IIfx - Worth fixing? Also ... what's the PDS card?

[olePigeon]

I saw an interesting listing for a bunch of different computer related stuff.  One of the items is a IIfx.  Unfortunately it looks like the battery leaked everywhere.  I'm not sure it's fixable, I can see corrosion right nest to the CPU.

However, this IIfx actually has a PDS card.  What the heck is it?  Any idea?  I don't know of any IIfx PDS cards outside of a SCSI card and the Tokamac (which this isn't, unfortunately.)

 

[Byrd]

Not that sure on the PDS card (assume cache, it doesn't look too complex), but it might be worth a punt as it looks like the PRAM batteries were just taped down and stored on top.  The battery leakage might have just taken out the top lid, floppy drive  and not affected the motherboard (assuming that it doesn't have more PRAM batteries in their proper holders!).

 

[olePigeon]

Hmm.  I'll see if they'll do $25 or something for it.  At the very least, if that's a cache card, it's pretty darn unique.  Worth $25 in my book if the IIfx is shot to hell.  I'll have to keep an eye out for a decent IIfx, then.

I figure a cache card for a IIfx is probably the 2nd best thing you could get outside of an 040 accelerator (which are rare as hen's teeth.)

 

[Unknown_K]

Not sure why a cache card would have a ROM on it but would be interesting to see what it is.

 

[olePigeon]

Did they make a PDS version of the Bus Master card?  Or was that NuBUS only?

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Not sure why a cache card would have a ROM on it but would be interesting to see what it is.

I was wondering about that as well, but now I'm not necessarily sure it is a ROM? Weird lookin' thing!

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Worth $25 in my book if the IIfx is shot to hell.  I'll have to keep an eye out for a decent IIfx, then.

Definitely, that spare PSU can't be a bad thing either.

 

[Alex]

The corrosion next to the CPU doesn't look that bad. Some isopropyl alcohol, flux and some solder should clean that up.

I would love to work on such a beat up machine because most of the battery leakage appears to be isolated to the hard drive and floppy drive carrier which would require sanding and spray painting to recover to like new condition. The logic board would need to be closely looked at and cleaned up, all electrolytic capacitors should be replaced with tantalums. I would totally dig cleaning up a machine in that condition. I can't see the logic board but this can be cleaned up and brought to reconditioned life.

 

[olePigeon]

Didn't the IIfx have issues with Bus Mastering?  Assuming it's a cache card, could it have some sort of ROM that addresses that issue?  But looking at a different thread on the Tokamac, the company had to great their own ROMs and replace the ones on Apple's motherboard to fix that issue.

 

[Unknown_K]

The chip UK7 was replaced on the IIfx for the Tokamac to work (bus mastering issues).