CSS product: The Silencer

[ebiguy]

Does any one have some information about The Silencer?

Pictures, schematics or anything else...

Is it just a switch to bypass write protect?

[+Nezgar]

Hmm According to the Atari 8-Bit FAQ:

Silencer, by CSS, for 810/1050, 1984
 - Eliminates loud drive sounds when reading bad sectors
 - Write to both sides of any disk without notching disks

First thought is it could be a modified ROM, which skips, or reduces banging the head below track 0 to realign track alignment in the bad sector retry code... (Since the 810 has no track 0 sensor)

 

Forcing "write-always" could be done with a ROM modification, but more likely simply an additional switch connected in-line with the write-protect photodiode...

 

Anyone know where in/which magazines it was advertised? Might be able to infer more about it from some ads...

[ijor]

The Silencer was the most advanced piece of engineering ever made for the Atari, and perhaps for any computer. It probably took years of research and development ...

 

You receive ... some lubricating grease with full instructions ! Yeah, that's right, believe or not.

May be there was something else I don't remember

 

I'm not sure about a modification for writing to flippies. I think CSS used to bundle the Silencer with a couple of other products.

[ijor]

2 hours ago, Nezgar said:

Forcing "write-always" could be done with a ROM modification ...

 

No. Neither the FDC, neither the drive mechanism will allow it.

[Faicuai]

The "silencer" is nothing else than a stock IndusGT drive with (preferably) blue-color DIP panel in the back.

 

Then you will learn what silence is all about...

[ebiguy]

7 hours ago, ijor said:

I'm not sure about a modification for writing to flippies.

Yes there was something but I wanted to know what kind of hardware if anyone has seen it.

http://mathyvannisselroy.nl/css_docs/1993 catalog.pdf

Is it a basic switch with wires or a PCB to ease the install?

[ijor]

7 hours ago, ebiguy said:

Yes there was something but I wanted to know what kind of hardware if anyone has seen it.

http://mathyvannisselroy.nl/css_docs/1993 catalog.pdf

Is it a basic switch with wires or a PCB to ease the install?

 

Yes, of course there was something like that. What I meant is that, as I recall, it wasn't part of the Silencer. And that's why I said that I believe it was used to be bundled with other CSS products. As I remember, it was bundled with the "poor man bad sector creator" (don't remember the actual product name) that worked by slightly moving the disk with an attached tape while writing to the sector.

[BillC]

10 hours ago, ebiguy said:

Yes there was something but I wanted to know what kind of hardware if anyone has seen it.

http://mathyvannisselroy.nl/css_docs/1993 catalog.pdf

Is it a basic switch with wires or a PCB to ease the install?

If you don't bother with in indicator LED a 3 position SPDT switch and just 3 wires is all that's required, 2 of the wires would connect to the pads for a removed JP7 with the third wire to ground. These connections are for the 1050, I don't know those for the 810.

This gives full control of write protect, with normal(sensor mode), read only, and write enabled positions.

Here is a link to a post I made with a schematic, including status LEDs:

 

[jamm]

A remember these seeing these mysterious ads in the magazines all the time.