I guess I wasn't reading....Updating OS for CF drive install

I guess I wasn't paying enough attention to everything I read about installing a CF drive cause in the process of updating my 2kxl's OS to 1.2 via internal zip drive, when I restarted the MPC, the OS would not complete whatever it was supposed to do. In reading around it looks like I needed to first install a floppy drive and then install OS 1.2 and then move on to install the CF drive?? That whole process sounds ridiculous. Really?

My question is since the process got hung up (!nsert MPC2000XL Disk) is that gonna work? It's two different disks now???

This is going to be interesting cause I'm going to have to put a floppy drive in my computer, find a floppy disk, then switch everything over to the MPC, hope it works, and then install the CF drive. haha

But, I think I also read here that it is possible to update the OS if you format the Zip disk using FAT16? Maybe that's what I screwed up, cause I didn't see an option for that on my computer when I initially formatted the Zip disk.

yes first install os 1.2, i know the whole process sounds ridiculous put everything in and out again. hard work pays off the cf card reader is best and easiest way to save and load samples.

you can install the OS 1.20 using SCSI ZIP drives. I updated my OS to 1.20 that way before installing the CF reader.

here was my specs:

-scsi zip 100 drive (iomega)
-itwas connected to the internal scsi connection via the 50 pin internal ribbon connector (not that it matters)
-the disk was formatted to fat (16) which works on the 2000xl, however you may also drag and drop the OS onto a zip disk formatted in the XL also i believe.

make sure you extracted the OS file after downloading it... it should be a .bin file if I remember correct.

I thought I'd finish the failed OS install before I went to sleep tonight, anyway after preparing the floppy disks with the OS on my pc, I switched the drive over to the MPC and hooked it up using this wire that I modded earlier which I'm certain is what's required for the Addonics drive.


The floppy drive worked in my PC but seems is not getting enough juice in the MPC. When I turn on the MPC the drive sort of clicks like it's on but when I put in the disk nothing happens. I never dealt with a floppy in the MPC (this isn't the og floppy drive) so I'm wondering if it requires all four power wires in order to work? Should that cable above have the other black and yellow wires too? Unless it busted somewhere along the process of taking it out of my pc and installing it on my MPC...I don't know what else might be wrong.

That's the original zip pictured not the floppy drive.

Anyone with a floppy drive please help. I'm stuck trying to figure out what the problem is. I don't know if perhaps this floppy drive isn't compatible or if it's just not getting enough power because 2 wires are missing from that harness.

You sort of answered your own question.

Without knowing the make and model of your floppy drive, it is hard for anyone to answer your question. Not all floppy drives are made the same -- some will work in your PC, but not the MPC and vice versa...

Is the CF drive you are trying to install inside the MPC SCSI or ATAPI?

If the floppy drive powers up in the power supply from your PC, but not in your MPC then it likely needs the +12V which is on the yellow wire. You may need to hook up the yellow wire inside the MPC to get the floppy to work.

Both black wires are COM so you should be able to get by with just one.

Thanks. This is a floppy drive that I kept from an old Compaq from like 2000. It's an NEC FD1231T

I guess I'll try rigging that yellow wire jumper style somehow. If that doesn't work I'll go out and try and find a different floppy drive.

This is the guide I was following. viewtopic.php?f=1&t=102551 I just had no idea you couldn't straight update the OS via ATAPI Zip Drive. I am attempting to upgrade to the Addonic IDE CF drive.



Is there any way to know a floppy drive will or won't work in the MPC? Specs to look out for?

I'm confused. Was there a Zip drive already in this machine before you started to install the CF reader? Was it a SCSI or ATAPI drive?

You should be able to tap off the 12V line off the MPC and connect it to the drive and get it to power up.

happyhour wrote:
This is the guide I was following. http://mpc-forums.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=102551 I just had no idea you couldn't straight update the OS via ATAPI Zip Drive. I am attempting to upgrade to the Addonic IDE CF drive.

It's the fifth step in the guide...

happyhour wrote:Thanks. This is a floppy drive that I kept from an old Compaq from like 2000. It's an NEC FD1231T

I guess I'll try rigging that yellow wire jumper style somehow. If that doesn't work I'll go out and try and find a different floppy drive.

Is there any way to know a floppy drive will or won't work in the MPC? Specs to look out for?

If you have a Master/Slave/CS jumper on the back of your floppy, try setting the jumper to Master and see if it boots. Make sure the ribbon cable is on the correct way.

Typically with trying to retofit floppy drives into Akai gear, one issue is with the Drive Select setting. Floppy drives for PCs are generally configured to DS1 while many pieces of Akai equipment require the drive to be DS0. Some modern floppy drives will auto select this setting, but if your drive doesn't you will have to change it on the floppy's PCB or find another drive...

Good luck!

MPCHunter wrote:If you have a Master/Slave/CS jumper on the back of your floppy, try setting the jumper to Master and see if it boots. Make sure the ribbon cable is on the correct way.

Typically with trying to retofit floppy drives into Akai gear, one issue is with the Drive Select setting. Floppy drives for PCs are generally configured to DS1 while many pieces of Akai equipment require the drive to be DS0. Some modern floppy drives will auto select this setting, but if your drive doesn't you will have to change it on the floppy's PCB or find another drive...

Good luck!

I think I'm going to have to look around for a different floppy drive. kcuF! The ribbon cable is notched so it only goes in one way. I tried the yellow wire and the drive still doesn't do anything. It has no jumpers or anything to swap so I guess as far as this particular floppy and the MPC it's a no go unless the 2nd black wire is also required which I didn't try.

If I can't find some other floppy to work I guess I'm going to have to get a scsi zip drive. lord this is weak. haha

Special thanks to MPCHunter for mentioning the floppy drive select setting for Akai being DS0! That bit helped me out a lot. I found and tried several floppy drives and none of them worked. Then I found one that has jumpers and so I switched one jumper to DS0 and it read the disk, but only after flipping over the ribbon cable on the floppy drive side. Who knows maybe one of the other drives would have worked if I tried this. I just never thought to try it cause the cables were notched in correctly.



In case anyone is interested, (maybe there's floppy drive compatibility for other Akai hardware?) the floppy drive is a Y-E Data 702D-6037D also has an IBM part number 73G4514 which I looked up and saw listings for this drive at over 100 bucks. Wow. It's also compatible with a Korg 01/W keyboard:
http://jezreel.christian.net/manuales/d ... org01w.pdf

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Anyway, I'm glad after all this time that I was able to get this far...now my other issue is that I bought two Delkin eFilm Compact Flash cards DDCFFLS2-1GB reported to have worked with the MPC. One loads but the screen is very garbled. And the other, keeps the screen blank. No words on nothing. And not to mention my Rosewill All in 1 card reader may have just crapped out after a few weeks of ownership. My luck...

happyhour wrote:Thanks. This is a floppy drive that I kept from an old Compaq from like 2000. It's an NEC FD1231T

I guess I'll try rigging that yellow wire jumper style somehow. If that doesn't work I'll go out and try and find a different floppy drive.

This is the guide I was following. viewtopic.php?f=1&t=102551 I just had no idea you couldn't straight update the OS via ATAPI Zip Drive. I am attempting to upgrade to the Addonic IDE CF drive.



Is there any way to know a floppy drive will or won't work in the MPC? Specs to look out for?

the stock mpc floppy power cable doesn't have one of the 2 black wires and it doesn't have the yellow one.


floppy drives do not require the yellow one to work or it's ground (the missing black wire). it only needs the red 5 volt and it's ground. so rigging the yellow wire should not make any difference at all.

mr_debauch wrote:floppy drives do not require the yellow one to work or it's ground (the missing black wire). it only needs the red 5 volt and it's ground. so rigging the yellow wire should not make any difference at all.

This may be the case for floppies in an MPC, but it is not generally a rule for all floppy drives.

Some manufacturers design the floppy to use the 12V to drive the floppy motor...

happyhour wrote: but only after flipping over the ribbon cable on the floppy drive side. Who knows maybe one of the other drives would have worked if I tried this. I just never thought to try it cause the cables were notched in correctly.

Most modern floppy drives are designed to work with a cross-over type connection -- this way two drives could be put on 1 cable -- flipping the cable even though it is keyed differently allows the drive to be seen by the MPC.

happyhour wrote:In case anyone is interested, (maybe there's floppy drive compatibility for other Akai hardware?)

I've found this link below in my searches in trying to get a new floppy to work in my S1100. It cross references several other pieces of gear that use strange floppy drives, and has some floppy drive part numbers to cross reference too..

http://translate.google.com/translate?p ... ry_state0=