Guidance on selling a A4000 and A3000

[MarkMaker2]

I was a diehard Amiga supporter for a long time but eventually I had to move on to modern computers. I kept these two with the hope that I would eventually set them up and use them but I haven't hooked them up since I moved 16 years ago so I rather they go to a good home and get some cash for them.

I was hoping to get some guidance on what a fair price would be and also if ebay or amibay is the the better option for listing them.

The specs:

A4000 Desktop -- 68060 -- Cybervision64
Can't remember how much ram or HD space -- I seem to think I had the 120 IDE plus a SCSI drive but can't remember.
Kind of remember some kind of ROM upgrade


A3000 Desktop -- is a strange one. It is an 040 but it has the 030 processor as well. Beyond that I don't remember any of the other specs.

I also have a PhonePak (currently in the A3000) but I doubt that is of interest to anyone.

A monitor that was from my A500. It is the standard one everyone had.

A network card.

I'm going to boot them up, clean off any files / do a clean install, make sure everything works etc over the next couple of weeks but I hope to list them mid-July.

Are there any things that I should be looking for on the motherboard which would be relevant to a buyer?

I'm in Canada if that makes a difference.

[MarkMaker2]

Thank you for all the responses.

Part of the reason for the post was just to get myself moving forward on this project otherwise the computers would just sit there for another year or two.

I likely won't get a chance to open them and check out the inside or test them out until Monday but I'll update then. Monday I'll take everything and lay it out. Photograph it, test it, etc.

I was unaware of the battery issue so they were never removed. If they leaked they already leaked. I don't see waiting a few more days will make a difference now. Hopefully they didn't.

I say try to sell it to someone that will use it and not hoard it or sell it to turn a profit. There are lots of us out there who have been looking for a reasonably priced 3000/4000 for years.

This is pretty much my position. I want a fair price but I'm also interested in them going to a good home. These were a big part of my adolescence and I was a big Amiga advocate so I want them to go to someone like myself but who has the time to use and enjoy them.

Dealing with my GF's father's stuff after he passed we gave a lot of semi-valuable items to what we thought were good homes and some of the stuff went on to be used and loved by the people we gave it to and other stuff ended up on e-bay being sold for a profit -- that was quite annoying so I'd like to avoid it.

The US shipping is not a big deal as my business ships stuff out of the United States twice a week so there would be no customs issues. That said if I could avoid shipping altogether that would be a bonus as it removes a risk of damage from the equation. I should have started this earlier as June involved a decent amount of traveling and possibly could have worked out for personal delivery.

[MarkMaker2]

I'd be interested in the A3000. I'm also located in Canada so shipping wouldn't be a problem.

I'll let you know once I see it they boot and stuff

Thats really nice about it being your Dad's amigas. Im sure if they sell to someone on here they will be used and loved for years to come!

You misunderstood. The Amigas were mine. My GF's dad passed away a few years back and he had a bunch of stuff (mostly collector aviation / AVRO Arrow stuff) that we gave away to another person that was into planes who we thought would cherish it. Some of it was limited edition collector stuff with identifying numbers and we later saw those items on e-bay for sale.

[MarkMaker2]

Ah I see sorry about that! Well sorry for your loss..

How much are you selling the 4000 for?

I don't know yet. The process keeps getting interrupted by other obligations.


UPDATE

Finally got them hooked up.

3000 boots to he ROM 2.0 screen

4000 power supply fan spins but screen is black

Can't see any obvious acid burn from leaked batteries but also no idea where to look.

The 4000 has a SCSI card Spitfire DKB + A2065 Ethernet Card + a video card that I can't identify yet but remember it was a Cybervision 64. It is also a 060 but not sure what card -- fairly sure it was made by the same people who made the Cybervision 64.

The 3000 also has a A2065 Ethernet card as well as a Phonepak card. It is an 040 but the conversion was a custom mod and it also has the 030 chip

[MarkMaker2]

Odd discovery. As I am trying to get the 4000 to boot I removed the drive cage and there are two drives - both have power but only the SCSI drive has a cable.

I found an IDE cable in my collection of old computer parts trying to figure out if it is notch towards the back of the Amiga or notch towards the front. The Amiga has a 1 on the back top side and the cable has a red marking on one side so I assume the side with the red is pin 1.

Connecting it that way gets the drive making some noise but still just a black screen.

My 1084S monitor appears to be dead so this makes it difficult to figure out as the Cybervision 64 won't work without a successful boot and I don't have anything to connect to the normal Amiga video output.

I remember owning a device that allowed me to connect by A500 to a TV. I'll see if I can find that tomorrow.

[MarkMaker2]

The 4000 should boot to the insert workbench disk if the hard drive doesn't work correctly.

as to the Cybervision64, doesn't it needs a vga type monitor?

Often the reason for a black screen is the cpu card is nor inserted incorrectly, reset it.

The Cybervision64 is a VGA output but if I remember correctly there is only output from the add-on graphics cards after a successful boot.

It has been a long time but that is how I remember it. Also there has to be a reason I kept the 1084S around and I believe that was for situations like this. If there is a insert Workbench screen I don't think the Cybervision would show it -- the output would only be visible to a monitor attached to the stock video output.

[MarkMaker2]

I don't think so. I'm in Ottawa and googling Ottawa + Amiga Users Group I get a few hits but nothing that looks like a active group.


I found a 390682-01 which appears to be an Amiga Video to VGA converter so that opens up an opportunity to find a monitor that syncs to 15. Not sure how hard that is.

I currently have 2 Dell, 2 Acer, and 2 Samsung LCD monitors. Is the 15 for Horizontal or Vertical sync?

Is there a list of monitors somewhere that work? I remember finding monitors that sync at 15 was hard even during the Amiga peak.

[MarkMaker2]

There is some kind of video signal coming from the Amiga Video slot. When I connect it to my Samsung LCD the monitor displays a not ideal video popup. When I remove it I go back to no signal. So it can detect a signal but I would need a sync doubler to see what it is

The Acer was also a failure. All I got was a red weave pattern.

The Dell is a 3008WFP. I haven't tested it yet but found the specs http://monitor.b4by.net/dell_3008wfp.html

Scan
Mines. horizontal frequency   30 kHz
Max. horizontal frequency   94 kHz
Mines. vertical frequency   56 Hz
Max. vertical frequency   86 Hz
Max. frequency 800 x 600   75 Hz
Max. frequency in 1024 x 768   75 Hz
Max. frequency in 1280 x 1024   75 Hz
Max. frequency 1600 x 1200   60 Hz

Since every number is greater than 15 not optimistic.

[MarkMaker2]

I think the red weave is just from the video signal being at 15 on a monitor that doesn't support that.

I'm fairly certain I have some older computers that probably have IDE so WinUAE might be an option but I am going to try to use the A520 first. I think that will allow me to output to any TV. Quality will likely be horrible but I just need to see if the Workbench screen is showing and if yes then replace the drive and install the OS on a working drive.

The 060 card I have now identified as an Apollo 4060

For the 3000 it is a lot easier thanks to the native VGA output. When I tested it I got a white screen with ROM 2.0 and some graphics. Not sure if it needed longer to boot or if the drive there is also dead.

I've pulled out a bunch of floppy disks but no luck on finding my OS disks yet. I know I have them + multiple backups but just not sure where or if they will still work after all these years.

[MarkMaker2]

I don't believe there is any battery leakage. I don't know where the batteries are located but I've examined the boards and I didn't see anything that looks like acid burn or discoloration. Everything looks pretty good.

The 4000 has memory in two locations. There are two sticks on the main board and two sticks on the Apollo. If I remember correctly the Apollo required that there be RAM on the main board. I've removed and reseated the RAM on the Apollo but not the main board although I think I would have noticed acid burn.

The 4000 has a SCSI drive as well as the IDE drive so that gives me a second option.

If I can use WinUAE to make a working IDE drive and then just drop it into the 4000 that would be perfect. I've never used WinUAE though so it would be a learning experience.

[MarkMaker2]

I don't know if it has a battery. If a stock 4000 has a battery then it does as I never removed it.

I'll take pictures tonight. Amigas at home.

[MarkMaker2]

Ok so I assume this is the battery?

https://i.imgur.com/A8q8qzd.jpg

it appears to be ok for now.

Some additional pictures

https://i.imgur.com/urfCUSR.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Zi3ijSb.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/X473IT2.jpg

the 3000

https://i.imgur.com/tT2Td1L.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/uBrbP5E.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/W6aQ9yq.jpg

I found a copy of Marauder II and Project D on floppy which I knew both of these would boot if the disk was good -- the Project D came back with a error but Marauder booted on the second try.

Here are some pictures of the screen shots.

https://i.imgur.com/MsLqIaa.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/E9jCkvU.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/cmpChkS.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/NMxFDz1.jpg

I'm not sure if I can do anything from the command prompt that Marauder offers. Basically if there is any way to use this command to make physical disks out of ADFs.

So it seems that the 3000 is fine except for the drive. I can't figure out what is holding the hard drive in place. I can't pull it out as something is holding it but it also move with a lot of freedom so not screwed in. Seems to be held by some cable from under. I haven't pulled yet just because I don't want to damage anything.

The goal for today is to attempt SnkBitten drive creation. I have an old computer with two IDE drives. It had previously been used as one end of a site-to-site VPN but it got replaced with something faster and now is just acting as a Windows XP machine with a fax modem for people who still demand sending faxes. I know both drives work so goal will be to make one into an Amiga bootable HD for the 4000.

[MarkMaker2]

Found my original Workbench 2.1 disks. First try got a read error but on a second try success

https://i.imgur.com/HZG3JO5.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/YGcSlMl.jpg

That changes the goal for today to finding a SCSI drive. I think I might have one somewhere.

Does anyone know what is holding the drive in place? It seems to not be anchored to either wall but rather something flexible is holding it from the bottom front. There is no way to see under and I have never seen a drive held in place this way. Don't want to rip it out if there is a proper way to remove it.

[MarkMaker2]

I had a can of compressed air that I forgot at the office. Will be blowing everything out tonight.

The 3000's HD is definitely not attached with any screws -- the entire drive is movable but not removable because something unseen is holding it from under closer to the front of the Amiga (so basically not the power or SCSI cable which are at the back and clearly visible). Removing the whole drive tray might work or at least give me a better view.



So I can just snap off the battery when I get home tonight?  It has no impact on the computer's functioning?

Does the 3000 have a better I should be looking for?

[MarkMaker2]

Thank you. I'll check for the 3000 battery tonight.

I had just figured out the drive mounting on the 3000 before checking in. When I did I saw that the drive was not connected to the computer. Plugged it in and now it works.

There is nothing on the computer except for Workbench 2.1 and the PhonePak software. I'd like to test the Ethernet card. Can't see how I'd test PhonePak without a landline.