Reloaded MKII Keyboard issue

This sounds like a short in the keyboard matrix. Please make sure you are not operating the board on it's black bubble foil, as that is conductive. It should be mounted in a case.

Further, there may be something in the joystick port, maybe a mouse or a joystick with autofire - this will always have an impact on keyboard - it's the way the C64 is constructed.

That's the Row5 and Row6 signals. Please take a close look into the socket, at the keyboard connector and under the board: There may be some conductive part, something dirty, maybe even a remainder of the black bubble foil.

These signals are point-to-point connections from the CIA to the keyboard connector only. The traces do not get close to each other - there's GND and yet another trace between them.

Quote from adamgrf

on the third attempt, by literally flooding the thing with alcohol and brushed like crazy it made it working. this makes me believe that there were way too strong conductive dirt that

This sounds like some remainder of the bubble foil did get stick either on the keyboard connector, or the socket pins. It's black and therefor possibly hard to see on a black board.

Pretty much all of what you're seeing on that screen shot there is bad because the test jigs are missing.

PLA reporting "bad" looks wrong, as this board doesn't even have a PLA. We have implemented the PLA based on well-known behaviour (which actually goes back to my original PLA reverse engineering work that almost all other articles are based on), so I'd like to see the actual error that it "discovers". Is that software writing a log? If so, please post. If not: Is the source code open? Tobias, do we have a copy of the binary?

Source isn't open, but the binary can be found easily on various websites (search for something like "dead test 586220".

However, using it without the test rig isn't very useful - and some of the tests do depend on specific ICs (ROMs, CIA), which is probably why the PLA test fails (The "Interrupt" test fails on "new" CIA iirc, the SID check requires the rig and fails if the paddle values are just slightly off the expected ones)

Hi, I am running the same exact issues with keyboard and joystick. I bought the board in nov 2021 but few months ago i re placed chips and went on. It was running nice until i endup with game and then i made a button reset. After reset typing LOAD i went into issue.

Please make a new thread and describe exactly what the problem is - the original post doesn't mention joysticks, for example.

Sorry, please forget about joystick issue i noticed about first comment answer about joystick and reported without concretion. Concrete issue is about certain keys, all them show another character while pressing down.
WE

AS

ZX

It is same explained behaviour at this thread. I bought second hand keyboard and issue remains.

Well if it worked before, then perhaps one of the CIAs is bad? Try swapping them against each other (that might make the keyboard work but you get problems with the IEC bus instead)

Hi. I’m afraid that the CIA interchange has no effect on issue. Tested it!

If W becomes E, A becomes S and Z becomes X, there is no (obvios) explanation on the C64 side. The first two are in the same column, but the third combination crosses columns, and none of them has a common denominator.

This looks like the keyboard is not a proper C64 keyboard, or is has been plugged in the wrong way, shifted, or even some lines swapped. Please make sure that the keyboard works on a different computer, or for starters, post a picture of the keyboard here, maybe we can spot something obvious.

Sorry Jens, but i am afraid although i bought a second hand keyboard the purpose to buy it was to test if original keyboard was working well. I mean i tested both keyboards and they react the same.

About keyboard interface pinout there is only one position to plugin.

It is proper keyboard (original one for sure) and plugged in correctly.

Should i use RMA instead? Thank you!

We've just had "yet another case" of contact problems between CIA chip and socket. Please take a picture of the CIA chip as it's inserted in the socket, where the picture clearly shows the state of the lever.

Thank you Jens! your suggestion has become successful. I have used an air spray over the sockets and also the CIAs and i have seen blown air spilling metal shavings so that was a question of metal contact between CIA pins, shavings and hole sockets. SOLVED! Also joystick is working fine again.

...now you have a spare keyboard: Please remember to put it back on the market. You wouldn't help the community if it's just shoved away in a spares drawer.