Sharp X68000 Compact
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| An X68000 XVI, the twin-tower model with the same 16 MHz processor as the Compact (photo: htomari, CC BY-SA 2.0). No freely licensed photograph of the Compact was found. | |
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Sharp |
| Type | Personal computer |
| Released | February 1992[1] |
| Intro price | ¥298,000[2] |
| CPU | Motorola MC68000 at 16 MHz (10 MHz selectable)[2] |
| Memory | 2 MB[1] |
| Storage | 3.5-inch floppy drives with automatic eject[2] |
| Display | — |
| Sound | — |
| Power | 100 V AC[2] |
| OS / Firmware | — |
| Predecessor | Sharp X68000 XVI |
| Successor | Sharp X68030 Compact |
| Model no. | CZ-674C |
The Sharp X68000 Compact (CZ-674C), also called the Compact XVI, is a smaller version of the Sharp X68000 XVI, sold in Japan from February 1992.[1][2] It has the XVI's MC68000 at 16 MHz with a 10 MHz mode, 2 MB of memory and 3.5-inch floppy drives with automatic eject, in an upright plastic case that is not a twin tower. Its keyboard has no numeric keypad, and the mouse is the one supplied with the Sharp X68000 PRO.[2]
The Compact uses its own power supply, which owners call the SH7. The X68030 Compact of 1993 uses the same type.[3][4] Sharp's reissued X68000 service manuals cover only the XVI, and little repair information has been published for the Compact.[5] Sharp has also reissued the service manual for the X68030 Compact (CZ-300C, CZ-310C), which has the same type of supply, as a free e-book on its COCORO BOOKS store.[3]
History
[edit | edit source]The Compact went on sale in February 1992 at ¥298,000, and the CZ-674CH won a Good Design Award that year.[1][2] Two companies sold modified versions. Keisoku Giken's X68000 XVI Compact-HD (May 1992, ¥466,000) added an internal 2.5-inch 80 MB hard disk. Mankai Seisakusho's Compact XVI RED ZONE (June 1993, ¥160,000) ran at up to 24 MHz; machines that would not run reliably at that speed were set back to 16 MHz and sold cheaply as the RED ZOMBIE.[2] The RED ZONE switches between 10, 16 and 24 MHz.[6] The X68030 Compact, with a 68030 processor in a Compact-style case, followed in May 1993.[1]
Hardware
[edit | edit source]Processor and memory
[edit | edit source]The MC68000 is soldered to the board on the Compact. Every other X68000 has the processor in a socket, which made it easy for owners to swap.[2]
The 2 MB of memory can be expanded with Sharp's CZ-6BE2D board, which takes a further CZ-6BE2B 2 MB module. Sharp lists its CZ-6BP2 maths coprocessor for the Compact together with the CZ-6BE2D.[2] Third-party options include Tsukumo's TS-6BE6DE, a 6 MB memory board with an MC68882 coprocessor, and Tokyo System Research's X SIMM VIc SIMM adapter.[6]
Power supply
[edit | edit source]The SH7 is a different design from the SH4 of the tower models. Poe notes that its T2 transformer is not interchangeable.[4][3] The Compact has no main switch on the rear; the tower models have one.[2]
Drives
[edit | edit source]The 3.5-inch drives eject discs automatically.[2] Poe lists the Compact's drive parts as K36-0312-06, K36-0339-01 and Sankyo MSBA020K02, and his drive survey treats the 3.5-inch drive of the Compact and X68030 Compact as a type of its own.[4][7] Sharp sold an external 5.25-inch drive, the CZ-6FD5, for the Compact.[2]
Keyboard and case
[edit | edit source]The keyboard, DSETK0025CE01 (CMA-600N0), is shared with the X68030 Compact.[4] The X68000 name is printed on the case in white; the tower models from the EXPERT II onwards carry a gold X68000 emblem.[2] There is no stereoscopic terminal.[2]
Repair guides
[edit | edit source]- Sharp X68000 Compact General Maintenance
- Sharp X68000 Compact Troubleshooting Guide
- Sharp X68000 Compact Capacitor Replacement Guide
Related pages
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 X68000, IPSJ Computer Museum, Information Processing Society of Japan—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Series table: X68000 CompactXVI, CZ-674C, February 1992, 68000 at 16 MHz, 2 MB, 3.5-inch floppy drives, no hard disk; X68030 Compact, CZ-300C, May 1993.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 X68000, Wikipedia (Japanese)—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Model table: X68000 Compact, CZ-674C, February 1992, ¥298,000, colour -H, 2 MB, 3.5-inch floppy drives, compact body, also called the Compact XVI; the CZ-674CH won a 1992 Good Design Award, alone and as a set with the CZ-608DH display. Text: the Compact models have auto-eject 3.5-inch drives and a plastic upright case that is not a twin tower, a keyboard without a numeric keypad and the same mouse as the PRO; the Compact's X68000 badge is printed in white, and the EXPERT II introduced the gold X68000 emblem; the XVI and Compact XVI use Motorola's MC68000 at 16 or 10 MHz, selectable; the MPU is in a socket on every model except the Compact; clock-speed modifications to the 10 MHz machines and to the XVI and Compact XVI were popular; no rear main power switch on the Compact, PRO or PRO II; no stereoscopic terminal on the Compact (Mankai Seisakusho's 3D adapter set supported models without one); power 100 V AC. Options: CZ-6BE2D 2 MB RAM board for the CZ-674C, taking the CZ-6BE2B 2 MB module; CZ-6BP2 maths coprocessor for the CZ-634C, CZ-644C and CZ-674C (with the CZ-6BE2D); CZ-6FD5 external 5.25-inch drive for the Compact. Third-party versions: X68000 XVI Compact-HD, May 1992, ¥466,000, a Compact XVI with an internal 2.5-inch 80 MB hard disk, sold by Keisoku Giken; X68000 Compact XVI RED ZONE, June 1993, ¥160,000, a Compact XVI modified to run at 24 MHz, sold by Mankai Seisakusho; RED ZOMBIE, units that could not stand 24 MHz returned to 16 MHz and sold cheaply.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 X68000シリーズ電源のハンダ面から見た抵抗配置図– Kunihiko Ohnaka (kunichiko), 2020-10-10—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Supply by model, quoted from Poe: Compact CZ-674C SH7; X68030 Compact CZ-300C and CZ-310C SH7; the twin-tower models mostly SH4. Sharp service manuals reissued on COCORO BOOKS: X68000 CZ-634C/CZ-644C (XVI), X68030 CZ-500C-B/CZ-510C-B, and X68030 Compact CZ-300C/CZ-310C (https://galapagosstore.com/web/book/detail/sstb-B215-1215000-sm-cz-300c).
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 SHARP X68000 修理– Poe—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Power supply table: CompactXVI (listed as CZ-652C, the PRO's model number) and X68030 Compact CZ-300C and CZ-310C with the SH7, "T2 transformer not interchangeable". Keyboards: Compact XVI and X68030 Compact DSETK0025CE01 (CMA-600N0). Floppy drive list: Compact K36-0312-06, K36-0339-01, Sankyo MSBA020K02.
- ↑ 復刻サービスマニュアルX68000, Sharp, COCORO BOOKS—link(accessed 2026-10-21) The series holds one title, the service manual for the X68000 CZ-634C/CZ-644C (XVI).
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 SHARP X680x0– DEKO—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Hardware list: REDZONE, a clocked-up X68000 Compact sold by Mankai Seisakusho, switching between 10, 16 and 24 MHz; TS-6BE6DE, a 6 MB memory and FPU board for the X68000 Compact with an MC68882, sold by Tsukumo; X SIMM VIc, a memory adapter for the Compact XVI from Tokyo System Research.
- ↑ SHARP X68000 FDD K61432-71 K61432-72 K-61435-72 修理– Poe, 2020-02-23—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Four broad types of X68000 floppy drive: K-61432-71 for the first model, K-61432-72 from the ACE onwards, one for the PRO and PRO II, and the 3.5-inch drive of the X68000 Compact and X68030 Compact.