AA3000+ Amiga 3000 AGA motherboard

[Bruce72]

Hi Bruce, i'm having troubles on my AA3000+ and flicker-fixed VGA output (tried multiple monitors, one CRT, one flat panel). You mentioned vsync/tick jumper, would that really matter? What was your final configuration of GALs, Jumpers, tweaks, that got you a working flicker-fixed VGA output? (I think I saw you or someone mention having more luck with NTSC than PAL, for example)

So, the VSYNC / Tick jumper was causing issues when trying to boot into an actual KS and was more of a face palm moment.

The bigger issues I had (being the doubled screen) was the initial use of -5 gals instead of -10, but that lead to the PAL image overshooting the screen but NTSC lined up nicely. This issue was resolved with a different monitor in the end.

That all said, with the OCS demo "Batman Rises" the section with the Crow at the end still comes up with the split screen issue first noted as well as Diagrom (occasionally).

Bruce.

 

[CodePoet]

I'm still having a couple of issues:
1. Built in VGA output (flicker-fixed or not) - i get no signal from the VGA port to my Dell 2410 monitor (which is 15KHz compatible). Standard Amiga DB23 works fine
1a) if i switch to sync-on-green AND flifi DISabled, i get a badly jail-barred signal delivered to my Dell monitor via the VGA connector
1b) if i leave sync-on-green, and ENable flifi, i'm back to no output
2. Do people jumper the monitor switcher to AUTOMATIC, and then the jumpers on the Amiga input header? Or should is set it specifically to Amiga?
3. I tried tuning the vari-cap for flifi, and I can't get 28.x MHz like John Hertell gets in his tuning reference on his Building page. I can only get about 26.8MHz
4. If/when i muck with the little variable pot at BACK of machine (next to VGA connector), where can I tap and measure to see what the fuck i'm adjusting?

 

[DanielKlein]

To get chipmem working on my AA3000+ board i need the following jed files:

U681_GAL16V8.jed
U694_GAL16V8.jed

In the file folder "AA3000plus_mb_rev10_assembly\Logic" i can find
the "U681_GAL16V8.jed" but not the "U694_GAL16V8.jed".

Is this "U694_GAL16V8.jed" file missing?

 

[DanielKlein]

My problem with the "U694_GAL16V8.jed" is solved.
Thanks!

 

[salocinx]

Has the AA3000+ routed the INT6 signal to the processor slot?

 

[Bruce72]

AA3k+ w/ Firebird (rev1) Daughterboard.

I have a curly one that has been doing my head in for some time now.
If I have any expansion card that occupies the address space of 50000000 - 5fffffff, then it will fail. More specifically, if it is a RAM card it will fail between 5fc00000 - 5fc7ffff (see attached image).

But if I reshuffle the cards to different slots, and order so to avoid that auto config address range, then all is good.
I've tested with the following expansion cards:

2x BigRAM (256mb) cards
X-Surf (original card)
CV64/3D
ZZ9000 (Memory and Graphics)

I have reflowed the Altera Chips, and reflashed them to no effect.

I have had a Radeon Graphics card work within it, so I know that the PCI bridge works.

Any assistance in resolving this would be greatly appreciated.

 

[torsti76]

Most probably, this isn't an issue with the Alteras, but rather with the buffer chips for SuperBuster on the mainboard.

Check them for shorts or loose pins.

 

[Bruce72]

I can do that, but on a side note, if I use a standard A3k Daughterboard and have a card in that address range, then there is no issue.

 

[torsti76]

Another possibility could be a short on one of the Alteras or one of the resistor networks on the Firebird.

 

[trixster]

The DSP gets its killer app

GitHub - Wrangler491/DSP3210MPEG: MPEG 1 Layer II and III decoder for AA3000+ Amigas

MPEG 1 Layer II and III decoder for AA3000+ Amigas - Wrangler491/DSP3210MPEG

github.com

 

[qz3fwd]

Perhaps but the CPU is at like 70% even with the DSP.

 

[hese]

Perhaps but the CPU is at like 70% even with the DSP.

How much it would be without the DSP?

 

[trixster]

Perhaps but the CPU is at like 70% even with the DSP.

Go and try playing an mp3 on just a 25mhz 030. Then try and play an mp3 on a 50mhz 030 and see how responsive the system remains..

As a reference point, playing mp3s on a stock Falcon is even more unresponsive, the system can’t do anything else, at all. Music apps like FalcAmp are not multitasking under TOS, you need an accelerator and either magic or mint as an OS. The falcon can handle higher bitrates and frequencies than what this is doing on the dsp3210, but that’s due to the limitations of the way the dsp3210 doesn’t play well with the Amiga’s bus, not the dsp itself - on the falcon there is no such issue. The issue here is feeding data into the dsp’s small 8k memory and keeping it fed. The falcon dsp also doesn’t have to process the data to go thru a chip like paula as it has a cs4216.

Wrangler has already improved the code to get 112kbps working ok.

 

[THW]

Hello everyone,



I allready build this board these days. All parts are working fine together.

SCSI, Flickerfixer/Scandoubler, BFG 9060, reSDMAC with Ramsey 7, FastRAM and the DSP.

The only issue I have, is when I switch the flickerfixer part with the swtich at the end of the board up to the 15KHz mode, the board is not starting. The power LED is blinking 5 times and sometimes a yellow screen blinks short up.

If I switch the flickerfixer part with the switch down to the 31KHz mode the board starts fine and it works stabel for hours.

Is there anyone who has a clue where I can look which ic or part is maybe responsible for that? This is the only problem what prevents me to finishing the board.



Thanks in advance for any hint, help or info.

 

[CodePoet]

@Bruce72 are you a builder of these?

 

[Bruce72]

@Bruce72 are you a builder of these?

I am, and was just looking through my notes on previous builds, but the issue I had was that the system wouldn't boot with the flicker fixer ENABLED (which turned out to be the field memory chips causing that).

@THW can you try with the RGB output and advise if there are any issues there?

 

[THW]

The RGP port works fine with my D520 RGB2HDMI converter.
Thanks for the reply.

 

[Bruce72]

The RGP port works fine with my D520 RGB2HDMI converter.
Thanks for the reply.

Can you try booting with the flicker fixer enabled (switch down) and then once booted disable it and advise?

Also, what speed gal's did you use for U460 & U461?

 

[THW]

Exactly that I have tried before.
I started the board with switch down and after booting the board, I switched up during operation and the board works further.
I tried it vice versa. Starting the board with switch up, LED blinks, switch down and most of the time, blinking ends and the board comes up and boots.
GALs: First I use 5ns ones I got an offset display.
With 10ns ATFs the FliFi works fine.
But with both speedgrades the starting issue is exactly the same with the switch in up position.

Maybe I should try 15ns ones?

 

[Bruce72]

I can't speak to -15's, but certainly had no end of trouble with the -5's and moving to -10's fixed all my issues that I had.

I would go over that whole section of the board with a microscope checking for bridged/missed solder points especially on the resistor and capacitor networks as well as the fine pitched buffers. Failing that, reach out to Hese with your symptoms.