Printers Used With Your Atari 8-bit: Then & Now

[RickR]

Started with an Atari 1025.

Upgraded to a Star NX-1000 to get the ability to print in nicer quality (print the lower part of 'y' and 'g' below the line, for example), and print customized graphics. Both of which, the 1025 could not do. That Star printer was the best, and I kept it for a long time...even through the PC era. Lasted me through college and then some.

[adam242]

I had a 9-pin dot matrix Seikosha something or other hooked up through an ICD Printer Connection. Used it for everything, it even had a passable (for its day) NLQ mode. Loud and slow. I still have the inch-and-a-half thick disassembled source code for Miner 2049er that I printed with it. Took hours and drove my family nuts!

 

The Printer Connection was a neat device - just a cable with a Centronics adapter built into the plug and an SIO plug on the other end - that must have been somewhat rare. I haven't seen one in years.

 

I also had a 1020 that was a joy to watch. Played with that quite a bit. I have another, but it has split gears. One of these weekends, I'll get off my lazy butt and install the replacements I bought two years ago.

[Quantum Mechanic]

I had the ol' reliable C.Itoh 1550 for years. That was the workhorse printer for my early Atari years. Life was even better when I added a Panasonic KXP-1091.

 

Later on I managed to acquire a Panasonic KXP-1124. Oh, what amazing feats were dreamt possible when technology allowed TWENTY FOUR PINS ON ONE PRINT HEAD!!!

[JD6502]

"Back in the day" for me extends all the way to right now. After putting my 8-bit system together in the late 80's early 90's I became fossilized, and only in the last few years started getting newer gear. The Panasonic 1080i I bought mail order in the late 80's is still my only printer. I use it on those rare occasions when I need to print something, thanks to ebay where I found a ribbon cartridge and had the foresight in the 90's to get the extra large box of laser edged tractor feed paper. My first adapter was Xetec's Graphix AT serial to parallel interface but retired it after getting a Black Box. I had lots of fun, and used up a lot of ink creating NLQ fonts using Daisy Dot III. The biggest problem in those days were line feeds. The printer has a DIP switch to add line feeds, the interfaces have DIP switches, and most word processors have a line feed option. I wasted a lot of ink and paper printing whole pages on one line, or double and quadruple spacing because I couldn't remember what settings I was using.

[Bill Lange]

I used a Star Micronics Gemini 10X. First connected with an 850 and then later with an ATR8000. I also had a 1020 plotter that got used rarely. Today the 10X is connected with a MicroPrint Parallel Printer interface. I also have a 1020 and a 1027 boxed up.

 

Bill

[gilsaluki]

Currently I have three (sometimes 4) printers hooked up. A 9-Pin Fortis (Epson compatible), 121, and an 820. I have used the 820 to death since the late 80s, just love it. I wrote letters on it to my bud in prison. Not sure he appreciated the receipt-type paper, but who cares? I started with the 1027, affordable LQ. But, like all of them, the wheel shredded on me. I miss that printer. I also have a few more printers in reserve. Again, like the previous comments, they became so cheap, how could one resist?

[TheNameOfTheGame]

I used a Star Micronics Gemini 10X. First connected with an 850 and then later with an ATR8000. I also had a 1020 plotter that got used rarely. Today the 10X is connected with a MicroPrint Parallel Printer interface. I also have a 1020 and a 1027 boxed up.

 

Bill

 

Where do you get tractor-feed paper for it? I would like a retro printer but paper supplies seem hard to find.

[+sm3]

 

Where do you get tractor-feed paper for it? I would like a retro printer but paper supplies seem hard to find.

 

There is some here: http://www.officedepot.com/a/browse/continuous-feed-computer-paper/N=5+549818/

[TheNameOfTheGame]

Oh neat...I might look into a dot matrix then

 

How many pages does the ribbon print on the XMM801 before it needs replaced?

[Lynxpro]

Did anyone ever write a driver for the Apple ImageWriter 2? Sure, it was only a 9-pin dot matrix, but that sucker was fast! That would've been subversive using an Apple printer with an A8!

[+Larry]

Next to my 800, my first printer, an MX-80, was the most expensive part of my system -- even slightly more expensive than my first 810 drive. When HP came out with their first ink jet (with the Epson FX emulator cartridge), I jumped on board. So much faster than my old MX-80; better print quality; and so quiet! Then when Steve Tucker added the APE printer features, I left stand-alone printers forever. And his virtual MX-80 is just great for program listings! Our 35+ year old Ataris just keep getting better and better! Wonder how much money I've spent on computer hardware & software over the years? I guess I'd rather not know!

 

-Larry

[Sleepy]

Hm, printers I really use...

 

My first printer was a "Präsident 6320", an export-model of the former GDR.

 

 

He comes along with changeable ports, e.g. a commodore, V.24 or centronics-interface. He works fine for years with a (still in use) compy-shop-centronics-interface.

 

When I gave him away (he was a little bit slow), he was replaced by an used OKI ML 590; this one is still in use. The OKI (a 24pin) is great for text (fast & good looking fonts), but graphics are stretched.

 

 

For graphic (eg. Print Shop) I use actual a Star LC10.

 

 

For a short time I also used a HP 500 with Epson FX80-emulation-card.

 

If I want to transfer a listing to pc I use sio2pc and sio2osx.

 

Sleepy

Edited February 18, 2015 by Sleepy

[mani]

Up until the mid nineties, had a nice Panasonic dot-matrix and a PR Connection with my 130XE. Used primarily for Speedscript and the Atari Program Text Editor.

 

Also had an XF551, XM301, magazines, books and tons of original disk software.

 

Why, oh why, did I ever get rid of my old Atari stuff back then?!

[Sleepy]

I found some pics from the last "bigger" job printed with my XL: the invitation cards to my 42nd birthday.

Done, of course, with Print Shop and Print Shop Companion.

 

 

I was happy to get some original eighties "TELEX"-paper from FlorianD, a friendly abbuc-member.

 

Sleepy

Edited February 19, 2015 by Sleepy

[flashjazzcat]

Very cool.

[Pengwin]

Looks like I'm the only one who used the 822.

I wrote a timesheet program and used it to present to my boss. I was perfect for the job.

[+JAC!]

Just in case somebody is interested: Pirx has a number of these left in stock:

 

[w1k]

im interested.. what is price? PM

[pirx]

Oh thank you JAC!

 

Indeed, there are few of those left with me at a competitive price level.

 

Best,

 

pirx

[Lynxpro]

I found some pics from the last "bigger" job printed with my XL: the invitation cards to my 42nd birthday.

Done, of course, with Print Shop and Print Shop Companion.

 

setup.jpg

out.jpg

in.jpg

 

I was happy to get some original eighties "TELEX"-paper from FlorianD, a friendly abbuc-member.

 

Sleepy

 

Love the custom connectors hooked up behind your 800XL. Are those multiple SIOs or DB9s?

[atarian63]

Star Gemini 10x

Star SG10

1020

1027

Star NX10

[Foebane]

I had a 1020 Plotter back in the day, which was rather fun to use, but I really wanted to be able to print out pictures, although there was a program in Atari User that was supposedly able to print out such things, but I never got it to work. Ultimately, I used it for text and so forth, but it seems that printing in small font sizes shortened the lifespan of the plotter and it eventually got damaged and wore out. I remember my mother, ever since, complaining about "damaging printers" every time I printed in small font sizes.

[Bill Lange]

 

 

Where do you get tractor-feed paper for it? I would like a retro printer but paper supplies seem hard to find.

 

I get it on Amazon.

 

 

 

 

[Sleepy]

 

Love the custom connectors hooked up behind your 800XL. Are those multiple SIOs or DB9s?

Yes, it´s simmilar to CSS Quintopus, but in want of new sio-connectors for homebrew-hardware it was fitted with 15pole SUB-D-connectors. Connectors are puffered and it has a build-in serieal sio2pc-Interface.

 

 

To connect original ATARI-Hardware, there was a replacement-kit for original SIO-connectors.

 

Sleepy

[Lynxpro]

Yes, it´s simmilar to CSS Quintopus, but in want of new sio-connectors for homebrew-hardware it was fitted with 15pole SUB-D-connectors. Connectors are puffered and it has a build-in serieal sio2pc-Interface.

 

imgCA.jpg

 

To connect original ATARI-Hardware, there was a replacement-kit for original SIO-connectors.

image013.jpg

 

Sleepy

 

Very cool stuff. I'd love to see it in an XL looking case!