1450 XLD motherboard build, assorted questions

[Vandal968]

I've looked forward from the post where you said you would post it later and couldn't find it. Is it earlier in the thread??

 

 

EDIT....Found it earlier in the thread, but, is it the most up to date? It seemed there were other small changes after that was posted.

I will update again very soon to reflect some additional information that is in this thread but wasn't in the BOM when I posted (like the modem xformer P/N that worked well and why to never use W4) but there are no errors in the BOM already posted and only three or four items will have additional information added about them.

 

cheers,

c

[AtariGeezer]

@Vandal968.

 

1) What bin image did you use for U12?

2) Is U7 the same as the XL/XE MMU?

3) What OS rom did you use?

 

Thanks,

Jay

1. I didn't. I bought the programmed chip from Best Electronics. This information is in the BOM along with the price that I paid for the chip and the part number to order.

2. No, different parts, also purchased the programmed chip from Best.

3. If you are talking about U4, it came from a broken 800XL. If you are talking about U6, the blank chip came from Best (it's a standard chip) and I programmed it with the dump provided by Bob1200XL. This information is also in the BOM.

 

If you guys are serious about building this thing, you should really RTFBOM. I spent weeks putting this together, 90% of the work of building this motherboard was figuring out the BOM. Now that it's already been done and tested and given to you free of charge, all you have to do is read it and start building. I'm happy to answer any questions that come up or clarify anything that isn't clear, but I think that the BOM itself is the correct first-place to look for the answers. I consulted the BOM to answer the questions above, the same BOM that I posted a few weeks ago.

 

I used to work with a very-wise programmer who taught me something.

 

"Give a man a fish, and he eats for a day. TEACH a man to fish, and he'll be back in a few days asking you to teach him how to fish again."

 

LOL.

 

cheers,

c

 

Okay, thanks for the clarification and I had downloaded and RTFBOM that you updated on 8/30/11, but didn't catch the rest from Column "L" to "S"

 

Jay

[+Guitarman]

I've looked forward from the post where you said you would post it later and couldn't find it. Is it earlier in the thread??

 

 

EDIT....Found it earlier in the thread, but, is it the most up to date? It seemed there were other small changes after that was posted.

I will update again very soon to reflect some additional information that is in this thread but wasn't in the BOM when I posted (like the modem xformer P/N that worked well and why to never use W4) but there are no errors in the BOM already posted and only three or four items will have additional information added about them.

 

cheers,

c

 

Cool. Thanks. I'm gonna put together my parts order and wanted to make sure I got everything. Again, Thanks for your amazing work on this!!!

[+kheller2]

1450 Schematics. These are very ugly, unreadable, and wrong. This are NOT the same schematics that Best Electronics sells, which are the "1400" schematics. I'm adding these to this thread for historical purposes only.

 

1450 Schematics.PDF

Edited September 13, 2011 by kheller2

[+Guitarman]

Here are a set of 1400XL schematics from the same site as the 1200XL schematics posted in the 1200 Service Manual thread. I converted them to a PDF. They are very clear. I didn't go through them with a fine tooth comb but they should make a good reference.

1400XL Schematics.pdf

[AtariGeezer]

Here are a set of 1400XL schematics from the same site as the 1200XL schematics posted in the 1200 Service Manual thread. I converted them to a PDF. They are very clear. I didn't go through them with a fine tooth comb but they should make a good reference.

 

Thanks for doing the conversion

 

Jay

[Defender II]

1450 Schematics. These are very ugly, unreadable, and wrong. This are NOT the same schematics that Best Electronics sells, which are the "1400" schematics. I'm adding these to this thread for historical purposes only.

 

1450 Schematics.PDF

Do you have a list of errors/corrections?

Did you say you have an extra modem? I can't find the post now.

[Vandal968]

Here are a set of 1400XL schematics from the same site as the 1200XL schematics posted in the 1200 Service Manual thread. I converted them to a PDF. They are very clear. I didn't go through them with a fine tooth comb but they should make a good reference.

The Sobola schematic is very legible, but also, very wrong. It is a computerized version of the 1400XL schematic from Best, and as such, it contains ALL of the original Atari errors, plus several new ones and a lot of omissions. In my BOM, this is referenced as "Polish Schematic", I suppose I really should have said "Sobola Schematic.

 

cheers,

c

[+Guitarman]

Here are a set of 1400XL schematics from the same site as the 1200XL schematics posted in the 1200 Service Manual thread. I converted them to a PDF. They are very clear. I didn't go through them with a fine tooth comb but they should make a good reference.

The Sobola schematic is very legible, but also, very wrong. It is a computerized version of the 1400XL schematic from Best, and as such, it contains ALL of the original Atari errors, plus several new ones and a lot of omissions. In my BOM, this is referenced as "Polish Schematic", I suppose I really should have said "Sobola Schematic.

 

cheers,

c

 

I kinda figured that would be the case. Maybe I'll take those schematics and your BOM and make the corrections. See if we can come up with a good set of schematics with the right info.

[Vandal968]

Maybe I'll take those schematics and your BOM and make the corrections. See if we can come up with a good set of schematics with the right info.

That would be wonderful. You should be able to just go right down the "Polish Schematic" column in my BOM and plug in all the corrections. I also noted which pages the components do (or should) appear for both Atari and Sobola. For the most part the page numbers are off by one on the Sobola since his schematic starts on page one and the Atari schematic starts on page two. However, he relocated some components to different sheets in an attempt to streamline the schematic, so not everything is on the expected page, but my BOM will tell you where everything goes.

 

cheers,

c

Edited September 14, 2011 by Vandal968

[AtariGeezer]

If someone that bought a 1450 mobo on a whim and doesn't think they'll ever build it, I'd really like to buy yours so I can

 

Jay

[+Guitarman]

What were the differences between the 1400 and the 1450 mainboards?? I have pictures of each that I took at the CGE2K10 in Vegas and, with the exception of a couple components and the cutaway at the cartridge, they look identical.

 

1400

 

 

1450

[AtariGeezer]

What were the differences between the 1400 and the 1450 mainboards?? I have pictures of each that I took at the CGE2K10 in Vegas and, with the exception of a couple components and the cutaway at the cartridge, they look identical.

 

One thing that sticks out is the lack of the floppy board controller Header Connector on the 1400...

But otherwise, looks very similar, except for the location of C66.

 

Jay

Edited September 14, 2011 by AtariGeezer

[Vandal968]

The 1400 and 1450 boards are almost identical but several of the components are different.

 

cheers,

c

[+kheller2]

Vandal,

 

Does your board have an etched number in the bottom between the joystick port and cart cutout? Mine looks like a "98".

[+bob1200xl]

I tested a 1400XL and it speaks both on OPTION-POWERON and DOS from BASIC. The OS is the same as my 1450, so maybe the PBI code is different. I tried my Tong board - it doesn't talk at all, but audio works, otherwise.

 

Bob

 

 

 

My 1450 talks as you described it on Self-Test. It looks like it has the 800XL OS chip in it, so it may have the voice code in the PBI ROM... except Vandal968's PBI ROM is the code from my machine. Weird.

 

Where did the 1400XL Communicator s/w come from? Is it a cart?

 

Bob

Yes, bought it from Best for $25. I didn't know if the machine could speak from BASIC, so I figured that having the cart would be the best way to test.

 

Do those Elpac power supplies come apart, or are they ultrasonically welded?

 

I wonder why mine doesn't speak from Self-Test?!

 

cheers,

c

[Vandal968]

Vandal,

 

Does your board have an etched number in the bottom between the joystick port and cart cutout? Mine looks like a "98".

Looks like "84" on mine.

 

cheers,

c

[+Guitarman]

29 on mine.

[Bryan]

87 on mine.

[Shawn Jefferson]

Mine is 42. Anyone know how many were produced?

[BillC]

Mine is 42. Anyone know how many were produced?

Perhaps these are hand-etched production numbers from a batch of prototype boards?

[mimo]

99 on mine, if Brad shipped them in order, then maybe 100 as mine was the last but one he sold?

[+kheller2]

Engineering notes from late 83 are a bit confusing to make out as they bounce back and forth between plastics, drives from tandon, and main motherboards and power supplies. Since the build date on my board is 4383 thats the last week in October 1983.. 24th-30th, and the earliest Engineering notes on the museum site are these:

 

11/8, there is this:

 

"ATMC will send ~ 25 PCB Rev. 2's built which will be sent to Tandon who will add the plastics and send 50-60 to us for testing"

 

Interesting: "No second drive will be put in the MRS." (mrs?)

 

On 11/15:

They ask for 150 sets of plastics, at ATMC has nearly completed 25 boards. They also ask for 125 power supplies.

 

11/29:

10 Main PCB's received by atari S.J., they request Tandon to build 10 "pilot" units. Tandon has stopped working on the 1450 "while negotiations are continuing."

 

50 more boards are to be received the week of 12/5/83

 

150 sets of plastics will be shot if they are ok.

 

12/16:

They ordered 150 sets of plastics.

65 PCBs have been completed.

 

 

Lots of missing notes... then on 2/6-7/84 discussions focus on the 1450XLD Dynasty Tong board. With schematics to be by done 3/31/84. "Marketing feels that the sales quantities for 1985 would be in the area of 75,000"

[mellis]

Interesting: "No second drive will be put in the MRS." (mrs?)

 

Typically, MRS stands for "Material Resource System" or similar. That comment seems to imply that only single drive 1450s were going to be offered initially.

 

Surprising. I would have held out for a dual drive unit, as buying a 1450 to then turn around and hang a 1050 drive off of it seems kind of counterproductive.

[fibrewire]

"150 sets of plastics"

 

Someone wanna make a trip to Brad's warehouse? Muhahahahah!