17 Sep
2022
17 Sep
'22
4:30 p.m.
Greetings, all,
While getting ready for VCF Midwest etc, I have been spending a lot of
hobby time in the past year digging out various DEC minicomputer items
and testing/repairing them. To that end, I've been staring at a DSD480
on top of a PDP-8 rack. It's one of the ones with the DSD 26-pin
interface. My question is that since there are several different
devices with that connector, are any of them compatible with each
other?
Specifically, here are the DSD interfaces with a 26-pin connector:
802130 DSD210 PDP-11 Interface (26 pin) (2130)
802131 DSD440 DSD210 PDP-8 Interface (26 pin) (2131)
802132 DSD210 LSI-11 Interface (26 pin) (2132)
804430 DSD440 PDP-11 PDP-11 Interface (26 pin) (4430)
804432 DSD440 LSI-11 LSI-11 Interface (26 pin) (4432)
808830 DSD880 (SA850/SA1004) PDP11 Interface Card (26 pin) (8830)
808832 DSD880 (SA850/SA1004) LSI-11 Interface Card (26 pin) (8832)
808836 DSD880/20/30 (SA850/Q240) LSI-11 Interface Card (26 pin) (8836)
It looks like the 2131 board is Omnibus and works with either the
DSD440 or DSD210, but on the PDP-11, can the 883x interfaces work with
older drives or do they only work with the DSD880 floppy/hard drive
box?
I remember where/when I got this DSD480, so it seems likely to me that
I have a PDP-11/34 with an 4430 board in it. I could probably use an
2131 board just so I have an Omnibus interface. I also have an 808836
board but do _not_ have a DSD880.
I've found the prints on bitsavers that cover the DSD440/480 interface
so I know what signals are there, but I haven't found the equivalent
docs for the DSS880, just user guides. Anyone here know enough about
DSD products to shed some light?
Thanks,
-ethan
18 Sep
18 Sep
2:30 a.m.
On 9/17/22 13:30, Ethan Dicks via cctalk wrote:
Greetings, all,
While getting ready for VCF Midwest etc, I have been spending a lot of
hobby time in the past year digging out various DEC minicomputer items
and testing/repairing them. To that end, I've been staring at a DSD480
on top of a PDP-8 rack. It's one of the ones with the DSD 26-pin
interface. My question is that since there are several different
devices with that connector, are any of them compatible with each
other?
Specifically, here are the DSD interfaces with a 26-pin connector:
802130 DSD210 PDP-11 Interface (26 pin) (2130)
802131 DSD440 DSD210 PDP-8 Interface (26 pin) (2131)
802132 DSD210 LSI-11 Interface (26 pin) (2132)
804430 DSD440 PDP-11 PDP-11 Interface (26 pin) (4430)
804432 DSD440 LSI-11 LSI-11 Interface (26 pin) (4432)
808830 DSD880 (SA850/SA1004) PDP11 Interface Card (26 pin) (8830)
808832 DSD880 (SA850/SA1004) LSI-11 Interface Card (26 pin) (8832)
808836 DSD880/20/30 (SA850/Q240) LSI-11 Interface Card (26 pin) (8836)
I'm
getting ready to move to KC and my pile of DSD is back there.
I have both PDP8 varieties and PDP11. One complete system from Sellam
which hopefully
contain data, etc. Dual booted for a friend he helped maintain it.
A guy in West Wendove NV had a number of subsystems and
I have all of them. We'll have to make a date to do a prisoner
exchange, and I'll
loan / trade you what I've got, and hopefully come up with working systems.
I've got two of the units with the SA-1000 drives as well.
Will take a bit of sorting, will have it on the list to get some stuff and
visit you later this year, but probably next year.
Glad you're looking into this. I don't think I've got enough
to run much on DEC disk hardware.
I think among a pile of 8/As I got from sellam there are
DSD cards, but it was all unsorted. Hand over money load and drive
with a pile is the state of that lot.
I have makings of 6 or 8 8/A's would like a couple, but DSD again
would be nice.
thanks
Jim
It looks like the 2131 board is Omnibus and works with
either the
DSD440 or DSD210, but on the PDP-11, can the 883x interfaces work with
older drives or do they only work with the DSD880 floppy/hard drive
box?
I remember where/when I got this DSD480, so it seems likely to me that
I have a PDP-11/34 with an 4430 board in it. I could probably use an
2131 board just so I have an Omnibus interface. I also have an 808836
board but do _not_ have a DSD880.
I've found the prints on bitsavers that cover the DSD440/480 interface
so I know what signals are there, but I haven't found the equivalent
docs for the DSS880, just user guides. Anyone here know enough about
DSD products to shed some light?
Thanks,
-ethan
21 Sep
21 Sep
11:23 a.m.
On Sun, Sep 18, 2022 at 2:30 AM jim stephens via cctalk
<cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> wrote:
I'm getting ready to move to KC and my pile of DSD
is back there.
Hi, Jim,
Cool.
I have both PDP8 varieties and PDP11. One complete
system from Sellam
which hopefully contain data, etc. Dual booted for a friend he helped maintain it.
I have boxes of floppies that were the residue from a rescue in
Champaign where Jack Rubin (who was closer) got first pick, and I got
the things he didn't want/didn't fit in his car. From the directory
slips and markings on the box, I suspect many of these floppies are
double-sided and were used on DSD drives. Mix of PDP-8 and PDP-11
contents.
A guy in West Wendove NV had a number of subsystems
and
I have all of them. We'll have to make a date to do a prisoner
exchange, and I'll loan / trade you what I've got, and hopefully come up with
working systems.
Sounds like a plan. I'm not in a massive hurry, I just wanted to see
if I had all the parts on hand to do _something_
I've got two of the units with the SA-1000 drives
as well.
I've read the docs but haven't seen those in person. Kind of handy
for a smallish PDP-11 setup.
Will take a bit of sorting, will have it on the list
to get some stuff and
visit you later this year, but probably next year.
Since it's already late September, I will just expect next year, but
if something on your end changes, just say the word. I do have some
"blackout dates" for various weekends through the end of the year -
travel between here and NYC or here and Chicago, etc.
Glad you're looking into this. I don't think
I've got enough
to run much on DEC disk hardware.
I have an abundance of PDP-11 and PDP-8 gear. I'm trying to see what
(still) works and fix what does not. So far, I have been entirely
unable to even so much as read an 8" DEC floppy this year. I keep
taking different stabs at it. Part of the problem is that I have
mostly older (70s/80s) gear and the newer stuff (90s) doesn't work
with old peripherals. Case in point, my DSD 8838 card has written in
sharpie on the bag "does not work with PDP-11/73". That's not
unusual. There are a lot of older Qbus cards that don't work with
"MicroPDP systems" (usually meaning J-11).
I think among a pile of 8/As I got from sellam there
are
DSD cards, but it was all unsorted. Hand over money load and drive
with a pile is the state of that lot.
Right.
I have makings of 6 or 8 8/A's would like a
couple, but DSD again
would be nice.
I have three hex-wide Omnibus boxes, I'd like to keep 2 and sell 1 to
someone, and I have two quad-wide Omnibus boxes -8/e and -8m) and I
may want to get both of them running. I have an assortment of drives
and peripheral cards, enough to load up all the machines, if they are
all functional.
Where the DSD drive comes into play is that it can format RX01 media
(I have boxes of blank-blanks for CP/M machines) and mine (DSD480) can
do double-sided media, which is only important to me for reading
double-sided media. I wouldn't want to depend on a working
double-sided drive for an operational setup. For real DEC drives, I
have a number of RX01 and RX02 drive units and a box of spare parts
(motors, belts, door latches, etc).
Let me know when any of your plans crystalize. Most of my travel
plans involve events like VCF so I can't haul lots of things because I
already have a load of event-related materials. I also don't usually
get out past Chicago going West. I haven't driven to St. Louis in
well over 20 years.
-ethan
675
days inactive
679
days old
2 comments
2 participants
participants (2)
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Ethan Dicks -
jim stephens