Technical questions for the MPC2000xl and the MPC2000
By jtheaudiophile Sat May 18, 2013 1:45 am
I have searched this forum and have yet to find a solution for this problem. I had an issue with ny cursor. I took it to the shop, and when it was returned I immediately started seeing the "disk read error." (version 1.32) Thinking that the disk may have become corrupted, which seems crazy cause it didn't move from its spot I'm my room, I made a new disk (version 1.72). Still disk read error. I then switched out the floppy disk drive to the working one from my computer. Again disk read error.
What are my options now?

Thanks in advance for your help.
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By pt3r Sat May 18, 2013 9:57 am
Have you tried to put the original drive back? Make sure the cable is properly connected, it could be that the cable was loosened during the repair.
By jtheaudiophile Sat May 18, 2013 2:05 pm
I just tried putting the original drive back in and I'm getting the sane response. All the cables are tight and there are no tears in the ribbon. The disk drive I pulled from my computer was working before I installed it.
I'm a little concerned that this may be a bigger problem that I am incapable of fixing myself.

j
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By Harmoncj Sun May 19, 2013 12:57 am
Damn, Id be looking at maybe the boot EPROM. I forget if its on the top board or motherboard but it is also responsible for starting up the machine.
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By Harmoncj Sun May 19, 2013 1:42 am
jtheaudiophile wrote:Also, it looks like the mpc eprom chip is on both the mother and top board.

J

right! Ok yes, I think the top one is suspect because you mention having cursor problems. Obviously you didn't see anything visibly wrong with it, but if its loose it could be a problem. The other is potentially they have been partially erased due to static (or even sunlight if it is in fact an EPROM not just a PROM), but thats just a wild guess I have never run into the problem youre having


jtheaudiophile wrote:What do you prefer about version 1.31? I'm very new to the mpc. I've been using a korg esx 1 for about 8 years.

J

The things I like about 1.31:
-first off it still has the pad->track mute window, so its not that far behind later OS versions.
-when you enter the 16 levels mode, the edit parameters screen will stick on the pad that is being used for 16 levels. It makes it a ton easier adjust pad settings. This changed on the later OS versions.
-pad parameters can not be edited during sequence playback. I might be alone on this one but I was actually enjoying this fact. I tend to focus too much on making programs without ever committing much into a sequence, so it kinda encourages me to lay down some tracks instead of just making weird noise.
By MPCHunter Sun May 19, 2013 12:15 pm
Is the floppy drive getting power? Does the drive spin and try to load a disc?

You've already tried to reseat every cable inside the MPC, not just the ones associated with the floppy drive?

I would take a look at the cabling and solder joints for the floppy drive power and data cables before messing around with the boot EPROM.

If the boot EPROM was corrupted the MPC would appear to be dead rather than semi-functional.
By jtheaudiophile Sun May 19, 2013 12:44 pm
Thanks mpchunter.
The floppy drive us getting power and trying to load a disk. The old version 1.31 disk gives me a disk read error almost immediately. The new 1.72 disk that I made is sounds like it "tries harder" to load. It seems like the floppy drive ribbon is fine, but I'll inspect closer.
I will check all the other cables as soon as I get a chance.

Thank You,

J
By MPCHunter Mon May 20, 2013 11:56 am
If the floppy drive has power and is attempting to read the disc, your floppy disks may be bad. There may be bad sectors on the disk that a format is unable to correct.
Remember that floppy discs are magnetic media and can go bad over time. I would recommend purchasing a brand new floppy disk and see if you are able to load the OS. Most office supply stores and electronic stores will sell floppy disks.
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By Harmoncj Mon May 20, 2013 3:22 pm
jtheaudiophile wrote:I loaded version 1.72 on a brand new disk and I am still getting a disk read error. Is there a specific way I need to format it?

J

FAT format