Overclocking the 486SLC-33 to 50MHz! K2s Retro Workshop 2021-05-26 | I goofed on the PCPlayer comparison by having a VGA vs 320x200 but I'm gonna leave it. The point is the same.Atheatos' YouTube channel: youtube.com/channel/UCZ6ULBqIKhxuNslAbqFNJUgCPUGalaxy VLB 386 video: youtube.com/watch?v=qaGQxZEYby0I apologize in advance for the quality of this video. I've had to start traveling for work again and I only had 4 days at home in the last month which I had finals during. Audio for most of this was recorded using the laptop mic and a bathroom with poor sound quality and editing is done after long days outside!Fear not! I plan to have an entry for GPU June with plenty of solder slinging on a motherboard that doesn't deserve it!In this video we see the result of overclocking and fully optimizing the 486SLC with 0 wait-states for memory and video card. On top of that the two ISA cards I am using are both OK with a 20MHz ISA clock. Results are impressive to say the least.00:00 - Intro02:13 - Comparison Charts06:35 - Benchmark Comparisons
Color Classic Gets a 100MHz Upgrade and Convergence Fixes! K2s Retro Workshop 2025-07-28 | Today we will be repairing the bad convergence on my VGA modded Macintosh Color Classic and upgrading the PowerPC processor to a newer model that sports a 100MHz processor and supports clock tripling and quadrupling!Join my Discord! discord.com/invite/dHvGdhCWtWChapters:00:00 - Intro00:58 - Comparing Upgrade Cards03:10 - The Infamous Graphics Benchmark04:05 - The Benchmarks07:35 - Back of the Tube10:00 - Arduous Corrections22:00 - 133MHz?22:50 - 133MHz!30:50 - Focus Failed - Outro
Tektronix 4051 from 1977 Lives Again!! K2s Retro Workshop 2025-06-04 | Join my Discord at: discord.gg/dHvGdhCWtWToday we repair a Tektronix 4051 microcomputer. I, admittedly, missed filming some of it in the over a year I worked on this but she works great!I will be with this machine at VCF Southwest 2025 so stop by near the free pile for some deals at my garage sale and play with some old tech!Chapters:00:00 - Intro02:30 - Firing it up the first time03:45 - Bulb Replacement04:48 - Digital Section Partially Working05:50 - First Graphics Test08:15 - Tape Emulator10:50 - Tape Emulator Use13:21 - Draw Some Art15:20 - Playing Star Trek21:22 - Outro
Macintosh Quadra 700 versus a Mystic Color Classic K2s Retro Workshop 2025-05-01 | Today we compare the Quadra 700 overclocked to 33mhz to a Color Classic that has a Mystic mod and also runs 33MHz. Surprisingly similar performance but not a similar price tag.Don't forget to check out my Discord! discord.gg/dHvGdhCWtWChapters:00:00 - Intro01:45 - Boot Race03:27 - Benchmark Comparisons06:59 - Bad Boot Race09:55 - 68K Gaming10:46 - Text With VGA Mod12:14 - PPC Gaming13:30 - FMV Performance14:25 - Chatting About Machines
Clockchipping A Quadra 700 While Maxxing Out RAM at 68MB K2s Retro Workshop 2025-01-12 | Today we are clockchipping a Quadra 700 and maxxing out its RAM to a whooping 68MB! This is in preparation for a larger upgrade and it really is as simple as swapping a clock crystal. The RAM install was done with boards designed by Bits und Bolts. His video detailing the build process: youtu.be/oXZWF6gDNLI?si=aSjG4clswVayBHK0Shared project files: pcbway.com/project/shareproject/16MB_SIMM_PCBs_for_16Mx4bit_3_3V_memory_chips_with_dual_power_supply_5fdb3f3a.htmlReferral Link for PCBWay if you'd like a $5 discount on your first order: pcbway.com/g/4Bk9Z3Chapters:00:00 - Intro00:50 - The Insides04:02 - The Awesome Retro Community08:36 - The Clock Chip10:36 - Edit Fail and Computer Stickers13:03 - Benchmarks!15:10 - Outro
Warming Up With Tubes In The Winter - Introduction K2s Retro Workshop 2024-12-15 | Today we look at the audio rack project that I pushed out doing until the winter hit. Almost the entirety of the rack is tube gear except for the preamp which uses small germanium transistors for tone recovery and buffering.Mostly kits assembled by someone else, the plan for this is to restore it as 'stock' as possible and only tweak or modernize where necessary.I only got one amp so for modern listening I will need a stereo unit and this will warrant building a rack piece with a mixer/crossover that will feed the existing amp for subwoofer duty. Should be a fun project! Thank you for watching!
AST Advantage Kingston TurboChip 133MHz Upgrade! K2s Retro Workshop 2024-11-09 | Can a cacheless Socket 2 motherboard give us acceptable performance on the 486 platform? This motherboard has no L2 cache and, to some, that makes this machine much lesser than some. While true that L2 cache is important for system efficiency, I argue that one should be able to get acceptable performance when swapping in a 486 with 16KB L1 and a higher clock speed to make up for the loss of performance.I didn't talk about it but the point in the last segment of showing the FMV from Star Trek was that it doesn't have frame drops like it did with the DX2-66.This is the link to Phil's Ultimate VGA Benchmark Database Project:docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1lvF9nOAMKLeCpHR_SaA48M7sUXItwIi72gHRcw0wpNU/edit?gid=0#gid=0Chapters:00:00 - Intro02:55 - Benchmarks05:21 - Outro
Non-Spicy 68040 Overclock In Our POWER Mystic Color Classic K2s Retro Workshop 2024-10-06 | Today we look at the newest way to overclock your 040' Macs that doesn't involve soldering or modding the boards in any way!100% - 40MHz OC with Extension91% - 36MHz OC with Spicy(fastest stable)81% - 33MHz Stock68kmla.org/bb/index.php?threads/overclock-lc475-p475-q605-without-soldering-or-spicy-o-clock.47946Quick video to get something out... Enjoy!
486SRx2 Upgrade Chip K2s Retro Workshop 2024-08-25 | Here we are again! More upgrade options!Today we look at the Cyrix 486SRx2-25/50 upgrade module. This is a single chip on a carrier that slips over the stock SX processor to give you on-die cache and all the benefits that come with it! Chapters:00:00 Intro00:45 The Chip Install02:30 It's Never THAT Easy03:49 Benchmarks06:00 Outro
Early Digital Prototyping System K2s Retro Workshop 2024-08-10 | Today we have a look at an early digital prototyping system by EL Instruments. Gives us a power supply, clock source, digital and analog readout, and digital and analog inputs!The Heathkit ET-3400A is breifly mentioned only because it's going to be a lot to go through, it needs cleaned up, and I umm would like to actually know what I'm doing with it when I go over it!Thanks for watching!Chapters00:00 - Intro04:50 - Fixin' Stuff08:25 - Digital Demo11:58 - Heathkit ET-3400A
Voodoo Windows 98 Rig Gets an Aftermarket Window Mod! K2s Retro Workshop 2024-07-26 | Today we modify the Windows 98 rig with onboard Voodoo graphics to have a window in the side. This mod makes it where we can see inside without having to remove the side of the case as I end up doing at most meets where it goes. Leaving the side open makes me uneasy so here we go! And to be time period appropriate the kit also comes with a green CCFL.Join my new Discord server! discord.gg/dHvGdhCWtWWow was that shirt is unflattering...Chapters:00:00 Intro04:45 Opening the mod06:35 Where to place the window?07:50 Drawing the template10:00 Cutting the hole13:30 Installing the window gasket18:18 Installing the glass21:30 Installing the CCFL22:45 Outro
386SX-25 With Cache Swap to 486SXLC2-40! K2s Retro Workshop 2024-07-05 | Today we are FINALLY swapping the 386SX-25 processor out for a 486SXLC2-40. This will give us a rare look at an SX platform with L1 and L2 cache! Apologies for the hastily edited video. Workshop will be cleaned up and stop irritating me soon!The winner of the giveaway will be contacted soon!00:00 Intro01:32 Desoldering the SX and SXLC05:31 Soldering the SXLC in place06:06 First Boot08:26 FLUSH mod and kinks worked out11:26 Back to 50MHz and Benchmark14:38 Outro
VCFSW Arrival and Giveaway! K2s Retro Workshop 2024-06-14 | Due to power issues with our booth I will be unable to do the swap at my booth, I will get the swap done in the workshop on Monday! Comment below your guesses to enter!The 386SX with External cache is getting the TI 486SXLC2-40 installed in it. I am going to leave the 25MHz motherboard speed to overclock the SXLC to 50MHz.What do you anticipate the new 3DBench speed will be? Previous benchmark results are as follows:386SX w/ external cache at 25MHz - 9.5 FPSTI 486SXLC2-40 - 17.5 FPSCyrix 486SLC-40 - 18.8 FPSCyrix 486SLC-40 OC to 50MHz - 23.4 FPSGood luck! Closest without going over! Results will be posted and guesses closed at the time I am able to get the benchmarks run again. I anticipate this will be around 1PM Central Time to make sure I get the #barb input enabled and other possible troubleshooting done. The gift will be an AMD 486DX4-100 and for those at the show a Gateway desktop 486 computer with PCI.
Comparing Macintosh Classic Computers K2s Retro Workshop 2024-05-03 | Late for Marchintosh but here it is.Getting ready for VCF but I DO have a 486-class PC comparison coming up in a couple of weeks. Gotta do a bunch of benchmarking!Thanks for watching!#marchintosh #macintosh #colorclassic
Color Classic PPC Daystar 1MB Mod and Overclock K2s Retro Workshop 2024-03-13 | Today we attempt to upgrade a Daystar PowerCard from 256K of L2 Cache to 1MB and install a Spicy-o-clock to overclock the 040 and PPC processors.00:00 Intro00:43 About the Upgrade03:32 Benchmarks Take Forever04:10 Replacing the Cache06:05 Cache Replaced, Trying It07:02 Configuring the Cache Card08:03 Fail.09:20 Spicy-o-clock09:45 Benchmarks17:05 Outro#marchintosh #macintosh #colorclassic
Projects, VCFSW, and Monsanto MV1 MV2 Vintage LED Finds! K2s Retro Workshop 2024-02-24 | Just a quick update video with a vintage LED find.ABQ Retro Computers will be at VCFSW and I will be there doing the processor upgrade on the cached 386SX motherboard. Likely Friday afternoon? Maybe early Saturday. I'll know more when it gets closer.The MV1 and MV2 LEDs weren't necessarily the first LEDs on the market but, the MV1 at least, is generally thought of as the first commercially viable red LED. The MV2, eh, I get what they mean about the brightness being an issue but most LEDs into the early 70s had brightness problems.Chapters:00:00 Introduction1:47 Vintage Components4:30 MV1 Red LED5:40 MV2 Green LED6:50 Comparison and Conclusion
386SX-25 with 64K of L2 Cache! K2s Retro Workshop 2023-12-29 | Turns out they do exist! Pretty decent performance increase but, of course, this is just the beginning.As said in the outro, the first person to guess the hardware swap and the necessary mod needed to get it working will get one of my soon-to-be surplus 386SX boards!Thanks for watching!Chapters:00:00 - Intro04:08 - Pre-boot and BIOS07:32 - Benchmarks09:47 - Outro
Building a POWER Mystic Color Classic with a Daystar 601 PPC Upgrade Card K2s Retro Workshop 2023-11-27 | Reupload due to my stupid editor leaving a blank spot again.Today we build a POWER Mystic Macintosh Color Classic using a rarely seen Daystar 601 upgrade card. This upgrade will be a vast improvement over the stock CC logic board.Most of the build is pretty standard, sound, fans, and HD replacement. VGA mod will require some parts changes to do correctly and get us Hi-Res mode.68kmla.org/bb/index.php?threads/color-classic-vga-mod-the-correct-way.3044powercc.orgBookmarks:00:00 Intro00:45 Upgrades03:45 PC vs Mac Processors07:50 Analog Board Sound Mod09:30 Speaker Install12:15 Booting After VGA Mod13:45 SD Card Placement14:00 Talking about the VGA Mod and CRT17:00 Battery Installation19:10 Daystar 601 Install21:10 Battery Install With Cache24:55 Daystar First Boot28:00 Daystar 601 First Boot32:50 Benchmarks37:55 Eye Candy - Starcraft Cinematic40:20 Diablo Gameplay42:05 Outro
486SXLC2-40 Cache On vs Off Comparison K2s Retro Workshop 2023-11-12 | This is the part of the previous video that was blank. It's an excellent showcase of what *8KB of L1 cache can do vs having it disabled. This also works excellently for slowing down a system so that you can run timing-critical games like Wing Commander while being able to speed the system up for Doom or Heretic. Hmm, I wonder if the turbo button on these disables the cache...Sorry for the auto focus going nuts.* I said 1KB in this video segment, it's actually 8KB.
386SX-40 vs 486SLC-40 vs 486SXLC2-40 and the Curse of PC Chips K2s Retro Workshop 2023-10-28 | Today we greet a new motherboard to the family with a 486 SXLC2-40 processor. This is a clock doubled processor with 8KB of L1 cache which should help it stay ahead of the lack of bus bandwidth compared to the other two contenders. It's a PC Chips board and we tried not to judge it but ended up having to.I neglected to mention it in the video but we also previously had an issue with the DLC and DRx2 video where we had a socket on a 386 motherboard with no ability to disable the on-board CPU to actually utilize it.00:00 - Intro00:35 - 386SX Motherboard03:40 - 486SLC Motherboard07:20 - NEW 486SXLC2-40 Motherboard09:40 - SXLC Gets A Bath11:09 - Cache vs No Cache13:12 - The Problems Begin14:05 - The PC Chips Curse19:15 - Tried To Fix It19:45 - Benchmarks FINALLY22:08 - Conclusion
Indigo iMac G3 Restomod. CPU Swa... OC, HDD Replacement, RAM Upgrade, and Speaker Replacement! K2s Retro Workshop 2023-09-17 | Today we visit my highly used Imac G3. A speaker finally died in it and it's time to open it up and do some upgrades and repairs.I did notice that the power light is flashing in all of this. Looks like it needed a new battery and yet another PRAM reset. Doesn't seem to have affected the performance, fortunately.Didn't all go to plan but I did end up with great results and I look forward to using the machine for many more years to come.Chapters:Intro 0:00Tear it Down 5:50CPU Woes 6:55Speakers 9:34Test Setup 10:40Speaker Comparison 12:14Motherboard and Alternate Plans 18:27Shim Installation 21:23PostCAP PreOC Startup 24:52HDD Benchmarks 25:22Janky XFER 28:09OC Settings 29:50OC Startup 31:55OC Results 34:11Final Results 35:11UT99 37:37
Reviving and Playing an AST Advantage! Adventure 4066d K2s Retro Workshop 2023-08-04 | Today we are repairing and playing with an All-In-One 486DX2-66 equipped AST Adventure! Advantage 4066d.This video was a long time in the making and was surprisingly frustrating after getting the unit to work. Upgrades, jumpers, ugh.00:00 Intro and Initial Smoke Test01:39 Inner Chassis02:58 Removing the Motherboard06:00 New CMOS Battery07:53 Typical...08:32 Doom Benchmark12:20 Processor Upgrade15:09 Jumpers...17:03 Star Trek: A Final Unity and Final Thoughts
Welcome to Edgar Digital K2s Retro Workshop 2023-01-05 | Sorry for all the 'umms' in the video. I'll just pretend it was a challenge to say umm instead of meow.Edgar Digital is a computer shop located in Las Cruces, NM.It's an amazing place to visit and if you ever get a chance to you should!Like I mention in the video you aren't filling your trunk for $100 but you get to avoid shipping damages!Please drop any questions below and I'll get back to you!MEOW!
Macintosh Classic II Quick Shop Recap K2s Retro Workshop 2023-01-05 | Quick recap video showing the method that I use to open and recap this classic machine.I graduated and have a new job which was causing me time conflicts with filming. I am going to try and get many more videos up. Not necessarily once a week but I'm going to try for at least once a month.I know there are different thoughts on how to open and remove the SMT caps. This is what has worked for me through about 9 of these so far.As always, questions and comments are welcome below.
Apple MF355F Floppy Drive Rebuild K2s Retro Workshop 2021-08-20 | This is for the manual inject version of the Apple floppy drives. There are other models that will come apart differently!Not very exciting, I know, but the first time I tried taking one of these apart I was so confused as to how one of these drives came apart and here I show you how to do it!I didn't realize this would end up being a 17-minute video!
3Dfx Voodoo Powered Motherboard Gets a Memory Upgrade! #GPUJune K2s Retro Workshop 2021-06-08 | Today we take a look at upgrading an MSI-6168 motherboard from 8MB to 16MB of on-board video RAM for #GPUJune. This is a daring upgrade with plenty of plastics to melt and places for a soldering iron to slip!This particular motherboard might have been a Packard Bell OEM unit but might have had the BIOS flashed to a retail BIOS before I got it many years ago. It didn't have the 'normal' front panel header so I added one as a part of this upgrade.3Dfx Voodoo 3 Technical Manual can be found at 3dfxarchive.com/reference.htmPhotos of the jumper changes can be found here: imgur.com/gallery/LAt1McRyoutube.com/playlist?list=PLC-GPEYjsF-jvOQHeJBY5JzL7_cxatBW1Timestamps:00:00 - Intro02:13 - Technical Blah Blah05:02 - Desoldering06:29 - Startup07:35 - Problems08:45 - Fixed11:14 - Benchmarks13:13 - Conclusion
Intel 386SX to Cx486SLC, benchmarks with cache enabled. K2s Retro Workshop 2021-03-27 | Thank you to user John ACE for mentioning the different ways to enable the internal cache on the 486SLC. I neglected to enable it from the BIOS and these are the benchmarks from it being enabled.Astounding difference and very much worth it as an upgrade!
Intel 386SX Upgrade to a TI err Cyrix 486SLC! K2s Retro Workshop 2021-03-26 | Benchmarks are for non-cache enabled chips. A quick benchmark addendum is available for viewing here: youtu.be/xGWjQzge42o I have trimmed the video to remove the part where I goofed here.This video explores the possibility of upgrading a 386SX processor to a Texas Instruments 486SLC. This, of course, doesn't come without its setbacks and challenges which ends up getting us a Cx486SLC. Unfortunate as the Cyrix only has 1kb of L1 cache, unlike the TI at 8kb.Informative links:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrix_Cx486SLCen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amdahl%27s_lawTimestamps:00:00 - Introduction00:32 - 386 removal02:35 - 386 cleanup06:24 - Installing the 48613:53 - Inspecting the installation14:49 - Problems of course15:55 - Problem found18:24 - Freeing the Cx48620:50 - Removing dead 48623:22 - Soldering the Cx48624:28 - Firing up the Cx486
Macintosh PowerBook 100 Series Power Supply Rebuild K2s Retro Workshop 2021-03-10 | Bit of a 'filler' episode as my other projects give me fits.Today we rebuild PowerBook 100 series power supplies. These guys like to look dead because the supply controller doesn't care for bad, leaky output capacitors but cracking them open, rebuilding them, and gluing them back together quickly brings them back to life.In this video I address a few concerns I've seen on the net regarding how to open them and whether or not they need adjusted for output voltage while they are being serviced.C103 - 47uF 400V - 16x25mmC111 - 47uF 50V - 6x11mmC151 - 33uF 35V - 6x8mmC201 - 1200uF 16V - 10x30mmC202 - 180uF 16V - 6x15mmC207 - 82uF 16V - 5x15mmC252 - 1uF 50V - 4x5mm
Cyrix 486DRx2-66 Revisited Against 80386DX-40. It works! K2s Retro Workshop 2021-01-15 | Previous video: youtube.com/watch?v=eV3oIXuKnw8Phil's Computer Lab 386 Build: youtube.com/watch?v=x7shDmbwVOAToday we look at the Cyrix 486DRx2-66 that failed to run on the previous motherboard. This is the same exact motherboard, down to the revision number, but without the 386 soldered in. Seems to work without issue now.I would love to play come games on this guy for you guys but I suck at games and it is difficult to get an accurate comparison between two systems when the video is variable.Thank you for watching!
AT Power Supply Recapping, Simple and Quick K2s Retro Workshop 2021-01-03 | This is just a quick video of an AT power supply recap job. The fan was only replaced because where I use it, for testing and filming, the fan was a bit loud. Admittedly this could have probably been fixed by using a spare low-noise adapter from another Noctua and keeping the original fan.I had recorded myself taking the supply apart but it's not hard to take any of these apart and it was a waste of time to add it to this video.Any questions or comments leave them below!
486DX2-66 VS ODP5V-83 Pentium Overdrive CPU Comparison K2s Retro Workshop 2020-12-05 | Today we explore the difference between a 486DX2-66 and a POD-83 upgrade processor. There is only a 27% difference in clock speed but the superscalar architecture of the Pentium completely decimated the 486 when a program was optimized for it.Thank you for watching!
386DX-40 Upgrade! Texas Instruments 486DLC-40 and a Rare Cyrix 486DRX2-66! K2s Retro Workshop 2020-11-22 | Today I look into upgrading my 386DX-40 to a 486! As usual it doesn't go off without a hitch or two and I even need a soldering iron to make it happen. The joys of retro computing!Motherboard is an M-326. Unknown brand.I have discovered the camera setting that was giving me terrible video quality so I will have clearer videos going forward.
386SX-25 Leaky Battery Repair and Demonstration K2s Retro Workshop 2020-11-04 | In this video a cheap eBay 386SX-25 motherboard that has slight battery damage gets cleaned, repaired, and put to use.Damage isn't extensive leaving us with a single trace that needed repair for the board to come back to life.Sorry for the video quality. My camera has two video modes which are MotionJPEG and AVC and the former is what I had chosen for this recording and the compression is horrible. I switched to AVC after recording this and the next video and they look MUCH better. N00bsauce. My AC in the workshop is also louder than expected but it's only on for the first part of the video.Music from bensound.com.
VFD Breathing Effect Arduino MAX6921 K2s Retro Workshop 2020-06-25 | Playing around with an Arduino controlling a small VFD display using a MAX6921. DC filament supply.
Noritake 144x16 Graphic VFD Animation with Arduino K2s Retro Workshop 2014-04-17 | Quick look at my DIY smart cooling system for a split-system HVAC.You can see the display refreshing in the video but it doesn't look like that at all normally.Display connected using asynchronous serial.
Vintage 7-segment LED Display with Arduino K2s Retro Workshop 2011-08-27 | Using an ICM7218B display driver I got a vintage TI calculator to display. Code used was from here: http://www.rocketnumbernine.com/2010/11/11/using-the-icm7218icm7228-led-driver
Arduino + ICM7212 LED Display Driver K2s Retro Workshop 2011-08-12 | Non-multiplexed LED display driver I had in my junk box, decided to give it a whirl. Not efficient in the least, with just 3 more pins from the Arduino I could multiplex the display and do away with the driver completely.
1999 Durango 5.9 0-80 K2s Retro Workshop 2009-11-28 | Slow turd 0-80. Altitude sucks. Just Brute Force intake, stainless shorty headers(no long tubes for 4x4), and 6200ft of elevation.
1999 Tracker Dyno K2s Retro Workshop 2008-06-21 | My poor tracker on the dyno during testing. Ran about 35 runs that day pulling from 2000 to 6700 rpm. Put down 127 HP @ 6000 and 121 Ft-Lbs @ 5000. Engine starts making over 100 Ft-Lbs at 2075 and keeps relatively flat until it drops below 100 at 6550 Engine only has 107K on it.
