Finally, a reliable inexpensive RAM upgrade for the Atari ST! (That you can make yourself)

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It's difficult to upgrade the RAM on a lot of early Atari ST machines. The upgrades that were commercially available back in the heyday of this machine were all pretty flaky could cause damage to your machine.
In this video, I'll show off an upgrade created by Anders Granlund that while hard to install, promises to be super reliable and cause no damage to your machine. You can also make it yourself!
--- Video Links
Part 1: • This Atari was nearly ...
Part 2: • I figured out what is ...
Part 3: • Retrobrighting worked ...
Part 4: This part!
SMMC 0012 Atari ST 4mb RAM upgrade:
• 0012 Finally, a reliab...
Project for 4mb RAM upgrade for the Atari ST by Anders Granlund:
github.com/agranlund/STRam
Indoor Retrobriting: (Blue box)
• A new way to fix yello...
• Indoor Retrobrite Foll...
Adrian's Digital Basement ][ (Second Channel)
/ @adriansdigitalbasement2
Support the channel on Patreon:
/ adriansdigitalbasement
-- Tools
Deoxit D5:
amzn.to/2VvOKy1
store.caig.com/s.nl/it.A/id.16...
O-Ring Pick Set: (I use these to lift chips off boards)
amzn.to/3a9x54J
Elenco Electronics LP-560 Logic Probe:
amzn.to/2VrT5lW
Hakko FR301 Desoldering Iron:
amzn.to/2ye6xC0
Rigol DS1054Z Four Channel Oscilloscope:
www.rigolna.com/products/digi...
Head Worn Magnifying Goggles / Dual Lens Flip-In Head Magnifier:
amzn.to/3adRbuy
TL866II Plus Chip Tester and EPROM programmer: (The MiniPro)
amzn.to/2wG4tlP
www.aliexpress.com/item/33000...
TS100 Soldering Iron:
amzn.to/2K36dJ5
www.ebay.com/itm/TS100-65W-MI...
EEVBlog 121GW Multimeter:
www.eevblog.com/product/121gw/
DSLogic Basic Logic Analyzer:
amzn.to/2RDSDQw
www.ebay.com/itm/USB-Logic-DS...
Magnetic Screw Holder:
amzn.to/3b8LOhG
www.harborfreight.com/4-inch-...
Universal ZIP sockets: (clones, used on my ZIF-64 test machine)
www.ebay.com/itm/14-16-18-20-...
RetroTink 2X Upconverter: (to hook up something like a C64 to HDMI)
www.retrotink.com/
Plato (Clone) Side Cutters: (order five)
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Heat Sinks:
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Little squeezy bottles: (available elsewhere too)
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--- Links
My GitHub repository:
github.com/misterblack1?tab=r...
Commodore Computer Club / Vancouver, WA - Portland, OR - PDX Commodore Users Group
www.commodorecomputerclub.com/
--- Instructional videos
My video on damage-free chip removal:
• How to remove chips wi...
--- Music
Intro music and other tracks by:
Nathan Divino
@itsnathandivino

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17 дек 2021

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Комментарии : 548

@DaT0nkee 2 года назад

Remove the plastic spacer from the pins, and snip off 2 mm of the ends. You have extra 2mm if it is enough. Also install some pin sockets for the jump wires, and pins on the wires so you can remove it any time without soldering.

@ZXRulezzz 2 года назад

I don't think he can do that, those look like machined pins and not your standard 2.54 pin header, if you remove spacer from those you'd still have a thick part of the pin getting in the way. Those pins are really good and don't wreck sockets (round profile, smaller diameter, and nicely rounded end), but yes, have to watch the height if it's critical. I designed a TRS-80 model 100 RAM expansion a year or so ago which plugs into its system bus (the one under the cover on the back). I was going to use those machined pins and had to absolutely make sure it'll all fit (and it did). Since then I've been slacking off on writing software for it :P

@suchkasuchka 2 года назад

@@ZXRulezzz seems like a good field for experimentation with different kinds of pins!

@pANZERNOOb 2 года назад

I second that, how exactly he extracts the spacers might be a bit tough tho. Maybe he could use pliers to carefully pull the plastic off without bending the pins, or maybe cut the plastic away. Honestly I think it might be best to remove some pins from the spacers before soldering them to the board, of course he would have to redo the pins on the expansion card.

@keithw6379 2 года назад

I was going to say the same. I can sometimes slide the plastic spacer off if it's only a few pins or sharp cutters can crack the plastic to release them. I then cut a piece of heatshrink to size and Drop it over each pin and cut it to the top of the heat shrink giving me a guide to get every pin the same height. You may find it harder to plug back in as the pins are tapered at the ends and you would have cut the taper off

@techrev9999 2 года назад

I was thinking the same. You do get the feeling he backed out more because of the instabilities than the fitment.

@darkstatehk 2 года назад

"I don't know what 2022 is gonna bring for me, I think there's potentially gonna be some changes in the future for me ....but I'm not gonna talk about that at this point....." *Adrian, ARE YOU OK? WE LOVE U SO MUCH! Hoping that your health is in good condition and your situation is positive.*

@miken8150 Месяц назад

Spoiler: Adrian quits his day job and decides to do RU-vid full time. 🤪

@GManmcaoidh 2 года назад

Changes? Hope everything is alright with you Adrian. Love what you do - hey even the lows are part of the adventure. It sucks, but it makes the victories sweeter.

@vonkruel 2 года назад

Hey, you started with a working ST and you finished with a working ST. Anyway, I think there's real value in showing your mistakes, and it reflects well on you to do so. Your projects usually end well, and a "fail" here & there only makes the wins that much sweeter. Best wishes to you & your family sir.

@kjtroj 2 года назад

I will admit, while watching this, I was wondering "Will sockets make it too tall for the keyboard?" Sadly, it did. As someone suggested, you may be able to remove the spacers on the headers, clip the leads short and fit it in. All depends on how far off the fit is.

@ItsMrAssholeToYou 2 года назад

As soon as removing the RAM was brought up, I immediately thought sockets, then clearance. I figured he would had done the same, so when he started talking sockets, I presumed he checked the clearance before proceeding. I was kinda surprised when the KB didn't fit.

@timothywildschut 2 года назад

Maybe you can fit it in, just get rid of the black plastic stand-offs on the pins? Perhaps that give's enough room for the keyboard to fit.

@NoshAbroad 2 года назад

this is exactly what I was thinking

@blackterminal Год назад

Destructive removal?

@BrainSlugs83 2 года назад

I believe the reason your getting non-deterministic issues is because grounding that address line isn't doing what you think it's doing. It does disable the upper memory. But, it also remaps the upper addresses to the lower addresses. Think about it, if the Atari tries to write byte at a high address, with that bit of the address line grounded, it's still going to enable the lower chips instead, thus overwriting that memory. This will even fool the system test, when it checks if those upper addresses can be written to and read from, it will pass that test and think it has 4mb, even though that line is grounded. -- This is why the flakey behavior is event based (opening a program or changing a setting, etc.) If you really want a physical switch that will disable half the RAM, you'll need a logic gate (or a diode) that takes the /CE lines high when that high bit is set. Games are working because they aren't using that upper memory.

@horusfalcon 2 года назад

Nice catch! I do believe you're right.

@UnseenMenace 2 года назад

Wouldn't just disconnecting A9 be sufficient? After all, the A9 pin on the MMU wasn't connected to anything initially.

@tekvax01 2 года назад

@@UnseenMenace No! you must remove the CE {BAR} signal as well.

@markpstapley 2 года назад

Hmm... I also think you are spot on with this. Also think he should disolder the pin headers from the add on board, and get replacement ones of the correct length, rather than trying to cut down the existing ones to try to make them fit.

@stubarnes1965 2 года назад

I remember modding my 520 as you describe back in the day. Chips soldered directly to the original bank with ras and cas bent up 180 degrees to run a pair of bus bars along the top set. Worked perfectly for years.

@bdeblier 2 года назад

That was how the 520ST+ came out of the factory, IIRC.

@virtualtools_3021 2 года назад

Half pcb, half deadbug, epic!

@Ray-ds5dc 2 года назад

Yes, I did the same to my 520 STFM and it seemed to work well. I used cheap second-hand memory chips (from a UK main-frame scrapping company) and followed directions in a magazine (early 1990s).

@joefish6091 2 года назад

@@Ray-ds5dc Happy Memory Essex ?

@peteregan9750 2 года назад

Adrian - really enjoy your videos... A quick tip, to remove all those sockets more easily, capsim tape around them, and protect the other areas , USE A HOT AIR GUN with a small wide nozzel and the sockets should just drop out if the board is raised off yhe bench.

@thegrays3303 2 года назад

This brings back memories. I started my computer knowledge back when i had a TI-99/4A home computer which my parents bought for me . I remember when I got my first floppy disk for Christmas. When I got the 32K RAM memory expansion for it I I was so happy.

@subtledemisefox 2 года назад

My first computer was an old Packard Bell with Windows 3.1 installed on it, but in my teenage years I read all kinds of books, programming manuals, etc. for all these old computers for fun. One of my favorites was one that had BASIC text adventure games for the TRS-80. It had some kind of robot as a mascot for it, iirc

@IvorySoul696 2 года назад

Dude, that Atari I donated is STILL making videos! So freaking cool. I keep getting surprised that this was a deep rabbit hole in the end. I never would have guessed just peeking under the hood. Hopefully, the changes are positive. I know you've been struggling with formatting for the last couple of years.

@tucsonsduke 2 месяца назад

I've only been watching you for a few months, but watching how you handle failure and disappointment is inspiring, and I'm glad you still include those moments in your videos.

@granlund23 2 года назад

Great to see that it's working, and good idea with that switch :) "Oh no..." was my reaction when you got to the part where you mentioned socketing the thing - and immediately regretted not mentioning keyboard clearance. I have updated the readme for the project on Github to specifically say not to use sockets. So, for what it's worth, big thank you for the contribution. Even if it was a bit of a fail right now for your machine I think the video itself is a success! It was fun watching it (and very relatable because I think we've all ended up in quite similar situations at some points, I certainly have :) ) I'm sure this video will be super helpful for anyone else who attempts to install the thing. About your machines random issues, I too would suspect the power or noisy signals. These machines can be a bit flakey.

@blackterminal Год назад

Which are flakey? Any ST or the early version here?

@charlieb9502 2 года назад

You live and you learn, Still a great video. Think about it. You just saved the others that would have done the same thing the frustration and possibly in the process of removing the sockets rip out a via or damage the board and not know how to trouble shoot it like you can. Still a Job well done!

@Cherijo78 2 года назад

Thank you for this! I appreciate seeing this accidental fail a lot. It's a great reminder of checking clearance in these tighter packed machines! Thank you!

@robintst 2 года назад

Weirdly though, the keys still being discolored actually still makes it look like a color scheme you would have expected a company to choose back then.

@thomasives7560 2 года назад

Hey Adrian, thanks so much for sharing. Even in disappointment there is learning - you've saved someone (or several someones) out there in the community a lot of frustration and rework - so, major thanks for your contribution! Have a Happy Holiday and I look forward to many more of your entertaining and informative videos. Cheers! p.s.: Did this kind of stuff way back in the late 80s working at the University of Oregon Bookstore Computer Shop (Hi John and Mark if you're still around!). Upgraded a lot of customer 520s and fixed a lot of defunct switching power supplies (the *bane* of my existence). I'm really glad to know this hardware is still working and bringing joy, I really had a lot of fun in that scene during the period.

@ZoruaZorroark Год назад

i have to say that the two-tone of the keyboard actually looks kinda nice, and still pretty darn cool on what it takes to upgrade any vintage computer like what you have done with your atari

@3vi1J 2 года назад

Well, there's a lesson to be learned in everything. The lesson this time is "quadruple-check clearances when adding sockets. ESPECIALLY when stacking mods on them, and ESPECIALLY when they are located near the lower part of the case where there's less space below the keyboard." Still a great video, as usual.

@WalterFrancis 2 года назад

Warning your users of such a thing: Failed successfully. It's all about the journey Adrian, glad you showed us this, you could have pretended it never happened. :D

@njoy_9411 Год назад

Thank you for sharing your knowledge, expertise and experiences! This is not a fail... just a bump in the road. Thanks to you, all who see this can take it from this point forward. Good luck and good health!

@myfarawaytales 2 года назад

Thanks Adrian. This is my go to channel for retro computing. You are indeed a master.

@scottharris7222 2 года назад

This is one of those efforts that just needs a short break. I was wondering at the beginning if you had done a dry fit. Regardless, showing us some of the set backs is as important as showing us the victories. This modification will come back stronger after you take a break from it and we'll all be better off for your experience. I love the passion and I can feel the pain when something doesn't work out. I love that you keep it real.

@parrottm76262 2 года назад

Love how you show the 'fails'. I always learn something when I watch your vids.

@goddessesstartrekonlinefle3061 2 года назад

Thanks for sharing your adventures in electronics ^^. Wishing you the best of successes for 2022 :).

@john_ace 2 года назад

I have used tinned wire instead of pins in these situations. I would take the most tight fitting diameter (0.5mm) and feed it through the holes of the pcbs directly into the sockets below. The wire then gets cut with a generous margin and soldered afterwards. When the wires are soldered, you will have a very close fitting pcb with pins in the perfect length. I made a shrink dip 64 -> dip 64 adapter for a 68k cpu that way. It was only slightly taller than the original. Sometimes you have to get creative ;-)

@dandoyle 2 года назад

Aww bummed me out seeing how bummed you were about the mod install problem. It’s so nice for you to share your mistakes as well as your many many more success stories because it makes viewers feel like mistakes/setbacks can and do happen for everyone and that’s fine and we can all learn something and gain something. Thank you so much for the channel and everyone you bring to it!

@moo4983 2 года назад

One of the first (successful) soldering jobs I ever did involved expanding the RAM on a piece of audio equipment in preparation for replacing its ROM with a more feature-packed one. I had to clear some unpopulated spaces for 4164 RAM chips, and the best idea I had at the time was using an aluminium paper clip to push through the hole as I heated it with the iron. Amazingly I didn't damage anything and the whole thing was a success (though I dread to open it up and check my work).

@R.Daneel 2 года назад

Good job! Reminds me of a low-tech "desoldering" kit you can ebay. Basically a set of paperclip sized hollow tubes on handles. You heat up the join and push the aluminum tube over the pin. The solder sets, but doesn't stick to the aluminum. A bit slow, but I use them for fussy pins now and then. Edit: I found them really good if you were having trouble with solder on the front of a board that you couldn't reach, and just wouldn't budge. I bet with care, they may be good for protecting weak traces too as there's no suction or adhered wick.

@andrewmorton9683 2 года назад

@@R.Daneel FWIW, desoldering needles are usually made from stainless steel (my $4 set is) as solder does not stick to that, and aluminium is likely to be a bit fragile for thin tubes like that.

@gregwtmtno5437 2 года назад

Adrian, I don't usually comment, but I want you to know how much I love your videos--but also, make whatever changes are best for you. Sometimes I see the amount of work you do and wonder how it could be possible. So I guess, take it easy, and don't become another RU-vid burnout.

@paulodagraca3469 2 года назад

Adrian, back in the day (around 1989) we would do lot's of ram upgrades. If i remember right, with instable computers we would insert a 33 Ohm resistor on each line of cas, ras. Reason would be the noise on the longer cables and found that it would be best to have the resistors as close the ram as possible (end of cable). So at the end of the wires we would shorten the wires and connect the resistor to the wire and ram, and use heatshrink for isolation. I think it was because we found that the 5 volt on the pins would go up to 6 volt spikes on rare occasions and the resistor would help reduce this voltage, resolving the problem. Hope this could work for you as well. Kind regards ( always love your content ).

@gaming_coffeebean 2 года назад

Love your vids keep up the good work. :)

@richardpowell5653 2 года назад

It's really not a fail mate. It's a triumph in knowledge sharing! Anyone doing electronics has been there and experienced the cold chill that runs down your spine when you see things have not gone as well as expected... love your continent dude... I'm wondering about my st2 mega that I want to upgrade, maybe just buy sockets and a bag of ICs...

@altgenesis 2 года назад

I waited for the 1040ST. I still have it and the monitor and a hard drive as well. Still works. My Grandchild came over and played games on it quite often. Got it boxed up. 1 meg of memory. Woohoo. Still remember being on the dial up ST Boards and going to the Mug Clubs. Plugged it into my stereo with the 3D sound which was just three audio plugs and converted it to 2 and plugged in the TV and voila played driving games on the TV with the nice 3D stereo sound 17Hz to 22kHz Polk speakers. Awesome. Also had a 24 dpi pin printer. The early days of computing with a mouse. Eat your heart out Apple.

@sdemuth74 2 года назад

I kept thinking you should install sockets, and was so happy when you decided the same. Never gave thought to the install being too high! What a rollercoaster if emotions. Hopefully this video will save others from the same predicament.

@loughkb 2 года назад

@ 29 minutes in the video, where the ram test had failed once at 4 M. I keep wondering about cross-talk between those long wire runs to your switch and the traces on the ram board. At the RF frequencies the machine is running, those signal lines can start to act like antennas. 8MHz, right? That's around 38 meters on the shortwave band, ha! If you have stability issues down the road, maybe move the switch to the other end of the ram board and shorten those wires on that address line. EDIT: I just got to where you discovered the keyboard doesn't fit. Damn! I felt your pain man. Crap. 2Nd Edit: take the plastic spacers off the pins and trim them all a mm or two?

@tomekrv942 2 года назад

I am still watching your old movies and your channel is the best. Greetings from Poland

@mathewvensel3691 2 года назад

what you can test is to remove the black spacers on the expansion board and shorten the pins to see if it fits under the keyboard.

@LeftoverBeefcake 2 года назад

This channel always gets an automatic thumbs up, rain or shine, success or fail. There's always something to learn, which counts as a win in my book, even if it's learning the hard way. :)

@yakhawkes7121 2 года назад

D'oh. I was thinking about hight as soon as you mentioned adding sockets! Hopefully you get your 16bit mojo back at some point in the future but all your diagnostic and repair work is such a good watch.

@coxyofnewp 2 года назад

Well I hope the changes you talk about at end, are positive ones for you and the Ch !! As I've learnt so much and enjoy all your vids.. So hope the new year brings allot more of the same great content and Merry Christmas !!

@colleton60 2 года назад

Very nice video. More Atari coverage please! 🍻

@skilz8098 2 года назад

It wasn't a complete bust. It was an amazing attempt with a slight learning curve!

@ZTK-RC 2 года назад

The reveal at 19:07 was sick af. Very clean. Love the xmas green and red combo XD. It was sad that you had to remove it!

@cyberwoozle777 2 года назад

OMG! Adrian I felt so bad for you when the keyboard went back in and wouldn't fit. Thank you for all your work!!

@Potts1966 2 года назад

That's a very cool upgrade, shame about the keyboard not fitting. I did a couple of RAM upgrades to ST's back in the 80's and early 90's. Each one was a 2MB upgrade but kept the original RAM intact to give 2.5MB total. And I remember being very nervous about pushing the board onto the MMU, but it all worked really well. There was also a couple of flying leads to add and small grabbers were used which attached to the pins on a couple of chips., but no tracks to cut or anything to solder.

@Kackspack0815 2 года назад

20:13 What a neat solution, feeding the botch wires through those holes. 😎👍🏻 Looks so nice.

@Colin_Ames 2 года назад

Adrian, your videos are always enjoyable and educational. I was sorry to see that the RAM install failed, I could tell you were disappointed. Regarding changes that might happen next year, I sincerely hope that they are not related to anything bad. You don’t deserve that.

@Miesiu 2 месяца назад

Good work !

@ManuelSchulte007 2 года назад

Your disappointment was painful to watch, but you deserve the thumbs up. I can't wait to watch your final solution for this Atari. Cheers from Belgium 👍😉

@bertwilly2003 2 года назад

Your videos are great. I really enjoy how animated you are. Hopefully, you are just as animated at your day job. ;-)

@darthbukowski6894 2 года назад

I enjoy all your videos. Hey, things happen we learn with you. I’ve worked with and studied electronics for 30 years and still question/ look up things I do on home projects. I’m in IT now so I do not repair equipment at component level anymore, I really miss those days.

@joefish6091 2 года назад

you are earning ten times what a repair tech does. companies used the lure and history of electronics to con generations of techs to work for peanuts. yet a lot of the old school electronics companies with unique products and skills, managed to run themselves into the ground (hello Gardners Radio, hello Flight Refueling). the shareholders, MBAs and accountants made out like bandits, everybody else not so.

@darthbukowski6894 2 года назад

@@joefish6091 , you are absolutely right. I’ve seen radio shops, board repair shops and other maintain equipment type businesses just tank. Between the change in technology and miss management they didn’t have a chance. People really had no where to go so they had to re-class their careers and start over.

@WilsonBradleyTheOfficial 2 года назад

Brings back Nostalgia.. Thanks. ;-)

@Bianchi77 2 года назад

Keep it up, nice video clip, thank you for sharing the information :)

@joechill1 2 года назад

Sad music montage :( Thanks for sharing... no sweat... you always take things in stride!

@FolixOrision 2 года назад

Was thinking you should install sockets, then was happy when you decided to at 16:50. (Felt the pain at the end as if I made the same decisions as you)

@LadislavHuttl 2 года назад

Maan I feel you, I had so many cases like thisone when you think "yes I make it better" with enthusiasm and good feeling and then you found fatal flaw in your doing after you are done. Ugh I completelely feel your pain.

@letthetunesflow 2 года назад

Oh man, watching this episode and instantly noticing the potential keyboard fitment issue caused me to start 😱 screaming in my mind! I noticed instantly that those sockets were potentially going to cause problems, it was both frustrating and entertaining all at the same time! Really enjoyed this episode tho! I really think you should just make a little wire harness for the ram upgrade! That would allow you to switch between the original ram and the upgrade quite easily! Just add some pin and socket leads like how PC’s have PC speakers and power switch sockets and plugs! What do you think about that idea Adrian? Fellow viewers what do you think? Would it be worth the effort? It would just allow you to have an easy plug and play option to easily switch between the original ram, the ram upgrade, along with still having the switch between the 1&4 megs? You would just need to find socket pins to attach to the homemade wire harness and some pin sockets in a few areas? I hope this idea makes sense! What does everyone else think of the idea? Looking forward to what the new year has in store for you Adrian! You have one of my favourite channels, along with one of the nicest and warmest hearts on all of RU-vid! My health hasn’t been good enough to support my favourite RU-vidr’s, like yourself on Patreon, as I’m sadly on disability, but I’m hoping in the new year that it will be possible as my health has started to improve! It would be such an honour to support you when I am able to! Please don’t stop making such amazing videos! Your passion and love for retro computers is so inspiring and lifts my spirits every time I’m having a bad day! It helps distract myself from the agonizing pain I’ve been in! Thank you soooo “Freaking Much!”!!!!! 💻 ❤️ 🙏 ❤️ 💻

@phillipzx3754 2 года назад

The original 520's had openings for the added RAM. As many now know, the early 520 was just a 1040 with 16 empty DIN locations. I modded hundreds of them for people prior to Atari changing the motherboard to the version shown in this video. I still have two ADAP samplers I bought from Hybrid Arts.

@Okurka. 2 года назад

Which DIN locations?

@a4000t 2 года назад

The nightmare of st ram expansion makes me appreciate the Amiga's ease of ram expanding.

@tjlazer71 2 года назад

In the 520STE they got it right with four 30 pin SIMMs for 4MB total.

@a4000t 2 года назад

@@tjlazer71 4mb lol.

@tjlazer71 2 года назад

@@a4000t what’s funny? Much better than what the Amiga 500 or 1200 could do internally. Having four SIMM slots on the motherboard was really amazing at the time. Try adding 4MB to the 500 at the time. Much harder and more expensive. The 1200 has the trapdoor slot which was nice but more expensive to add memory. But of course a lot better if you wanted to add a CPU card and memory. But you know all this because you’re a Amiga 4000 fan. As am I.

@a4000t 2 года назад

@@tjlazer71 most Atari stuff was somewhat crippled. I would always opt for the machine with max expandability. That being said i was always a fan of big box amigas.

@retropuffer2986 2 года назад

Good to see the Atari get expanded.

@MegaManNeo 2 года назад

The cool thing about your videos is that you even upload them if the result isn't all that pleasing. Also we get to see what may become another project for another day in another video.

@CooChewGames 2 года назад

As far as putting the sockets in and the keyboard not fitting; it so relates to "it's not just me." Thanks so much :-)

@Dukefazon 2 года назад

I'm sorry Adrian, but that sad montage music made me chuckle :D I feel bad for you because you put a lot of work into that RAM expansion board and did a pretty fine job but that damn keyboard... I had a feeling that clearance issue might come up but quickly forgot it, then it came back at the end.

@makskk6spm275 2 года назад

Hi Adrian! Thanks for this great video. I did upgrade my 520ST same way thank to you. It works great but seems a bit slower than 1MB...

@andrasszabo7386 2 года назад

I think all you have to do is cut the pins shorter and get rid of the black plastic spacers and it will fit nicely. Keep up the good work, Adrian! I always check on your channel for any new content, whenever you upload anything, I don't sleep until I have watched it.

@jarnailbrar6732 2 года назад

I remember my 520ST, it didn't even have the TOS ROMs, had to load TOS from disk. Later installed the TOS ROMs, to free up (192KB?) RAM. Might have done the piggyback upgrade to 1MB. Purchased Mega ST4 with built-in SCSI hard disk after that. Thanks for this great video.

@TheCode-X 2 года назад

Best DiY videos are those where things doesn't works at the very first time, so we can have a full experience and watch the repair to a mod too

@SegHaxx 2 года назад

tbh as a long time Atari ST user, the original 520STs were infamous for being just a little bit temperamental. even without a RAM upgrade jiggle it a bit until it works. they're just like that

@lmoore3rd 2 года назад

6:05 The little handwritten note on the box is reminiscent of the movie "A Christmas Story". Fràgile...must be Italian. Happy Holidays! 😁

@tetecko81sk 2 года назад

Hi Adrian! Changes?!?! Hope You are doing wel. I enjoy Your channels so much. Dont be sad, You made it working. Only what needs to be done is design of patch module, where you could change the pins, or you could fully redesign the whole patch module to be plugged only the reqired ports with patch cables and module plugged eg inside on some stands. You fix it, You made it working, that is important!

@rille47 2 года назад

Sorry mate, you can´t win ´em all... so sad that it did not fit, super video as always with your productions. I´m amazed of the depth of your knowledge in this field, truly amazing, always super interesting to watch.

@JT-tz5hp 2 года назад

I think I know what you mean by changes. The world isn't right. Stay true to yourself. Love your content. You're a genuine soul.

@maxtornogood 2 года назад

Good to see that it at least works, it's just those darned sockets!

@lindoran 2 года назад

Don't be discouraged. If you are not bailing on a diy project once and a while you might be trying to optimize a system / process / mod that might not need to exist! I think this is a good example. Not that they didn't do a good job on the board or the mod, but that it just didn't work out, and that's ok. :) Excellent video keep being awesome, I appreciate the shooting schedule you keep and it definitely brightens my lunch break on Saturday :)

@HeyImGaminOverHere 2 года назад

The 2 tone look actually looks pretty nice on that unit.

@TailSpinRCSpain Год назад

I had an Atari 520 STe in 1990, by then the 512kB to 1MB upgrade was easy, just a small single board which plugged into a special socket they had added to the main PCB. Fond memories of a great machine.

@capitanschetttino8745 2 года назад

The important thing in this video is good work practices. The computer remains in excellent condition and now it is much easier to replace a ram chip.

@Solitaire1 2 года назад

Adrian, can you cut the pins shorter then pull off the plastic bits from them? That would allow the board to rest right on top of the sockets instead of standing up so high. Since the original chips fit under the keyboard while in sockets I would imagine the board could too. It did not appear to be any thicker than an original chip from what I could see.

@TheThomasites 2 года назад

Came here to say this. It could work.

@lauram5905 2 года назад

You could also insert them from the top, solder them from the bottom, and then cut the exposed top pin off to prevent shorting out. Alignment would be A LOT harder I think like that, but you’d get a much more flush installation

@akkudakkupl 2 года назад

The git repository explicitly said to solder the board directly, unfortunately a case of rtfm 😕

@IanSlothieRolfe 2 года назад

The turned pin headers he has used have a wider section that is moulded into the plastic so you can't do that. The only real alternative is to remove them and solder in .5mm bronze wire that will go into the sockets. That way the total height will be roughly the same as the DIP chips. That's quite a lot of work however.....

2 года назад

@@akkudakkupl if you rtfc(omments), you'd have noticed that the github page was updated with that info due to this video.

@theshuff 2 года назад

You should try to remove black pastic spacers on the pin, trim them a bit, and plug the extension back.

@maltoNitho 2 года назад

Sure hope all is well. The tenderness in your voice during the sign off was palpable.

@SilverSergeant Год назад

In the 80s, I sent my 520ST to New York for a RAM upgrade. They did it by piggy-backing each individual RAM chip. The 1 MB total worked great.

@datamike00 2 года назад

back in the day, I modded my 1040st from 1mb to 2mb, it involved a fair amount of wire-wrap, some trace cutting, and that wierd socket that I special ordered(no amazon back then) that fit around the pins of what, I think, was that mmu. Looking back, I'm stunned that it workef and that it didn't have later issues

@williamsquires3070 2 года назад

One simple thing you can try before going all ballistic on it, is to remove the little plastic bits on those pin headers; just make sure to lift them off perfectly perpendicular to the board so you don’t bend the pins. Then, measure the length of an IC pin from any of the RAM chips you removed, and cut all the pins on the bottom of the RAM expansion board to that length. You’ll still have to mount the toggle switch elsewhere, but the keyboard should now clear the RAM expansion board, now that it’s (roughly) the same height as a 16-pin DIP IC! HTH! 😍

@larrybud Год назад

5:30, I actually did this upgrade to my original machine (1988-90ish?), but mine had spaces on the board for the extra ram. However, the traces were not complete, and I had to run a TON of wirewrap to every chip. Still to this day I can't believe it worked. It was a ratsnest of blue 30 gauge wire! Also, back then there was a RAM shortage and RAM got REALLY expensive. Remember, those chips are only 16k each. I think they were like 10-$12 each at one time. I also added a RTC to the board and wrote an assembly app that would automatically call out to the Naval Observatory on bootup to set the time in the early 90s. The RTC didn't have a battery, so it would otherwise reset on power down. That software is still out there in the "Crawly Crypt" archives that you can find online. Every once in a while someone would send me a check for 10 bucks to my parents old address for it. lol

@Acill 2 года назад

I'd love to get some donations to be able to do a few videos. Great stuff. I was cringing as you put those sockets in and thinking this was going to end badly for you assembling it too ;) Sorry it failed to go together in the end.

@MrPerkele80 2 года назад

Always love Atari ST content, my first home computer. I actually just rescued my old Atari 1040 STFM from my parents last weekend. Unfortunately they had already got rid of the colour monitor.... would have much rather them have kept that and junked the Atari...but oh well.

@joefish6091 2 года назад

rgb to vga adaptor, old school 15" vga LCD monitors are cheap.

@artursmihelsons415 2 года назад

Great effort! You can still use sockets - just remove plastic part from pins, leaving bare pins and cut pins shorter one by one.. 😉

@thomasquemar969 2 года назад

Hi, just pull off the plastic spacers on the back of the expansion board (pull each of them with a flat screwdriver or anything similar)! Then short the legs in order to be able to make the expansion board as close to the main board as possible ;)

@thomasquemar969 2 года назад

Someone said : "if you remove spacer from those you'd still have a thick part of the pin getting in the way". In this case I suggest you remove all the pins from your expansion board and replace them with constant diameter pins (hard to do but worth it I think).

@Pedro8k 2 года назад

I still have a 1040ste I don't remember what happened to my original st but I got it after seeing dungeon master on a friend's st and I spent hour many hours on that game it was probably it's best looks like an early st without PSU floppy or TV very rare great video as always

@foxyloon 2 года назад

Aww, bummer... Especially after you had it working, too! At least your intended option to put the original RAM back in worked flawlessly. Like a few others have suggested, is is at all possible to shorten the pins on the RAM board? Maybe use different pins that allow the PCB to sit flush with the sockets? Your strategy of loosely fitting the pins into the sockets before soldering them in worked quite well! With shorter pins, I'm fairly confident it would still hold strong while providing the clearance needed.

@GalileoAV 2 года назад

Oh man that was brutal. Very cool part though

@Carlou_ 2 года назад

I would have made the same mistake! good video, thx

@TimePilot2084 2 года назад

I'm glad to know I'm not the only guy who's all gung-ho about permanently soldering in mods, only to realize seconds later that it's taking up too much space. 😂 Plus, I'm terrible at soldering. I just keep on making a mess of things, though! At least I'm persistent. 🙄 Great video.

@RetroDawn 2 года назад

I grew up with the 1986 520STM (pre-FM)--same as this, but w/RF mod in the open spot on this mobo and composite out on monitor port. My dad implemented the piggyback u/g technique you mentioned. No board required, ofc.

@brendonelton 2 года назад

30 years ago, I remember my ST had a ram upgrade and suffered random or intermittent boot issues where it would just crash, pressing down on the keyboard keys would adjust a loose connection and it would work again.

@androxilogin 2 года назад

Ohh man.. My first thought with this upgrade was how the keyboard would fit. I disregarded it by figuring the manufacturer would have had this all ironed out. My second thought was, "I'd use sockets. Oh good, he did". Apparently I'd have made the same mistake along the way.

@andykillsu 2 года назад

With retrobrighting keyboard keys, it’s very easy to do them on a stove pot with full liquid immersion. You can do it any time of the year.

@Otakunopodcast 2 года назад

Trust me, you do NOT want one of those desoldering stations with the external suction. All of the ones I've tried (and I've tried a great many of them) have very poor suction, which results in frequent clogging. I would say "they really suck" but in this case "they really don't suck" is more appropriate... which normally would be a good thing, but not in this case! ;-)

@mal2ksc 2 года назад

Like Butt-Head once said, "We need a woman that doesn't suck. No, wait, that's not right."

@silmarian 2 года назад

I hate it when I forget to dry-fit things and end up screwing myself over, you have my full sympathy.

@stevebryant5681 7 месяцев назад

I know it has been forever ago, but if you remove the black parts of the riser pins, and trim your pins shorter, it will plug back in lower and you will be good to go. Put some Kapton tape on the underside to prevent cross talk on your DIP sockets.