Store All My Original Hardware and Use Only MiSTer

[Bristles]

Well, if you have £15 grand to spare, then you can have the lot. Going by current eBay sold prices, that is roughly what 90% of my collection is worth.

[bazza_12]

blimey, what you got?

[Bristles]

Most of my hardware is in it's original box, in perfect condition, and has all/most of the accessories that came with it.
For example, I have 2 Atari 2600 consoles, both in their original box, but one of them is the rarer first version heavy 6-switch original UK version, in it's original box, with a CX10 (most come with the common CX40), the "Atari" paddles and driving controllers - not the ones with Paddles, and Driving written on them. Original boxed GameMate Remote Joysticks, New-Old-Stock boxed Romscanner, Atari Game Library in it's original box, a boxed Supercharger + 3 boxed games - I mean, what is this lot worth ? I can't put a figure on it, because altogether I could probably get close to 1k.

[Bas]

Have you considered lending to a serious museum?

[Bristles]

I haven't, no.
Basically, I got lucky, very early on in my life. For example, I have quite a few new-old-stock systems - Acorn Electron, Vectrex, Nintendo Gameboy DMG, Nintendo Gameboy Colour, Amstrad CPC 6128, to name a few, and I got these years before retro went mental, and prices skyrocketed. I also got many systems in their end-of-life pre--owned sales, such as a boxed, gorgeous, Oric Atmos + matching Philips tape Deck, 32 original tapes, and I paid....wait for it.....£20 - Yep, all for a whopping £20 back in 1987. The guy even delivered it to me. Madness. If I put that lot on eBay for the same money, I would sell it quicker than I could get out of my chair, and make a cuppa.
I also have collected, right back as far as 1979, VFD Tabletop games, and LED handheld + Tabletop games from Grandstand, Entex, CGL, all boxed, all working, and I am only missing 1 from the CGL collection - Jungler, and 1 from Entex - Spiders. Apart from that, my collection is complete.
I also have a complete, boxed, new-old-stock MB Electronics MicroVision + all the 8 boxed game carts that sold for this system. It even comes in it's original shipping box that was meant for retail shops. Although, I'm not sure if the screen is 100% free from screen rot.
I must have 7 ZX spectrums, from the complete set of hardware - rubber key 16k, 2x 48k machines, Plus, +2, +3, 128k Toastrack.
4 Commodore 64s. 2x Breadbin, 2x 64C version. All boxed, in superb condition + 4x 1541 Disk Drives all boxed and working.
2x Commodore Vic-20 machines boxed, and in amazing mint condition, and white - not yellowed at all. Plus, the 1541 White version of the disk drive.
2x Commodore Plus/4 machines boxed, superb condition, working + Black 1551 Disk Drive.
2x Commodore 16 machines boxed. Both working, no keys yellowed.

I mean, my list is freaking huge, and it took some moving, when I moved house back in 2015. I moved them myself, after hiring a van for 24 hours, because I didn't trust the moving company.

[aberu]

Have you considered lending to a serious museum?

Most of the time doing this will mean it will sit in a basement useless collecting dust for decades.

[bazza_12]

That's a serious collection.. I really wished I'd kept all the computers I had growing up through the 80's and 90's.. but same old story, I sold one to buy the next.. it's only over the last few years I thought I'd like to have an Amiga again and/or an ST, ironically the MiSTer reignited my interest in 8/16bit machines. You are quite correct though, Bristles, prices are ridiculous now. It's so sad seeing the toastrack speccy flogging for hundreds when I had one in the 80's and sold it for peanuts to get an Amstrad 6128. I only had one disc-based game for the 6128 - Time and Magik - and even that I've seen on ebay for well over £100.. such crazy prices.. I often wonder if people are buying as an investment or buying to use them. I have to admit to feeling very jealous when watching youtube videos and seeing people who have shelves filled with Amiga 500's, or breadbin c64s - literally hundreds of them.. and I think why? I can understand being a completist, like yourself - collecting all the spectrums for example.. but what's the point of having 100 spectrum+'s, not boxed just shelved in the backroom..

[akator]

@Bristles
I have a similar collection but more US focused. You might already know this, but there are newly manufactured replacement LCDs for the MicroVision listed on AtariAge. I bought some from the first run and another batch is coming available soon.

[Bristles]

That's a serious collection.. I really wished I'd kept all the computers I had growing up through the 80's and 90's.. but same old story, I sold one to buy the next.. it's only over the last few years I thought I'd like to have an Amiga again and/or an ST, ironically the MiSTer reignited my interest in 8/16bit machines. You are quite correct though, Bristles, prices are ridiculous now. It's so sad seeing the toastrack speccy flogging for hundreds when I had one in the 80's and sold it for peanuts to get an Amstrad 6128. I only had one disc-based game for the 6128 - Time and Magik - and even that I've seen on ebay for well over £100.. such crazy prices.. I often wonder if people are buying as an investment or buying to use them. I have to admit to feeling very jealous when watching youtube videos and seeing people who have shelves filled with Amiga 500's, or breadbin c64s - literally hundreds of them.. and I think why? I can understand being a completist, like yourself - collecting all the spectrums for example.. but what's the point of having 100 spectrum+'s, not boxed just shelved in the backroom..

The retro prices are getting so insane, you have to wonder if a second videgame crash will happen to the very same machines back in 1984.
Just to give a few examples, the price of empty boxes are now at the same level I paid for the whole thing. A good exmaple is the Gameboy DMG box, in good condition + all the leaflets, manual, etc... can go for £50+, which is insane. I paid £50 for a new-old-stock Gameboy DMG, back in 2015, and even then I was debating the price.
Here are my two new-old-stock gameboys. The GB colour is still sealed, while the Gameboy DMG has been opened and switched on to test it.

https://i.ibb.co/whR4Jjp/gameboy-collection.jpg

I don't know exactly what they're worth today, only a rough guess, but much more that I paid for them.
I agree about the huge collection of the same system, that must be for investment, it can't be to collect. I now only have my original Amiga 500 1.2 chipset, as I have sold my A1200, A600, and Amiga 500+. I even got back more money than I originally paid for them. Madness.

I have a similar collection but more US focused. You might already know this, but there are newly manufactured replacement LCDs for the MicroVision listed on AtariAge. I bought some from the first run and another batch is coming available soon.

Yes, thanks for that. I have been keeping my eye on that thread. I have two Microvisions, so I could use the one in the worst state, to try the repair myself.

[bazza_12]

Even the media that surrounds the computer period I grew up in goes for crazy prices, did you see recently the first edition of Amiga Format sold for over £100 on ebay?

I'm happy with the Amiga 500 I bought last year off ebay, I couldn't justify spending top whack on a 1200 at the prices they're selling for though

[thorr]

Dang this thread is non-characteristic of the norm on this forum. I am glad it seems to have worked itself out to a more normal footing. For me, the MiSTer is very special. No, it is not real hardware. It doesn't have that feeling of plugging in cartridges and flipping switches, etc. However, for me, it is like having version 2.0 of real hardware, removing all the inconveniences and adding lots of new features, and greatly improving the video quality with component video to my CRT instead of freaking RF or (better) composite. All through my growing up I looked forward to new hardware for my PC that improved the experience. New 3D cards, faster CPU's, etc. The MiSTer scratches that itch for all the old consoles. It's like having new consoles. As much as possible, I use SNAC with real controllers. However there are times I love the fact I can use different controllers.

The input system was mentioned, and that has been greatly improved (some of which were from my own requests and I was very grateful when Sorg implemented my suggestions), but I still (constructively I hope) complain about it. I also wish there were per game joystick configurations. There is, as far as I know, a workaround though. You can set up other folders and drop cores or mgl files into them with a different name. I haven't tried this yet but I plan to. I want to play Forsaken 64 using my flight stick and throttle on the N64 core, and use custom button mapping for the controller with it. I might want to use different buttons with the same controller on a different game, so I would set up a folder for that, and just choose it at the core level and it would have one or a few games in it.

As far as the menu goes, I personally am fine with it. There is too much stuff in there these days, so I am thinking about looking into using mgl files and putting my favorite stuff all in one folder at the top with _Favorites. I haven't tried this yet either. There are also other projects I haven't tried like attract mode and NFC readers to launch games, so it isn't like we are just stuck with the menu.

[akator]

^ I love my MiSTer, but for me it is more a supplement to the hardware I already own.

Had MiSTer been available in the 2000s, I would have less original hardware and MiSTer would probably be my primary system. However, I've spent years setting up my original hardware with modern peripherals that give me ease of use never imagined back in the 80s and 90s. Most of the conveniences MiSTer provides I already have with my original systems.

Basically I love it all, original hardware, software emulation, and FPGA. Each has its strengths.

For now I couldn't imagine getting rid of my original hardware. It brings me happiness. As does MiSTer.

[bazza_12]

It brings me happiness. As does MiSTer.

awww that's all that matters in the end

[Armakuni]

I ditched all my original hardware and software a few years ago when the prices started to go silly, most of which i picked up in the previous decade for peanuts so was a nice little earner.

MiSTer does all i need and good enough to not make me feel like i am missing out by not having the real hardware, In some ways i find it makes revisiting these old systems more enjoyable as its so easy to use and the support from the devs on the project is just brilliant.

I really have never understood the fuss over the front end, its clean and straightforward with plenty of options to customise it from various add ons, with the rise of the TapTo project you dont even have to use it to launch games anymore.