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Dead eMacs (Model A1002)

twillkickers

twillkickers

6502
Picked up a load of Model A1002 eMacs from the local junkyard. A couple of them are in very nice condition, but they do not boot at all. I opened them up, took a few boards out, and can't find any popped capacitors. Has anybody brought these back to life before? It would be interesting to know what common issues there are that prevent these from turning on.

 
Don't eMacs have the same logic board as a Beige G3?   In that case there are a number of easy things to check first.    There needs to be installed:

1) CPU ZIF module

2) ROM DIMM

3) At least one RAM DIMM (PC66 - PC133 SDRAM)

4) Jumper block (configures bus speeds)

5) Voltage Regulator Module

If any of those components are missing or miss installed, then the machine will not boot.

Also, there is a jumper on the logic board that must be set to correspond with the type of power supply used -- either Apple PS or standard ATX PS.   I don't know why anyone would change that jumper, but someone might have removed it if they were stripping the machine.

Often RAM and ROM modules get stripped before a machine goes to a scrap yard.

 
Thanks for the reply. All components are installed. I should have specified, these are not stripped down. Kind of wondering which components may have failed which are causing them not to start.

 
trag said:
Don't eMacs have the same logic board as a Beige G3?  
Click to expand...
I think you're referring to the all-in-one G3, which does share the same logic board.  The eMac is totally different, they are closer to an iMac than anything else.

Do they power on at all or are they just totally dead?

 
I had that issue with my 1.42ghz eMac. I had not turned it on for three months, and when I needed to use it, no joy. After removing the plate covering the memory, and inspecting the caps that are visible there for damage, I turned to replacing the battery. My machine booted right up.The battery may have too low of a charge to allow your eMacs to run. That would be my guess.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Brett B. said:
I think you're referring to the all-in-one G3, which does share the same logic board.  The eMac is totally different, they are closer to an iMac than anything else.
Click to expand...


You're correct.    Thank you.   I knew I wasn't quite certain...

 
Just a quick question. Do the machines have ram? Depending on the model, you can run up to 2gb in it, unofficially. No memory installed may give you the dead machine treatment. I have not tried to start mine without ram, so I dont know what exactly would happen.

 
ppcoutlaw said:
Just a quick question. Do the machines have ram? Depending on the model, you can run up to 2gb in it, unofficially. No memory installed may give you the dead machine treatment. I have not tried to start mine without ram, so I dont know what exactly would happen.
Click to expand...
When PowerPC was outlawed, only outlaws had PowerPC. I am a PowerPC outlaw.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
It seems to me that I have read of some of the earlier eMacs, 700, 800, and 1ghz

models had issues with the capacitors going bad on some units. This could be a.

factor. Also, you may wish to remove one stick of ram and try to start it then.

And from frequently ghosting over other topics on the forum, it appears that

dirty contacts on removable "cards" of any type, is. CPU, i/o, cache, or ram,

could be a.factor in your machine not starting up.

 
Thanks for the suggestion. Most of the components are soldered on. Would you suggest first replacing the surface mount capacitors on the mainboard or the through hole capacitors on the power supply? None of the power supply capacitors have any visible bulge or leakage. In addition, the surface mount capacitors on the mainboard look ok as well.

 
Thanks for the links, but I've already tried resetting the PMU and replacing the battery with a fresh one. It's the first step I take whenever I try and boot an old Mac. It has done nothing for these old machines. Any other ideas?

 
I was thinking about your issue with getting

your emac to boot up and a dim recollection

of my own emac came to the fore. The keyboard could have an issue. I had a problem with my unit not booting when I first got it. As it had no keyboard with it, I picked up a used,untested emac keyboard. I seem to remember that it would not boot. I tried another emac keyboard and it worked.

It was several years ago, but it might help to test out the keyboard on another mac to see

if it is any good, and to find a good tested keyboard to take another try at it. Also, it is possible you have a bad ram stick.

Best of luck to you!

 
Pretty sure I booted one with no keyboard attached once. I think these things might be really temperamental and decide to stop booting now and again. I had one that worked for a while but today I plugged her in and NOTHING!!! I think I might have to throw all these in the dump if I can't figure out what is wrong.

As an aside, I replaced all the through-hole mount capacitors on one of the boards to see if it would boot, but nothing happened just as before. Every time I tear one of these down and put it back together, it takes so long because all the components are generally finicky about fitting together. It's definitely more trouble than it is worth - has anyone recapped one of these with any success? Should I be recapping the surface mount capacitors as well? What causes these stupid things not to boot? THEY'RE DRIVING ME CRAZY!!!

 
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