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Amiga computer related discussion => Amiga Hardware Issues and discussion => Topic started by: orange on May 28, 2008, 08:45:27 AM

Title: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: orange on May 28, 2008, 08:45:27 AM: what is the easiest way to identify unknown card as usable in Amiga and not ISA/VLB/.. etc?
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: Chain on May 28, 2008, 09:04:08 AM: http://aminet.net/package/util/libs/board223
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: spirantho on May 28, 2008, 10:32:39 AM: Easiest way - stick it in the slot. If it fits, it's right. [1]

Zorro cards are quite distinctive because they have one long cardedge with 100pins on. ISA has 2 sections (unless they're 8-bit in which case they're much smaller), PCI has much more dense, smaller connector, VLB is ISA with even more stuff tagged on the end. AGP is PCI sized but has two sets of pins on the connector edge.

[1] This applies to many facets of life, not just Amiga boards.
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: Hodgkinson on May 28, 2008, 05:17:05 PM: On a similar note, does anyone know (Or can measure) the length of the zorro slot PCB edge-connector - Eg, the board edge, as opposed to the connector into which it fits (On any Zorro version)?

Could be useful to help ID Zorro boards in assorted PC-bits boxes...
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: spirantho on May 28, 2008, 05:26:36 PM: Shouldn't be necessary, they're quite distinctive.

Take a look here:
http://www.daffi.org/Busslot.htm

The Zorro cards look of a similar length connector to the ISA, but slightly longer and with no gap.

Also, of course, because the Amiga was designed for bridgeboards using ISA slots, the Zorro slots are in line with the ISA. Hence any Zorro slot with a blanking plate (most are) will be full-length. If the blanking plate is next to the connector, it's not a Zorro card (but it could feasibly be an Amiga card for the video slot).
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: alexh on May 28, 2008, 09:15:15 PM: Quote

orange wrote:
what is the easiest way to identify unknown card as usable in Amiga and not ISA/VLB/.. etc?

Send in a picture and I'll tell you what it is in minutes ;-)
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: spirantho on May 28, 2008, 09:33:30 PM: That sounds like a challenge. :)
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: Boot_WB on May 28, 2008, 10:10:41 PM: Quote
On a similar note, does anyone know (Or can measure) the length of the zorro slot PCB edge-connector - Eg, the board edge, as opposed to the connector into which it fits (On any Zorro version)?

Zorro 2 or 3:
2.54 mm pitch connectors (0.1") x 50 + 2.54 = ~130mm

Regards

Rich
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: Hodgkinson on May 30, 2008, 09:22:33 AM: Thanks for the info! Time to make a Zorro ruler, me thinks...

Hodgkinson.
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: darksun9210 on May 30, 2008, 09:36:43 AM: personally, i'd love to know where there is a "card bin" with old kit in it that has amiga zorro cards in there. i'd have thought they would either have been sold, or recycled/metal re-claimed by now. nothing like scavenging and finding gems of kit

maybe its just inconceivable to me that anyone would dump amiga parts :-o :lol:
Title: Re: identifying Zorro cards?
Post by: on May 30, 2008, 11:12:15 AM: I've seen that kind of bin, but not for a good dozen years.... I've even seen old altairs and similar vintage hardware just stacked under 20 years of 'miscellanous metal boxes with switches' in scrap yards, but not in a long time.