Hacking the Gibson

escapades in technology tinkering

Apple 1

This page is dedicated to my Apple 1. I built my Apple 1 starting with a bare PCB from Mike Willegal. My goal was to obtain as much historical accuracy as possible. I decided to aim towards an early Apple 1 shown in an advertisement in Interface Age magazine:

Upon close inspection I noticed a few unusual things about this Apple 1. First, an unusual white 2513 is used. I have not seen another Apple 1 with this type of package. After researching the chip I determined that it was a Signetics 2513I, which I found from a surplus vendor.

The second major difference in this Apple 1 was the white 6820. I determined this to be an AMI S6820 and was able to find one from a chip collector.

After tracking down the white 2513 and 6820, I set out to find a white 6502. This chip is rare and collectable, which makes it hard to find and expensive if you do. After searching for several months I was able to find a couple.

Finally, I needed to match the gold topped ceramic DRAMs used in this advertisement. These are not terribly difficult to find, but look great when installed.

Here are some images of the completed Apple1.