Warning about buying from karmanss

[leftbrace]

I just received the Picasso IV board I ordered from karmanss.  All in all, it was a bad deal for me.  Here is the description on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8809683147&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWN%3AIT&rd=1

I payed $250 US for it, which is not a great deal, but I felt it was still worth it because the Picasso IV has a built-in scan-doubler.  Or so I thought.  

Not this one, however.  The scan doubler module on this card had been completely removed but there is no mention of this anywhere in the ebay description.  Now because there was no scan-doubler, the installation directions in the manual do not work because they assume a working scan-doubler, so at first I thought it was broken and I wrote karmanss an email saying so.  I thought I could get my money back because he claims to have a "Guaranty [sic] against  ( DOA )  dead on arrival"  Yeah whatever.  All he told me was that it worked fine and there were no refunds or returns.  I did eventually get it to work, albeit with no scan-doubling modes available.

If you look you will see that he does not allow people to see any of the feedback buyers leave.  I can understand why.  

I feel cheated.  I will never again buy anything from him and I would suggest to anyone thinking about buying any from karmanss to seriously reconsider.

[Argo]

I had one when I had my A4000. I don't recall there being a scan doubler built in to the card. I believe there was a module you could by to add one to the card.

Edit: Hmmm. A few minutes googling show that the flicker fixer is a standard included addon card. I'm fairly sure the one I had, it's been 6 years, did not have anything connected to the main Picasso card. I did have a Diamond Scan monitor at the time so it wasn't an issue.
Maybe it is my old card. Gotta wonder sometime what happens to your old hardware...

Edit: ah, old failing memory... It passed out the standard
amiga video connector on the back to this then out the Picasso card video connector, right? If so, then yeah, it had it.

[Hyperspeed]

The Picasso-IV has a bit on the board you can snap off so it will fit in an A2000 I believe. The snapped off bit then attaches to the main board via a cable.

It's possible you weren't supplied this so double check.

The scandoubler/flicker-fixer was integrated with the PIV. The Phase5 Cybervision(/3D) had an optional scandoubler/ff which wasn't quite as good.

I'm not sure but the snapped off (user detachable) part of the board may have contained the scandoubler. The lead was for the internal video port which sucks up custom chip display info such as OCS/ECS/AGA 15Khz.

Without this detachable part and it's ribbon you shouldn't have been sold the card.

:inquisitive:

[X-ray]

@ Argo

As far as I know all PIVs came with the scandoubler, in fact it is attached physically so that it will function with a video slot that is in line with a zorro slot. Only if you want to use it in a 2000 for example then you have to break the scandoubler off, but there are cables supplied with the PIV to link the scandoubler module back to the main PIV card. In short, I would say that it is generally a poor show to sell a PIV without that module.
The CV64 is a different story.

[X-ray]

@ leftbrace

There have been bad reports about that user already on this board. I'm sorry you had a bad deal there, maybe you can find someone with a broken PIV and buy his scandoubler/flicker fixer module.

The other thing I would recommend is to be very wary of ebayers who use stock photographs from sites like BBOAH and Amiga Resource, because you'll be looking at a mint unit and end up with something that may be entirely different.

[odin]

Never ever buy from somebody using photos which appear to be stock or small or don't show details.

Also never ever buy from somebody who keeps his feedback private, even if it is a 99% positive.

BTW isn't this the guy who advertised a bunch of PPC cards on Amibench but never delivered, ripping off several a.orgers?

-edit-
Heh...just noticed that the pic he put up doesn't have that breakout bit on it....very sneaky .

[X-ray]

@ Odin

Ja, and the trouble is because it is such a small picture you can't even see what the revision number of the card is. For all we know that is a stock photo of another board with the scandoubler photoshopped out. Even if it isn't photoshopped out, it sucks that no mention is made of the missing module, for the benefit of those who do not know the appearances of these cards.

IIRC the guy who cheated JaXanim and the other dudes out of PPC cards/money was Bernd Binder. I don't think Karmanss was involved with that, but that name karmanss has come up before, and not in a good way either.

[Plaz]

BTW isn't this the guy who advertised a bunch of PPC cards on Amibench but never delivered, ripping off several a.orgers?

Last I heard, that guy was in serious trouble for mail fraud and facing some serious jail time. But no one has confirmed the details of the investigation/charges against him or how it turned out. There was a long thread here last year about it. I just missed being included in the list of people who were ripped off. Slow to respond to my emails,  I got cold feet on the deal. Lucky. BTW that guy was not from Canada as this seller.

I bought a used/abused newtek flyer card from this seller last year. I can't say much pro or con about them. The card was sold "as is", condition unknown, untested, no warranty. I got it very cheap and it turns out it was bad. Newtek fixed it free for the cost of shipping, great company they are, and I came out ahead on the deal. I wound up leaving positive feedback because they delivered quickly as they promised with no gaurantees about the condition of the card just like the auction description stated.

I own a Picasso IV, so I'm familiar with them. The photo clearly shows the scandoubler removed, but one not familiar with the card might easily miss this. Did the seller relize the doubler was missing and leave that fact out? Or did he not relize it was missing himself? Since he seems to deal in alot of other amiga equipment, I have to guess he knew it was missing, left the fact out, and hoped some unsuspecting buyer would not notice until it was too late.
Always do your home work, ask a hundred or more questions, and if they can't, won't or are very slow to answer them, run away.


Plaz

[TjLaZer]

I thought the PIV had a built in scan doubler???  How can it be removed and where on the card is that?  That pic btw is from one of the Amiga hardware sites, I can tell from the blue background.  He had the nerve to steal the pic, then edit it with his name!!!

[zipper]

All the necessary SD/FliFi circuitry is on the main board itself, the breakout board contains just connectors; with right leads you can use the SD/FliFi - just as I use in my A500T which has a VT built Denise adapter to get the necessary video signals; my Zorro board has no functional video slot.

[Framiga]

sadly, although the "guy" is a known scammer, you can't do so much in this situation seen that in that picture, theres no scandoubler* (removed) and its not mentioned in the description as well.

*Edit- video slot edge connector

Edited "scandoubler" with "video slot edge connector " (my mistake)  

[X-ray]

@ TJLazer

If you browse my pictures in the photo album you will see how the scandoubler is attached to the main card, and where you have to 'break' it to make it separate for an Amiga whose video slot is not in line with a zorro slot.

[leftbrace]

zipper wrote:
All the necessary SD/FliFi circuitry is on the main board itself, the breakout board contains just connectors; with right leads you can use the SD/FliFi - just as I use in my A500T which has a VT built Denise adapter to get the necessary video signals; my Zorro board has no functional video slot.

On this photo:
http://www.amiga-hardware.com/download_photos/picassoiv_big.jpg
you can see that there are some ICs on the scan doubler portion.  Are you sure you can just connect the wires?  I have a Piccolo I'd be willing to strip for the connector portion I need, but I think it requires more than just wires?

[Boot_WB]

On the plus side they just look like octal bus transceivers (at least on appearance), ie standards parts - not programmed logic devices.

If you could get someone with the board to read the part numbers, you could verify this.

Given a circuit diagram (and someone with soldering skills and equipment) it would be possible to make up a bespoke part for it.

[Oli_hd]

Just gonna try and clean this up a bit as there are lots of strange replies.

The picture on Ebay does show the video slot interface is missing and with a description that small you really should take the picture the description. (if the picture is wrong and there isnt anything in the description to say you can get a refund simply for that most times)

The actual scan doubler is still on your card, what you have lost is the video slot edge connector which ment to be detachable (you break or cut it off) for use in the Amiga 2000's.

a replacement circuit board could be made although finding a cheap dead Picasso IV would be quicker, place a wanted on amibench for just the edge connector piece.
You could try soldering wires between the video slot and the card but I wouldnt recommend it as A: the chips on the edge connector board are probably buffers so you would be running it un-buffered and B: its a nasty hack.