Elektor SC/MP Computer (1978)

The SC/MP, housed in a 40-pin DIP case belongs in the category of very early microprocessors, sporting a traditional structure with registers, an accumulator and the ability to address external memory. As such, it was National Semiconductor’s attempt at securing market share. Not a very successful attempt, as it turned out later, Intel, Motorola, Signetics and even RCA competing fiercely in a then totally new arena.
From the start, the Elektor SC/MP was a cluttered system, despite attempts at making wiring diagrams look as orderly as possible. If the Elektor prototype shown on a photograph in the November 1977 issue is just ‘two boards strung together with lots of wires’ the average reader was sure to make an even greater mess of it.