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386 barrel battery replacement

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First post, by Errius

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Hello guys. I've recently acquired an old 386 which has one of those big blue batteries soldered onto the board. What do you suggest I replace it with?

DSC-0153.jpg DSC-0159.jpg DSC-0162.jpg DSC-0008.jpg

DSC-0125-crop.jpg DSC-0315-crop.jpg DSC-0197-crop.jpgDSC-0319-crop.jpg

ETA: I've identified this system. It is an Atomstyle APC 386DX/25. According to an old hardware database I've found (on a magazine coverdisk), as of December 1992 it had the following specs:

  • Processor: 25 MHz 386DX
  • Price: £605
  • Memory: 2 MB
  • Cache memory: N/A
  • Serial Ports: 2
  • Parallel Ports: 1
  • Useable Expansion slots: 6 16-bit [sic]
  • Monitor: VGA colour
  • Video card model: NCA*
  • Video card memory: 256K
  • Hard disk size: 40 MB
  • 3.5” floppy drive: Yes
  • 5.25” floppy drive: No
  • Additional items: 1 year warranty, MS-DOS 5.0, Microsoft Mouse

* I assume this means the information is Not Currently Available.

Last edited by Errius on 2021-12-08, 07:02. Edited 9 times in total.

Is this too much voodoo?

Reply 1 of 25, by Deksor

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Check for a "EXT BAT" connector, if your board has one you can simply connect a new battery there 😀

Trying to identify old hardware ? Visit The retro web - Project's thread The Retro Web project - a stason.org/TH99 alternative

Reply 2 of 25, by Errius

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It appears to be this:

Artek OPTI-25

https://arvutimuuseum.ee/th99/m/A-B/30078.htm

And yes there is a connector for an external battery J10

Does anyone have a manual for this board?

ETA: Actually it more closely resembles the

Solectek 386DX

https://arvutimuuseum.ee/th99/m/S-T/30338.htm

Note different battery location

The Giga-Byte GA-386PS is also very similar, but the Solectek is a closer match

https://arvutimuuseum.ee/th99/m/E-H/30213.htm

Last edited by Errius on 2020-07-19, 00:39. Edited 3 times in total.

Is this too much voodoo?

Reply 3 of 25, by Deksor

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J10 doesn't look like a external battery connector according to that ...
Unless someone has a scan of this board's manual, this is as far as you'll get I think.

Now if you can take a good quality photo and possibly dump the bios for our project here that'd be very nice 😁

Trying to identify old hardware ? Visit The retro web - Project's thread The Retro Web project - a stason.org/TH99 alternative

Reply 5 of 25, by Horun

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J10 has to be an Ext. bat connector, I can see the trannies and diodes for the batt/charge circuit (CR2, CR3, Q1, Q2). J22 is the speaker. Most all Ext Bat connectors Pin1 is + and Pin 4 is - / Gnd. - / Gnd can be verified with any ohm meter to many things: metal around the KB connector, metal ring where you screw the mobo down, center pins on the PSU connector. If a 3.6v rechargeable and only two diodes you want a 4.5v Ext battery like 3-AA.

Hate posting a reply and then have to edit it because it made no sense 😁 First computer was an IBM 3270 workstation with CGA monitor. https://archive.org/details/@horun

Reply 6 of 25, by Errius

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The path is cropped in the board-underside image I uploaded, but the battery +ve terminal runs directly to CR3 and CR2 and makes contact with the outermost pin of J10. I don't see where the other J10 pins connect but assume they are all grounded.

ETA: However, this means that it cannot be a Solectek 386DX, as the diagram of that board shows the innermost pin of J10 to be postitive, not the outermost. (The Artek OPTI-25 and Giga-Byte GA-386PS have the correct polarity.) The board remains unidentified.

Last edited by Errius on 2020-07-19, 02:29. Edited 2 times in total.

Is this too much voodoo?

Reply 7 of 25, by Horun

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Then the outside pin is the Ext batt +, am sure the inner most is grounded, most all Ext bats for PC's use a 4 pin connector with + and - on pins 1 and 4. The center two pins may not be connected to anything on this board OR are supposed to be jumpered to allow the onboard battery to work, but since it does have those jumpered would figure it does not work that way. I would cut the barrel off and try a 3-AA or 3-AAA batt pack and see if it holds CMOS, cannot hurt since it has diode protection in case you connect battery wrong way ;p
Back to your original Q: I suggest you replace it with a Ext battery pack, do not mess with coin cell Lithium as then you have to modify the board to prevent board from sending a charge to it (or else could cause failures, fire, just plain bad news)

Hate posting a reply and then have to edit it because it made no sense 😁 First computer was an IBM 3270 workstation with CGA monitor. https://archive.org/details/@horun

Reply 8 of 25, by Errius

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Now that I think of it, this reminds me of the external battery used by my 5162 XT, which uses a 6 V BR-P2 Lithium battery. Would that work here?

DSC-0013.jpg

Last edited by Errius on 2020-07-19, 02:02. Edited 1 time in total.

Is this too much voodoo?

Reply 9 of 25, by maxtherabbit

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Errius wrote on 2020-07-19, 01:55:

Now that I think of it, this reminds me of the external battery used by my 5162 XT, which uses a 6 V BR-P2 Lithium battery. Would that work here?

Yes

Reply 10 of 25, by Errius

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Good, that simplifies things. The 286 is faulty and its case is sitting empty so I'll put this board there and make use of its case-mounted battery.

Thank's for all the info.

Is this too much voodoo?

Reply 12 of 25, by Errius

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It just needs new memory modules and replacements are expensive. It's not a priority right now. I'll get around to it after I get the 386 working.

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Reply 15 of 25, by Horun

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maxtherabbit wrote on 2020-07-19, 04:00:

FYI any 256kB 30-pin parity SIMMs will work, we did a whole thread on this over at VCFED

Wish someone - anyone at VCFED would have replied to my questions about the DFI Concorde L 286 board back when posted 4 months ago, but no not one reply, not even a suggestion for 4 months. Had to figure it myself and post my own fix. Wished you or anyon there would have said anything so I knew my post was actually viewed ...but no nothing. I put no stock in any real help from VCFED if you have been a member less than a few years. OK that is my opinion but have seen that behavior on many posts with other newer members. At least here there is nearly ALWAYS a response to new members.

Hate posting a reply and then have to edit it because it made no sense 😁 First computer was an IBM 3270 workstation with CGA monitor. https://archive.org/details/@horun

Reply 17 of 25, by maxtherabbit

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Horun wrote on 2020-07-19, 04:21:
maxtherabbit wrote on 2020-07-19, 04:00:

FYI any 256kB 30-pin parity SIMMs will work, we did a whole thread on this over at VCFED

Wish someone - anyone at VCFED would have replied to my questions about the DFI Concorde L 286 board back when posted 4 months ago, but no not one reply, not even a suggestion for 4 months. Had to figure it myself and post my own fix. Wished you or anyon there would have said anything so I knew my post was actually viewed ...but no nothing. I put no stock in any real help from VCFED if you have been a member less than a few years. OK that is my opinion but have seen that behavior on many posts with other newer members. At least here there is nearly ALWAYS a response to new members.

ok cool, how is that relevant to me trying to help this guy get his 5162 working?

Reply 18 of 25, by Horun

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edit: ok I guess that explains it

Last edited by Horun on 2020-07-19, 15:13. Edited 1 time in total.

Hate posting a reply and then have to edit it because it made no sense 😁 First computer was an IBM 3270 workstation with CGA monitor. https://archive.org/details/@horun