refurbished 1000's
12 messages in this thread
How does one tell (either excatly or inexcatly) wether they have a new Amiga
1000 or a refurbished unit? I bought my unit rather late in the 1000's life
cycle, and was told that the product was new. I had my doubts that the unit
was new, however, when tests showed that my Amy has no half-brite abilities.
This doubt has been exacerbated when I opened up the Amiga and found the sticker
on the power supply with the date 9/85. Since I don't like getting something
less than I paid for, any hints on figuring out wether I atually have a new
or refurbished unit is appreciated. the board on the 1000 is Rev A.
Thanks,
Winston
Winston,
What you say would indicate that either the unit was in a warehouse for
a while…or was a re-firbished unit…or just plain a used unit.
CBM made something like 200,000 A1000's and the original production run
was in mid to late summer of '85. I'm sure they didn't buy 200,000 power
supplies while only making the initial run of 1000's (especially when they were
in some financial difficulties at that point). Probably the best way to tell
is the serial number….that should tell you when it was manufactured but still
doesn't tell you if it was sitting around for a long time before being sold.
Who did you buy it from? A reputable dealer or mail order (not that
mail order dealer's aren't reputable but it's easier to go back and talk to
them)?
Don
Don,
The unit was purchased mail order as none of the local dealers had the unit
at the time in stock. What range of numbers do I need to look at (when
looking at the serial number, that is). Of course, I've had mostly successes
with mail orders, but there is always room for some mishaps.
Thanks,
Winston
Winston,
Well…the serial number would tell you which production run, CBM could
provide you with that information. I just looked and can't find a copy of what
my old serial number was, but recall it had a 100xxxxx type number with some
leading letters. Mine was a very early unit (received Sept of '85) and believe
the serial number was in the 7000 range.
Even with an old serial number, the 1000 still could have been brand
new. It may have been the bottom of the stack andthe dealer is just getting to
that older stock.
The best way I've found to see if equipment is new or used is to look
at the fan. Is it dirty? Are there dust streaks inside the case where dirty
air was sucked into the machine by the fan? Look near the case separations and
inside the front cover for the 256K RAM expansion. Look at the mother
board…is it covered with a film of dust in places where it would be hard to
get a brush?
Those things are the best indication I've found to tell if it is old or
new equipment.
Don
Don,
The serial number of the Amiga 1000 is XM 1146498 – I hope the unit isn't as
old as I think it is.
Thanks,
Winston
Winston,
You can usually ignore the first 1, so I'd say your's was unit #
146,498 or part of the 4th or 5th production run. That would have been in the
area of November '86 or February '87…somewhere in that area. As far as I
know, the February run was the last run of 1000s.
Don
Don…As the class historian, do you know about when the first 2000 was
delivered? And what's the diff between an A2000 and a B2000? Thanks! -SJB
Steve,
Gee…how'd I get elected 'class historian'!
Well….the first deliver date varies…US, Canada and Europe all have
different dates and then there is delivery to the general public vs delivery to
developers.
As my memory recalls (not always that accurately)…
Europe started seeing A2000 (W. German machines) about April '87
Canada started seeing A2000 (W. German machines) about July '87
US started seeing A2000 (W. Chester machines) about October '87
ALL the machines are called "Amiga A2000", that is the official
designation of both the US and the W.German models. Internaly (and 1 external
port) they are different. The US model (known as the B2000 as that's what the
mother board says) has 1 Meg of RAM on the motherboard, monochrome video
output, a 2nd video slot and some other minor changes. The W. German model is
no longer being made…all the machines now being made are the US model (also
known as the W. Chester model).
You might want to read the CO transcript (in DL 2) with Dave Haynie of
Commodore, he goes into a bit more detail on the changes and why they were
made.
Don
Don,
Thank you for that info – at least the unit's not that old. A little sigh
of relief – now if I only had halh-brite capability. Oh well.
Thanks,
Winston
Don,
Don't be too sure about the power supplies. I just saw an ad for Amiga 1000
power supplies at the ridiculously low price of $19.95, said to be 'surplus,
and brand new'.
Regards, Larry.
Larry,
Spare supplies for only US$20.00……from where??
Can't recall the outfit offhand Vic, but they are in the latest (386 theme)
Byte, on page 390-something.
Regards, Larry.