A new Macintosh SE/30. A couple of questions.

[mc9625]

Finally I have a (new) Macintosh SE/30.

The machine is really in good conditions. As already stated in another thread I should definitely (and quickly) find a way to recap the board and change the battery.

The problem is that I'm in Italy and it's not very easy find someone here that will do that (I can't hold a soldering iron without provoke severe injuries to myself !)

Meanwhile, I've got a couple of questions:

1) Noise. This computer is very very noisy (at least compared to "modern computer"). There's a constant vacuum cleaner like noise. Probably in a noisy environment (like in an office) you will not notice it too much. But at home it's a little bit annoying.

I've read on this forum that it could be a problem with the FAN (is a sanyo denki dc pico ace 25) or the Scsi Hard Drive (a 40mb Quantum). I've tried to unplug the power cable from the HDD but it's very hard. So before I made something irreversible, better ask. Is there any chance to get an (almost) silent machine? Maybe replacing the HDD with a SCSI2SD device or something? Replacing the fan doesn't look very easy, at least for me.

2) Which keyboard do you suggest? Unfortunately the only issue I have with this computer is with the Keyboard. It doesn't work properly. The keys on the left side (QWERTY, ASDFG, ZXCVB and others) don't work. I think it could be easier find a replacement. Actually I though it would have been easier to find another keyboard but even on eBay there's not a big choice (at least for Italy). Which model do you recommend for the Macintosh SE/30? I would like to be "respectful " of the original style of this vintage mac.

3) LAST QUESTION: which OS version? Actually I have the Mac OS 6.0.8 installed. I think it could be possible to install the 7 dot something. Which version do you recommend? I have 4mb of ram (and I would really like to upgrade it asap). In terms of performances and compatibility.

Thanks

 

[bibilit]

Hi, congrats on your new toy.

In Italy, try to contact this guy:

http://www.vecchicomputer.com/about/

His site is nice, and he already had done some recap, so will be probably able to do it for you, if not i can do it for you if required.

Yes the fan can be noisy, mainly if is covered in dirt, not a big deal.

IIRC, the SE/30 wasn't supplied with a keyboard as standard, so it was an option left to the new owner.

I do like the Apple Keyboard II, but it's just my point of view, some will like the A extended Keyboard II better.

For the SE/30 i will go for 7.1 or 7.5 (if you have enough ram)

 

[uniserver]

4 megs is plenty for 7.5

http://igsi.tripod.com/mac/index753.htm

agreed, the AEK2 is my favorite keyboard.

http://www.ebay.it/itm/TASTIERA-APPLE-EXTENDED-KEYBOARD-II-FAMILY-NUMBER-M3501-/121891535224?hash=item1c614d3978:g:GwkAAOSwPc9WvG3W

 

[mc9625]

Actually I was thinking to the Apple Desktop Bus Keyboard, the first 1986 model or the, almost identical, Apple Keyboard II. The first one should be at least "chronologically" compatible

 

[DragonKid]

Half the keyboard going dead sounds suspiciously like a failure mode I've seen on the cheap rubberdome "Apple Keyboard II" that shipped with LCs.  An original ADB "Apple Keyboard" or "Apple Extended Keyboard II" would be the most appropriate for an SE, they are mechanical switch boards with the switches mounted to a rigid PCB.  If your keyboard is one of those, it's probably fixable and should be fixed.  If it's one of the rubber dome ones, a good cleaning might bring it back, but they are rather unpleasant to dismantle and clean (held together with a lot of tiny screws).

 

[mc9625]

Yes, mine is the Apple Keyboard (M0116). Good to know that it could be repaired. I mapped the non responsive buttons:

4 5

w e r t y

s d f g 

z x c

I will try to look for a tutorial on how to open it and try to fix it.

 

[CC_333]

I think I'll chime in....

System 7.1 should work quite well on an SE/30. I've found 7.5 to be somewhat slow, whereas 7.1 is more comfortable (albeit not as fast as System 6), and yet still somewhat modern. You can also add back in, by means of various bits of shareware/freeware, many 7.5 features, such as WindowShade, if desired.

c

 

[Elfen]

I think I'll chime in....

System 7.1 should work quite well on an SE/30. I've found 7.5 to be somewhat slow....

That because its loaded with PowerPC (Fat) code that needs to be stripped and a lot of unnecessary extensions to be eliminated (you do not need the Nubus Ethernet Drivers in the  extensions folder in the SE\30, but its there!)

System 7 would be great for it, you just need to expand the RAM to 16 megs (4 - 4 meg SIMMs in bank A) or 32 megs (8 - 4 meg SIMMs in both banks). You will also need to check the control panels and extensions and remove unnecessary items, especially in System 7.5+. In System 7.5 and beyond you need to strip the PowerPC code with a Fat Checker program. Read:

https://68kmla.org/forums/index.php?/topic/23429-a-promised-hack-is-here/

Like the others stated - get the logic board recapped. A couple of excellent resources have been mentioned. Read over the Maccaps' SE\30 webpage as to what is going to be replaced so you know what the job entails even if you do not do the job yourself. It is here:

http://www.maccaps.com/MacCaps/Capacitor_Reference/Entries/1989/1/19_Macintosh_SE_30.html