jul 2018

backup cards. the alternative ct1690 also can be good as a sony cd controller.
these gus pair had nicer pcb color, than my original gus - i replaced it.

Creative Sound Blaster Pro 2.0 CT1690 rev 02 ISA DSP3.02, YMF262 OPL3
Gravis Ultrasound 3.74 1M ISA
Gravis Ultrasound 3.74 1M ISA

aug 2018

Sony CDU-55E 2x CD-ROM IDE

finally i found a good condition 1994 drive. it is less yellowish, than my 1995 sony drive!

What operating systems are you running ?
With a CF card and adapter you could just swap out CF cards to load different operating systems, Not to mention that they are Silent, inexpensive and FAST.

Video
https://youtu.be/VWfTgga7rmA?t=248

Msdos622

I like the authentic noises 😀 it is the part of the computer.
Somewhere we build a vintage pc, because they are slow.

boot

arncht wrote:

Msdos622

I like the authentic noises 😀 it is the part of the computer.
Somewhere we build a vintage pc, because they are slow.

I use a conventional hard-drive too.
But I think I am going to switch to a CF cards because I want to enjoy the audio from the sound cards which is more important to me.
Also I think they are pretty cool and convenient. Better than a ZIP drive.

Intel486dx33 wrote:

I use a conventional hard-drive too. But I think I am going to switch to a CF cards because I want to enjoy the audio from the s […]
Show full quote

arncht wrote:

Msdos622

I like the authentic noises 😀 it is the part of the computer.
Somewhere we build a vintage pc, because they are slow.

I use a conventional hard-drive too.
But I think I am going to switch to a CF cards because I want to enjoy the audio from the sound cards which is more important to me.
Also I think they are pretty cool and convenient. Better than a ZIP drive.

What I do is have a standard hard drive as C:\ for the authentic noises during boot.
and a CF card as my D:\ for all my games, where the sound isn't important anymore and speed is maybe a benefit.

Western Digital Caviar 2700 730M
i hope without head stuck 😀 we will see after months.

The problem with your hercules dynamite power card is that the solder holding on the surface mount components is getting loose. You just need to find the bad pin and reflow the solder. I have a Dynamite Power and a Terminator 64/DRAM that both have the same issue.

Can you provide some benchmark results from the ARK1000 card? I could never really getting 0WS working properly with mine at any speed.

yes, you are right. i planned earlier to fix it in a professional lab - i cannot do that. i discussed with them, they had the same conclusion. maybe in the future... 😀

i have many benchmarks:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pOO9D … dit?usp=sharing

Anonymous Coward wrote:

The problem with your hercules dynamite power card is that the solder holding on the surface mount components is getting loose. You just need to find the bad pin and reflow the solder. I have a Dynamite Power and a Terminator 64/DRAM that both have the same issue.

Can you provide some benchmark results from the ARK1000 card? I could never really getting 0WS working properly with mine at any speed.

Could you tell me, which was the buggy part on your vlb card?

On my Dynamite Power, it was one of the DRAM ICs.
The text mode graphics were all messed up. While the system was running, I put pressure on each IC until the image returned to normal. I think I used a 15W soldering iron to reflow the solder on each pin of the bad chip, and it's working again.

I believe it is also the DRAM on my Terminator/64, but I haven't gotten around to fixing it yet because the problem is intermittent.

Ok thx... i will check it.

a NOS FSP SPI-300G PSU

Lovely!

arncht wrote:

a NOS FSP SPI-300G PSU

Where can I buy one? 😎

i have bought on the ebay.

arncht wrote:

jun 2017

Gravis Analog Pro

from 1992, i completely disassemble it, but i could not fix the very annoying creaky sound.

You can't; they all sound like that. It's part of the fun 😎

This is looking like a great project!

I have a similarly visioned machine I've been tinkering with for a 1994-era experience. No Gravis Ultrasound though. I'm pretty content with the SB16.

Thx. Sb16 was my primary choice too, i collected 5-6 different versions, and finally i kept the ct2290 and the first 1740 with asp chip. The problem, they have more compatibility issues - the sbpro is better. I could suggest a pas16 even more - i was surprised, how good is it from any aspect. One annoying thing - the mixer settings are changing game by game. So, the sbpro is the best dos card until 95. 😀

the Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 rev 2.1 is my primary mainboard in my dx4 config. somewhere this is an "issue", because these boards from 1995/96 and i targeted an early dx4 config from 1994. i got a Asus VL/I-486SVGOX4 rev 1.2, maybe this the earliest asus mainboard for dx4 - it is prepared for the 3.3v cpus, but the bios (Award 1994.04.26) supports just the code names (p24c), and no lba support. i put the gx4 rev 2.0 bios (Award 1995.01.11) to this board, it looks fine. i would be happier, if i could use a late 94 bios with real dx4/lba support.

i have rebuilt the fan, the cpu is a intel wb cache dx4 (maybe i will replace with a more authentic wt version).

another backup from 1995 - opti895a, the bios id says "lucky star" (typical east european brand in the middle of 90s). i cannot identify exactly the model, but similar to 486 VL3 CACHE (MV035E). surprisingly the opti895a outperformed in more benchmark tests the sis471 - it looks the vlb timing is more aggressive. the default bios settings are very slow.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1OiqfZ … #gid=1011467741