RickR

Well, what can I say....it was free and I love old stuff....
 
There is a pretty lively Laserdisc collector community here, and recently a really nice person in the group offered up a player for free.  I've always been curious about the format.  I've owned a few discs over the years just for the cool giant label art.  And the player was slightly broken...I think you all know my fondness for fixing stuff. 
 
So now I'm the owner of a gigantic top-loader Pioneer Laserdisc player.  It's been fixed, and seems to work great.  Here are some pics along with 3 movies I also received. 
 
I've got to be honest, I don't know what to make of the technology.  I surely do appreciate the evolutionary steps for home video...but this player is absolutely enormous!  It must weigh 30 pounds easily.  Takes up my entire workbench.  These movies come on two discs, which means 2 side flips and 1 disc swap for one movie!
 
Anyways, I'm very thankful for the generosity of the guy who gave this to me, and I'm going to keep and enjoy it. 
 
Anyone else have any opinions or memories of this technology?
 
 

I think Lance at V61 knows someone that use to deal with Commodore stuff.  He might be able to point you in the right direction.  I'll see what I can find.  I don't have a C64 myself so I can't help in that department.
 
So far I found a place that sells them...but they are in the UK.  I'll share the link should you be interested.  
 
http://store.retroleum.co.uk/c64-chips
 
They recommend placing a heatsink on the SID to keep it from overheating.  I"ll post more if I find them.

I tested the Neo Geo with a game, and it worked fine. Such a cool thing to find in a junk box! Wow!

The fuse is fine.

PIN 28 of the SID chip is 12V, and PIN 25 reads 5V, so the board is fine.  I think the SID chip itself is broken.
 
Does anyone here have a spare?  Or maybe a broken 64 I could use as a donor? 

I've tried RF and a composite cable. Both have the same issue. I also tried two different power adapters. But then ran out of time. Thanks for the suggestions, keep them coming! When I get time, I'll open her up and probe with a voltmeter. My hope is that it's just a fuse on the 9V line.

Cool video!
 
Wet wipes to Greenween....STAT!

Nice stuff BB!  Asteroids on 7800 is the BEST home version of Asteroids IMO. 

I tested the Neo Geo with a game, and it worked fine. Such a cool thing to find in a junk box! Wow!

I tested the Neo Geo with a game, and it worked fine. Such a cool thing to find in a junk box! Wow!

Whoopsie.  Bad news.  No sound.  Could just be a blown fuse.  But that's a project for another day sadly. 

I've tried RF and a composite cable. Both have the same issue. I also tried two different power adapters. But then ran out of time. Thanks for the suggestions, keep them coming! When I get time, I'll open her up and probe with a voltmeter. My hope is that it's just a fuse on the 9V line.

I tested the Neo Geo with a game, and it worked fine. Such a cool thing to find in a junk box! Wow!

Awesome find!  I agree with Max...it is in good hands now.  I would have to say that the discoloration is mostly going to be everything below the light-stripe on the top.  The inside of the machine should show you what color the plastic was originally.  
 
As for sound...if changing a fuse don't work you might try changing the audio IC.  How are you connecting it?  Can you use the monitor out to see if there is sound that way or, if you are using it, can you try the RF out?  Just trying to help with some suggestions and ideas.

Nice!   That Neo-Geo Pocket was a definitely a jaw dropper.    

Nice stuff BB!  Asteroids on 7800 is the BEST home version of Asteroids IMO. 

Nice stuff BB!  Asteroids on 7800 is the BEST home version of Asteroids IMO. 

Whoopsie.  Bad news.  No sound.  Could just be a blown fuse.  But that's a project for another day sadly. 

Here is the finished product.  Sparkly clean, and it smells good too.  You can see the discoloration that has a nice sharp line along the very top edge. Weird.  I don't know which is discolored...the top edge or the majority of the top.  I think the majority...it seems too dark and not quite the right shade of brown.  Makes you wonder how the heck that happened.
 
The other nice thing is that the keyboard works a lot better now.  It needed several direct pushes on some keys before.  But now, back to normal.  Good ol' toothbrush with soapy water did the trick. 
 
 

Found a C64 at Goodwill and it actually works!  It  needs a cleaning badly.  Very dirty and smells of smoke.  So here are some pics of the unit in its original condition.  Please note the cardboard RF shield -- Commodore was notorious for cutting costs everywhere they could, but this is ridiculous.  Take some pride, Commodore!  Sheesh. 
 
 

Here is the finished product.  Sparkly clean, and it smells good too.  You can see the discoloration that has a nice sharp line along the very top edge. Weird.  I don't know which is discolored...the top edge or the majority of the top.  I think the majority...it seems too dark and not quite the right shade of brown.  Makes you wonder how the heck that happened.
 
The other nice thing is that the keyboard works a lot better now.  It needed several direct pushes on some keys before.  But now, back to normal.  Good ol' toothbrush with soapy water did the trick. 
 
 

Whoopsie.  Bad news.  No sound.  Could just be a blown fuse.  But that's a project for another day sadly. 

Found a C64 at Goodwill and it actually works!  It  needs a cleaning badly.  Very dirty and smells of smoke.  So here are some pics of the unit in its original condition.  Please note the cardboard RF shield -- Commodore was notorious for cutting costs everywhere they could, but this is ridiculous.  Take some pride, Commodore!  Sheesh. 
 
 

Here in Canada, K-Mart was a staple of affordable items for every member of the household (castle).
 
While we'd go there for clothes (ugh), boots (meh) and schoolware (nooooo), there was a middle section of the store with glass display cases holding Super-8 films.
Projector reels like these were the Netflix of the day.
Would get to grab some Disney, old (40s old!) Batman serials and just about anything really.
 
This section became the VG area, with Atari proudly displayed for testing.
Carts would run about forty dollars, so these were gift items sparsely acquired.
 
Of course, toss in some Kenner SW in there and you got yourself an idea of the treasure trove K-Mart was for me.
SInce the toys and reels were 'family-priced' - so that you could buy these while getting essentials and it didn't break the bank - I always walked out of there with a toy or a 'be good and we'll see' out of it.
 
I'm kinda surprised this chain has lasted this long, as ours closed down in the mid to late 80s, if I recall correctly (replaced by a Sears, appropriately enough).
 
Fond memories of this store, ayup

And there is some Atari in the film.  Both and Asteroids machine and a VCS in the rec room. 
 
 

I just finished watching "The Thing" for the first time in probably 30 years.  My verdict:  Excellent. 
 
It really plays like an extended episode of "The Twilight Zone".  Very well made.  Excelling acting.  The effects are awesome.  It's just as good as I remembered.  However, it isn't quite as terrifying as I remember.  Still, very enjoyable.