Suggestions for floppy issue in A600...

mfilos

Extr3m3ly l33t
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Hey my fellow Amibayers :p
Yesterday I received the A603 memory +Indivision ECS and I'm very happy with the quality and easy of installation in my A600. Really great pieces of hardware.
As you know floppy said sayonara (and it's outside of the case atm since major hackery is planned for my mini beauty) :p since it can't be inside along with Indivision.

AFAIK I have 2 options that I'm considering...

1. Put an external floppy drive and with some sort of hack, mod whatever... make it act like a DF0. Is it possible and by what means can this be achieved? Proly Zetr0/Rkauer/Ian will know the drill.

2. Put an Internal slim floppy PC drive (the ones that are used on laptops and server racks) along with Ian's floppy adapter modifying some things inside the case (pain in the butt if possible).
See picture bellow

1st option is the easiest and cheapest imo (unless making the external floppy into DF0 isn't so easy to mod).

Opinions? :cool:
 

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For option 1 it's the DS0 that has to be set correctly. But I'll be surprised if an external model will fit better inside the A6 hecto other than an internal model, even after hackery.

For option two there are quite a number of guides on how to mod pc drives to work with the amiga. This thread on eab is quite good.
 
or you could replace the floppy with a cf/sd card reader using adfs, making and external drive DF0 hmmm, i think this may involve some sort of jumper hackery, but, You could use a tool like Degrader, which allows floppy drives to be remapped to others as well as disabled. Otherwise add the following to your S:User-Startup: ; Disable DF0: and map DF1: in its place

Assign Dismount DF0:

Assign DF0: DF1:
 
Hey Mario,

Nice combination, I did a recent test at AmigaKit with the Indi & A603 to confirm there were no issues using it with the A608

Regarding the floppy dilemma, I know it's a wierd issue and questions the design of the A603, Surely if they had used higher capaity RAMS then the chip count would have been lower, and the board smaller & able to fit with floppy.

Currently the A603 is nearly impossible to fit via the trapdoor anyway, you need to take the A600 apart :nuts:

With KS2 & above (I assume you are using 3.1) System can boot from from DF1 in the same manner, it's only games that are hard coded to access DF0 & DF1 that will have issues.

BTW did they include a Floppy disable header with the Indi to avoid "DF0??????" on the screen, If you need to remove the Floppy in order to fit the Indi, it should be included with it, what is it worth 50 UK Pence????

System Performance can't be faulted but the Floppy dilemma it causes is a big issue & a huge Negative for the Indivision ECS.

TC :)
 
Sadly I can't offer you any tecnical advice but the internal slim FDD would be an amazing piece of hackery if you can pull it off! Remember to post lots of pics :D

Good luck with your project!

Steve.
 
@arnljot
My friend I didn't mean... Hacking an external drive into internal in option 1 :)
I meant an external floppy drive connected externaly acting as DF0 :)

@JuvUK
I thought of putting the new HxC SD unit instead of the floppy but I didn't like the idea of NOT being able to write but read only :)
Apart from that I thought the idea of software dismount/mount as DF1 as DF0 but I would like better the hardware than software path.

Thanks anywa
 
Ah, that makes much more sense :LOL:

I've seen a thread on that on eab or amiga.org. I'll let you know if I stumble upon it again.
 
With KS2 & above (I assume you are using 3.1) System can boot from from DF1 in the same manner
Nice, I didn't know that. Any option I can do it DF0 though?

BTW did they include a Floppy disable header with the Indi to avoid "DF0??????" on the screen, If you need to remove the Floppy in order to fit the Indi, it should be included with it, what is it worth 50 UK Pence????
Nope nothing included but I was thinking the DF0 disabler from Amigakit. Although the only thing needed to disable it it's just a shortening diode over 2 pins isn't it?

System Performance can't be faulted but the Floppy dilemma it causes is a big issue & a huge Negative for the Indivision ECS.
Well tbh it's a negative, but Indy ECS was made too cleverly to be able to install into so many Amigas that was too way hard to manipulate in an A600 with soldered Denise :S
It might be possible to extend the whole Indy ECS a couple cm's back via ribbons and socket (if that didn't produce any signal loss)

@arnljot
My friend I searched my ass off a.org and EAB for this. Don't worry I always tend to search a lot before posting any questions (alas the low posting counter lol)
 
Yes, ks2.0 and up can boot from any floppy on the system, from df0: to df3:.

But it is just a matter of swap a pair of control lines on the A600 motherboard to achieve the same.

Assigning the external unit as DF0: is not a 100% solution: at boot times it will not be available, stopping games that boot from DF0:.

I'll look at my schematics (it is dead easy to hack) and report back.
 
Ar9 thx for that but didn't get any solution from that thread
I'll wait for Rogerio and hope :)

Cheers peepz
 
@mfilos

my friend this is interesting hackery, although I would be inclined to see if could re-route the Indivision ECS first I would then look at either hacking df0 outside the case or modding a super slim drive inside


However for DF0 outside - overview


you will need to cut trace 9 and 11 from the floppy port CN11

you can then solder these cut traces in reverse to pins 13 and 14 of U8: CIA Even 8520

that will give you DF0 outside and DF1 inside.


now I cannot remember fully, so

1. grab a multi meter
2. put it in continuity mode
3. buzz out pin 9 on CN11 to U8 (8520 cia even) be on pin 13 or 14 (make a note of which
4. buzz out pin 11 on CN11 to U8 (8520 cia even) be on pin 13 or 14 - againmake a note of
5. cut traces from CN11 - pin 9 and pin 11, either strip the laqure back as somthing to solder or get the pins from the bottom of the board
6. invert the signal, so if Pin 9 of CN11 went to pin 13 of U8, change this to pin 14 of U8 and the same with Pin 11 of CN11 too

also, let rakuer to confirm this befor you have at it lol
 
Almost perfect answer, my friend.

But pins in the even CIA ( U8 ) are 15 & 16 (PB3 & PB4), accordingly with the A600 schematics. PB3 & PB4 are SEL0 & SEL1 respectively.

You'll still able to use up to three external devices (as DF0, DF2 & DF3). Internal header will be DF1 and will be dead as a doornail, of course.

Just swapping those two lines will suffice to make everything fine again.
 
Ok i just measured some things up and I can say with certainty that:

1. Solution with slim internal drive fails. Even if drive would have been thick as a floppy disk... it would still touch the Indivision miserably... unless you know of floppy disk drives with length as a floppy disk... LOL... yep neither do I :)

2. Solution with moving Indy a bit backwards fails also. I measured everything with a blank PCB and ONLY if you removed the lower socket of Indy and soldered vertical wires onto Indy itself... it could theoretically fit without touching the keyboards metal backplate... Then again you could have a problem with the VGA connector header alas you might had to remove that also... In a perfect world with Indies costing 10euro you might as well risk that procedure... Sorry but 90 euro ain't worth such risk (n)

3. Solution with swapping DF0 and DF1 seems the only viable one :)
Anyone donating an external floppy possibly? hahaha
Ok will need your help there chaps once I'll search to buy an external floppy drive...
1st of all... can you be more specific of what the hell I have to do cause I honestly mixed some stuff in my head. Pictures would be really appreciated.
2nd... Is there a way I can bypass the floppy waiting time in case I don't have an external floppy attached? Maybe with a switch that would:
a) use a diode between some legs (like the DF0 terminator that AmigaKit sells) when I have no floppy connected or
b) use no diode but normaly access the external DF0 if I have it connected
hmmm now that I think of it... it might not just be too easy :blink:

Please don't curse... I need yar help cause you're l33t :help::help::help:

EDIT: After reading both Keith's and Rogerio's posts I understood what I have to do... I just don't know the numbering of both C11 and U8... and one last thing... except from changing:
- C11:pin 9 --> from U8:pin 15 to U8:pin 16
- C11:pin 11 --> from U8:pin 16 to U8:pin 15
Do I have to cut trace from mobo or remove pins? That part I didn't get my friend Keith :S
 
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I don't know about A600, tried this for my A500 but failed. (not for the electronics mod, but fitting it 100% with original button proved to much even without top or top from the original flop. (it pressed somewhere so the flop would not get right in the mechanism)

http://eab.abime.net/showthread.php?t=43265

For soft compatibility it is 100% I bought 10 units of them.. (unmodded new old stock, already used 3 )

Well maybe rkauer or zetro knows about this, if it is enough to get the top cut for the A600..
 
I don't know about A600, tried this for my A500 but failed. (not for the electronics mod, but fitting it 100% with original button proved to much even without top or top from the original flop. (it pressed somewhere so the flop would not get right in the mechanism)

http://eab.abime.net/showthread.php?t=43265

For soft compatibility it is 100% I bought 10 units of them.. (unmodded new old stock, already used 3 )

Well maybe rkauer or zetro knows about this, if it is enough to get the top cut for the A600..
I don't wanna mod a PC floppy to mount inside my A600 mate... A floppy doesn't fit inside the case since A603+Indivision ECS don't fit with a floppy attached by design.
I just want to use an external floppy DF1 that will be the new DF0 :)
 
What about the units that have df0/df1 switch are they incompatible?

---------- Post added at 20:23 ---------- Previous post was at 20:07 ----------

I have a broken unit, free for the shipping if this helps




...




 
Yup, sorry... I looked for them to, but at evilbay prices...

Agree it looks s**t, but if anybody knows how they work and don't wan't to pay evilbayprices, and know how to handle a paint job, it can be nice companion;)

I'll move it to the bin then, since I've got spares.
 
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