5170--No Video or POST.

[Stone]

1 long, 2 short = Video (Mono/CGA Display Circuitry) issue.

Here, read this... thououghly. There is a jumper for memory size and other issues you need to be aware of to make any progress:

http://www.vintage-computer.com/vcforum/showwiki.php?title=Systems:IBM+PC+AT+5170

 

[DOS lives on!!]

I've now got the jumpers set to the right settings. Now when the computer is turned on, it only emits two short beeps.

 

[Stone]

Once again, when you get your display working you'll know what the error is.

 

[SpidersWeb]

Have you tested the video card + display on another machine recently?
Just a stab in the dark, you're not using one of those EGA / VGA combo's and it's set to use the wrong port by chance?

 

[DOS lives on!!]

It did end up being a faulty video card. I swapped one out from my 5160, so now I'll have to find an EGA graphics adapter for this 5170. Thanks everyone!

 

[Stone]

You mean you didn't check that first? Duh!

 

[DOS lives on!!]

Well, at least it's working now.:D I should've checked that first, but the first thing I thought was wrong with it was the RAM, so I went to that first.

Now I just need to find an EGA adapter and two piggybacked RAM chips to take the bad one's place.

 

[Stone]

I think you can make a 128 by gluing two 64s together.

 

[DOS lives on!!]

Well there's the problem, I don't have any extra 64 or 128s laying around, so that's why I'm seeing if anyone has any to spare.
And while I'm at it, I'm also in want of 9 RAM chips to fill up the third bank in my AST SixPak Plus card.

 

[Stone]

I'm also in want of 9 RAM chips to fill up the third bank in my AST SixPak Plus card.

What size are they?

 

[modem7]

Now I just need to find an ...... and two piggybacked RAM chips to take the bad one's place.

See http://www.vintage-computer.com/vcforum/showthread.php?30457-Piggyback-RAM-chips-for-IBM-5170

I think you can make a 128 by gluing two 64s together.

No, it is not as simple as that. Piggbacked chips are slighlty different to one another.

 

[modem7]

And while I'm at it, I'm also in want of 9 RAM chips to fill up the third bank in my AST SixPak Plus card.

What size are they?

The SixPakplus manuals at http://www.minuszerodegrees.net/manuals.htm contain lists of known compatible RAM chips.

 

[Mark2000]

Piggy back ram - all you can eat: http://www.ebay.com/itm/IBM-AT-286-...802?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item588c714232

And you're in luck: IBM EGA board with fully loaded daughter mem board: http://www.ebay.com/itm/IBM-5170-EG...mputing_Parts_Accessories&hash=item2ebe04c11f

 

[marcoguy]

Is that board good for 5160s? It looks like it uses an 8 bit ISA slot.

 

[modem7]

Is that board good for 5160s?

Yes, it is.

 

[marcoguy]

Hmmmmm... Might have to bid on that! :D

 

[DOS lives on!!]

Hmmmmm... Might have to bid on that! :D

NOOOOO! I don't want my 5170 to be stuck being a B&W TV with a hard drive.:D

Thanks for those links Modem7 and Mark2000. It all just turned out to be one faulty RAM chip and a faulty video card.

 

[modem7]

I have added this motherboard failure to my list at http://www.minuszerodegrees.net/vcf_motherboard_failure_history.htm

 

[SpidersWeb]

I have added this motherboard failure to my list at http://www.minuszerodegrees.net/vcf_motherboard_failure_history.htm

I'll check details when I get home, but I've had two shorted caps on my 5160 so far, I will find the C numbers for you.
Also two dead 5150 boards - both undiagnosed, one definately isn't DRAM or CPU but Lansoft wont start, the other didn't respond to DRAM swaps but didn't try Lansoft on it.

 

[DOS lives on!!]

The two new memory chips came in today. I replaced the bad chip with a good one, but the computer still only counts 256kb of RAM, even though both banks are populated. I did set the jumper on J18 to indicate that 512kb is installed on the computer. What's causing it to ignore Bank 1?
(And for the IRC folks, the RAM error message is gone.)

One more thing. The AST SixPak Plus (short) manual says that if the computer has an existing 512KB of onboard RAM, then the highest amount of RAM the SixPak can have is 128KB, thus totaling 640KB. Does this mean that the SixPak will ignore all but 128KB of the RAM it has? It is fully populated and I'm trying to get the computer to use it's RAM combined with the SixPak's RAM.