doctorclu Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 My criteria is items you could buy back in the day and hook to the machine: So my list is: Atari 800 with BIT3 Video card RAMROD OS Card with Omnimon and OSN ATR8000 with Co-Power88 and drives Atari 810 with Happy enhancement Corvus Hard Drive What have I missed? That sounds like the dream old world Atari 800 setup. However I have the dream new world Atari 800 setup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doctorclu Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 BIT3 and a Monkey Wrench II cartridge were my "holy grails". I own neither but I did get to play with a MWII image in a homebrew cartridge. I got a Monkey Wrench the same way... a home burn on a homebrew cartridge. But for right hand cartridges, you need the MAGIC DUMP! Yeh it was a cartridge that allowed you to take a snapshot of the screen and send the image to a printer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 Sadly I had a ton of stuff at my parents house in Southwest Louisiana. Hurricaine Rita destroyed storage and my A8 stuff, along with an IBM XT and other stuff. It sure is costing a pretty penny to replace & expand my childhood memories Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 So I think my Corvus drive works. I figure the last person took it apart, and plugged in the paddleboard to the backplane incorrectly. The motherboard has a Zilog Z80 and some roms, so it's a self contained computer. There is a blinking indicator light on the motherboard that signifies operation, but only when the paddleboard is not plugged in. The drive grunts when it is 'Ready' and an indicator light comes on as well, but i have to unplug the paddleboard until i hear the grunt, and then plug the paddleboard in to get a 'Ready' light. I'm pretty sure that plugging in the paddleboard hangs the system, but there is really no way to tell without an interface On to the good stuff! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 I used these to troubleshoot the Corvus Systems Hard Disk Corvus Service Manual 6MB Rev A-E Corvus Mirror Service Manual Corvus General Technical Information - Mass Storage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 The 'Biscuit' is the internal fan for the enclosure. On a side note, the heavy duty impact plastic is really something - not what one would expect in a piece of computer equipment. It reminds me of high traffic outdoor toys from the 80's - plastic slides, swing set seats, and the stuff McDonald's PlayLand was made of. This plastic would probably stop a crossbow bolt, maybe even a small caliber bullet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 I may have caught a break - I found a picture of a Corvus interface for a H89. Looks pretty simple, I would take any interface at this point just to see if the Corvus drive works! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 Some people just make me sick... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldAtarian Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 It would be nice if one of our resident geniuses could duplicate the Corvus controller for these drives. I've had a pair of them sitting on a shelf in my basement for about 10 years now. I can't find an interface for any of the computers they worked with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 I just bought an interface for a S-100 bus (Zenith H89) for $35 - but upon closer inspection, it has an edge connector. Anyone know what it's for? Circuit Board. S-100 Rev. B. . . Corvus Systems Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Indiana Jones didn't have this much trouble finding what he was looking for. I'll gladly run from a giant bolder or escape from the clutches of a heart wrenching witch doctor - all for a Corvus Interface! I can clearly see a 'SIO2ST-506' interface before i get a controller for a Corvus hard disk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sloopy Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 I just bought an interface for a S-100 bus (Zenith H89) for $35 - but upon closer inspection, it has an edge connector. Anyone know what it's for? Circuit Board. S-100 Rev. B. . . Corvus Systems where is the edge connector? all i see in that (small) pic is the header in the top right, and the system bus (aka S100/IEEE696) on the bottom... sloopy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 Sorry, I don't have any experience with S-100 stuff. I'll blame it on sleep deprivation. And after I get it and photograph it, I will send it to OldAtarian - free of charge! Then he too can hold a corvus part in each hand and slowly bring the pieces together over his head, with playing loudly to set the mood OldAtarian: PM with your mailing address please. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 Update: got a better picture of the CBM Pet w/ Corvus & HardBox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 I finally got that Corvus Systems S-100 board, and I can't even give the damn thing away. What's wrong? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Defender II Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Maybe because no-one here uses a computer with an S-100 bus? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldAtarian Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Maybe because no-one here uses a computer with an S-100 bus? Bingo! If I had a Z89 or some such thing I might be interested but without one the card just takes up space and those old S-100 machines are just too expensive to ship for me to even consider one right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Yep, I figured as much. There is a S-100 machine on d'antiques for $50, but nobody seems interested. I even posted in the S-100 section @ vintage-computer and still no hits. These things take time, and retro computing is a different animal than forums i'm used to. I guess i'll take my library card and go reserve a spot on the waiting list Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erazmus Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 (edited) Yep, I figured as much. There is a S-100 machine on d'antiques for $50, but nobody seems interested. I even posted in the S-100 section @ vintage-computer and still no hits. These things take time, and retro computing is a different animal than forums i'm used to. I guess i'll take my library card and go reserve a spot on the waiting list What is this "d'antiques" you speak of? I've always wanted to add a S100 system to my collection. (edit). Never mind. I found your link in another thread. The reason no one wants that machine is because all it is is a backplanes and power supply. There's no cards at all. Edited March 21, 2011 by erazmus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Once you get the feel on how to find stuff on D'Antiques, there is definitely some rare & awesome stuff to be had. They update once a week or so. Another good one is Collector's Cards and Games, though when AtariAge users get wind of this one, the value of stuff will go through the floor. Take a long hard look at this site, because this guy has EVERYTHING - I got my original Gameboy for $8 & Super Mario Land 2 for $3 EDIT: I just checked CC&G and the prices have doubled! But to most of you, his new price will be impossibly dirt cheap! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 The Corvus drives have already been demanufactured. We are keeping the full height 20MB MFM hard drives until we can test them and wipe the data. We're already using the large plastic case tops for sorting RAM and CPUs in our warehouse. All that remains for sale from these Corvus external hard drives are the controller cards and some transporter cards we pulled from the school's Apple IIe systems. Heart Attack! GROAAA! ARGGG! *dies* eBay Auction -- Item Number: 120686973104 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldAtarian Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 (edited) The Corvus drives have already been demanufactured. We are keeping the full height 20MB MFM hard drives until we can test them and wipe the data. We're already using the large plastic case tops for sorting RAM and CPUs in our warehouse. All that remains for sale from these Corvus external hard drives are the controller cards and some transporter cards we pulled from the school's Apple IIe systems. Heart Attack! GROAAA! ARGGG! *dies* eBay Auction -- Item Number: 120686973104 This isn't the Apple II controller it is the circuit board from inside the Corvus drive itself. Personally, I cannot see why anyone would bother to disassemble one of these drives unless it's to repair another one. The drive mechanisms are useless by today's standards and you'd need to find comparable parts to get one working with another system anyway so why not just leave the drive in the case? Who is going to buy an 8" 5mb or 5.25" 10mb MFM/RLL drive mech by itself anymore? Most of the popular vintage computers have IDE/SATA or CF interfaces available nowadays. And this is another reason why ebay stores should be included in searches. How the hell are you supposed to find something in an ebay store that you want to buy if it doesn't show up in a search? If I was paying money to ebay for a virtual storefront I'd damn well want every item I have to show up in searches so I have a better chance of selling them. Believe it or not, I think it was last year, someone on ebay UK had a Corvus drive with PC interface for sale. I was tempted to bid on it, win, and tell the guy to send me just the interface and do whatever he wants with the drive. I wish I had done that. It might have been worth it. Edited March 23, 2011 by OldAtarian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Good News / Bad news Bad news first - no Atari-Corvus interface yet Good news - in a few days, i'm gonna have more Corvus drives than i'll know what to do with, maybe even a multiplexer EDIT: I should get PC and Apple II interfaces as well. And I'll be sure to spread the wealth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fibrewire Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 This isn't the Apple II controller it is the circuit board from inside the Corvus drive itself. Personally, I cannot see why anyone would bother to disassemble one of these drives unless it's to repair another one. The guy tore them apart and is using the drive enclosure for storage bins! That pisses me off to no end! I'm tempted to buy the damn "bins" off of him! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldAtarian Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Good News / Bad news Bad news first - no Atari-Corvus interface yet Good news - in a few days, i'm gonna have more Corvus drives than i'll know what to do with, maybe even a multiplexer EDIT: I should get PC and Apple II interfaces as well. And I'll be sure to spread the wealth Where are they coming from? They aren't exactly easy to find and if someone had been advertising them online, there's quite a few people who would have been all over them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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