68kMLA Classic Interface

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I Finally Opened My Color Classic!
Posted by: Juliet Elysa on 2025-03-09 19:14:25 Hey y'all! Long time no speak! I've been in surgery fun land basically nonstop the last few years, but I'm finally at a point where I can (kinda) start lugging Macs around again! My first order of business tonight was to defuse the time bomb in my Color Classic, and thankfully, everything was in pristine condition, apart from needing a thorough dust removal. No leakage whatsoever! But there's a slight problem - the RAM was salvaged. Can anyone point me in the right direction for maxing it out, so I can keep troubleshooting?
Posted by: Juliet Elysa on 2025-03-09 23:04:06 Turns out it's been a hot minute since I've been in the Mac realm, and I've forgotten a few basics, like soldered on RAM. There are signs of life from removing the battery! It won't get past this point, but hey - it's a lot better than I had several years ago! Is this a sign that a recap is needed, or something else?
Posted by: chrisrueckert on 2025-03-09 23:22:24 A recap will certainly help. To get to 10mb of RAM you'll need 2 30 pin SIMMS with 4mb each.
Posted by: Juliet Elysa on 2025-03-09 23:57:27 Thank you! That certainly seems more affordable than a Mystic upgrade, at least for the time being. My ultimate dream is to bring it roughly up to spec with my Performa 635CD, which looks like an LC 550 board + VGA mod.
Posted by: bibilit on 2025-03-10 00:28:02 Probably won't work properly without new capos around and the Egret removed, cleaned and put back together (lot of contamination underside)
Posted by: Juliet Elysa on 2025-03-10 00:32:31 Thanks! Do you know of anyone who'd be willing to help me with all that? I have zero soldering skill and really don't want to mess up my Holy Grail Mac.
Posted by: cheesestraws on 2025-03-10 01:24:20 The other thing to bear in mind with these is that the connections between the logic board and everything else are far less robust than they appear at this stage and work far less well. Make sure that the ground loops on the bottom of the logic board are actually making contact with the shielding on the bottom of the cage, and you may need to clean the edge connector.
Posted by: Juliet Elysa on 2025-03-10 03:22:40 Good point - I just saw an Adrian's Digital Basement video where that was a problem for him!
Posted by: nathall on 2025-03-10 23:16:33 Yeah, I’m not a fan of the grounding “system” in these. My CCII has issues after it sits for a while where those loops don’t want to make proper contact. I’m experimenting with shoving aluminum foil between the loops and the cage to increase the contact area, which seems to be working OK so far.
Posted by: daanvdl on 2025-03-11 02:31:46 Thanks! Do you know of anyone who'd be willing to help me with all that? I have zero soldering skill and really don't want to mess up my Holy Grail Mac. Would help if we know where you are located😉
Posted by: adespoton on 2025-03-11 08:15:12 Yeah, I’m not a fan of the grounding “system” in these. My CCII has issues after it sits for a while where those loops don’t want to make proper contact. I’m experimenting with shoving aluminum foil between the loops and the cage to increase the contact area, which seems to be working OK so far. When I still had my CC, I had to bend up the loops and use a bit of emery cloth on them to improve the contact at one point; worked great after that.
Posted by: sircabulon on 2025-03-17 15:25:02 Thanks! Do you know of anyone who'd be willing to help me with all that? I have zero soldering skill and really don't want to mess up my Holy Grail Mac. Where are you? I just did mine with tantalums.
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