ACA500+ Redux

Jens · Jul 19th 2022

Quote from Renato

I pushed near the socket, but it's giving a lot of issues, the image freezes, bad image, only image by the vga port. I think it's faulty. Can i send the indivision for repair?

That does sound like a bad connection of one of the chips. Please read this article before you send anything back.

Quote from Tanino

Are there any news on my case?

Sorry for cluttering this thread, it has nothing to do with your case (customer just appended here, waiting for Tobias to separate the two).

In your case, I guess we can really take the chance to check both the flicker fixer and the ACA1234 if you're returning that for the CPLD upgrade anyway. Same message for you, please read the article about returns.

mooware · Nov 10th 2022

Regarding CF card issue...

I bought this just over a year ago, one plastic clip, on the left side rail on CF card slot broke off, however the card seats well, and properly.. The CF works... sort of.. It seems the directory name and files change names when I reboot the machine, so anything on the CF is not loadable, or readable.. I've changed CF cards. there are no bent pins in the CF slot. If I format the CF on a standard computer and call the disk AMIGA, the Amiga reads it as AIICA, seems to be consistent with that.

Jens · Nov 10th 2022

Quote from mooware

If I format the CF on a standard computer and call the disk AMIGA, the Amiga reads it as AIICA, seems to be consistent with that.

This indicates that one pin (data bit #2 or #10, depending on alignment) is not connected: M converted to I and G converted to C both have the same bit that's flipped from 1 to 0.

Even if the pins are there, the solder spot on the PCB might have suffered damage, it's probably loose. Just have someone re-solder the CF card slot, that should fix it.

Tobias, please separate this into a new thread, as the two cases have nothing to do with each other.

mooware · Nov 10th 2022

Thank you for the response,m I apologize for using this thread without starting a new one.. I know it's a cardinal sin..

mooware · Nov 11th 2022

Yesterday, I posted in an existing thread regarding the ACA500+ cf card issue.. The response was to check pin #1 or #10 for connectivity

Anyway, did that.. I looked at all connections on the CF slot with a magnifying glass, as well as checked for continuity between the pin, and the pads themselves, Everything seems good.. Anything created, including folders, that are created on the card vanish on reboot and can only be seen if I choose "Show all files". Below is a list of alphabetic characters that are changed, on reboot. One last thing, sometimes if you create a folder, an additional file is made with the same name with the "hammer" icon, and of course nothing is loadable.

A = A

B = B

C = C

D = @

E = E

F = B

G =G

H = H

I = I

J = J

K = K

L = H

M = M

N = J

O = O

P = P

Q = Q

R = R

S = S

T = P

U = U

V = R

W=W

X = Z

Y = Y

Z = Z

I apologize for the long note..

mooware · Nov 11th 2022

I meant #2 pin, not #1.. but anyway, I checked all of them

Jens · Nov 11th 2022

I didn't mean "pin", but "bit#". Bits #2 and #10 are on pins 49 and 23, respecively. Also, measuring is not what you should do if you're looking for a bad solder joint - instead, you should attempt to move the pin on the pad, as that's where it's most likely ripped off by the mechanical force that was applied when the CF card slot broke. If you push down with the tip of a measurement device, it will of course have contact, but that's not what you want to know - you want to know if the solder quint is questionable or not.

Also, first you mentioned that M turns to I, but now the list shows that M is shown correctly. This is most likely an alignment issue - The CF card interface is 16 bits wide, so looking only at a single byte is not an approach that will let you pinpoint the error.

Please try moving the CF card pins on the solder pads, and if that shows that all pins are good, the driver at U2 (74LCX16245) is most likely dead.

mooware · Nov 20th 2022

I actually, didn't see this message.. I will look at that tonight....

mooware · Nov 20th 2022

nothing moves, so I guess U2, which is likely something I am not going to be able to repair, as I don't have the skill to desolder, and solder surface mount... So, What would it cost to repair this, and do you guys do that?

Jens · Nov 21st 2022

We do repairs, but in this case, it would not be professional to give you an estimate without looking at the card first.

If you send the card to us, we can check what's wrong and give you the estimate. You will only pay for a successful repair, and we will only charge you if you agree to the final amount first.