Problem Booting A2000

Peanutuk · 12 October 2004, 17:05

A2000 powers up but displays a green screen that according to this means that there is a problem with the chip ram. Any ideas on what i can do?

The A2000 also has a hardrive fitted, although it doesn't have the normal IDE connectors, it seems to be stradling somekind of interface that has the older 'slot in' metal connections. There doesn't seem to be a lead to connect it the the motherboard however. It would be interesting to see what is on it...

The motherboard seems to be the older type 'A' board 'Rev. 4 Made in Germany Copyright 1986 Commodore'.

T_hairy_bootson · 12 October 2004, 17:20

Is there a hard drive controller installed? The A2000 mobo does not have a Scsi or IDE interface.

Slayer · 12 October 2004, 18:00

This is definately a hands on job...

I would suggest removing the whole harddive... yes, the
entire harddrive controller (the card the harddrive is
attached too and slotted into the motherboard) and
concentrate in just getting the machine to present the
1.3 kickstart screen or 2.0 respectively...

Infact, remove ALL the boards (if they exist) in any of
the zorro cards and also an accelerator in the cpu slot
if that exists...

still get the green screen? reseat the rom chip or at least
make sure it's inserted correctly (no bent up pins) also
check orientation. Swap CIA chips.

have replacement chips if possible... somehow I doubt the
problem is the motherboard memory...

good luck... funny, I've had alot of experience with
A2000's over the years... I have 7 of them stacked
one on top of another

btw, there is no lead from the harddrive to the motherboard
but there should be a lead from the harddrive to the
harddrive controller card... the communication is conducted
via the zorro slot interface

Peanutuk · 12 October 2004, 18:07

I don't really know what you mean but I have taken the following pics. The HD is next to the floppy in the 'spare' floppy bay. I can take some more pics if needed.

Does this have any effect on the green boot screen?

As you can see the HD isn't directly sloted into the motherboard at all, neither is the controler, it isn't slotted into anything.

Peanutuk · 12 October 2004, 18:14

@ Slayer I don treally know my way around the A2000 and the chips aren't clearly marked.

My mother board is the same as the top left picture at: http://www.amiga-hardware.com/a2000.html

I've tried removing the floppy and HD (there are no boards) and I still get the green screen , but only for a moment then i get just a black screen.

There's no keyboard BTW.

Peanutuk · 12 October 2004, 18:23

After a few more power-ups I saw a brief red screen followed by a permanent green screen and I now keep on getting just a permanent green screen.

Slayer · 12 October 2004, 18:48

red is probably because you are turning the machine off and
on too quickly...

this is what I meant by a hands on job and since you don't
know your way around the A2000 this just makes it even
more crazy...

and NO keyboard???? borrow one!!!! *grin*

don't remove the floppy, it needs df0 present.

I would suggest you contact someone who lives near you
that has some experience with A2000's... unless someone
here has more time than me... i.e. cut and paste arrows
over a motherboard picture etc etc...

to access the rom chip you need to remove the entire cradle
with powerunit etc... it is at the front of the machine
near the expansion cpu slot...

the CIA chips are identical and run parallel at the back
of the machine under the powerunit...

btw, the photos are too close to the harddrive... pull
back some if you are going to take anymore... to me it
looks like the earlier drives that would connect to a
early 2090 controller or even XT type card... with a
two ribbon interface... I still have one that works that
way... somewhere in that stack...

anyway, I must go to bed... almost 6am... work in the
afternoon :P

Peanutuk · 12 October 2004, 18:54

er...thanks. l'll give it some more prodding

T_hairy_bootson · 12 October 2004, 21:03

Are there any cards inserted in the motherboard?? Slotted in like a video card on modern PCs???

If there are remove them for closer inspection ie. check the jumper settings and how many ram chips are installed. If there are no ram chips on the controller card and its set to say 2 meg instead of amnesia it could cause problems.

Try running the machine with any slot-in cards removed as suggested by slayer.

12 October 2004, 21:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peanutuk

A2000 powers up but displays a green screen that according to this means that there is a problem with the chip ram. Any ideas on what i can do?

The A2000 also has a hardrive fitted, although it doesn't have the normal IDE connectors, it seems to be stradling somekind of interface that has the older 'slot in' metal connections. There doesn't seem to be a lead to connect it the the motherboard however. It would be interesting to see what is on it...

The motherboard seems to be the older type 'A' board 'Rev. 4 Made in Germany Copyright 1986 Commodore'.

Only the lower quality Amiga models (A600, A1200, A4000, and A4000T) use IDE. The higher quality Amiga models (A1000, A500, A2000, A3000, and A3000T) all use SCSI, which is faster and better then IDE. Get yourself a Commodore A2091 SCSI Controller board and plug the SCSI hard drive into that and your Amiga 2000 should work just fine.

12 October 2004, 22:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peanutuk

I don't really know what you mean but I have taken the following pics. The HD is next to the floppy in the 'spare' floppy bay. I can take some more pics if needed.

Does this have any effect on the green boot screen?

As you can see the HD isn't directly sloted into the motherboard at all, neither is the controler, it isn't slotted into anything.

The hard drive that you have pictured is an old MFM hard drive. GET RID OF IT!!!! Buy yourself an A2091 board and a SCSI hard drive. The hard drive MUST be less then 4 gigs unless you are using Amiga OS 3.9. When it comes to the Amiga 2000 computer, I am the person that you should be talking to. I use to work for Commodore before they went out of business.

Peanutuk · 13 October 2004, 00:49

There are no slot in cards. I have tried swapping both CIAs with those from my old A500 and there's no difference. I try swapping the CPU (Or whatever the really big one is) tommorrow and post whether that makes a difference.

Jope · 13 October 2004, 09:54

Push down on the Agnus, or pull it out and put it back.

Be careful when removing the Agnus! The socket is very very easy to crack and then it'll be intermittent, causing you all kinds of grief later on.

Also you might want to push down on any other socketed chips too, just in case there's a bad connection somewhere.

Peanutuk · 13 October 2004, 13:07

Ok I swapped the CPU with one from an old A500 and the A2000 now boots up to the white WB 1.2 screen.

However the floppy seems to not be working. On power-up the floppy light comes on and remains on although there is no floppy inserted. When a floppy is inserted the drive just whirls. The screen deosn't change as it would do if reading a disk. I couldn't locate the Agnus chip on the A2000 motherboard, how is it marked, where is it?

Also, what lead do I need to connect the HD to the mainboard and where does it connect?

Peanutuk · 13 October 2004, 13:09

Just tried the A500's floppy drive in the A2000 and it's working

So only the HD problem remains

EDIT: It appears that the original A2000 floppy now works, I think the IDE cable was in the wrong way around

However if the disk inserted isn't bootable, it won't then read another disk. Is this normal?

T_hairy_bootson · 13 October 2004, 13:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peanutuk

Also, what lead do I need to connect the HD to the mainboard and where does it connect?

Peanutuk · 13 October 2004, 14:35

That isn't very revealing......... !?!?

Jope · 13 October 2004, 14:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peanutuk

That isn't very revealing......... !?!?

You're a bit too quick on the question!

T_hairy_bootson already told you that the A2000 doesn't come with a HD controller on the motherboard.

By the way, the floppy drive isn't connected via an IDE cable, but yes, the cable was the wrong way around.. Makes the drive just spin endlessly, but no other harm.

Don't do anything to the Agnus - the machine already boots up, doesn't it?

Peanutuk · 13 October 2004, 14:55

Thanks, sorry if I misunderstood. It's just rather a puzzle that it has a HD inside but no means to use it! And it's a little frustrating not knowing what goodies might be on it. Is it easy to obtain the necessery hardware, do you know of any sources?

Jope · 14 October 2004, 06:31

That's an MFM drive. If you REALLY want to suffer from it, then find yourself an A2090A card (not the A2090) and connect it to that.

Otherwise put the mechanism on eBay, get an A2091 or some other DMA capable SCSI controller and install a real hard disk.

12 October 2004, 17:05	#1
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	Problem Booting A2000 A2000 powers up but displays a green screen that according to this means that there is a problem with the chip ram. Any ideas on what i can do? The A2000 also has a hardrive fitted, although it doesn't have the normal IDE connectors, it seems to be stradling somekind of interface that has the older 'slot in' metal connections. There doesn't seem to be a lead to connect it the the motherboard however. It would be interesting to see what is on it... The motherboard seems to be the older type 'A' board 'Rev. 4 Made in Germany Copyright 1986 Commodore'.

12 October 2004, 18:07	#4
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	I don't really know what you mean but I have taken the following pics. The HD is next to the floppy in the 'spare' floppy bay. I can take some more pics if needed. Does this have any effect on the green boot screen? As you can see the HD isn't directly sloted into the motherboard at all, neither is the controler, it isn't slotted into anything. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by Peanutuk; 12 October 2004 at 18:15.

12 October 2004, 18:14	#5
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	@ Slayer I don treally know my way around the A2000 and the chips aren't clearly marked. My mother board is the same as the top left picture at: http://www.amiga-hardware.com/a2000.html I've tried removing the floppy and HD (there are no boards) and I still get the green screen , but only for a moment then i get just a black screen. There's no keyboard BTW. Last edited by Peanutuk; 12 October 2004 at 18:21.

13 October 2004, 13:09	#15
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	Just tried the A500's floppy drive in the A2000 and it's working So only the HD problem remains EDIT: It appears that the original A2000 floppy now works, I think the IDE cable was in the wrong way around However if the disk inserted isn't bootable, it won't then read another disk. Is this normal? Last edited by Peanutuk; 13 October 2004 at 13:15.

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12 October 2004, 17:20	#2
T_hairy_bootson Workbitch 1.3 Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Melbourne, Australia Age: 46 Posts: 2,084	Is there a hard drive controller installed? The A2000 mobo does not have a Scsi or IDE interface.

12 October 2004, 18:00	#3
Slayer Amiga Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: New Zealand Age: 56 Posts: 695	This is definately a hands on job... I would suggest removing the whole harddive... yes, the entire harddrive controller (the card the harddrive is attached too and slotted into the motherboard) and concentrate in just getting the machine to present the 1.3 kickstart screen or 2.0 respectively... Infact, remove ALL the boards (if they exist) in any of the zorro cards and also an accelerator in the cpu slot if that exists... still get the green screen? reseat the rom chip or at least make sure it's inserted correctly (no bent up pins) also check orientation. Swap CIA chips. have replacement chips if possible... somehow I doubt the problem is the motherboard memory... good luck... funny, I've had alot of experience with A2000's over the years... I have 7 of them stacked one on top of another btw, there is no lead from the harddrive to the motherboard but there should be a lead from the harddrive to the harddrive controller card... the communication is conducted via the zorro slot interface

12 October 2004, 18:23	#6
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	After a few more power-ups I saw a brief red screen followed by a permanent green screen and I now keep on getting just a permanent green screen.

12 October 2004, 18:48	#7
Slayer Amiga Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: New Zealand Age: 56 Posts: 695	red is probably because you are turning the machine off and on too quickly... this is what I meant by a hands on job and since you don't know your way around the A2000 this just makes it even more crazy... and NO keyboard???? borrow one!!!! grin don't remove the floppy, it needs df0 present. I would suggest you contact someone who lives near you that has some experience with A2000's... unless someone here has more time than me... i.e. cut and paste arrows over a motherboard picture etc etc... to access the rom chip you need to remove the entire cradle with powerunit etc... it is at the front of the machine near the expansion cpu slot... the CIA chips are identical and run parallel at the back of the machine under the powerunit... btw, the photos are too close to the harddrive... pull back some if you are going to take anymore... to me it looks like the earlier drives that would connect to a early 2090 controller or even XT type card... with a two ribbon interface... I still have one that works that way... somewhere in that stack... anyway, I must go to bed... almost 6am... work in the afternoon :P

12 October 2004, 18:54	#8
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	er...thanks. l'll give it some more prodding

12 October 2004, 21:03	#9
T_hairy_bootson Workbitch 1.3 Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Melbourne, Australia Age: 46 Posts: 2,084	Are there any cards inserted in the motherboard?? Slotted in like a video card on modern PCs??? If there are remove them for closer inspection ie. check the jumper settings and how many ram chips are installed. If there are no ram chips on the controller card and its set to say 2 meg instead of amnesia it could cause problems. Try running the machine with any slot-in cards removed as suggested by slayer.

13 October 2004, 00:49	#12
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	There are no slot in cards. I have tried swapping both CIAs with those from my old A500 and there's no difference. I try swapping the CPU (Or whatever the really big one is) tommorrow and post whether that makes a difference.

13 October 2004, 09:54	#13
Jope - Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 43 Posts: 9,864	Push down on the Agnus, or pull it out and put it back. Be careful when removing the Agnus! The socket is very very easy to crack and then it'll be intermittent, causing you all kinds of grief later on. Also you might want to push down on any other socketed chips too, just in case there's a bad connection somewhere.

13 October 2004, 13:07	#14
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	Ok I swapped the CPU with one from an old A500 and the A2000 now boots up to the white WB 1.2 screen. However the floppy seems to not be working. On power-up the floppy light comes on and remains on although there is no floppy inserted. When a floppy is inserted the drive just whirls. The screen deosn't change as it would do if reading a disk. I couldn't locate the Agnus chip on the A2000 motherboard, how is it marked, where is it? Also, what lead do I need to connect the HD to the mainboard and where does it connect?

13 October 2004, 14:35	#17
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	That isn't very revealing......... !?!?

13 October 2004, 14:55	#19
Peanutuk Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: The North, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,082	Thanks, sorry if I misunderstood. It's just rather a puzzle that it has a HD inside but no means to use it! And it's a little frustrating not knowing what goodies might be on it. Is it easy to obtain the necessery hardware, do you know of any sources?

14 October 2004, 06:31	#20
Jope - Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 43 Posts: 9,864	That's an MFM drive. If you REALLY want to suffer from it, then find yourself an A2090A card (not the A2090) and connect it to that. Otherwise put the mechanism on eBay, get an A2091 or some other DMA capable SCSI controller and install a real hard disk.

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