Just a little addendum - I ended up hanging up my old motherboard on a pegboard, and it gave me the idea to actually frame it. It's nice and square-ish and somewhere around 12" by 10", but it obviously has some depth to it (I'm guessing about 2"). If anyone has any ideas for a frame I can order online that might work for this purpose, let me know.
How about: www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Frames-Shadow-Display-14-Inch/dp/B00NASEI3E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1492134420&sr=8-1&keywords=Lawrence+Frames+Shadow+Box+Frame+with+Linen+Inner+Display+Board%2C+11+by+14-Inch%2C+White It is a shadow box so it will give you some height to work with and will keep the dust off the motherboard - almost like museum storage. There are many other styles, this one was the one I liked though. Thanks for the videos.
There's something you should know: The Mac 128k and the IIc used the same RAM chips which are known to fail a lot. You could buy some new ones for approximately 20 bucks and have them professionally installed (requires some soldering unfortunately...) but I'm 90% sure the RAM's to blame here. All those Apple branded RAM chips will fail at some point, so even your 'new' board will ultimately die.
I actually do know - that's why I bought a new board instead of trying to replace the individual chips. With two boards, I now have two boards worth of RAM chips, which should keep me in good supply until I die.
@@ModernClassic You have not bought a "new" board, you have either bought old stock (unused) or just a used good looking board. Highly doubt apple just fired up their production line a few years ago again
In hardware enthusiast land, closing the machine before testing everything works is known to invite the need to open it again Sounds like superstition until it happens to you :D
MT = Micron Technology. Also, your first board has bad RAM almost certainly. Its good to have an upgraded ROM with the built-in RAM testing facility for locating the offending chip. This is exactly how I fixed my own IIc.
I'm thinking to when I upgrade it. The main reason I haven't so far is that there are just so many channels already focusing on modern PC's... but people keep asking, so I'll do it when I upgrade my CPU and motherboard next time. (Which should be soon.)
I also have a green and rgb monitor. It's a pity that it's so hard to hook up a ][ GS to a modern tv. I've only seen one adaptor that will work now & it's around $100 & a lot of the devotees of the Apple ][ GS have passed on like Joe Klein.
I am perfectly finje with watching these kinds of videos so keep on making them lol. Hopefully you don't have to make them all that often but don't be afraid to put them out if you need /want to.
It isn't the greatest idea to use a drill or electric driver since you could strip the screw holes. My father is a retired electronics repair technician and still does fixes for other people. He _never_ uses anything but hand power for electronics.
Electronics are no different than anything else, and it's no easier to strip a screw hole with an electric screwdriver than a non-electric one. It takes exactly the same amount of torque, which means it's going to put exactly the same amount of force on your hands. An electric screwdriver would literally fly out of your hands before that happened, because you'd never be holding it that tight. You *might* hold a non-powered screwdriver that tight in order to get the rotational torque you need, which actually makes it more likely to strip either the hole or the head. Also, electric screwdrivers are specifically made to have different torque settings. On the lowest setting, which is what I typically use unless I need more, it wouldn't strip the thread off a nail hole, much less a screw hole.
Seeing him pull out an electric driver get me a short heart attack...A manual you can feel the tension and assess the energy needed as you go. But until something goes wrong, I don't see why someone wouldn't use an electric driver unless they actually encounter these kind of issues - which I have in the past so I now stay away from them.
A good troubleshooting tip would have been to test the socketed IC's from the old board in the new board to verify their function and marking them as such. If you do decide in the future to have the original board repaired (which would have been my choice!) it will cut down on troubleshooting time and hassle.
It’s 2021, Apple llc was my first computer which I still have. A couple months ago I bought the M1 iMac, technology advanced so much which made me think of my first computer, took it out from storage, cleaned it, then fired it up, it started! Only problem is I lost all of my floppies. Now the llc is on the same desk with my new iMac, a family reunion. Thank you for sharing your video.
I had a IIc as a very small child in the mid to late '80s. It has a place of honor on the top of my desk, where it can gaze upon the room full of computers that it helped pave the way for. I haven't booted it up in well over a decade and, frankly, I'm a bit scared to. Thank you for doing this video and giving me some confidence and a bit of motivation to do so. I mean, I still probably won't, because that would involve lugging the thing down from a hutch 7 feet above the ground, but at least I think that I could. Probably.
I was keeping mine in an attic for ten years, which is probably what broke it. But every once in a while I'd take it down to play some games. It's still fun to do that even if it is a bit of work; I think it's worth it. (Now I keep mine in my basement, which despite how it sounds is a step up from my attic. It's at least somewhat climate controlled.)
Honestly, I would not hate Apple so much these days if they would go back and look at this computer, and learn from where they started!! Modern Apple computers are a HORRIBLE joke to work on, and NO ONE finds it funny. Different screw sizes just to hold ONE component to the chassis....... horrible build quality, batteries glued in place, and components that barely last a few years, let alone 20+..... At least Apple used to make good hardware at one point.....
Long shot that anyone sees this that can help me, but I inherited (yes, literally inherited) an Apple 2 with no monitor, but two external drives that had been stored in a damp basement for probably 20+ years. I had diskettes, etc, and am interested in trying to restore the computer but I really have very little know how and am almost certain its FUBAR (the board has what looks like white corrosion and stuff on it). I have built my own modern PC and I can do some very minimal soldering, but am crap outside of that. Where can I find information or even like a guide on how to repair something that screwed up? Or should I give up on it?
Take the board out and literally wash it in distilled water and dish soap. Then rinse twice with distilled water and then rinse with isopropyl alcohol (high proof of 90% or better.) blow dry with a hot hair dryer. That will clean up the board. Fixing it is a another matter. Check out Adrian's DIgital Basement Apple II repair videos.
I just got an apple 2c that used to belong to my uncle. I booted it up and it worked perfectly. I even played winter games but when i tried to used another disk the computer always shows me the check disk drive message (even if i try to play winter games again) so i was wondering if i only have to clean the reader or is it a bigger issue?
Great video, I am going try and a least open, clean and check chips, specifically the IWM which I believe controls the floppy which is not working, the problem I am finding in my research is the chip itself is consider "unobtainium" and the best option is a mother replacement, naturally the first two I find have bad IWM chips.
It would be interesting to know but I'm not really sure it's worth the effort. Usually it's bad RAM on IIc's, but it's just a question of knowing which particular chip(s). If the same thing ever happened to the new board, I'd probably just start replacing chips until it was fixed.
Years ago when I worked at Digital Equipment, I built my own LSI-11 computer out of scrap boards I bought from the company's salvage department. (cost me ten cents on the dollar of DEC's cost). I had some bad ram, so I ran a memory test on the board (which means the computer had at least SOME good memory) and then unsoldered the bad chips. I replaced these chips with sockets, and removed memory from another board and slowly placed that memory in the sockets and re-ran the memory tests. Took awhile, but eventually, I had a pile of known good chips which went into the sockets, and a few other boards with bad memory.
Just did this same thing to one of my apple IIc's, bought it in a lot of 2 off of eBay. in may case, while I was getting the apple IIC logo on the screen, I was also seeing a few white marks and it would not read disks even after cleaning the drive head and lubricating the rails. Also like yours, my video as well as power port were not doing so good. Tried to boot using an old but tested disk II drive connected to the motherboard, same thing happened. ended up getting an NOS 1986 rev board off of eBay. In addition to not having the infamous MT ram, I think it had TI ram made in Japan, it has a new type video port and a noticeably newer rom chip. The Install was simple and it brought my broken C back to life.
"Steve Wozniak >was< a great engineer." Hey, how about using the present tense! He's not dead yet! Steve Wozniak IS a great engineer, and he's still with us!
super cool video, i just scored an IIc too.. really needed to know how to dir a disk, load somethng, write what ever.. like the ultra noob thing :-) your how to load from disc commands are not clear from the video, can you please comment what to do ?
Ah, the Apple //c. *_* I learned to use a computer on one of those. Good to hear you got your old one back running, it's always nice to bring an old beast back from the dead.
I have one of these. Still works! Got mine in 1985 when I was turned 16. Awesome times, I was go giddy to have my first computer and it was a really good one with a huge library available. Guess I should start looking for spare parts though because these things die eventually.
Whenever I see the Apple //c, I always think of "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", in which he chose to get this computer instead of a car. Funny to think there was a time in which you had to choose between a computer or a car. I made the same decision regarding my first real 486DX2-66. Hell, it was even MORE expensive than a car.
Damn, this is a good video! I have an Apple 2C with a couple of issue. The first was the monitor doesn't turn on, the other one is that I have ever "check disc" error and if I type on keyboard some command this are not showed and executed... Any help?
OMG ! I had this computer growing up. My dad brought it home from work. We where of lower means and only saw a computer at school for Organ Trail and basics. Never desired a home computer. I played a hockey and golf game. No graphics,so type a number for shot selection and read results. Tried the drawing program but it wasn’t much. So many great memories.
Why not flip a few chips from the working mother board? Why just give up and replace the mother board when you can try to see if it's one of the socketed parts? Most of those chips are off the shelf and you can have two working MB's and even sell one to get your money back. Friendly word of advice. Invest in a multimeter and an oscilloscope. They are not hard to use and you could learn a few things about how computers work on a low level understanding.
Like you the first computer I ever bought was the Apple IIc. I recently dug it out of boxes in my garage and tried to check it out. Unfortunately I cannot find the power brick or any of the old disks except for Appleworks. Once I figure out how to reconstruct the power supply I'll be giving it a try. Oh, I also have the Apple IIc Technical Reference Manual. If you ever need any info out of it just give me a shout.
Talk to Adrian Black of Adrian's Digital Basement in repairing the //c mobo. He already resurrected a dead //c and a II+. It looks like bad RAM to me. Having a repaired board would be a plus even if you hang it on a frame, at least you will know it works.
Where do you get a motherboard for an Apple ][ c these days ? I ask because I own a ][c, 2 ][ GS's - 1with an internal hard drive, 2 ][ e's & an integer based Apple. All still work & the hardest thing is to find the GS OS 6.0 System Disks without which you can't run the computer.
I just checked Ebay for a while and this one popped up. Often there's one or two available there, though usually well used. When I saw the condition of this one, though, I finally jumped on it.
There are archives of Apple's old support downloads site which include disk images for GS OS 6. You do need an older mac to actually make the floppies as they're in DiskCopy format, unless you can find a tool that can send the images over a serial connection from a newer computer.
I had a IIc identical to yours. Had to get rid of it in the early '90s to make room for a new Mac Centris 610. Wish I'd had the room to hang onto it, it would be fun to play with now.
You wouldn't still happen to have your old framed board would you? I'd love to purchase the volume pot from you... I broke mine thinking that I could remove the knob to retrobrite it.
It's weird that you mention the retro-brite being temporary. I did it to a PS one 6 years ago and it still holds up. The same with a PSP I did 4 years ago. The yellowing only comes back if you leave the plastic exposed to heat and/ or UV light for long periods of time, repeatedly.
Mine are stacked up in my hall closet. I lost my storage in 2001 & would be " rich " today because I had all the chips, keyboards, disc drives in bins as spares. I used to work for Shugart and built my 2 disk ]['s with my own hands that still work.
what does it mean when the screen has diagonal lines? is the brightness just too high? i noticed one of my old TVs does the same. i see one listed for sale, shows these lines, but not sure if again just too much brightness?
Man. You dont replace a whole motherboard or keyboard. You fix it. That replacement board is a time bomb as well. Start by cleaning the thing in alcohol and then look for caps leaking out. Text for continuity. Look for board crack running through the traces etc.
I could and probably will at some point... I just have less experience with it than with the Apple II, and I need to fill out a complete system before making a video (right now I have a C64 and that's it). My best friend when I was a kid had a C64 so I have some experience with it from back then, but I'd want to learn some more about it before I did a video on it. But it'll probably happen.
I don't get the power tool use on such old and fragile hardware - it always makes me cringe… Plastic is so brittle by this time that you should sense the torque by hand, trying to use previous grooves so that plastics stands wont crack…. forgive my OCD ;-) In particular computers like, for instance, the G3 iMac beije soul, I even use silicon based lubricant to ease the screw fastening - it also helps to restore the plastic’s flexibility
Shouldn't use a powered screwdriver on electronics. Can cause more damage. But it's one of those things, up to you. I have an Apple //c, my first as well. Love the Apple II machines.
Never had a problem, don't see why I would. A powered screwdriver just does what you would do, only without the effort. Anyway, nice to find another IIc owner!
I'm brand new to Apple, but could it have just been a chip, where you could replace each one from the new board? Does the iic have a dedicated video chip? Really, i'm new to this Apple iic stuff. :-)
It's most likely a bad RAM chip. But there's no reliable way to test those that I know of other than pulling chips out of another board and replacing them until you find the bad one(s). It's not really an efficient way to repair something, and you end up destroying another board anyway.
I was really hoping you'd give us a little gameplay of the Flight Simulator. I started using computers after Y2K, but my GOD these old machines are fascinating!
I actually felt the same way after uploading the video and watching it all the way through, but I was too excited about the computer working again to think about it at the time (my reaction in the video is about as demonstrative as I ever get). Well, there will be other videos. I'm planning a series of "is it worth it?" videos on various game and computer systems where I'm going to mostly show a bunch of gameplay, weigh the pros and cons and then tell you if it's worth going out and buying that system, and I'll do one on the Apple II.
a bit Lame, i actually troubleshoot and at least try to find and fix the prolem before replacing the Motherboard completely on an old machine.. but is fair enough, some times i'm lazy too..
Most likely the problem with the old board is one of the chips. Probably a memory chip. You should swap chips between them until you find the faulty one and then just replace the chip.
There were no sources for those chips at the time I made this video (and probably not now either) other than, wait for it... other motherboards.
7 лет назад
That knocking noise you're hearing when you initiate or the FDD, is the computer sending the "HEAD BACK" command about 40 times. This ensures the head will start at position 0, since the computer doesn't know where the head was left at.
The Apple IIc was the computer that got me through college connected to my Hayes 300 baud Smartmodem. I just picked up one from eBay to play around with, since I was not an electronics tinkerer back in my college days, so taking it apart will be my first priority and examining now what I didn't know back then. Great video...Thanks
I wouldn't say that it is an repair you basicly just replaced the mainboard so i would say the title should be motherboard replacing and not full repair
I also grew up owning one of those, with the matching color monitor (which was bigger than the mono). It is sadly gone, because my family insisted i had to sell it before i could get a new computer. Sometimes i fire an emulator and play some games, i did spent countless hours with that very same Flight Simulator, Wings of Fury, Skyfox, Stellar 7 and many other games. I also had an external 3.5" drive, which was pretty much the same as the IIgs, and the Imagewritter II printer. I only learned about Wozniak after becoming an adult, now i understand things about the Apple //c back then i didn't (such as the floppy noise). All i remember is that noise was music to my ears, especially after seeing a c64 on a friend's computer load a game (eg Skyfox) from a floppy drive... (3secs vs 3 mins?, same game? pff.) All the Apple II lacked was decent sound, and the IIgs cured that, but the Mac was the flagship and the vast majority of software was going elsewhere...
This is one case where the original color actually was white. I know both because I've owned this machine from day one, and I still have my manual that has clear pictures of what it looked like.
I would rather have seen you actually repair "your" computer. I suspect the issue you were having isn't that hard to chase down. With some help from various groups may have been just as easy and a lot less expensive, a whole lot more rewarding and most importantly you would still have "your" computer. You have the shell of your computer, but it's not "your" computer anymore. Meaning the original computer. Just my 2 cents on the matter. I am glad you got it fixed and that you are satisfied with it.
I repaired it exactly the same way Apple would have. It most definitely still is my computer. Don't get hung up on counting chips or components. Very easy to fall into that trap with old stuff.
@@ModernClassic Understood, wasn't trying to be overly critical. It's just my opinion, not worth getting hung up on it! ;) My friend's parents bought a IIc after they bought him a VIC20 to gauge how he'd take to it. That was a huge influence on me which lead me to buy a IIe with my own money at the age of about 13. I never knew what happened to that computer. I left it with my mother, went off to serve in the military. Years later it was gone. I did manage to get a IIc with no power brick years ago (20+ years). I got ride of it. I've learned to live light having moved a lot. All I have are old reminiscing and romances. Thanks.
I've been trying to put together an Apple IIc by buying IIc's on eBay that look like they're in need of some work but are fixable. I find the hardest thing is locating IIc's with good keyboards. Do you have any insight on how to tell (by serial numbers, key cap color, etc.) which ones have the good Alps switches vs. those horrible ones with hairpin springs? I'm guessing there is no reliable way other than asking the seller? Do the IIc's even have consistent and decodable serial numbers that might indicate the year of production? Thanks so much. I look forward to your next video.
I got an Apple IIc with monitor, external floppy drive, printer, bag, and two cases of floppies comprising an entire 1980s Warez BBS all for about $20, it's one of my favorite vintage computer finds ever.
Ugh, there's many things you shouldn't do such as using a electric drill to put the screws back in as you'll over-tighten them plus why buy a completely new motherboard if its as simple as replacing a single chip?
+Mikemike690 It was not as simple as replacing a single chip, and replacing a single chip is not simple. And there is nothing wrong with using a power screwdriver.
Having replaced the memory on an Apple II motherboard (Mine was a IIe) I can confirm that replacing the memory is not as easy as it sounds, especially if you don't have the right tools for removing the old chips. I ended up breaking a few traces when I replaced my chips and had to use some small wires to reconnect the memory bus. It works now, but it was far harder than simply replacing the board would have been. Identifying which chip(s) is bad is particularly problematic on the early models of the IIc, which this one is. The system doesn't have a built-in diagnostic like the later IIc models (the ones with the memory expansion slot) and the IIe had. Even if it had the diagnostic, if the bad chip(s) are low enough in the address space, you won't even be able to run it because it wouldn't have reliable memory to operate from. And with 16 chips soldered onto the motherboard, it's much simpler to just replace the whole thing.
Very informative! My dad has an Apple II Plus that randomly shuts itself off, but restarts upon "dropping" the keyboard about 6 inches. My dad does it fine, but I hate the thought of damaging such an old machine. Do you have any pointers on what to look for? I've worked on modern computers so I could probably fix it on my own.
Good video, but why not try to clean the keyboard instead of getting a new one (there's probably a lot of crud that accumulated under the keys over the years, they're pretty easy to remove) ? And did you try individually swap out the old chips with the new ones?
No point going on a wild goose chase when I had a whole new motherboard, especially when it's usually the soldered-on RAM chips that go bad in IIc's. I'd also still be left with my video problem in that case. As for the keyboard, it's actually not that dirty - the problem is that the sliders have just gone gritty and the rubber mat underneath has gone stiff. I used this thing for close to 10 years before upgrading and I am a serious typist - this keyboard has a lot of mileage on it. I would love to fix it somehow but I'm sure I'd have to replace at least that rubber mat, and I'd have to make something custom. It also probably just isn't worth the effort, but I'd love it if I found out something that would prove me wrong on that.
Modern Classic I spilled coffee doing a video Friday into my G3 orange keyboard & probably killed it. An original now costs $30-40. Old Apple II parts are very pricey if you can find them.
Yeah I've seen his and some others, but the problem is it's a lot of work for maybe 2 years of brightening. Basically everything I've seen that done to goes back to yellow much more quickly than it originally did.
+Nerd Fest Ebay these days :) I have a search result link in the description. Though they were common enough that you can occasionally still find them at garage or estate sales. Or craigslist.
Original II's are getting ridiculous, and they're mainly good for collectors anyway (not as capable as later machines). Other II models really depend on condition and completeness. If you want a complete system (at least one drive + matching monitor) in good shape, I'd say: II+: $200 IIe: $250 IIGS: $300 IIc: $250 IIc Plus: $300-$350 (they don't come up that often) You can find any model for less if you can live without a dedicated monitor (use an old TV or something) or you're ok with something in rougher condition.
An original ][ is going to be the most expensive for a complete system in good shape - they usually start at around $400, and even that seems optimistic these days. Depending on how early a particular system is, they can really go into the thousands. It's gotten pretty crazy. Your best bet might be a garage sale or something, or a bare fixer-upper on Ebay. You can always find the monitors and drives separately and I'll bet you'd pay less for a rough condition ][, fixing it up and then separately building a complete system than you would by just buying a complete system from the start.
Good video! Thanks. It's good to know that others have the same appreciation for classic hardware, as I do. This was of particular interest to me, as I have the exact same problem with my IIc. Hopefully, I will not have to buy a new motherboard. It was unfortunate (at 13:20) that your hand covered the where you were applying the rubbing alcohol to the drive head. :-( Thanks again.
When I worked on logic board repairs we would have tested chips and parts for ground outs etc and replaced them as necessary. Not replace entire motherboard. So not sure that is how Apple would have done it. Certainly the local computer shop would have not done it this way. To trace the faulty parts would have been a lot cheaper back in the day.
Just a little addendum - I ended up hanging up my old motherboard on a pegboard, and it gave me the idea to actually frame it. It's nice and square-ish and somewhere around 12" by 10", but it obviously has some depth to it (I'm guessing about 2"). If anyone has any ideas for a frame I can order online that might work for this purpose, let me know.
I have the exact same kit. I am missing 2 screwdrivers from the stanley kit. Made in Taiwan.
How about: www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Frames-Shadow-Display-14-Inch/dp/B00NASEI3E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1492134420&sr=8-1&keywords=Lawrence+Frames+Shadow+Box+Frame+with+Linen+Inner+Display+Board%2C+11+by+14-Inch%2C+White
It is a shadow box so it will give you some height to work with and will keep the dust off the motherboard - almost like museum storage. There are many other styles, this one was the one I liked though. Thanks for the videos.
Yes, thanks! Something like that anyway. I knew I'd seen that type of display box but could not remember what they were called.
@@ModernClassic I can try to repair your original motherboard if you want ..
Just a thought... Clint of LGR (youtube channel) has a background in custom framing...
There's something you should know: The Mac 128k and the IIc used the same RAM chips which are known to fail a lot. You could buy some new ones for approximately 20 bucks and have them professionally installed (requires some soldering unfortunately...) but I'm 90% sure the RAM's to blame here. All those Apple branded RAM chips will fail at some point, so even your 'new' board will ultimately die.
I actually do know - that's why I bought a new board instead of trying to replace the individual chips. With two boards, I now have two boards worth of RAM chips, which should keep me in good supply until I die.
@@ModernClassic You have not bought a "new" board, you have either bought old stock (unused) or just a used good looking board. Highly doubt apple just fired up their production line a few years ago again
@@Purple__ It's called new old stock. Not an uncommon term.
In hardware enthusiast land, closing the machine before testing everything works is known to invite the need to open it again
Sounds like superstition until it happens to you :D
Yes, i just hope i won't need to fix the apple IIc im going to get in a white
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MT = Micron Technology. Also, your first board has bad RAM almost certainly. Its good to have an upgraded ROM with the built-in RAM testing facility for locating the offending chip. This is exactly how I fixed my own IIc.
You should do a video on your current desktop pc
I'm thinking to when I upgrade it. The main reason I haven't so far is that there are just so many channels already focusing on modern PC's... but people keep asking, so I'll do it when I upgrade my CPU and motherboard next time. (Which should be soon.)
I also have a green and rgb monitor. It's a pity that it's so hard to hook up a ][ GS to a modern tv. I've only seen one adaptor that will work now & it's around $100 & a lot of the devotees of the Apple ][ GS have passed on like Joe Klein.
The blue rectangle to the right of the green capacitor.
what is the cord that plugs in from the pc to the monitor called?
Composite video cable, or RCA cable. It's the same cable you use for connecting the audio in/out of hi-fi components.
You probably had a bad video rom on that old board, given the problems you described having before it went dead on you.
Last week I bought me one...
how about some retrobrite
broken RAM, MT RAM known to be bad
anybody hear that drill that sounded like a scream starting 10:55
Dial up that number, see who answers.
anyone else feel really nervous watching him mess with that power supply? I just kept thinking, "please don't let him touch a capacitor @_@"
I know all about capacitors :) I guess you didn't see my capacitor discharge tool in the background.
I am perfectly finje with watching these kinds of videos so keep on making them lol. Hopefully you don't have to make them all that often but don't be afraid to put them out if you need /want to.
Have you ever thought of Retrobriting the case?
ruclips.net/video/xBS_UEV35W4/видео.html
Huh. Well, then. Thanks for letting me know.
It isn't the greatest idea to use a drill or electric driver since you could strip the screw holes. My father is a retired electronics repair technician and still does fixes for other people. He _never_ uses anything but hand power for electronics.
Electronics are no different than anything else, and it's no easier to strip a screw hole with an electric screwdriver than a non-electric one. It takes exactly the same amount of torque, which means it's going to put exactly the same amount of force on your hands. An electric screwdriver would literally fly out of your hands before that happened, because you'd never be holding it that tight. You *might* hold a non-powered screwdriver that tight in order to get the rotational torque you need, which actually makes it more likely to strip either the hole or the head.
Also, electric screwdrivers are specifically made to have different torque settings. On the lowest setting, which is what I typically use unless I need more, it wouldn't strip the thread off a nail hole, much less a screw hole.
It's up to you.
Seeing him pull out an electric driver get me a short heart attack...A manual you can feel the tension and assess the energy needed as you go.
But until something goes wrong, I don't see why someone wouldn't use an electric driver unless they actually encounter these kind of issues - which I have in the past so I now stay away from them.
I agree. That was my first thought.
Damn, wozniak is really genius.
A good troubleshooting tip would have been to test the socketed IC's from the old board in the new board to verify their function and marking them as such. If you do decide in the future to have the original board repaired (which would have been my choice!) it will cut down on troubleshooting time and hassle.
Happy 40th Birthday Apple II Computer !!!!
Introduced at the West Coast Computer Faire on April 16, 1977
It’s 2021, Apple llc was my first computer which I still have. A couple months ago I bought the M1 iMac, technology advanced so much which made me think of my first computer, took it out from storage, cleaned it, then fired it up, it started! Only problem is I lost all of my floppies.
Now the llc is on the same desk with my new iMac, a family reunion.
Thank you for sharing your video.
I had a IIc as a very small child in the mid to late '80s. It has a place of honor on the top of my desk, where it can gaze upon the room full of computers that it helped pave the way for. I haven't booted it up in well over a decade and, frankly, I'm a bit scared to. Thank you for doing this video and giving me some confidence and a bit of motivation to do so. I mean, I still probably won't, because that would involve lugging the thing down from a hutch 7 feet above the ground, but at least I think that I could. Probably.
I was keeping mine in an attic for ten years, which is probably what broke it. But every once in a while I'd take it down to play some games. It's still fun to do that even if it is a bit of work; I think it's worth it. (Now I keep mine in my basement, which despite how it sounds is a step up from my attic. It's at least somewhat climate controlled.)
Honestly, I would not hate Apple so much these days if they would go back and look at this computer, and learn from where they started!! Modern Apple computers are a HORRIBLE joke to work on, and NO ONE finds it funny. Different screw sizes just to hold ONE component to the chassis....... horrible build quality, batteries glued in place, and components that barely last a few years, let alone 20+..... At least Apple used to make good hardware at one point.....
Long shot that anyone sees this that can help me, but I inherited (yes, literally inherited) an Apple 2 with no monitor, but two external drives that had been stored in a damp basement for probably 20+ years. I had diskettes, etc, and am interested in trying to restore the computer but I really have very little know how and am almost certain its FUBAR (the board has what looks like white corrosion and stuff on it). I have built my own modern PC and I can do some very minimal soldering, but am crap outside of that. Where can I find information or even like a guide on how to repair something that screwed up? Or should I give up on it?
Take the board out and literally wash it in distilled water and dish soap. Then rinse twice with distilled water and then rinse with isopropyl alcohol (high proof of 90% or better.) blow dry with a hot hair dryer.
That will clean up the board. Fixing it is a another matter. Check out Adrian's DIgital Basement Apple II repair videos.
I just got an apple 2c that used to belong to my uncle. I booted it up and it worked perfectly. I even played winter games but when i tried to used another disk the computer always shows me the check disk drive message (even if i try to play winter games again) so i was wondering if i only have to clean the reader or is it a bigger issue?
Most of the time cleaning the heads will fix some reading problems. It it more than likey media failure and not hardware failure.
Great video, I am going try and a least open, clean and check chips, specifically the IWM which I believe controls the floppy which is not working, the problem I am finding in my research is the chip itself is consider "unobtainium" and the best option is a mother replacement, naturally the first two I find have bad IWM chips.
Aww. Was hoping for a component level diagnosis of the mobo. Do hope that still happens. :D
3:34 pun intended? and I think if you contact the 8-Bit guy, he may have a buddy who knows how to troubleshoot the old logic board
It would be interesting to know but I'm not really sure it's worth the effort. Usually it's bad RAM on IIc's, but it's just a question of knowing which particular chip(s). If the same thing ever happened to the new board, I'd probably just start replacing chips until it was fixed.
Years ago when I worked at Digital Equipment, I built my own LSI-11 computer out of scrap boards I bought from the company's salvage department. (cost me ten cents on the dollar of DEC's cost). I had some bad ram, so I ran a memory test on the board (which means the computer had at least SOME good memory) and then unsoldered the bad chips. I replaced these chips with sockets, and removed memory from another board and slowly placed that memory in the sockets and re-ran the memory tests. Took awhile, but eventually, I had a pile of known good chips which went into the sockets, and a few other boards with bad memory.
Probably the last apple product you could disassemble with a regular screwdriver
My iic has a memory expansion slot. But I can't really afford buying one. Is there a 3rd party module?
Apple made one (1mb) and Applied Engineering made one as well (1 to 4 mb). But I doubt prices on them will drop. It is a seller's market out there.
I hate how expensive these old apple computers are now. Modern apple fanboys with too much disposable income ruining everything...
I agree with that. Sometimes you see original Apple II's going for $2,000 these days.
Just did this same thing to one of my apple IIc's, bought it in a lot of 2 off of eBay. in may case, while I was getting the apple IIC logo on the screen, I was also seeing a few white marks and it would not read disks even after cleaning the drive head and lubricating the rails. Also like yours, my video as well as power port were not doing so good. Tried to boot using an old but tested disk II drive connected to the motherboard, same thing happened. ended up getting an NOS 1986 rev board off of eBay. In addition to not having the infamous MT ram, I think it had TI ram made in Japan, it has a new type video port and a noticeably newer rom chip. The Install was simple and it brought my broken C back to life.
"Steve Wozniak >was< a great engineer."
Hey, how about using the present tense! He's not dead yet! Steve Wozniak IS a great engineer, and he's still with us!
Maibe because he does not work as an engenner anymore.
he hasn't done any engineering in decades. he's an educator and philanthropist.
What a simple set up for the power supply; it just plugs into the logic board. I like modular designs like that.
super cool video, i just scored an IIc too.. really needed to know how to dir a disk, load somethng, write what ever.. like the ultra noob thing :-) your how to load from disc commands are not clear from the video, can you please comment what to do ?
Apple ][ forever !😁
Ah, the Apple //c. *_* I learned to use a computer on one of those. Good to hear you got your old one back running, it's always nice to bring an old beast back from the dead.
I have one of these. Still works! Got mine in 1985 when I was turned 16. Awesome times, I was go giddy to have my first computer and it was a really good one with a huge library available. Guess I should start looking for spare parts though because these things die eventually.
Love your Vids MC! . Im hunting around for 1 of these old girls. :) keep up the good work
Didnt take long i just brought 1 :) picking it up in a week :)
Whenever I see the Apple //c, I always think of "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", in which he chose to get this computer instead of a car. Funny to think there was a time in which you had to choose between a computer or a car. I made the same decision regarding my first real 486DX2-66. Hell, it was even MORE expensive than a car.
Damn, this is a good video! I have an Apple 2C with a couple of issue. The first was the monitor doesn't turn on, the other one is that I have ever "check disc" error and if I type on keyboard some command this are not showed and executed... Any help?
OMG ! I had this computer growing up. My dad brought it home from work. We where of lower means and only saw a computer at school for Organ Trail and basics. Never desired a home computer. I played a hockey and golf game. No graphics,so type a number for shot selection and read results. Tried the drawing program but it wasn’t much. So many great memories.
Why not flip a few chips from the working mother board? Why just give up and replace the mother board when you can try to see if it's one of the socketed parts? Most of those chips are off the shelf and you can have two working MB's and even sell one to get your money back. Friendly word of advice. Invest in a multimeter and an oscilloscope. They are not hard to use and you could learn a few things about how computers work on a low level understanding.
Like you the first computer I ever bought was the Apple IIc. I recently dug it out of boxes in my garage and tried to check it out. Unfortunately I cannot find the power brick or any of the old disks except for Appleworks. Once I figure out how to reconstruct the power supply I'll be giving it a try. Oh, I also have the Apple IIc Technical Reference Manual. If you ever need any info out of it just give me a shout.
You should check the memory chips at the old motherboard. Other falilure could a dried out capacitor.
I remember they used this computer in the 80s movie Explorers with the late great River Phoenix lol
This, right?
starringthecomputer.com/computer.html?c=19#14
Yea!
Wow... you sound remarkably like PBS's Ira Flatow (from Science Friday.) That aside... great job and video!
I still have my old Apple IIc from my childhood with the same issue, after seeing this I think it's about time to get it working again
Talk to Adrian Black of Adrian's Digital Basement in repairing the //c mobo. He already resurrected a dead //c and a II+. It looks like bad RAM to me. Having a repaired board would be a plus even if you hang it on a frame, at least you will know it works.
Apple might have been the only company that had engineering on par with IBM in their computers, and it's really quite obvious in this teardown.
Loving your videos man!
Where do you get a motherboard for an Apple ][ c these days ? I ask because I own a ][c, 2 ][ GS's - 1with an internal hard drive, 2 ][ e's & an integer based Apple. All still work & the hardest thing is to find the GS OS 6.0 System Disks without which you can't run the computer.
I just checked Ebay for a while and this one popped up. Often there's one or two available there, though usually well used. When I saw the condition of this one, though, I finally jumped on it.
There are archives of Apple's old support downloads site which include disk images for GS OS 6. You do need an older mac to actually make the floppies as they're in DiskCopy format, unless you can find a tool that can send the images over a serial connection from a newer computer.
I had a IIc identical to yours. Had to get rid of it in the early '90s to make room for a new Mac Centris 610. Wish I'd had the room to hang onto it, it would be fun to play with now.
You wouldn't still happen to have your old framed board would you? I'd love to purchase the volume pot from you... I broke mine thinking that I could remove the knob to retrobrite it.
Would you be willing to fix my Apple iic for a fee? Thanks, Mark
It's weird that you mention the retro-brite being temporary. I did it to a PS one 6 years ago and it still holds up. The same with a PSP I did 4 years ago.
The yellowing only comes back if you leave the plastic exposed to heat and/ or UV light for long periods of time, repeatedly.
"In Space, No One Can Hear You Scream!" the sound made me thing of Mother from Alien! :P
Mine are stacked up in my hall closet. I lost my storage in 2001 & would be " rich " today because I had all the chips, keyboards, disc drives in bins as spares. I used to work for Shugart and built my 2 disk ]['s with my own hands that still work.
what does it mean when the screen has diagonal lines? is the brightness just too high? i noticed one of my old TVs does the same. i see one listed for sale, shows these lines, but not sure if again just too much brightness?
i just got a Apple //e, i may get a floppy emu for it as well cause the floppy disks are degrading and prone to failure
keep this up... u make great vids,1 mil in no time
Feb 10, 1986 - day I entered Navy boot camp. Great video.
Man. You dont replace a whole motherboard or keyboard. You fix it. That replacement board is a time bomb as well. Start by cleaning the thing in alcohol and then look for caps leaking out. Text for continuity. Look for board crack running through the traces etc.
Done, done and done. Didn't find anything; replaced motherboard. Easy and works.
I have an old decision data and have no idea how it works it has a tiny mobo in the stand I tried UXWBILL and got no reply
Was it me, or did the black cap near the power supply look blown out on the 'new' board?
3:31 - I see the pun you made there! Haha!
Could you do something about the commodore 64? Great video, anyway ;)
I could and probably will at some point... I just have less experience with it than with the Apple II, and I need to fill out a complete system before making a video (right now I have a C64 and that's it). My best friend when I was a kid had a C64 so I have some experience with it from back then, but I'd want to learn some more about it before I did a video on it. But it'll probably happen.
I don't get the power tool use on such old and fragile hardware - it always makes me cringe…
Plastic is so brittle by this time that you should sense the torque by hand, trying to use previous grooves so that plastics stands wont crack…. forgive my OCD ;-)
In particular computers like, for instance, the G3 iMac beije soul, I even use silicon based lubricant to ease the screw fastening - it also helps to restore the plastic’s flexibility
It's not fragile at all. I've owned this machine for more than 30 years - Apple used to build their cases to last.
Shouldn't use a powered screwdriver on electronics. Can cause more damage. But it's one of those things, up to you. I have an Apple //c, my first as well. Love the Apple II machines.
Never had a problem, don't see why I would. A powered screwdriver just does what you would do, only without the effort. Anyway, nice to find another IIc owner!
I'm brand new to Apple, but could it have just been a chip, where you could replace each one from the new board? Does the iic have a dedicated video chip? Really, i'm new to this Apple iic stuff. :-)
It's most likely a bad RAM chip. But there's no reliable way to test those that I know of other than pulling chips out of another board and replacing them until you find the bad one(s). It's not really an efficient way to repair something, and you end up destroying another board anyway.
I was really hoping you'd give us a little gameplay of the Flight Simulator. I started using computers after Y2K, but my GOD these old machines are fascinating!
I actually felt the same way after uploading the video and watching it all the way through, but I was too excited about the computer working again to think about it at the time (my reaction in the video is about as demonstrative as I ever get). Well, there will be other videos. I'm planning a series of "is it worth it?" videos on various game and computer systems where I'm going to mostly show a bunch of gameplay, weigh the pros and cons and then tell you if it's worth going out and buying that system, and I'll do one on the Apple II.
Thats funny. The iic was my first computer in 1994.
a bit Lame, i actually troubleshoot and at least try to find and fix the prolem before replacing the Motherboard completely on an old machine..
but is fair enough, some times i'm lazy too..
The simplest repair is always the preferred repair. Also, I know what the problem is - one or more RAM chips.
Most likely the problem with the old board is one of the chips. Probably a memory chip. You should swap chips between them until you find the faulty one and then just replace the chip.
There were no sources for those chips at the time I made this video (and probably not now either) other than, wait for it... other motherboards.
That knocking noise you're hearing when you initiate or the FDD, is the computer sending the "HEAD BACK" command about 40 times. This ensures the head will start at position 0, since the computer doesn't know where the head was left at.
The Apple IIc was the computer that got me through college connected to my Hayes 300 baud Smartmodem. I just picked up one from eBay to play around with, since I was not an electronics tinkerer back in my college days, so taking it apart will be my first priority and examining now what I didn't know back then. Great video...Thanks
I wouldn't say that it is an repair you basicly just replaced the mainboard so i would say the title should be motherboard replacing and not full repair
Yes, that is exactly how Apple would have repaired it.
You make it sound so easy to repair an Apple IIc!
I also grew up owning one of those, with the matching color monitor (which was bigger than the mono). It is sadly gone, because my family insisted i had to sell it before i could get a new computer. Sometimes i fire an emulator and play some games, i did spent countless hours with that very same Flight Simulator, Wings of Fury, Skyfox, Stellar 7 and many other games. I also had an external 3.5" drive, which was pretty much the same as the IIgs, and the Imagewritter II printer. I only learned about Wozniak after becoming an adult, now i understand things about the Apple //c back then i didn't (such as the floppy noise). All i remember is that noise was music to my ears, especially after seeing a c64 on a friend's computer load a game (eg Skyfox) from a floppy drive... (3secs vs 3 mins?, same game? pff.) All the Apple II lacked was decent sound, and the IIgs cured that, but the Mac was the flagship and the vast majority of software was going elsewhere...
I wonder if the casing is actually yellowish (beige) instead of more like a gray color.
This is one case where the original color actually was white. I know both because I've owned this machine from day one, and I still have my manual that has clear pictures of what it looked like.
Thank you, Found one and doing abit of cleaning
pretty sure the apple IIc board had cream alps you just have to clean them alps dont like dirt
if they dont have alps idk lol most of the old apple boards did tho
3:30 That's all about IC
Never lost a mini screw driver?? You must be an apple guy lol. I mean that as a compliment .
I would rather have seen you actually repair "your" computer. I suspect the issue you were having isn't that hard to chase down. With some help from various groups may have been just as easy and a lot less expensive, a whole lot more rewarding and most importantly you would still have "your" computer. You have the shell of your computer, but it's not "your" computer anymore. Meaning the original computer. Just my 2 cents on the matter. I am glad you got it fixed and that you are satisfied with it.
I repaired it exactly the same way Apple would have. It most definitely still is my computer. Don't get hung up on counting chips or components. Very easy to fall into that trap with old stuff.
@@ModernClassic Understood, wasn't trying to be overly critical. It's just my opinion, not worth getting hung up on it! ;) My friend's parents bought a IIc after they bought him a VIC20 to gauge how he'd take to it. That was a huge influence on me which lead me to buy a IIe with my own money at the age of about 13. I never knew what happened to that computer. I left it with my mother, went off to serve in the military. Years later it was gone. I did manage to get a IIc with no power brick years ago (20+ years). I got ride of it. I've learned to live light having moved a lot. All I have are old reminiscing and romances. Thanks.
I've been trying to put together an Apple IIc by buying IIc's on eBay that look like they're in need of some work but are fixable. I find the hardest thing is locating IIc's with good keyboards. Do you have any insight on how to tell (by serial numbers, key cap color, etc.) which ones have the good Alps switches vs. those horrible ones with hairpin springs? I'm guessing there is no reliable way other than asking the seller? Do the IIc's even have consistent and decodable serial numbers that might indicate the year of production? Thanks so much. I look forward to your next video.
"0788" date code on your original. I think it's even newer than you thought.
I got an Apple IIc with monitor, external floppy drive, printer, bag, and two cases of floppies comprising an entire 1980s Warez BBS all for about $20, it's one of my favorite vintage computer finds ever.
had this growing up with a stack of games
Ugh, there's many things you shouldn't do such as using a electric drill to put the screws back in as you'll over-tighten them plus why buy a completely new motherboard if its as simple as replacing a single chip?
+Mikemike690 It was not as simple as replacing a single chip, and replacing a single chip is not simple. And there is nothing wrong with using a power screwdriver.
Having replaced the memory on an Apple II motherboard (Mine was a IIe) I can confirm that replacing the memory is not as easy as it sounds, especially if you don't have the right tools for removing the old chips. I ended up breaking a few traces when I replaced my chips and had to use some small wires to reconnect the memory bus. It works now, but it was far harder than simply replacing the board would have been.
Identifying which chip(s) is bad is particularly problematic on the early models of the IIc, which this one is. The system doesn't have a built-in diagnostic like the later IIc models (the ones with the memory expansion slot) and the IIe had. Even if it had the diagnostic, if the bad chip(s) are low enough in the address space, you won't even be able to run it because it wouldn't have reliable memory to operate from. And with 16 chips soldered onto the motherboard, it's much simpler to just replace the whole thing.
I had one of those too I had lots of disks for it
Very informative! My dad has an Apple II Plus that randomly shuts itself off, but restarts upon "dropping" the keyboard about 6 inches. My dad does it fine, but I hate the thought of damaging such an old machine. Do you have any pointers on what to look for? I've worked on modern computers so I could probably fix it on my own.
something about this is satisfying...
Good video, but why not try to clean the keyboard instead of getting a new one (there's probably a lot of crud that accumulated under the keys over the years, they're pretty easy to remove) ? And did you try individually swap out the old chips with the new ones?
No point going on a wild goose chase when I had a whole new motherboard, especially when it's usually the soldered-on RAM chips that go bad in IIc's. I'd also still be left with my video problem in that case. As for the keyboard, it's actually not that dirty - the problem is that the sliders have just gone gritty and the rubber mat underneath has gone stiff. I used this thing for close to 10 years before upgrading and I am a serious typist - this keyboard has a lot of mileage on it. I would love to fix it somehow but I'm sure I'd have to replace at least that rubber mat, and I'd have to make something custom. It also probably just isn't worth the effort, but I'd love it if I found out something that would prove me wrong on that.
Modern Classic I spilled coffee doing a video Friday into my G3 orange keyboard & probably killed it. An original now costs $30-40.
Old Apple II parts are very pricey if you can find them.
8 bit guy on youtube has some great vids on plastic resto and apple 2 repair
awesome vid
Yeah I've seen his and some others, but the problem is it's a lot of work for maybe 2 years of brightening. Basically everything I've seen that done to goes back to yellow much more quickly than it originally did.
word
Is the name "Spunkmire" an Aliens reference?
Where does one acquire a working Apple ][ or ][c anyway?
+Nerd Fest Ebay these days :) I have a search result link in the description. Though they were common enough that you can occasionally still find them at garage or estate sales. Or craigslist.
Thanks! Will be sure to check it out! Any baseline price tips?
Original II's are getting ridiculous, and they're mainly good for collectors anyway (not as capable as later machines). Other II models really depend on condition and completeness. If you want a complete system (at least one drive + matching monitor) in good shape, I'd say:
II+: $200
IIe: $250
IIGS: $300
IIc: $250
IIc Plus: $300-$350 (they don't come up that often)
You can find any model for less if you can live without a dedicated monitor (use an old TV or something) or you're ok with something in rougher condition.
OK, thanks! I'm just looking for an ][. :)
An original ][ is going to be the most expensive for a complete system in good shape - they usually start at around $400, and even that seems optimistic these days. Depending on how early a particular system is, they can really go into the thousands. It's gotten pretty crazy. Your best bet might be a garage sale or something, or a bare fixer-upper on Ebay. You can always find the monitors and drives separately and I'll bet you'd pay less for a rough condition ][, fixing it up and then separately building a complete system than you would by just buying a complete system from the start.
Good video! Thanks. It's good to know that others have the same appreciation for classic hardware, as I do. This was of particular interest to me, as I have the exact same problem with my IIc. Hopefully, I will not have to buy a new motherboard.
It was unfortunate (at 13:20) that your hand covered the where you were applying the rubbing alcohol to the drive head. :-(
Thanks again.
Alps keyboards are relatively easy to get back to clean and working order so replacing the entire board is just a waste imo.
When I worked on logic board repairs we would have tested chips and parts for ground outs etc and replaced them as necessary. Not replace entire motherboard. So not sure that is how Apple would have done it. Certainly the local computer shop would have not done it this way. To trace the faulty parts would have been a lot cheaper back in the day.