Cory | Jan. 27, 2023

Great 68k Kit

For rosco-m68k Classic V2 (Kit!)

I had a blast building this- the kit is through hole so assembly went by very quickly what ended up taking more time was the getting a pretty enclosure and spending time actually working on writing code for this- I made a video about this if you want to check out how assembly went for me. https://youtu.be/QzF8xTOwsJM

Its a shame this has been out of stock for some time- it was a darn good kit with very nice assembly instructions!

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | Aug. 22, 2023

Hi Cory!

I don't know how but I somehow missed this until now! Sorry about that!

Thank you so much for your order and for leaving this review, and thanks for your (awesome by the way!) YouTube video too! Really glad you enjoyed building the kit and it was amazing to see the build 😃

It's been a long road with the semiconductor shortage but stock is gradually becoming available again, it's selling out as fast as we can put kits together and I bet your video is helping with that, so thanks again 😊

Cheers,
Ross

Richard | April 15, 2021

No hitches apart from slow component delivery due to COVID.

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1.23

The BOM has been easy to satisfy apart from the 68010. Still waiting.

The serial interface could be improved if the pin out matched commonly available USB serial modules.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | May 9, 2021

Thanks for your review, and sorry to hear you are still waiting for a CPU. These are unfortunately becoming quite hard to find.

The pinout of the serial interface on the 1.2 board is designed to match most commonly-available FTDI USB serial modules, but sadly they do vary a bit and so not all of them match :(

Thanks again, and happy hacking!
Ross

Alexander | Dec. 12, 2020

good kit and nice change from CP/M projects

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1.23

I've built a number of retro-homebrew systems and find the Rosco-m68k a nice change from having to use CP/M and its ancient commands and compilers. Having a GCC-based toolchain opens up all sorts of possibilities to port existing modern code. If you're on Linux, I recommend still using 'brew' to install the toolchain, as there may be problems getting a current GCC to build the older version used in the toolchain.

Persistent storage would be nice, but it's not that bad to upload programs each time considering the tradeoff of not having to put up with CP/M.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | March 14, 2021

Thanks for the review Alexander, really glad you're happy with the kit :) A modern toolchain and development experience are an important goal for this project. Rest assured that various options for persistent storage is being worked on already, and will be available very soon :)

Thanks again,
Ross

Matthew | Dec. 4, 2020

Really nice kit.

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1.23

Super kit. Worked pretty much straightaway with great software support and is building a nice little community.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | March 14, 2021

Thanks for the review Matthew, really glad you're happy with the kit :)

Thanks again,
Ross

John | Nov. 9, 2020

Very useful add-on

For 1/2/3/4MB RAM Expansion for rosco_m68k

Having already purchased and played with the standalone 1.2 main board, I decided to put together a larger system - 9MB memory, where I would implement a 2M RAM Drive for a workspace. To get this done, I needed more memory so acquired the bus board and a memory card, with a second to follow down the road. The kit is straight forward to assemble and easy to configure. Only issue- you need a very small soldering tip because of the closeness of the contacts for the sole transistor on the board. I had to use an xacto knife to make sure that they weren't shorting. That said, the kit assembles in a few hours. Minimal tools needed: wire cutters, needle nose pliers, temperature controlled soldering iron (with small tip) and a VOM. Very clean assemble and except for the caution required in soldering the transistor, very easy to assemble. Great kit. Great support, Great value.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | Nov. 10, 2020

Hi John!

Thanks for the reviews, and for the kind words! Noted your points about the documentation and transistors, I'm planning to do a big overhaul of the documentation over the Christmas holidays, and will definitely be changing the transistor footprint in the next board revision.

Thanks again,
Ross

John | Nov. 9, 2020

John | Nov. 9, 2020

Zoltan | Oct. 31, 2020

Just received, looking great!

For V9958 Video Board for rosco_m68k

Just received my kit, and I am already impressed with the quality of PCB and the completeness of all the components, even IC sockets are included! Just two tiny suggestions: it would be great to include a schematic printout (always good to have aside during assembly to double check connections with a probe etc.), and maybe the PCB could have holes at corners for screw mounting. My intent is to actually use this as a "video controller" with some FPGA projects, in a somewhat weird mixed mode, will be if I am successful or not :-)

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | Nov. 4, 2020

Hi Zoltan!

Thanks for the kind words, and I will definitely look at implementing your suggestions - especially the printed schematic, that's a great idea :)

Your project sounds very interesting, the V9958 sounds perfect for it! Would love to hear how it goes :)

Thanks again,
Ross

Jayne | Sept. 16, 2020

Awesome

For 1/2/3/4MB RAM Expansion for rosco_m68k

Great addition to my Rosco68K set up, good clear instructions, simple build and worked first time. Who could ask for more?

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | Sept. 24, 2020

Hi Jayne,

Thanks for the review, super pleased you're happy with your kit!

Thanks again, and happy hacking,
Ross

Paula | Sept. 16, 2020

Colour graphics for my 68K

For V9958 Video Board for rosco_m68k

Great kit with superbly clear documentation. Parts all seem to be new old stock and I'm very happy with the support from Rosco during it's bring up!

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | Sept. 24, 2020

Hi Paula,

Thanks for the review and feedback, really pleased you're happy with your kit!

Thanks again, and happy hacking,
Ross

Theo | July 25, 2020

Nice kit, fun to build

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

I bought the Rosco-m68k as a full kit to make sure I had everything I would need. It was not difficult to build and worked first time. The green and red LED's are reassuring indicators even before a serial terminal is connected. I used Kermit for Windows to upload and test the examples. The board is well-designed, and the large 68010 chip looks great on it. Recommended for old school microprocessor enthusiasts.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | July 26, 2020

Hi Theo,

Thanks for your review and feedback, really glad everything arrived safe and you're happy with it :)

Thanks again, and happy hacking!
Ross

Michael | July 20, 2020

Good kit, worked first time.

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

Can't really fault this kit. Everything supplied, very good documentation and supporting software. It's still being very actively developed and there is a lot more potential. If you want to take advantage of the ongoing developments, a programmer would prove useful. This isn't a kit for someone wanting to boot straight into an operating system, it's more suited to someone who wants a platform for hacking m68k code and hardware. The documentation covers setting up the tool-chain, which can often be a challenge for the beginner, and I found this worked well on my Mac. Support from the developer is very good. Recommended.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | July 20, 2020

Hi Michael,

Thanks for the review, and your kind words :) Really pleased that you're happy with your kit, and super excited to have you in the community :)

Thanks again, and happy hacking!
Ross

John | July 20, 2020

Great kit, good documentation, packing and shipping issues.

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

Bought this kit because I wanted to work with the 68000 again. I first started playing with this chip in the mid-80's when I build a Godabout Compupro system, first with a z80 and then upgraded it to the 68K with CPM68k. At which point I built a video card, slave z8000 processor and voice synthesizer. Then I wrote software drivers for supporting every available drive under the sun, the video card and the voice synthesizer. So I am a bit of a geek. Also owned at one time every version of the Amiga, the Atari 68k system and a AT&T Unix workstation. I liked this platform so much I decided to use this kit to get back into it again now that I am retired. Bought the kit with all the bells and whistles (parts, etc.) Given the current clime, it took a while, but it got here. Well packed. However, lots of the chips suffered pin damage, most it appears, before they were packed. Fortunately, I was able to salvage them without breaking any. So guys you have to do a better job with those chips (FYI the ROMs were the worst). Also, with QC regarding the sockets - you shipped me one defective, which I was able to recover, and one with missing pins. Only other ding was a doc discrepancy - web page manifest is different from the one included with the kit. Issue was the Green LED resistors weren't updated into the webpage - minor, but there. Once I acquired the appropriate replacement socket, it went together easily, less than 4 hours of soldering. Biggest problem with the assembly itself was figuring out the values of the caps. Fortunately I had just acquired a digital microscope, which was invaluable in resolving that problem (only way I could read the legends). Once I plugged it in and hooked up the mini B USB converter (per the instructions - had to acquire another cable there), it booted up just fine. Started playing with it tonight, if I can get Kermit to cooperate (locking issues with UBUNTU 18.04). Nice, clean design, pretty full proof if you socket the chips, and very, very good, docs. Looking to implement CPM 68K here again eventually and then start really playing.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | July 21, 2020

Hi John,

Thanks for your review, and for the detailed feedback :)

Firstly, I'm sorry for the damage on some of the parts - I would never have knowingly shipped them that way, and am more than happy to refund for any that were beyond repair - please contact me directly at ross@rosco-m68k.com and we'll arrange that :)

I hear you loud and clear on the packaging, rest assured that, based on your feedback, I'm already investigating alternative packaging methods. I'll be changing the way the ICs are packaged immediately, and plan to move to sturdier boxes (instead of the current soft packaging) in the near future, with the ICs packaged in anti-static tubes.

The website BOM differing from the printed one in the kit is because some kits have been shipping with different LEDs and limiting resistor combinations, but I think those are sold through now so will look at getting them updated to match as soon as possible, thanks for the reminder.

Thanks also for your kind comments, I'm super pleased that you're happy with your kit!

Thanks again, and happy hacking!
Ross

Paula | July 17, 2020

Great complement

For Local Bus Backplane for rosco_m68k

Fab complement kit to the main m68k board, I modified the board a little and it's working a treat!
I'll be using this to develop some ideas I have to run on the m68K

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | July 17, 2020

Hi Paula,

Thanks for your review, really pleased you're happy with your kit, and can't wait to see what you do with it :)

Thanks again, and happy hacking!
Ross

Paula | July 17, 2020

Awesome fun

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

I had so much fun building this and bringing it to life.
Had a small hiccup with the build which was quickly and professionally resolved by the seller.
I'm super happy with this and will be tinkering for weeks :)

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | July 17, 2020

Hi Paula,

Really pleased that you're happy with your kit, and many thanks for your review!

Very sorry for the faulty part you received with your order, and glad we were able to get it sorted out for you quickly :)

Thanks again, and happy hacking!
Ross

Alexander | May 28, 2020

All cool! Like this sbc

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

A lot of options for kit and easy to build but powerful sbc. Like it 👍, good tool to study m68k. Even unix can be loaded probably - will do that in future.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | May 30, 2020

Hi Alexander,

Thanks for the review! Really pleased that you're happy with your kit, running unix would be awesome :)

Thanks again, and happy hacking!
Ross

Henk | May 21, 2020

Well constructed board, easy to build, good software support

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

Communication with the seller is great, very kind person to deal with. The Rev 1 board is perfect for a lot of experiments, but a new revision would be better if it supports a true backplane in a 19 inch rack. Soldering the board is easy, and should take just a few hours. There are no adjustments, it should work right "out of the box". I bought the almost complete kit (I had several components in stock), and everything is clearly labeled, down to each separate resistor! I have always favored the Motorola processors over all the Intel stuff, so I might be a bit biased :-). But the M68010 is a great CPU, and only the 68020 can top it, before things get really complicated. The board is very "open", so lots of add-ons are possible, and being worked on already! The software that you can download from Github contains a toolchain and lots of help to get started. Either in assembly as in C! All in all, I am very happy with this kit.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | May 22, 2020

Hi Henk,

Thanks for your review and your kind words!

Really glad to hear you're happy with your kit, and very pleased you got up and running quickly :)

I hear you loud and clear on the revision two :) All feedback is being taken on board and will be considered when the time comes to do the design for the next version - there will be a lot of community involvement in the future direction we take :)

Thanks again,
Ross

Rick | May 7, 2020

Great Kit

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

Overall this is a great little kit. It was well packaged, organized, and all the parts were accounted for. There was not a whole lot of documentation for the assembly, but it was very obvious how to put it together. I was able to put it together in less than 4 hours.
Some general suggestions:
1) Make the EEPROMs at least 128K
2) Most of the capacitors did not mount exactly right. The pads were closer than the lead spacing of the caps.
3) Change the serial connector to be the standard 6 pin USB to serial header. I had to build an interface cable.
4) As others have stated, the GALs and EEPROMs should be labeled. The kit did include a neat little "map" of the packaged ICs, which was a life saver.
5) The SW development documentation was spread out all over several web pages, and was hard to follow. I understand this is a work in progress, and hopeful for improvements coming soon.
6) The SW development was geared towards Linux and MAC OS. It would be nice to have PC options other than Easy68K.

With that being said, the kit worked the first time I powered it up with a small hello world that I wrote using Easy68K. I would recommend this kit to anyone who has previous CPU development experience - especially those with a gcc background. Due to the SW difficulty, I would not recommend it for NOOBs...

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | May 9, 2020

Hi Rick,

Thanks for your review! Glad to hear your kit arrived safely and powered up first time :)

Thanks for your suggestions too, it's great feedback like yours that helps us make a better product.

There are already some moves afoot within the community to increase the ROM size (initially with a minor board modification) and I'm definitely planning to spec for larger ROMs in a future revision. I'm sorry to hear the capacitors weren't quite right, I'll talk to my suppliers and get that addressed going forward.

Great call on switching to the standard 6-pin serial connector, I'll raise a ticket on our tracker to do that in the next board revision.

Based on feedback, we now label both GALs and EEPROMs in all orders, yours must have been one of the last to escape before we started doing that, sorry about that.

I hear you loud and clear on the software side. I'm planning a big overhaul of the software documentation and plan to pull everything together into one place on the main website. You're absolutely right that the current documentation (like the software itself) is still growing but that's no excuse, I'll make this a priority and get some improvements n place. I'm also investigating options for a Windows version of the toolchain, hopefully as a self-contained installer that pulls in everything. I hope to launch that very soon.

Thanks again for you order and review, and happy hacking!

Ross

Andre | April 27, 2020

Nice m68k project.

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

Today finally had time to assemble the board.
Despite the corona crisis, the order was received quickly.
Assembling the board was very easy.
I would have liked to see that the 5 V DC connection was next to the serial connection, and whether a DC jack connection.
Sequence of the ROM and GAL chips were clear, but a sticker on the chips would be better.
Software installation did not go very well many errors with the installation of the toolchain via homebrew.
Everything done manually on a clean install of Ubuntu 20.04.Now looking for an MC68010, CPUs had been ordered in China, this turned out to be re-badged 68000 chips.

Keep it up with this project!

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | April 27, 2020

Thanks for your review 🙂

Really pleased that you’ve received your kit and the build went well!

Thanks for the feedback too, you’re not the first person to mention stickers and it’s a great point - going forward all boards will ship with stickers on the ROMs and the 16V8s.

A DC jack is a great idea, and I’ve actually just sent the initial design for a local bus backplane off for manufacturing, this will include a variety of power options including a jack, but I’ll make a note of your suggestion also for a future revision of the main board.

I’m sorry your software installation didn’t go well, I work on Mac so don’t have much experience with brew on Linux, but I’m going to contact you directly about that and also about the CPU - although I didn’t have any in stock when you ordered due to the unfortunate incident with the rebadged 68000s you mentioned, I now have stock of verified, genuine 68010s.

Thanks again for your order and review, and happy hacking!

Ross

Miodrag | April 25, 2020

Great m68k kit

For Rosco-m68k Revision 1

Very nice board, quite easy to build. All resistors were clearly marked which is nice touch.
On plastic bag there is also marking of chips and location where they go, but would suggest
placing sticker on GALs and ROMs, other parts do not need more info.
One small remark regarding PCB is that it would be better that memory chip pads and NE555 are larger
(like on other components) that would make it even easier to solder.
Nice coding examples and instructions for toolchain, so very interesting for further development.
Testing with MC68000P10 but will try with MC68010 as well when I get one.
Looking forward to new boards from you.

Response from The Really Old-School Company Ltd | April 25, 2020

Thanks for the review, really pleased you're happy with your kit and hope you have a lot of fun hacking on it!

Many thanks for the feedback, going forward we'll be adding stickers on both the ROMs and the 16V8s, and I've raised an issue (https://github.com/rosco-m68k/rosco_m68k/issues/35) to fix the pads on U1-U4 and the 555!

There's lots more to come for the rosco_m68k, with two new boards almost ready to launch and a video card at the breadboard stage, so be sure to check back regularly!

Thanks again, and happy hacking,
Ross