A500 Issues

[CapCom]

I wanted to archive all my Amiga floppies to the PC and so ordered a null serial modem cable from Microcenter.  Cable arrived, but when I went to power on my Amiga it doesn't work (all I had plugged in was the mouse and monitor).

When I turn the power supply on I get the caps lock key lighting up, then shutting off and a kick noise from the floppy drive.  I don't get any LED lights and I don't get any video (unless my monitor isn't set properly, though I tried a bunch of different combinations, so if the monitor is working, it's just a gray screen).

If I put a boot disk into the drive, it clicks, but doesn't sound like it's loading the disk.

I can turn the caps lock on and off, but that's about it.

I suspected I might have plugged in the power supply while it was on, so I opened up the case to see if anything looked damaged.  Everything looked ok as far as I can tell (but then again, I don't have any repair documentation) so about all I did was took compressed air to clean off the board and the floppy drive.

What's it sound like the problem is, and a I better off just buying a new one off eBay?

Figures because the system was working properly just a couple months ago before it got put back in storage...

[SamuraiCrow]

Are you sure you plugged the serial cable into the right port?  Remember that the video and serial ports have about the same number of pins (or am I thinking of the parallel port?) so if your serial cable has the wrong gender you might have gotten it plugged into the video port by mistake.

[darksun9210]

ruh roh raggy.
yeah, the video port is able to reset your machine, so check for bent pins and stuff.
it is a 25pin serial cable?
the video port is a 23pin job, so kinda hard to get it wrong. if it is the wrong gender, then plugging it into the parallel port won't be good.

it is a proper null modem cable and not a straight through cable?

have eveerything unplugged, except the power. and switch on. what happens?

the caps lock light isn't flashing is it? do you get any video of the composite output?

[CapCom]

Yeah, the monitor is plugged into the RGB port.  I tested the RCA inputs on the monitor and it works properly, so if there's something wrong with the monitor, it's the RGB.  So no, it doesn't look like there are any error messages on the screen unless that port isn't working.

It sounds like the drive starts to spin a disk that's in there, but only for a half second.

[CapCom]

Checked the back, and didn't see any bent pins.

Powered it on without the monitor and same thing - caps lock turns on for a half second, shuts off, and there's the kick sound that I normally get.  

If there is a floppy in the drive, it will start to spin, again, for just a half second, but then quits.

The null serial cable was a specific brand reccomended by Amiga Forver.  I didn't attempt to hook up the cable until I tested the computer first, and since it's not working (d'oh!) I haven't plugged in the cable.

The caps lock key does not flash - it just turns on when the power goes on, and then shuts off.

[darksun9210]

hmmm  :-?

have you opend the machine and checked that all the chips are in their sockets properly? they may have moved if the machine has been in store and a non temperature controlled (constant) environment...

how about swapping the CIA chips?
this usually works for non-working serial/parallel or mouse/joystick ports....

as you are getting light on the caps key, then your are getting power... old old trick is to sniff the board/chips to see if anything is burnt or blown from when you plugged in the power when it was on...

other than that, i'm running out of ideas... sorry...  :-(

[CapCom]

Hmm.

Well, when I opened up the system, I checked to make sure there were no visible burn spots, but I haven't tried the sniffer test.  I suppose I could also try that with the case off.

Everything looked plugged in properly...  

The only chip I recognized was a RAM expansion module, which is at the front right, below the floppy.  I think I've got another RAM expansion module (it's in a metal case) I could try, but I'm not too enthusiastic about it because it was stored in a plastic bag for about 10 years (at least I know a bit better than that now...).  I did not try reseating the RAM module, but I certainly could.

There is what looks like another expansion port on the left side of the board, but I never had anything that would plug into there.

I did not unplug the keyboard.

I unplugged the cables going into the floppy drive when I cleaned it (didn't disconnect the cables from the board).

Unfortunately I don't know what a CIA chip is so I don't know what I'm looking for...

[InTheSand]

Hi,

To locate your CIAs, have a look here.

If you do decide to swap these chips, take the proper anti-static precautions and make sure you don't bend any pins... Pins on ICs this old can very easily snap...

I'd try making sure all the socketed chips are seated properly, and perhaps temporarily removing your RAM expansion board before removing / swapping any ICs.

 - Ali

[Tomas]

Try removing the memory expansion if you have one... I had something similar happen on a a500 i saved from the scrapyard.. The battery on the memory expansion had leaked and destroyed the memory expansion. Removing the board made the amiga boot up just fine again.

It could also be the psu or a chip that has come loose. If removing the expansion does not help, then try reseating the socketed chips and also check if the psu gives out the proper voltage.

[CapCom]

WHEW!

I think it's fixed now (at least it's running...).

I unplugged the keyboard and then replugged it (confused for a moment though that I might have gotten the cable reversed...(black is on the left side, right?)

Powered it on and the good old Amiga start screen is back.  Workbench ran fine.

Not entirely sure what the problem was, but that seemed to fix it.

Now I don't remember properly, but is the power light supposed to be red or green?  Mine's showing red with a green drive light.

Thanks a bunch to you both for the real quick feedback and troubleshooting help!

Now I'll just have to see how that null modem cable works...

[CapCom]

I tried unplugging the RAM expansion and then plugging it back in and powering it up again first.  Will an empty CMOS sometimes give this error?  It's possible the clock is wrong.

[InTheSand]

Cool! Glad you're up and running again!

Presumably, you've seen ADF Sender Terminal? This should help with transferring your floppies to the PC...

 - Ali

EDIT: oops, looks like I spoke too soon!

[InTheSand]

If your RAM board has a battery backed clock, it's quite likely that the battery might be dead if it's never been replaced.

However, as far as I know, no other settings are held here other than the time, so a dead battery wouldn't itself cause any problems with your A500 booting...

 - Ali

[CapCom]

Yeah, it's running great.  I was able to get the COM set up properly through Amiga Explorer (but it has the slight drawback of only being able to copy small files).  I've got AE on an Amiga floppy now (good thing it'll format anything...) so I know the connection works.

*hugs Amiga*

I'll have to play around with ADF.  I honestly hadn't heard about it, but it doesn't look that bad.

Hopefully I'll have a lot of free time soon (yeah right...) so I can start copying all my floppies.  There's a lot of software I was never able to run because it requires more RAM and a hard drive.  I'm also curious as to how these MODs sound.

Thanks again, and hopefully I won't have any more problems...

[Tomas]

CapCom wrote:
I tried unplugging the RAM expansion and then plugging it back in and powering it up again first.  Will an empty CMOS sometimes give this error?  It's possible the clock is wrong.

The battery will only keep the clock running, it does nothing else. If you dont mind not having a clock, then you should remove the battery from the expension, as it will for sure leak at some point in the future.

Now I don't remember properly, but is the power light supposed to be red or green? Mine's showing red with a green drive light.

That varies from model to model for some odd reason.
I am happy to hear that you got it working again.  :-)