VOGONS


First post, by Pizmo

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Hello everyone.

I am new to the world of retro computers. This is a hobby that I recently fell into after picking up a Leading Edge 286 clone from a local thrift store for $20. However, I am afraid that I have got myself in way over my head.

Ok now down to the nitty gritty.

The pc specs (to the best of my knowledge) are

Leading Edge Model D2
Cpu: 80286
Ram: 640k
Bios: Pheonix Rom Bios Ver 2.01
OS: MS-DOS 6.22

I picked up a sound blaster ct1470 off of eBay and I installed and configured it using this YouTube tutorial

https://youtu.be/5UwFGZH8h4c

The card appears to configure itself with no issue during boot up. I have tested the card with wolfenstein and lhx. The sound works fine however the game port does not seem to be working. I have tried a Logitech Wingman, Gravis Blackhawk, and an old Gravis 3 button analog joystick that I had lying around.

I am hoping that this is something as simple as merely using incomparable joysticks. Which is entirely possible because as I said this is all new to me and I really have no clue what I am doing. I don't even know where to begin in troubleshooting this problem

Any help you guys can give me will be greatly appreciated.

Reply 1 of 9, by CkRtech

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What is the state of your JYEN jumper on the SB16? If is is open, then it is disabled.

Also - check to make sure there isn't another joystick port on that machine. The joystick port on the SB16 should have been enabled by default, but it is possible the installer/factory disabled it due to redundancy.

Displaced Gamers (YouTube) - DOS Gaming Aspect Ratio - 320x200 || The History of 240p || Dithering on the Sega Genesis with Composite Video

Reply 2 of 9, by Pizmo

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The JYEN jumper is closed

The only game port connector in the system is the one on the sound blaster card.

The connection ports on this computer are as follows

1 monitor port, 2 serial ports, 2 com ports, 1 game port (which is the one on the sb card)

I ran a hardware utility program called NSSI. According to NSSI the system is seeing 2 active game ports

Is it possible that the system might be seeing one of the serial ports or com ports as a game port?

If so what do I do about it?

Reply 3 of 9, by CkRtech

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I assume your system has an I/O card rather than a proprietary integrated solution. That being the case, the I/O card can easily contain a game port. It is possible the game port is enabled on that card but the ribbon cable/slot cover extension for it just isn't plugged in.

I haven't really used NSSI, so I don't know how reliable it is for detecting game ports.

But if the findings are true, then you are looking at a jumper configuration change to disable the "onboard" (I/O card) Game port.

Displaced Gamers (YouTube) - DOS Gaming Aspect Ratio - 320x200 || The History of 240p || Dithering on the Sega Genesis with Composite Video

Reply 4 of 9, by Pizmo

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I'm sorry, but you've got to talk to me like you are talking to a small helpless child. Otherwise I am not going to understand. Like I said I am in over my head.

What exactly is an i/o card?

How would I know if it is a proprietary integrated solution?

On which card would I be rearranging the jumpers?

Where would I find info on the correct jumper configuration for said card?

Is there a better hardware utility program then NSSI that I should use?

Don't be afraid to talk to me like I'm dumb. I honestly do not have the faintest idea of what I am doing. I thought that because I had successfully built a couple modern gaming rigs that I would be prepared for what I was doing into when I bought this computer, but I was dead wrong. These old computers are a hell of a lot more complicated

Reply 5 of 9, by CkRtech

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Hey no problem! I appreciate your candidness.

Before they integrated I/O such as serial ports, printer ports, etc., to motherboards (such as you see with ATX systems today), it was quite normal to have an expansion card similar to your sound blaster for instance - that contained the serial ports, printer ports, floppy drive, PATA IDE channels for hard drives, etc. Some of the contained game ports as well.

It is possible that you have integrated serial connections, etc., on your motherboard, but it is likely you have an expansion card.

I could type up some possibilities, but could you share some photos? It might be easier to point a few things out.

Displaced Gamers (YouTube) - DOS Gaming Aspect Ratio - 320x200 || The History of 240p || Dithering on the Sega Genesis with Composite Video

Reply 6 of 9, by Pizmo

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For some reason I cannot upload pictures. It keeps telling me that photo's cannot be larger then 2Mib. but I am pretty sure I found the expansion card you were talking about. It has one serail port and one com port and it has a ribbon cable running to the pins marked IDE. The hard drive LED wires are also going to it. The card is a MEGAPOWER MP741A. Here is a link to a picture of one. Sorry that I cannot figure out how to upload pictures directly

https://www.subito.it/informatica/scheda-mega … no-64998152.htm

Reply 7 of 9, by CkRtech

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OK. From that (rather low resolution) example, it looks like you do have a Game Port on that card (red arrow at the top of the card). If you look to the left of the card in the photo, there is a jumper for what looks like GAME (double check it since you have it in real life). I marked it with another red arrow.

You can most likely open that jumper (just move it over a bit so it only attaches to a single pin instead of two)

That should disable the I/O card's game port and free up your sound card to use the resources (which are most likely the same ones the I/O card wants)

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Displaced Gamers (YouTube) - DOS Gaming Aspect Ratio - 320x200 || The History of 240p || Dithering on the Sega Genesis with Composite Video

Reply 9 of 9, by CkRtech

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Awesome! Game on!

Displaced Gamers (YouTube) - DOS Gaming Aspect Ratio - 320x200 || The History of 240p || Dithering on the Sega Genesis with Composite Video