SBC6120-RC User Manual

From Spare Time Gizmos' Wiki

Revision as of 14:54, 9 November 2012

Jim Loos' SBC6120-RC (Front)

Jim Loos' SBC6120-RC (Rear)

SBC6120-RC with VT6 installed

The SBC6120-RC ("Reduced Cost") is a simplified version of the combined SBC6120 PDP-8/E replica and the FP6120 front panel . The -RC model reduces the total part count of the SBC6120/FP6120 combination, eliminates some of the parts which had become difficult to find, uses a simplified front panel construction with commonly available switches, and is both significantly cheaper and easier to assemble than the original SBC6120/FP6120. The -RC version has a functionally identical front panel to the FP6120, uses the same firmware (and indeed the same EPROMs) as the SBC6120, is still able to run OS/8 and any other software that would have run on the SBC6120. The -RC also has a dedicated spot for attaching a VT6 terminal board which allows it to connect directly to a VGA monitor and PS/2 keyboard.

There are already extensive PDF manuals online for the original SBC6120 and FP6120 front panel and much of the -RC functions, including the operation of the front panel and the built firmware reference, will be the same. This collection of wiki pages documents the aspects of the -RC which are unique to that model. It is Spare Time Gizmos first foray into user supplied community documentation, and it will be what you make it. Although I have a soft spot for the PDP-8 and sympathy for those who do too, the SBC6120, especially a reduced cost version, doesn't pay the bills and I simply do not have the time to provide the documentation that it deserves.

Contents

• Overview
• Assembling with or without the VT6
• Assembling the PC Board
• Assembling the Faceplate
• Final Assembly and Checkout
• Using the Front Panel
• Hardware Description
• Firmware Description
• Detailed Parts List
• Drawings, Schematics and Firmware
• FAQ