66 replies to this topic

[atari8warez]

I have now all the parts for building this device and ready to take your orders. I will leave the order thread open until all 10 devices are sold.

So far I have 7 more units left to offer.

• I will start accepting payment and start building and shipping the devices 1 week from today whether all 10 devices are sold or not, you can still order after the initial week but expect me to be slower in responding as I will be busy building.
  
• Once you are commited to buy I expect to be paid ASAP, otherwise somebody else who already paid will get ahead of you in the list (no exceptions). I will provide you with available payment options and the shipping charges, although individual shipping charges may vary, expect it to be around $9 US international and $7 in Canada. Your purchase will be insured against loss during shipment.
  
• I will provide a current running status of the project twice a week (monday and thursday).
  
• After some soul searching, I decided to offer a pcboard option for purchasers who are willing to wait for about 4 to 6 weeks (that's how long it takes for my pcb order to be filled without paying big setup fees  -with some time safety buffer added- ), otherwise orders will be fullfilled using a perfboard and miniature point-to-point wiring.  One caveat with the pcboard option is that I won't be able to offer the lifetime warranty otherwise included with the perfboard option, as I can not guarantee the quality of the pcboard at this time.
  
• Orders with perfboard will be fulfilled in 2 days + shipping time (usually around 4-10 business days), and will be shipped in sequence according to the order/payment dates. Orders with pcboard should add to this the leadtime as explained above.
  
• Supporters who already ordered their device are urged to update their preferences (of a pcboard vs. perfboard) by contacting me through PM.

For specifications of the device please see this post

Edited by atari8warez, Fri May 18, 2012 4:54 PM.

[atari8warez]

UPDATE:  I have 5 more units left.

[Mathy]

Hello Ray

Since I'm the one who bugged you about a PCB, I'm hereby gonna order a PCB version.  If you can't find enough takes for the PCB version, you don't have to order one especially for me.  But I'm only interested in a PCB version.

sincerely

Mathy

[atari8warez]

Mathy, there's one more person, it's OK for me so long as you are willing to wait. Just PM me with your shipping address and I'll send you other info.
I need to put your name and order date on the order list.

Edited by atari8warez, Sat May 19, 2012 2:10 PM.

[Mathy]

Hello Ray

I'm willing to wait and have PM'ed you my address.

Mathy

[atari8warez]

4 more units are available.

And the current order list. Please PM me if you see any mistakes.

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Edited by atari8warez, Sat May 19, 2012 11:08 PM.

[Jason1024]

Yes, please.  PM sent.  Thanks!

[atari8warez]

Thank you Jason, I replied.

1 more unit is available, and I will not take any more orders at least until all 10 units are built and shipped.

I'd like to thank you all for your interest.

Ray

[marcokitt2000]

Hello

Iam from holland (netherlands) whats the price in euro's with shipping ?

Nice ptoduct i use 600xl with rs232 with switches for use floppy to pc etc but with this cbl no atari is needed and also the usb to serial.

Gr. Marco.

[atari8warez]

Current Status

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[marcokitt2000]

Hello

Iam from holland (netherlands) whats the price in euro's with shipping ?

Nice ptoduct i use 600xl with rs232 with switches for use floppy to pc etc but with this cbl no atari is needed and also the usb to serial.

Gr. Marco.

[atari8warez]

marcokitt2000, on Mon May 21, 2012 1:51 PM, said:

Hello

Iam from holland (netherlands) whats the price in euro's with shipping ?

Nice ptoduct i use 600xl with rs232 with switches for use floppy to pc etc but with this cbl no atari is needed and also the usb to serial.

Gr. Marco.

Hi Marco,
The price is $55 plus shipping ($9 for Netherlands), so the total is $64 which is approximately 50 Euros.
Shipping will include insurance to cover for postal damage/loss. You can pay with Paypal.

Thank you for your interest
Ray

Edited by atari8warez, Mon May 21, 2012 2:00 PM.

[atari8warez]

UPDATE

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[Mathy]

Hello Ray

Is the PCB already layout-ed?  Would it be possible to use a SIO socket instead of a SIO Cable?  (Just an idea, if not possible, that's OK, too.  I just don't like all those devices that have cables hanging from them)

sincerely

Mathy

[jacobus]

I'll take the last one!

[atari8warez]

Mathy, on Mon May 28, 2012 12:36 PM, said:

Hello Ray

Is the PCB already layout-ed?  Would it be possible to use a SIO socket instead of a SIO Cable?  (Just an idea, if not possible, that's OK, too.  I just don't like all those devices that have cables hanging from them)

sincerely

Mathy

Sorry, only with SIO cable. It is actually a plus as it doesn't require people to dedicate an SIO cable for it, not everbody may have extras lying around.

Edited by atari8warez, Tue May 29, 2012 2:22 AM.

[atari8warez]

jacobus, on Mon May 28, 2012 5:43 PM, said:

I'll take the last one!

Thanks, PMed the information.

And this closes this pre-order until all outstanding orders are shipped. Thank you all for your support.

Edited by atari8warez, Tue May 29, 2012 2:26 AM.

[atari8warez]

UPDATE (And a note to all purchasers):

Some people asked my why I need to know the OS version that they intend to use with the SIO2PC/10502PC Dual-USB and whether the OS used will make any difference in the operation of the device. The short answer is NO, it will not make any difference on the actual operation of the interface.

The OS will however make a difference on how one would install the driver. The driver files are originally supplied by FTDI and are digitally signed.
For branding purposes (and to customize some EEPROM values), I did make some changes to the driver installation files (not the actual driver files).

This will not change how drivers work, but will change how drivers are installed:


MS WINDOWS:

• The OS will not be able to automatically install the drivers when you insert the USB cable into the computer. Windows may start searching online for drivers but it will fail to find one because EEPROM values are different from the default FTDI values (i.e. PID. Manufacturer Name, Device Name etc.)
  
• You will need to install the drivers from the supplied DVD by pointing Windows to the drivers folder on the DVD.
  
• Windows will raise a Warning indicating "It can not verify the signature" (because diigital signature is now invalid due to above medifications)
  
• You will have to ignore the warning and install it anyway.
  
• Following a successful installation two devices will appear in device manager one as "SIO2PC/10502PC Dual-USB" (the USB component), the other as "SIO2PC/10502PC Dual-VCP" (the Virtual COM port component)
  
• You may now select/change the COM port number you would like to use by displaying device properties.
  
• I will make future driver updates available for download from my website

LINUX:

• Customized driver source files are provided in the DVD. They will need to be compiled before installation.
  
• Custom device name, PID and Manufacturer, like MS WINDOWS above.
  
• I will make future driver updates available for download from my website

MAC OS:

• Drivers supplied for MAC OS are unmodified FTDI drivers. The device EEPROM will also be unmodified.
  
• The device will appear as a "USB Serial Port" and not as "SIO2PC/10502PC Dual-USB"
  
• No custom manufacturer name or PID.
  
• FTDI will supply future driver updates (if any)

The reason for the MAC OS difference: I have no clue on how to customize MAC OS drivers and no time/intention to learn it either.

Note: If anyone wants go back to default FTDI drivers, I can supply the tools and the information on how to do it.
All this information is also provided on the installation DVD in a readme file.

and now for the current status:

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Edited by atari8warez, Thu May 31, 2012 12:52 AM.

[rdemming]

atari8warez, on Thu May 31, 2012 12:33 AM, said:

MS WINDOWS:

• Windows will raise a Warning indicating "It can not verify the signature" (because diigital signature is now invalid due to above medifications)

One question: Did you test this on 64-bit Windows? 64-bit Windows needs properly signed drivers and to work around this problem you have to reboot the system with "Disable Driver Signature Enforcement" everytime you need to use the driver. Or modify your system to always boot without driver signature enforcement.

Robert

[sloopy]

rdemming, on Thu May 31, 2012 1:23 AM, said:

atari8warez, on Thu May 31, 2012 12:33 AM, said:

MS WINDOWS:

• Windows will raise a Warning indicating "It can not verify the signature" (because diigital signature is now invalid due to above medifications)

One question: Did you test this on 64-bit Windows? 64-bit Windows needs properly signed drivers and to work around this problem you have to reboot the system with "Disable Driver Signature Enforcement" everytime you need to use the driver. Or modify your system to always boot without driver signature enforcement.

Robert

This was why I didnt change the USB vendor ID and product ID on mine... I only changed the name field, and then only on half of them...

sloopy.

[atari8warez]

rdemming, on Thu May 31, 2012 1:23 AM, said:

atari8warez, on Thu May 31, 2012 12:33 AM, said:

MS WINDOWS:

• Windows will raise a Warning indicating "It can not verify the signature" (because diigital signature is now invalid due to above medifications)

One question: Did you test this on 64-bit Windows? 64-bit Windows needs properly signed drivers and to work around this problem you have to reboot the system with "Disable Driver Signature Enforcement" everytime you need to use the driver. Or modify your system to always boot without driver signature enforcement.

Robert

I am using Windows 7 64 bit (pre-SP1) on my laptop. I am booting normally and had no problems installing the drivers, only the warning appears and I simple choose to ignore it. The drivers are not actually UNSIGNED, they still are signed but windows can not verify the authenticity of the signature due to changes. I believe this is different from the UNSIGNED driver error.

FTDI website says modifying the driver installation files WILL NOT BREAK DRIVER INSTALLATION but a warning will be dispalyed. This is exactly what happens in my system.

Edited by atari8warez, Thu May 31, 2012 1:56 PM.

[atari8warez]

sloopy, on Thu May 31, 2012 9:08 AM, said:

rdemming, on Thu May 31, 2012 1:23 AM, said:

atari8warez, on Thu May 31, 2012 12:33 AM, said:

MS WINDOWS:

• Windows will raise a Warning indicating "It can not verify the signature" (because diigital signature is now invalid due to above medifications)

One question: Did you test this on 64-bit Windows? 64-bit Windows needs properly signed drivers and to work around this problem you have to reboot the system with "Disable Driver Signature Enforcement" everytime you need to use the driver. Or modify your system to always boot without driver signature enforcement.

Robert

This was why I didnt change the USB vendor ID and product ID on mine... I only changed the name field, and then only on half of them...

sloopy.

USB Vendor ID (VID) has not been changed it's still 0403 (FTDI), only Product ID and identification strings have. I've asked FTDI to assign me a pool of product numbers, and they did.  I had not have any issues installing them on Win 7 64 bit or WIN XP.

In any case if this proves to be problematic to some users, I will let them know how to modify the EEPROM and use default drivers instead. Takes only a few minutes to do it. Also if anyone who has not received his device yet wants me to send it in default configuration can PM me before I ship the product out.

Edited by atari8warez, Thu May 31, 2012 1:57 PM.

[rdemming]

Thanks for the explanation. I was afraid that the modifications would affect the 64-bit driver signature verification when you said a warning will pop-up. Good to hear that it is not the case.

[atari8warez]

Here's the preliminary SIO2PC/10502PC Dual-USB interface PCB layout, will do the final checks and submit it for manufacturing early this week, after that it's a matter of waiting for the boards to arrive (hopefully with no fab errors). it's been auto-routed by Altium so don't blame me if it looks ugly - lol - it actually looks better in full clothing.

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Edited by atari8warez, Sun Jun 3, 2012 7:23 AM.

[BillC]

atari8warez, on Sun Jun 3, 2012 7:17 AM, said:

Here's the preliminary SIO2PC/10502PC Dual-USB interface PCB layout, will do the final checks and submit it for manufacturing early this week, after that it's a matter of waiting for the boards to arrive (hopefully with no fab errors). it's been auto-routed by Altium so don't blame me if it looks ugly - lol - it actually looks better in full clothing.

At first the circuit didn't make much sense until I realized that the USB to serial conversion is handled by the FTDI DB9-USB interface module. These modules look very interesting for anyone making a simple device, as it eliminates the need to solder the SMD USB converter chip. What I don't understand is the DIP IC, a SIO2PC/USB can be built with a single FT232RL and I am thinking you would be using the 5V version rather than the RS232 version of the DB9-USB. What is also puzzling is that there is no trace to pin 16, normal power supply pin for this size DIP IC.

Is this DIP IC used for the SIO2PC/10502PC auto-switching?