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File Read Error on C128 floppy disks

C

C128Rookie

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Feb 13, 2024
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Hello, please be gentle and remember I am new to all this. Unboxed my old Commodore 128 and 1571 drive from 40 years ago. PC works, cables work, and the drive seems to work. I did clean both heads.

Almost all the disks I try to load will fail. I can see the contents with DIRECTORY but I get this error when trying to load
“?FILE READ ERROR”
According to the manual this is a (checksum error in the header) and usually unrecoverable.

Does this mean the disk is bad?
Any way to fix it at my level?
Just want to test what’s working so I can sell it all as I cannot store it anymore.
Thank you for any help you offer.
 

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Does did happen with loading other programs as well?

The one thing you can do is getting another diskette that doesn't contain essential data and format it. Next you write a dummy program with long lines like ' 10 print"abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz" and keep on renumbering so you get a large program. Ten save it to the disk under various names until it is full. Now you start reading the directory and loading several of those programs. If that all works fine, I think your drive is OK.

Another option: if you have the original demo floppy yet, it contains a program to test the drive.

Good luck!
 
Ruud said:
Does did happen with loading other programs as well?

The one thing you can do is getting another diskette that doesn't contain essential data and format it. Next you write a dummy program with long lines like ' 10 print"abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz" and keep on renumbering so you get a large program. Ten save it to the disk under various names until it is full. Now you start reading the directory and loading several of those programs. If that all works fine, I think your drive is OK.

Another option: if you have the original demo floppy yet, it contains a program to test the drive.

Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thanks Ruud, I have the original 1571 demo/test disk. It works fine. All the programs I’ve tried on the disk work. I’ll look for the test program.

The original C128 Tutor/Demo disk will not run. Only the Directory will run.

All the other store bought disks I’ve tried vary when trying to load with errors File Read Error or File Not Found even though I can read the Directory. Some will partially load or even attempt to run but they always error or crash.

So far the self write disks I’ve tried fail when trying to Format them with a read error.

I bought an alignment disk on EBay to see if that helps at all. Guessing the drive is fine and the disks are failing after all this time. Bummer.
 
C128Rookie said:
All the other store bought disks I’ve tried vary when trying to load with errors File Read Error or File Not Found even though I can read the Directory. Some will partially load or even attempt to run but they always error or crash.
Click to expand...
That doesn't sound good. I have a lot of disks that I used in the '80s, self created ones and store bought ones, and most of them still work fine. If I can give a number, certainly above 80%. Storing disks in the wrong way can cause a lot of troubles. So get a floppy disk from a friend or tell where you live and maybe someone from this forum can send you two. A blank one and one, preferably pre-formatted and containing programs. If you have troubles with the one with the programs and with the second one you formatted, I fear for your 1571.
 
Ruud said:
That doesn't sound good. I have a lot of disks that I used in the '80s, self created ones and store bought ones, and most of them still work fine. If I can give a number, certainly above 80%. Storing disks in the wrong way can cause a lot of troubles. So get a floppy disk from a friend or tell where you live and maybe someone from this forum can send you two. A blank one and one, preferably pre-formatted and containing programs. If you have troubles with the one with the programs and with the second one you formatted, I fear for your 1571.
Click to expand...
Floppies were stored in the attic so likely the wrong way in the heat and cold for many years. The self write disks were generic bought in bulk.
No one I know has floppies anymore so I’ll see if I can buy a few. I did buy an alignment disk already so hopefully that helps. Any recommendations on brand and type of floppy to buy. 3M DSDD comes to mind as the best if I remember right. Thanks!
 
Have you tried formatting a disk in 1571 mode? (double sided). It's possible the top head is failing. I've had this happen on a number of 1571s.
 
Yes, I have but only with 30+ year old used disks that were likely not properly stored. The 1571 Test/Demo disk fully works, every program I've loaded so far from it runs. A few of the original store bought disks work and a few of the self-written disks work. The rest however will only show me a Directory but will not load or run. Can only assume the disk headers are bad but the drive is good.

Going to try and buy some new floppies and try to format those. Also my Drive Alignment disk is on the way so I'll try that too. Plus I'm considering buying a SD2IEC as it may be something I can handle as opposed to a Pi1541. Thanks!
 
VeryVon said:
Also, check the surface of the disk for mold.
Click to expand...
So far all the disks look very clean. A few of them have faint 1mm dark spots or 1mm streaks in random places is all I see. I tried cleaning the C128 Tutor/Demo disk with alcohol but it did not fix it. Disk will show Directory but not load or run Tutor or Demo. Thanks!
 
The alignment disk said my drive needs alignment. This is beyond me as I’ve attempted and failed. Is there anyone who repairs drives? Hopefully local to Los Angeles area? Any referrals to a repair service is appreciated. Thanks
 
If you want to try typing something in, and you have a clean well-formatted commercial disk you believe likely works (I'm not sure cleaning the C128 demo disk with isopropanol was a good idea, but anyway), you can try this. Please note that 1571s rarely go out of alignment and it can potentially make a bad alignment problem worse, but I've also used it myself getting a marginal disk drive back into normal operation. It runs the heads to their maximal extents to mobilize the drive head and will make quite a racket in operation. Since your Tutor/Demo disk can list the directory, you should answer yes to the prompt when it says "BAM IS READABLE NOW" to force it to continue. If it gives you clean runs (it goes in runs of 4), try the disk again and see if it made a difference.

The {r} and {R} are RVS ON and RVS OFF (CTRL-9, CTRL-0). The {]} is a CRSR RIGHT.

Code: 
10 print"{r}torquemada 1541{R}"
20 print"this program will mobilize your disk"
30 print"head to its maximum extents using the"
40 print"fdc bump and seek jobs and an alignment"
50 print"master disk you insert. this may help"
55 print"cure sticky heads or alignment errors."
60 print
70 print"{r}warning!!!{R} this program should not be"
80 print"used on functional drives, as it may"
90 print"put them --out-- of alignment! you use"
100 print"this program at your own risk!!!"
110 print
120 print"copyright 2002 cameron kaiser":print"this is at your own risk-ware"
130 input"press return";w$
140 input"{q}device number";dv:ifdv<8ordv>11thenprint"bad device -- bye":end
150 print"checking for device":open15,dv,15:close15:ifst=0goto170
160 print"{r}device"dv"does not appear to exist":end
170 print"checking device signature":open15,dv,15,"ui":input#15,en,em$:close15
180 ifen<>73thenprint"{r}unexpected response code"en"from drive":end
190 dt$=right$(em$,4):ifdt$="1541"goto250
200 ifdt$="1571"goto230
210 a$="not a 1541 or 1571!":b$="this may not work!":gosub5000:ifexthenend
220 goto250
230 a$="this is a 1571!":b$="1571 drives rarely go out of alignment!":gosub5000
240 ifexthenend
250 print"{q}drive and firmware seem operational"
260 print"insert {r}write-protected{R} alignment"
270 print"master into device"dv:poke198,.
280 input"press return when ready";a$
290 open15,dv,15:print#15,"m-r"chr$(0)chr$(28):get#15,a$:a=asc(a$+chr$(0))
300 close15:a=aand16:ifa=0goto320
310 a$="sensor error!":b$="no disk or not write protected!":gosub5000
311 ifexthenend
320 rem *** main loop starts here ***
321 open15,dv,15,"m-w"+chr$(106)+chr$(0)+chr$(1)+chr$(193):input#15,en:close15
322 ifen<>0thenprint"{r}error"en"when changing revcnt":print"check drive ram":end
325 open15,dv,15,"i0":input#15,en,em$,et,es:close15
330 ifen<>0goto342
340 a$="valid track 18 read!":b$="bam seems to be readable now!":gosub5000
341 ifex=1thenprint"{q}resetting ... ";:open15,dv,15,"u:":close15:print"bye":end
342 open15,dv,15,"m-w"+chr$(106)+chr$(0)+chr$(1)+chr$(0):input#15,en:close15
344 ifen<>0thenprint"{r}error"en"when changing revcnt":print"check drive ram":end
345 print"{q}hold space to cancel drive operation"
349 print"{r}doing bump'n'seek ...{]}";
350 open15,dv,15:fory=1to4:printy;
360 t=35:s=0:j=176:gosub5500:ife<>1thenprint"{r}fdc error"e"on seek track 35"
370 t=1:s=0:j=192:gosub5500:ife<>1thenprint"{r}fdc error"e"on bump"
380 t=1:s=0:j=176:gosub5500:ife<>1thenprint"{r}fdc error"e"on seek track 1"
390 ifpeek(198)<>0thenprint:y=999
400 next:close15:print:ify>998thena$="user cancelled!":gosub5000:ifex=1goto341
410 goto320
4999 end
5000 ex=0:print"{r}warning!!!{R} "a$:ifb$<>""thenprintb$:b$=""
5010 poke198,.:input"continue anyway (y/n)";a$:a$=left$(a$,1):ifa$<>"y"thenex=1
5020 return
5500 cy=0
5510 print#15,"m-w"chr$(6)chr$(0)chr$(2)chr$(t)chr$(s)
5520 print#15,"m-w"chr$(0)chr$(0)chr$(1)chr$(j)
5530 cy=cy+1:print#15,"m-r"chr$(0)chr$(0):get#15,a$:e=asc(a$+chr$(0))
5540 ifcy>500thenprint"{r}timeout on fdc job":return
5550 ife>127goto5530
5560 return
 
A technician ran diagnostics on my drive and found a couple mechanical and electrical problems with it which would explain why it only worked 10% of the time. Thankfully I've been able to buy a refurbished drive so I look forward to testing that out. Thanks for everyone's help.
 
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