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Upgrading RAM in SE
- Thread starter MacTCP
- Start date
That does present a problem. There is not very much space to work with. I just had the mobo out of my SE a couple weeks ago to solder on a battery holder. I've had the mobo's out of several of my other compacts removing batteries and haven't had too much trouble with them.
Perhaps someone else has a better technique than my wedge, pinch, and wiggle?
Perhaps someone else has a better technique than my wedge, pinch, and wiggle?
Those connectors can get very tight over time, as you've discovered. 
There's no special trick to removing them, unfortunately. It's just a matter of persistence.
To break the thing somewhat loose, wiggle it from side to side as much as you can manage, while simultaneously pinching the release tab and pulling firmly, all the while taking care not to have a projected trajectory that intersects the neck of the crt. It sounds complicated, but that's only because it is.
There's no special trick to removing them, unfortunately. It's just a matter of persistence.
To break the thing somewhat loose, wiggle it from side to side as much as you can manage, while simultaneously pinching the release tab and pulling firmly, all the while taking care not to have a projected trajectory that intersects the neck of the crt. It sounds complicated, but that's only because it is.
Here are some ways to assist the pinch/wiggle/lift.
Once the floppy and hard drive cables are removed, the logic board, with power and speaker wires still connected, can be unlatched at the sheetmetal tabs at the two lower case screw points and slid back still in its track until the power connector is as far to the rear as the metal chassis cutout allows, giving you a bit more room. Removing the hard drive power and ribbon cables, and the metal frame holding the option slot cable bulkhead (three screws) will give you still more room, but this is probably unnecessary once you have slid the logic board back.
With the computer resting on the analog board side, you can reach in from the opposite side with any long object to press the release latch while you wiggle and pull to start backing out the connector. Once a separation crack is visible and the latch is past the latch point, you can insert a screwdriver in the separation crack between the removable connector body and the base and twist so each subsequent wiggle makes positive progress and the connector body walks out under control.
Once the floppy and hard drive cables are removed, the logic board, with power and speaker wires still connected, can be unlatched at the sheetmetal tabs at the two lower case screw points and slid back still in its track until the power connector is as far to the rear as the metal chassis cutout allows, giving you a bit more room. Removing the hard drive power and ribbon cables, and the metal frame holding the option slot cable bulkhead (three screws) will give you still more room, but this is probably unnecessary once you have slid the logic board back.
With the computer resting on the analog board side, you can reach in from the opposite side with any long object to press the release latch while you wiggle and pull to start backing out the connector. Once a separation crack is visible and the latch is past the latch point, you can insert a screwdriver in the separation crack between the removable connector body and the base and twist so each subsequent wiggle makes positive progress and the connector body walks out under control.
It's too late to help you, so this is mainly for some future poster with a similar predicament. Simms in compacts must come in pairs, so a 1MB configuration automatically tells you that there had to have been 4 simms, not one. The reason is that each simm is 8-bits wide, but the bus is 16-bits wide. So, you need two simms just to handle the full two-byte width.
Equill took a long time getting to it, but when removing the logic board from an SE or other (pre-Colour) compact Mac, you are more likely to kill the Mac than yourself. A few simple concepts:
1. The compact Mac case contains (high voltage, high power) analogue board/PSU, (low voltage, low power) digital circuits and a (high voltage, high power) CRT. All are physically separated but there are cables joining them.
2. Cables going between the CRT and analogue board/PSU *may* contain high voltages and may deliver high power. Ignore them for this exercise, because you don't need to touch them.
3. Low voltage/power cables going anywhere... We don't care about them, because they won't hurt you. Even the connectors from the PSU to the logic board are harmless. Your hands will not go near the high voltage circuit when working with the logic board or floppy drive.
4. For the Plus and related models, the (low voltage, low power) interface from the analogue board to the logic board is a slide-on pin connector. It has an *internal* security tab that needs to be relaxed before you tug on the cables. Just put your thumb between the male and female connectors on the security tab side, and it is easy to pull apart. But still read the notes under point 5.
5. For the SE and SE/30, the (low voltage, low power) interface from the analogue board to the logic board is an evil Molex connector. It has an *external* security tab which does not open easily. The metal work in your particular SE chassis may improve or reduce access to the Molex connector.
Prepare yourself by pulling the Molex power connector between an ATX PSU and motherboard with your eyes closed. *Remove external power before trying this.* The ATX PSU connector is a big Molex with an external tab, but it is functionally similar to a Molex on an SE.
With your eyes closed, could you find the release tab? After pressing the release tab and wiggling a bit, did you feel that the Molex was free? When pulling the connector off, did you feel a progressive release or an "I'm free" release.
6. The "I'm free" release sensation is not desirable in a compact Mac. When your hand suddenly moves, you are likely to hit the neck of the CRT. That means a dead CRT which cannot be rescued. Work slowly and gently when opening plug connectors. If necessary, get some light on the Molex connector to check whether it is open.
7. Before replacing the analogue to logic board cable on an SE or SE/30, remove the tab that secures the Molex connector to the logic board. The interference fit on the Molex connectors is sufficient to ensure a secure connection, and the tab is unnecessary. Leave the remains of the tab to indicate how the connector is intended to be located.
Your biggest fear in an SE will be the resistor or jumper, depending on what board you have. You'll have to set that correctly. The danger of shock is almost nothing if you're working on the logic board exclusively.
