johndotpizza Posted March 26, 2019 Share Posted March 26, 2019 I know close to nothing about these computers so please bear with me. I'm trying to get a 410 program recorder to work with my 800 computer. I insert the Basic CXL4002 cartridge into the left slot, insert the Touch Typing CX4110 tape into the 410, power on the 800 and see "ready" on screen and press "play" on the 410 but the 410 does nothing. Have I done everything correctly? I suspect the 410 is simply broken. Appreciate any help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+slx Posted March 26, 2019 Share Posted March 26, 2019 You press PLAY on the 410 and hold START while turning on your 800. After the tone you hit RETURN and the cassette should load. If that doesnt work, try CLOAD, then PLAY and on the beep hit RETURN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted March 27, 2019 Author Share Posted March 27, 2019 You press PLAY on the 410 and hold START while turning on your 800. After the tone you hit RETURN and the cassette should load. If that doesnt work, try CLOAD, then PLAY and on the beep hit RETURN Tried the first suggestion and still nothing. I have PLAY on when the 800 turns on, I hold down START and I get a blue screen with a cursor and I hear the tone but pressing RETURN doesn't do anything. Should the 410 show any signs of life without communicating with the computer because I get nothing from it at all. I don't know what CLOAD is. If it's a command I don't know where/when to type it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rybags Posted March 27, 2019 Share Posted March 27, 2019 You're probably doing all the right things but chances are the drive belt on the 410 is broken. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted March 27, 2019 Author Share Posted March 27, 2019 You're probably doing all the right things but chances are the drive belt on the 410 is broken. Well it doesn't even make any sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+slx Posted March 27, 2019 Share Posted March 27, 2019 CLOAD is a command and needs to be typed after the READY prompt. Just to be sure, the 410 is connected do its own power supply as well as the 800? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baktra Posted March 27, 2019 Share Posted March 27, 2019 1. Check the wiring. The 410 must be connected to the power supply (to get power), and to the SIO port of the computer (to exchange data between the 410 and the computer) 2. Check if the 410 can rewind or fast forward, to see if its motor works and belts are in a good shape. Pressing PLAY alone doesn't do anything. This is normal, 410 needs signal from the computer to spin when PLAY is pressed. To load the Touch typing, follow instructions here: 1. Power off the computer 2. Insert the BASIC cartridge 3. Powe on the computer, wait for the READY prompt 4. Insert the tape, rewind it to the beginning 5. Type CLOAD and press return 6. Computer beeps 7. Press PLAY 8. Press RETURN The program will be loaded. If something goes wrong during the loading, you will get ERROR 138 or ERROR 143. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted March 27, 2019 Share Posted March 27, 2019 CLOAD is a command and needs to be typed after the READY prompt. ...with the BASIC cartridge inserted in the left cartridge slot. also in BASIC - POKE 54018,52 to turn the motor on, and POKE 54018,60 to turn the motor off. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rybags Posted March 27, 2019 Share Posted March 27, 2019 Turn the TV autio up - when doing that POKE or pressing a key to commence loading, you should get a click through the speaker. That should indicate at least that the control circuit in the tape drive that enables Play is working (and it works without the tape drive powered as well). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted March 27, 2019 Author Share Posted March 27, 2019 Thank you all for the replies! 2. Check if the 410 can rewind or fast forward, to see if its motor works and belts are in a good shape. Pressing PLAY alone doesn't do anything. This is normal, 410 needs signal from the computer to spin when PLAY is pressed. The 410 is 100% plugged into power (it has an integrated cable) but I can't fast forward or rewind. I assume that means it's broken? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baktra Posted March 27, 2019 Share Posted March 27, 2019 Thank you all for the replies! The 410 is 100% plugged into power (it has an integrated cable) but I can't fast forward or rewind. I assume that means it's broken? Yes, it is broken. In the best case, it's just worn out belts that can be easily replaced, but without proper diagnosis, one cannot tell what it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted March 30, 2019 Author Share Posted March 30, 2019 Ok I opened it up today and found that the drive belt was very loose. After inspection I decided to plug it in and see if the motor turned and surprisingly it did! I swear nothing would happen before. So now I know the motor works at least. Now I just need a replacement belt. Do you guys have any suggestions? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KlasO Posted March 31, 2019 Share Posted March 31, 2019 I bought some 1010 belts from this guy: https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F331692697200 I cannot vouch for the quality (have yet to install and use them) but not too expensive and shipping was rather quick. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scitari Posted March 31, 2019 Share Posted March 31, 2019 Atari 410 belts are available. You can get them here. Here is an AA thread about belts for the 410 and 1010. Here is the 410 service manual from Atari although I rarely find these that useful. I personally think you are better of getting a disk drive. So much easier and more fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted March 31, 2019 Author Share Posted March 31, 2019 Atari 410 belts are available. You can get them here. Here is an AA thread about belts for the 410 and 1010. Here is the 410 service manual from Atari although I rarely find these that useful. I personally think you are better of getting a disk drive. So much easier and more fun. I really like the idea of the cassette though. I didn't even know data was stored on cassettes like this until I found this thing. Besides, if all it takes is a new belt it's worth a shot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scitari Posted March 31, 2019 Share Posted March 31, 2019 I have several 410s and 1010s that need belt replacements. This is on my list of things to do but I haven't tried it yet. My understanding is that it isn't that easy. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted March 31, 2019 Author Share Posted March 31, 2019 I have several 410s and 1010s that need belt replacements. This is on my list of things to do but I haven't tried it yet. My understanding is that it isn't that easy. Good luck! I don't see what would be hard about it. I can easily get to the existing belt. I think the problem is getting the right belt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoundGammon Posted March 31, 2019 Share Posted March 31, 2019 An early ANTIC magazine had a fix for the "filter" that outputs the data stream to the computer. It required changing 2 resisters that tightened the the filter to keep out range noise going to the computer that caused errors. Don't have this ANTIC magazine and wondering if anyone else can find it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted April 13, 2019 Author Share Posted April 13, 2019 I finally got my new belt installed and my 410 will now rewind and advance the tape however the computer will not load from it. I've tried the hold START technique as well as the CLOAD command and neither seem to want to communicate with the 410. Is there anything else I can try? Maybe the serial connection is no good? The pins all look clean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted April 13, 2019 Share Posted April 13, 2019 Does cload at least allow the 'play' button to start advancing the tape? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted April 15, 2019 Author Share Posted April 15, 2019 Does cload at least allow the 'play' button to start advancing the tape? No. The tape never plays. I've tried every combination of starting with the play button pressed, pressing it later, running without holding START, with holding START. Nothing will start the tape playing. When I do send CLOAD, though, I hear a low pitch beep which kind of sounds like an error sound. Is that right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted April 15, 2019 Share Posted April 15, 2019 When I do send CLOAD, though, I hear a low pitch beep which kind of sounds like an error sound. Is that right? That's right, when you hear that beep, it's your prompt to press play on the 410, then press return on the computer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted April 17, 2019 Author Share Posted April 17, 2019 That's right, when you hear that beep, it's your prompt to press play on the 410, then press return on the computer. After I hear the long beep then hit return I hear another short beep but still nothing happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotpizza Posted April 17, 2019 Author Share Posted April 17, 2019 After I hear the long beep then hit return I hear another short beep but still nothing happens. I just let it sit for a bit after hitting return and I first got a "boot error" and then "Error- 138" which looks to be a I/O timeout. So I'm assuming my 410 is just dead, despite the fact that it can be rewound and advanced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted April 17, 2019 Share Posted April 17, 2019 After I hear the long beep then hit return I hear another short beep but still nothing happens. What happens if you try this without a cassette in it? Do the capstans, etc. turn if the play button is engaged? I'd also recommend checking to see if the tape counter advances (or regresses) under fast forward, rewind, and playback. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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