Stephen C Cousins

3,373 orders since Sep 20, 2018

Stowmarket, Suffolk, United Kingdom

Ships from United Kingdom.

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Overall Rating:

Review Breakdown

Average Ratings

Product: (4.97)

Documentation: (4.90)

Shipping: (4.91)

Communication: (4.92)

All Reviews

Marcin | Dec. 9, 2020

Excellent

For SC202 Boards for a flexible Z80 computer

Very good PCB quality, very good online documentation, fast shipping - everything is just fine.
I had lot of fun putting it together, and now I have working RC2014-compatible system.
Many thanks!

Michael | Dec. 4, 2020

Excellent kit, worked first time.

For SC132 RCBus-40pin+ Z80 SIO/0 Module Kit for RC2014

As with all Steven's kits, this one is thoughtfully designed and very well documented. Good quality PCB and components. Very configurable, with options for different clock sources. There are links to isolate the rx/rx signals from the bus and for address selection, avoiding conflict with a second serial card should you need one. Unlike some other serial boards, the RTS and CTS signals are brought out to the FTDI connector for hardware handshaking. Recommended.

Mark | Nov. 25, 2020

SC-126 Z180 SBC and SC-129 Digital I/O Kit

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Thank you Stephen! Great quality kit. Really like having CP/M 3, MBASIC and the Z80 Assembler all working on one small portable and reliable board. Love the RTC feature and using the Micro SD adapter with my 16GB card on the SPI Card SD 1 port works great. Looking forward to using the I2C port with a PCA9685. I'm using the USB serial adapter on Serial Port A which works really well, could not get USB Serial Port B to work, probably something I am not aware of and not the fault of the board, any tips would be appreciated. Your online detailed instructions were excellent, especially the recommended steps to check my assembly work of the board(s) before powering up. No missing parts, packaged and labeled well. The only issue I had was having to lightly burnish the land patterns on the board (and some of the edge connector pins) for better solder flow. Also, I built the SC-129 Digital I/O card which is working great as well, having 8 LEDs for both the input port and output port is a nice feature and the edge connector with both input and output pins exposed is what I plan to be using for adding external hardware like sensors etc. All in all a great kit, would definitely recommend for any one who likes to build hardware and use multiple programming languages for the Z80 processor. Thanks again!

John | Nov. 20, 2020

Excellent Kit and Seller

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Well packaged, fast ship, PCB of excellent quality and well marked component ID/values, as are all parts supplied. On Line documentation is excellent, even for a novice constructor (but previous soldering experience or practice would be helpful, considering the close pin/pad alignments). Highly recommended.

Jean-Michel | Nov. 19, 2020

Excellent

For SC131 Pocket-sized Z180 RomWBW CP/M computer kit

A very nice way to retrieve flavor of the good old time. Kit quality is excellent, easy to build. Worked like a charm when power on.

Mogens | Nov. 13, 2020

Compact, reliable and fun!

For SC131 Pocket-sized Z180 RomWBW CP/M computer kit

This kit is an excellent compact and portable computer. Having built other high-quality kits from Steve, this one is definitely no exception: Fast and safe packaging and shipping. Clear and accurate documentation. Nice PCB layout. Excellent case. Everything OK!

Take your time when preparing and assembling the case and the SD card reader; it is a tight fit, but indeed a fit. If in doubt, read the documentation and study the pictures one more time!

My kit worked on first power-up. The software included in the ROM, and the downloads with SD card images for RomWBW is great stuff. I decided to run my system using CP/M 3, which I like a lot. Both hardware and software is very stable and bug-free. I find it is a very robust and reliable system.

I highly recommend this kit if you want to bring your Z180 system with you everywhere - and who doesn’t?

Jeremy | Nov. 11, 2020

Fun retro-computing project

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Even as someone new to soldering it was a breeze to put this kit together thanks to the excellent documentation and information available on the Small Computer Central web site. In fact my biggest mistake was inadvertently switching the 74AHCT139 and 74HCT138 ICs around in U4 and U10, which resulted in a very unhappy Z180 CPU. After sourcing a replacement CPU the system booted up just fine and appears to have suffered no ill effects. The size of the parcel was a nice surprise - it's amazing how Stephen managed to fit everything in such a well layed out yet modestly sized parcel which should fit most mailboxes. I've since then ordered the SC131 which I finished assembling today - it booted up on its first try!

Alexander | Nov. 9, 2020

Really cool product

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Soldered the kit in 4 hours, runs immediately despite my incredible soldering competence. Included ROMs have lots of good software to get you started quickly. The expansion possibilities are enormous due to the many slots.

Scott | Nov. 9, 2020

High quality, quality product

For SC131 Pocket-sized Z180 RomWBW CP/M computer kit

High quality, easy to build and the finished product is better than I expected. I've built a few Z80 SBC's before and all have been great fun but the quality of the SC131 'Elite' is right up there with the best. It looks great in the plastic case, sits nicely on my desk next to my Mac. I would recommend this build to anyone who wants to get into Z80 SBC's and have fun.

Javier | Nov. 7, 2020

This kit is the best way to jump into the world of Z80.

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Simply put, SC126 SBC kit has all needed, both for hardware and software tinkerers. The kit design is easy to follow and understand, the BOM has quality parts, it’s a pleasure to solder in the high quality PCB. The parts are carefully packed in the box, not a single pin was out of protective foam.
The firmware is just impressive, kudos to Stephen C. Cousins for for including such good software in such a small space.
The kit has SPI, I2C, serial ports and a backplane with all the Z80 address, data and control signals, so you can expand the system to whatever yo need.
So, if you want to learn and practice Z80 assembly, basic or C, this is the kit to go.

Boban | Oct. 29, 2020

Perfect.

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Perfect kit in every way - beautiful "motherboard", package, delivery, documentation, fun to build, fun to use. Just perfect.

Martin | Oct. 14, 2020

Another great kit, Steve

For SC111 RCBus Z180 CPU Module Kit

I built the SC111, SC112 motherboard and SC119 memory module over a couple of evenings. Great build documentation in your kits and on your website. I added a spare CF board from my RC2014 and an FTDI cable and the system fired right up. Thanks again, Steve, for your time and effort in making such an amazing kit!!!

Alexander | Oct. 13, 2020

Very Nice Kit

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Very nice kit, build quality is very good. Documentation was very clear which for me not being an experienced builder was very helpful. Once I started the build it came together pretty quick Once complete I gave it a quick clean and powered it on came to life first try got into CP/M and have since spent months trying to find some software & manuals.

Overall a very nice kit, relatively easy to build and easy to use and well worth the money.

Stefan | Oct. 10, 2020

Excellent: Great product, fast delivery

For SC130 RCBus-40pin RomWBW CP/M Computer Kit

The kit has been shipped at the day of the order and arrived just 6 days later, despite international delivery.

The quality of the board and the components was very good and the complete assembly with the help of the excellent guide was only a matter of a few hours.
The assembly guide is not only very detailed with a lot of pictures which clearly shows how to mount every part, it also contains a lot of checkpoints, so that you can be sure, not having created a short circuit.

The finally assembled machine worked immediately. Overall a very pleasant experience.

Richard | Sept. 29, 2020

An excellent kit

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Well documented, complete and straightforward to assemble. Most importantly, it works well and it is suprisingly fast !

Erlend | Aug. 29, 2020

Good quality kit

For SC108 RCBus-40pin+ Z80 Processor Kit for RC2014

The kit came well packed, and has excellent documentation. Even for me as a beginner it was easy to solder together and the board worked first time. The only small challenge I had at first was that the crystal did not quite fit the socket for it, but that just took a little bit of trying. If more interesting boards show up from Stephen I probably will end up building those too :-)

Erlend | Aug. 29, 2020

All good

For SC110 RCBus-40pin+ Serial and Timer Kit for RC2014

I built this and connected it to a laptop. My first set-up was with a 9v battery and an LM7805, but I've now moved to powering the RC2014 system via the USB to TTL adapter. It just required unplugging the 9v battery and installing the top jumper. My soldering initially wasn't that great and I was only receiving characters on the laptop, but reviewing the bad solder points I found the one I had failed to solder properly and the set-up started working. First programs running successfully.

Jaittarius | Aug. 25, 2020

One of the best retrobrew computer kits!

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

I've built many Z80 based SBCs and this one is the best. System is extremely stable with great performance with tons of expansion options to choose from. Easy to assemble with good build quality and the color documentation is a nice touch. Had a ton of fun building this and may purchase another just for the fun of building it again. Highly recommended for retro SBC fans

Dylan | Aug. 23, 2020

One very happy customer!

For SC130 RCBus-40pin RomWBW CP/M Computer Kit

This kit is my first introduction to retro computing since using a ZX Spectrum as a teenager. I'm very impressed, a huge thanks to Stephen. You've recaptured the excitement that modern computing has lost.

The assembly was straight forward and the instructions are excellent.

The only possible area for improvement would be adding an option to include some right-angle headers and 6-pin dupont cables for the serial and SD card adaptors. Finding the dupont cables here in New Zealand is proving a pain.

Jim | Aug. 23, 2020

A great kit!

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

I had some health issues last year and botched the build of a project. I was looking for something to build some confidence (I've built a lot of radios and computers over the years and most have worked on the first try). This one did that--I skipped a lot of the checks suggested along the way and wondered if I'd regret it later. But the instructions were good, no errata tucked away for you to discover later, and plenty of pictures. Still figuring out the nuances of RomWBW, but love the system. Ordered two serial ports because xmodem transfers never work with just one--except they do on this one! I figured I'd give it a try before firing up the second serial port and it worked flawlessly. Transferred my favorite assembler over and tested the Z180 logic in my CPU identifier for the first time. (It worked.) Wrote a BASIC program to tinker with the onboard LEDs. A nice kit that I'll be recommending.

Christopher | Aug. 13, 2020

fantastic kit!

For SC129 RCBus-40pin+ Digital I/O Kit for RC2014

Just received and assembled my kit today. I tested this with an SC126 (highly recommend that kit too!) and it worked straight away and exactly as expected. Within minutes I was sending byte values to control the output pins which I tied to an arguing. Works great! Stephen's kits are top notch! The shipping was much faster than anticipated to the U.S. as well.

Christopher | Aug. 13, 2020

another solid kit!

For SC113 Modular Backplane Kit for RC2014

This is the third kit of Stephen's I've ordered (also got the SC129 and SC126 which I used to test this kit) and I have to say, as usual, top notch kit. I like that I can use it interchangeably with other kits and can connect multiple of these to connect more boards. Good work! Definitely recommend and I intend to purchase more of his kits!

Piero Giorgio | Aug. 12, 2020

Retro computing at its best

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Very nice, very expandable retro computing system... You can relive the glorious initial days of computing, or even just get things done. And make use of a vast software base from the CP/M times.

Kurt | Aug. 3, 2020

SC129

For SC129 RCBus-40pin+ Digital I/O Kit for RC2014

Very good product. Works flawlessly.
Assembly was not a problem.
Now it also flashes in the room.

Kurt

Erlend | July 31, 2020

Absolutely wonderful

For SC112 Modular Backplane Kit for RC2014

A great experience. Stephen is very quick to answer questions, quickly send out the product, and it arrived in good condition. All nicely packaged in separate labeled kits and with documentation. Add to that a very reasonable price and from what i can tell very good designs. now i just need to get my new soldering station before i can put things together :-)

Eric | July 28, 2020

Excellent SBC

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

I bought this kit and even with overseas shipping received it quickly.

It went together in one evening and worked on the first go. The instructions were very clear and the assembly was easy. I am very pleased with the SC126. It's a great platform for RomWBW and is expandable.

I was so pleased I've ordered more items from this seller.

Tadas | July 16, 2020

well thought out kit

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

* Rock solid stable
* Loaded with lots of goodies in the ROM from the beginning
* Great docs
* Really detailed and well done silkscreen

Overall awesome kit!

Piero | July 14, 2020

Great kit!

For SC131 Pocket-sized Z180 RomWBW CP/M computer kit

This kit is really great. The PCB gives a feeling of precise working, and when soldering you can feel the Copper of the Ground and Vcc traces...
Once solved a little problem (caused by a superficial testing on my side) it works better than "the real thing" I used "in the times when". Thanks to the generosity of several software houses, a lot of old commercial CP/M software is now available freely, including plenty of programming language suites. Maybe I will get a chance to refine some really old programs of mine. All in all, it's a breath of youth!

Kurt | July 11, 2020

SC126

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

Very good product.
Very fast delivery.
Documentation and support very good.
I would buy again.
Kurt

Francis | July 9, 2020

Perfect I/O board, flexible and easy to build

For SC129 RCBus-40pin+ Digital I/O Kit for RC2014

Unbeatable price for this easy and powerful I/O kit. The port number selection makes it possible to multiply boards without conflicts. A high quality great buy for any RC2014 based computer. And Stephen's support is as great as usual.

Mogens | July 3, 2020

SC126 - Highly recommended and very capable system

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

This is an excellent kit to build your own Z180 microcomputer. It is a fantastic retro-experience and you end up with a fully functional system, very capable of running real (retro-)applications.

I initially built the smaller and also excellent SC114 kit, since I had no experience at all with soldering and building electronics (I am a software engineer...). I love the simplicity of the SC114, and it was a great opportunity to learn about building digital computer electronics. It made me confident that I could build the SC126 as well.

Documentation and assembly guide is very clear; take the time to read through everything before soldering, and don’t rush it if (like me) you only have little experience with electronics. But don’t be scared :) it is not too difficult - my kit worked on first startup. Do the quick tests as described during assembly, and you will know you are on track.

Included ROMs offer a lot of software to explore out of the box, and the SD card adapter is a great “mass storage solution” for additional software and data.
I recommend downloading and installing the “hd_combo.img” from ROMWBW to an SD card, and try the ZPM3 system, which is a capable OS compatible with CP/M.

I have set up a Raspberry Pi as “frontend” running the minicom terminal emulator, with SSH access. In this way, I can access my SC126 from anywhere 24/7.

I highly recommend the SC126 kit, which is a very high quality, professional product at an attractive price.

Mark | June 27, 2020

Fantastic little kit

For SC131 Pocket-sized Z180 RomWBW CP/M computer kit

I purchased just the PCB and components and designed a little case for 3D printing. The STLs can be downloaded here: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4505086

Yoshiaki | June 27, 2020

The best RC2014 all in one kit!

For SC126 RCBus Z180 SBC/Motherboard Kit

I bought this kit in November last year as my first RC2014.
Since then, I enhanced CF memory board, SC129 Digital I/O Module, Dr scott's Bus monitor, Single stepper, YM2149 sound card, and J.B.Lang's TMS9918 video card,etc.
This genius Z180 board is equipped with 512k/512k paging memory and RTC for RomWBW, therefore no need to add function with other boards basically.
Maybe you might have to buy bus extension board for future enhancement fun.
Thank you Steve, you introduced me to awesome RC2014 world.
And I'm very glad to hear this SC126 selling over +500 kits !
Congratulations and thank you for your kind support !
Anyway, this is very good kit for newcomer to start RC2014 all in one kit and very affordable price.

Gerald | June 26, 2020

Great quality backplane

For SC112 Modular Backplane Kit for RC2014

This Backplane kit is a level ahead of the official RC2014 Backplane products, having a well-considered design and its excellently executed.

I have an official RC2014 Backplane Pro but was looking for something that would allow me to create an RC2014 module configuration that would support some of my own module development. Build was quite straightforward, guided and supported by great quality documentation. Assembly is greatly aided by the supplied quality board and components.

To is serving my purposes admirably but could be great base from which to build a more regular RC2014 machine.

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