

@@DarkWiNKenzo me :3

[@civil2912]

"Warm marigold hue of stale urine." I'm dying over here lol.

[@rickyrigatoni]

I remember seeing this case on RMC's channel a while ago but I completely didn't think about putting my NuXT in it. Thanks for uploading this video so I now know to buy one for that.

[@erebostd]

Nice! Since my Amiga failed some time ago, I only use its shell to house the keyboard, the computer itself is simulated (not emulated!) by an fpga Mist. This makes it possible to use modern displays, and is a quite convenient (but not cheap) solute to futureproof a failing Amiga, if recapping isn't your thing. Love your solution, it looks amazing! Cheers from Germany!

[@LohTec]

"I'll just deal with the empty holes." Story of my life.

[@phoenixsixxrising]

"there's no rest, so I just have to hold it in place while screwing"

[@kanedamikami7771]

I grew up on Amiga, this gave me a really warm feeling while watching, thank you Clint for making this Video. 😊👏❤️

[@warwagon]

Your production quality is really something. Picture looks great, voice recordings are crisp. The entire thing is just top notch. Such an easy watch. I love when you fade to black and the music ends. Such a great touch, it's not that the music ends but the way the music ends.

[@LGR]

Thank you!

[@itsaPIXELthing]

OMG!! This is so awesome! Right up my alley ;) Thanks for sharing, Clint!

[@singeslayer8367]

Man, I wish I had an A1200... I love the case, kinda tempting to get one for my A600, would probably help with the heat problem I got going on with the Furia-board and the IDE-SD-Solution.

[@guillaumecleroux4581]

Woah! The future of the past nostalgia has come with the 3D intro!

[@flemtone]

Great video :) Totally loved my Amiga 1200 which was built into a tower case with Blizzard PPC133 card and BVision 8mb 3D gfx and a Pcmcia Squirrel SCSI card :)

[@Tzphardi]

Thank you very much Clint for this video it was nice to get my mind off of everything bad that happened at work, Thank you very much for your quality content!

[@mikebailey783]

"Begging to be un-sheathed and put into action..." - you mucky sod, you.

[@I_am_Allan]

At 14:14 "... you have to screw with confidence!"

[@jessymina]

Clint, thank you so much for continuing to make high quality content and maintaining your "voice"! I don't always get to catch every video, but I always enjoy watching them catching up on nostalgia with a funny host.

[@SenatorBanana]

Awesome. Jungle music wouldn't exist without those old Amiga's, happy to see people still building and using them.

[@mariuszklein6148]

I remember playing Desert Strike on Amiga 500🤣

[@MugsyNJ2]

24:16 Ahh Dungeon Master. The reason I bought my A500 in the first place so long ago...

[@QuintusCunctator]

Absolutely, one of my childhood favorites too!

[@DavidLee-df888]

I got one because it was the Bat Pack, so yeah... Actually ended up playing The Kiwi Story more!

[@Fir3Chi3f]

I love the honest review and inclusion of problems. Thanks so much Clint!

[@aandst]

Great review, I loved it. Hopefully we'll get updates on this great project. 🙂

[@philipanthony3339]

LGR + Amiga = Excellence!!

[@finnspaperstudio3508]

LOVE THE NEW LOGO!!!

[@dreedee]

i love it that all the little problems that came up really took me back to my Amiga days, maintenance was always a challenge.a good challenge.

[@bossbaddiegames]

Is that Fire and Ice I spy on that thumbnail? Gosh damn love the Amiga. My older buddies at the time used to play Fire and Ice. I owe all I have to that machine, got me into computers and making digital art, music, games and stuff way before such complex things were possible on other machines. (At a reasonable price)

[@kanedamikami7771]

When everybody was playing SNES, I played Fire and Ice and many other games when I was a kid. Best Times.

[@donttouchmystuff8709]

Even though I was an active PC user back in the late 80's, I totally missed the boat on Amiga. It is cool to see this stuff.

[@BAZFANSHOTHITSClassicTunes]

You missed Amiga!!!. You missed out. It represented the golden age, at least in the U.K.

[@donttouchmystuff8709]

@@BAZFANSHOTHITSClassicTunes I would always see the ads for Amiga stuff in some of my video game magazines in the early 90's and felt like it was an alternate universe that I never was able to visit.

[@dutchdykefinger]

man i had amiga at home, and the people who had pc's were usually playing on their's dad's work pc on the off hours it was still back in the day when amiga had hands down better sound and graphics but i've played my ski or dies and tom and jerries in cga, even prince of persia on monochrome just the same lol amiga was pretty damn popular here (netherlands), personally i start lactating when i see the main screen of x-copy

[@BRUXXUS]

Some amazing stuff coming out of the Demoscene for Amiga!

[@cyruscuckler3495]

Dude, that intro! That was amazing! Great video been waiting for an amiga one

[@Mechanicoid]

I need to find a way to use "contextual foreplay" in all my daily conversations.

[@Chordonblue]

Dungeon Master load screen, while my other monitor is dedicated to the DM mod for Legend of Grimrock. 30+ years later and I'm still playing that game! Glad to know I'm not alone...

[@Dj3ndo]

Awesome video Clint! Always find your video's so relaxing.

[@supergoofy123]

Thanks, looking forward for a future follow-up episode with the upgrades/fixes/mods. :)

[@HoLeeFuks]

Man i thought my eyes were playing a trick on me when i saw the "made in the philippines" sticker. Had to double back and pause. Proud filipino here.. hehe.

[@rhydermike]

The metal case itself reminds me of my Acorn Archimedes A310.

[@alliejr]

Spectacular video!!! Thank you. (I also hugely appreciate the perfect placement of KZbin ads at exact breaks in the content- NO ONE ELSE takes the time (10 seconds?) to do this right- WELL DONE YOU!)

[@RetroGamingWithBigSteve]

I recently picked up an Amiga 1200 that has some case damage but knowing there are options like this is so awesome. Great video!

[@kevinroylancephotography9437]

Wow, that Packard Bell Legend took me back. That was my family's first computer back in 1991. 33Mhz, 2MB RAM, Internal sound, 100MB HDD. Ahhh memories

[@jaredemery6338]

... as opposed to “fresh urine”. Neither of which were in my crayon box.

[@loteknomad5032]

Impressed by the case and keyboard housing. Dig the new intro as well!

[@coreybass3760]

I love this episode. The Amiga computers are the loves of my life. A500 and A4000/40. I had to get rid of them a few years ago and my heart broke, so seeing this makes me wish I could do it myself.

[@adcurtin]

16:26 @LGR you can easily fix that cable. pull the back piece off completely (try not to break the tabs), then move the connector just a little bit up the cable, then push the back piece back on. it will puncture the wires, and fix it as good as new (just a little bit shorter). then you can cut off the extra little bit of wire hanging out the other side the the recrimped on connector.

[@jasedobson2793]

was going to say the same.also you can convert a pc compatible floppy drive to work with amiga.check out- Mark fixes stuff- on yt for the guide

[@Hotlog69]

6:01 was his last name Pegasus and was prattling on about sending Yugi to the shadow realm?

[@yeahthatkornel]

I understood that reference.jpg

[@naviamiga]

Beautiful work, always lovely to see an A1200 getting some love.

[@darrenwells2277]

Back in the day, I loved the Amiga. So videos like this are brilliant! Looked like fun to build.

[@doodoobrn]

"I'll just deal with these empty holes..." things your hear around broken homes late at night

[@rovert94]

Ive been getting a couple hints of innuendos.

[@Vienna3080]

Innuendos? At this time of day, in this part of the internet, localized entirely on KZbin.com/LGR?

[@tax4244]

Just Vienna Yes

[@keithbrown7685]

implied tho

[@qwave54]

May I see them?

[@tax4244]

qwave54 No.

[@SaphireSystrine]

That is a cute opening, I love it :3 Had to watch it a couple of times because it was satisfying

[@kingj2508]

I really enjoyed this amgia build... So much fun putting a computer together. Cant wait to see what is next.

[@Darxide23]

"Odd design choices" is a bit generous. All that modularity seems almost like an afterthought. There really looks like a couple of specific builds they had in mind when designing this case and everything was secondary and doesn't fit or barely fits or has to be hacked in. The price tag is a bit high if you ask me considering these problems unless you're building whatever specific systems the designers had in mind. Still, there's a lot of jank with this kit. Hopefully they can iron it all out in a future revision.

[@zachkenny4489]

LGR: discusses urine colors *R. Kelly has entered the chat* great video!

[@Dragonblaster1]

Somewhere hidden in my shed is an Amiga 1200 with 68060 OC to 120MHz, 250MB HDD, RTC, 1GB RAM, USB, 2 x 3.5" FDD, CD-RW and WiFi, all in a tower case. I wish all the aftermarket stuff had been around then: it took me a LONG time to get everything working. The easy bit was the Zorro slot CPU upgrade and the HDD, and it got steadily harder from there.

[@wilkothewilkoman]

I'm from the UK and the Amiga 6 and 1200s are responsible for much of my formative gaming years. It was great to see this. I imagine it may be quite popular with your UK viewers. Cheers Clint.

[@scopeshadow4432]

That computer model from the intro looks like from the sims.

[@leonid900]

I think it's second comment I see about Sims reference, it wasn't intended :D

[@jasepoag8930]

"I kind of had to awkwardly hold it in place while screwing..." Been there, so annoying!

[@dutchdykefinger]

touché

[@ollyshighlightreel6530]

Always happy to see an Amiga 1200 pop up in any vintage tech video, I have so much nostalgia for these systems. Now that Checkmate are 'back', it makes me want to put my A1200 into one of these cases.

[@-.2..]

I have no knowledge of retro hardware. Those giant CRTs and beige boxes are way older than me, but I still enjoy this content. Even though I might never be able to afford a retro machine, I dream of building my own man cave and fill it with all eras of gaming Hardware. Keep it up, LGR!

[@acemcplane]

I'm still waiting for Amiga to "bounce" back.

[@larsmuldjord9907]

You have some nice points about the Checkmate case. Reminds me of the issues I had with many of the late 90's cases - back when replacing stuff forced you to almost take the entire thing apart and you were sure to be left with a few bloody battle scars once you were done. I like watching these case-modded Amiga videos, but would never do it for my own A600's. My nostalgia is very much linked with the plastic case, so no-go for my taste. But I still like the idea and I love that this is actually a product from back then, revived for those who want it. It's just great!

[@Masked_ghsot_riley.offical]

Hey lgr i love your videos your the one that actually got me not only into KZbin but also going to thrift shops so thank you

Amiga on LGR! Yay! The computer of my childhood (had a 500 though, but still, the love)...

[@mbamebe]

That was an awesome intro with the logo! Had the old 8086 really did go that fast =] good job!

[@angus3963]

I had an original Amiga 1000 /w all the signatures on the under side of the top case back when it was brand new. :D Also had the extra 1MB RAM BOX add-on, which cached kickstarter. Oh those where the days!

[@Pathos312]

I love your content. It honestly is far more informative than say Linus. Not trying to stir bad water but I prefer the nostalgic format and you know your stuff. It all makes for an informative and fun viewing experience. I was brought up during the 386, so this is beyond me but it's cool seeing the old hardware/software in action.

[@synchro505]

That was an extremely satisfying build. Many thanks.

[@pipschannel1222]

Just finishing my ECS build with one of these cases, featuring an A500+ with 2mb chip ram, a 50Mhz 030 with 4mb fast ram and and FPU, an Indivision ECS scandoubler, a Zorro II GVP SCSI card with an extra 8mb fast ram and a large SD SCSI harddrive featuring DMA transfers. The ultimate ECS classic to fit my needs 😎 Time to do some 'serious' eigthies video rendering! Keep up the good work making these excellent videos, Clint 👍 And ehh, this case: really a gift from the Amiga gods 🤗

[@Checkmate1500]

Glad you are happy :-)