Amstrad CPC 6128 - Floppy Drive Advice

[Neil79]

After finally getting the motor to work, it now sounds like a dying animal, "weeeooooooaaaaweeeoaaaa" and will not load disks at all anymore. So my questions are.


1) Can I take the power cable out the back of the floppy drive and leave it out so it has no power, while still using the external HxC?


2) If I can take the power cable out the back of the floppy drive, can I completely remove the floppy drive, or does it still need to be attached?


3) Is there a way of replacing the drive with the HxC as an internal, I have the HxC SD S Floppy Emulator SLIM


Thanks

[CraigsBar]

After finally getting the motor to work, it now sounds like a dying animal, "weeeooooooaaaaweeeoaaaa" and will not load disks at all anymore. So my questions are.


1) Can I take the power cable out the back of the floppy drive and leave it out so it has no power, while still using the external HxC?


2) If I can take the power cable out the back of the floppy drive, can I completely remove the floppy drive, or does it still need to be attached?


3) Is there a way of replacing the drive with the HxC as an internal, I have the HxC SD S Floppy Emulator SLIM


Thanks

1. Yes, or you can simply not connect the 12v to your monitor
2. Yes, It'll work fine with it removed, just remember with an ABBA switch your HxC will still be Drive |b
3. Yes, although I think this will require some minor case cutting.

[Neil79]

1. Yes, or you can simply not connect the 12v to your monitor
2. Yes, It'll work fine with it removed, just remember with an ABBA switch your HxC will still be Drive |b
3. Yes, although I think this will require some minor case cutting.

Fantastic!


Some more questions


4) Is there a step by step guide of fitting the slim inside the case, dos and don'ts?

[CraigsBar]

Fantastic!


Some more questions


4) Is there a step by step guide of fitting the slim inside the case, dos and don'ts?

Hi Neil, I cannot help with fitting instructions sorry. But I have just noticed my answer 2 is missing a word, obviously it should read "without an ABBA switch"

[Neil79]

Hi Neil, I cannot help with fitting instructions sorry. But I have just noticed my answer 2 is missing a word, obviously it should read "without an ABBA switch"

No problem


Here's some more lovely pics

[Bryce]

Looks all to be still in good condition, you just need to get it back together.

Bryce.

[Neil79]

Looks all to be still in good condition, you just need to get it back together.

Bryce.

Na motor is shot, sounds like an animal just about to die, woaaaaaaaaaaeeeeeeeeeeoaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaehhhh 

[Bryce]

Send all the bits over, that's easily saveable.

Bryce.

[Munchausen]

1. Yes, or you can simply not connect the 12v to your monitor

Unless you have a drive that works from 5v only. One of my 6128s does this

[Bryce]

Unless you have a drive that works from 5v only. One of my 6128s does this

Yes, but that's a mod. There were none delivered like that.

Bryce.

[CraigsBar]

Unless you have a drive that works from 5v only. One of my 6128s does this

As do both of mine, But only because I have swapped the drives with ones from dead 6128plus machines. I was unaware that any CPC 6128's were fitted as stock with 5v drives. in which case what was the purpose of the 12v line at all on those machines, surely it would have been cheaper to assemble the computers without the cord, and fittings. A simple blank could have been placed over the hole in the case??


Craig

[Munchausen]

As do both of mine, But only because I have swapped the drives with ones from dead 6128plus machines. I was unaware that any CPC 6128's were fitted as stock with 5v drives. in which case what was the purpose of the 12v line at all on those machines, surely it would have been cheaper to assemble the computers without the cord, and fittings. A simple blank could have been placed over the hole in the case??


Craig

I couldn't say, I only know that I have such a machine (I don't have an plus machines except a GX4000), and I bought it from someone who said it had been in a loft for 20 years, so I can only assume the drive hadn't been swapped. It does have the 12V line, and it does feed in to the floppy drive, but the drive doesn't use it! I only discovered this because my usual setup for using a 3.5" external drive is to disconnect the 12V line as you suggested - and it didn't work on this machine!

[Munchausen]

Yes, but that's a mod. There were none delivered like that.

Bryce.

There were! See my previous post.

[gerald]

I couldn't say, I only know that I have such a machine (I don't have an plus machines except a GX4000), and I bought it from someone who said it had been in a loft for 20 years, so I can only assume the drive hadn't been swapped. It does have the 12V line, and it does feed in to the floppy drive, but the drive doesn't use it! I only discovered this because my usual setup for using a 3.5" external drive is to disconnect the 12V line as you suggested - and it didn't work on this machine!

Any chance you get the reference of the drive and your mother board ?

[Munchausen]

Any chance you get the reference of the drive and your mother board ?

Sure. I'll have to dig it out from the back of the cupboard as it's the one I keep as my second spare because it is in insanely mint condition and still in the original box, so I basically don't even like to breathe on it! I'll try to post back here tomorrow.

[Bryce]

That would be a seriously good find if that's the case. The drive must have an unknown EME number

Bryce.

[TFM]

I would sell my soul for a 3" drive with 5 Volt only.    PM me if you want to do business! 


EDIT: Sell, not see

[CraigsBar]

I would see my soul for a 3" drive with 5 Volt only.    PM me if you want to do business! 

buy dead 6128 plus I did, and all my 6128's are now 5v only.


OK it seems one of them was not as dead as I was lead to believe, in that it exists in @Bryce 's laptop but basically that is the only way I know of getting a 5v 3 inch drive.


Craig

[TFM]

Well, glad to say that our beloved Amstrad 8 bit computers are built pretty stable, and last longer that any other computer stuff. 

[Bryce]

buy dead 6128 plus I did, and all my 6128's are now 5v only.

OK it seems one of them was not as dead as I was lead to believe, in that it exists in @Bryce 's laptop but basically that is the only way I know of getting a 5v 3 inch drive.

Craig

Did you manage to get the black faceplate onto the plus drives somehow, or are the still beige in a dark CPC case?

Yes, one of your Plus PCBs is in the Laptop (waiting for months to be finished)

Bryce.

[Munchausen]

That would be a seriously good find if that's the case. The drive must have an unknown EME number

Bryce.

Ok I've just opened it. The drive part number is EME-157, which is the same part number as the 6128+ drive. The motherboard is PT NO Z70290, MC0020C, Copyright 1985, so nothing new here, but I'm pretty sure that I swapped the motherboard with one of my other machines, so I don't think that helps.

The label on the motor of the drive says "27Mar90N1", which is interesting. The 6128+ was released in August 1990. Maybe this was a late produced 6128 that picked up an EME-157 because they ran out of parts? Or maybe the drive was replaced and they had run out of the older drives at that time? I guess I should go and check the motherboard version in my other machine next...

Before I put this away again, is there anything anyone else wants me to check?

[Munchausen]

Did you manage to get the black faceplate onto the plus drives somehow, or are the still beige in a dark CPC case?

Yes, one of your Plus PCBs is in the Laptop (waiting for months to be finished)

Bryce.

Hmm, this comment made me realise - this EME-157 has a black face plate and it doesn't look as though it has been modded in any way to make that happen. So it must have been like that from the factory!

EDIT:
Some pictures:
View image: P8040094
View image: P8040092
View image: P8040091

[CraigsBar]

If you get a CPC drive with a thin mouth instead of the wide ones the faceplate is identical so a quick swap and the look perfect.

[Munchausen]

If you get a CPC drive with a thin mouth instead of the wide ones the faceplate is identical so a quick swap and the look perfect.

Meh, dunno then.

[Bryce]

Ok I've just opened it. The drive part number is EME-157, which is the same part number as the 6128+ drive. The motherboard is PT NO Z70290, MC0020C, Copyright 1985, so nothing new here, but I'm pretty sure that I swapped the motherboard with one of my other machines, so I don't think that helps.

The label on the motor of the drive says "27Mar90N1", which is interesting. The 6128+ was released in August 1990. Maybe this was a late produced 6128 that picked up an EME-157 because they ran out of parts? Or maybe the drive was replaced and they had run out of the older drives at that time? I guess I should go and check the motherboard version in my other machine next...

Before I put this away again, is there anything anyone else wants me to check?

Interesting. I don't think we have this info on the Wiki, it needs to be added somewhere appropriate.

Bryce.