Hello, World! :D - Robert B's PC builds - oogle away freely :) - OLD Hardware Emporium

[Robert B]

THE TWO ROUGH CUT DIAMONDS which needed a polishing (True story )

This story is about DIAMONDS. What kind of DIAMONDS? Graphic cards OF COURSE! I hope you werent thinking about precious stones

Let's meet the DIAMONDS:

1. Diamond S3 Savage4 Pro - Rev. A - AGP 8MB - Diamond STL III S520 ATX AGP 8MB
2. Diamond nVIDIA Riva 128 - Rev. D - VIPER V330 PCI 4MB

Both of them came from a seller which I met by accident at the flea market. Together with the ASUS VL/I-486SV2GX4 REV. 2.0 motherboard I also bought the two Diamond cards. For each of them I paid less than 2 EUROs. That's some expensive $$IT! Yep!

The RIVA 128 was the first that caught my eye and then I saw the Savage 4/Savage4 card. They had the DIAMOND Multimedia logo, so it was a NO BRAINER to buy them both.

Said and done! If I went sooner at the flea market I might've left with my trunk full of other goodies sadly it wasnt the case..... The prices were so low I couldnt belive it.

Diamond S3 Savage4 Pro - Rev. A - AGP 8MB - Diamond STL III S520 ATX AGP 8MB



This card is in a slightly worse shape than her sister, the beautiful RIVA 128, even so, I managed to make her shine

It was very easy to clean, no heatsinks, no fans, just smooth sailing all the way.



When I finished my work, the Savage 4/Savage4 card still remained with a lot of scars. It prooved to be a survivor and I was very pleased when I was greeted by a clear image on the screen and the 3Dmark 99 run revealed that it was in good working condition.



I think the performance of the card is nothing to brag about. It is a budget card and I dont think I'll use it in a build in the near future. For now, I'll treat her just as a curiosity, despite its SAVAGE moniker

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/303d2bdt8/

*************

Diamond nVIDIA Riva 128 - Rev. D - VIPER V330 PCI 4MB

It was an absolute pleasure to give back the shine to THIS BEAUTY!

It is compact and nicely built. It made me think of a square piece from a fine chocolate. I almost wanted to eat her After I cleaned the bracket the card was shining so bright that I could stare a the sun instead of staring at the card



I was right dont you think? Shine my precious relic of times past by!

The card wasnt so dirty but like her sister from above, has some scars on the PCB and some of its chips. Thankfully these are fewer and dont pose any problems.



I think I dont have to give details regarding the cleaning process. You know the drill Again smooth sailing. Funny as the simple things are sometimes more rewarding.

Feast your eyes on this!



I have a bad habit of first cleaning the cards and then test them. In the end the RIVA 128 was in good working condition. It wasnt able run all the 3Dmark 99 tests because the graphic chip lacked some hardware features but the tests that did ran, revealed a clear image and no artifacts or other problems. SHE'S A WINNER!!!



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/irnil6ek/


*************************

This story had a happy end. There were no problems out of the ordinary with any of the cards.Even if they came as rough cut DIAMONDS it wasnt long until I made them shine!

More later

NEXT WEEK: THE BOX!

InnoVIPWILL

Extra: 7600GS test.

This story will be on the long side and the ending will be....I guess you'll be able to draw a just conclusion

 

[Robert B]

THE BOX

This episode will be about the contents of a box I received from a hardware collector from my country.

Several months ago, I received a message from a big 3dfx collector, telling me that he wants te send me a package with some parts. Knowing who he was I said: HELL YEAH! I asked him what would be the content of the package but he told me that he didnt know yet. He said it will contain useful stuff and that I should treat the package as a kinder surprise. Hmmmm...ok.

Months have passed since we have spoken and in the end I received the package. The shipping cost was covered by him even if I told him that I can take care of it.

Who knows, maybe he stumbled from a 3dfx VooDoo 5 5500 and he decided to put it in the box (just kidding).

I took the package from the local Post Office and surprisingly, I resisted the urge to open it right away and I opened it the next day.



The parts were very well packed and after I made a headcount, on the table in front of me I had the following:

1. Intel Pentium 4 1.7GHz CPU - Willamette, S423, SL57W
2. Inno3D 6600GT - 128MB AGP
3. A socket 3 VIP REV:A - 3 PCI / 3 VLB / 2 ISA - SIMM 30 PIN /SIMM 72 PIN, chipset OPTi 82C822/82C895 motherboard

Hmmmmm..................ok?



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/34k2q1rek/

Intel Pentium 4 1.7GHz CPU - Willamette, S423, SL57W

When I opened the box, the first thing I saw was a CPU that was stuck on a heatsink. WHAT THE ….?!?

I never saw a P4 Willamette CPU in the flesh, so I wondered what it could be? It was obvious it was a CPU.

After a quick inspection I found a sticker with some numbers and letters. I googled the string of numbers and letters and it said it was a P4 Willamette CPU . At that time I didnt knew the model. The search only returned a part from DELL computer.

The CPU was so stuck on the heatsink that I just couldnt move it even a fraction of a fraction of an inch. Holy COW! At first I tried to use a hair dryer to heat up the heatsink but this got me nowhere. After this, I tried to use isopropyl alcohol 99% and I soaked the heatspreader and the surrounding area using a syringe. I did this for about 30 minutes and I added more alcohol after it evaporated. The thermal compound started to soften but the CPU didnt budge at all. In the end I used dental floss (a lot) and I secured the heatsink in a vice to hold it well. This proved the winning combination and I separated the parts. The leftover paste on the CPU was so hard to remove with isopropyl alcohol 99% that in the end I used a cotton stick and a small quantity of acetone to clean it. The paste from the hole in the heatsink was cleaned with a needle, a bamboo stick and a lot of paticence. I took great care not to get the acetone in that hole. In any case, the acetone used was in minute quantities and it evaporated quickly. The acetone is quite potent and you should be careful when and how you use it. After this, I used a little bit of metal polish paste and a rag, to get back the shine from the CPU heatspreader.



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/2exwymulo/

This was a first for me. Separating a CPU from a heatsink. In the end I was left with a part that I cant use as I dont have a P4 S423 motheboard or any P4 motherboard to be more precise. Maybe in the future I might need it. The aluminun heatsink with a proprietary retaining system which I dont have, went into the trash bin.

Inno3D 6600GT – 6600GT-AGP W/128MB DVI TV DDR3 – I-A 6600GT F5F3

I loved this card as soon as I laid my eyes on it. The black PCB made me want to buy the finest swiss milk chocolate and eat it all, in a heartbeat!

I inspected the card thoroughly. Soon, I saw some problems but at that moment they didnt bother me.



Quickly I took the card apart.

The bracket was cleaned and polished by hand.

Next came the cleaning of the heatsinks and of the fan. Both of the heatsinks were so stuck that I had to use the hair dryer to heat them up and separate them. That PINK STUFF IS NASTY!!!

The fan was easily cleaned. Regular design in need of OIL. No problems.



The leftover paste on the heatsinks was cleaned using acetone, isopropyl alcohol 99% followed by a wash with hot water and detergent.

Both came out sparkling.



Cleaning the thermal paste from the graphic chip and the AGP bridge chip was another story. I needed 45 minutes and a lot of patience to get the results I wanted. I had to soak them several times in isopropyl alcohol 99% and then use a bamboo stick to remove that solidified S..T!!!

In the final round I took a fine needle and I cleaned a small ceramic capacitor that was covered in pink stuff. It was nerve-racking but it was worth it. After this, all the parts were as good as new.



Stage 1



Stage 2



Stage 3



Stage 4



Next came the cleaning of the PCB. In this phase I looked closely at the“ problems” that the card had. A massive hit on the back and a missing ceramic capacitor near the AGP connector. A second ceramic capacitor was hanging for dear life.

The area on the back of the card that took a massive hit had to cleand with a pointed awl because the three solder pads that were affected looked as if they were in contact and I was afraid they might short out. In the end I was pleased with the results of my work.

I replaced the missing ceramic capacitor from a donor card. I'm was not so pleased with the results and I really need to buy a Soldering Iron Hot Air Gun Rework Station.



I checked again the PCB for other signs of damage. I received more bad news. I knew that the card was a little deformed. Some sagging from usage is normal, but I didnt expect that the card would be twisted. I say twisted in the loose sense of the word. It suffers from sagging due to normal use and a deformation in the opposite direction due to the massive hit on the back...



Clean as a whistle.



This card was cleaned after the PNY 4600Ti from before and my gut feeling was telling me that this one is also DEAD! The PCB of the 4600Ti also had a strange shape. I still hoped I might me wrong…

I used ARTIC MX-4 to put back the heatsinks and I took the mandatory glamour shots.



SO NICE.

All this time the voice inside was telling me: “she’s DEAD you can’t do nothing about it!”...

THE MOMENT OF THE TEST CAME SOON.

… …. ….. ……………… ………………………!

Which test? NO IMAGE TEST! Yep DEAD! Oh well…lets move on to better things. I guess. At the very least she’s a stunner. The card returned no image no matter what I tried.

I tested the card on a AGP 8X EPOX EP-8RDA3i + Athlon XP 2500+ platform and because this one showed some problems regarding RAM detection and other errors I took out my trusty work horse: AGP 4X ECS K7VTA3 3.1 + Athlon XP 1900+, but to no avail. NO IMAGE means NO IMAGE! Period.

GONE with the WIND.

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/2kpk7rip8/

UNKNOWN socket 3 VIP REV:A - 3 PCI / 3 VLB / 2 ISA - SIMM 30 PIN /SIMM 72 PIN, chipset OPTi 82C822/82C895 motherboard

On the bottom of the box I received I also found a motherboard. I say A motherboard because I was unable to determince the exact model. The only thing I could find was a cryptic VIP REV:A. What's up with that? Are you a clone of a clone or something?

Someone suggested that the manufacturer might be FIC as he also had a FIC motherboard with the VIP designation. I couldnt verify this.

The motherboard is missing the BIOS chip. The only part that could've help me identify the motherboard.F..K! NO model NO BIOS Nothing to do…

I found small traces of corrosion from the battery. I used vinegar to remove most of them.

The lack of jumpers and CACHE chips is no big deal

The capacitor near the CPU socket was loose and I had to resolder it.

The motherboard has a desirable layout. The CPU socket is at the top, out of the reach of extension cards. The POWER connector is well placed. It has PCI/ISA/VLB slots. 72 and 30 pin memory slots.

I cleaned it well and I took the decision to not lose any more time with it.



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/zxt73xbg/

I wanted to post a more positive story but in the end this is what it is. I must present the facts as they happened. I didnt sugar coat the story but I had to show a little bit of restrain when I present it to you.The reasons are obvious.

I had something to do that kept my HW demons in check and you had something to read At least from this perspective this story is a WIN.



EXTRA: Leadtek WinFast A7600 GS TDH 256MB 128bit AGP TEST

https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/...-hardware-emporium.228932/page-4#post-3687746

The Leadtek 7600GS was bought a few months ago from the flea market for the low low sum of 2.17 EURO. It was cleaned and then put in the box. Only now I got to test her and THANK GOD it didnt dissapoint me. She’s firing on all its cylinders! WIN! WIN! WIN!

Testing session over the course of 7 hours.

1.EPOX EP-8RDA3I / ATHLON XP 2500+ / 2x1 GB DDR 400 KINGMAX / WDC 800 JB / ENERMAX EG365AX-VE(G) 353W / DVD-RW LG GSA-4163B
2.ECS K7VTA3 3.1 / ATHLON XP 1900+ / 2x1 GB DDR 400 KINGMAX / WDC 800 JB / ENERMAX EG365AX-VE(G) 353W / DVD-RW LG GSA-4163B

On this occasion I also tested the KingMax DDR400 3x512MB si 2x1GB RAM sticks that I bought this year. Again I received good news as I registered ZERO errors in MEMTEST. Even the 1GB DDR400 that was missing a pad on its connector was OK. Unbelievable...

https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/...-hardware-emporium.228932/page-3#post-3655669

Leadtek 7600GS



Inno3D 6600GT



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1x6ksdy0c/

More to come:

1.A Pentium II CPU rises from its ashes
2.Housekeeping aka heastinks, RAM and some FUN
3.Minebea to the rescue!
4.Almost, VLB Heaven…

 

[Robert B]

"...Let's come together
Right now, oh yeah
In sweet harmony..."

A Pentium II CPU rises from its ashes

While I'm listening to the song above, I'm trying to remember the steps I took a few weeks ago, to make this PII-450MHz the BEST in my "small" collection. A feat easy to accomplish, as this PII-450MHz is the ONLY Pentium II 450MHz that I have . The Winner at the PII-450 category is none other than the PII-450!!! Talk about a rigged competition ...sshheeessh.....

For some time, I was looking for a PII-450MHz - TOP OF THE LINE for the GooD Ol' Pentium II. I have in my collection a PII-333MHz/66 which I can easily overclock to 500MHz/100, a few PII-350MHz and 400MHz but nothing beats a TRUE PII-450MHz, at least from a bragging rights perspective.

I found my 450 on a sheet of plastic at the GOOD OL' flea market. I bought it together with the PNY GF4 4600Ti and it was really cheap 2.1 EUROs. CHEAP very CHEAP!

When I first saw it, it was standing with the fans right up and I thought it was an Athlon Slot A CPU but after I took it in my hands I saw that it was a Pentium II. I lifted the chromed retaining latch of the heatsink and I looked at the markings on the cartridge. BAM! The magic number 450 was there !!! SWEET!!! IT'S A KEEPER!!!.

So, I bought the thing but I wasnt going to just put it in a box and forget about it...far from it. (I'm sure you know me well by now....)

Pentium II 450MHz - SL2U7

Arrival State

The PII was in an average state of decay. Some dust, some dirt, some scratches but it was complete. One of the ends of the SECC cartridge retaining clips was sheared but that wasnt such a big deal. I searched in my BOX O' PARTS for a replacement retaining clip but the search returned a BIG FAT ZERO so the CPU was left with only one ear, good enough I would say...+1 is better than nothing

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/282uj2s6u/



Cleaning

The cleaning was a straight forward task. BAM! - teardown. BAM! - hot water and dergent bath for the plastic and metal parts. BAM! - isopropyl alcohol 99%. BAM! - Patience and an eye for details. Easy as 3.14



The thermal paste was bye bye and I still wonder how someone uses a 20 years old CPU and doesnt take this fact into consideration. YO GUYZ! check my sizzlinng PII with V2 SLI. YEP sizzling alright... Opening a SECC cartridge might be a little nerve-racking but it is not too difficult to do. With practice comes self confidence.

When I first saw the PCB, I thought I was looking at a Pentium III and I might've been wrong if I didnt already know that it was a Pentium II.

All nice and clean. Looking good you SEXY piece of HW pr0n!

The cleaning of the fans was a breeze. Tear-down / Cleaning / Final Assembly. I also cleaned the stickers from the back.I always try to keep the parts I clean as close to original as possible.

Again I was very pleased with the results.



Nice! Nice!! Nice!!! - Smooth sailing.

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/3fh8unz92/

Small repairs

The opening of the SECC cartridge is sometimes accompanied by some light damage.You can't make an omelet without breaking eggs.... Sometimes, the separation of the plastic cover of the SECC cartridge from the CPU heatplate ends with the breakage of a plastic element. When you open a SECC cartridge this part is always the hardest to separate. I'm pretty sure this is an anti-tampering measure and it's something that comes with the territory. It breakes or it is left intact - luck of the draw.

In the case of MY PII-450 the plastic element broke and I glued it back. I also did a test to see how was the fit between the plastic cover and the heatplate before I put back the CPU. I had to use a round file to enlarge the hole in the retaining plastic element for an easier fit and perhaps a future teardown 10 years from now



The opening of the SECC cartridge was left with some light scratches on the inside of the anodized heatplate even if I took the precaution to wrap my tools in electrical tape...

All in all these minor blemishes are nothing compared to the signs of wear that the CPU already has. The only thing is that I KNOW ABOUT THEM!!! .... ...

All things considered, I would do this again and again. No question about it.

After I sorted the plastic cover of the SECC cartridge my attention shifted to another classic problem, the one of the contact between the heatplate and the CACHE chips. I always try to establish this contact no matter what.

As you can see in the photo bellow the gap between the CACHE chips and the heatplate is quite BIG! GG! Intel.



I have opened quite a few SECC CPUs - Slot 1 and Slot A, and I saw an impressive variation in size of the space between the CACHE chips and the heatplate. The gap is usually left empty and only in the case of the SLOT A CPUs I saw a small quantity of some kind of thermal paste which was applied quite sloppy. I'm pretty sure that back in the day, no one would've taken the time to have thermal pads of different sizes to fill the gap between the CACHE chips and the heatplate. The variation in the manufacturing process was too great and besides, the CPUs worked great without this additional hustle. What's curious though, is the fact that all the SECC CPUs I opened had a special zone for the contact between the heatplate and the CACHE chips....

For the task of putting back the PII-450MHz I bought some Arctic MX-4 20g thermal paste and Arctic Thermal Pad de 1 mm.



I have been using ARCTIC MX-4 for over 10 years. Lately I tried Noctua NT H1 thermal paste but I didnt even like the way it looked not to mention that on the Noctua site it says that it has a durability of 3 years("Recommended usage time (on the CPU) up to 3 years"...). So I returned to my trusty MX-4 which has a life of at least 8 years FTW!!! I know that 20 years from now the MX-4 will also dry out...but in my case the MX-4 fits the bill.I really dont want to rise a discussion about thermal pastes...

Do you remember the variation between the CACHE chips and the heatplate? The 1mm thernal pad was to thick (to fit in memory )....if I would've bought 0.5mm thermal pad I'm sure it would've been to thin. The Artic Thermal pad is soft so I did something that I've done before and made some "custom" thermal pads.

I took a piece of the soft blue Arctic thermal pad and I placed it inside a sheet of plastic. I used a metal cylinder/wood cylinder/the handle of a screwdriver and I flatened the pad. After each pass I also did a contact test to see if the pads werent to thick and I didnt put additional stress on the PCB of the CPU....

A job for an old chinese man...

Stage 1



Stage 2



Stage 3



...Stage X PERFECT!!!



The contact between the CACHE chips and the heatplte isnt always spot on, in the sense that the zone in the heatplate is sometimes offset or has a smaller size than that of the CACHE chips... variation in the manufacturing process...etc

Another secondary effect of the opening of a SECC cartridge is the enlargement of the holes in the plastic cover so I had to use two small strips of a double sided heat resistant thermal tape to keep the cover from rattling. NO PAIN NO GAIN!!!

After I have established the contact between the CACHE chips and the heatplate there was another matter to deal with, that of the contact between the heatplate and the heatsink. Unfortunately, the end of the heatsink has a step and that leads to smaller contact zone. In the past I have used thermal grease to transfer the heat but in this case I resorted to small pieces of a soft pad made from silicone. For the area of contact between the heatsink and the CPU die I used ARCTIC MX-4. If the retaining clips of the heatsink would've been stronger it would've been better...



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1hcx92vxy/

Why go through all this HELL? : low temps means a happy CPU

Final Results

Almost good as new!



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1b648lovq/The SLOT 1 CPUs are bulletproof. I've yet to find a dead one.

I did a quick test and sure enough the PII-450 woke up and ran great.

I'm starting to love Slot 1 CPUs and I dont know if it is a bad thing or not just another thing to add on my list of possible candidates for my collection....

I also tested a PII-350MHz CPU and a Celeron 366A like the one I had back in the day and they worked from the get go. BULLETPROOF!!!

I really like parts before the year 2000, heavy duty!

Enjoy!



P.S. I ran the 3Dmark99 test only on the PII-450MHz.

MORE, NEXT WEEK!!!

 

[Mr.Scott]

How many more slot 1's do you want?, or even SECC part's and heatsinks? I have boxes of them.
I'm sure we can swing a deal. Message me if you're interested.

 

[Robert B]

Beer? CHECK!!! Beer Assistant? Hardware NOT FOUND! well...Beer is still GOOD!

Let's get on with the next EPISODE.

Housekeeping aka heastinks, RAM and some FUN

After the previous episodes in which I presented a lot of goodies now is the time to take into consideration other vital components which sometimes are left aside. Heatsinks & RAM baby!

Cyrix HEATSINKS

In one of the visits I took at the flea market this October, I found three interesting pieces.

As I was browsing the merchandise, something green caught my eye. I'm talking about the unmistakable green colour of the Cyrix heatsinks. At first, I was put off by the prospect of digging in a big pile of various heatsinks and I turned ready to walk away. I saw the two green Cyrix heatsink form far away and my pulse soon rised as I saw someone else looking at them.

It didnt take long and the thought: WHAT IF THERE IS SOMETHING GOOD IN THAT FRIGGIN PILE? started to haunt me and several seconds later I was digging in the pile!

I started digging and soon I found two green Cyrix 4x86 DX 40MHz si DX-2 66MHz heatsinks. Unfortunately the ceramic processors were long gone as I'm sure they were processed for GOLD RECOVERY! RIP!

As a BONUS I found a Pentium heatsink.

I paid less than 2 EUROs for the lot and I refused the generous offer of almost 4 EUROs for the pile of nondescript heatsinks.

They were cleaned and will be kept in a box. I dont know when or if I'll use them...too bad the CPUs were gone...

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1mqgn7rcs/



Arctic Cooling Copper Silent 3

This heatsink was the result of antother trip at the flea market. It was bought for less than 2 EUROs and underwent a well deserved SPA treatment.

I was very pleased by the cooling performance, looks and level of noise of the cooler. The FAN is running great.

I had to straighten the retaining bracket as it was a little out of line. A pair of pliers and a good eye were just what the doctor ordered!

I glued back the frame of the fan.

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1joo0sb3w/



RAM Random Access Memory

All this RAM was also the result of a few visits I took at the flea market The 30 and 72 pins SIMMs came as a gift when I bought the Diamond Savage 4 PRO, Diamond RIVA 128 and the ASUS VL/I-486SV2GX4 REV. 2.0 motherboard.The KingMax RAM was found during the visit I bought the PII-450, PNY 4600TI and the Riva M64.

To clean all this RAM quickly, I resorted to a bath in isopropyl alcohol 99%.I dont think I'm going to repeat this operation anytime soon as I used more isopropyl alcohol 99% than it was needed but even so I wasnt sorry for the waste as it was for the GREATER GOOD!

Last year I bought a ACorp 5VX32 motherboard. It came without a C.O.A.S.T - Cache On A STick module and I was on a lookout for such a thing.

I found my first C.O.A.S.T. module on a visit at the flea market - 256KB COAST module Elpina HT-VX Ver. 3.1 It was placed on a shelf near a DURON 750MHz ceramic CPU. It was in bad shape and it was obvious it had a contact with water. Even so, I wanted it. I paid less than 2 EUROs and the seller thought it was a SIMM stick

I also found my second C.O.A.S.T. module at the flea market.It was plugged in a HP motherboard- 256KB SPB CACHE - COAST module - HP 0960-094. It was pretty difficult to get out of the slot and I had to negociate with the seller to pay less for the damn thing. She looked at me and said to herself that I can pay more for it even if she didnt know what it was

I think that the next time I'm going to the flea market I'm going to wear some shabby outfit to keep the prices low

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/dhgadc8s/



some FUN?

If you wonder where is the FUN part in this episode I think you're missing the point. All of this was a very satisfying activity I treat each component in an equal manner even if we are talking about a 3dfx VooDoo or a SIMM memory stick...

More later.

 

[dorsetknob]

The SLOT 1 CPUs are bulletproof.

never owned a Genuine P11 450Mhz CPU

I Did buy the P11 300Mhz (magic one with the right CPUid)
from New i overclocked it to 450Mhz (by jumper's) with the Addition of a pair of additional fans to the heatsink
after a year or so use i again upped the clock to 650Mhz ( the highest the board would go )
it ran at that speed with No problems for another year or so untill i gave it to a friend for his girls 1st Pc

i heard it run for over 10 years at 650Mhz before he got her a more modern PC
They were Brilliant Reliable MAGIC OVERCLOCKERS

 

[Robert B]

Minebea to the rescue!

Minebea? MINEBEA! Mi-ne-be-A? Yeah man! A++

We all know that a PSU is an important part of any PC build. Without it, we wouldn't be able to do anything with our computers aka A BIG FAT Z-E-R-O and here I'm not talking about the Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero Model 22 (NX712Z)

Ever since I was thinking about starting this project, Good Old Days, it became obvious that at some point in time I will also need a few good quality AT PSUs. At that moment I didnt know what I was going to find or what I wanted. In February 2015, when for a modest sum of money I bought lots of nice components, I also received a Minebea 200W AT PSU. I liked it the moment I saw it: good cables, solid, well built, heavy duty case, silent ball bearing fan, THE REAL DEAL. When I opend it up for cleaning I was impressed by the build quality. I'm no guru in regard to PSUs, but I liked what I saw inside. That particular PSU had two sets of AT motherboard power connectors. It might've been used on a dual CPU system. It is the exact PSU from the 5x86 Build and (Re)Build posted on the thread. It was manufactured in 1996 and still has OK voltages. She's sitting pretty powering a 5x86 and it isnt even seriously using all its capacity. Running cool and quiet as it should. In a way she's retired and now takes it easy

Fast forward to October 2017, when at the flea market I found the little sister of the above mentioned PSU. For a very low price it was mine.The case had some spots of light rust but I still bought it, as I knew that it was more important what's on the inside than what I could see on the outside.

It came without a power switch and from the looks of it, it never had one as the connector that was supposed to to be in contact with the ON/OFF switch might've been connected directly to the motherboard. I looked at the pictures of my other Minebea PSU and from a paper clip, I improvised a bridge between the black and gray wires and I was able to test the PSU with a HDD and use it for testing the system that will be presented in the next episode: Almost, VLB Heaven. I wasnt disappointed and the PSU is still in parameters firing on all its cyclinders.WIN WIN WIN!!!

Meet the MINEBEA Electronics 73G4374 145W manufactured in 1995! Nice year, me in highschool still without a PC which came in 1996 ..... GOOD TIMES!!! It seems soo long ago...

From the model number it might've come from an IBM PC.



The construction is elegant and after I removed two screws, that were kind of special, I had in front of me the part that interested me the most: THE NAKED TRUTH!

Nice NICE Nice - shake it BABY!!!



The interior was a little dusty and to my relief I saw not signs of damaged components. The capacitors were DANDY. I found a shriveled spider inside and it seems that in this case we didnt find a bug in the system but a spidey IN THE HOUSE!

NICE! Less work for me.



Some magic: Elbow grease and Isopropyl alcohol 99%.




The rusted areas were cleaned with a rust remover solution and then painted. I didnt want to fully restore the case.

The exhaust grill is easily recognizable and if you see it, check out that PSU. If IBM used them in their PCs there is no reason to pass them.

Why do I want to use and OLD PSU? I know I could use a new ATX PSU with an AT adapter but where's the fun in that? The real deal is always THE REAL DEAL there is no substitute.

Let's talk about voltage.

With just a HDD connected I registered 11.63V on the 12V rail and 5.12V on the 5V rail.



When I used the PSU to power a motherboard, CPU, RAM, cooler, VLB controller combo, the situation changed but the voltages were still OK: 11.72V on the 12V rail and 5.08V on the 5V rail.



After 22 years the PSU is still good and I'm sastisfied with my purchase. The voltages are well within spec. For sure, this PSU will be used in a future build. ALIVE AND KICKING!!!

For now, it will be sitting paciently in a box and not on top of a heap of electronic waste ready to be minced.

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/186fkhdvg/

More later. (I foresee that the next episode will be a monster, at least in regard to the length of it we'll see later )

512 KB...soooo much memory of times past

 

[Robert B]

Special episode Soon, pictures with my army




Atesh K. - Don't Know What to Do (Original Mix)

 

[Robert B]

Today is the national day of my country and because I had a few free hours, I decided to do something I was planning for some time. So, a special episode was born

I took out the stars of the episodes I posted until now and I wanted to see how they look together. Let's call it a reunion All have been cleaned and returned to their original glory. You've seen them and read about them in the pages before.

The entire operation took about two hours and a half. I also took my time, to better sort all the parts and I put all the non-functional items in separate boxes.

The pictures do not contain: the three completed builds, a big box of cables, a big box of fans and heatsinks, a small box of ram, a few CPUs, the HDDs, FDDs and the ODDs, three PSUs, about 40 floppy discs and 100+CDs, plus several miscellaneous items . I was afraid to take them out as I was sure that it would take me the entire day to take pictures and put them back in their boxes.

If I wanted I could've had at least three times more parts and I must say it feels kind of scary

Bellow are the results of almost three years of "work". I didnt try too hard to find them and I had short periods of intense activity followed by long periods of inactivity.

When I saw them all lined up in front of me I felt a great satisfaction. YEAH BABY!!!

Enjoy!

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1uo4lc5q4/

 

[jaggerwild]

Holly Shit!
You my good man, get a hats off!!! You must be Ex military..........

 

[jaggerwild]

Details, details, details, attention to details makes all the difference

I am in the "accumulation" stage and for now I keep all my stuff. All my pieces are sparkling and squeaky clean just as I like them. It's kind of scary how many parts I have gathered in a couple of years without even trying too hard. Some might be put for sale.

An ebay store? Who knows? I was thinking about it a few days ago. The only problem is that I will need a steady supplier of HW to really do something BIG. There are already people who have a direct connection with recycling centers and they "regulate" the market.

Ebay or Amazon, you can set a spy in Ebay(not sure how but i know others use it)to look for certain hardware at a certain price, ETC.

 

[Robert B]

Almost, VLB Heaven...

For more than two months I didnt buy anything retro-HW related. While I was in REHAB , I thought I got over the worst part of this addiction. Unfortunately for me, I was wrong as this week I'm waiting for a package which contains MORE RETRO HW . YEP! I did it again...need I say more?.... It's not a prototype, a monstrous graphic card, an IBM 350 (RAMAC) or something extremely rare but the contents make me remember the times in highschool in 1994...my memory is still fresh. The first time I sat on the chair that I used for the next four years, which had carved on the back the words: IBM PC and between my legs: Don't worry / Be Happy . Go figure

Let's return to the present day and the story I'm about to tell you.

Almost, VLB Heaven.

Why Almost and Heaven in combination with VLB? What made me use these words together? Well, I wish I had a more powerfull mix of components for this endeavour as it would've been even more enjoyable. After this experience, I've aquired the taste for even older parts. While the newer parts, usually have a higher casualty rate, the older parts have yet to disappoint me and they still work "knee deep in the dead", after taking on the Apocalypse from DOOM, being left to the mercy of elements, have escaped the shredder or got away from the vandals who see them only as a GOLD Recovery source.

Up until this moment, when I heard about VLB stuff, I was thinking about something complicated which was also shrouded in a mysterious fog. Why should I bother with something like that? (Little did I know that in the end I was going to like them A LOT!)

In September 2017 through a stroke of luck, I bought from the flea market, an ASUS VL/I-486SV2GX4 REV. 2.0 motherboard and a mighty - FDD/HDD/SERIAL/PARALLEL/GAME PORT Winbond W83787F, W83758F / Promise PDC20630- EIDE / Super-I/O VLB Controller. I paid a very low price for the entire package. The Asus smilled at me the moment I saw her even if the first time I didnt bought it and I had to get back from my car and recover it from the pile in which it sat. Looking back, I say it was a good decision as I'm pretty sure, it would've haunted me beyond the grave if I wouldn't've done so

This is how I was bitten by the VLB bug. GOD DAMN IT!!! It's crawling under my skin and I CAN'T ESCAPE!!! Something has changed inside me and I can't turn back!

First I cleaned the VLB controller. Without this piece, the ASUS motherboard is just an inert mass. NO HDD, NO mouse, NO CD-ROM, zilch, nada, ZERO. A BIG FAT ZERO! I must say again.

The VLB controller, was in a so-so state. Dusty and dirty with a bent bracket which also lost its shine. The good part was that it was complete.



I took off all the jumpers, about 30+ of them and I cleaned them with an old toothbrush and isopropyl alcohol 99%.



Next came the cleaning of the board with plenty of isopropyl alcohol 99%. Before this stage, I took the decision to remove the surface dust using a soft animal hair brush as I was pretty sure it would've made my life a whole lot worse when I was to use the alcohol. IT WAS THE RIGHT MOVE! as everything went smoothly. I paid great attention to detail. It was my first VLB Controller, after all.



The bracket got back its shine and I put back all the jumpers. It took me a while, but the pictures I made earlier were of big help. I didnt have a manual for the controller and if I would've had missing jumpers, this operation would've been a PITA even with the instructions printed on the back.



Final results. FLAWLESS VICTORY!!!



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/15c7bv6yk/

As I said before, I found the ASUS motherboard and the VLB controller at the flea market. I took a picture after I bought them.



ASUS VL/I-486SV2GX4 REV. 2.0

This motherboar was my ticket in a new stage from the evolution of the PC. As soon as I saw the printed name on the motherboard, I knew I was staring at an ASUS board and my mind was racing towards the dual socket Pentium PRO motherboards. The font is specific to the boards belonging to this era. An ASUS is still an ASUS no matter what.

As expected, the motherboard was dirty and had that specific smell which I cant stand to this day even after more than a hundred cleaned components. Come to POPPA to make you GREAT AGAIN!



I took off all the CACHE chips, the BIOS chip and the jumpers. The jumpers were brittle and I knew I had to replace them. ISOPROPYL ALCOHOL 99%. Need I say more? I DON'T THINK SO!



After I cleaned the motherboard I started to stare at it and the thought of populating all the CACHE sockets came into my mind. There were only 128KB and four chips. The motherboard had 8 sockets! Let's DO IT! 256KB!.......Little did I know this would mean more work and less FUN!

I checked the manual and I found that for 128KB I needed 4x32KB CACHE chips and a 8KB TAG chip. CHECK! I didnt have 64KB chips so I had to use 8x32KB instead of 4x64KB. For the 8x32KB I needed a 32KB TAG chip. At this moment, I didnt know if the TAG chip had to be made by the same manufacturer of the CACHE chips or if it would've had to be of a different construction or of a different brand. I searched vogons.org and the Internet and I found out that these facts dont matter too much as long as the CACHE chips and the TAG have the same specs as stated in the manual. So I searched in my stash of organ donors and parts that will not be restored, and I found on a motherboard 9 identical 32KB CACHE chips. SUPER. Now the ASUS had 256KB CACHE and it looked wicked.

https://www.philscomputerlab.com/asus-vli-486sv2gx4.html

I didnt have a tool for the extraction of the CACHE chips so this operation was nerve racking. I didnt know that I will repeat this process at least three times...



OK. All was clean and shiny, and I wanted to pick a CPU to test the motherboard. I found from the Internet that if I was to use an AMD 5x86 de 133MHz the motherboard would need a specific BIOS version to recognize it and I was pretty sure that it didnt have the correct one. Besides, I couldnt FLASH the BIOS chip because the motherboard and the chip didnt support this. DEAD END! I took from my stash the next BIG thing, an AMD 486 DX4-100MHz 100NV8T CPU.

I set up all the required jumpers and I took some pictures with the wonder. I also replace the mix of black jumpers with new white ones. I had to use a pair of pliers with smooth jaws to straighten some pins. Now the motherboard look GREAT! WICKED!!!



The following day, when I tought I had everything ready for the real test, something was bugging me. The Revision 2.0 of the motherboard doesnt have settings for 3V, and my AMD DX4-100 MHz IS 3V! Even if I had jumpers settings for this particular CPU, I decided not to pump 3.45V in a 3V rated part, even if I was told I could do so. The 5x86 133MHz is rated at 3.45V but the motherboard wont recognize it...

My board only has the JP32 jumper and in combination with the JP16 I can get: 3.45V, 3.6V, 4.0V and 5.0 V.

If JP16 is shorted on 1-2, then JP32 sets the voltage. In which case,
JP32 1-2 = 3.45 V
JP32 2-3 = 3.6 V
JP32 OPEN = 4.0 V

If JP16 is OPEN, then the voltage is 5.0 V

https://www.vogons.org/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=51152

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus/svoQg7GSRbQ
http://www.elhvb.com/mobokive/Archive/Asus/486/486sv2g - gx4/sv2g-cpu.html
http://www.dosforum.de/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=8175

I started to look in my boxes and what do I find? The Intel 486SX de 25MHz which I saved from demise in 2015 and it was featured in the episode: Little bent PIN -
The story of the BENT CPU PIN(ssssssssss) or should I say lots of CPU Pins

https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/...ly-old-hardware-emporium.228932/#post-3574702

5V? YEAH BABY! This slow 4x86 will help me test this high-end motherboard. GREAT!!! I have to set again all the jumpers...DON'T forget! 25MHz BUS instead of 33MHz!



I got everything ready for the test. I powered up the Minebea PSU from the previous episode and I waited to hear the HAPPY BOOT BEEP.

NOTHING! NO BEEP, NO IMAGE on the screen! Just a cricket chirping....

What THE....?!?! I used another stick of RAM. STILL NOTHING. I took out all of the RAM sticks .....NOTHING! Well I'll be F.....

I changed the PC SPEAKER as it might be damaged. NOTHING!!! Hmmmm

I tried to connect an FDD and a HDD. I changed a few jumpers on the VLB controller.

STIL NOTHING!

THOSE CACHE CHIPS might be the culprit! There simply is no other explication. I took out all of them and I powered the system. BEEP BEEP!!! I'm alive! I still had no image on the screen... the card Oak Technology OTI077 - 1077082003 REV. G - 512KB was dead...RIP



I took out another video card: a Trident TVGA9000C - 7133 Rev. B1 - 512KB and BAM! I got a clear image. All was OK as it should.



I tried my third ISA card: a Trident TVGA9000i-2 - 7210 Rev. H1 and I received more good news. It was working!



At this moment I decided to put back the original CACHE chips and combine them with other 32 pin 32KB CACHE chips plus another 32KB TAG. This worked and I got the 256KB I so much desired.



The motherboard is finicky about RAM in regards to capacity, manufacturer, type: SS or DS and the way you fill the slots. The MANUAL was of great help. I managed to get a maximum of 16MB as I only had 4MB and 8MB sticks. The two 16MB sticks I have are in the 5x86 build and they arent going anywhere no matter what.



I ran a few tests but I didnt like what I saw. Most likely, THE CPU IS WAY TOO SLOW for this motherboard. The CACHE CHECK program complained about supposedly fake cache chips. It is not the case, as the CPU, the MIX of RAM, the MIX of CACHE chips might be blamed for this behaviour...I didnt set anything in BIOS and only the defaults were loaded...All these "problems" can be easily fixed in the future.




During testing I decided to use a cooler for the 4x86 SX 25MHz as it was quite warm to the touch. It can be used without a heatsink but I wouldnt do this over long periods of time.



In the end I reverted to the 128KB CACHE and the original chips. A bigger CACHE wont help me if I dont have a RAM capacity to match.

IF IT WORKS DON'T FIX IT!!!



Here we are at the end of the : "Almost, VLB Heaven..." story. I'm pretty sure you understand the title by now. It's not about the difficulties I encountered when I wanted to test the system it is about the fact that a more powerful CPU, more RAM, an ET 4000 VLB video card, etc... would've made all of this more enjoyable.

At the very least I'm glad that the ASUS and the VLB controller are in good working condition.

I might revisit this VLB moment sometimes in the future...we'll see.

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1wjod5nuk/

 

[Robert B]

EXTRA: Is it possible to use a RIVA 128 4MB PCI in a SiS 496/497 socket 3 motherboard? (I'm sure this question keeps you awake at night! )

I was asked by a fellow vogons.org member: amadeus777999 if I could test a RIVA 128 in my socket 3, 5x86 133MHz, SiS 496/497 build. In his case all his efforts were fruitless as the system hanged at the stage he tried to install the drivers in Windows. In the end he found a solution as he had to set a jumper on his motherboard and he also got a RIVA 128 PCI working on his SiS setup: "the LuckyStar(SiS) board does indeed work with the Riva128 - there was a misplaced jumper that caused cache corruption and hence the failed assumption of incompatibility."

I wanted to test a V1 in my first PC but in the end I got to test a mighty NV3 aka RIVA 128 : Diamond nVIDIA Riva 128 - Rev. D - VIPER V330 PCI 4MB

Test configuration.

1. CPU: AMD 5X86 133MHz - AMD-X5-133ADW/Am5X86-P75 3.45V
2. Motherboard: Tomato board / ZIDA 4DPS v2.11- chipset SiS 496/497 - 256KB cache/3 PCI/3 ISA/2 RAM SLOTS
3. RAM: 2x16=32 MB RAM SIMM FPM
4. VGA: Cirrus Logic 5446 - 8260B/V6, 2MB, PCI
5. AUDIO: ESS AudioDrive 1868F ISA
6. HDD: QUANTUM TRAILBLAZER TRB850A -850MB- 4500RPM
7. FDD: NEC
8. CD-ROM: Goldstar/LG CRD-8160B
9. PSU: Minebea Electronics 200W AT PSU
10. Cooling: CPU-Noctua NF-4x10FLX 40 mm x 40 mm x 10 mm 4500 rpm/SSO2 SYSTEM: Scythe Mini Kaze 60 mm x 60 mm x 20 mm 2500 rpm/sleeve.
11. CASE: Generic AT Case manufactured 1998.



I prepared a driver package version 1.30 I found on the internet and two CDs taken from the vogons driver library called DIAMOND SUPER CD 98 1,2.

http://www.helpjet.net/Fs-41580795-4007 ... 35073.html
http://www.vogonsdrivers.com/getfile.php?fileid=548
http://www.vogonsdrivers.com/getfile.php?fileid=156



The Diamond SUPER CD is awesome as it contains lots of drivers for Diamond graphic cards. First I tried the V 1.30 package and it installed right away so I didnt use the DIAMOND Super CDs. I had to burn a CD with only the drivers as my floppy disks were a pain to write with my two USB FDD units...errors after errors...this brings back sweet memories....

I encountered no image problems or any kind of issues after I used the DIAMOND VIPER V330. All was stable. The colours and image clarity were great.

I was expecting a greater speed in SpeedSys 4.78 for the Viper v330. The CL 5446 2MB PCI got a VESA memory speed of 19376KB/s and the Viper V330 22289KB/s. I think the CPU doesnt let the RIVA 128 spread its wings.



I tried a few games: Shaddow Warrior, DOOM, DOOM II, DUKE NUKEM, DESCENT, HERETIC and they ran great. When the RIVA was in my system the Settlers 2 and Heroes 2 wouldnt start saying that the mouse was not present on the COM 1 port or mouse not detected even if I had a PS/2 mouse. However Heroes 2 ran great with the CL 5446 2MB PCI and the PS/2 mouse. I didnt want to try a serial mouse but I'm sure if I would've tried the games would work. The Lost Vikings Game which is a pure WIN95 game wouldnt start with the RIVA 128 saying that it needed a file/gave a Windows error but the game worked from the get go with the CL 5446 2MB PCI.

These are small issues which can be solved but I didnt have the time to do it.



I took Phils test suite and I ran a few tests.

https://www.philscomputerlab.com/dos-be ... -pack.html

The RIVA 128 ran Quake at 640x480(see the RIVA-TST-034.jpg) and 320x200. I ran the tests from WIN95 and I got a 4.6 score for 640x480 and 10.9 score for 320x200. After this I restared in MS DOS mode from Win95 and I got a score of 4.8 for 640x480 and 11.3 for 320x200.

I also tried to run the Quake 640x480, 320x200 tests on the CL 5446 2MB PCI and only the 320x200 test worked. I got a 11.3 score.

So I'm sure my CPU is not feeding the RIVA 128 all the data it needs to show its strength.



With the RIVA 128 I was able to play DN at 800x600 and it worked even if the frame rate was low.

I also tested the Viper and CL cards with 3D Bench 1.0 and 3D Bench 1.0c. I got the same results for the Viper and CL cards. If I had another test system with a Pentium CPU I might've seen other scores. Who knows...

The RIVA 128 ran the PC Player Benchmark in 640x480 and 320x200. The CL 5446 ran only the 320x200. For both the RIVA 128 and CL 5446 the PC Player Benchmark 320x200 test returned the same score 14.6.



All the tests were made after I restarted in MS DOS from WIN95. I dont have a pure DOS machine yet. Also I didnt tweak the settings in BIOS. The defaults were loaded.

I dont know if there are DOS drivers for the RIVA 128. I think the card shows its strength in Windows environment.

So there you have it: 45 pics No witchcraft or something else. THE RIVA 128 WORKS ON SiS 496/497 kind of...

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/2k7j1d2pi/

 

[phill]

I'm so in awe of this thread and the level of detail and commitment you have for all of your hardware.. You must have one massive storage place to store all of this!!

Hats off to you sir, amazing, simply amazing

Seeing that Quake demo makes me remember back to when I had my Amiga with a 603e and Blizzardvision PPC card.. I use to run that test many a time!! Brings back some memories... I wish I still had that system Sad times....

 

[Robert B]

Hey Grandpa, do you still lose track of time?!?!?

Have no fear, I have the solution right here, said "the greenhorn" yep, true story

As you know well, recently, I have aquired a socket 4 motherboard and CPU, an illusive creature which only comes out at night

The Pentium 66 MHz is a real treat, aka THE ORIGINAL PENTIUM!!! To put things in perspective, we are talking about THE PENTIUM 66 MHz, top dog back in its heyday and not a Pentium 60 MHz aka a Pentium 66 MHz which didnt make the cut. We all know its story, FDIV and stuff...

Before I received the socket 4 bundle I knew I will have to do an RTC: Real-Time Clock module mod. After decades, it was obvious that the lithium cell/battery inside the RTC module went the way of the DoDo bird. Do you still believe in fairy tales?... I know I still do.. kind off...but I wasnt expecting that the battery would still be good...

When I received the package with the Pentium 66, I saw that I didnt get the right RTC module. Instead of a Dallas DS1287 RTC module I received a Benchmarq BQ3287MT module. I used the Benchmarq RTC module but I wasnt able to make the socket 4 system to post or boot. Regardless, this story is not about me not being able to solve the P66 puzzle, which is just a temporary setback, as I'm going to present to you an RTC module mod for vintage/old systems.

The RTC module is kind of special in the sense that it's more than just a CMOS battery: "The CMOS BQ3287/BQ3287A is a low-power microprocessor peripheral providing a time-of-day clock and 100-year calendar with alarm features and battery operation. Other features include three maskable interrupt sources, squarewave output, and 114 bytes of general nonvolatile storage."

http://pdf.datasheetcatalog.com/datasheets/90/122373_DS.pdf

Without this humble black toffee, an older PC is dead in the water not beeing able to boot, get past the boot screen or load an OS. Quirks of ancient technology.

You can find on the internet plenty of RTC CR2032/RTC chip/module, mod/hack/rework, Dallas DS1287 / Benchmarq BQ3287 / ODIN OEC12C887 tutorials. The gist of these mods/hacks is represented by the attachment of a regular CR2032 socket+battery, to a couple of specific terminals of the RTC module after they are disconnected from the dead lithium cell/battery inside.

http://www.mcamafia.de/mcapage0/dsrework.htm

After several years, these lithium cells die and can't hold the required charge to keep the BIOS settings which are lost after you disconnect the PC from the mains, power off the system or you just restart the PC.In some instances this fact can render an older PC useless.

Said and done. I read again the instructions and I was ready to ROCK and ROLL!

To make things more challenging, fate did so, that a pin from the Benchmarq BQ3287 RTC module broke off when I pulled it out of the socket... call it a bad hair day BEHOLD it is the PIN 13!!! FTW!!! Wicked!!! IN YO' FACE!!!



I took my trusty callipers and I took a measurment to determine the exact spot where I was about to use a hacksaw to expose the cell battery contacts. PIN 16: (-) and PIN 20 (+). I hacked away until I felt the metal.



I took a multimeter and I measured the voltage of the cell battery inside the RTC module: 2.96V what the f..k??? At first, I thought I was about to open up a good RTC module but quickly I figured out that the charge was from the test of the socket 4 system I did earlier and I was sure that the charge wouldn't've been kept for long, minutes, hours, a few days.... My hunch was confirmed after I disconnected the battery when I made a new measurement and I got a BIG FAT ZERO VOLTS.



After I made the initial cuts with the hacksaw, I used a few fine files of various shapes to fully expose the contacts between the RTC module and the battery. As you can see in the pictures, the pin 16 and pin 20, have been bent the other way to make contact with the internal lithium cell battery.



I used a fine screwdriver and with a firm rocking motion, left-right, I severed the contact of the pin 16 and pin 20 with the lithium cell battery. I took care to remove all the metal bits that resulted from this operation.



I prepared the CR2032 socket that I wanted to attach to the BQ3287MT RTC module.



To make things bulletproof, I decided to also cut the tips of the pins I exposed. Better safe than sorry.



I took a razor and I cut four little bits of plastic from the CR2032 socket as they would've hindered me when I was to attach it with super glue to the RTC module.



I prepared the wires that I was about to use.



I cleaned everthing with and old toothbrush and 99% isopropyl alcohol.



Looking good!



I used black electrical tape to mask the exposed contacts of the dead cell battery. Looks are VERY IMPORTANT!



After all of this, I tackled the problem of the missing pin. I tried to solder the sheared tip of the pin 13 but I wasnt successful, so I took the hacksaw and the fine files and I did a third groove in the RTC module. A CACHE CHIP donated a pin and the problem was solved. I used a french key to keep the things in place while I did these delicate procedures.



I soldered the wires to the CR2032 socket/battery holder.



I made a set of CUSTOM heat shrink tubes for the CR2032 socket, just for looks.



Almost done.



I determined the ideal length of the wires.



I used super glue to attach the CR2032 socket on the Benchmarq BQ3287MT RTC module. To obtain a strong bond I used again the french key. A pen was used as a spacer to protect the pins of the BQ3287MT RTC module.



I soldered the wires from the CR2032 socket to the BQ3287MT RTC module.



Looking SEXY!!! I used TRANSPARENT POXIPOL to cover the soldered joints of the RTC module.



HOT! HOT! HOT!



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/241ax5y0i/

The entire operation took more than three hours.I cant establish the time with precision as it went by in a flash. Now, I can make this mod in less than an hour and all this experience was worth it even if I wasnt able to wake up the ASUS socket 4 motherboard. This will have to wait a little more...

I have to get a Dallas DS1287 RTC module, hack it, and then try to power up again the Pentium 66...



More later.

FTW!!! FYW!!! FTW!!!

Moonwalk - Girl For You

 

[phill]

You really do take it to the next level Amazing stuff!!

 

[CheapMeat]

This is one of the most epic threads I've ever seen. Should be archived. Lots of fantastic hardware and even learned a bit about cleaning properly.

 

[Robert B]

Three UGLY Sisters!!!

While I'm writing these lines, I still wonder what made me try to recover these three things. They arent rare or extremely useful. They came dirty, covered with corrosion marks, verdigris and God knows what.On their forehead was written in a clear font: TOO FAR GONE!!! DONT BOTHER!

All these warning signs meant nothing to me and I decided to see what I can do. Little did I know that I was just wasting my time. Better quit while you're ahead...

After all was said and done I saw this adventure as a test of my skills, nothing more. If these things would've been rare or exotic artifacts I might've pulled up a few aces from my sleeve, but after hours allocated for this endeavour one obvious conclusion was vivid in my mind : STOP! YOU'RE WASTING YOUR TIME and MONEY!

Together with the Pentium 66 I also received three other components. I knew they were in a bad shape and initially I said to the seller that I dont need them but he said he was going to send them anyway. By this time I said to myself that I want to see if I can restore them...

Let's meet the three things:

1. Apac 3901A - S3 Savage 3D - AGP - 8MB
2. Modem ACorp AT-336PCR - RCV336ACF/SP R6749-21
3. Modem NIG-EAGLE-1-V1 - DAVICOM 33.6

Nothing glamorous...

The arrival state can be seen bellow.



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/j4ysy5qm/



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/2ji37x7l2/

First I changed a capacitor on the S3 card because it was deformed. An easy task.

After this, I turned my attention to the three brackets. I kept them for three hours in an auto rust remover solution and I checked them at intervals of 30 minutes . At each check I removed a layer of rust. I used a sharp needle and other tools to remove the rust which turned to a black crust. After this I put the brackets back into the solution. I repeated this operation several times.

After I removed all of the rust I was left with pitting in the areas that were cleaned. I tried with a buffing wheel and polishing compound to eliminate the pitting but it was too advanced so I tried to reduce it a little and then I manually buffed the brackets with a special cream.

In the end they came out looking okay...



Next came the moment to tackle the cards. You should've seen my face while I was staring at them. What the F... Even so I still carried on.

The rust and the verdigris from the cards werent bothered by the 99% isopropyl alcohol so I took out the BIG GUNS and with the help of a few cotton sticks dipped in the rust remover I covered the entire surface of the modems, the golden pins, connectors and the BIOS socket of the graphic card with a thin layer of solution.

I had to be pacient because the procedure was slow and I had to see how it will evolve.

After a few dabs of rust remover solution and 99% isopropyl alcohol washes I removed much of the rust, verdigris, dirt and whatever was there.

Almost all of the components were contaminated and I paid close attention to each detail: pins, BIOS chips, capacitors, quartz crystals, you name it...

I replaced two screws and I recovered four.

In the end I was satisfied with the results and I decided to stop. Against all of my efforts I wasnt able to fully recover any of the cards. Each one of them remained with scars.



Test time.

S3 TEST? Ha hAHh aHahHAhhhaHahhhahah - NO IMAGE TEST ! YEP, dead, beep code: VGA NOT DETECTED!!! Well I'll be F.....Go figure...I didnt test the card when I received as it was so nasty I wouldn't've never put it inside my clean and sparkling PIII.

The modems were identified by Win 98 but I didnt find the original drivers. I installed generic drivers and that was it. As good as it gets.



Back in the BOX and I dont want to see you for a while!

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1188ql87w/

More later. The P66 still refuses to come back to life...full story will be posted later after I have exhausted all of my options...



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/nasleyb6/

 

[Robert B]

Listen to this tune while you watch the HYPE photos!!!

Martinez-Chord Ripper (Original Mix)

http://classic.beatport.com/track/chord-ripper-original-mix/7660290

It wont be long until I'll resume the regular show

Sneak peek!



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/1ted8ydlo/

Do I have to say it?

As usual MORE LATER

 

[Vayra86]

I may have said this before but

Mad respek

 

[Robert B]

THE EAGLE HAS LANDED!



L.E.

Thar She Blows!



gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/kgdidg6u/

MORE LATER!!!

 

[Robert B]

I decided to not buy a hot air station yet and improve my soldering skills instead

Test run in preparation for the V4-L operation!



More later!!!

 

[Robert B]

The first picture contains the BIOS chip of the V4-L and the second one is the emergency solution I found to save the card that I've damaged while trying to SAVE IT. I still get cold shivers just thinking about it!

From all this adventure I've come to gain more experience and the V4 in FULL working condition, albeit with a small repair. Overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer I really didnt want to use the 3dfx as a guinea pig but that has happened and there is no way to change it. Sometimes overconfidence can be the only way forward. In this instance I didnt rely only on overconfidence but even if I knew that I'm not doing the right thing I could almost taste the fact that the V4-L is OK and I wanted to know this NOW and not LATER. This story has been on my mind since last year and has been haunting me eversince. NOW THE DEMON has been slain and THE HERO was left with some scars...

Regardless, I know what I did wrong and in the future I can do a whole lot better. In a nutshell I did ALL THE BAD THINGS and I still came on top Also, all the BAD things that could happen have happened!

Expect a story of dedication, madness, luck and a certain kind of skill I'm no brain surgeon but in the end I prevailed as a field medic I really should've bought a hot air station or have more patience. Patience? What's that???

THE EVILKING IS BACK!

ENJOY!



In the end you will have to read a nice story that otherwise wouldn't've happened! I must say this was not staged.



For sure MORE LATER!

 

[Robert B]

THE EVILKING IS BACK!

Today I'm going to tell you the ending of a thrilling story. A story which I know has captivated a lot of you. The main character of the story is the 3dfx VooDoo4 4500 L- shaped card. A card that left the seller in good working condition and it arrived in my hands not working. In the links bellow you can read all about this, the restoration of the card, the test, my efforts to revive it. This story has haunted me since last year. This card was one of the most expensive cards I bought last year and I liked it the moment I saw it.

PowerColor EvilKing IV VooDoo 4 / VooDoo4 4500 - L shaped - 210-0908-01 / 210-0435-001

https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/...-hardware-emporium.228932/page-5#post-3700715
https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/...-hardware-emporium.228932/page-5#post-3714129
https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/...-hardware-emporium.228932/page-5#post-3714883
https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/...-hardware-emporium.228932/page-5#post-3717832
http://www.vogons.org/viewtopic.php?f=63&t=55610

Lets get on with the show. The story about dedication, madness, luck and a certain kind of skill is about to unfold!

After I exhausted all of my options trying to revive the V4-L, I came to the conclusion that sometime in the future I will have to remove the BIOS chip and see what's on the damn thing. At that time I was planning to take the card to a shop and have it removed professionally. This week I bought a MiniPro TL866A BIOS programmer to revive my first Pentium 66 setup and then I knew that I also must do something about the V4-L. I wanted to buy a hot air station but in the end I didnt want to spend more money for a piece of equipment that will stay most of the time in its box so I checked the internet to see how can I remove a PLCC32 BIOS chip without special tools.

Keep in mind that I have no training or specialisation in any of the operations I was about to perform. I had little experience and most of the time I used my brain and common sense. The rest came naturally. .

I found these two neat videos:

I watched the demonstration a few times and I was ready to do it. I had a damaged laptop motherboard and I tried to replicate the results. The operation went smoothly and fast. I was amazed it was so easy. I didnt damage any solder pads so I was confident enough to tackle the V4-L. I used two soldering irons, a 15W to put as much solder I could in the first run and a 40W to add the finishing touch and keep the solder liquid as much as possible. I used a small screwdriver which was hanging in the air and let gravity remove a corner of the BIOS chip after I heated the solder.

Cleaning the solder from the BIOS chip I removed was tedious and I had to improvise something to hold it as I couldnt apply enough pressure with the solder wick and the soldering iron.I used a french key and two small fastening nuts. I took care not to overheat the chip and I took my time and I removed 95% of the solder.

I must say that I didnt pay as much attention to this entire experiment as I wanted just to establish a baseline.Get a feel of it. I knew that when the time to tackle the V4-L would come I would have to be a lot more careful. This was sort of a worst case scenario and I wanted see what would happen.

After this operation the chip survived intact and I was able to read, erase and program it as many times as I wanted.



A day after this success story I felt confident enough to take on the DEMONS of the V4-L. I bought fresh solder wick and two fine tweezers.

WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG?

I prepared the V4-L using an adhesive aluminium tape and took my time and masked everything nicely. At this moment I was more than anytime aware about how tightly packed the components were on this delicate V4-L. I carried on.



After I masked the area I was about to flood with solder I wrapped the entire card in aluminium foil.



OPEN THE SOLDER GATES!!!



I performed the same steps as I took in the test run: "I used two soldering irons, a 15W to put as much solder I could in the first run and a 40W to add the finishing touch and keep the solder liquid as much as possible. I used a small screwdriver which was hanging in the air and let gravity remove a corner of the BIOS chip after I heated the solder." This time I placed a small cardboard box under the screwdriver to reduce the lifting distance of the chip.

The operation was much harder to do than before as the space was smaller and the card was moving on my table. Also for some reason the solder wouldnt stay liquid for as much time it did during the test run. The fact that it was a little colder inside might've contributed to this. A few moments and it was hard. I didnt have much space to place the tip of the soldering iron. I didnt want to keep the tip on the PCB as much as I did in the test run as I was aware of the small resistors which were a fraction of a millimeter away. It was NERVE WRACKING but I still soldiered on! I said to myself: YOU SIR ARE MAD AF!!! I brushed the thought away and I focused on the prize: I SAW ONLY THE BOOT STRING white on black: VOODOO4 4500 BIOS.......

A few tries later I managed to lift one corner of the BIOS chip. I knew I was on the right track. I had to add more solder as the tip of the soldering iron sucked it away.

I tried to use the big twezzers but they just got in the way of the soldering iron. I couldnt grab the chip well.

I got to the point where the BIOS chip was almost free and I was just a corner awat from glory. A thought passed in my mind: dont lift the chip like the lid from a box, heat the solder and move it sideways. TOO LATE! THE CHIP WAS FREE and I could see the back of a ripped off solder pad.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I felt cold shivers on my spine a I panicked! I could almost hear the 3DFX POLICE coming to get me and the 3DFX SWAT TEAM busting in from the windows!



STAY ON THE GROUND! DONT MOVE! KEEP YOU HAND WERE I CAN SEE THEM!!!

I finally removed the BIOS chip and BEHOLD another ripped pad. F..K! F..K!F..K!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



I touched the removed pads with the tip of my soldering iron to free them from the solder and I did matters worse. The pads burned and were turned black from the heat.

DAMN IT! DAMN IT! DAMN IT!

How could I write about this. How can I explain this to you? There is no excuse for being STUPID! I almost felt like the T guy that a few years back damaged many VooDoo 5 6000s. I dont want to pronounce his name.

A few moments later I calmed down and I inspected the PCB. I thought that I also removed some resistors when I took off the aluminium tape. I inspected the tape I dumped in my bin for any component that might be stuck on it.NOTHING! I searched frantically for a picture on my thread to see what was missing. Tense moments passed.A sigh of relief..........NOTHING IS MISSING.

I composed myself and took a GOOD LOOK at the damage. I hatched a RESCUE PLAN and again I felt the distant TASTE OF VICTORY AND GLORY!!! LET END THIS!!! SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIEND!!!

I cleaned the PCB from the leftover adhesive aluminium tape and I was ready to put in action my rescue plan. My hands were still shaking and sometimes I had use both of my hands to perform some operations

I took three strands from a fine wire and twisted them. I obtained a strong and also fine replacement for the missing pads. With these wires I established the missing contact between the PCB and the PLCC32 socket I was about to solder. I used the two holes in the PCB that were in contact with the missing pads. Using a fine needle I removed a small quantity of lacquer from these tiny holes so that the solder would stick to them. I threaded the wires thorugh the holes and with UTMOST CARE I soldered the wires. I didnt want to burn the PCB. All went smoothly. I pulled a little the wires with the fine tweezers. THE SOLDER JOB WAS SOLID!

I felt like a strong wind filled my mainsail.THIS IS IT! YOU BROKE IT YOU FIX IT!!!

I put solder on the pads and the wires. I also removed the inside plastic bit from the PLCC32 socket and I put solder on the little contacts.



I cleaned the solder from BIOS chip SST 39VF512 and I programed it with the 1.15 stock version I took from this site: https://3dfxbios.cl-rahden.de/index.php?title=Voodoo4



I cleaned well all the areas on the PCB. I soldered the PLCC32 socket, I placed a small piece of shrink tube under the BIOS chip and I was ready to FLY!!! LETS END THIS!!!



I started the PC and I got the correct beep code from the PC SPEAKER. I waited paciently to see the screen light up. This was a change coming from a VGA NOT DETECTED beep code. I GOT NO IMAGE AND I COULD HEAR THE PC loading Windows.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is not happening...

My mind was racing. I must try another BIOS version. This time I tried a 1.06 BIOS from the same site.

I put the card in my PC and BAM: THE SKIES HAVE CLEARED AND THE DEMONS HAVE BEEN SLAIN!!!

I felt a rush I cant describe. If I had more hair I would've performed a rocker type motion. In any case, I was a little on my back, knees a little bent and with my hands up I let loose all of my tension.



The image was great and I installed a set of drivers. All went OK!


3Dmark99 and 3Dmark2000 ran flawlessly.



After this, I searched the internet for another 1.15 BIOS http://www.3dfxzone.it/dir/3dfx/voodoo5/bios/roms/ ; http://3dfxbios.stantoworld.co.uk/ ; This time the card booted fine and I had the latest BIOS version for my card. I dont plan to use the 1.16 version or another higher version. At least for now.



I tried a game (NFS 5/PU) and again everything ran well. No errors. No artifacts. SMOOTH SAILING!



I cleaned the card well and I took the compulsory GLAMOUR SHOTS!(again)



This was the V4-L adventure. I didnt plan this. I was stubborn and I wanted to fix it myself. I can still feel the moment the pads ripped off. My muscle memory is now calibrated and if I'm going to perform this operation in the future I will be a lot more careful as I have this experience under my belt

The removal of the BIOS chip and repair took around four hours including testing and trying different BIOS versions.

All's is well that ends well.

I did many mistakes:

1. I rushed this job not taking into account all of the variables due to my lack of experience.
2. I did the classic mistake of ripping of pads.
3. I didnt perform this operation in a well lit room.
4. I didnt perform this operation on a big enough table.
5. I didnt pay attention to warning signs. DONT LIFT THE CHIP like a MINI GORILLA.
6. I did this on a time constraint. I should've done this when I had enough time not when I felt like doing it.
7. Try to use the right equipment. A hot air station would've meant less time and no damage. A 15 minute job turned into a full blown rescue operation Hollywood style.
8. Dont do this when you feel you want to rush it. We all want results and we all want them now. Take a step back and look at the whole picture. You can easily damage more than you think.
9. If you need help call somebody. He might see details that you might miss. Another set of hands might've helped me to not rip off the pads.
10. Keep your work area clean. My work table looked like war zone. I burned a little the tip of one of my fingers. The smell was unpleasant
11. Do more practice runs on defective components and only then get your hands on the real thing. More test runs will reveal variations in the way the operation will unfold. The exception is not the rule.

When all the smoke cleared even if I damaged the V4-L, the fact that in the end I revived the card, was priceless. Now I can say I have the confidence to tackle more complicated tasks. Next time I'll try to buy the required equipment or be a lot more careful. I did my discipleship on a rare 3dfx I must be insane My soldering experience was limited. I'm no expert now but I'm getting there one step at a time. If only I could temper my enthusiasm. We are who we are and we cant change that.

The damage is just cosmetic and I know that it can be repaired professionally if that will be required. This is why I didnt expose the fine traces that were in contact with the missing pads and I resorted to my solution.

The card will rest in its box and will only be powered up on special occasions. It's too rare to throw away. I have more respect for this artefact of times gone by

It will take something really special to top this V4-L series. In any case I'm looking forward to whatever future will bring. My 3dfx odyssey is not over yet. I can feel it!

gallery: https://postimg.org/gallery/250te13bw/

More later.

 

[phill]

I love this thread so much!!