Need Advice please-"What is/what to do with...?"

[Kitros]

I just obtained an old gateway system...here are the specs as to my own eyes:

~1997 Gateway:
P133🙁
mobo: 9 slots total
-3 pci, +3 half sized? pci slots
-2 dimm slots, +1 ???slot next to cpu, and it
is occupied.
-onboard ati 3d rage II
-onboard sound(creative labs 16 I think)
16mb (in 1 slot)
2 modems???(1 in full pci, 1 in other)
1.2gb hdd (west.dig.)
cdrom
fdd
15" gateway monitor
gen. speakers
145W PS
30 lbs of dust

What is that mobo? Can I upgrade? I just want another pc to fiddle with(and don't feel to bad when I fry it!😉) I want to learn linux, or unix, so this is my guinnea...

What shall I do with it?

I picked it up for $250 from a friend of a friend who REALLY needed cash, so I gave in...

Where should I start? Where the heck will I find the true specs of this machine?

thnx guys...

and PS- What is the best way to remove all the dust? Should I remove everything, diconnect batteries and stuff and just wash it with DI water like I did when working as an smt guy? Or do the same but with alcohol....there is too much dust!!!

 

[Kitros]

^^^^

 

[IsOs]

For specs, check with Gateway - maybe email support.

 

[ltk007]

compressed air for dust. the rest is junk. seriously, set it up as a linux box for a proxy server or have it crack RC5.

 

[Kitros]

Argghh...can't find mobo anywhere....dammit, it's not in the gateway archive!

...well, it shall be a test box for me🙂

I'm loading BeOs onto it now🙂

 

[Kitros]

dp😉

 

[Eli]

Where can I get BeOS? 🙂

The slot next to the CPU is the Pipeline burst SRAM(cache).

If the board is based on the Intel FX or VX chipset, you may be able to stick a K6-2/400 in it. 🙂

 

[Kitros]

sram cache? Is that a module of ram? Please expand on that...
(BTW, there is a module in there now.)
How can I tell if it is a xxchipset board?
I got BeOs thru Maximum PC(magizine)...it came with it and other cool demos.

 

[Eli]

All socket-7 motherboards have onboard cache.. Some of them, instead of being soldered onto the motherboard, it is in a slot. Upgradable, in other words. It is of no worry to you. 😉



You have to look at the two big main square chips on the board, and look at their numbers. at the end, look for something like FX, FX66, VX, HX, LX, etc 😉

 

[Kitros]

thanks for the in depth tour of my large square thing inside the larger box.😉

Ya, got it here:
SB82437VX...does this mean K6-2?!?!?!?😱
Next is to find out who makes my mobo....

 

[Eli]

It could. You'd just have to try and find out. K6-2/400s are like 50$.

Set it to the lowest voltage it supports(Hopefully 2.5 or lower), and set the multiplier to 2x, bus speed to 66MHz. The K6-2 will see 2x as 6x, and 6x66=396MHz 🙂

 

[DaddyG]

Your Cache Module is what *ntel in their glory refered to as COAST or Cache On A STick. You were supposed to be able to interchange the 'stick' for larger modules. The spec was really bad and mobo makers dropped the idea in less than 6 months. Some poor bastards actually designed and patented cases that had a little removable panel to access the 'stick'. I don't think your mobo has the dual voltage regulators to support K6-2 cpu's.

 

[Kitros]

How would I know if it did?

 

[Eli]

Is there any silkscreen on the board that hints towards voltage adjustment? I've got a VX board sitting right infront of me. 2 DIMM slots, 4 SIMM slots... It most certainly has Dual voltage regulators.. Physically, it has 4 actually. 😉

The lowest voltage this board that I have supports is 2.5v. That's K6-2 territory..

If you can't find a way to lower the core voltage, don't put a K6-2 in it.. I don't think it'd last long with the 3.3v the Pentium 133 takes.. 😉

 

[Kitros]

yah...every damn board I seeing has 4 simm slots...except this one!
err. no silkscreen regarding that, just some print on clock speed jumper settings...I wish I knew...uh isn't there a kind of program that could tell me? Can I OC this 133? Arghh!