22 Feb
2016
22 Feb
'16
11:02 p.m.
On 02/22/2016 10:17 PM, drlegendre . wrote:
I know of no way, probing only with the PC &
software, to determine
which type of X-1541 cable you might have. However, wiring diagrams
for +all+ versions are freely available, and it shouldn't be any
great effort to open up and - with the help of a multimeter - examine
a given cable and compare it against the various arrangements.
The 1541-side parallel port is totally optional, and it is not
required to produce a working setup. However, when coupled with an
appropriate cable, drives equipped with the parallel connector
operate several times faster than even the fastest non-parallel
setups. That said, any of the X-1541 setups will tend to run a fair
bit faster than a genuine Commodre IEC bus, so unless you plan to do
a +lot+ of transfer, don't worry about going the parallel route.
I'm occasionally called on to transfer some of the C64 floppies. I have
a 1571 and have cobbled up the XM interface connected to a DB25F
permanently mounted on the drive. That way, I can use a "straight
through" cable to the parallel port of the host PC without thinking
about what I might need. Works fine; I get use it about once every 3-4
years.
I suppose it might be possible to rig something more elaborate up using
a small MCU and a USB cable, but the need doesn't justify the effort.
--Chuck