[Coco] Good news: my CoCo 3 is back to life!

[Joel Ewy]

L. Curtis Boyle wrote:
> On Mon, 05 Mar 2007 08:31:49 -0600, Boisy Pitre <boisy at boisypitre.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Gents,
>>
>> Not to put too fine a point on it, but FD-500 controllers will also
>> work at 5v.  I think it's a very older, specific model number of disk
>> controller that requires 12v and hence, the MPI.
>>
>> Boisy
>>
>
> The very old, full size controllers that came with original full
> height, really long grey 35 track single sided drives were the 12V
> controllers. 
FWIW, I have a 26-3029, a 26-3129, a J&M (says JFD-COCO rev.A on the
PCB), a Disto Super Controller, and a couple Super Controller IIs.  They
all work on the CoCo 3 without an MPI.  (And none of them are an FD-501
:) )  My 3029 has an MB8877 FDC with a WD9216 data separator.  The
controller in the J&M is an SY6591.  All the rest use the 28-pin WD1773. 

Mike Pepe notes in an email on this list on 8/2/06 that the original
controller (the one that required 12V on the bus) was the 26-3022.  So
that should be the only one you would need to plug into the MPI to use
with the CoCo 3.
> Ironically, the only ones that could properly handle hi-density (1.2
> or 1.44 MB) drives with some modifications to the controller.
>
This fall Mike Pepe modified his  3029 for high-density and posted a few
messages about it on this list.  Last I recall he still needed to
finalize the software/firmware modifications.  His notes are here: 
http://www.doki-doki.net/~lamune/computers/coco/hd-floppy/ 

JCE
>
> --L. Curtis Boyle
>
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