Alan, I recieved 2 System-80's, and had this fault in both cases. In the first case, there was a memory expansion that was very poorly wired, removing it, cleaning the sockets, and reinstalling the correct memory helped, and it now works a treat. In the second case, there was a disk controller installed in the bottom of the system. I discovered that if the FDC chip was removed, the system booted. I de-installed this modification, and the system works! (Later, I found out that the random characters was a symptom of the system waiting for a boot floppy [which I didn't have]) There is also a flexible cable between the video and the cpu board that could have faulty contacts. Giving this a clean should help. Hope that this helps. regards Doug Jackson Manager - Managed Services (ACT) Citadel Securix Pty Ltd Level 1, 10 Moore St Canberra ACT 2601 Ph: (612) 6290 9011 Fx: (612) 6262 6152 Mob: 0414 986 878 Web: www.citadel.com.au Melbourne - Sydney - Canberra - Brisbane - Hong Kong - Atlanta Any pricing or time figures contained within this email are indicative only, and have been provided for planning purposes only. Please request a quotation from your sales representative prior to undertaking any work. -----Original Message----- From: Alan Greenstreet [mailto:aeg@paradise.net.nz] Sent: Saturday, May 03, 2003 8:52 PM To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org Subject: TRS-80 / System 80 Hi All I have just acquired a System 80 MkII (distributed in Australasia by Dick Smith Electronics). On power up I get the LED power light ok but a screen full of random characters, the reset switch does nothing. I've had it apart and there are no loose connections or chips on the two main boards and no sign of any burnt or expired components. Has anyone had similar problems and / or knows what the problem is? Thanks Alan CAUTION - The information in this message may be of a privileged or confidential nature intended only for the use of the addressee or someone authorised to receive the addressee's e-mail. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error please notify postmaster(a)citadel.com.au. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender and may not necessarily reflect the views of Citadel Securix. Feel free to visit the Citadel Securix website! Click below. http://www.citadel.com.au