I'm considering buying a Macintosh SE/30, the seller said it has some defects. Is it worth it?

[Shymon184]

2 minutes ago, Pushpull76 said:

You always have to keep in mind that, for "normal people", a not working computer must go to a technician to be repaired.

I don't know how are the prices in your countries, here in Italy a pro can ask you just 50-100 euros just to do a repair quote.

My advice : just leave it, no one will buy it in that condition for that price. Have a look around on ebay or other marketplaces and you will find one in good shape and better price for sure.

Yeah, you’re probably right, speaking of other marketplaces, can you recommend me some? European craigslist is quite unfruitful... I don’t know any other marketplaces.  

[Pushpull76]

1 minute ago, Shymon184 said:

Yeah, you’re probably right, speaking of other marketplaces, can you recommend me some? European craigslist is quite unfruitful... I don’t know any other marketplaces.  

I'm usually on ebay and Facebook marketplace; I also look on local italian marketplaces which are, for me, the best way to fond good things at good prices).

[Shymon184]

Just now, Pushpull76 said:

I'm usually on ebay and Facebook marketplace; I also look on local italian marketplaces which are, for me, the best way to fond good things at good prices).

oh yes, we have local marketplace application/website, there are sometimes vintage Macs but they don't have good enough quality for fulfilling what I'm in search of (that's also how I got one of my Mac CC's, which was actually decent). And facebook marketplace... I've heard about it, is it any good? I've never been familiar with it.

[maceffects]

I use Facebook marketplace but I am also in many Mac sell/trade pages which are fruitful.  Worth a shot. If you were in the US I’d just help you get a working one ready to go. 

[bibilit]

My two cents, time is the solution. 

I have been looking for some machines for years, seen two many ones been advertised for crazy money. 

 

And one day, the right one will just pop up for the correct amount. 

 

When i am looking for another unit, I just think twice about it, and remember how little it will be used, and how much dust it will collect. 

 

 

[JDW]

4 hours ago, Shymon184 said:

I asked the seller for some pics and he sent me some:

 

Compare the photo BELOW of my SE/30 motherboard to the one shown above and you will see something non-stock and odd about F3 & F2 (near the connectors).

 

 

So it has me curious if someone was trying to repair that board using blue MOV parts.

 

[Bolle]

Those fuses came stock on some logicboards. I have one or two with those as well somewhere in storage.

 

I have seen three types so far: SMD like yours, green looks-like-a-resistor barrel type ones and those big blue ones.

[maceffects]

I also have a couple with those blue guys on there.  Not as common as others but still extant. 

[JDW]

Thanks for confirming.  I honestly had never seen blue MOV's on an SE/30 logic board before.  Or maybe I did but just can't remember ponding them.  They look rather awful for something with an Apple logo on it, so I must assume that was an earlier revision board.

[aeberbach]

The other thing I notice about that board is that half the SIMM sockets look like mine, black in color, the other half are white plastic. Surely the factory didn't have a mixed bucket and randomly picked up two different ones? Maybe if you flipped that board over you would find some evidence of rework. Could be as innocent as fixing broken clips? It looks clean and recapping might bring it back to life. If it did work and it came with an AEK I'd probably pay $400 of my dollars for it but about half that if not working. Maybe $150 without the keyboard as you show it.

[bibilit]

I have one board with this same exact SIMM socket setup, half is white and the another black. 

 

So stock probably. 

[Shymon184]

Hi everyone,

I thank all of you for your help, the seller didn’t want to discuss the price so I didn’t buy it.

I shall look out for better SE/30 deals. 

Edited December 3, 2020 by Shymon184

[Bolle]

31 minutes ago, aeberbach said:

Surely the factory didn't have a mixed bucket and randomly picked up two different ones?

 

I also have a board that came with a mix of four white and four black RAM sockets.

Not sure if it was intentional or if they just ran out of one type of sockets in the middle of a board but it was definitely not a rework job.

Edited December 3, 2020 by Bolle

[cheesestraws]

On 12/3/2020 at 9:18 PM, Shymon184 said:

I shall look out for better SE/30 deals. 

 

SE/30s are less rare than people think they are.  They're just not quite as common as some of the other compact Macs.  Happy hunting!

[ArmorAlley]

On 12/2/2020 at 5:22 PM, Shymon184 said:

I asked the seller for some pics and he sent me some:

 

I was once warned about laying electrostatic-sensitive equipment on non-natural fabrics on the grounds that any static on the fabric could wreak havoc on the equipment. Was the warning correct? Has the potential seller been careless here with the motherboard?

[Crutch]

I don’t know what the experts would say, but I wouldn’t personally do that with a natural fabric either .... few things seem to build up static electricity worse than natural wool.  (That said, we’ve all been careless and the chance of motherboard damage is probably extremely low.)

[JDW]

2 hours ago, ArmorAlley said:

I was once warned about laying electrostatic-sensitive equipment on non-natural fabrics on the grounds...

 

Well, if it's grounded then...    (I know what you mean, but I thought the wording was especially amusing!)

 

 

20 minutes ago, Crutch said:

I don’t know what the experts would say...

 

Here's what they have to say...

 

 

[davidg5678]

1 hour ago, JDW said:

Here's what they have to say...

Thanks for sharing the video! I enjoyed watching it. Maybe it's time for me to get an ESD Mat instead of only using a wrist band. I suppose my dollar store toothbrushes are not very ESD friendly either.

[ArmorAlley]

2 hours ago, davidg5678 said:

Thanks for sharing the video! I enjoyed watching it. Maybe it's time for me to get an ESD Mat instead of only using a wrist band. I suppose my dollar store toothbrushes are not very ESD friendly either.

 

I know. I was found wanting in a lot of those examples. I found it very instructive too. I need more shielded bags.

[davidg5678]

1 hour ago, ArmorAlley said:

I know. I was found wanting in a lot of those examples. I found it very instructive too. I need more shielded bags.

It only makes me wonder how many of my dead boards and chips are actually victims of poor ESD precautions instead of age. Whoops...

[Crutch]

What a great video!  It’s almost even slightly entertaining.  Which is quite good for a best-practices corporate instructional video. 

[Oberlehrer]

Check the completed listings on ebay for SE/30s that were actually sold. 300 € might be reasonable for a unit in good condition. Computers that boot but show problems seem to sell for under 200 € in general. But admittedly the prices can also be on the high side.

 

To give you an idea: During the lockdown I bought one SE/30 "non working" (which turned out to be a Maxell bomb) for 80 € and another one "working but without sound, no peripherals included" (which needed recapping) for 50 €. Both from "ebay Kleinanzeigen" which is separate from ebay (basically classified ads).

 

At the moment there's a working Classic II locally for 99 € while other sellers try to unload original Classic models for more...