Restoring a 1997 Gateway PC! Windows 95 Pentium 2 Desktop

I got this nifty Gateway 2000 desktop from the 90s and don't know much about it! Except that it cost $2,649 when it was new. So let's dive into the G6-233M with its Pentium II MMX 233MHz and see what else is inside, what's broken or missing, and what needs repair and cleaning and such.

● LGR links:

● Here's the video from Billy where he got the system:

● Background music is from Epidemic Sound:

00:00 Gateway 2000 G6-233
02:52 Pricing and specs
04:55 Ports and I/O
05:48 Inside the case
08:33 Power on test
10:37 Slot 1 Pentium II
12:35 Drive testing
15:46 CD-ROM replacement, cleaning
17:01 Installing Windows 95
18:33 Sound card woes
21:13 Starting over...
23:05 Double dead opticals
24:31 POD by Ubisoft
26:17 Command & Conquer Red Alert
28:05 Need For Speed 4 fail
29:44 Half-Life in OpenGL
31:38 DX8 Direct3D tests
32:08 Quake
32:55 SimCity 3000
35:06 Need For Speed High Stakes
36:39 PC speaker in Crystal Caves
37:07 AdLib emulation in Commander Keen
37:45 General MIDI in Duke 3D
39:25 Distracted by Hover!
39:58 Cleaning the computer
41:55 Reassembling, final thoughts

#lgr #computer #retro #restoration #gaming

[EriolGaurhoth]

I could do nothing but watch Clint restore vintage towers for hours. He's the Bob Ross of vintage computer restoration, there's something just so therapeudic about it.

[bierhoff]

This computer changed my life. It was my first computer that was just for me and not the rest of the family. My parents spent $3k for this back in the day and I remember feeling so guilty that they were putting out so much money for me. I used this computer for 5 years throughout highschool (1997-2001). Having my own PC gave me the freedom to experiment and learn computers, prompting my desire to go into computer science later in college. This machine holds a special place in my life and I'm so grateful my parents understood it's potential to shape my future.

[seoulpurpose]

For the record: definitely not boring. You'll always run into troubles along the way, and the troubleshooting is satisfying, on top of seeing everything come together

[fonesrphunny]

"PC beeps twice with concern" those subtitles are worth keeping on

[brocka.]

"MMX-compatible jazz music plays" - always good to have the captions!

[SensitiveFernn]

Run of the mill machines like this are so interesting to see nowadays. Unlike rare or noteworthy ones, very few people bothered to keep these around so they've become rare in their own rite, it's like seeing an 80's Corolla still being maintained. Props to you for caring about these sorts of machines!

[Galantium]

ahhh the mid-tier beige box, truly the height of nostalgia for a large amount of us

[jonr]

I may have built that PC! I worked at Gateway 2000 from 1995 till early 1998 in North Sioux City, SD.
I hated those power buttons, they used to like to fall into the case if you pushed just a little to hard. As a workaround we used to put tape on the button so it would not fall out until the third party manufacturer fixed the design.
That 'blank' fan was covered because this was a holdover design from the awful tower/desktop convertible case design released before this one.
That is not the original HDD. It would have been a western digital caviar blue or orange.
Any part that does not have a date code sticker on it is not original to the PC, other then RAM and CPU. ( you see it on the back of the sound card at the right of the label - 12/31/1997 and Power Supply on the right) Motherboard one would be located the last ISA slot on the bottom out of view.

The CD-ROM would have been either Mitsumi, Panasonic or Toshiba depending on inventory that week.
I think Video card in those were the AGP 4MB ATI 3D Rage cards...don't hold me to that.
Those were the mid-tier sound cards of choice. Loved those cards, I still have a few. Sound Blaster was top tier or if we ran out of Ensoniq cards.
Really cool to see an old friend of mine on your channel. Thanks for restoring it! I'm working a P-120 full tower from 1995.

[draisine]

I LOVE that in the subtitles it says “PC Plops down”

[thracian]

that organic fps drop with resonance cascade in hl1 is just pure nostalgia

[person]

That transition to a stationary camera at 9:25 was just like the transition when sitting down to a computer in a 90's adventure game!

[Dannykm]

I absolutely love your restoration videos! Even though this must've been a frustrating one, I just want you to know that your restoration videos are great!

[xliquidflames]

Oh man, those hard drives have this very special kind of whine that only they make. It brings back so many memories of messing around on my computer _all night_ from like 4pm until 6am. After 14 hours straight of sitting in a small enclosed den listening to that whine, when I would finally shut it down and the noise stops, it's like releasing a vice from my head. It's like a pressure in your ears stops and it's relieving. You don't realize how loud and annoying it is until it goes away.

[yellowjello]

44:48 - Definitely not boring. I wouldn't call it roof raising excitement but seeing things like this is always fascinating. These little time capsules deserve to be shared.

[knuckles]

That power button deserves its own episode of LGR oddware
Nothing like a classic LGR old PC video

[SPIFFgg]

omg the Red Alert sounds were such a massive hit of nostalgia - I need to play that game again

[toddsimpson]

I worked for Gateway support back then, I remember having non-computer users go into their cases to replace parts. Or doing the "FDISK Format Reinstall doo-dah" (sung to the tune "Camptown Races"). The customers didn't hear it, but we needed some "fun" to take off the stress.

[Fingolfin]

Great video, LGR. Brings back a lot of fond memories. I'm 39 now, but I grew up in the era of the first home PCs. I played a lot of Sim City 2000, Doom 1 and 2, Strife, Blood, Age of Empires 1 and 2, Command and Conquer Red Alert, Warcraft 1 and 2, Diablo 1 and 2, Starcraft 1, Lode Runner the Legend Returns, King's Quest 6, Oregon Trail 2, The Dig, Myst, Riven, and many other games growing up on our home computer over those years up through high school. When I left home and moved to campus at university, that was the first time I had access to "high-speed" Internet with no dialup. That was in the Fall of 2002. That was incredible. I also had a brand new desktop to take with me during that time. It was during those years I got into WoW, which came out in 2004. That rig lasted me all through undergraduate, and even grad school after. By the time 2009 rolled around, that thing was ancient, but I was still using it to get things done. I finally upgraded with a new rig in 2010. My guildmates in WoW were very happy about that, especially since I was the guild master and raid leader. Ha! I finally hung up my WoW hat in June of 2022 due to various reasons. Anyways, thank you for making these videos. They are very special.

[matthewrease]

Someone loved this PC, given all the upgrades.

[timbo]

Boring? Dude, that is like one of THE reasons why I watch your channel! Keep 'em coming!