[sebhc] old heathkit computer EC-1 (w/vacuum tubes) on ebay

[Dave McGuire]

On Jan 18, 2007, at 1:20 PM, William Wilkinson wrote:
> Looking at the schematic from Vintage Radio
> (http://www.vintage-radio.info/heathkit/index.htm), you could probably
> build an equivalent from a handful of solid-state op amps and a few
> regulators--though I doubt that it would be quite as impressive as the
> original.
>
> One thing, though.  You'd still need all that real estate for the  
> knobs,
> jacks, and meter.

   I've often thought of building a digitally-interfaced analog  
computer, primarily as an exercise/fun project.  Picture a  
traditionally-designed analog computer, but made with modern op-amps  
and other components, but with digital pots instead of "real" ones,  
and D/A and A/D converters for inputs and outputs.

   Analog Devices has a fantastic chip that I'd like to stick in the  
middle of it all, the AD538 Real-Time Analog Computational Unit.   
It's a very complex analog chip that can perform analog  
multiplication, division, and exponentiation.  I have a few of them  
here and have been itching to put some voltages through them.

   Oh yes, I don't recall if I've ever actually posted anything here  
before...I subscribed a month or three ago (things are crazy as I've  
just moved house); I'm a vintage computing enthusiast...I cut my  
teeth on the Z80 and PDP-11.  I subscribed here because I have an H-8  
and was looking for kindred spirits.  So, hello all. :-)

             -Dave

-- 
Dave McGuire
Port Charlotte, FL


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