Hi,
I have got here a a used ddi-1 interface and disk drive. I got them working and all was good. After a while, the disk drive wouldnt read any disks so I decided to get my own disk drive and everything was great for a while and that too stopped reading disks. Have I got an odd ball ddi-1 interface? I cant get to my own DDi-1 interface to test each drive as my brother has got it and he is out of the country for now. Has anyone got any ideas what is going on
thanks in advance
When you say 'not reading the disk', what do you mean. Is the drive not seeing any disk present? Is it trying to access the disk, and giving some sort of error message? I assume it will not go so far as to allow a CAT, or anything similar? Are all other functions of the ddi-1 still working?
Geoff
Sounds like you need new drive belts.
But try this first: Format a disc and try to read it then (CAT at least)
Hi,
It just says unable to read disk, doesnt say an error code........that is with "cat" and also trying to load a disk......run "disk" for example. the drive belts on both are new, my own one is just 2 months old, and the drive I just bought that was working has a brand new belt.
Its very strange
thanks
I have just rechecked, it just says "read disk fail"
hope this helps
Then try formatting and reading a disc.
Hi,
I have tried several disks that are all known to be working before all this but now don't. How do I format a disk with out the cpm disk.......something it will also not read. All disks are now no longer working I m afraid
I am going to explode if it is the ddi interface that has buggered my own drive too!
thanks for your help
All discs is too much.
Some more silly ideas from my side:
- Clean contacts
- Get a stronger PSU
Sounds like something may be sending the drives out of alignment - would need to check one or more of your disks on another machine to be sure. I've never had anything like this happen, but I'm just with a PCW, no ddi-1 interface thingie.
You're not using the system in an especially dirty environment? One drive was OK then went bad. Another drive started OK, then went bad. I assume the disks that WERE OK with the first drive, then would not work, were then OK with the new drive, and are now not again - may well be perfectly OK on another drive again? Try to test one on another machine.
Drive heads may be gunged up (technical term ??) or maybe the stepper motor is going?
Geoff
Hi all,
well, this is bonkers! I fired it up this morning, and all my disks worked perfectly on my drive for about 10 mins. I managed to format 3 disks! I then put my another disk in that it read moments ago and it wont read it again. i then put 8 disks in the drive an now none will read.....including y cpm disk that i used to format the other disks. I think there is some sort of fault with the ddi interface.....is that possible? Is a capcitor discharging through the night that enables it to work ?
The drive heads are fine by the way, and its all in my living room so it not a dirty place.
thanks
Well, whatever it is, it's NOT damaging your disks, so that's one less thing to worry about.
Something temperature related, at it warms up, it stops working. But is it in the ddi-1, or the drive.
As soon as there's a hint of the problem, disconnect the drive, NOT the ddi-1, and let it cool right down. After a good while, connect drive again, and see if it works again. If it does, then the problem is in the drive, if it doesn't, then the problem MAY be the ddi.
Geoff
It could be dry joints. They tend to be temperature dependent.
Bryce.
Hi,
I am picking up my mates amstrad cpc464 tomorrow, ill see what happens with his one. I ill report back
thanks
Hi all.
My mates amstrad is unavailable today, but I have been busy! I have connected both drives to my amstrad. My original drive is fully working as it should so all good, reading original games and disks I have made. The other driver wasnt reading anything, so I swapped the connections around...my drive on "B" and the other on "A" but this made no difference.
Here is the bonkers part! I loaded up discology (copy disc software for anyone who doesnt know) and I put a working disk in my drive and a old blank I had in the buggered drive. After copying had finished, the game worked in the buggered drive! After hours of testing it seems that any disk that is formatted or copied to the disk in this drive will run in this drive. BUT, if I take it out and put in my original drive it is unreadable! What is going on here? I cant take a disk out of one drive and put it in the other
Can these this go out of alignment or something? Not one original game that I know to be working, will work in the buggered drive.
If this helps at all, Discology does have its own formatting tool. I used this tool but when I did, it was set to "track 00 - 79". Could that have done anything? I have set this to 39 now as I think it should be
thanks for any help
That's not "bonkers" at all. Quite normal in fact. The drive is mis-aligned and needs to be calibrated, happens often.
Bryce.
Hi
How do I calibrate it?
Thanks
You'll need a known good disc (original CPM disk) and a good oscilloscope.
Bryce.
**Old thread resurrection**
I had this exact same problem recently.
I bought a supposedly working 3" A drive from fleabay. Yes it was tested and formatted disks according to seller however:
With 3" drive connected to PC with adapter cable
- Formats ok with CPDiskXp
- Would not write to disk using CPCdiskXP, always a bad sector on any of my working blank disks. These disks previously checked & formatted with Discology.
Swapped with known good 3" drive from DDI-1/FD-1
- Would not read game disks or known good blank disks
- Corrupted my game disks - original game disks no longer working with original known 3" drive from DDI-1/FD-1 >:( >:(
I suspect as Bryce says above that there are adjustments to be made other than it formatting ok?
Probably out of calibration.
Bryce.