Atari 130XE 3.5" Floppy Help Please!

[Draugr]

Hi,

I found a person selling a brand new in box XF551 drive. I understand that is the drive that can be upgraded to use the typical 3.5 inch DD floppy disks. I have tried many times to contact CSS but have never gotten a response. I have two questions.

 

1. Is anyone selling a 3.5 inch floppy for a 130XE system

 

2. Does anyone know where I can buy one or where I can find a place to do the upgrade?

 

Thanks

[Gunstar]

1) CSS

2) CSS

 

Sorry, but that's the only place I know of two help with both questions. I heard they were still in business about a year ago...Have you tried to just place an order at the website? Keep trying I guess, otherwise use SIO2PC/APE and you can load and save 3.5 inch disks on your PC's drive. Any who, enjoy your new XF551, I always wanted one because it matches my XE, but with 3 1050's upgraded to DD and ultraspeed, plus my options with APE, I've just never been able to justify the purchase of the XF, especially for the full original price it is still sold at.

[Goochman]

Unfort I cant remember who did mine, but I got my XF551 mech replaced with a 720K 5 1/4 Floppy and 3 1/2 combo mech with a toggle switch to choose which drive - really nice, though it doesnt have an exact color match.

 

Does Steven Tucker of APE fame do this???

[ndary]

with some soldering skill you can do it your self.. what you will need to do is:

 

1) replace the Atari ROM with a custom EPROM, if you send me a 27c64 eprom i can burn it with the correct Firmware

 

2) unslolder the Ribbon cable from the Drive PCB and solder a scoket so you can it a standard 3.5" disk drive ribbon cable.

 

3) get a 720k 3.5" disk drive (although i was told that a standard 1.44 3.5" disk drive will do - i will test this next week)

 

and thats its.. there is an option to piggy-back the 27c64 on your custom rom and add the 3.5" drive on top of the xf551 so you can select to operate the 5.25 disk or the 3.5" disk.. but since you probabaly have already a 1050 drive so just convert the XF55 drive to be 3.5" only.. this what i did.

 

if you want you can send me the drive pcb with a 27c64 epromand a socket for the ribbon cable, and i will make you the upgrade... (just cover the shipping cost back)

 

Nir