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Atari Eiffel


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Ok so i've given up on finding someone I can buy this adaptor off, I ordered one from a guy of Atari Forums about 3 months ago and never heard from him in the last 2 months so I guess something happend to him as he hasn't been on here since and he hasn't answered any of my emails.

 

So what I am looking for, does anyone have a break down of parts you need to build one and a details of a suitable chip programmer, I can solder pretty well and was thinking off having a go at building one myself on vero board at least (my 12 yearold mouse has finally died).

 

If any one knows of a step by step guide (that anyone could follow) that would be great.

 

My falcon has been recased now for some months now and I would really like to finish the project.

 

Rob

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Ok so i've given up on finding someone I can buy this adaptor off, I ordered one from a guy of Atari Forums about 3 months ago and never heard from him in the last 2 months so I guess something happend to him as he hasn't been on here since and he hasn't answered any of my emails.

 

So what I am looking for, does anyone have a break down of parts you need to build one and a details of a suitable chip programmer, I can solder pretty well and was thinking off having a go at building one myself on vero board at least (my 12 yearold mouse has finally died).

 

If any one knows of a step by step guide (that anyone could follow) that would be great.

 

My falcon has been recased now for some months now and I would really like to finish the project.

 

Rob

 

So perhaps you bought it from "ATARI Generation one" (Pawel Kaznowski)? This guy ripped me off as well. So beware! Don't buy anything of him!

 

This is his website: http://agone.pl

 

Regards,

 

patjomki

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Hi, Rob;

 

I'm about 3/4 finished building Eiffel...right from etching my own PCB. Since I'm learning most of this as I go, it's a slow process.

 

On the Eiffel main site, linked up above, I used the posted schematic for Eiffel 3 as a parts list, though some components don't appear on the basic version (coldfire connector, 74LS174 and LCD). Only thing I'm having trouble figuring out is the resistor packs...whether they're bussed or isolated (I'd love an answer to that if anyone here knows).

 

For programming the PIC, I picked up a cheap Willem eprom programmer off ebay, and made an ICSP connector to program the PIC. 'Course, until it's finished I can't tell if I've done that correctly.

 

The zip file that contains the component layout is here:

http://hardware.atari.org/disco/eiffel/eiffelpcb.zip

Edited by eeun
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Hi Eeun

 

Thanks for the info, at least it will let me get started, keep in touch would love to see how you get on, I don't have to much electronic knowledge, but can follow a build plan if its laid out easy to read. Its strange that nobody is making the Eiffel anymore to sell, going by some of the other threads ive read there still seems a demand for them.

 

Thanks again matey

 

Rob

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Holy crap, I actually did it!

 

It took releasing the magic blue smoke from one of the pics I had on hand, but I now have a working Eiffel interface.

 

Since it's not documented anywhere that I could find, I've attached a graphic that shows pin 1 placement for the 10K bussed resistors.

 

I haven't installed any of the optional gear for thermal fan control, and haven't tested the joystick ports yet. One oddity looking at the Eiffel 3 schematic on Didier's home page is the inclusion of 470 ohm resistors on the joystick lines, whereas on all the board layouts I've seen they're absent.

 

I scavenged as many of the parts as possible, like the keyboard din plugs, and the joystick and ISP connectors came off an old ISA multi-IO card. The cable to the ST keyboard is an unattractive mash-up of a CD-ROM audio cable and a connector pulled from an old monitor's innards.

post-15704-1192825628_thumb.jpg

post-15704-1192825635_thumb.jpg

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Something else I had to figure out: the part that made the blue smoke first time around...was the ST to Eiffel cable pin layout.

 

Looking at the graphic I uploaded above, consider the connector pin on the left, where it says C3, as pin 1.

For the ST, pin 1 is closest to the front of the case, and you'll see pin 2 is n/c.

 

ST - Eiffel

1 - 4 (Gnd)

4 - 1 (+5V)

5 - 2 (RX)

6 - 3 (TX)

 

 

For programming the PIC, I had no success using the Willem software. I downloaded WinPic, which is compatible with the Willem programmer, and that did the trick.

Edited by eeun
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Yeah, I know about them but having seen the schematics and the Eiffel I got from the above mentioned source, I think that some things are a bit different. I mostly want to see why my joystick ports are not working properly and if it's because of something I did or something wrong from his part. Plus an idiots guide on how to build such a thing would be greatly appreciated ;). I' ve done some electronics at the uni but we didn't use a soldering iron, just some raster boards.

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Plus an idiots guide on how to build such a thing would be greatly appreciated

 

I'm not sure what to suggest about a write-up. The etched board is probably the hardest part, and there's plenty of sites on how to do that (which is how I figured it out). I used a method where you print the board pattern from a laser printer onto inkjet glossy paper, then iron that onto the copper board. Etch with an approx 1:1:1 mix of sulphuric acid, hydrogen peroxide (3%) and water, and in about 15-20 minutes I had a board.

Holes were drilled with a dremel and a very small bit of undetermined size.

 

Once you've got that, it's pretty much dropping parts onto the board and soldering. Programming the pic was no more complicated that what I outlined above.

 

The cable...I didn't list any parts below for the cable, that's why it's just a partial list. Like I said, I used a CD-ROM audio cable and salvage. My other option if I couldn't find connectors was to solder directly to the ST, making Eiffel a permanent install.

 

Eiffel parts list (partial)

 

( 1 ) Pic16f876 or equivalent

( 1 ) 28-pin socket for above

( 3 ) 10Kohm bussed resistor, 6-pin

( 1 ) crystal 4 MHz

( 2 ) resistors, 470 Ohm

( 2 ) LED

( 2 ) din-6 PC PS/2 connector, female

( 2 ) capacitors 15pf

( 3 ) 8-pin (4x2) connector

( 1 ) 4-pin (1x4) connector

( 2 ) jumpers

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yeah it was him, thanks for the info, its not the money its the fact that i don't like being treated like a mug, i think we need to make sure hes blacklisted then.

 

Rob

 

If you like to know how he looks like, well here is a picture: http://atariki.krap.pl/index.php/Vulgar

 

Anyone has an address of him?

 

Regards,

 

patjomki

Edited by patjomki
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Well, here's an alternative to buying from that guy...

 

I've listed my Eiffel on ebay, with the hope of covering some of the costs of this learning experience:

Item # is 180172700529

 

I'm also interested in seeing what it goes for, with the thought of making up a few more.

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  • 7 years later...

Hi, folks! Sorry for bumping this old thread, but I decided to finally solder a thermistor to my Eiffel board, and I don't know where to do it. I bought my board from lookie at satantronic IIRC, but I couldn't manage to contact him.

 

It seems to me that it has to go between pin2 and pin8 of the PIC. Is that right?

 

Thanks for any help!

 

Ciao!

Edited by Paolo
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  • 8 months later...
  • 6 years later...
On 10/22/2007 at 8:35 AM, eeun said:

Eiffel parts list (partial)

 

( 1 ) Pic16f876 or equivalent

Over 14 years after this thread was started, I’m also giving up on finding someone to sell me this adapter, and have started gathering parts to make one myself.


I don’t know much about microcontrollers, although I have successfully flashed a PIC16F1847 for the wonderful TransKey-II.  Any recommendations for a PIC16F876?  What are equivalent chips?
 

Thanks!
-Joe

 

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