What to do..?

[the_maxx]

Hi everybody!

I've just pulled my Amiga 4000/030 out of my old room at my parents house. The machine needs more ram, a new graphics card, and a new mouse.. and so on, and so forth...

I'm ashamed to say that I havent used my amiga for over ten years..

Is there anybody out there that can help me get back on my feet? I need to know where I can get hardware, what I can do with my good old Amiga (which I once loved so much..), and how to get on the web with it.

Please, help me, anybody!!

ted

[Zac67]

The very first thing you do: open up the case and take a look at the battery. If it doesn't look as shiny as new, if there are crystals on the outside or even acid: take it out NOW. Clean up the mess thoroughly.If you don't know how to do it find someone today.

Battery acid causes severe damage to the board!

[Homer]

Hi the_maxx,
You are in the right place here :-)

Welcome to Amiga Org ! Have a :pint: with us  :-D

[Comi]

  Get Mediator..for start

[Mikko_PKP]

My EUR0.02.

I'd start by looking for something to replace the 030. To use any of the later classic Amiga stuff, you really need a 060 or a seriously oc'd 040. For demos, 060 only I'm afraid.

A graphics card would be nice, with a flicker fixer if possible but you can do without - you just need two displays. CyberVision 64/3D can be had for reasonable cash.

Get OS3.9. It's really quite nice and saves you the trouble of pimping your system from scratch using Aminet. It also has a usable TCP/IP stack in case you don't have a registered Miami available. A network card is nice as well, but you can make do by using a PC to download, burn to CD and then copy over to the Amiga.

Update all your programs from Aminet. Many of them are now free and/or open source and work nicely.

[CLS2086]

What to do..? Win at the next Loto !

You'll have to spend at least 300/700 euros for a 040/060, some more 150 for a cv64/3d, some more 100/150 for a network card...

Keep your amiga for the pleasure and pure sensation, for the rest : Pegasos (from 150 up to 600 Euros) or WinUAE.. or get an AmigaOne (from 800 up to ++++ Euros ...)

[Flashlab]

Well upgrading your Amiga will cost money but I must say that CLS2086 is a bit on the high side with his estimations.

I paid 300 euro for my CS MK2 060; 040 would be cheaper. My PIV cost me 100. My Ariadne 60.

[Mikko_PKP]

CLS2086 wrote:
You'll have to spend at least 300/700 euros for a 040/060, some more 150 for a cv64/3d, some more 100/150 for a network card...

Nah.

Up here in Finland: 200-300 euros for an 060, much less for an 040. Just bought a second-hand BlizzardPPC (A1200) with 040 for 75 euros, if you settle for oh-fourty they're not insane, since there's much less demand for them. Some of the boards can even be upgraded 040 -> 060.

70-100 euros for CV64/3D (they seem to be on sale more often here than Picassos). If you can find an old transceiver to do AUI -> RJ45, you can pick up a used Hydra II AmigaNet for 30-50 euros. I use one myself, with a transceiver from an old HP machine, and it can do anything I throw at it.

So optimally you're at much less than 500 euros, and you've beefed up your system nicely. For me, Pegasos/AmigaOne/UAE does not do it at all, I want the real deal. Sure, my A64/4000+ Linux box has more power and could emulate whatever I like. But it's not a 'Miggy, and never can be.

[BinoX]

What to do...

Yes.. definately a 68060 accelerator.. (Cyberstorm MKIII costs approx 300 EUR)

2 choices for peripherals:


--Choice 1--
Network, Personally I use na X-Surf 3.. Around 100 Euros for that

Graphics... If you get a cyberstorm mkIII or cyberstorm ppc then get a cybervisionppc, great card Otherwise I hear that a Cybervision 64 is the next best thing..


--Choice 2--

Step 1) Buy a mediator... Approx 160EUR from elbox directly

Step 2) Get a voodoo 3  [PCI] (Or 4 or 5 I guess.. but I hear the 3 runs better) approx 50EUR?

Step 3) Get a supported network card.. [PCI] (Cheap.. maybe 20 EUR?)

Step 4) Get a Soundblaster 128 [PCI].. ebay for maybe 10 EUR?

Optional Step) Buy a spider USB 2.0 Card for usb ports

Step 5) Play




Personally I took the 1st route, but my friend took the second.. Admitedly his machine runs 3D apps better than mine, but I had more fun finding classic hardware ^_^

[Mikko_PKP]

BinoX wrote:

Personally I took the 1st route, but my friend took the second.. Admitedly his machine runs 3D apps better than mine, but I had more fun finding classic hardware ^_^

Haha, my point exactly The thrill of the hunt is a large part for me. I've spent the last year compiling my "ultimate 68k system": A4000+CSmkII+CyberSCSI+CV64/3D+ScanDoubler+Delfina+Hydra-II. I could have just bought PCI kit off the shelf, or used some from my pile of old PC junk, but I wanted to keep it original. This meant spending more money - but for your childhood love, you make sacrifices...

Also, it is worthwhile to slightly modify the A4000 PSU. For me at least, the noise was an issue, so I took it apart and replaced the fan with an 8-dB Silent Eagle. I took the noisy fan off the 060 and put in a PC chipset heatsink. Now instead of the normal vacuum cleaner emulator, I just hear a whisper.

[Amiduffer]

Hi Ted. Good thing you grabbed your Ami before your parents threw it away. I hope the battery didn't eat the board.

For mice and other peripherals, go to www.amigakit.com for the best service in the hemisphere.

Welcome to Amiga.org too!  :hat: You can ask any question you need to and you will get a question real quick. But you've probably seen that already.

[weirdami]

@the_maxx

WOW! Your Amiga just sat there on a desk for ten years and nobody wondered what the deal was or anything?

[B00tDisk]

the_maxx wrote:
Hi everybody!

I've just pulled my Amiga 4000/030 out of my old room at my parents house. The machine needs more ram, a new graphics card, and a new mouse.. and so on, and so forth...

I'm ashamed to say that I havent used my amiga for over ten years..

Is there anybody out there that can help me get back on my feet? I need to know where I can get hardware, what I can do with my good old Amiga (which I once loved so much..), and how to get on the web with it.

Please, help me, anybody!!

ted

Fix the battery.  Yank the daughterboard, throw in a Mediator.  Add a USB controller, NIC, sound card, ATA133 controller and a nice PCI voodoo card (a voodoo 3/3000 will do).  Drop in 3.1 ROMs, get OS 3.9.  Add a CDR/RW, a nice hard drive, and an 060 card with 128mb of RAM.  Et voila, un Amiga moderne.