archived post from SillyDog701 Message Centre

[colboy]

I have a Time (fic) A430 laptop and need the the dip switch seting for S1, Front side bus settings.
I have found settings for an A440 but dont think they are the same.
A manual for the MB would be very usefull too cant find anything on FIC website

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[Antony]

I just did a quick search on Google. Is "Time Traveller A430" the full name of your laptop?

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[colboy]

Hi Antony
Yes, I would think so.
It has a number PD0709439 on the underside and
500-50-217 217NM09GB2A on the Time sticker if that meens anything to you,
Thank you for your fast reply
Colin

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[Antony]

I don't think Time Laptop is similar to Tiny Computers, but I will leave this for Tidus, he should know more than I do.

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[colboy]

I would think time and tiny would be the same.
If you have some info on the tiny one, this would be usefull to me

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[Tidus]

[colboy]

Thanks for replying
The A430 has a 800/256/133 1.7v Pent 3 fitted but the bios says 600Mhz

The dip switches above the cpu slot are set to 1(on) 2 (off) 3(on) 4(off)
I changed them to 1(off) 2(off) 3(on) 4(off) 133Mhz? but it made no difference

I took the brave step and flashed the bios to 1.0H-0218-6221-144 but still no difference
( but at least it still boots up )

I have another A430 with a 600/256/100 CPU, I had a look at dip switch settings and they were also set to 1(on) 2 (off) 3(on) 4(off) so that should be 100Mhz

I will try to open the A450 manual as windows reports it as an A430/450 Motherboard

Also fitted a 733/256/133 but that showed 550Mhz in the bios

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[Tidus]

The A430 has a maximum CPU speed of 600MHz i'm afraid, you're not really going to be able to go any higher, not without ripping the firmware apart for the motherboard chipset, and rewriting the BIOS bootstrap code, but to do this you need extensive programming knowledge, and i mean lots of qualifications, diplomas and stuff, my wife is an expert with hardware, she's done 5 years in uni to get her qualifications. She's written BIOSes and drivers for hardware under Linux before, i'll see if she'll do one for this machine, see if there's a way round the limit.

The A430 was a very rare machine, and was quickly superseded by the A440, of which i have great knowledge and experience with. If it was an A440 you were having the problem with, i could probably help you more, a lot quicker! The A430 has a maximum speed of 600MHz, and the A440 goes from 600MHz to 1.2GHz

Give me a couple of days on this, i'll consult with my colleagues, i've not worked with an A430 for a while, but i vaguely remember the one i did had a similar problem to yours is now.

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[colboy]

Thanks Tidus

I dont think it would be worth writing a new bios for the 430, thanks for the offer.
My best bet would be to look out for a 440 MB and swap it over.
Thank you so much for helping me out with this.

I originaly bought the A430 to fix an A360+, but now have two working A430s.
can,t seem to stop fixing old laptops
Thanks again
Colin

PS thanks also for the Artic Silver tip from one of your other posts, I even bought the cleaner as well

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[Tidus]

No worries Colin, i'm always glad to help! Arctic Silver is THE best thermal compund i've ever used, and i'm glad someone else has discovered its benefits. Just as a note, i always say this to a customer who is changing a CPU, no matter what processor it is, when you change it, always apply new compound. There may be some still on the heatsink, but it will be old. However tempting it is to think there's enough, it won't be. Clean it off with compund cleaner, and apply new, to the top of the processor core. Just use a pea sized amount, because once you fit the heatsink, the compound spreads out evenly, creating a nice thermal bond between the CPU and HS, giving maximum heat transfer. Another
couple of tips:

These mostly apply to desktop chips, but i thought i'd tell ya anyway, if you start doing desktops more

1. ALWAYS make sure your CPU fan is plugged in, especially with newer CPU's, they run so hot, they'll overheat within a few milliseconds.

2. Make sure your HSF (Heatsink & Fan) assembly is fitted correctly. Some use spring loaded clips, such as Socket 370 & Socket 7, some use slots, such as Pentium 2 & 3.

Pentium 3 had two mounting differences. There are socket variations, such as Socket 370, and slot types, such as Slot 1. The slot versions of PII & 3 won't matter, as more often than not you won't need to remove the HSF. Watch out for P4 Socket 478 & Socket 775 machines. If the heatsinks aren't fitted correctly on S478, the locking arms can snap the mounting brackets, resulting in the HSF not being clamped down, which will mean your CPU will cook, literally.

Your A430/440 heatsink is different, you may already know this. It is held in by 4 spring loaded screws. When you're re-fitting it, fit one screw in one corner, then fit the one opposite it, to ensure the heatsink is flush.

Hope this helps, and if you need anything else, SCREAM!!

Merry Christmas!

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[colboy]

Tidus

Thank you for your useful information and assistance.

I have managed to get the A430 to recognise a 700Mhz CPU so i will run with that for now.

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