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Is the IDE PLUS 2.0 still available (not at Lotharek)


Marius

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COVOX?!?! You cant be serious.. This is a hardisk interface.. Please dont ruin it with rediculous/useless novelty features like Covox.. Anyone who wants a covox can easily attatch it by other means.

 

I know Covox is some sort of a sound thing, and i've seen some threads and videos about how to build one, but what exactly does it do?

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Swapping partitions on the fly is a major feature that enhances the functionality of the mass storage controller, itself.. Noone will debate/dispute this. And as far as Im concerned, the addition of this type of functionality will elevate IDE Plus to the level/status of being the PREMIER PBI STORAGE INTERFACE on the Atari 8-bit platform. .

 

COVOX adds nothing to the mass storage controller, and by today's standards, COVOX is a very crude and useless design. It was really cool to hear a computer reproduce scratchy 8-bit digital sound back in 1986, even though it took 100% CPU time to do it. These days, its hardly more than a novelty to hear it come from an old 8bit machine (all modern machines can out-do it by 100x).. Furthermore, Candle has designed a much more advanced upgrade which has the capability to play COVOX stuff, but also includes quad pokey and advanced FM-synthesis engines that can be applied to many more useful applications than COVOX due to being less CPU intensive.

 

Bottom Line. Not everyone wants COVOX on their machine, and adding it detracts from the seriousness of IDE Plus. If you want it, its easy to add it to your atari by various other means and other available upgrades.

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I know Covox is some sort of a sound thing, and i've seen some threads and videos about how to build one, but what exactly does it do?

 

Covox is 4 8-bit DACs built out of crude assed resistor arrays.. It takes 100% CPU time to stuff the registers, so its only useful for playing sounds with nothing else going on. You cant use it as background music for games/demos..

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MetalGuy66, calm down. It is me who requested a Covox, and not 4 8-bit DACs, just one, on the condition that it wouldn't be any bigger problem. Simius said it wasn't so I can't see why there can't be a Covox: it is 8 resistors more.

 

In fact, considering that there's audio-in line on PBI/ECI, this is the easiest way of adding an 8-bit digital to analog converter and have it automatically mixed with the ordinary audio going out of the monitor connector.

 

It will be of course tested before, because there's some danger that there will be noises coming from data transfer. If it can't be satisfactorily separated, it won't get included.

 

And yes, I know about Candle's fine soundboard, just it is not released yet (and probably won't be for some time), plus it is so sophisticated that I can't see how a simple, single, CPU-fed Covox can be considered a competition...

 

Finally, thank you for modding offer, but no need for such trouble, if a single IDE+ is to be modded this way, I am sure simius can do it as well without sending a board around the equator.

Edited by drac030
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Wait a minute guys...

 

Before everything is getting to fabulous and all that. The IDE+ I am trying to order here, is (almost) equal to the Rev. C I just purchased from SKR. That is a very nice interface. I agree with metalguy66 that the only thing missing is a swapping feature like blackbox has and a few other minor improvements that are BIOS-related (so no hardware upgrade is needed).

 

I really hope this 'thing' will get bigger, or that there might occur incompatibilities due to all fancy extra's and all that.

 

Perhaps that extra features is more something for a complete new run of a complete new design of the interface?

For now I hope it will be the 'new' rev. C (= rev. D.) board.

 

Thanks anyway!

M.

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Honestly: If I can have Covox on the IDE+, I´d like to have it. I´m more and more fond of external mods which has to do with my huge collection of Ataris. Why not having an external Covox? Especially because it is so easy to implement.

If it can be done, I would love to have it.

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Honestly: If I can have Covox on the IDE+, I´d like to have it. I´m more and more fond of external mods which has to do with my huge collection of Ataris. Why not having an external Covox? Especially because it is so easy to implement.

If it can be done, I would love to have it.

 

I have to agree, this feature sounds like a good thing, if possible, please put me down for a covox on both of mine, I like FJC's idea of 1 mb ram as well!!!. But being able to swap partitions like the BlackBox as well as MyDos support are priority.

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I have been testing this device a lot tonight and I have only one word for it: fabulous!

 

Especially the function to boot ATR from the hard drive... How great is that!!

 

One thing I really would love to see changed though is that Boot Drive option in the menu. It would make much more sense if the Atari would handle that drive number (set in the menu) as D1: .... So when I do start+reset and chose B -> 7 ... And I reboot the Atari would boot D7 but like it is D1:

 

Showing the DIR of D1: would also show the dir of D7:

This would address all the issues with my dos and it makes it less needed to make changes all the time in fdisk.

 

The way it works now has IMHO really no benefit above my solution. My solution will make this feature a lot more compatible and versatile.

 

Please consider it for bios update.

 

It would be highly appreciated by me.

 

But as said: ide+ is a fabulous device!

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WHile you are at it, why dont you install a cigarette lighter and drink holder in the top of your disk drive..

 

It's retarded.,.

 

Covox is a poorly executed hack at best.. Its not some kind of advanced (or even desirable to most people) sound system.

 

And to force it on the user who is earnestly trying to purchase a decent MASS STORAGE INTERFACE is rediculous, and detracts from the credibility and professionality of the device..

 

Its VERY EASY to add a single channel covox to your atari if you want to experiment with one. Why trash out a good interface with it?

Edited by MEtalGuy66
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You guys with "card issues" might check out H2testW (for Windows). This has gotten a lot of good buzz. There is an included text file that explains the program.

 

There is a link on this page to the ZIP file with no "funny stuff."

 

http://androidforums...ash-drives.html

 

-Larry

 

Yea, I think my CF card issue is with the cheap adapter I bought from china on ebay, as H2testW test results are good...

I may just stick with real HD's for now :)

 

What CF to IDE adapters are known to work?

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Why trash out a good interface with it?

 

Even though I am not as passionately against the idea of including Covox as MG is, it seems to me that a few dollars and effort saved by not adding it could be used to further enhance the interface. Hot swapping is a must if it has to be THE PBI device of choice and maybe those few dollars saved could go into installing a better quality button which will not give up the ghost in a few years. Just saying...

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Although Metalguy66 is not very subtle in his words, I agree with him. Come one people... let's focus on the reason why people chose for a HARDDISK interface. As soon as the covox is added, what's next? I think all energy should be used to develop further on the HARDDISK related features. The more on the interface, the more can go wrong.

 

The reason for this topic is that I want to purchase the IDE+ 2.0 ... thanks to SKR (thanks again!) I now have one, but I want a few spares.

 

If it will be a complete new project... ofcourse I will be interested too, but perhaps it would be possible first to complete the batch of the requested IDE+ ... I understood that there are a few people here who are interested in that. I am willing to order the missing ones, so that the amount of 25 will be reached.

 

Is that an option? I hope the improved IDE+ ideas will lead into a new project, but not before this requested run is done.

 

Thanks a lot anyway!

M,.

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In post #110 I have explained how's the situation with the Covox thing. Please read the post carefully and in its whole. There are some conditions, which should be met, if Covox is to be included (or not). I have listed all (I hope) of them. And it also basically depends on Simius' decision.

 

If rev. D is to be released at all, there will be modifications to the original project anyway, because there are some requested mods to the rev. C design (additional switch, 65816-compatibility patch etc.). And don't exaggerate as if adding 8 resistors was equal to a complete redesign. If someone does not want Covox (and if there is one onboard), I am sure that there will be an easy way to switch the thing off.

 

I'd also like to notice that IDE+ already "forces" some things on users who may possibly have the device but also possibly do not want some features: e.g. SDX and battery-backed clock are "forced" on MyDOS users. I also know one IDE+ owner, who does not use the harddisk part (!). I am sure however that having these "unnecessary" options does not hurt anyone.

Edited by drac030
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sorry for being so off topic, but a quick SDX/IDE+ question:

 

I know how to create ATR files within SDX (using MKATR external command from toolkit). But now I want to mount this ATR within SDX.

 

How do I do that? What (external) tool is needed?

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