The Vortex disc interface

[FRAGKI-2012]

Nice photos !!you told us before that is not working have you try to replace the ics as I can see it is in a ic socket!!!
You are lucky the first ic that I m going to replace is the controller the nec d765ac if you gona try this send us a photo whiteout the ic lucky guy
I m very gelous

[FRAGKI-2012]

Where I can find one to buy?? Even broken!!

[Ygdrazil]

Hi FRAGKI
[/size]
[/size]Heh thanks...
[/size]
[/size]My intention is to get it up working again.. Unfortunatly (as TFM wrote) I am not even sure if its the print or the drives that are faulty.


I assume that the fault is on the interface (as the VDOS rom normally gives a logon message even if the drives are not found - if I remember correctly), but I will dig out all the components clean them and try again after all these years.


I remember buying a german CPC464, with the Vortex memory expansion installed on the board - i combination with the Vortex drives I would have an all Vortex CPC464..


/Ygdrazil

Nice photos !!you told us before that is not working have you try to replace the ics as I can see it is in a ic socket!!!
You are lucky the first ic that I m going to replace is the controller the nec d765ac if you gona try this send us a photo whiteout the ic lucky guy
I m very gelous

[Bryce]

If you don't have any luck with it, you can send it over and I'll take a look at it.

Bryce.

[FRAGKI-2012]

in the photo seems that is not the eperom install!!

[TFM]

I assume that the fault is on the interface (as the VDOS rom normally gives a logon message even if the drives are not found - if I remember correctly), but I will dig out all the components clean them and try again after all these years.

Well, as I mentioned before: Check the power supply of the interface when running! Not disconnected. Then you see a voltage drop I assume. This in case you have an F1-S, F1-D, M1-S or M1-D controller.

The reason for me tilling this is that I know about two cases where the PSU was the problem.

[Ygdrazil]

@Bryce ...Thanks for your offer.. This might be sooner than you think just!! The thing is the double discdrives is absoloutely massive (about 6kg i think)


@FRAGKI-2012 On the pictures I have removed the VDOS rom.... I will make pictures with all the chips removed!


@TFM  So if the PSU in the drive casing, or the drives are not connected the F1 - D (which i think is the one i have) [/size]would act inactive?!!? (Maybe I could try to put a different rom in the controler (would it act as a normal rom board?) to see if it works .. got Maxam somewhere on rom) ... this might explain why the complete system seems dead!


/Ygdrazil

[Bryce]

@Bryce ...Thanks for your offer.. This might be sooner than you think just!! The thing is the double discdrives is absoloutely massive (about 6kg i think)


@FRAGKI-2012 On the pictures I have removed the VDOS rom.... I will make pictures with all the chips removed!


@TFM  So if the PSU in the drive casing, or the drives are not connected the F1 - D (which i think is the one i have) would act inactive?!!? (Maybe I could try to put a different rom in the controler (would it act as a normal rom board?) to see if it works .. got Maxam somewhere on rom) ... this might explain why the complete system seems dead!


/Ygdrazil

I don't need the drives! Just the Vortex PCB!

Bryce.

[radu14m]

would be interesting to duplicate this interface
i still want to get 4 drivers on my cpc.

[TFM]

@TFM  So if the PSU in the drive casing, or the drives are not connected the F1 - D (which i think is the one i have) would act inactive?!!? (Maybe I could try to put a different rom in the controler (would it act as a normal rom board?) to see if it works .. got Maxam somewhere on rom) ... this might explain why the complete system seems dead!

In case of the F1-D for example the PSU is in the drive casing and provides power through the drive cable to the Vortex controller. In the PSU there these 2 big black bugs with cooling (in German: Ich nehme an, das sind Spannungswander, sehen aus wie riesige Transistoren). They tend to fail.
At least I saw it happening twice.
I don't know if another ROM would work there, because of the hardware protection of the ROM reading.

If you send it to Bryce it would be imho a good idea to send the whole device, not only the controller.

Maybe I'm totally wrong. I can only tell from my best knowledge. Really hope you get it up and running again. 


EDIT: If 'only' the ROM itself would be the problem then there is a simple test to find out about that. Start FutureOS and put a floppy disc in the F1-D (upper drive), then click at drive E and then at DIR, if you see a directory, then you know that the hardware is ok, but the ROM is faulty. [nb]FutureOS doesn't use the Vortex ROM.[/nb]