E-mu Emulator Sampler User Forum for the EIII EII EI and EIII XP

Just got an EII yesterday.
1st few times switched on, it got to boot screen, and no further.
So I opened up, reseated a few memory ICs around what I think is first segment (IC13 area?) - used some deoxit and replaced.

Then this time, it booted up and all seemed good. A Bank loaded. I then tried to load a bank from another floppy, started loading, then after a bit froze and blanks screen.

Since then I have removed and reseated just about every IC on the digital board.

Generally all I get is black blocks on the top row of the LCD, nothing on second. And usually ALL of the LEDs lit.
about 1/10 times I might get the boot screen, but no further (doesnt try to read discs).

So in theory most of the machine is OK since I got as far as loading 1 bank.

Wondering if this is a bad connection somewhere.

Maybe RAM/Scanner problem?

Can any suggest anything I can try?
Which Ram ICs should I check first,
Any tips appreciated.
I am very good with electronics, however, not too familiar with EIIs (but learning fast!)

BTW, oddly, my boot up screen is unique(?)


  **Emu 3-1 SC ***
Mulhouse 1-02-90

custom? maybe just the message has been changed? (maybe Mulhouse is one of the previous owners?)

These are classic symptoms of corrupt memory (that is why you have garbage displayed). If you are lucky it is just a memory chip, and your first task is to run the memory test (if you don't have a test floppy then you can download and burn a diagnostics eprom from the Yahoo group). If the test fails and it is not a chip (takes a bit of decoding and reference to the schematic to figure out which RAM chip) but is location sensitive it is often a corroded pin on the socket. The other thing that could be happening if memory tests good is that bad data is coming from the floppy, but if you have 2 drives you can isolate that (plus the diag eprom has a disk exerciser).

This is the easier stuff on an EII, and diagnosing the harder stuff is patience, a scope, and the schematic (and I have spent too many hours at that on EII's). You should also check your power rails (but don't start twiddling pots), with a common issue being dry joints/high resistance connections at the psu output.
 
Chris
www.thisoldsynth.com

if any one out there is listening (this is a quite forum!)

I am both a genius and an idiot,

I found, that after cleaning IC sockets, I put a Zilog back in wrong  >:(

Fixed that, and now reliably boots each time.

But no sound :(
So I will run a memory test next

Mulhouse is a damn city in Alsace ! And you live at 117 km (roughly 70 miles) of it, at Strasbourg !