Atari STacy

The STacy was a portable version of the Atari ST.[7][8][9]

STacy
Atari Stacy portable computer with professional MIDI extension.
ManufacturerAtari
Release dateSeptember 1989 (1989-09)
Introductory priceUS$2,299 (equivalent to $4,742 in 2019)
Discontinued1991[1]
Units shippedestimated 35,000+[2][3]
Operating systemAtari TOS 1.04
CPUMotorola 68HC000 @ 8 MHz
MemoryRAM: 1 MiB (expandable to 4 MiB[4])
ROM: 192 KiB
Storage3.5" floppy drive, 3.5" SCSI 20MB-40MB harddrive Conner Peripherals Inc.[5][6]
Display10.4" EPSON LCD passive matrix backlight
Graphics320x200 (16), 640x200 (4), 640x400 (2)
SoundYamaha YM-2149, three channels, 8 octaves
Input95 keys, QWERTY, 2 Joysticks, RS 232C, Centronics, external Floppy, ROM-Cartridge, DMA for Printer/HD, MIDI In/Out, Monitor
PowerNiCad pack, 12 standard C cell alkaline batteries, DC18V 2.0A 36W AC Adaptor
Dimensions13.3 x 15 x 13.3 inches
Mass15.2 lb
SuccessorST BOOK

The computer was originally designed to operate on 12 standard C cell flashlight batteries for portability. When Atari realized how quickly the machine would use up a set of batteries (especially when rechargeable batteries of the time supplied insufficient power compared to the intended alkalines), they simply glued the lid of the battery compartment shut.

The STacy has features similar to the Macintosh Portable, a version of their Macintosh computer which contained a built in keyboard and monitor.

Thanks to its built-in MIDI, the STacy enjoyed success for running music-sequencer software and as a controller of musical instruments among both amateurs and well-known musicians.[10][11][12][13]

History

The Stacy was a global project, design work was carried out in the Sunnyvale HQ, Cambridge UK, final PCB board layouts were produced by Atari in Japan, which is where the first units were manufactured, with final manufacturing occurring in Taiwan[1]

The distinctive sculptured charcoal-gray case was designed by Ira Velinsky, Atari's chief Industrial Designer.[14]

Models

There are 4 STacy Models[15][16][17]

  • Stacy : 1 MB Ram, 3.5" internal Floppy (Model code: LST-1141)
  • Stacy 2 : 2 MB Ram, 3.5" internal Floppy, 20 MB HD (Model code: LST-2144)
  • Stacy 2 : 2 MB Ram, 2 * 3.5" internal Floppy (Model code: LST-2124)
  • Stacy 4 : 4 MB Ram, 3.5" internal Floppy, 40 MB HD (Model code: LST-4144)

Specifications

Ports
  • Parallel: 1 port
  • Serial: 1 port
  • FDD: 1 port
  • MIDI: 2 ports

Optional
  • Modem

In pop culture

The STacy appears in the 1991 films Nothing but Trouble and Delusion.[18]

References
  1. Atari Stacy, Atari Explorer, it was fast tracked for launch when the ST became increasingly more popular with musicians..A truly global project, design work was carried out in the Sunnyvale HQ, Cambridge UK, and with final board layouts produced by Atari in Japan, which is where the first units were manufactured.
  2. From Atari's Oval Office:Stacy and the Portfolio, by Mard Naman, START VOL. 4 NO. 2 / SEPTEMBER 1989, START: How many Stacys do you hope to ship? Tramiel: A lot. I have no idea what the marketplace will require. The responses at Hannover and COMDEX were greater than I expected. I was amazed at COMDEX; people went crazy for the Stacy there I've underestimated the laptop market before when we were at Commodore, and maybe I'm underestimating again, but my guess is 5,000 units a month. And if the market wants more, very happy to make more, no problem. START: Will Stacy be made at the same plant in a parallel production line as your other products? Tramiel: Yes, in our factory in Taiwan. We have the capacity to make 35,000 Stacys a month, if the market wants it. That's the tooling that was set up for production.
  3. Shipping Stacy Dialog Box:Shipping Stacy, START VOL. 4 NO. 12 / JULY 1990, As we reported in the May 1990 issue, Stacys are indeed shipping in the United States, though far below the numbers needed to sate demand. This news comes in spite of reports that Atari's manufacturing facility in Taiwan is operating at full capacity.
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-12-08. Retrieved 2015-12-05.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. Atari to purchase Conner hard disk drives for the STacy, Time Capsule: News - Sep.89 - Sep.89, Date: Mon, 11 Sep 89 17:27:44 EDT
  6. Conner Peripherals Gets Atari Contract, August 05, 1989, From United Press International, Los Angeles Times
  7. ST Gossip from Hollywood: A Date With Stacy, by TG, ST-Log ISSUE 35 / AUGUST 1989 / PAGE 15
  8. From Atari's Oval Office:Stacy and the Portfolio, by Mard Naman, START VOL. 4 NO. 2 / SEPTEMBER 1989, START: Are Stacys going to be shipping to developers soon? Tramiel: There are no plans. There's nothing really to develop on it that's any different than the 1040ST, because it is a 1040. So we haven't rushed it from a development point of view.
  9. ST/MIDI Connection: Winter NAMM Show Report, BY JIM PIERSON-PERRY, START VOL. 4 NO. 10 / MAY 1990, Stacy is a reality - at least for musicians. While the FCC has yet to approve it for home use, 2MB and 4MB versions with internal hard drives have been approved for sale as professional equipment. These will be sold exclusively through music stores.
  10. On The Road Back: Atari Donny Osmond, By Marc Naman , START VOL. 4 NO. 4 / NOVEMBER 1989, Donny Loves STACY
  11. The Music Makers:When It Comes to MIDI, the Pros Go ATARI, BY JIM PIERSON-PERRY WITH STEVE MORTIMER, START VOL. 4 NO. 12 / JULY 1990
  12. Time Capsule: The Atari Report - Spring 1990, by Sam Tramiel, Date: Mon, 23 Apr 1990, We're excited about the rapidly growing MIDI business and the enthusiasm being generated for the Stacy laptop computer among professionals in the music industry. Just recently we've learned that Atari computers were used to produce the sound track in the hit film, "Born on the Fourth of July" which received an Academy Award nomination for "Best Sound."
  13. Mark Tinley: Working With Duran Duran(Interview | Engineer), By NIGEL HUMBERSTONE, Published in SOS(Sound On Sound) February 1994, The sequencing system has been in operation since March '93 and is handled by an Atari Stacy 2 laptop computer running C-Lab Creator software and driving a rackmount Kurzweil K2000.
  14. The Traveling Computers: Hands-On Preview of Atari's STACY and Portfolio, BY ANDREW REESE START EDITOR, START VOL. 4 NO. 3 / OCTOBER 1989
  15. News, Notes & Quotes, BY STEPHEN MORTIMER, START VOL. 4 NO. 9 / APRIL 1990, The Stacy 2 and Stacy 4 have passed FCC Class A certification. This frees the computer for business/industrial use, although no actual restrictions on sales are made by the FCC. Both systems come with the respective amount of memory and a 40MB Conner hard disk drive. The Stacy 1, floppy-disk version has not yet been approved.
  16. Introducing Bob Brodie, by Bob Brodie, START VOL. 5 NO. 7 / APRIL/MAY 1991, Some of the models of the Stacy feature a built-in hard disk. For example, the Stacy 4 ships with a 40MB Conner hard disk built in.
  17. ATARI STACY4 Computer, Model number: LST-4144, Computer History Museum
  18. Atari STacy, Starring the Computer
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