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  1. This Does Not Compute

    So you wanna start an SE/30 Reloaded group buy...

    You may have seen another thread in which I ran a group buy for a batch of Bolle's SE/30 Reloaded boards. Let's get something out of the way: I am not going to be doing that again. This thread is a deep-dive into what that process was like, and in it, perhaps you'll understand why. But if...
  2. This Does Not Compute

    BlueSCSI - Open, Low Cost, DIY SCSI to SD device

    Thanks, I got 'em swapped around and now both units are working as they should. While I was at it I desoldered a couple other parts from one of them to help facilitate a custom mod I'm working on... :devilish:
  3. This Does Not Compute

    BlueSCSI - Open, Low Cost, DIY SCSI to SD device

    I tried both BlueSCSIs on my SE/30 and they did the same thing. I put them under the microscope and...looks like I got the termination resistor packs mixed up 🤦‍♂️
  4. This Does Not Compute

    BlueSCSI - Open, Low Cost, DIY SCSI to SD device

    So I built a pair of BlueSCSI v1's (why not v2? I have reasons... ;) ) and have a weird problem with both of them. I have a Mac Classic to test them with, but neither will boot. The Mac will boot from its internal mechanical SCSI hard drive, and it'll boot from my external BlueSCSI v1. But...
  5. This Does Not Compute

    Mac Classic screen shake

    OK, some digging suggests that there are feedback resistors that can drift over time, so voltage sag makes sense. My question now is...where's the voltage adjustment on this analog board? Not seeing anything obvious other than the video adjustment pots on the back. EDIT: Never mind, found that...
  6. This Does Not Compute

    Mac Classic screen shake

    I'm working on a Mac Classic. I recapped the motherboard and it boots and works fine. However, I noticed that the screen image has a weird subtle shake/wobble to it. I haven't seen this sort of thing before, I attached a video clip that illustrates it (watching the menubar is the easiest way to...
  7. This Does Not Compute

    PowerCache Card in IIci -- Why So Slow?

    Thankfully the software ended up getting captured by the Internet Archive: https://web.archive.org/web/20080511123533/http://daystartechnology.com/Daystar_Technology_Mac_Support/Daystar_Technology_Mac_Downloads/Daystar_Digital_Mac_Downloads/software/b_dsd_software_download1.html
  8. This Does Not Compute

    ROM Clips for securing custom ROM SIMMs in an SE/30

    I'll try to take a crack at these: 1. Shapeways is probably the best-known, but there are plenty of other print-on-demand services out there. Both PCBWay and JLCPCB offer 3D print-on-demand services. Hubs is another one, and before I bought my own printer, I used a previous incarnation of it...
  9. This Does Not Compute

    Scratches/scuffs in dark plastic - how to best recover

    I've had good luck using magic erasers on Mac cases for scuff marks, as long as you don't go crazy with it there won't be any affect on the plastic's texture.
  10. This Does Not Compute

    Mac Classic Analog Board repair help

    That's correct -- the only compact Mac with soft power is the Color Classic series.
  11. This Does Not Compute

    Dead DayStar Genesis MP CPU card -- ideas?

    No shorts on any of the pins -- I examined them all under the microscope. Dark spots are just some flux residue, which I've cleaned up. Looks like it might be a little tarnished, but nothing connects to it (or the pin header next to the card edge connector) from the system. I think it's...
  12. This Does Not Compute

    Dead DayStar Genesis MP CPU card -- ideas?

    So here's a super mahoosive photo of the card without the heatsink. The shiny parts around the CPU legs are flux residue, not solder bridges -- I inspected the card under the microscope for those. I also recapped the motherboard just to get that out of the way, and there's no change. It still...
  13. This Does Not Compute

    SMD adhesive recommendations?

    CA glue is probably fine (and certainly a lot easier to obtain) but if you want a more "official" SMD component glue, something like Loctite 3609 is what gets used to secure parts to PCBs before they go through reflow during manufacturing.
  14. This Does Not Compute

    Dead DayStar Genesis MP CPU card -- ideas?

    I'll see what I can do -- but I'm starting to suspect the motherboard. I dug out the dual-CPU card from my 9500 and while the machine boots with it installed, the DayStar utility reports that one of the CPUs isn't working. That *could* just be a software thing, but it's a bit peculiar nonetheless.
  15. This Does Not Compute

    Dead DayStar Genesis MP CPU card -- ideas?

    I have a DayStar Genesis MP with the quad CPU card, and it doesn't want to boot. Pressing the power button gets the system to power on, but there's no chime, video, or hard drive activity. The system has a brand new PRAM battery. Swapping the CPU card for another one, like a Sonnet G3...
  16. This Does Not Compute

    512K CRT not working until the analog board warms up

    Sounds like cracked solder joints on the analog board -- a common problem with that model. As the machine heats up, the components expand slightly and eventually make connection.
  17. This Does Not Compute

    BlueSCSI v2 Pico - Low cost, open hardware, fast SCSI device!

    This is an interesting tidbit to learn -- I always assumed that the motherboard did some advanced ROM-level trickery to present a different SCSI ID to the host Mac than what the internal drive is set to. It's maybe even more clever that the motherboard simply changes the actual ID of the drive...
  18. This Does Not Compute

    Japanese vending machines

    If you liked Scotty's video, you'll love this whole channel: https://www.youtube.com/@onsenjazz
  19. This Does Not Compute

    Repairing PowerBook 140 standoffs

    Having done several standoff replacements, I'm confident in the strength of brass inserts that have been melted into FDM parts. I have no basis for comparison of the strength of FDM vs SLA parts themselves in this application, though -- my gut tells me it probably doesn't matter.