This is my favourite modem so far. Is it the breakneck speeds it can provide? Is it the blue translucent case? Is it the Conexant chipset? Maybe it’s all of the above! Whatever the reason, I was rather excited to get my hands on a new-old-stock NetComm Roadster II 56 Ultra AM5693.

It cost me about $40 Australian, and I know some people would argue that’s considerably more than an old serial modem is worth. But where’s the fun in leaving it sealed in the box forever? I wanted to see what was inside, compare it with my other modems and actually put it to use.

Before opening it, I dragged out a few of its relatives. I’ve got a NetComm AM5690, along with several Banksia Wave models and other assorted modem hardware. What began as an interest in a couple of old dial-up boxes seems to have become an entire collection. Funny how that happens!

The original packaging is a lovely little time capsule, complete with its period marketing, specifications and accessories. There’s a serial cable, telephone connections, documentation and the power adapter. I was planning to scan the surviving paperwork and packaging artwork too, since those are the sorts of things that become difficult to find once everybody has thrown their old boxes away.

Then there’s the modem itself. The blue translucent casing looks magnificent, particularly next to the older beige and darker-coloured models. NetComm managed to make a telephone modem look like something you might actually want to display on a shelf. Not that I’ll necessarily leave it on a shelf, because I want it to make noises!

After opening the case, the comparisons became considerably more interesting. The AM5693 and AM5690 look closely related externally, but there are differences in the way the circuit boards are populated and how the components have been arranged. The newer unit also uses Conexant-branded components rather than the older Rockwell arrangement.

I noticed manufacturing markings suggesting components from late 1999 and early 2000. Those markings are useful clues, although they don’t necessarily tell us the exact date the finished modem was assembled. It’s interesting seeing how the product changed as the original analogue modem market moved from one chipset generation to another.

The board revisions are particularly fascinating. The Banksia Wave SP 56, model BD4064S Rev. 2, uses a BT134 Rev F board that appears to share the same PCB design as this NetComm AM5693. The earlier Banksia Wave SP 56 Rev. 1 uses BT134 Rev B, while the NetComm AM5690 uses BT134 Rev B1.

That certainly suggests a close relationship between the designs, but it doesn’t prove all the components or configurations are interchangeable. Some of the capacitor positions, relays and connectors differ, and even the way things fit within the casing isn’t completely identical. It’s worth documenting the differences rather than assuming that a matching board number tells the entire story.

I also took a look at the electrolytic capacitors while the cases were open. Some of the older units in my collection have required replacements, so it’s always interesting to compare the components used across revisions. The AM5693 looked rather different in places, suggesting that the design had continued to evolve.

All in all, I’m extremely pleased with this little purchase. The packaging was great fun to explore, the translucent case is beautiful and the internal hardware gives us plenty to investigate. Next we’ll see how well this particular modem performs when I introduce it to the wonderful world of dial-up networking again.

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