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Thinkpad 7xx series restore 2 for 1

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First post, by jholt0147

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I'm restoring and upgrading a couple of thinkpad 7XX series laptops

#1
Thinkpad 760ED
Pentium 133MHz
32MB EDO

So far
I've replaced the MWAVE audio with the ESS 1688 from an 760EL.
Ordered a replacement LCD as the one it has is starting to rot.
Replaced the 810MB HDD with a 4GB CF card

#2
Thinkpad 755c
486-DX4 75MHz
20MB RAM

So far
Ordered replacement LCD
Replaced 1.4GB HDD with 4GB CF card

#3
Thinkpad Dock-I 3545

So far
I partially disassembled the dock due to the lock being engaged and no key.
I managed to remove the bottom panel with some force and disabled the lock.

Plans
I'm trying to decide what to install in the ISA slot.
I'm open to suggestions as installing a video or sound card makes little sense.
I'm leaning towards either an IDE controller and a DOM or a floppy controller with a Gotek or both with a ide and floppy card if thats possible

total investment $305
760ed $50
755c & Dock-I $80
LCD for 760 $45
LCD for 755 $60
ESS 1688 audio board $70

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Reply 1 of 27, by Bondi

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Good luck with your future upgrades!
I have the same dock and it's coupled mainly with TP 760LD and sometimes with 360CE. Mine has a sound card in it. And the main reason for that is the possibility of installing a MIDI daughteboard.
Not sure why you need a second HD, but you can still have a sound card with anIDE/SCSI controller to connect second HDD or a CD-ROM.
Guess it's also worth readig througn this topic, if you haven't done it yet. 486 Thinkpad with genuine Sound Blaster Pro 2

PCMCIA Sound Cards chart
archive.org: PCMCIA software, manuals, drivers

Reply 2 of 27, by jholt0147

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So just a update. The screen I ordered for the 760 ended up being the wrong one. My fault not taking it apart and checking the model number and instead used information from thinkwiki.org. on the upside I have managed to get dos 7.10 (striped myself from a win98se install) and windows 3.11 wfw running.

After many config.sys edits and TSR searches I have the wavelan 11b wifi card working in dos and windows using the ODI driver. It's not perfect I have plug the pccard in start computer wait for the pause in my autoexec remove card and put it in the other slot then continue the boot and it works if not card is recognized but won't put out packets. I chalk it up to dos being weird. Honestly the screen rot isn't really noticeable so I might skip getting a new LCD for time being if there is a way to slow the rot or stop from spreading let me know. I posted some pictures

The same install when run on my dell cpia 366xt card works no swap required. (I'd honestly use that but I can't figure out if the magigraph 256av actually have sound blaster emulation in dos and if so how to enable).

As for the 755c I am still waiting on a LCD but I have removed the old one.

Edit: I forgot to mention the Li-Ion battery will run the system for 2.5 hours with normal usage and wifi and no dosidle running. Not bad for a 30-20 year old battery

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Reply 3 of 27, by Intel486dx33

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Yes, that LCD ribbon connector is what goes bad on these old 7xx. That ribbon coils up and rubs on itself eventually causing the traces inside to break. Which leads to non-working TFT/LCD or garbled video.

Where did you find NEW LCD panels. I am looking for some too for a 755.

Reply 4 of 27, by jholt0147

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Intel486dx33 wrote on 2021-01-20, 20:36:

Where did you find NEW LCD panels. I am looking for some too for a 755.

Ebay, either buying a ugly one with a working screen. or i've had real good luck on untested parts only laptops of this era

Reply 5 of 27, by Nihl1902

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jholt0147 wrote on 2021-01-20, 20:11:

After many config.sys edits and TSR searches I have the wavelan 11b wifi card working in dos and windows using the ODI driver. It's not perfect I have plug the pccard in start computer wait for the pause in my autoexec remove card and put it in the other slot then continue the boot and it works if not card is recognized but won't put out packets. I chalk it up to dos being weird.

I ran into issues with the dock and pcmcia ethernet cards. Drove me absolutely nuts, but I eventually figured it out.

What lines do you have in your config.sys for HIMEM and EMM386? The dock uses portions of memory that pcmcia uses as well and they conflict.

I can share mine also if you need help, as my machine is fully sorted out.

Reply 6 of 27, by jholt0147

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I actually figured out how to get rid of the pause and swap by giving the wavelan driver the settings manually rather than letting the card services auto assign
FIguring out the free memory regions was greatly helped with the use of umbchk.exe that comes with umbpci. With this config 624K free. If you have any suggestions would be helpful.

DOS=HIGH,UMB
DEVICE=C:\UMBPCI\UMBPCI.SYS /I=E000-EFFF
DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF /Q
DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE X=D000-EFFF X=B800-C7FF I=C800-CFFF I=B000-B7FF RAM FRAME=NONE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\SETVER.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\VIDECDD.SYS /D:CDROM001
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\SS365SL.EXE /SKT:2
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\CS.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\CSALLOC.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\WVLANCAD.SYS /m=d400 /b=1400 /i=10

Reply 7 of 27, by Nihl1902

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jholt0147 wrote on 2021-01-25, 00:31:
DOS=HIGH,UMB DEVICE=C:\UMBPCI\UMBPCI.SYS /I=E000-EFFF DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF /Q DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE X=D000-EF […]
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DOS=HIGH,UMB
DEVICE=C:\UMBPCI\UMBPCI.SYS /I=E000-EFFF
DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF /Q
DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE X=D000-EFFF X=B800-C7FF I=C800-CFFF I=B000-B7FF RAM FRAME=NONE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\SETVER.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\VIDECDD.SYS /D:CDROM001
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\SS365SL.EXE /SKT:2
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\CS.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\CSALLOC.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\WVLANCAD.SYS /m=d400 /b=1400 /i=10

Is this your entire config.sys and are you using IBM PCMCIA card socket services and auto configurator drivers? I don't see any IBM drivers here.

DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE X=D000-EFFF X=B800-C7FF I=C800-CFFF I=B000-B7FF RAM FRAME=NONE

Change "I=C800-CFFF" to "X=C800-CFFF". IBM PCMCIA uses this memory area and EMS conflicts with it.

Try that and see if anything changes. Otherwise I highly recommend using IBM's drivers to handle PC card services.

Below is my config.sys (the relevant parts):

[COMMON] DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF DOS=UMB,HIGH BUFFERS=15,0 FILES=40 LASTDRIVE=Z FCBS=4,0 BREAK=ON REM Please read R […]
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[COMMON]
DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF
DOS=UMB,HIGH
BUFFERS=15,0
FILES=40
LASTDRIVE=Z
FCBS=4,0
BREAK=ON
REM Please read README.TXT in C:\MWW subdirectory before changing the DOS= statement.
STACKS=9,256

[NET]
DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE NOEMS X=C800-CFFF
DEVICE=C:\THINKPAD\IBMDSS01.SYS /D
DEVICEHIGH /L:1,29024 =C:\THINKPAD\IBMDOSCS.SYS
DEVICE=C:\THINKPAD\DICRMU01.SYS /MA=C800-CFFF /SH=1
DEVICEHIGH /L:1,4512 =C:\THINKPAD\$ICPMDOS.SYS
DEVICEHIGH /L:1,13200 =C:\THINKPAD\AUTODRV.SYS C:\THINKPAD\AUTODRV.INI
DEVICEHIGH /L:1,20416 =C:\THINKPAD\DISKDRV.SYS
DEVICE=C:\NET\PROTMAN.DOS /I:C:\NET
DEVICEHIGH /L:1,24688 =C:\NET\ELPC3.DOS
DEVICEHIGH /L:1,4928 =C:\NET\DIS_PKT9.DOS

Notice that the /MA switch after DICRMU01.sys uses the same memory address that I manually added to my EMM386 X switch. This was a required step laid out deep in the manual. The same is true for the 760 series (I'm using both a 755 and a 760).

Reply 8 of 27, by jholt0147

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I couldn't find the IBM drivers so I'm using the cardsoft drivers and thanks for the pointers I was getting occassional lockups I'm guessing the I=c800-CFFF line might be the reason now

Config.sys
DOS=HIGH,UMB
DEVICE=C:\UMBPCI\UMBPCI.SYS /I=E000-EFFF
DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF /Q
DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE X=D000-EFFF X=B800-CFFF I=B000-B7FF RAM FRAME=NONE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\SETVER.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\VIDECDD.SYS /D:CDROM001
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\SS365SL.EXE /SKT:2
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\CS.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\CSALLOC.EXE
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\WVLANCAD.SYS /m=d400 /b=1400 /i=10

Autoexec.bat
SET PATH=C:\DOS
CD C:\DOS
LH SMARTDRV /X
LH CTMOUSE
LH C:\DOS\LSL.COM
LH C:\DOS\WVLAN43
LH C:\DOS\ODIPKT.COM 0 96
C:\MTCP\DHCP.EXE

Last edited by jholt0147 on 2021-01-25, 03:09. Edited 2 times in total.

Reply 9 of 27, by Nihl1902

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If you want them, I found the correct driver disk on the PCCBBS mirror.

http://ps-2.kev009.com/pccbbs/mobiles/

The file you want is "pctpgw31.exe" and the readme is "pctpgw31.txt"

The readme file actually has the info I told you..

Hints ----- […]
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Hints
-----

<DOS or Windows>

- If you use an EMS driver with PCMCIA drivers under a DOS or Windows
environment, the memory area specified by /MA must be excluded from
the usable area for the EMS driver.

< CONFIG.SYS >

DEVICE=C: ... \EMM386.EXE ... /X=xxxx-yyyy

DEVICE=C: ... \DICRMU01.SYS /MA=xxxx-yyyy

< SYSTEM.INI for Windows >

EMMExclude=xxx-yyyy

Reply 10 of 27, by jholt0147

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I picked up a few more upgrades besides a working LCD for the ED.

Most of the photos are from the auctions as most of it is in transit.

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    A thinkpad 760EL brought untested for $50 it arrived but it has got issues namely the video goes scrambled under load. But it came with a working 2.1 GB HDD and a 8x CDROM. Most likely going to be for case parts for the ED. ALready swapped the 8x to replace my current 4x drive
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    IBM External Floppy enclosure This will make life so much easier, especially OS installation. Can't wait to install OS/2
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    The MIDI/Gameport adapter. I wanted a controller and I'm considering start to play with external MIDI devices
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    Had to have something for the gameport to do
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    And a Dock II-3546. I started out looking for the CDROM kit for the Dock I 3545. I found one NIB for $115 and then this popped up in my ebay watch. made offer It was far cheaper than the cdrom kit
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Reply 12 of 27, by jholt0147

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emendelson wrote on 2021-01-30, 22:15:

Consider putting an ISA network card in the Dock I - I use it to go online from Windows NT 4.0 in a ThinkPad 755XL.

I'm using a Lucent WaveLAN Silver 802.11b for networking. Probably to single best investment I've made it has drivers DOS/w311 to XP and Vista may even have support still

Reply 13 of 27, by emendelson

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jholt0147 wrote on 2021-01-31, 00:47:

I'm using a Lucent WaveLAN Silver 802.11b for networking. Probably to single best investment I've made it has drivers DOS/w311 to XP and Vista may even have support still

Interesting! Does it let you connect to current WPA2, etc. wi-fi networks?

Reply 14 of 27, by jholt0147

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emendelson wrote on 2021-01-31, 00:50:
jholt0147 wrote on 2021-01-31, 00:47:

I'm using a Lucent WaveLAN Silver 802.11b for networking. Probably to single best investment I've made it has drivers DOS/w311 to XP and Vista may even have support still

Interesting! Does it let you connect to current WPA2, etc. wi-fi networks?

under windows 98 and up with a third party client it can do wpa1/2 dos to win95 and os/2 open or wep only. I have a open wifi network that will only one client with the matching IP connect to. I know it isn't foolproof but its enough to keep out 98% of the public.

Reply 16 of 27, by jholt0147

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So some arrivals.
Yesterday the 3546, external floppy, CF to PCMCIA, and gameport adapter all arrived.

Dock II
This was the first thing arrive. It packed extremely well. It is considerably bigger than the 3545. I plug it in and connect the thinkpad and it worked but horrible speaker buzzing. I was dreading having to recap it.

So I opened it up and I didn't see any leaking caps so reseated all the connectors and let it sit. Came back about a hour later and tried it buzz gone. Guessing loose connection or I didn't wait long enough for it to warm up. I did bring it directly in from outside in north Ohio, unboxed it and plugged it in room temp was 75F. Lucky I didn't short it out from condensation. The SCSI ROM adds several seconds to the bootup time as its looking for devices and complaining about less than two terminators on the SCSI chain. Speakers are even louder but still clear. The expansion options with two more PCMCIA slots and the two 16 bit ISA slots gives lots of possibilities. Since the dock doesn't have a passthrough for the MIDI/gameport I experiment with an ISA sound blaster with builtin IDE controller that way I can use my controller while docked and maybe swap the SCSI CDROM for a IDE one.

PCMCIA to CF adapter
Works and makes getting large files on to the thinkpad so much quicker than copying over the network (about 40-60KB/s) . One annoying bug is with NT4 I can't have it plugged in at boot when plugged into the PCMCIA slots on the thinkpad it hangs. It boots fine if the card is in the dock PCMCIA slot, also works if card is inserted after boot.

External Floppy
No issues

Gameport Adapter
Controller hasn't arrived yet but it fits in the connector I assume I will have no trouble

Reply 17 of 27, by jholt0147

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Just some more pictures with ED attached to 3546. I was going to with Office 95 but Lotus Suite seemed more appropriate. Decided to quad boot so it has DOS 6.22+WFW311/Win95 OSR 2.5 + unofficial updates\NT4.0 Workstation\OS/2 Warp 4.52 though NT4 might be on its way out if I can't figure its problem with the CF to PCMCIA adapter . Tomorrow the controller is supposed to arrive and the fun can begin.

Upcoming Upgrades
ISA slot #1 ISA Sound Blaster of some kind with MIDI port or a standalone Gameport card
ISA slot #2 IDE+floppy controller to add a gotek, swap SCSI cdrom for IDE and toss in a IDE to CF adapter with a 32GB card

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Reply 18 of 27, by jholt0147

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I'm considering a CPU upgrade i have the choice between a 150MHz non mmx and 166mhz mmx. would either give me a enough a bump to run FF7 a little more smoothly. I'm pretty much at min requirements which are 133MHz 32MB and 2MB video card direct3d optional

Edit:
So I went ahead and bought a 166MHz MMX from a 760XL. At $9 I couldn't pass it up.
Along with the CPU I also ordered a 64MB EDO upgrade, and the interesting piece.

Sigma Designs 53-000417 RealMagic 16-Bit ISA MPEG Decoder Card with the cable
I was trying to decide what to use the ISA slots in the dock for, and the dock does have VGA video in and out passthrough to LCD.
This also solved another problem, during my research while yes the 760ED has the IBM HHR MPEG1/2 decoder to use it requires the MWAVE audio to function.
That isn't a trade I'm willing to make, I love the sound of the Audiodrive and it just works.

With it I can play some the games I've been reading about since ordering it and the main reason I bought it is to play MPEG movies and VideoCD's.
In any case it will be fun to play with

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