Apple II Plus
The II Plus came out in 1979 with Applesoft BASIC and the Autostart ROM. It shipped with 48K, and a language card in slot 0 takes it to 64K. There were regional versions too, like the Europlus and the J-Plus. Most of the early expansion cards were designed around this machine, so it's the easiest Apple II to find hardware for.
As the last Apple II model to feature a large number of IC sockets, it is prone to socket-related issues. DRAM failures are also common. If you have the patience, I recommend approaching the repair as an enjoyable project.
Recommended Hardware Mods
SmartPort Storage: Grappler Minus + SPIISD V2
This is the setup I'd go with. The Grappler Minus goes in the slot next to your Disk II controller. Wing Yeung's SoftSP ROM on the card adds SmartPort, and SPIISD V2 connects to it over an IDC20 cable so you can boot ProDOS volumes from a microSD card. You still need a Disk II controller or a 5.25 Drive Card in the machine.
The Grappler Minus is out of stock right now. Rev 2.0, which cuts the four logic chips down to one GAL, is already running on real hardware.
wDrive Fix for v1 Boards
If MFA2 Workshop's wDrive misbehaves on a v1 board, tie U3 (74LS02) pin 12 to pin 14 to pull U2 (74LS279) pin 10 high. Wing's clone II Plus also needed an extra 100pF capacitor from U1 (74LS00) pin 1 to GND. Pin 14 is +5V, so be careful where your iron goes.
Memory
The Satanic128 goes in slot 0 and works as a language card plus a RAM disk. It's compatible with the Saturn 128K.
→ SMC Satanic128 128K RAM Card
VGA
The A2 VGA MINI is forked from Mark Aikens' AppleII-VGA and gives you a clean VGA picture on a modern monitor.
Dead Test Switcher
The Dead Test Switcher goes in the F8 ROM socket and lets you flip between the Autostart Monitor and Dead Test with a switch. It's the quickest way to find out whether a dead board has a RAM or ROM problem.
→ Dead Test Switcher for Apple II
Joystick and Paddles
Like the original II, the II Plus only has the 16-pin GAME socket on the board. The DB9 Joystick 2 Plus puts a DB9 on the back panel, and from there you can use the Idle Hands Micro Paddle.
→ Idle Hands Micro Paddle DIY Kit
Rubber Feet
Gimme New Feet! for AP2 are made 1:1 to the original size.
