386pc_16mhz-38

Facts

  • Type: Personal Computer
  • Released: 1991
  • Model: 386 PC (Suntac-12 mainboard)
  • CPU: Intel 80386@16 MHz
  • Graphics: switchable EGA – VGA
  • Memory: 2 MB (640 KB base)
  • Sound: PC speaker 1 bit mono

Released ~1991: My 386 PC seems like a very “general” assembled PC put together with different manufactures parts. Suntac-12 motherboard fitted into a casing labeled “Mega Silent”, and it actually is very silent . I found this PC in the electrical waste dumpster at my job. It was opened with the HDD removed and keyboard missing. I took it home and found the CMOS battery had leaked onto the main board and possibly made some trace damages.

Battery leak: I cleaned up the battery area and measured using my multi meter for broken traces. Turned out, one trace leading to the battery positive pole, and one trace leading to a port for external battery was damaged. I soldered in wires to replace the damage traces and connected a new 3.6 volt rechargeable battery to the external battery port. I located the battery away from the main board, so it would not leak and make a new damage (during the next 20 years or so). Now the computer works fine and remembers the BIOS/CMOS settings and date/time.

286 PC, repair damage traces
286 PC, repair damage traces

Missing keyboard: Soldered up an adapter for making a PS2 connector keyboard fit as well as I didn’t got any loose DIN-5 connector keyboard laying around.

Hard drive replacement: Had an IDE (PATA) – CF card adapter laying around and prepared a 4 GB CF memory card as HDD, setup as 504 MB (maximum size to be supported for PC’s at that time).

386 PC

Remi Jakobsen


I'm collecting classic computers and video games, stretching from the 70's into the 90's. Restoration, history, usage ...


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4 thoughts on “386 PC

  1. Is cpu 386DX or 386SX? If it is 386DX, and motherboard can accept 4MB of memory, it is capable of running Doom, at acceptable speed, in DOS :-))

  2. UTX-32 (Developed by Gould CSD (Computer System Division), a Unix-based OS that included both BSD and System V characteristics. It was one of the first Unix based systems to receive NSA’s C2 security level certification.)

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