AMax-II ??'s
14 messages in this thread
Reid,
Well, keep after MicroDyn in the hope that soon they will have a
driver available. I, too, would like to see one for my Kronos. We'll keep
our fingers crossed!!
Hi
I just got my AMAXII up and running (ROM chip procuement problems). I
also have a C-LTD 50M drive with the ACB-4070 Scsi Contorller Card and
cannot access the HD because of the cards control configuration. I have
also tried contacting Micor-Dyn and the Number given to me by ReadySoft is
disconnected or no longer in service. Hope they haven't gone out of biz.
The only alternative is to get a Commodore Scsi Board for my 1000 and hope
it works. It should because the drive section of the unit is an ST506 which
can be driven by the commodore control boards.
Ward
Ward,
Of course you will need the Amax compatible driver for whatever you
use. The number I have for MicroDyn is 316-265-2661. If that's not the
number you have, then you might try it. I also have a number for B & B
Electronics, which was supposed to be Brett Ricketts new company. It's
315-522-8161 or 522-1382. Brett wrote the software for the Cltd
controller, so perhaps, if he's still around, he may be able to write one
for Amax. If not, then you need to get a SCSI interface for which a driver
already exists. The ones I'm aware of are the CBM 2090/91 controllers, GVP
controller, and Trumpcard, and IVS.
Steven,
Thanks, I do have (or what was) the correct number for MicroDyn. I
think that I will try the other number tomorrow as my time permits. My
question is this. Is the A590 the scsi controller for the 500? if so can it
be flipped and used on this venerable 1000. Any Card for the 2000 series is
out of the question unless I upgrade. Is there an answer??
Thanks
Ward
Ward,
Yes…the A590 is a hard drive/host adapter combination for the
A500 and yes…it can be flipped and used on an A1000. The hole in the
side of the A1000 may have to be enlarged slightly (no big deal) and the
front of the A590 would then face the back…but it will work.
Don
Don,
Thanks for the info. Now all I have to do is get one from a local
supplier here in Nor-Cal.
The last time I asked my original supplier about it he acted like he
did not know what the heck I was talking about. Any Idea what the going
rate for one is?
Thanks
Ward
Ward,
Nope…no idea what the current going rate for one is…sorry.
Don
Don,
Did anyone get the message I left about saving Amax-II control and
chooser settings? I'm not sure whether it was this forum or tech.
Ward
Ward,
I saw the message…I presume others did also.
Don
Ward,
I believe the A590 is a complete drive/controller system. I don't
think there is a separate controller product for the 500. I believe that
for the 1000 you may, instead, need an expansion box which will accomodate
2000 cards. There is an expansion box by Phoenix Tech (I think that's the
name). Several 2000 compatible cards will work in that box. I think that
the Supra, IVS, Trumpcard controllers all work in that box. The mfgr
provides a list of tested SCSI controllers which work in their expansion
box. I don't believe that 500 products will work, but I'm not expert on
this, so you might look for answers from others who have interfaced such
products with the 1000.
Steve, the A590 DOES work on the 1000. Just turn it around, enlarge the
opening around the connector if you don't have enough room, and plug it in.
You can put the extra RAM in it and that works, can attach more SCSI drives
off the SCSI port–anything you could do with it on the A500. Only thing
is that it faces backwards, doesn't look so good with the cords and
connections facing the front, and that you have to put something thin uner
it to lift it up to the right height.
Betty
Betty,
Learn something new all the time! You might pass that info along
to the fellow who asked the question. I wasn't sure, but thought perhaps
the 500 and 1000 didn't have compatible busses. He would probably like to
hear your solution.
Ward,
I was stuck on my CLtd controller and did contact Micro-Dyn and heard of
"possibilities". Since I was also looking for Memory beyond 1.5Meg (with
Insider board) for my 1000 I looked at and eventually bought the Xetec
controller. (Fast-Trak). It is AMAX compatible per Xetec and ReadySoft and
accepts piggyback RAM expansion up to 8Meg. The software is "SCSI-direct"
compatible and supports AutoBoot. I am quite happy with it so far with 4MB
SIMM memory added and the bang-per-buck is great (they sell direct only so
your/my dealer(s) are grumpy). $175 plus $85 for the controller plus
ram-card and $43/Meg for the SIMMs (!). I did have to ground my A-1000
PALs, they had worked fine with variety of other expansion devices so I
think the Xetec might be a tad touchy on timing, but, as I said, everything
has been working fine for a coupla-3 weeks.
PS – sold the CLtd controller plus Drive for a song… you might get $50-75
for the controller alone…
– da
DA: I'll have to consider that as an option. I am thinking of upgrading
directly to an A3000 32mhz. That means I don't want to invest any more than
I have to in "old Trustworthy". As for the PAL chip grounding, that should
have been done about two years ago. It was a recommended update from
Commodore. Don't worry about the dealers to much. I still visit the
original vendor I bought mine from and they are still not quite up to speed
as to what will work with what. they try to keep me away from the 3000 they
have on the floor. They aren't sure which will get shorted, me or the 3000,
due to all the drooling I do around it.
Thanks, Ward