New Pentium Pro retro build - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Ampera
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 24, 2017, 06:47:53 pm
content: I normally reserve my retro computing stuff to VOGONS, except for major things like this.I love collecting retro computers, and I have decided to go for a Pentium Pro (P6) system.Here are the raw specs:Socket 8 motherboard out of a Gateway 2000200Mhz Pentium Pro128MB EDO DRAM (4x72-pin SIMMs)Ati Mach 64 2MB PCI VGA card3dfx Voodoo 1 4MB PCI 3D cardCreative Sound Blaster AWE32 CT3670 (Basically an AWE64 on an AWE32 board)A hard drive ranging from 2GB to 40GB, depending on what I get away with.This is probably going to become my favourite retro build I have ever done. I love the Pentium Pro, it's position in history, it's performance, and especially its looks (I am a sucker for purple/gold ceramic, and especially white/gold ceramic packages) and it fills a bit of a gap between my rather weak 486-DX4-100 120Mhz and my rather overpowered Pentium 3 450Mhz. I intend it for games like Quake, Tomb Raider, Doom, and Duke 3D. There are of course copious amounts of games available that I would love to try out.Some quirks of the build is I am using a Socket 370 cooler. The issue is that Socket 8 coolers are hard to find and stupidly expensive. I also don't entirely trust them with the space heater that is the Pentium Pro. So I sprung for a cheaper Socket 370 cooler. The issue here is that Socket 370 coolers are I think smaller (Still tall though, cooling is fine), and while they do have a similar mounting method, the clip is probably too short. So I am going to have to do something be with zip ties, making a new clip from scrap metal and pliers, or whatever I'm gonna have to do.OS choice is going to be something among the lines of PC-DOS/DR-DOS to Windows 95 to Windows NT.This is also my first Voodoo card, which is a section of PC gaming that I have always wanted to explore. The Mach 64 and Voodoo 1 is a classic and explosive combo, and I am excited to experiment with them. Together with the amazing AWE32 CT3670 which for the price is one of the best ISA sound cards you can get today, I think I am going to have a heck of a lot of fun with this system, and it will be a kick ass addition to my still sprouting collection.

author: Vtile
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 24, 2017, 07:29:32 pm
content: Quote from: TwoOfFive on May 24, 2017, 06:47:53 pmAlso duct-tape and metal wire works flawlessly on PC repairs.Waiting build pictures.

author: Ampera
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 24, 2017, 07:49:29 pm
content: I'm still awaiting the parts.My initial idea is to see if I can just fit it on there normally. My next plan is to see what I can do with zip ties, and if that fails, to extend or manufacture a custom clip.Socket 7, 8, and 370 all have very similar mounting configurations, but Socket 8 is wider than Socket 7 or 370.

author: rdl
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 24, 2017, 09:14:53 pm
content: I bought a computer like that when I needed something that would run Quake. I had it custom built by Micron and I still have it, but it's been stuck away in a closet for years. I know it has a Voodoo 2 card, because I still have the box it came in. I don't recall too much else about it. That was the last PC I bought for a long time. After that one, I started building my own.

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 24, 2017, 09:46:45 pm
content: I still have a Pentium Pro I built ages ago after it was already obsolete, it's still in the shed at my mom's place. I should probably go get it sometime and have a play with it. The Pentium Pro is one of the coolest looking CPU chips made IMO.

author: Ampera
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 24, 2017, 10:21:08 pm
content: The only CPU that's cooler looking are the White ceramic early Intel CPUs. Don't forget about the white ceramic M68k

author: Ampera
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 25, 2017, 03:08:29 am
content: If anybody has any additional information to if the PSU is stock ATX, that would be appreciated.There is little to no information for the board, but this is something that I think will be of assistance.http://www.geocities.jp/gigi_take/gateway_g6_180.htmJust translate to English in Chrome.From what I can see this person is re-assembling this configuration from stock, or close to it. He is using this PSU:http://www.geocities.jp/gigi_take/gateway_g6_xp_power.htmand comparing his table to a stock ATX pinout everything lines up.The reason I am suspicious is that OEMs loved to transpose pins on those ATX connectors without making it obvious, and without changing the keying on the ATX connector. I can transpose the pins easily enough, it's just a matter of taking the pins out the back and shoving them into a different spot, but I'd need to know if it's transposed, and how.From this I think I am in the clear, and that I can use a stock ATX PSU with proper -12v and -5v lines (I have one that has those rails)He never mentioned any pin transposition in the page, so I am thinking there isn't any.

author: Ampera
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2017, 05:31:56 pm
content: Update: Board, Sound card, and Case are all here (Cali to NY in 2 days, they overnighted the case, 5 dollars shipping on the case, everything else was free, wth?)I'll take some pictures later, and test the machine when the cooler gets here.

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2017, 05:48:14 pm
content: 200MHz?! Fancy stuff!My first encounter with a real life Pentium was in 1995, my last year of highschool. We all wrote our final projects in Computer Graphics (in Pascal of course), and to make sure that they ran really smooth for the external testers, the school gotone100MHz Pentium. It was a robust machine too, our drool didn't harm it at allHowever, for the life of me I can't recall its other specs. Good luck with your build!

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2017, 06:50:02 pm
content: I remember I got a Pentium 60 around 1994, I couldn't believe how fast Doom ran, I'd never seen it so smooth. A year or so later my friend got a Pentium 100 and we were again blown away by how fast everything ran. Those were the days, wait a year and you could upgrade to a computer that was easily twice as fast as the one you had. Now it takes more like 5-10 years to get that kind of boost and the end result is not nearly as noticeable.