Yet more A1200 problems - This time: Keyboard and IDE

[steve30]

Nothing A1200 related ever seem to work for me.

Since I had owned a mediator for almost a year and never used it, I thought it was about time I got a PC Key 1200 so I can connect a suitable keyboard up to the computer so I can try and set the mediator up properly.

So today, I set the amiga up with a hard drive and CDROM drive connected to a buffered IDE interface, my nice Unicomp PS/2 keyboard connected to the PC Key 1200 that arrived in the post this morning and the mediator plugged into the AT PSU that was going to be chucked out at college. I switched it on and got a bit of crackling and a load of smoke come from the buffered IDE interface. Later testing suggests that this device no longer works.

I removed the Mediator and proceeded to test the A1200 with just a hard drive connected to the IDE port. It booted fine, but the keyboard did absolutely nothing. I can not type, put Caps Lock on or anything. I removed the PC Key and connected the A1200 keyboard up and that makes the computer not work at all.

Could this mean that both my A1200 and PC key don't work, or just a problem on the motherboard? Or am I doing something wrong. I never seem to have much luck with Amiga keyboards.

Also, last time I attempted to set my mediator up (a few months back), I noticed that the top corner of my VooDoo 3 3000 gets extremely hot and seems to have discoloured the board. (http://stevecoates.net/stuff/discolour.jpg). I did not have any luck getting anything to work on the Amiga side of things, so I could not test the graphics card there, but I put it in my PC, and when it got to the Windows 2000 Starting Up screen, the picture froze. When I used the card as a secondry card, it worked fine, but still got way too hot in the corner.

I would greatly appreciate any suggestions

Thanks
Steve

[steve30]

Looks like the PC-Key didn't work because I plugged it in the wrong way round, but I plugged it in the correct way round and it still doesn't work. Also, my Amiga now IS working with the original keyboard, but only some letters work. I belive this could be down to the ribbon cable being a bit past it.

Any advice regarding the PC Key would be good as I don't want to have £30 worth of adaptors not being used.

[Daniele]

Hello ,

last April I saw smoke coming from my Ide-Fix express and Express adapter and the causes were 1) I plugged the express adaptor on the Alice chip and not on the Gayle chip 2) I used another PSU that was bad! I had to change mobo because I fried the IDE of the mobo and had to buy another IdeFix Express. Thanks GOD I did not fry my Mediator and PPC too.

 

[steve30]

I don't have the express adaptor, just the IDE interface on it's own. I can only assume it fried because I plugged something in the wrong way round.

My AT power supply hopefully works as it has a sticker on saying it works, but I did not test it with my multi meter. Maybe I should just to be on the safe side. It powered the CDROM drive fine though.