ACA500plus not working on A500+ Rev 8a

Caution: Non registered users only see threads and messages in the currently selected language, which is determined by their browser. Please create an account and log in to see all content by default. This is a limitation of the forum software.


Also users that are not logged in can not create new threads. This is a, unfortunately needed, counter measure against spam. Please create an account and log in to start new threads.

Don't Panic. Please wash hands.

    Hi,


    I'm a happy user of a ACA500plus. The card works flawlessly on an A500.

    I also have an A500+ which works fine by itself. But once I connect the ACA500plus to it, the screen stays black.

    The black has some rolling stripes when you look carefully at it.

    ACA500plus DisMo is not completing a full circle during startup. It lights up the four segments of the left side, and continues on the right hand side, and stops after the fourth segment.

    Afterwards the seven segment display is off.


    Any ideas how to troubleshoot the situation?


    Cheers,

    Sascha

    This sounds like there's an expansion in that Rev.8a board that conflicts with the ACA500plus. Please make sure that there is nothing installed on the CPU socket of the host Amiga. If you're not sure, please post a picture of the board itself.


    I assume that you're using the same power supply for each of the computers?


    Jens

    THe only odd-looking thing (to me!) is the Kickstart ROM. Knowing that the socket on Rev.8a has additional address lines, this may mean additional load. To be sure, you could attempt to remove the Kickstart chip and see if it comes up with the ACA500plus. It will work with an empty Kickstart socket by design.


    If that doesn't make a difference, please run ATK ("Amiga Test Kit" - free software!) - there may be a chip ram error, like so many true "plus" boards have. I can see that you've removed the battery, but some damage may have already happened. It wouldn't be the first time that the standard self-test of Kickstart doesn't see a problem, when in reality there is one.


    Jens

    On my A500 ++ replica boards, which are based on the Rev.8a I have to pull both my ACA 500 plus and old ACA 500 about half a millimeter out or else I get a black screen. So if I push them all the way in the slot I get a black screen. Just pulling them maybe half a millimeter and everything works perfect. This is very similar to accelerators or memory exapansions in A1200s. I have to push them into the slot, then pull them half a millimeter back out for them to work properly.

    Quote from turrican9

    On my A500 ++ replica boards, which are based on the Rev.8a I have to pull both my ACA 500 plus and old ACA 500 about half a millimeter out or else I get a black screen. So if I push them all the way in the slot I get a black screen. Just pulling them maybe half a millimeter and everything works perfect. This is very similar to accelerators or memory exapansions in A1200s. I have to push them into the slot, then pull them half a millimeter back out for them to work properly.

    That indicates that the edge connectors are not chamfered/bevelled properly.


    Jens

    Hi Jens,


    I finally found the time to prepare a disk and run some tests.


    Memory test doesn't show any issue, even after 50+ rounds.

    All tests passed in the CIA Timer Test.


    I cleaned the edge connector again properly, tried several positions, but still no luck.


    Is there anything else I can do? I was considering purchasing another board, but will the situation change with another board?


    Cheers,

    Sascha

    The ACA500plus starts completely without looking at the A500 side: It does a few rounds of delay (to let the A500 and power supply settle after power-up), then init the DisMo with a short animation, and only then it will attempt the first access to the host computer. So if you don't see the DisMo initializing, something is wrong that even keeps the CPU from running all by itself.


    Please observe closely what the DisMo is showing during the moments after power-up - we may get some hints about where it's failing. Also, please take some higher-resolution photos of both sides of the 86-pin connector of the Rev.8 "plus" board. I've tried to see something on the pic you've posted of the top side, but the resolution is too low.


    Not sure if a different ACA500plus would make a difference: The unit passed our QC, and you've confirmed yourself that the accelerator works on a different A500 board. Rev.8 is not that much different, and where differencies are known, the product makes sure to accomodate for them. There's numerous customers who are using the ACA500plus on a Rev.8 computer, and I also have such a unit in my collection of test computers. In short: If it works on one A500, it will work on another one as well, regardless of it's revision.


    So far, your observation points to a defect of the A500 Rev.8 board. You should not spend any money on a new accelerator before you've found&fixed that defect.


    Jens

    Thanks for your quick reply - and sorry for the misunderstanding I introduced: I was referring to a different Amiga 500+ board I was considering to purchase.


    Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I described the post-power-on DisMo dance in the first post. Does that give a hint or do you need something else in this regard?


    Picture follows...

    Quote from rommelfs

    Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I described the post-power-on DisMo dance in the first post. Does that give a hint or do you need something else in this regard?

    I can't make out what exactly the DisMo shows from that description. Maybe a video would help.


    Jens

    Do you have a nullmodem cable? The ACA500plus menu system can do serial logging during early startup, using 115200 Baud over the Amiga serial port (8N1, no handshake). If you enable/save that using your working Amiga, you may get more verbose information on the Rev.8. The startup video shows that the CPU is running and it is executing code from local flash, so that's a good sign. It may get far enough to initialize serial and output some data.


    The pictures of the side-slot don't show anything unusual. Only thing I'd try would be to pull out the ACA500plus a tiny bit after fully inserting it (maybe 1mm). This will use a different part of the exposed golden contact fields, and the board itself won't push all the way into the end of the ACA500plus connector.


    Jens


    EDIT: Forget the serial logging idea. We should reduce the test-setup first: Please remove the networking card and the A1200 accelerator, see if you get to the menu. If you don't, please try de-brick mode.

    I actually tried the setup before I got all the additional gear, without success. I will however do another test for confirmation.


    What would you suggest to do once I entered de-brick mode?


    I am not getting any logs via serial on either Amiga, I am questioning my cables and wait for the delivery of a new one before I can get any results.

    Quote from rommelfs

    What would you suggest to do once I entered de-brick mode?

    Just see if it comes up. De-Brick mode uses the on-board Kickstart ROM, and you could even use the Boot CF card, as that is fully software-compatible with the IDE port of an A600.

    Quote from rommelfs

    I am not getting any logs via serial on either Amiga,

    You need to enable that in the menu first. It's off by default.


    Jens

    Quick feedback:


    Checked my serial setup. Used AMTerm to send a dial command in 115200, 8N1 which I captured on my computer. So I would say the setup and port are working now.


    Enabled Serial logging on the ACA500plus.


    Nothing is being logged during startup, neither on the A500 nor on the A500+. Am I missing something in addition to enabling serial logging?