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Blink Codes for IEEE drives with specific cause for repairs, selected other info

billdeg

billdeg

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http://vintagecomputer.net/commodore/IEEE_drives/CBM_IEEEDriveNotes.pdf
While doing some research I found a few useful pages so I put them all into one PDF.

1) How to ID a B-128
2) Blink codes for various IEEE drives and the corresponding PCB location for repair
3) Tips for converting SID music from C64 to B-128
4) Copy of the agreement between CBUG and Commodore, releasing ownership of all B Series stuff to CBUG
5) other 8050 tips
6) Misc stuff
 
I assume that by "IEEE", you mean "IEEE-488" or GPIB/HPIB bus. Does Commodore strictly adhere to the IEEE-488 spec? I thought that they cut some corners.
 
I have seen bits and pieces of CBM IEEE drive maintenance (meaning Commodore disk drives that use an IEEE interface cable) here and there, but just the blink code itself is only a hint at what exactly is wrong unless you have the corresponding location on the PCB that goes with it. Each IEEE drive has a different internal controller, so what fixes a 2031 is not at all the thing that fixes the same code on a 8050.

I have a number of working IEEE drives, so I have not had reason to fix any for a while, but I do have a number of drives that are not functional that eventually this info will be quite useful. The first on my list is my D9090. I have one that works, one that does not.

Note that even if the controller returns all "clear", the RPM speed and write protect sensor could be bad, plus alignment. There are also Micropolis versions of the 8050, Tandon versions, and one other one that escapes me at the moment.

The 8050 drives are the 1541's of the PET/CBM-II world.

Bill
 
Hm yes, I still have a pile of 3040 and 4040 drives in the basement that may be worthy of another round of trouble shooting before I finally dump them.
 
billdeg said:
I have seen bits and pieces of CBM IEEE drive maintenance (meaning Commodore disk drives that use an IEEE interface cable) here and there, but just the blink code itself is only a hint at what exactly is wrong unless you have the corresponding location on the PCB that goes with it. Each IEEE drive has a different internal controller, so what fixes a 2031 is not at all the thing that fixes the same code on a 8050.
Click to expand...
Service manuals for pretty well all the disk drives are on line including at least two versions for the 8050 (Tandon, Micropolis and MPI versions).
The 8050 drives are the 1541's of the PET/CBM-II world.
Bill
Click to expand...
???
Dual vs. single, 3 (6) times the capacity, completely incompatible, etc. - I think I'd pick the 2031/4031 instead
 
I think Bill meant from a matter of how common each drive type is. Most PET owners would have invested in a QD drive for high capacity, which may make them much more common than the 40 track ones.
 
carlsson said:
I think Bill meant from a matter of how common each drive type is. Most PET owners would have invested in a QD drive for high capacity, which may make them much more common than the 40 track ones.
Click to expand...
Yes, I assumed that that's how Bill meant it but I find it a little misleading. From my own recollections of those days when PETs were around $1000 the 2031 and 2040 drives were far more common; I don't recollect their price but they were certainly cheaper than the $2500 8050. The 8050 and 8250 became more common when businesses and schools started buying 8032s ($2500) and Fat 40s but I still wouldn't compare it to the 1541 on any basis, technically or relative numbers sold.

I suppose it also depends on what location/country you're basing it on. What's the ratio of 2040/2031/4031 vs 8050 in the drives that have gone through your hands?
 
Let's see.. very roughly:

3x 2031 (one working, two partly broken)
0x 4031
0-1x 2040
5-10x 3040
5-10x 4040
15-20x 8050
10-15x 8250
20-25x 8250LP

But then again those were leftovers from a former reseller who also handled returns from customers. Several of the dual floppy drives were broken and just kept through years because nobody bothered to dump them after a customer had returned it.
 
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