Research Machines Link 480Z

From: DOUG PEKSA - COMPG <PeksaDO_at_Cardiff.ac.uk>
Date: Thu Mar 30 10:08:52 2000

> realise there was an analogue I/O card for the 380Z. I've got no
> info on the winchester and network cards, but I guessed they must
> have existed. IIRC at least one of the RML winchester systems was a
> box about the size of a 380Z with a PSU, ST506-interfaced drive and
> a SASI-ST506 interface card. I assume the 380Z interface was a SASI
> host adapter or something.

The 3rd. party winchester disk unit measures 16" x 16" x 4.5" and the
cover (top and sides) is a beige type plastic with rounded corners
(radius about 1") on the top of the sides; sitting on a metal base/
font/back. It has the wiring for two 5.25" FH disk drives but contains
only one Rodime RO 100 (4 platters/8 heads/192 cylinders). The
interface card in the disk unit is a 'Konan David Jr. II'. As I
mentioned this has never worked. The instructions for running up
the hard disk (given verbally to me) was to insert the floppy
containing the executable x and to type x - Found the floppy,
typed the command - nothing, although the disk does whirr quite
happily, it doesn't seek.

> I'd always assumed that the IEEE-488 card was a card that connected
> to the bus cable. Are you saying that it's a daughterboard that
> fits under the Z80 or something?

The 3.5" square (exactly) daughter board plugs directly into and
only into where the Z80 CPU normally resides. The board contains:
Z80 CPU, AM25LS252IPC, 2 x SN74LS245N, SN74LS00N, 74F32PC chips
with assorted resistors etc. There is a 26 way berg connector to
take the cable to the IEEE-488 port. Also there is a 8-way link
box with 5 unbroken links, 2 broken links and 1 remade link.

> Do you happen to have schematics other than the ones that appear in
> the normal Information File.

Sorry, no schematics

Doug.
Received on Thu Mar 30 2000 - 10:08:52 BST