VOGONS


First post, by Toddm

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Hi All, my first post here.

I found this site while searching for information on a NexGen Nx586. I acquired it from my work from an old machine we were scrapping out. I mainly wanted the power supply it was using but decided to look up the mother board too since I had never heard of it.

My question is what is the best way to test it? I still have the power supply but I don't have a graphics card from this era. I don't have a keyboard either that will fit, its the old round connector prior to the PS2, not sure what its called. The installation did not have a display or keyboard, it was mainly powering a few ISA cards that were running stepping motors. No hard drive either just a floppy drive.

Thanks,

Todd

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Reply 1 of 10, by cj_reha

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The keyboard connector is called the AT keyboard port or DIN keyboard port (depending on who you ask), and adapters are super cheap since it is electronically compatible with PS/2. One such adapter is here:
https://www.sfcable.com/6in-ps2-minidin6-fema … TBoCjQsQAvD_BwE

And about the video card, any old PCI video card should work. They can be found cheaply on eBay with some searching, but you can do a much more basic test by hooking up a PC speaker and seeing if it beeps.

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Reply 2 of 10, by Toddm

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AT Connector! Thats it! I have forgotten a lot about the older pc's!

I don't have a PC speaker. I have an old Pentium something, but its speaker is on the mother board. I do still have the floppy drive and disk. I suppose if it attempts to access the floppy that would be a good proof of life?

Thanks for the reply!

Reply 3 of 10, by ODwilly

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Some good cards to look for that will work well would be an S3 Trio, Ati Mach64, Matrox Millennium, Matrox G200 or G400, Matrox Mystique, Nvidia Riva 128, Cirrus Logic cards or Tseng Labs cards are also a good pick. Whatever you can find cheap really!

Main pc: Asus ROG 17. R9 5900HX, RTX 3070m, 16gb ddr4 3200, 1tb NVME.
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Reply 4 of 10, by ODwilly

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Sorry to double post, but just noticed it has a Dallas RTC. That will probably be dead and need either modified with a cr 2032 battery holder or replaced.

Main pc: Asus ROG 17. R9 5900HX, RTX 3070m, 16gb ddr4 3200, 1tb NVME.
Retro PC: Soyo P4S Dragon, 3gb ddr 266, 120gb Maxtor, Geforce Fx 5950 Ultra, SB Live! 5.1

Reply 6 of 10, by Toddm

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Looks like ODwilly was correct about the RTC. I'm still trying to source a AT to PS2 adapter or a AT KB.

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Reply 7 of 10, by ODwilly

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You should be able to find them on any online retailer. Newegg used to sell them, amazon has em, and local pc shop may be an option.

Main pc: Asus ROG 17. R9 5900HX, RTX 3070m, 16gb ddr4 3200, 1tb NVME.
Retro PC: Soyo P4S Dragon, 3gb ddr 266, 120gb Maxtor, Geforce Fx 5950 Ultra, SB Live! 5.1

Reply 9 of 10, by Toddm

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STILL looking for a ps2 to AT adapter. I'll try the local shops, my friends have failed me so far.

To those who have sent private messages, I apparently do not have a high enough post count to reply! sorry!