VOGONS


First post, by chrisNova777

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hey guys; i have kind of completed my 386DX40, and my 486DX280 systems, and now moving on thanks to a friend giving me an old motherboard of his.. to building a 586! to add to my computer collection.

i managed to find an AT tower/case for under 20$ locally! 😉 and im pretty happy with it its got a bit of rust on the bottom of the metal chassis but im going to fix it up and make it look new again i think I've taken it all apart and i plan on spray painting the metal parts a glossy white.. lucky for me the AT case has the LCD front panel to set the Mhz speed aswell... which is totally the type of case i was wanting for this 586 build!

the case came with a PSU but no memory or cpu, which suits me fine - because that way
i can decide which to get... and this new mobo supports 2 dimm's aswell as simms and its a Gigabyte motherboard (well known brand)
heres the model: Gigabyte GA586VX rev3.36 (sounds like a well known thoroughly revised model, i put some links/notes here: http://www.oldschooldaw.com/forums/index.php/topic,4627)
as u can see, for whatever reason, the COAST module was never added to this board
but i still have the PcChips m507 board from the last thread i started :
anyone able to help ID this 586 Socket 7 mobo?
which has the Coast module slot.. a user from this site msged me and offered to send me a 256 or 512 cache stick
that was very appreciated !! nice to have a cmmunity of retro users that are nice like that 😉
this board also has a different number of PCI vs ISA slots (4pci on the gigabyte board vs 3pci on the PCChips)
4pci slots might actually be alot better as i will probably use a PCI based video card + also need a PCI slot for
a SCSI interface - ISA slot options will be used for compatibility with FM synth Sound cards + MIDI interface cards

i believe the Gigabyte board supports all 4 types of pentium architectures up to a P55C without the need for an external VRM? i read something along those lines anyway in the manual i think (http://download1.gigabyte.asia/Files/Manual/m … _ga-586vx_e.pdf)

1) original P5, 2) P54C, 3) P54CS, 4) P55C https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P5_(microarchitecture) […]
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1) original P5,
2) P54C,
3) P54CS,
4) P55C
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P5_(microarchitecture)

so it will support a 233MMX cpu aswell as an 8GB Compact Flash (LBA)
but im probably going to go with a
>>3rd gen (P54CS) pentium architecture cpu : 133Mhz Pentium (June 1995)
or a
>>4th gen (P55C) 166Mhz Pentium (Jan 1996)

for the moment i only have in my possession a:
>>2nd gen (P54C) 75Mhz Pentium (Oct 1994) that was given to me

is it just me or does this gigabyte board have no battery????
or is the battery encased in the RTC ? not sure

i plan on spray painting the metal parts a glossy white and maybe trying to retrobrite the plastic part
if anyone has any tips or ideas on what to do. what to avoid.. to achieve a better end result
i know alot of u guys have done similar projects before me, id love to hear any tips or advice
thanks guys 😉

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Last edited by chrisNova777 on 2017-09-18, 13:47. Edited 10 times in total.

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 1 of 23, by chrisNova777

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another question i have of the GA586VX board is... it appears to have solder points for USB (right next to PSU connectors on motherboard)
but thers no pins...
what does that mean ?
can it do USB?
or maybe they were working on adding it but it didn't get fully implemented?

heres the "key features" from the manual:

** Pentium‚ based PC / AT compatible mainboard with PCI - ISA Bus. ** 4 PCI Bus slots, 3 ISA Bus slots. ** Supports Pentium proc […]
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** Pentium‚ based PC / AT compatible mainboard with PCI - ISA Bus.
** 4 PCI Bus slots, 3 ISA Bus slots.
** Supports Pentium processor running at: 75-200 MHz,
P54CT (125 / 150 / 166),
P55C (150 / 166 / 200),
P54CTB (150 / 166 / 180 / 200),
AMDK5 (P-75 / P-90 / P-100 / P-120 / P-133 / P-166 / P-200 ),
Cyrix 6x86-100 / 110 / 120 / 133 (P-120+ / P-133+ / P-150+ / P-166+),
Cyrix 6x86L (P-150+ / P-166+ 2.8V)
** Supports true 64 bits CACHE and DRAM access mode.
** Supports 321 Pins (Socket 7) ZIF white socket on board.
** Supports 256 KB / 512 KB Pipeline Burst Sync. 2nd Cache.
** CPU L1 / L2 Write-Back cache operation.
** Supports 8 - 128 MB DRAM memory on board.
** Supports 2*168 pin 64/72 Bit DIMM module.
** Supports 2-channel Enhanced PCI IDE ports for 4 IDE Devices.
** Supports 2*COM (16550), 1*LPT (EPP / ECP), 1*1.44MB Floppy port.
** Supports PS/2 Mouse port.
** Supports Green function, Plug & Play function.
** Licensed AWARD BIOS, FLASH EEPROM for BIOS update.
** BENCHMARQ3287 / DALLAS 12887 / ODIN 12C887 RTC on board.
** 22cm*28cm, 4 layers PCB.
** Supports USB port. (optional)

at the bottom u see "supports USB port (optional)"
not sure what this means.. maybe if i solder the pins to the board it will work? *shrug*
any advice from more experienced users much appreciated re: this!

hopefully the PSU is still good..
i want to open it up and use an air compressor on this thing.. to clean out inside the PSU

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http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 2 of 23, by skitters

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is it just me or does this gigabyte board have no battery????
or is the battery encased in the RTC ? not sure

Yes, the battery is in the RTC -- the ODIN OEC12C887
Is it in a socket?

Reply 3 of 23, by chrisNova777

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skitters wrote:

is it just me or does this gigabyte board have no battery????
or is the battery encased in the RTC ? not sure

Yes, the battery is in the RTC -- the ODIN OEC12C887
Is it in a socket?

yea it looks like theres a plastic socket piece below the ODIN OEC12C887
ive not pulled it out but it looks like theres a mark from someone else prying it up with a screwdriver

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 4 of 23, by skitters

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chrisNova777 wrote:

yea it looks like there's a plastic socket piece below the ODIN OEC12C887

That's a relief.
Makes replacing the battery a lot easier.

I'm afraid I can't help much with the USB question. I'd use a PCI USB card myself, assuming you're going to install Windows 98 or later and there are drivers for it.

Congratulations on finding an AT case though.

Reply 5 of 23, by Tetrium

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I never worry about rust on these cases. I do clean it up a bit.
Perhaps you should install (or use as) a 166MHz CPU, so you can set your LED display accordingly.
Or be defiant and just put in a 233MMX and set your LED display to "lol" or something 🤣

If you want to play it safe regarding the VRM, perhaps you could opt to get a Pentium non-MMX 200MHz? There's a few other chips that don't use split voltage, but most should be harder to find and not much faster (if faster at all!).

chrisNova777 wrote:
another question i have of the GA586VX board is... it appears to have solder points for USB (right next to PSU connectors on mot […]
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another question i have of the GA586VX board is... it appears to have solder points for USB (right next to PSU connectors on motherboard)
but thers no pins...
what does that mean ?
can it do USB?
or maybe they were working on adding it but it didn't get fully implemented?

Oftentimes they would omit certain features to intentionally "cripple" one design in order to have the crippled piece of hardware be their budget cheaper solution. Chances are it may actually work once you solder in new pins (I never done that so can't tell you from my own experience), but you may then run into other problems. Easier might be to install an add-on card with USB.

Whats missing in your collections?
My retro rigs (old topic)
Interesting Vogons threads (links to Vogonswiki)
Report spammers here!

Reply 6 of 23, by chrisNova777

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haha! that would be funny "L0L" on front hahah thats classic!
now ill have to spend two weeks reconfiguring jumpers hahaha

ok yea i see what u mean.. if i put a 233mmx in there it really wouldnt fit 🤣
i was going to use a 133Mhz or 166Mhz yeah.. looks like if i want the LED set right those are my options!

this is way cool tho because i never had a case that had that on front back in the day i had a packard bell dx2 66
it was cool with speakers on side of screen but i always wanted a nice clone system custom configured with all top
of the line parts! back in my bbs days half my life ago

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 7 of 23, by chrisNova777

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skitters wrote:
That's a relief. Makes replacing the battery a lot easier. […]
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chrisNova777 wrote:

yea it looks like there's a plastic socket piece below the ODIN OEC12C887

That's a relief.
Makes replacing the battery a lot easier.

I'm afraid I can't help much with the USB question. I'd use a PCI USB card myself, assuming you're going to install Windows 98 or later and there are drivers for it.

Congratulations on finding an AT case though.

yea seeing as its a revision 3.36 i guess they got everything right by then 😁 haha 😀
im probably going to have 2 compact flash cards, one for win95 + one for win31/DOS
or maybe i think i can get all 3 ont he same partition,
but maybe its easier/safer to keep win31 16bit + win95 32bit on their own partitions

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 8 of 23, by chrisNova777

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lucky for me the Gigabyte GA586VX board came free with case.. and also came with the PS/2 connector so i can use a ps/2 mouse at least if the USB connector thing doesnt pan out...

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 9 of 23, by chrisNova777

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heres a pic of the usb header .. solder points but no pins

i jsut read that the 430VX chipset has USB support..
so it probably will work?? if i could add the pins? right??
http://www.oldschooldaw.com/forums/index.php/topic,4683

also i found this pic of someone elses
same board revision but his board has the COAST module slot
and my board
https://www.badcaps.net/forum/showthread.php?t=182&styleid=8

would it be crazy hard to add that to my existing board?
is there a reason why its removed + not included on my board?

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Reply 11 of 23, by chrisNova777

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ok right i figured there must be a reason why its not present.. ie: redundant

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 12 of 23, by chinny22

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Jealous of your 3 segment display! Slowest PC I've ever owned is a DC2/66 and that lives quite happily in its original case.
I have to do Hi/Lo on my 2 segment display and that's lame 🙁

If you got PS2 for mouse I wouldn't worry about USB, Only reason to use it would be file transfers and network is much less hassle then USB on old OS's
Look forward to seeing what you end up building.

Reply 13 of 23, by chrisNova777

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yep im definately going to put a 133 or 166 in. (despite tetriums excellent idea 🤣). non-mmx - those cpus are not so cheap on ebay either but whatever.. like i said before i never had a first gen pentium i skipped from 486DX2 straight to a PII 266 /w SUPERMICRO motherboard in 1997
(the reason i upgraded to PII was to run OSR2 win95 i think)

i LOVED that PII when i first got it, i remember i had a matrox mystique 3d and i was super into photoshop + apps like bryce3d + 3dsmax
that was around 1997.. i really hung on to windows 3.1/DOS on the 486 through most of the first few years of win95
probably because i bought my own 486DX2 66 machine while working as a computer tech building 386/486 systems all day
everyday...i paid like 2000$+ for my 486 i think because i got the best of everything i possibly could.. i used to stay up all night
reading PC mag under the covers before i was even 13 years old. so it brings back good memories for sure to talk about old hardware
i first saw with a flashlight after bed time haha

only reasn im worrying about usb is for DONGLE software keys for audio production apps like logic + cubase
which might not even matter because the usb dongles are for later versions from late 90s + early 2000s
i have 2 serial dongles for logic and parallel dongle for cubase

yea im painting the metal + retrobriting the plastic its gonna be awesome im really psyched
im gonna get new plastic feet for bottom and install zip-100 drive
setting it up next to my Apple PowerMacintosh 5200CD Performa (also from early 1995)

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 14 of 23, by chrisNova777

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https://web.archive.org/web/19970205065726/ht … 80/GA586VX.html
found the original website for this board on the web backup archive!

and here: http://www.arvutimuuseum.ee/th99/m/E-H/34032.htm

Specifications Processor Intel Pentium® Processor 75-200MHz (Auto Detect & Setup Intel P55C Processor) AMD K86 Processor Suppor […]
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Specifications
Processor Intel Pentium® Processor 75-200MHz
(Auto Detect & Setup Intel P55C Processor)
AMD K86 Processor Support
Cyrix 6x86 Processor Support
ZIF Socket 7 for Intel Pentium® OverDrive® Processor
Chipset Intel 82430 VX PCIset
UMC 8669 I/O chip
Cache Memory 256KB PB SRAM onboard
1 x coast module for 256KB/512KB PB SRAM
System Memory 8MB to 128MB DRAM Size
Support 4 x 72-pin 32/36 bit access capability
Support 2 x 168-pin 64/72 bit DIMM module
Use 4/8/16/32/64/128MB SIMM module DRAM with Fast Page Mode or EDO DRAM
PCI IDE 2xPCI Bus Master IDE ports (up to 4 IDE Devices)
Support PIO Mode 3,4 IDE & ATAPI CD-ROM
I/O Interface AT Keyboard & PS/2 Mouse support
1x Floppy port (360KB-2.88MB)
2x Serial port (16550 high-speed)
1x Parallel port (EPP/ECP)
1x USB port (optional)
Expansion slot 4x PCI 32-bit slots
3x ISA 16-bit slots
BIOS 128KB FLASH EEPROM
Award PCI BIOS with green, plug and play features support
Board Size 3/4 Baby AT, 4 layers PCB

i guess i kind of have to use a Pentium 166 MMX !
because A) my case only shoes 100 type number and B) themotherboard supports the P55C cpus!
the TDP is even lower then the original Pentium 166.. and same multiplier.. so sounds like a plan;)

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 15 of 23, by chrisNova777

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i was just looking at the keylock on my case i got here and i found this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0zZqHOZq7M
so i thought id drop the link 😉 dont know how to embed the video though it looks like vogons has no Youtube bbc codes

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 16 of 23, by chrisNova777

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im almost done brushing the metal i ended up getting this steelwire circular wheelbrush for my drill and used that to get the rust off and anything stuck to the metal and to get it ready to be primed + painted

hopefully some pics to show very soon!

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP

Reply 17 of 23, by PTherapist

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The Gigabyte board is probably best for this build, but just a note regarding the PCChips M507 motherboard, I'll post here rather than bumping up the other topic - it is possible to install all the way up to an AMD K6-III in that board, with or without VRM, even though it isn't supposed to support it.

I've got an AMD K6-2 500 running in mine, clocked at 300MHz with FSB underclocked to 50MHz. It is possible to increase the clock slightly and run at 66MHz, but I found it lead to stability issues in DOS. As long as the CPU has adaquate cooling, it would work fine and mine has for years. My CPU shows up as an 80486DX at boot, but otherwise is detected fine by software and performs as you'd expect at 300/50 and without a COAST module. 🤣

I did have a K6-III in it once also, but never tried a Pentium MMX.

Reply 18 of 23, by cliffclaven

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chrisNova777 wrote:

im almost done brushing the metal i ended up getting this steelwire circular wheelbrush for my drill and used that to get the rust off and anything stuck to the metal and to get it ready to be primed + painted

hopefully some pics to show very soon!

I'll be interested to see how it turns out, as I will be doing the same. Are you using a "rust" paint (or primer)?

Reply 19 of 23, by chrisNova777

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its a spray paint primer white by brand name rustoleum
and then i have a metallic blue im going figure out where i want to use
maybe leave some white some blue!

http://www.oldschooldaw.com | vintage PC/MAC MIDI/DAW | Asus mobo archive | Sound Modules | Vintage MIDI Interfaces
AM386DX40 | Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 (486DX2-80) | GA586VX (p75) + r7000PCI | ABIT Be6 (pII-233) matroxG400 AGP