First post, by TheIpex
- Rank
- Newbie
As stated in the title, this is more of a rebuild than a build.
Some Backstory
This machine has a high sentimental value to me; I had a similar model as my first computer. (Identical case but with the 486SX 33MHz inside)
Years later I had the chance to acquire this machine. I don't use it on a regular basis, it comes out on special occasions.
Games I've played on it in the past are mainly shareware titles:
- Castle Of The Winds
- Block Breaker
- Home Stretch
- Slicks 'N' Slide
- Dinosaur Predators
- Wiggly Worm 94
- Toad
- Jetstrike
- Skyroads
The Parts
I'll also list what parts are original to the machine and what I'm adding.
Processor: Intel 486DX2 66MHz SX955 (New)
P24D with writeback capability. This is a very mild upgrade over the existing 486 Overdrive that was already present in the machine.
CPU Cooler: Cheap heatsink with a 3D-printed mount, 40mm Noctua Fan (New)
I had clearance issues that needed to be overcome, see the build section below.
Motherboard: Asus VL/I-486SV2GX4 Revision 2.0 (Original)
I've heard mostly good things about this baby AT board, and it's never given me any trouble. Outfitted with 256kb of cache.
I'm using the modded bios from this post.
RAM: 2 x 16MB NEC 60ns FPM (Original/New)
Simply adding an additional SIMM.
VGA Card: ECS VI-710 | Cirrus Logic GD5428 VLB 2MB (Original)
Equipped with the somewhat superfluous memory upgrade.
I/O Card: Winbond/Winic Multi-I/O Card (Original)
I have very little information on this card. No complaints either.
Hard Drive: Conner CFS425A 425MB (Original)
Still trucking along with no bad sectors.
Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster Pro 2 CT-1600 (New)
I much prefer this card over the cheap clone card I had as a kid. Everything just works with minimal fuss. The CDROM interface will be seeing some use too.
Optical Drive: Panasonic / Matsushita CR-563-B 2x (New)
My first (and likely last) foray into proprietary CDROM drives.
Floppy Drive: Sony MPF920-E (New)
Replacing the also-pictured original drive which has ceased to function.
Ipex case and power supply (Original)
The power supply is an Ipex-branded Seventeam model. Very clean inside: caps look good but given the age will need replacement eventually.
Operating System
DOS 6.22 + Windows For Workgroups 3.11
It's what I used back then, and I see no reason to change now.
Everything went back together the same way it came apart, with the heatsink being the only hurdle:
I really wanted a fan on the heatsink, however the CDROM drive prevented me from mounting it on top. I instead elected to side-mount it.
A thin lip between the CPU and the socket secures the square bracket in place, and clips keep the heatsink centered over the CPU. The fan housing is then screwed directly to the side of the heatsink. Thermal paste rather than adhesive makes this setup easier to remove if required.
You can slide a sheet of paper between the heatsink and CDROM drive, but not much else.
Beyond that, it was simply a matter of just cramming everything back in.
I also did a fresh reinstall of DOS/Windows and was delighted to find the CDROM drive worked as expected after loading the appropriate driver.
This is the computer that triggers the full-blown nostalgia for me. I'm still livid that I couldn't hold onto the original I had as a child, but I'm pleased that I have a second chance to own one of these awesome machines.
