8. Incompatibility with Apple TechStep Test, Version 1.0
9. Sound Test "Ampl High" Failures on IIvi, IIvx, and Performa 600
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1. TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDE ERRATA
Please correct the following items in your copy of the Apple TechStep Troubleshooting Guide for CPU Tests, Vol. 3:
• p.60, SCSI Logic Test Failure Messages:
a) All SCSI bus lines in the error messages should be preceded by "/". (This terminology is standard for SCSI bus lines, which are asserted when low.)
b) For “FAIL:DataHandlng”, substitute “FAIL: Data Xfer”.
• p.76, Video Patterns Test, Evaluating the Patterns:
a) DELETE the following statement:
“On the Macintosh IIci and IIsi computers, lines sometimes appear on the monitor display as tests run. Test Manager interaction with the computer built-in video causes the lines.”
b) WRITE IN the following statement:
“IMPORTANT: If the video patterns contain vertical or horizontal lines, or any extraneous blips, suspect a fault in the on-board video circuitry (bad logic board).”
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2. VIDEO PATTERNS
Faults in the on-board video circuitry of Macintosh computers may cause problems (including problems entering Test Manager) that are not detected by any Pass/Fail test in the Logic menu. If a known-bad Macintosh passes all the logic board tests, RUN THE VIDEO PATTERNS TEST and look for irregularities in the patterns. The patterns should appear as uniform bars of white, gray, or color, as described on the TechStep screen. Any additional lines or blips in or across the bars may indicate a problem with the on-board video circuitry, and therefore a bad logic board.
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3. TEST MANAGER ENTRY VIA THE SCSI PORT
In "CPU Tests, Vol.2," we introduced "TstMd via ADB," which uses the ADB port to cause most computers to enter Test Manager mode almost instantaneously. In "CPU Tests, Vol.3," TstMd via ADB has been included in the TstMd function: TstMd always attempts to work via the ADB port first (except on Macintosh IIci computers, where ADB entry is not possible). If entry via ADB fails, you are given the option of attempting Test Manager entry via the SCSI port.
Because of the large memory sizes supported by the computers in this ROM pack, entering Test Manager via the SCSI port may require up to 2 minutes on systems with maximum memory installed (128 MB on Macintosh IIci). Also, if the computer has a problem that prevents Test Manager entry via SCSI, there will be a 2-minute wait before you see a “Could not enter Test Mode” message. During this delay, Apple TechStep may appear to be hung (since no activity indicator appears on the screen), but in fact, TstMd is simply waiting for the time-out to complete before displaying an error message.
If a Macintosh IIci cannot enter Test Manager using TstMd, try starting up the computer without invoking TstMd. If the computer enters Test Manager spontaneously, run tests as usual. Otherwise, try the manual entry technique described on page 6 of the Troubleshooting Guide.
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4. PORTRAIT DISPLAY MONITORS AND MACINTOSH IIvi, IIvx, or PERFORMA 600 BUILT-IN VIDEO
The Apple Portrait Display monitor is not supported by the built-in video circuitry of Macintosh IIvi, IIvx, and Performa 600 computers. With any of these computers, the Apple TechStep Monitor ID function will misidentify a Portrait monitor connected to the built-in video port as a "VGA monitor."
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5. RAM TESTS: THINGS TO REMEMBER
a) For Macintosh computers with memory size larger than 32 MB, all RAM tests take significant time to run. For 128 MB systems, the RAM Size Test (quickest of the RAM-related tests) takes approximately 3 minutes.
b) For Macintosh IIci computers:
1) The Long ("Moving Inversions") RAM test is not available.
2) The “RAM:Standard” test is listed under the name “SIMMs” on the Macintosh IIci Logic menu and under the name “RAM:Standard” on the “More RAM Tests” menu. There is no difference between these two menu items.
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6. NUBUS VIDEO CARD TESTS
a) The Video Card tests in "CPU Tests, Vol. 3" are significantly faster than the tests for the same cards contained in "CPU Tests, Vol 1."
b) As on Vol.1, the Video Card tests on Vol. 3 test only the RAM on the cards -- therefore, a card can pass the test and still be faulty in some other way.
In very rare circumstances, the NuBus Card (or IIsi Expansion Card) identification function for non-video cards may display garbage characters instead of the name and version of the card. (This situation only occurs if you turn the computer off and then on again after the function has scanned the card.)
If the function displays garbage characters, simply press the BACK key to return to the previous menu, and then reselect “+ NuBus” (or “+Expansion Card”).
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8. INCOMPATIBILITY WITH APPLE TECHSTEP TEST, VERSION 1.0
Do not test the "CPU Tests, Vol. 3" ROM pack using version 1.0 of "Apple TechStep Test" (a program that allows a Macintosh to test the Apple TechStep unit). If you do, the ROM pack will cause the Logic Board test to fail, and the log will report "ROM pack Checksum test FAILED." ("Apple TechStep Test" was written to support ROM packs of up to 64K, whereas "CPU Tests, Vol. 3" uses a 128K ROM.) This does not indicate a true failure.
An updated version of "Apple TechStep Test," capable of testing the "CPU Tests, Vol.3" ROM pack, will be available on AppleLink in the near future.
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9. Sound Test "Ampl High" Failures on IIvi, IIvx, and Performa 600
If the Sound test fails with the message "FAIL: Ampl high" (“amplitude high”) on a Macintosh IIvi, IIvx, or Performa 600 computer, it may not indicate a true logic board failure, depending on the revision level of the logic board.
Logic boards for these three computers exist in several revisions. If the "FAIL: Ampl high" message occurs on a rev. B (or later) logic board, it indicates a true logic board failure. However, if "FAIL: Ampl high" occurs on rev. 03, 04, or A logic boards but the user does not report problems with sound output, then this message probably does not indicate a true logic board failure.
To determine the rev. level of the logic board, run the cpuID function:
a) If the ROM SubVersion is $20F2 or above, then the logic board is definitely rev. B or later.
b) If the ROM SubVersion is $20F1, then inspect the silkscreened part number on the front of the logic board. The revision level is indicated by the suffix: 820-0373-03 is rev. “03”, 820-0373-04 is rev. “04”, etc.
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Apple TechStep and Performa are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, and Macintosh are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
