Hello Dear Readers,
I'm what many of you would probably call a "NeXT virgin", having no previous experience or knowledge about NeXT computers I stumbled upon a solitary NeXTcube in an old unvisited warehouse in my university. After asking around I finally got it to my office and embarked on the seemingly simple task of getting it up and running - what a fool I was.
After some light research on the subject, I dug out some personal information about the cube in question:
-The NeXTcube has 64K of RAM and approximately 400M of Hard drive space
-The box comes with a NeXTDimension board (the one with the weird connector for a monitor with a rainbow and s-video/rca inputs and outputs)
-Apart from the cube itself, it comes with a mouse and speakers.
Now hear this and try not to laugh dear readers, because I know all you NeXT connoisseurs will surely be surprised by my complete ignorance in this matter.
I thought to myself: I could just plug the RCA output to a small TV, turn it on and just see if it boots. Well, after searching for the power button for a while I figured most things I thought I knew about computers just didn't apply to this pretty cube and I'd have to seek higher knowledge if I wanted to complete my quest of proudly using this machine.
What do you scholars of the NeXT machines recommend I do to alleviate this sad state of affairs? What steps should I take in the path to black geometrical bliss?
I've though about a few courses of action and I present them to you according to what I perceive as priorities, but I'd surely be mistaken:
1. Search the warehouse or ebay for a keyboard (something tells me the elusive power button rests there)
2. Skip the NeXTdimension for a while and find a cable to connect the cube to a MegaPixel display (A colleague has one resting in his desk, yet no cables)
3a. When and If I get it running, get a DSP cable to connect the included speakers and enjoy it.
3b. Try to find a way to get colors out of the box by connecting something to the NeXTDimension board
Thanks for your time, any input is appreciated.
Good on ya for stumbling onto a NeXTdimension cube by accident - lots of us would kill to get our hands on a dimension board.
You are correct in thinking that the power button is on the keyboard. Keyboards and mice aren't exceptionally hard to find. The key is whether or not you need an ADB (Apple Desktop Bus) set or not - non-ADB stuff is harder to find. The megapixel monitor might be your best bet at the moment.
Ogu,
It sounds like you need a keyboard, mouse, monitor, monitor cable, soundbox, and soundbox cable. (All this stuff is proprietary, that is non-standard) This sounds like a lot, but color cubes are quite valuable, so it's definitely worth getting the parts to make it whole again. I would recommend contacting Rob at
http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Blackhole-Inc-Computerpowwow-NeXT__W0QQ_armrsZ1 and just tell him what you have. He should be able to get you everything you need.
If resurrecting an old cube is not your cup of tea, I'm sure you won't have any problems selling it around here.
Brian Moore
Thanks for your responses :)
@dai_vernon: I know, I might not know about NeXTComputers, but you just feel a nice warm fuzzy feeling about finding one (for free!)
@bkmoore: well I just need a keyboard, monitor cable and soundbox cable. I'll contact rob indeed :D, thank you very very much.
Resurrecting old computers is just so much fun, I wouldn't sell that cube :). We just resurrected a nice Macintosh Plus too, there's just something about vintage computers :)
Experts suggest keeping the unknowns to a minimum when learning a new area. :-) In this case, if you've never used a next system before it would be best to get the hardware correct, learn the system, then try to discover substitutes for hardware.
Now that you've decided to ignore that advice....
The power switch (ADB and non-ADB) is a simple short-to-ground affair. Once you've identified the pin on the sound box or the CPU connector bulkhead, connecting it to ground should start a power up/down event. Schematics are in the files archive here, I think. I also think this pin may be mislabeled on the schematics (off by one).
TV (analog pal or ntsc) is interlaced. Monochrome signal is probably rs-170 or something like it. Not really compatible.
Color requires sync-on-green at the monitor.
Depending upon who last had the machine, it may be booting and using only the ND card (typical, mono isn't very interesting once you have an ND).
You're not going to have clean shutdowns until you have a keyboard, I suspect.
Talk about luck! Nice score.