Lisa Model I.D.

[Markintosh]

Hey gang,

I recently acquired a battery bombed Lisa 2. I have spoken with the original owner and he says it was always a 2 and not a converted 1-he can't remember much else.

What can I look for in my computer to help me I.D. what the exact model it is (ie: 2/5, 2/10. Mac XL)?

Thanks in advance.

-Mark

 

[ried]

Hey gang,

I recently acquired a battery bombed Lisa 2. I have spoken with the original owner and he says it was always a 2 and not a converted 1-he can't remember much else.

What can I look for in my computer to help me I.D. what the exact model it is (ie: 2/5, 2/10. Mac XL)?

Thanks in advance.

-Mark

The Lisa 1 and 2/5 have an external parallel port on the rear, made for the external ProFile hard drive.
The 2/10 and Mac XL lack that port, as it moved to be internal and supported the Widget hard drive. If your unit has an internal Widget hard drive, it's either a 2/10 or a Mac XL.
The difference between a Lisa 2/10 and a Mac XL are twofold: ROM versions and a screen modification kit (square pixel mod) that is installed to better support Mac System software on the XL.

 

[Markintosh]

Ried,

Thank you-that helps a lot. I do have an EXT. Parallel port, so mine must be a Lisa 2/5. There was no widget in the internal bay when I received it. I wondered if it had been pulled. It sounds like it never had one. I'm sending a closeup of my J13 Parallel port on the motherboard. This is the port that tells me it's a Lisa 1 or a 2/5, correct? Where can I find ROM version numbers and evidence of the Peel Mod kit?

Thank you!

PS: I'll be building some Alex the cat boards in the future!

 

[Patrick]

forgive my ignorance

Alex the cat boards

?

 

[Markintosh]

YES! There are reversed engineered Lisa boards available to build. You have to populate them with all the components. It sounds like quite a few are still available, but some connectors and chips need to be pulled from the donor boards.

Here's the link:

GitHub - alexthecat123/Lisa-PCBs: Some Apple Lisa PCBs that I've reverse-engineered.

Some Apple Lisa PCBs that I've reverse-engineered. - alexthecat123/Lisa-PCBs

github.com

 

[ried]

Ried,

Thank you-that helps a lot. I do have an EXT. Parallel port, so mine must be a Lisa 2/5. There was no widget in the internal bay when I received it. I wondered if it had been pulled. It sounds like it never had one. I'm sending a closeup of my J13 Parallel port on the motherboard. This is the port that tells me it's a Lisa 1 or a 2/5, correct? Where can I find ROM version numbers and evidence of the Peel Mod kit?

Thank you!

PS: I'll be building some Alex the cat boards in the future!

Yes, and that port is the same for both Lisa 1 and Lisa 2/5 machines. Some feature resistors on the traces, while others do not, yet they function in the same way. It's a particularly interesting anomaly, in my opinion.

Side note: Your board features a significant amount of the blue stuff, i.e. battery corrosion. I would recommend taking out the card cage, removing the CPU, I/O and memory boards, then separating the motherboard from its mounting pan and cleaning that corrosion with a small amount of vinegar and a gentle toothbrush - then flushing clean with alcohol (and some people finish with distilled water). This is somewhat risky, because if the corrosion has already eaten its way through the resistors' solder, they will very easily loosen from the board. I speak from experience, having loosened the left-most resistor during a cleaning. In any case, it's best to get that blue stuff off.

The boot / CPU ROM versions can be discerned in a couple of ways. First is by physically inspecting the CPU board. Directly below the 68000 CPU you'll find two ROM chips with their versions printed on their labels. Details here: https://lisafaq.sunder.net/lisafaq-hw-rom_versions.html

You can also boot the machine to learn if it has "H" ROMs or some other version by looking at the top-right corner of the screen during the power on self-test and boot sequence. You'll see i.e. "H/A8" to indicate your have "H" boot ROMs on the CPU board and version A8 of the disk ROM on the I/O board as configured for an original Lisa 2/5 from the factory.

 

[Kai Robinson]

Aaaah, those boards are made by @DosFox on here

 

[Markintosh]

Thank you Reed, that's great info and advice.

I have, indeed, already removed all my boards. My motherboard was so trashed by the corrosion, I had to drill many of the mounting screws out. Yes, when I first -gently- washed mine, a resistor fell off just like yours.

I have determined the motherboard is not worth saving and I am building an Alex the Cat version from scratch. Most of my components have arrived already. I'll pull the 90 degree twist connectors & video out port from my board. I'll try your cleaning method on those parts, as they have minor blue corrosion.

I am acquiring the parts for the I/O board as well. It does not look as bad as the motherboard, but it isn't great either.

I've never tried powering it on-no keyboard when I got it. I just got a keyboard Monday from ebay, so I basically have a complete unit now. (I'll use my 512Ke mouse)

Is it safe to power this up with boards this bad? Can I cause damage to the "good" boards if I do it?

Please let me know.

In the meantime I'll follow the link you sent me & figure out what ROMs I have.

Thanks again.

-Mark