Falcon issues

Problems with your machine in general.
darkxavier
Posts: 18
Joined: Mon Feb 18, 2019 5:15 pm

Falcon issues

Post by darkxavier »

Hi
I bought a falcon off eBay from a seller who used the machine for sequencing. Booted up fine, so was happy with purchase. I got a parcp-usb, and wanted to try out demos etc. This is where I have started to get issues with the machine.

I don't get any sound from demos that use the DSP.
Most demos won't even run, machine hangs and I have to reset.
Ace tracker hangs when it tries to initialise the DSP.
Raiden works fine.
Racer runs but incredibly slowly. About 1 frame per second.

The board has no mods at all.

I did buy a fpu and a tos upgrade from Exxos. Getting same issues trying regardless of which TOS, if fpu is fitted or not.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Steve
Posts: 2570
Joined: Fri Sep 15, 2017 11:49 am

Re: Falcon issues

Post by Steve »

First make sure the HDD is clean, no strange auto programs or accessories.

Then try downloading nembench, it is a CPU and dsp benchmark. This will let you know if the dsp is working properly.

Nem bench is inside the software archive here on this forum, it might be listed under nemesis accelerator software.

From there you can troubleshoot.. You may need a clock patch.

Found the link: https://www.exxosforum.co.uk/forum/downl ... php?id=130
darkxavier
Posts: 18
Joined: Mon Feb 18, 2019 5:15 pm

Re: Falcon issues

Post by darkxavier »

Ran Nembench. It ran all tests at 100%. Also ran DSPbench. Just says testing is complete straight away.
Steve
Posts: 2570
Joined: Fri Sep 15, 2017 11:49 am

Re: Falcon issues

Post by Steve »

Did you get 100% for the dsp result? Sounds like the chip is working, you most likely need a clock patch then. My falcon exhibited similar issues to yours before I installed the patch. Exxos sells kits, there is an installation guide that I recorded on his page about it.
darkxavier
Posts: 18
Joined: Mon Feb 18, 2019 5:15 pm

Re: Falcon issues

Post by darkxavier »

It didn't give any percentage for the DSP test. I don't have the skills to fit the clock patch, do you know anyone who could fit it?
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dhedberg
Posts: 105
Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2017 8:21 pm
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Re: Falcon issues

Post by dhedberg »

If you didn't get any percentage for the DSP then it probably failed the test.

Here's another test you can do:

Go to this page: http://nb.atari.org/main.php?page=productions

Download and run the Maggie 24 Intro. It has a small 3d dots intro (with a New Beat logo) that uses the DSP (with the host interface, i.e., no DMA involved). If you see the dots, your DSP is good and the problem is most likely DMA related. If you don't see any dots, your DSP is not working.
Daniel, New Beat - http://newbeat.atari.org.
Like demos? Have a look at our new Falcon030 demo It's that time of the year again, or click here to feel the JOY.
Steve
Posts: 2570
Joined: Fri Sep 15, 2017 11:49 am

Re: Falcon issues

Post by Steve »

darkxavier wrote: Tue Feb 19, 2019 8:43 am It didn't give any percentage for the DSP test. I don't have the skills to fit the clock patch, do you know anyone who could fit it?
If you try Daniels demo he linked you to and it works, then yes I can fit a clock patch for you. If it fails then you could have a dead dsp... There might be people who have spares and can fit them.
darkxavier
Posts: 18
Joined: Mon Feb 18, 2019 5:15 pm

Re: Falcon issues

Post by darkxavier »

Tried the demo, just a black screen.
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dhedberg
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Re: Falcon issues

Post by dhedberg »

darkxavier wrote: Tue Feb 19, 2019 3:22 pm Tried the demo, just a black screen.
Sounds like the DSP is not doing too well. Do you have an oscilloscope? Check and see if it has a proper clock signal. If it has been accelerated at any point, the clock signal trace will have been cut. Perhaps somebody has fiddled with accelerating the DSP at one point? Could also be worth checking ground and power connections.

Another possibility is dried up caps. I have a friend whose Falcon030 would freeze if the Blitter was used. It worked perfectly OK otherwise. The Blitter is inside the Combel chip and the Combel draws current from various pins to the different parts of the chip. Turned out that the reservoir cap for the Blitter was not OK. We replaced the cap and everything was fine and dandy again.

Of course, your DSP could also be dead. In that case you can buy a new one from Best Electronics in the US. If you're not located in the US I could also sell you one, but it won't be a lot cheaper. PM me if you're interested.

--Daniel
Daniel, New Beat - http://newbeat.atari.org.
Like demos? Have a look at our new Falcon030 demo It's that time of the year again, or click here to feel the JOY.
darkxavier
Posts: 18
Joined: Mon Feb 18, 2019 5:15 pm

Re: Falcon issues

Post by darkxavier »

I don't have anything like an oscilloscope. That is way past what I can do unfortunately.
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