Share your knowledge on these two classic MPCs
By dela Thu Sep 07, 2006 5:54 pm
so I was finally able to cop an internal Microtech Digital PhotoAlbum (DPAI SCSI) off ebay, tried it with a noname PCMCIA adapter & a Kingston 256mo CF card and it works perfectly so far with my MPC3000 with OS 3.11. I'm gonna try it with a 512mo card next week. Hope it helps !
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By Lampdog Thu Sep 07, 2006 6:25 pm
Please post detailed pics and explain what you did cause ALOT of people are gonna be asking now and they'd love it if you can school them on every little detail.

By dela Thu Sep 07, 2006 7:10 pm
basically, I did the exact same thing as explained on the mpc3000.com website, except I used a card read instead of an internal zip

one thing the site doesn't say is that you gotta cut the floppy power cable and replace it's other end by the kind of power cable you find in computers to power HDs and CD/DVD players/writers.. hope that makes sense.

I don't have a digital cam right now but i'll take pics when I can, the card reader is a Microtech but looks exactly the same as the Intermart reader shown on the mpc3000 website : http://www.mpc3000.com/images/mpc3kdrive.jpg (except there's a microtech logo on mine)
By mpc3000le Thu Sep 07, 2006 11:55 pm
dela wrote:so I was finally able to cop an internal Microtech Digital PhotoAlbum (DPAI SCSI) off ebay, tried it with a noname PCMCIA adapter & a Kingston 256mo CF card and it works perfectly so far with my MPC3000 with OS 3.11. I'm gonna try it with a 512mo card next week. Hope it helps !


A MICROTECH DPA will more than and most likely be a PCD-25 as per the model I have quoted in previous threads.

These work with just about every SCSI device I have ever tried them on, including the MPC3000.

If it is of any news I use mine with a no name CF-PC card adapter and any old brand of COMPACT FLASH ( SanDisk, MyFlash, Mittoni ).

Rohan.

By dela Fri Sep 08, 2006 11:29 am
yes I thought it was the PCD-25, even though there's no indication of it on the reader, except maybe the serial number, which starts by "25M" but I don't know might be a coincidence ?

thanks for your help Rohan I wouldn't have been able to find the right card reader without the info you gave earlier in your posts.

By dax917 Mon Sep 11, 2006 5:36 am
Yes, when you get your hands on a digital camera please post up pictures and details of exactly how you did it. It would be so apprecieated by people like myself who've been looking to do this for a long time but couldn't find the microtech pcd-25 that Rohan spoke of. Congrats on your modification.

By dela Mon Sep 11, 2006 2:03 pm
dax917 wrote: couldn't find the microtech pcd-25 that Rohan spoke of.


that's the thing, don't search for "pcd-25" but for"Microtech Digital PhotoAlbum" instead, or DPAI. It seems to be a little easier to find them this way.

By mpc3000le Mon Sep 11, 2006 11:25 pm
dax917 wrote:Oh ok, no wonder I didn't find it. Is this one it??

http://www.camcor.com/cgi-bin/cat/id=1046891762&src=fg


Yep ... THAT is the one.

Plugs straight onto the MPC3000 SCSI port and works a treat.

Each card slot can be addressed by the MPC3000.

Rohan.

By dax917 Tue Sep 12, 2006 4:28 am
Yep ... THAT is the one.

Plugs straight onto the MPC3000 SCSI port and works a treat.

Each card slot can be addressed by the MPC3000.

Rohan.


Can I make it internal like you guys did? If so, whats the possibility of someone like me doing that on my own? Major thanks.

By mpc3000le Tue Sep 12, 2006 10:18 am
dax917 wrote:
Yep ... THAT is the one.

Plugs straight onto the MPC3000 SCSI port and works a treat.

Each card slot can be addressed by the MPC3000.

Rohan.


Can I make it internal like you guys did? If so, whats the possibility of someone like me doing that on my own? Major thanks.


Well ... you'll be opening your MPC3000 soon enough any way :-)

So have a look around in there to familiarise your self with the layout.

Fitting is not too difficult but does require a bit of electronics, electrical and SCSI knowledge.

I suggest... leave the FLOPPY drive in place.

...and just connect the SCSI device to the rear port.

Rohan.

By dax917 Tue Sep 12, 2006 12:45 pm
Fitting is not too difficult but does require a bit of electronics, electrical and SCSI knowledge.

I suggest... leave the FLOPPY drive in place.

...and just connect the SCSI device to the rear port.

Rohan.


1. Are you saying I should leave the SCSI device attached to the rear port hanging out the back externally, and NOT trying to have it internal at all?

2. Or are you saying to attach it internally to the rear port without removing the floppy drive?

It sounds like you mean the first one, but I want to be sure. Just say 1 or 2 :wink: Thanks

By mpc3000le Tue Sep 12, 2006 11:30 pm
Unless you need gigging portability of an internal drive then connecting a SCSI storage device to the external port is a lot easier to deal with.

IE: Zero modification ... just plug a device straight in.

Having said that though.

If you want to go down the internal route then having a read of the info at www.mpc3000.com may be a good start to getting things going.

Rohan.

By dax917 Wed Sep 13, 2006 12:47 am
Unless you need gigging portability of an internal drive then connecting a SCSI storage device to the external port is a lot easier to deal with.

That's exactly why I bought your OS and been contacting you and a few other about the internal CF. I'll be doing massive beat competitions from east to west coast and hopefully every 7 continents if possible, and gigging too. Lets just say a few personal things have happened and now I have something to prove to the world with my music, my mpc3000 will be my sword.

If you want to go down the internal route then having a read of the info at www.mpc3000.com may be a good start to getting things going.

Rohan.

I'm there now, hopefully it explains what I need to do step by step as well as what to be carefull for so I can accomplish it. If it seems too much then I have no problem sending my machine to any one of you experienced experts with a fee to have it done. It's worth the money and the wait.

By mpc3000le Wed Sep 13, 2006 1:15 pm
dax917 wrote:That's exactly why I bought your OS and been contacting you and a few other about the internal CF.


Your support is appreciated.

I hope the ROM's help in keeping the relationship between you and your MPC3000 solid :-) ...

Of course and as you've gathered already. Contact me in private if you get stuck with installation issues although I think the instructions I sent you were fairly clear.

dax917 wrote:I'll be doing massive beat competitions from east to west coast and hopefully every 7 continents if possible, and gigging too.


Get some footage of this... up close. ( so we all can see )

Get to Australian shores too :-)

dax917 wrote:Lets just say a few personal things have happened and now I have something to prove to the world with my music, my mpc3000 will be my sword.


No lesser MPC will have enough armour to deal with such a SWORD attack.

A swordsman who takes pride with his SWORD ... :-)

A swordsman with some thing to prove :-)

RE- CF drive fitting.

The link at Mike Goins ( member MPC3000 ) website is an easy enough to follow scenario.

You can apply some of the info from fitting JAZ/ZIP/INTERNAL hard drives that is present there also.

If you're gigging brings you to Australian shores, Melbourne in particular then I'll sort out the fitting of a working CF drive for you.

Sending it this far in the mean time though doesn't seem cost effective.

Maybe one of the other "specialist folk" on this list can do the job for you.

Rohan