ScuzzBlog: Diaries December 2017
Entry 04th December 2017: Post: 2
Sharp MZ 711 - Filthy habit
Turns out that I have my Sharp MZ 711 incorrectly labelled as it
is in truth a MZ 721 because it has the integral tape player. Either
the computer is in the wrong box or it was upgraded. No idea.
These computers were very strange as you needed to load BASIC in
from tape to get them to run almost anything. Some of the games
came with BASIC, but if you don't have the BASIC tape you're stuffed.
Guess what.. I don't have the tape.
Such a nice looking machine this. Still very clean and well preserved.
CPU Sharp LH0080A (Z80A) running at 3.5MHz
Memory 4KB ROM ( monitor ) 4KB (character) 64KB (program) 4KB (video)
Video output PAL ( RGB composite video - RCB and UHF )
Screen is 40 character x 25 lines with 8 colours per character
Background gives 8 colours per character
Music is provided internally 550mV max.
Time clock 24 hour without data retention.
Power 220.240V 50/60Hz
Weight 3.6Kg.
Anyway I had completed my photographing session and decided to fire
the computer up. She was working fine and I was kinda getting the
hang of the controls when suddenly there was this crackling noise
from the region of the PSU. Next thing I knew the unit was smoking
very badly and then expired. She died. I switch off and that was that.
I'm guessing that one of those crappy RIFA capacitors blew. No idea.
She is back in the box and that's where she will stay sadly. Maybe
one day someone else can fix what ever went wrong. Had the computer
had more BASIC functionality on ROM then maybe it would have spent
more time with the computer. For now she is locked away.
This is where the fire started
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