Weird pcmcia problem, any ideas?

jimbob · 17 May 2006, 02:04

Evenin' all, just recently dusted off my a600 and hope someone can help with this. Any cards i use in the pcmcia slot cause a weird disturbance to the display when in use.This isn't a big deal for using a cf adaptor but makes ram cards and i expect modems&networks cards pretty unuseable.

The symptoms are a flickering line about 2/3 down the screen, the screen jumps slightly down to the left and back, and the colours are changed, (black & white remains B&W). This only happens when the card is accessed. The cards i have used all appear to work normally apart from this.

I saw one reference to a similar problem related to "some motherboard revisions" on another messageboard but no other info. I do know I have the rev1 motherboard with mystery extra chip below gayle as seen here -
http://amiga-hardware.com/download_p...mbrev1_big.jpg

Can anyone provide a solution or any further info about this? Anyone ever seen this before? Anyone know what that chip is for? TIA

Overdoc · 17 May 2006, 14:12

No idea, maybe some contact problem ?
The A-600 quite often has problems with contact. There is simply not much space inside...

Anyway, I would be interested in trading your A-600 against mine with a higher Board Revision where the PCMCIA port works 100%.

Would you be interested ? If so, please send me a PM.

Mick_AKA · 17 May 2006, 14:34

Check in the PCMCIA slot for bent pins, ive had some really weird problems when pins have been bent and are touching eachother.

jimbob · 18 May 2006, 03:44

Hey, thanks for the replies, i'll give it a try with the metal shield off in case of a contact and inspect the pins while i'm at it. I don't really expect that to be it but you never know. Gayle controls the pcmcia & IDE right? I'll also try it without the HDD. Will post results and hunches soon.

As for the swap, appreciate the offer but i think the postage cost is not worth it for me, I could probably get a replacement from someone near me off ebay, besides I'm quite attached to the stupid thing. Are you collecting all revisions, just for fun or for spot the difference or what. Maybe I have a different gayle and that extra chip contains some extra logic, I'll post the part numbers when i've been inside and perhaps you can compare if you have a few different ones.(if you can be arsed that is)

jimbob · 18 May 2006, 23:33

Well, i now suspect this to be unfixable,

I have the same problem with the board completely out of the case and nothing attached except the pcmcia card. The pins appear to be ok although it is hard to see the bottom row on the mobo side.

So why do i think its unfixable, well that extra chip is a programmable logic array (MMI PAL16L8BCN if anyone cares) which I'm guessing contains some logic later incorporated into gayle. So the Gayle on my board is numbered 391155-01-01 GAYLE 0492 50020, The one in the picture linked to in my orig post is later version (391155-01-45 GAYLE 5191 50020), and the later revisions without the extra chip have 02-45 numbers. So I'm guessing I have the earliest of the early gayles which has some timing bug exposing the wrong bus at the wrong time while accessing the pcmcia.

I was hoping a solder this capacitor between here and here type solution might be available but i guess not, as this is probably a pretty unusual fault. I have neither the skills nor patience nor motivation to figure this out. Though i may try a few things out.

Methinks a new amiga is the answer, (oh dear i sense a habit forming, i always wanted a 1200 aswell).

whiteb · 19 May 2006, 04:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimbob

Methinks a new amiga is the answer, (oh dear i sense a habit forming, i always wanted a 1200 aswell).

You can always bid on mine

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI....e=STRK:MESE:IT

only about 24 hours left..

17 May 2006, 02:04	#1
jimbob Registered User Join Date: May 2006 Location: Kilmacolm Age: 46 Posts: 632	Weird pcmcia problem, any ideas? Evenin' all, just recently dusted off my a600 and hope someone can help with this. Any cards i use in the pcmcia slot cause a weird disturbance to the display when in use.This isn't a big deal for using a cf adaptor but makes ram cards and i expect modems&networks cards pretty unuseable. The symptoms are a flickering line about 2/3 down the screen, the screen jumps slightly down to the left and back, and the colours are changed, (black & white remains B&W). This only happens when the card is accessed. The cards i have used all appear to work normally apart from this. I saw one reference to a similar problem related to "some motherboard revisions" on another messageboard but no other info. I do know I have the rev1 motherboard with mystery extra chip below gayle as seen here - http://amiga-hardware.com/download_p...mbrev1_big.jpg Can anyone provide a solution or any further info about this? Anyone ever seen this before? Anyone know what that chip is for? TIA

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17 May 2006, 14:12	#2
Overdoc Commodore Collector Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Austria Age: 53 Posts: 944	No idea, maybe some contact problem ? The A-600 quite often has problems with contact. There is simply not much space inside... Anyway, I would be interested in trading your A-600 against mine with a higher Board Revision where the PCMCIA port works 100%. Would you be interested ? If so, please send me a PM.

17 May 2006, 14:34	#3
Mick_AKA crusader of light Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Stone, Staffordshire. Posts: 1,151	Check in the PCMCIA slot for bent pins, ive had some really weird problems when pins have been bent and are touching eachother.

18 May 2006, 03:44	#4
jimbob Registered User Join Date: May 2006 Location: Kilmacolm Age: 46 Posts: 632	Hey, thanks for the replies, i'll give it a try with the metal shield off in case of a contact and inspect the pins while i'm at it. I don't really expect that to be it but you never know. Gayle controls the pcmcia & IDE right? I'll also try it without the HDD. Will post results and hunches soon. As for the swap, appreciate the offer but i think the postage cost is not worth it for me, I could probably get a replacement from someone near me off ebay, besides I'm quite attached to the stupid thing. Are you collecting all revisions, just for fun or for spot the difference or what. Maybe I have a different gayle and that extra chip contains some extra logic, I'll post the part numbers when i've been inside and perhaps you can compare if you have a few different ones.(if you can be arsed that is)

18 May 2006, 23:33	#5
jimbob Registered User Join Date: May 2006 Location: Kilmacolm Age: 46 Posts: 632	Well, i now suspect this to be unfixable, I have the same problem with the board completely out of the case and nothing attached except the pcmcia card. The pins appear to be ok although it is hard to see the bottom row on the mobo side. So why do i think its unfixable, well that extra chip is a programmable logic array (MMI PAL16L8BCN if anyone cares) which I'm guessing contains some logic later incorporated into gayle. So the Gayle on my board is numbered 391155-01-01 GAYLE 0492 50020, The one in the picture linked to in my orig post is later version (391155-01-45 GAYLE 5191 50020), and the later revisions without the extra chip have 02-45 numbers. So I'm guessing I have the earliest of the early gayles which has some timing bug exposing the wrong bus at the wrong time while accessing the pcmcia. I was hoping a solder this capacitor between here and here type solution might be available but i guess not, as this is probably a pretty unusual fault. I have neither the skills nor patience nor motivation to figure this out. Though i may try a few things out. Methinks a new amiga is the answer, (oh dear i sense a habit forming, i always wanted a 1200 aswell).

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