New motherboard
There’s something whacky about HP (not the sauce - which is delicious - the computer manufacturer).
My duo core HP desktop was only introduced to the market in February 2007. I finally concluded that the past year+ of re-starts and freezes was due to a faulty motherboard and decided to replace it so I called HP to order a new one (figuring that I wouldn’t have to re-install all my proggies and everything - which I went through when I upgraded to Windows 7 in an attempt to solve the re-start/freeze problem) I learned that HP no longer offered the original motherboard but had a replacement model. I (reluctantly) asked the girl on the phone what the cost for the new motherboard would be. She (after putting me on hold for maybe 15 minutes) advised me that the new replacement motherboard was also discontinued.
What? In just over three years you not only discontinued the original motherboard but also discontinued the replacement motherboard?? In THREE years???
Thanks HP.
I finally found a replacement of the original ASUS motherboard from a reseller.
In HONG KONG, of all places.
Anyway, I ordered it ($48 plus $26 shipping plus $11 duty) and installed it.
Happy ending - it works great.
I was so pleased with myself for avoiding buying a new computer AND having to re-install all my proggies that I celebrated by going out and buying myself a nifty new 22" LG LED monitor - which also works great.
So, like I said, happy ending…
…but this will be the last HP computer I ever buy.
Cool. I hate the disposible world.
Over the years, I’ve crafted a number of tools for the ‘keep out’ screws and bolts with none-standard heads.
Hi BillClarke:
That’s quite the story…
The ASUS Motherboard?
Does it have a model number or… is it manufactured just for HP ?
Somehow, I’m surprised that the applications didn’t have to be re-installed, again…
AND…
I assume that the Operating System didn’t have to be repaired…
or whatever…
I take it that the computer just booted like normal, or, like nothing happened to the computer ?
Bill…
Bill,
Theoretically, if the replacement motherboard uses the exact same chipset as the one being replaced the program settings (drivers, etc.) should all function fine.
Theoretically…(it was the “theory” part of that that made me reluctant when the girl mentioned a replacement model).
But since I managed to find the exact OEM motherboard (made by ASUS for HP so somewhat proprietary) the programs ‘didn’t know the difference’ and all function perfectly.
Windows 7 required re-activation via telephone because Micro$oft’s ‘Genuine Advantage’ system checks the motherboard serial number to make sure you aren’t installing on a new computer but that took all of about 8 minutes and it activated flawlessly.
Colour me happy!
Hi Again:
That was just perfect…
Good for you…
The story I have is…
I have rebuilt an old P-4 for a second machine in this studio I’m in the process of building…
Anyway, I used a bunch of parts in the assembly of this machine…
I got to the point where the system was asking me to authorize the Operating System and machine…
SO…
I called the number and thew girl asked me what the serial number of the disk(XP Home) was…
There was this long delay and she returned…
I am unable to turn this machine on…
Then I gave her my reply and she mulled it over and after a while she asked me to “RUN” this program and finally this machine I wanted to get authorized got turned on…
She said it wasn’t the original hard drive and the parts that made up the machine wasn’t in the original build of hardware…
I agreed with her but said that all these parts were on different machines that was authorized at one time or another…
Anyway, at the end of the day, I have an old P-4 running in the studio and on what I call, The DJ Desk…The only thing is… I am unable to do video calling with it (the machine)… It’s too slow to SKYPE with…
sigh…
But… I am able to run an 8-Track ST Audio hardware setup, with it…
So far… anyway…
Bill…
Yeah, Micro$oft’s ‘Genuine Advantage’ system checks a number of hardware items to ensure that you aren’t trying to duplicate the system on another rig. Seems to me I had to re-activate Vista on this same machine when I added a harddrive, changed the video card and added additional memory as well. (I think that was it, it might have been a different upgrade.) Anyway, Micro$oft’s ‘Genuine Advantage’ system seems to do what they want it to do and the telephone activation was only a minor annoyance.
Hi Again:
It’s a shame…
XP is soon not gonna be supported… It’s not that I’m fond of any Operating System, either…
It’s gonna make a lot of this old hardware redundant…
AGAIN…
I’m beginning to understand that many people don’t buy computers anymore or never had…
They just lease computers…
Bill…
Well, I keep XP installed on my wife’s computer because I love my laser printer but there are no drivers for it passed XP. My laptop has Vista which has been fine (and surprisingly stable). Netbook has XP and the desktop with the new motherboard has Windows 7.
Gotta say, I love Windows 7 - it’s everything Vista should have been but wasn’t. I think I’ve come a long way for a guy who stuck with Windows 95b long after everyone else left it. I never even had a Windows 98 system - stuck with 95 right through until Windows 2000.
Hi BillClarke:
Nice post…
I have some hardware that I hate to put out ate the end of the driveway…
I’m sure that there might be a market for some Young computer whizzes that specialize in building drivers for perfectly good working printers, scanners and audio hardware like some of this stuff I have…
All this Lexicon CORE 32 audio stuff I have needs, is a set of drivers that will work with Windows 7…
It’s beautiful stuff…
It last worked with a slow P-11 Intel that had 64 meg of ram and a 8 meg graphics card in it…
There were ASIO Drivers back then, but I couldn’t get them to work with the computer and the other set had just too much lag…
If only I could find a young whipper-snapper with no computer hang-ups somewhere in cyberspace…
maybe, he just lives down at the end of the street and I don’t know it…
Bill…
Well Bill, my friends who know about such things (not ME - believe me) tell me that writing drivers for Windows versions isn’t really such a big deal because Micro$oft is (apparemtly) very forthcoming with their design parameters. So you may want to advertise on Kijiji or Craigslist before you kick that fine equipment to the kerb.
That said - I have yet to find new drivers for my HP laser printer and I think it must have been a popular model since Staples still carries the cartridges for it (and I bought it at Costco so they must have sold a few of them). So, maybe I’m just whistling past the graveyard.
Anyway, if I hook it up to an XP rig and access it from there it works fine. And since my wife is quite content to stay with XP I have no complaints, really.
Hi Again BillClarke:
Thanks for the reply…
I have this H/P Scanner… It’s a 4477c
I think that’s the model…
All I know is that scanner is in perfect condition… The resolution is great it works perfectly well on XP as the Operating System… BUT…
no drivers for later than XP…
I wrote the H/P people and asked the question…
NO-GO… they said No Drivers for that model, beyond XP…
I have a cheap H/P Printer/Scanner… It’s a model 380 series…
It does the task well, but nothing to write home to Momma about…
Anyway, when I moved on to Vista I couldn’t get the Operating to recognize the 380 Printer/Scanner…
Anyway, I went to the H/P Driver’s Site and lo-and-behold, there they were…
Most people toss their printers out when the ink runs dry… The cartridges are as much as the printers…
Well…
BOY…
It would be so nice to get that Lexicon audio hardware running with a set of ASIO or WDM Drivers…
The converters are world class and the noise floor and dynamic range and frequency response are second-to-none, and all…
Windows…
is the only bottleneck, to this hardware, in my opinion…
The drivers are great in ‘95…
Maybe, it’s just some kind of address that’s needed to get Vista or Windows 7, to see the hardware, is all that’s necessary…
Who knows ?
If I knew what to type…
I’m a pretty good Two-Finger keyboard user…
It’s like that Billy Currington Song…
I’m "Pretty Good At Drinkin’ Beer"…
I don’t know who wrote the lyrics… BUT…
they (the lyrics) cover the whole idea…
Bill…
Bill,
I am assuming that you’ve attempted to get Vista to run it in compatability mode…
Hi Again Bill Clarke:
I will take a photo of this audio card to show you what it looks like…
It takes a full size computer box to handle it’s length… However, it just needs a PCI socket to power it up…
All I know is, if I plug it into a PCI socket of a computer that has an Operating System newer than '98SE… the computer doesn’t recognize that the Card is installed…
Compatibility Mode ?
How might I be able to set the Operating System of a machine that is running XP, to check it’s function-or-recognition ? with the CORE-32 card… It sure sounds like I haven’t approached the issue, that way…
Bill…
Bill,
If it’s one of the old long form PCI cards then I doubt you’ll find a newer box that will accomodate it - compatability mode or not.
Anyway, unless it’s got multiple inputs or something similiar that you really need - why bother? Any PCI sound card is going to have a significant noise floor - I don’t care how good the A/D converters are. If it’s just a stereo sound card, forget it. Heck, you can use your H2 as a sound card and it will be quieter than any PCI card you can think of.
Just my $ .02 - YMMV.
Bill 2.
Hi Bill Clarke:
I didn’t get any photos of the Lexicon Hardware yet, to post… However, I will…
There’s 24 tracks divided into three 8-Track units… Then there is a 2-track mastering unit…
All this is connected to a PCI Mother Board…
The Mother Board has a Daughter Card that houses the famous ? Lexicon Reverb Controller as a VST Plug in/Hardware/Unit that the Host Multi-track Editor (in my case), n-Track, controls… In their
case (Lexicon) it was Steinberg… In my case, again, it was Flavio’s n-Track… Of course, back then Lexicon or Steinberg had no faith in any other Software/Hardware combinations, other than themselves…
IMHO…
Shame-on-Both-of-Them… It was then that I had a parting of the ways with Steinberg Canada and Lexicon had their parting of the ways, with Steinberg… In my case, with Steinberg and me, it had nothing to-do with n-Track… Of course, the story contains much more detail, than that…
It all happened on the same day, as I recall…
The very same day I discovered n-track…
Flavio and n-Track was still in beta and hadn’t reached v1 yet…
I think the build was 989 or 998, or something like that…
I had a celeron/Intel 300 MHz P-2 built to house the CORE Hardware, and I called Lexicon, in Bedford, Mass. to visit them, and have them tweak the set-up for me…
and…
I mentioned to them that I was using n-Track as the Editor Application… I was all ready to jump in the car,
when the powers-that-be (at Lexicon) heard me comment on the phone, something to the effect, that I had n-Track, installed on the computer and didn’t want to back-track to Steinberg, as the Editor… Right away, they backed away from the tweaking process and that was the end of Lexicon and me…
In my opinion, the hardware and software companies lost multi millions in lost revenue and never recovered from their separation, of-the-ways…
Too Bad, for both of them…
A lot of people in Bedford Mass. lost their jobs over the loss of company…
At the End of the Day, I believe that the Software People wanted the balance of Power, while the Hardware People chose not to allow that process, to happen…
OoHh yes…
On a p-4 '98SE Intel machine I built, I did a major Box modification to allow the card to be installed on the Motherboard… Mechanically, the setup worked like a charm… However, the hardware/software/operating system left a whole lot to be desired…
…
sigh…
Bill…
Hi, Back Again:
I got the camera out to capture some photos of this Lexicon CORE-32 hardware, only to find out it is not as easy as taking photos of this stuff…
It’s still installed in the old Studio…
However, I grabbed one of the LDI-10T units and the LDI-12T (Mastering Unit) and took
Two Photos of what I could easily dismantle from the old installation…
There is still two more LDI-10T units along with all the digital interconnect wiring and all…
One photo shows the PCI Motherboard with the Daughter Card mounted on the assembly…
Bill…
Ahh - I’m beginning to understand - this is a HARDCORE piece of equipment.
hey Bill - I don’t know if you are familiar with Yahoo Groups but there is one dedicated to that rig - Here
i didn’t join or anything but it might be worth checking it out.
Hi Again:
Thanks for that great link…
I am looking into the idea of joining that “Group” in hopes of furthering my knowledge of this great audio hardware…
We’ll see AND, I’ll report back here if I get taken, under their wing and I can get the opportunity to contribute to their group… This looks as though this could be the break-through I’ve been searching/looking for…
Who knows ?
Bill…