pixelmischief Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 I have a 1200XL and a pair of Happy 1050's that I intend to use as my "nostalgia driver". Will a Warp+ OS 32-in-1 largely resolve the quirks in the 1200 while also driving high-speed SIO? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjlazer Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 I have a 1200XL and a pair of Happy 1050's that I intend to use as my "nostalgia driver". Will a Warp+ OS 32-in-1 largely resolve the quirks in the 1200 while also driving high-speed SIO?Yes I have this in mine, and in my other one I have the latest Rev 11 1200XLOS which fixes a lot of issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 If you just want the fix the "Quirks" - replacing the OS with the Rev 11 OS will help. But the 32-in-1 is overkill, and be careful as the UltraSpeed handler in the Warp+ OS will exhibit a bug in Happy 1050's that will corrupt writes to single density disks if you don't first program the drives to UltraSpeed using the Happy Utilities disk. (Enabling buffered writes masks the problem, which are disabled on powerup of the drive) Hias' Highspeed Patch will correctly work around the Happy write bug, and provide reliable highspeed with many more types of drives, and add some other nice features like shift-reset for coldstart. There's some pre-patched XL/XE Rev2/3 OS Images around these forums, but should be easy to patch the 1200XL Rev11 OS for your needs. You can program 2 or 4 OS's into a single EPROM with a 4xOS adapter such as the one in this thread: https://atariage.com/forums/topic/287179-diy-4xos-switch/?do=findComment&comment=4502419 (I have a few left) or Dropcheck's: https://www.bitsofthepast.com/?product=4in1-os-adapter 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flashjazzcat Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 Put Ultimate 1MB in it. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 6 hours ago, flashjazzcat said: Put Ultimate 1MB in it. Did you ever do a video showing installation of such into a 1200XL? Reason I ask is that I remember there being some jumpers and such associated with the ROM that might need to be changed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 7 minutes ago, mytek said: Did you ever do a video showing installation of such into a 1200XL? Reason I ask is that I remember there being some jumpers and such associated with the ROM that might need to be changed. I think Jon has videos for EVERYTHING. But yes, you need to reconfigure the board as Bob discusses in the first part of this post: http://retrobits.net/atari/pbi.shtml Basically you're making the board pretend it's an 800XL - once you reconfigure the jumpers, you can test to make sure it's working right by using a 600XL/800XL MMU and OS ROM into one 28-pin socket. If the machine boots up and shows 64K as an ordinary XL would, you're golden. Then you just solder in the four wires for the U1MB signals (Phi2, R/W, HALT and RESET), mount the U1MB and connect the ribbon cables as you would for any other XL. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 (edited) 11 hours ago, Nezgar said: If you just want the fix the "Quirks" - replacing the OS with the Rev 11 OS will help. But the 32-in-1 is overkill, and be careful as the UltraSpeed handler in the Warp+ OS will exhibit a bug in Happy 1050's that will corrupt writes to single density disks if you don't first program the drives to UltraSpeed using the Happy Utilities disk. (Enabling buffered writes masks the problem, which are disabled on powerup of the drive) Hias' Highspeed Patch will correctly work around the Happy write bug, and provide reliable highspeed with many more types of drives, and add some other nice features like shift-reset for coldstart. There's some pre-patched XL/XE Rev2/3 OS Images around these forums, but should be easy to patch the 1200XL Rev11 OS for your needs. You can program 2 or 4 OS's into a single EPROM with a 4xOS adapter such as the one in this thread: https://atariage.com/forums/topic/287179-diy-4xos-switch/?do=findComment&comment=4502419 (I have a few left) or Dropcheck's: https://www.bitsofthepast.com/?product=4in1-os-adapter So what if 32-in-1 is "overkill" it certainly doesn't hurt anything to have more than you need, yet many act as if 32-in-1 is something to stay away from just because it has more OS slots. Also, it has a cold-start Reset too, and a slightly more convenient one that uses two of the function keys (SELECT+RESET) instead of SHIFT and many other great features. I have used Warp OS+ reliably with 2 happy 1050's, CA-2001 and 2 Indus GT's for high speed. It's easy enough to reprogram and add Hias' high-speed OS too, and other great ones like Qmeg 4 OS. Though I never encountered the issue while writing to single density disks since Happy makes the 1050 double density and see no reason to be using single density disks to write too, especially since they are much more rare than DD disks, so that's all I use. Also, Happy 1050 (at least the clone versions I own from Atarimax) start out in ultra-speed and you have to use the utilities disk to put them into "unhappy" mode so it's compatible with non-ultra speed disks. I have never had to load the Utilities disk to program the my drives for ultra-speed, as they are automatically in that mode, and if changed to "unhappy" only need to be power-cycled to return to Happy ultra speed mode. Though I'll have to except your word on needing to enable buffered writes with the utilities disk since I've never encountered the single density write issue. I also have a couple of Dropcheck's 4-in-1's and they are great, and a much cheaper solution than 32-in-1 (a good reason instead of a ridiculous one, to choose something other than 32-in-1), if you have a way to get or make the needed eproms. And with a slight DIY mod I've got 2 8-in-1's by piggybacking eproms. Edited August 30, 2020 by Gunstar 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flashjazzcat Posted August 30, 2020 Share Posted August 30, 2020 1 hour ago, mytek said: Did you ever do a video showing installation of such into a 1200XL? This last one is more of an after-the-fact tour, but has better camera work. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pixelmischief Posted August 31, 2020 Author Share Posted August 31, 2020 Yo! Thanks for all the good info! I see Lotharek selling something called the 1050E upgrade. How does this compare to the Happy and is it, in a way, preferable to a Happy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 1 hour ago, pixelmischief said: I see Lotharek selling something called the 1050E upgrade. How does this compare to the Happy and is it, in a way, preferable to a Happy? It's "brand new" - totally new hardware and firmware development. I have one but have not actually tested it yet. It may not work with NTSC machines, as it was only tested with PAL timing during development. Been meaning to report back on that in another thread... I'd stick with a tried and true Happy, Speedy, or US Doubler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pixelmischief Posted August 31, 2020 Author Share Posted August 31, 2020 1 minute ago, Nezgar said: I'd stick with a tried and true Happy, Speedy, or US Doubler. And of those 3, which is the general consensus best solution for someone who is only looking for high-speed I/O? Then again, what do opinions and experience prescribe as the best combination of OS upgrade and 1050 drive upgrade for that use case? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 @pixelmischief They're listed in order of price - Happy replica from AtariMax is $40 USD - just like the original USA product, Mini Speedy replica from tf_hh is european made, inspired by the happy - 25 euro+shipping, both support track buffering. The Mini-Speedy is a little more advanced than the Happy in that it does some extra directory sector buffering tricks, and a built in high-speed sector copier. US Doubler is the cheapest - just a ROM replacement + 128 bytes more RAM to support true double density without track buffering. Full ultraspeed is only possible on disks formatted with the ultraspeed interleave. It can be built DIY for a few dollars with an EPROM + soldering 2 6810's together, or about $15 for a neat reversible kit. ( https://atariage.com/forums/topic/303890-open-6810-doubler-pcb-for-1050-us-doubler-upgrade/ ) TMI... but if you're looking for a simple answer and you're in the USA, I'd just order an AtariMax happy replica. Free shipping probably still too. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pixelmischief Posted August 31, 2020 Author Share Posted August 31, 2020 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Nezgar said: ...if you're looking for a simple answer...I'd just order an AtariMax happy replica. Glad to hear that since I already have two (2) of them on the way ?. Edited August 31, 2020 by pixelmischief 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 1 minute ago, pixelmischief said: Glad to hear that since I already have two (2) of them on the way =). Actually, three of the drives in this video of mine are using new AtariMax Happy replica PCB's. The fourth is using my 'pirated' happy PCB from BITD. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pixelmischief Posted August 31, 2020 Author Share Posted August 31, 2020 @Nezgar Love your setup! But I am too OCD to mix XE and XL styling. Also, I am more of a side-by-side, under-the-monitor man myself. ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 8 hours ago, pixelmischief said: Glad to hear that since I already have two (2) of them on the way ?. I just received another in the post myself from Atarimax...the ones I have I've been very "happy" with, All my drives are now DD and high-speed, except my 810, which I'll upgrade for high-speed with a Happy 810 if I can find one. It's a shame I can't make it DD too. Does anyone know of other available alternatives to 810 Happy? I'm not sure just yet where I can get one, maybe B&C, I'll have to check; as many of you may remember, I don't do business with Best E. anymore... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 (edited) 8 hours ago, pixelmischief said: @Nezgar Love your setup! But I am too OCD to mix XE and XL styling. Also, I am more of a side-by-side, under-the-monitor man myself. ? Me too! That's one reason I sold off my 130XE and got 1200XL's I upgraded to replace it, as all my peripherals were XL with the odd-ball XE in the middle! I go back and forth with side-by-side or stacked. Right now my drives are side-by-side under monitors as I have plenty of room with my large XL workstation I built. (pictures are in some thread or other showing people's set-ups. I tried searching recently but couldn't find the thread I posted all the pictures too; AA's search engine leaves a LOT to be desired) Edited August 31, 2020 by Gunstar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 8 hours ago, Nezgar said: Actually, three of the drives in this video of mine are using new AtariMax Happy replica PCB's. The fourth is using my 'pirated' happy PCB from BITD. I really like the window in the top, I may do that to my 1050's since I have LED lighting in them already, but only showing through the front and the bezel vents. A window would brighten them up and shine a light on the mechanisms too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotty Posted September 1, 2020 Share Posted September 1, 2020 On 8/31/2020 at 12:22 AM, Nezgar said: @pixelmischief They're listed in order of price - Happy replica from AtariMax is $40 USD - just like the original USA product, Mini Speedy replica from tf_hh is european made, inspired by the happy - 25 euro+shipping, both support track buffering. The Mini-Speedy is a little more advanced than the Happy in that it does some extra directory sector buffering tricks, and a built in high-speed sector copier. US Doubler is the cheapest - just a ROM replacement + 128 bytes more RAM to support true double density without track buffering. Full ultraspeed is only possible on disks formatted with the ultraspeed interleave. It can be built DIY for a few dollars with an EPROM + soldering 2 6810's together, or about $15 for a neat reversible kit. ( https://atariage.com/forums/topic/303890-open-6810-doubler-pcb-for-1050-us-doubler-upgrade/ ) TMI... but if you're looking for a simple answer and you're in the USA, I'd just order an AtariMax happy replica. Free shipping probably still too. I had a US Doubler back in the early 80s. It was a copy made by the pirate Kilroy. Worked great. Last I talked to him, a few years ago, he is still doing well. He just posted on Facebook yesterday, so all is well. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Stephen Posted September 1, 2020 Share Posted September 1, 2020 56 minutes ago, scotty said: I had a US Doubler back in the early 80s. It was a copy made by the pirate Kilroy. Worked great. Last I talked to him, a few years ago, he is still doing well. He just posted on Facebook yesterday, so all is well. I can still remember the various "Cracked by Kilroy" messages 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyle22 Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 At the beginning of the USD ROM are the drive numbers. Add 4 to each number and you make it D5: - D8:. It's a few bytes in. I don't have it in front of me, but you will see 1-4 numbers (3421 possibly [I don't remember now]. It's easy. You'll see it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+slx Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 On 8/31/2020 at 2:45 PM, Gunstar said: Does anyone know of other available alternatives to 810 Happy? I'm not sure just yet where I can get one, maybe B&C, I'll have to check; as many of you may remember, I don't do business with Best E. anymore... myatari sells Happy 810 kits and there’s a thread around here on how to modify a side board yourself, but just schematics and theory, no detailed instructions, so I have not attempted it yet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Spancho Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 11 minutes ago, slx said: myatari sells Happy 810 kits and there’s a thread around here on how to modify a side board yourself, but just schematics and theory, no detailed instructions, so I have not attempted it yet. Are the Happy 810 kits Listed on his Ebay store as I can’t find them there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 (edited) 3 hours ago, Spancho said: Are the Happy 810 kits Listed on his Ebay store as I can’t find them there? If you can't find them on Ebay in the MyAtari store, try the actual B&C Computervisions (which IS MyAtari on Ebay) web site. Edited September 3, 2020 by Gunstar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimo Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 39 minutes ago, Gunstar said: If you can't find them on Ebay in the MyAtari store, try the actual B&C Computervisions (which IS MyAtari on Ebay) web site. All sales are through ebay now I believe, that website is just a historical reference, I think the best bet would be to contact him through his ebay store 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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