Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

Author Topic: researching an SD card reader for A2000  (Read 2760 times)

Description:

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline reverendseanTopic starter

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Join Date: Sep 2011
  • Posts: 5
    • Show only replies by reverendsean
researching an SD card reader for A2000
« on: September 29, 2011, 08:34:52 PM »
I'm looking for an easy way to get files to my Commodore A2000.  I'm sort of just getting into the world of Amigas. (I refer only to "good 'ol days Amigas. I haven't gotten anywhere near the world of post-Commodore-bust Amigas yet.) I'm fairly familiar with PC and Macintosh hardware contemporary to the A2000, and for that matter, PC and Mac hardware up to the present, but my knowledge of Amiga hardware consists only of what I already know about computer hardware, as well as what I've observed from peeking into the A2000 case and having to figure out how to get the lid around all the wires and Video Toaster whatnots afterwards.  

Anyway, I'm wanting something cheap and simple to interface SD cards, unless circumstances prompt getting an interface for some other card medium, Compact Flash, etc. I see that they sell card readers to plug in as a floppy drive or as a harddrive. I'd go with the harddrive one, but I've got SCSI and not IDE. (I currently have one SCSI harddrive connected.) Could I possibly use an adaptor so that I could use an SD-to-IDE reader on my A2000, or should I go with another option? Or do I have the one Amiga model that doesn't get to interface with SD?
 

Offline save2600

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jul 2006
  • Posts: 3261
  • Country: us
    • Show only replies by save2600
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #1 on: September 29, 2011, 09:19:24 PM »
Do a search for user Mechy here. He sells the perfect solution for sd<>scsi readers.
 

Offline Cammy

Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #2 on: September 30, 2011, 01:13:03 AM »
Have a look here for Mech's store and his SCSI card readers - http://a4000t.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=65_79

There really is no better option, any SCSI-IDE bridge would cost more, and so would an IDE card for the Zorro slot.
A1200 030@28Mhz/2MB+32MB/RTC/KS3.1/IDE-CF+4GB/4-Way Clockport Expander/IndivisionAGA/PCMCIA NIC
A1200 020@14Mhz/2MB+8MB/FPU/RTC/KS3.0/IDE-CF+2GB/S-Video
CD32 020@14Mhz/2MB+8MB/RTC/KS3.1/IDE-CF+4GB
A600 030@30Mhz/2MB+64MB/RTC/IDE-CF+4GB/Subway USB/S-Video/PCMCIA NIC/USB Numeric Keypad+Hub+Mouse+Control Pad
A500 000@7Mhz/512kB+512kB/ROM Switcher/KS3.1+1.3/S-Video

Get AmigaOS
 

Offline reverendseanTopic starter

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Join Date: Sep 2011
  • Posts: 5
    • Show only replies by reverendsean
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #3 on: September 30, 2011, 03:09:47 AM »
the one with all those other slots, too? over $60? these two details are just fine, as long as this is really the most well-suited answers.* are they easy to install?  just plug it up and go, or are additional drivers needed?  sorry if i ask a dumb question; I'm trying to expect the unexpected, since amiga hardware seems to have some strange magic to it (always "advanced", i don't doubt for a moment).  

*my primary internet connection is currently the one on my cellphone, so let me know if i overlooked what you were referring to. don't worry, I'll have full internet by the time i make my decision and place an order. i used a footnote on a forum, woohoo.

also, if my asking doesnt stray too far from the original topic, what would i need to replace the floppy drive with, if it does turn out to be broken? some special floppy drive, or just a "regular" one? floppy drive specs have always confused me, other than "ya plug it in and turn it on."  if anyone can explain a brief bit on that (it's double density, yet so-and-so-hundred-K rather than more than that? are these those blue floppies i find everywhere?), two birds would get taken down by one stone, and i might bypass NEEDING the card interface... although it wouldn't bypass the WANTING of one (:
 

Offline Heiroglyph

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Jun 2010
  • Posts: 1100
    • Show only replies by Heiroglyph
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #4 on: September 30, 2011, 04:25:43 AM »
Once you have a good card reader, they are one of those "can't live without it" things.

They do just plug in, then act like a hard drive.  You will want a scsi controller that has good logical unit number support (LUN) otherwise you will only get full use of the first card slot.  This can vary with the version of the ROMs on your controller.

He can give you a pretty good idea about scsi controllers too.

I got a few of them from him and I'm very pleased with the reader and the support.

As for floppy drives, you'll either need on made for an Amiga or one that has been modified for Amiga, they are specific.
 

Offline mechy

Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #5 on: September 30, 2011, 04:00:25 PM »
Quote from: reverendsean;661948
the one with all those other slots, too? over $60? these two details are just fine, as long as this is really the most well-suited answers.* are they easy to install?  just plug it up and go, or are additional drivers needed?  sorry if i ask a dumb question; I'm trying to expect the unexpected, since amiga hardware seems to have some strange magic to it (always "advanced", i don't doubt for a moment).  

*my primary internet connection is currently the one on my cellphone, so let me know if i overlooked what you were referring to. don't worry, I'll have full internet by the time i make my decision and place an order. i used a footnote on a forum, woohoo.

also, if my asking doesnt stray too far from the original topic, what would i need to replace the floppy drive with, if it does turn out to be broken? some special floppy drive, or just a "regular" one? floppy drive specs have always confused me, other than "ya plug it in and turn it on."  if anyone can explain a brief bit on that (it's double density, yet so-and-so-hundred-K rather than more than that? are these those blue floppies i find everywhere?), two birds would get taken down by one stone, and i might bypass NEEDING the card interface... although it wouldn't bypass the WANTING of one (:


As they said above,the only options for the A2000 is a scsi to ide bridge(usually costs more),A  ide controller(costs more and is out of production-used market only),A Algor,algor pro, or deneb USB card(Deneb out of production recently,algors long since out of production).
this leaves the scsi card readers(assuming your A2000 has a scsi card).
Most controllers like the 2091(6.6 or later rom recommended),gvp work(4.15 rom) or scsi off the accelerator(gvp,warp engine,blizzard etc..
For the most part,you set the jumpers on the reader(device # and termination) and plug it into the scsi controller.Device #0 is best in most cases,as some have buggy LUN support on different devices.

SCSI Card readers
-----------------

LUNS are logical unit numbers, they are simply a way for the card reader to address the other card slots,under the same device number,for example, the PCD-50B scsi card reader:
device 0,lun0 is the pcmcia slot (use a pcmcia->cf adapter here for xtra cf slot-also needed on some controllers that don't support LUNS)
device 0,lun 1 is the compact flash slot
device 0,lun 2 is the Smart media card slot
device 0,lun 3 is the SD/MMC slot
device 0,lun 4 is sony memory stik

Luns were invented so you could have multiple devices under 1 scsi device# and not use up all 7 of your scsi ID's (this applies to narrow,50 pin scsi).

If your controller cannot support luns,you must use the scsi reader with the pcmcia to cf adapter with a cf in this slot. you will not have access to the other slots.this still makes for a fine compact flash scsi hard drive.

If your controller supports LUNS correctly,it is possible to use all the above slots. you could even set each different card up with a different OS and select them at boot time from the early startup. You could put mac/pctask emulation on them-a safe way to do this and never endanger your main amiga boot system. The best thing is at any time you can change cards

NOTE: on a good scsi controller,All cards are hot swappable(can be changed with power on!) EXCEPT the card you booted from(Never remove the os card while powered-this will not cause any hardware damage,but can scramble the OS).AmigaOS 3.1 will see these card swaps just fine.

The biggest trouble you are likely to have with it is the software side,using HDtoolbox to partition and format the card.Its not particularly hard,but to a beginner it can be daunting.I am happy to help with this.

Cammy has already scolded me for not having a guide. i just never seem to have time. As you can see,with my grammar,punctuation,etc,no one could understand it(much like franko) lol.

Notes on CF cards:
------------------
If you have to do one thing,BUY a quality CF. The biggest problems i have had selling these scsi readers is people who want to use their own cf cards. they have either bought a cheap,crappy counterfiet off ebay(tons of fake cards on ebay which cause tons of problems) or some no name card.Many of these cards do not support the IDE protocols right.some are hacked cards relabeled and are not the true capacity,they scramble when you try and access the full amount.
Some CF's are set as the factory as "REMOVEABLE" only and no matter what you do you cannot get them to work as a hard drive. the factory has a utility to change this,but rarely give them out!. If in doubt buy a 2Gb transcend i have or a good sandisk/transcend elsewhere,its worth saving yourself the grief. note some kingstons are problematic.the kingston pro cards seem to be ok,but the cheaper models can be hit or miss. I have also had reports that some newer kingstons(red labels)266x are set as removeable only.kingston will not give out the tool to fix this!
This is not to say that there are not many generic cards that will work because there are.Sandisk is the most counterfieted card BTW. Buy from companies like newegg if inside the USA.

Floppy Drives
------------
The A2000 uses 880K double density drives.they can read/write 720K ibm formatted floppies). Many floppy drives on amiga that are condemmed are not always bad. What happens is there is a worm screw off the stepper motor that moves the head has old lithium grease on this can get hard and literally stop the head from moving.cleaning this grease off (use a toothpick)and re-lubing it carefully(use very little lithium grease here!)can sometimes revive it.Also,clean the read/write heads carefully with isopropyl alcohol and a cotton swab(don't use the gin you are drinking) while you are there.sometimes its just a case of someone used a bad disk in the drive and the oxide off the bad disk clogged the head up and it won't read.
assuming this is good, connect it back up(be sure to use the right cable connector. try both if you are unsure. the red stripe on the cable should face the side of the drive with no power connector.Verify the cable is also plugged into the motherboard correctly-the red stripe should be aligned with the "1" printed on the motherboard.If none of this works,a replacement floppy is the chinon fb-354..commonly found in the A500(missing the face plate) or the A3000 (missing faceplate). Just swap your A2000 faceplate and button to them and they work fine.Ebay is probabaly your only hope to find one or on amiga forums.

hope that helps some

mech
 

Offline reverendseanTopic starter

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Join Date: Sep 2011
  • Posts: 5
    • Show only replies by reverendsean
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #6 on: September 30, 2011, 07:57:37 PM »
Quote from: mechy;661995
(don't use the gin you are drinking)
hey, I know the difference, man. it's these d'rn computers I can't get figgurd out.


As you can see, them scuzzies are easy to get to in there.  

I think I might know where to get a long-lost CD-ROM drive this amiga once used, which would be nice, too.  

anyway, thanks
 

Offline lost_loven

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Join Date: May 2010
  • Posts: 259
    • Show only replies by lost_loven
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #7 on: February 19, 2012, 07:03:06 AM »
can you use a PCMCIA network card with this?

lost
A3000D 2 meg chip, 4 meg fast,128 meg zorram! 16 gig scsi2sd, 3.1 ROM, A3640, Indivision ECS, X-surf-100. Rapid Road usb, Amd scsi chip, Buster11. FTP service now with my Ethernet WD2TB Live Book, haha love it !
hp lappy.

http://www.youtube.com/user/lost666loven?feature=mhum
 

Offline Rebel-CD32

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Join Date: Apr 2004
  • Posts: 288
    • Show only replies by Rebel-CD32
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #8 on: February 19, 2012, 07:39:02 AM »
Unfortunately the PCMCIA slot on these is only usable for CF/SD card adapters, it won't work with network cards over a SCSI bus.
Amiga user forever.
 

Offline Kremlar

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Join Date: Jul 2009
  • Posts: 390
    • Show only replies by Kremlar
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #9 on: February 19, 2012, 12:26:51 PM »
Definitely go with Mechy's card reader.  Works great here!
 

Offline Xanxi

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Aug 2005
  • Posts: 897
    • Show only replies by Xanxi
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #10 on: February 19, 2012, 01:18:09 PM »
As you know, the 3,5' bay of the A2000 is 1,5X the height of a normal bay, so any regular 3,5' device would look ugly.

Here is my solution: use the 5,25' bay. The pic below shows how it can be convinient.

« Last Edit: February 19, 2012, 01:26:15 PM by Xanxi »
10 Classic Amiga Computers so far: I have too many computers!!
 

Offline yssing

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Apr 2002
  • Posts: 1517
    • Show only replies by yssing
    • http://www.yssing.org
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #11 on: February 19, 2012, 01:45:23 PM »
wow, that is must have HW :) that will work so great for my A1200 and A2000

@Xanxi >> where did you get that piece of HW and how does it work? Ive never seen anything like it before.
 

Offline Xanxi

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Join Date: Aug 2005
  • Posts: 897
    • Show only replies by Xanxi
Re: researching an SD card reader for A2000
« Reply #12 on: February 19, 2012, 02:03:25 PM »
Quote from: yssing;681005
wow, that is must have HW :) that will work so great for my A1200 and A2000

@Xanxi >> where did you get that piece of HW and how does it work? Ive never seen anything like it before.

I bought it in a local shop.
That's a 5,25' adapter with a slim DVD bay and a 3,5' bay, along with two front USB ports.
As i don't need a CD/DVD for my A2000, i have a slim bay hard drive adapter from HP, where is my 2,5 IDE drive, which is connected to my SCSI chain with a SCSI-IDE adapter and a slim IDE to 40 pins IDE adapter: quite complicated but it works good and i have a nice front blue LED for my HD acess.
The 3,5' bay holds a combo device with a 3,5 HD frloppy drive (for my bridgeboard), a memory card reader (connected to my Deneb internally), and another front USB port.

All of these USB ports are connected to my internal USB hub, powered from the PSU:


Such a 5,25' adapter would be fine for the Mechy's reader too.
10 Classic Amiga Computers so far: I have too many computers!!