C64 wont boot

Antiriad · 24 June 2003, 17:15

Lo, does anyone remember me posting about this a while ago? I cant find the old thread where several peeps (including Akira) made some very worthwhile suggestions as to what to check on my ol C64.

Amiga1992 · 24 June 2003, 17:57

I don;t remember the symptons, could you repeat the pathology? I know Dr. Commodore (Overdoc) will know how to cure it

Antiriad · 24 June 2003, 22:30

Ah...the bogga powers up but i get no signal. Doesnt respond to any keys either.

Im probably going to buy another one thats working unboxed and swap the mobos at this rate.

Antiriad · 27 June 2003, 13:38

hey hey hey, which mofo moved this thread???

Amiga1992 · 27 June 2003, 17:10

It wasn't me, but I now moved it again to a more suitable forum

Antiriad · 27 June 2003, 17:24

Yay! Thx Akira ol boi! You da man!

Overdoc · 30 June 2003, 02:11

Hmm, you mean it powers up with blue border and blue screen, but there is no Basic and no bytes free message, and the cursor is missing and so you cannot type anything ?
If that's the case then the problem is almost 100% a bad basic rom. If you have a cartridge for your C64 then you can try that and look if it can run the cartridge ( cartridge should run even with bad basic rom ).
If you cannot find a new basic rom chip then you can also use a 2764 Eprom with an adapter

Antiriad · 30 June 2003, 20:59

It never got to the Blue screen, just stayed black

Anyway, i bought another modern shape C64 - a C64c and swapped the motherboards around as the broken one was in good nic + box etc etc.

Was amused to notice how the C64c's mboard is way smaller than the other C64, and was of GS proportions. Although i think C= were a bunch of cheapskates to replace the aluminium inner case with cardboard!!!

Overdoc · 30 June 2003, 22:33

Well, cardboard was what they used most of the time. Only some of the early C64-C which still has the 'big' C64 board had a metal shielding, afaik.
Later on the new, small board with 8580 SID insted of 6581 was used. There are 2 different small board versions, and the GS board is basically the 2nd version, but has a different Rom and a 90 degree turned expansion connector as well as some other connectors are missing ( e.g. serial connector ). But the board in the GS is a fully working C64 board ! If you solder in some connectors, replace the Rom and attach a keyboard to it then you have a C64

The GS board even still has the basic Rom inside !

About your black screen C64:

That could be pretty much everything being the culprit

For a first check you can remove the SID ( 6581 ), attach a diskdrive and try typing blind diskcommands, and feel if any chips get especially extremely hot ?
On revision 250407 boards the chip failing most of the time is the PLA ( MOS 906114 ). It normally produces a black screen, but can also produce a screen in one colour or also some multicolour horizontal stripes. You can check if one of these symptoms appear if you turn it on lots of times ( 30 times or more ).

Amiga1992 · 01 July 2003, 04:03

Quote:

Originally posted by Overdoc On revision 250407 boards the chip failing most of the time is the PLA ( MOS 906114 ). It normally produces a black screen, but can also produce a screen in one colour or also some multicolour horizontal stripes.[/B]

In my SX64 I kind of get this.. The normal startup screen has the blue Basic letters flashing colors. Is the PLA about to die?

I thought it had something to do with something else.

Overdoc · 01 July 2003, 20:47

No, if the PLA is dead then the C64 doesn't power up, but you get only vertical coloured stripes in some cases ( looks like when a game is decrunching with colour effect )
If your SX works but just the colours inside the letters are flashing then I would say this would be bad colour ram.
Hope you get it fixed, mate !

Amiga1992 · 02 July 2003, 08:02

Yup, I thought it was bad color RAM too, that I have to replace the VIC right?

Overdoc · 02 July 2003, 19:33

No, I don't think the VIC is bad, although it could be....
But I would first go for the colour ram.
I think it is a 2114 ram and can still be bought.

Btw, does the SX run ? ( except for the colours ? ) Can you load and play a game ?

Amiga1992 · 02 July 2003, 20:40

The SX64 works PURRFECTLY! Only that it flashes colors and might give me epillepsy

Nah, looks more like it's a portable C64 on ACID

24 June 2003, 17:15	#1
Antiriad The Sacred Armour Of Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Sussex, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,141	C64 wont boot Lo, does anyone remember me posting about this a while ago? I cant find the old thread where several peeps (including Akira) made some very worthwhile suggestions as to what to check on my ol C64.

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24 June 2003, 17:57	#2
Amiga1992 Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: ? Posts: 19,646	I don;t remember the symptons, could you repeat the pathology? I know Dr. Commodore (Overdoc) will know how to cure it

24 June 2003, 22:30	#3
Antiriad The Sacred Armour Of Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Sussex, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,141	Ah...the bogga powers up but i get no signal. Doesnt respond to any keys either. Im probably going to buy another one thats working unboxed and swap the mobos at this rate.

27 June 2003, 13:38	#4
Antiriad The Sacred Armour Of Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Sussex, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,141	hey hey hey, which mofo moved this thread???

27 June 2003, 17:10	#5
Amiga1992 Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: ? Posts: 19,646	It wasn't me, but I now moved it again to a more suitable forum

27 June 2003, 17:24	#6
Antiriad The Sacred Armour Of Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Sussex, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,141	Yay! Thx Akira ol boi! You da man!

30 June 2003, 02:11	#7
Overdoc Commodore Collector Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Austria Age: 53 Posts: 944	Hmm, you mean it powers up with blue border and blue screen, but there is no Basic and no bytes free message, and the cursor is missing and so you cannot type anything ? If that's the case then the problem is almost 100% a bad basic rom. If you have a cartridge for your C64 then you can try that and look if it can run the cartridge ( cartridge should run even with bad basic rom ). If you cannot find a new basic rom chip then you can also use a 2764 Eprom with an adapter

30 June 2003, 20:59	#8
Antiriad The Sacred Armour Of Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Sussex, UK Age: 45 Posts: 1,141	It never got to the Blue screen, just stayed black Anyway, i bought another modern shape C64 - a C64c and swapped the motherboards around as the broken one was in good nic + box etc etc. Was amused to notice how the C64c's mboard is way smaller than the other C64, and was of GS proportions. Although i think C= were a bunch of cheapskates to replace the aluminium inner case with cardboard!!!

30 June 2003, 22:33	#9
Overdoc Commodore Collector Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Austria Age: 53 Posts: 944	Well, cardboard was what they used most of the time. Only some of the early C64-C which still has the 'big' C64 board had a metal shielding, afaik. Later on the new, small board with 8580 SID insted of 6581 was used. There are 2 different small board versions, and the GS board is basically the 2nd version, but has a different Rom and a 90 degree turned expansion connector as well as some other connectors are missing ( e.g. serial connector ). But the board in the GS is a fully working C64 board ! If you solder in some connectors, replace the Rom and attach a keyboard to it then you have a C64 The GS board even still has the basic Rom inside ! About your black screen C64: That could be pretty much everything being the culprit For a first check you can remove the SID ( 6581 ), attach a diskdrive and try typing blind diskcommands, and feel if any chips get especially extremely hot ? On revision 250407 boards the chip failing most of the time is the PLA ( MOS 906114 ). It normally produces a black screen, but can also produce a screen in one colour or also some multicolour horizontal stripes. You can check if one of these symptoms appear if you turn it on lots of times ( 30 times or more ).

01 July 2003, 20:47	#11
Overdoc Commodore Collector Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Austria Age: 53 Posts: 944	No, if the PLA is dead then the C64 doesn't power up, but you get only vertical coloured stripes in some cases ( looks like when a game is decrunching with colour effect ) If your SX works but just the colours inside the letters are flashing then I would say this would be bad colour ram. Hope you get it fixed, mate !

02 July 2003, 08:02	#12
Amiga1992 Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: ? Posts: 19,646	Yup, I thought it was bad color RAM too, that I have to replace the VIC right?

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)

02 July 2003, 19:33	#13
Overdoc Commodore Collector Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Austria Age: 53 Posts: 944	No, I don't think the VIC is bad, although it could be.... But I would first go for the colour ram. I think it is a 2114 ram and can still be bought. Btw, does the SX run ? ( except for the colours ? ) Can you load and play a game ?

02 July 2003, 20:40	#14
Amiga1992 Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: ? Posts: 19,646	The SX64 works PURRFECTLY! Only that it flashes colors and might give me epillepsy Nah, looks more like it's a portable C64 on ACID