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SIO2SD/XM301 Case Conversion


flashjazzcat

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That is absolutely, positively FIRST CLASS work. All I can say is "WOW!"

 

I do not have the SIO2SD as I have Sdrive NUXX. Now you have me thinking about SIO2SD. Are these still available, and at what cost?

 

Would it be possible to install SIO port thru for connecting 850 interface or equivalent?

 

Thanks!

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Latest XM301/SIO2SD completed and blog updated. Really delighted with the way this one has turned out. It's so good, I'm going to re-do mine the same way!

 

post-21964-127162126017_thumb.jpg

 

I have to admit that's really nice work. =)

 

This is the way we are doing it here.

 

It's not as cool looking but it looks decent.

 

 

 

This is the first one I did, so it's a little sloppy.

 

I didn't see the need for any other LED's except the SIO Busy light.

 

After all, you know the power is on when the LCD screen is lit up.

 

we Will be Selling a cleaned up version of these at my Ebay store and Video61.

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Thanks for the complements! Kjmann: I do like the single LED. It's less aesthetically destructive (although not as fun to watch as separate read/write lights). I'll probably change my design next time around if the customers are agreeable.

 

As an added bonus, the LCD backlight on mine illuminates the buttons through the surrounding gap, so you get a "halo" effect!

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Those are both very cool, but I must say the first one looks magnificent and amazing. All that could possibly be done to improve it is to somehow overwrite the "XM 301" with "SIO2PC" but because that's molded plastic, I dunno how it could possibly be done.

 

Those blue LCDs/LEDs look so great but aren't they going to burden the power system? They are awfully bright.

 

But man that is something else and a great use of the XM301 which is one of the few peripherals that isn't of much use for the retro scene.

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Thanks all.

 

Would it be possible to install SIO port thru for connecting 850 interface or equivalent?

I don't see why not: I'm sure a molex socket could be squeezed in somewhere.

 

Those blue LCDs/LEDs look so great but aren't they going to burden the power system? They are awfully bright.

Unsure. As far as I know there have been no problems with these devices so far, and there are a lot of them out there.

 

All that could possibly be done to improve it is to somehow overwrite the "XM 301" with "SIO2PC" but because that's molded plastic, I dunno how it could possibly be done.

That's a metal badge and I've been trying to find a manufacturer who would make custom and replacement labels for this and other Atari equipment but the idea seems prohibitively expensive.

Edited by flashjazzcat
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Another SIO port woud be useful to connect a printer (or a genuine XM301 icon_mrgreen.gif ).

It would, but availability of the female SIO jacks is a problem. Steve Tucker has alluded to the fact that he has a bunch (by way of a picture of a white one in his avatar), but will not speak about them.

 

The other problem is the fact that the SIO cable included with the SIO2SD device only has 3 (or 4) wires coming out of it. This is an easy fix, but something that would need attention.

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...availability of the female SIO jacks is a problem. Steve Tucker has alluded to the fact that he has a bunch (by way of a picture of a white one in his avatar), but will not speak about them.

 

The other problem is the fact that the SIO cable included with the SIO2SD device only has 3 (or 4) wires coming out of it. This is an easy fix, but something that would need attention.

I would imagine a stock of Atari molex connectors is protected by some sort of non-disclosure clause. icon_smile.gif I suppose an alternative idea is to have two "mousetail" leads coming off the back of the unit instead of one.

 

As for the wires: it all depends on the unit. The one I just converted has a whopping 13-core cable with all but five wires trimmed back at the board connector.

Edited by flashjazzcat
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It would, but availability of the female SIO jacks is a problem. Steve Tucker has alluded to the fact that he has a bunch (by way of a picture of a white one in his avatar), but will not speak about them.

 

Not a problem. Best has new ones, as discovered by c0nsumer, and documented here

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First snag as I was testing the completed unit prior to despatch. When starting the device with K4 pressed, the Setup menu appears but the startup options don't work: I get a row of squares on the top row of the LCD and the device locks up. It's otherwise fully functional, although I notice the "No Card" message is also missing, replaced by a row of squares. From experience with my own SIO2SD, I know this is a corrupt ATMEL chip.

 

I do have a spare ATMEL, but no programmer. Anyone know where I can get a pre-programmed replacement?

Edited by flashjazzcat
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First snag as I was testing the completed unit prior to despatch. When starting the device with K4 pressed, the Setup menu appears but the startup options don't work: I get a row of squares on the top row of the LCD and the device locks up. It's otherwise fully functional, although I notice the "No Card" message is also missing, replaced by a row of squares. From experience with my own SIO2SD, I know this is a corrupt ATMEL chip.

 

I do have a spare ATMEL, but no programmer. Anyone know where I can get a pre-programmed replacement?

 

I know this is a long shot, but maybe you could try doing a firmware update on it. That fixed mine when a similar thing happened. =)

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I know this is a long shot, but maybe you could try doing a firmware update on it. That fixed mine when a similar thing happened. =)

Good idea: I couldn't do this when mine fried last year because it was totally non-functioning. This time, however, the device works fine... just got to read up on how to do it. It's worth a try.

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I know this is a long shot, but maybe you could try doing a firmware update on it. That fixed mine when a similar thing happened. =)

Good idea: I couldn't do this when mine fried last year because it was totally non-functioning. This time, however, the device works fine... just got to read up on how to do it. It's worth a try.

 

First Put the following file on the SD Card in the Root Directory, NOT the Atari Folder.

 

 

 

Next Hold the OK (K4) Button Down while turning on the power.

 

- The Display should say SIO2SD Setup-

 

Next, Press "Shift" and "Next (K2)" Together to start the firmware flash

 

The rest will complete automatically. =)

 

 

 

 

Hope This Helps

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First Put the following file on the SD Card in the Root Directory, NOT the Atari Folder.

 

 

 

Next Hold the OK (K4) Button Down while turning on the power.

 

- The Display should say SIO2SD Setup-

 

Next, Press "Shift" and "Next (K2)" Together to start the firmware flash

 

The rest will complete automatically. =)

 

 

 

 

Hope This Helps

That's a massive help - thanks! I figured out the flash procedure last night but wasn't sure which file to use. I'll give this a try today. Sadly I'm not confident, though, since it's the setup section which is kaput. Shame it won't just auto-detect and flash at power-up. Pigula has a replacement chip for me if this doesn't work, however.

 

I think in future I'll remove the ATMEL when doing the work and put it back when it's all done, just in case. It may have been faulted when it arrived but I can't say for sure.

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Firmware update worked perfectly. Thanks again for this. :)

 

On a related topic, been thinking of buying this when I've done another couple of jobs:

 

eBay Auction -- Item Number: 1604243219101?ff3=2&pub=5574883395&toolid=10001&campid=5336500554&customid=&item=160424321910&mpt=[CACHEBUSTER]

 

Opinions?

better than a Willem, but no where near as good (or expensive) as a Batronix. I have been thinking about getting one of the TOP ones to replace my BX32 that I unfortunately had to sell a while ago to raise some cash:(

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