Mark loves Stella Posted October 31, 2020 Share Posted October 31, 2020 So, I have a fully loaded Atari 800xl. Ult 1MB, VBXL, Stereo, SIDE3, Fujinet. For the past few months it has started to take longer and longer to turn on. When I flip the switch, the power is dim and slowly brightens over several minutes. When the screen engages, I know that I can now press the reset button and start using it. I will pull out the SIDE3 and Fujinet, and then plug them back in once I have power. I noticed it takes longer to warm up with these other devices connected. Does this mean that I need to replace the capacitors, or is something else failing? Thanks... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 (edited) My first guess would be a failing PSU. But after making sure if it is or not, then a capacitor would be the next guess. Even a cheap $5-10 multi-meter comes in useful for these situations if you don't have one. Most likely it would be one capacitor only, but some like to swap them all out for newer ones these days. Most likely, if it is a capacitor, it will be C1-C4 on the 800XL, all located right around the PSU port and power switch. Off the top of my head without looking at the Field Service Manual-I'm more familiar with 800's and 1200XL's. Edited November 1, 2020 by Gunstar 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugarland Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 (edited) Beyond what Gunstar said which was great advice, what PSU are you using? A photo please. Edited November 1, 2020 by Sugarland Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark loves Stella Posted November 1, 2020 Author Share Posted November 1, 2020 2 hours ago, Gunstar said: My first guess would be a failing PSU. But after making sure if it is or not, then a capacitor would be the next guess. Even a cheap $5-10 multi-meter comes in useful for these situations if you don't have one. Most likely it would be one capacitor only, but some like to swap them all out for newer ones these days. Most likely, if it is a capacitor, it will be C1-C4 on the 800XL, all located right around the PSU port and power switch. Off the top of my head without looking at the Field Service Manual-I'm more familiar with 800's and 1200XL's. Thanks for the quick reply. I just bought replacement caps. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark loves Stella Posted November 1, 2020 Author Share Posted November 1, 2020 5 minutes ago, Sugarland said: Beyond what Gunstar said which was great advice, what PSU are you using? A photo please. I grabbed this from a previous post. I have the one on the right. I think the left one is the notorious ingot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 When the machine is “warming up,” have you tried hitting the RESET key? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark loves Stella Posted November 1, 2020 Author Share Posted November 1, 2020 Just now, DrVenkman said: When the machine is “warming up,” have you tried hitting the RESET key? Yes. When I turn it on, the power indicator is very dim. Almost unnoticeable. It gradually brightens. Pressing the reset does nothing until the power light is fully illuminated. The process takes sever minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 15 minutes ago, Mark loves Stella said: Yes. When I turn it on, the power indicator is very dim. Almost unnoticeable. It gradually brightens. Pressing the reset does nothing until the power light is fully illuminated. The process takes sever minutes. Do you have a multimeter or another way of measuring the output of your power supply? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark loves Stella Posted November 1, 2020 Author Share Posted November 1, 2020 6 minutes ago, DrVenkman said: Do you have a multimeter or another way of measuring the output of your power supply? Yes. Pins 6,4,1 are currently pulling 5.17v. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillC Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 4 hours ago, Mark loves Stella said: Yes. Pins 6,4,1 are currently pulling 5.17v. While the machine is powering up you can also check the +5V output on the SIO/joystick ports, this would show the voltage under load. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+kheller2 Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 9 hours ago, Mark loves Stella said: I grabbed this from a previous post. I have the one on the right. I think the left one is the notorious ingot. That left one is not the ingot, I’m not sure what version that is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 39 minutes ago, kheller2 said: That left one is not the ingot, I’m not sure what version that is! Pretty sure it is. This is Bruce’s photo from B&C’s eBay site, annotated by me. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark loves Stella Posted November 1, 2020 Author Share Posted November 1, 2020 7 hours ago, BillC said: While the machine is powering up you can also check the +5V output on the SIO/joystick ports, this would show the voltage under load. Great idea. I just tried this. My multi-meter is only showing 1.5v when powering up. After a few sec. I will retest and notice that the voltage is gradually rising. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TGB1718 Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 Knowing this, I wouldn't turn this on again until you eliminate the Capacitors in case you either damage the PSU or the Cap's decide to pop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 57 minutes ago, TGB1718 said: Knowing this, I wouldn't turn this on again until you eliminate the Capacitors in case you either damage the PSU or the Cap's decide to pop Agreed it sounds like the caps are initially acting like a short, pulling down the voltage in the process. Although it's unusual to see them 'un-short' after warm-up. Only other possibility is a high resistance inline with the power supply, but I don't see how that would get better with time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark loves Stella Posted November 2, 2020 Author Share Posted November 2, 2020 Thanks everyone all of the helpful tips. I also want to replace the power adapter. Does anyone have a recommendation for a clean 5v 2+amp that I should purchase? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfollowell Posted November 2, 2020 Share Posted November 2, 2020 39 minutes ago, Mark loves Stella said: Thanks everyone all of the helpful tips. I also want to replace the power adapter. Does anyone have a recommendation for a clean 5v 2+amp that I should purchase? I bought this one a couple of years ago to use in my RetroPie setup and it works great. I just purchased another one today to splice in with the DIN cable from my old ingot power supply. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MARDJZ4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark loves Stella Posted November 2, 2020 Author Share Posted November 2, 2020 It turns out that it is the old Atari psu. I made a psu with an old Linksys psu. My Atari boots right away with the new psu. Thanks everyone for your input and advice. I'm back in business. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+kheller2 Posted November 3, 2020 Share Posted November 3, 2020 On 11/1/2020 at 8:18 AM, DrVenkman said: Pretty sure it is. This is Bruce’s photo from B&C’s eBay site, annotated by me. You are correct! My mistake. I had to dig out my box of supplies. I never knew the silver label (top right) had the same upper dimensions of the Ingot. The ingot, in person, has more slanted sides than the picture above show which is what threw me off. Anyone want to sell me a black beauty and the bottom right unit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted November 6, 2020 Share Posted November 6, 2020 (edited) Glad to hear you are all back up and working Mark, careful of that Stella, she's very intoxicating... I'll get me coat... Edited November 6, 2020 by Mclaneinc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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