Acorn System 5
 | |
| Acorn System 5 (front): Eurocards on the left, two 5.25" drives on the right | |
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Acorn Computers Ltd |
| Type | Modular microcomputer (Eurocard) |
| Released | Late 1982 (handbook dated 1 March 1983) |
| CPU | 6502 @ 1 MHz (2 MHz 6502A option) |
| Memory | 32 KB DRAM (standard), expandable |
| Storage | Two 5.25" floppy disc drives, disc controller (Intel 8271) |
| Display | 80×25 or 40×25 teletext VDU |
| Sound | — |
| OS / Firmware | Acorn DOS |
| Predecessor | Acorn System 4 |
| Successor | Acorn Atom / BBC Micro (home line) |
The Acorn System 5 was the last of Acorn's rack-mounted Eurocard machines, released in late 1982. It was housed in an extra-height single 19-inch frame holding two vertically-mounted 5.25-inch floppy drives and either seven or ten Eurocard slots, and was supplied complete with a power supply, fully assembled only.[1] After the System 5, Acorn sold the Eurocard business to its reseller Control Universal.
Configuration
[edit | edit source]As standard the System 5 had a 1 MHz 6502 (a 2 MHz 6502A board was an option), 32 KB of DRAM, a floppy-disc controller and either the 80×25 or the 40×25 teletext VDU card; the remaining slots could take interface cards, a further 16 KB DRAM card and/or an Econet adapter.[1][2] A documented System 5 (an ex-school Econet server) has a 2 MHz 6502A card, an 80×25 VDU card, 32K DRAM cards, an Econet card and an Intel 8271 floppy-controller card driving two 80-track drives.
Maintenance and repair
[edit | edit source]- Acorn System 5 Maintenance Guide
- Acorn System 5 Troubleshooting Guide
- Acorn System 5 Capacitor Replacement Guide
Documentation
[edit | edit source]See also
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Acorn System", Wikipedia. Source for the System 5 frame (7 or 10 slots, two vertical 5.25-inch drives), the standard configuration (1 MHz 6502, 32K DRAM, disc controller, 80×25 or 40×25 VDU), the 2 MHz 6502A and Econet options, and the late-1982 release.
- ↑ Whytehead, Chris. "Acorn System 5", Chris's Acorns / The Centre for Computing History. Source for the 10-slot card cage, the example configuration (2 MHz 6502A CPU, 80×25 VDU, 32K DRAM cards, Econet, Intel 8271 floppy controller, two 80-track drives) and the System keyboard plugging into the CPU card.