emulatorII-list

I've been going through the archives (and I've checked out the compatibility list) but still unclear on a couple of things. I Apologize if these topics have been covered. 

1) How can one tell if a rev 0 EII has been upgraded to the RS-422 interface? If not, how complicated is it to do this? Are the necessary parts still obtainable?

2) Is there anything else to look out for with a rev 0?

3) Has anyone succeeded in getting one of these old Macs on the internet? Is ethernet even an option for them or would it have to be dial up?

4) How much drive space do you need to hold say a 500 disk EII library? Is it possible to replace these old Mac drives? I'd imagine a 15-20 year old HD has to be pretty prone to failure.

5) How much of a factor is ram for performance? I'd like to get something compact/all-in-one, like a Color Classic or a Powerbook, but the ram configs I'm seeing for those in the compatibility list all seem much lower.

Thanks,
Jeremy - Hoping to be the proud owner of a rev 0 very soon.

1) Upgrades have a small daughterboard near the RS422 connector (inside)
2) The parts are still (just) available, and a small PCB can be made out of
veroboard or one custom built.
3) Look for OS3.1 and the latest EPROM's
4) Yes old Macs will go Interent, just ethernet it in.
5) 500 sample banks is 250MB, plenty of small SCSI drives will hold this.
6) RAM makes no difference after 512KB.
Regards
Rob

I've been going through the archives (and I've checked out the compatibility
list) but still unclear on a couple of things. I Apologize if these topics
have been covered. 

1) How can one tell if a rev 0 EII has been upgraded to the RS-422
interface? If not, how complicated is it to do this? Are the necessary parts
still obtainable?

2) Is there anything else to look out for with a rev 0?

3) Has anyone succeeded in getting one of these old Macs on the internet? Is
ethernet even an option for them or would it have to be dial up?

4) How much drive space do you need to hold say a 500 disk EII library? Is
it possible to replace these old Mac drives? I'd imagine a 15-20 year old HD
has to be pretty prone to failure.

5) How much of a factor is ram for performance? I'd like to get something
compact/all-in-one, like a Color Classic or a Powerbook, but the ram configs
I'm seeing for those in the compatibility list all seem much lower.

Thanks,
Jeremy - Hoping to be the proud owner of a rev 0 very soon.







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Thanks for the detailed response Rob. Very helpful.

So which eprom is required? OS 3.1 requires eprom 3.0, but I get the impression from your OS versions page that you can still connect with an earlier OS. How does one tell what eprom is installed?

Do most of you use external scsi drives with your old macs? I guess that's more reliable than whatever internal drive comes with it?

Thanks again,
Jeremy

--- In emulatorII-list@yahoogroups.com, "rob" <rob@...> wrote:
>
>  
> 
> 1) Upgrades have a small daughterboard near the RS422 connector (inside)
> 2) The parts are still (just) available, and a small PCB can be made out of
> veroboard or one custom built.
> 3) Look for OS3.1 and the latest EPROM's
> 4) Yes old Macs will go Interent, just ethernet it in.
> 5) 500 sample banks is 250MB, plenty of small SCSI drives will hold this.
> 6) RAM makes no difference after 512KB.
> Regards
> Rob
> 
> I've been going through the archives (and I've checked out the compatibility
> list) but still unclear on a couple of things. I Apologize if these topics
> have been covered. 
> 
> 1) How can one tell if a rev 0 EII has been upgraded to the RS-422
> interface? If not, how complicated is it to do this? Are the necessary parts
> still obtainable?
> 
> 2) Is there anything else to look out for with a rev 0?
> 
> 3) Has anyone succeeded in getting one of these old Macs on the internet? Is
> ethernet even an option for them or would it have to be dial up?
> 
> 4) How much drive space do you need to hold say a 500 disk EII library? Is
> it possible to replace these old Mac drives? I'd imagine a 15-20 year old HD
> has to be pretty prone to failure.
> 
> 5) How much of a factor is ram for performance? I'd like to get something
> compact/all-in-one, like a Color Classic or a Powerbook, but the ram configs
> I'm seeing for those in the compatibility list all seem much lower.
> 
> Thanks,
> Jeremy - Hoping to be the proud owner of a rev 0 very soon.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

Just to add a bit to Robs post on the Mac side:

--- In emulatorII-list@yahoogroups.com, "Jeremy Campbell" <captainjc@...> wrote:
>
> 3) Has anyone succeeded in getting one of these old Macs on the
> internet? Is ethernet even an option for them or would it have to be dial up?

Yes, old Macs can be networked. You will want one that supports an ethernet interface either onboard or via an add-on NuBus or PCI card. 

You will also want a fast enough Mac (68030 or faster) with enough display horsepower to surf web pages and enough CPU to comfortably run a modern enough System version (say 7.5 or later) so the lack of built-in networking support doesnt drive you insane.

The real question though is do you -need- a legacy Mac that is internet enabled if you already have a modern PC or Mac that is...? The answer to that is no.
 
> 4) How much drive space do you need to hold say a 500 disk EII 
> library? Is it possible to replace these old Mac drives? I'd imagine a 15-20 year old HD has to be pretty prone to failure.

PS: Yes you can replace the old drives. Unfortunately, finding new small capacity SCSI drives is difficult, so replacements are usually just -another- old drive.

Each E-II bank is roughly 512k. In addition to a standard CD-Rom drive, most old Macs can utilize a removable cartridge SCSI drive (ie: zip/jaz = 100-250mb/1-2gb) for storage and system backups. Further, a fast enough Mac with system 7.5 or later will let you employ a SCSI CD recorder (700mb).

> 5) How much of a factor is ram for performance? I'd like to get 
> something compact/all-in-one, like a Color Classic or a Powerbook, 
> but the ram configs I'm seeing for those in the compatibility list 
> all seem much lower.

Most of the systems in the group database are only concerned with interfacing with the E-II and running Sound Designer well. To satisfy those requirements, big ram and a modern OS isnt a concern. However, if we are talking about a 68030 system or better that you can network, browse the net, as well as burn CDs; then I would want at least 32mb, with 64mb being optimum if you can swing it. In the end its a computer, so more ram = better performance depending on how much work you are asking it to do.

For much more detailed info on the Mac side of things, check the Mac Related folder in the group links section. The best place to ask these legacy Mac questions is here: http://68kmla.net/forums/

> Yes, old Macs can be networked. You will want one that supports an ethernet interface either onboard or via an add-on NuBus or PCI card. 
> 
> You will also want a fast enough Mac (68030 or faster) with enough display horsepower to surf web pages and enough CPU to comfortably run a modern enough System version (say 7.5 or later) so the lack of built-in networking support doesnt drive you insane.
> 
> The real question though is do you -need- a legacy Mac that is internet enabled if you already have a modern PC or Mac that is...? The answer to that is no.

Sure. I was mostly thinking of using FTP to transfer sounds between the old Mac and a modern computer. I guess now that I think about it, if it has ethernet, it might be possible to network directly. I wonder if sharing is possible between an old Mac and OSX?

> Each E-II bank is roughly 512k. In addition to a standard CD-Rom drive, most old Macs can utilize a removable cartridge SCSI drive (ie: zip/jaz = 100-250mb/1-2gb) for storage and system backups. Further, a fast enough Mac with system 7.5 or later will let you employ a SCSI CD recorder (700mb).

I guess I'd rather avoid all this extra media if possible. I guess it mostly depends on if the transfer issues can be worked out. I'll check out the link you mention for that. Thanks!

Hi!

If you're NOT a tech guy (I am not), I wouldn't recommend an RS-422 upgrade on your own.

It seems to me like an extreme hassle. You can read the whole procedure in the service manual (don't know which pages exactly).

I'd rather recommend buying an EII with rev.1 / or already upgraded.

Just my 50 cent as a No-Tech-guy

greetz, elm.

Are these obtainable somehow? I assume it's not complicated to upgrade as the RS422...if you can get your hands on one.

Jeremy

Hey Jeremy

I have them in stock at www.Route66studios.com

Richard
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Jeremy Campbell 
  To: emulatorII-list@yahoogroups.com 
  Sent: Thursday, March 19, 2009 9:39 AM
  Subject: [emulatorII-list] Scanner EPROM 3.0


  Are these obtainable somehow? I assume it's not complicated to upgrade as the RS422...if you can get your hands on one.

  Jeremy



  

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]