Let's get to work on some Compaq systems!

You have my eternal gratitude!

Stuff I used in this video:

This certainly isn't all of the Compaq systems I have in this haul, but these are three of the systems that have really been piquing my curiosity! Let's see if we can resurrect them!

0:00 Intro

System 1:
0:28 System 1 Tour
1:55 S1 Disassembly and refresh
8:29 S1 Testing and verdict

System 2
15:28 System 2 Tour
16:36 S2 Disassembly and refresh
22:04 S2 Testing
26:56 S2 Cleanup and verdict

System 3
27:27 System 3 Tour
28:25 S3 Disassembly and refresh
34:58 S3 Testing, restore and cleanup
40:41 S3 verdict

41:00 Outro and special guests

[livefreeprintguns]

I wish these videos were three times as long... it hits all the right nostalgia points for me lol.

[rxtf]

Wow. This brought me back to when I was a kid (34 now)… my dad would take me to these computer shows at the local rec center. We would get some old Compaq systems so I could tinker around with them. I remember the Deskpro’s, Prolinea’s and more. I’m addicted to this channel.

[BilisNegra]

Hey, you have Adrian Black as a Patron! That's proper bragging rights for a channel half a year old. You're positively doing a great job.

[RetroPC]

"We have Norton Antivirus on here.


I feel so safe!" 😆😆😆

[livefreeprintguns]

15:30 I started a contract as a Linux sysadmin in KCMO and while I was out there I picked one of these Compaq's up... it wasn't a Deskpro but it had a similar form-factor with a Pentium 166Mhz in it and was such a workhorse one could easily mistake it as having a Pentium II. It truly was a sleeper system!

[Mrflash]

The solenoid is the case lock that stops the user from opening the case, this is set in the bios

[Mirra-fs]

That little Compaq Deskpro was the first computer i learned how to disassemble and rebuild and also got me into liking to build and mess around with computers. When i was around 12 or 13 years old my dad's workplace was doing a cleanup in their building and they were throwing out computers and stuff. Some of them were smashed up but i found that Compaq and an HP Vectra VL400 that were still in good shape but were missing parts and needed maintenance because they were so dusty you couldn't even see the color of the motherboard anymore. Took them home, cleaned them up and put in new ram and hard drives from the smashed computers and they both worked. Spent a lot of time playing older games with them even though i already had a much better computer at home at the time

[pinhellifelipe]

Another excellent video featuring the cutest and most adorable vintage tech guy!

[pamus]

I wish Compaq existed today.
Memories.

[emperorarasaka]

This brought back so many childhood memories ❤

[Tibyon]

That presario brought back some memories... I played hours of Lemmings and Howie's Funhouse on that thing. The design is actually quite timeless

[tommcclintock]

Oh man, that first system really hit me right in the nostalgia.

[agenda]

I am always impressed how JBL speakers sound considering their size

[livefreeprintguns]

I had a errand to run, but I think it can wait until after this video. 😎

[supag]

A lot of old Compaq's had designs in the top layer of the PCBA for the motherboard. Happy Pride :)

[ronkemperful]

My brother-in-law's first PC was very similar to the first computer in your video, the Compaq Preserio. It also had an AMD processor but it was a higher end model with an 8.4 GB hard drive, a DVD player, and 96 MB of memory - all premium features for 1998. When I helped him add a CD burner to the system, I discovered that the hard drive was gigantic in size, not just in capacity but in physical size, too big to be mounted in a standard bracket but on the side of the case in a weird sideways position. The CD burner was a beast to add for I had to pry off a thick metal tab to gain access to the second 5 1/2 inch bay for the burner, resulting in a nasty gash to myself and I bled like a stuck pig!

[borlibaer]

Right, knowing "The Compaq Story" we have to thank that swanky Computer Company pretty much! 😍
The "PC Industry" wouldn't have become "open for the people" as we know it because of "Big Blue" (IBM).
I had been in contact with the early Desk Pro (386er 486er; MS DOS 3.x) during my IT Supporter / Customer Care job as a student.
In my collection there is the SP 750 Workstation and 2 Fiber Channel Storage Work RaidArrays RA4100.
Powerful and good Design Compaq stands for.
Whe HP took over... this is another (sad) story.😢

[Kebrg]

I worked in Compaq service center in early 2000s, had so much fun with such Deskpro's, Presario's, Armada's and other fantastic machines. Miss the quality and serviceability of those. Thank you for all your videos about retro hardware, so many good memories they recover from the past of a service engineer. =) Cheers! And good luck in development of the channel.

[helldog]

I had a Presario 2240 back in the day and I have one now. One thing I have learned since getting the new one. The serials on the stickers on the side are regionally coded. My machine was from Italy because I couldn't find one here locally. I love the 2240 as it's a great little machine. I played a lot of firsts on mine back in the day, The board has ram built into the motherboard, either 16 or 32, I cannot remember. If I remember correctly the 2200 and the 2240 vary in some ways, and so after putting in the serial on the restore, you should see 2240 and not 2200. Having the proper model will help with the audio issues you are seeing. And yeah, the speakers are pretty impressive for the day.

[euclideszoto]

You absolutely need the restore cd for that first Compaq.