simon@ms.uky.edu (Simon Gales) (01/27/89)
If you can read your original test/utility disk that came with the drive,
doesn't that mean that your drive is still aligned well enough?
Shouldn't this work with any disk known to be formatted on an aligned
drive? Seems so simple...
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Simon Gales@University of Ky
{rutgers, uunet}!ukma!simon - simon@ms.uky.edu - simon@UKMA.BITNETbah@tippy.uucp (01/28/89)
This is generally true. If your drive loads a program that is a commercial prog. or as you stated, the disk that came with your 1541, than the alignment is probably ok. But if you start having problems loading commercial software, than you most likely have an alignment problem. It has been my experience as an CBM service center, that with the later drives (the ones with thee flip down handles), that they rarely get out of alignment. If you format a disk with an out- of alignment drive, than that drive will load any programs that are saved on that drive. But anything saved on an out of alignment drive, will not load properly on an in-alignment drive. If you suspect that your drive is out of alignment, the only sure and accurate way to check this is with a digital alignment disk and a dual trace scope. Bob Hahn tippy!bah@newton.physics.purdue.edu
carus@ttrdf.UUCP (Bryce W. Carus) (01/31/89)
In article <24100005@tippy>, bah@tippy.uucp writes: > > This is generally true. If your drive loads a program that is a > commercial prog. or as you stated, the disk that came with your 1541, > > stuff deleted... > > your drive is out of alignment, the only sure and accurate way to check > this is with a digital alignment disk and a dual trace scope. > > Bob Hahn tippy!bah@newton.physics.purdue.edu ...there is a simple way to align a drive with minimum equipment and software. The principle behind it is to read the raw AC signal coming off the head and feed that into a simple filter which rectifies it into a couple volts DC. This signal can then be read with a simple analog voltmeter. The idea is to use the output as a "peak" indicator...you are on track when the signal is at it's peak. You'd want to do this with a decent disk...I use CBM's utility disk. This method is fast, accurate, and low cost - junk box parts are all you need. I've aligned dozens of drives this way for my friends...it works like a charm! The test run by the utility disk said I had a good drive but it didn't work until it was aligned by this method - far superior to the old CSM alignment program...
dwl10@uts.amdahl.com (Dave Lowrey) (01/31/89)
In article <849@ttrdf.UUCP> carus@ttrdf.UUCP (Bryce W. Carus) writes: >In article <24100005@tippy>, bah@tippy.uucp writes: >> >> This is generally true. If your drive loads a program that is a >> commercial prog. or as you stated, the disk that came with your 1541, >> >> stuff deleted... >> >> your drive is out of alignment, the only sure and accurate way to check >> this is with a digital alignment disk and a dual trace scope. >> >> Bob Hahn tippy!bah@newton.physics.purdue.edu > >...there is a simple way to align a drive with minimum equipment and software. > >The principle behind it is to read the raw AC signal coming off the head and >feed that into a simple filter which rectifies it into a couple volts DC. This >signal can then be read with a simple analog voltmeter. The idea is to use the >output as a "peak" indicator...you are on track when the signal is at it's >peak. You'd want to do this with a decent disk...I use CBM's utility disk. > >This method is fast, accurate, and low cost - junk box parts are all you need. >I've aligned dozens of drives this way for my friends...it works like a charm! > >The test run by the utility disk said I had a good drive but it didn't work >until it was aligned by this method - far superior to the old CSM alignment >program... Sams has a book on repairing the 1541, that describes how to make the probe and what chip to hook it up to. I don't know if they have a book on the 1571...... -- ------------------------------------------------------------------- "This isn't Heaven, this is Cleveland!!!!" Dave Lowrey Amdahl Corp. Houston, Texas (713)-850-8828 ...!{ames,sun,decwrl,uunet,....}!amdahl!dwl10 [ The opinions expressed <may> be those of the author and not necessarily those of his most eminent employer. ]
jgreco@csd4.milw.wisc.edu (Joe Greco) (02/01/89)
In comp.sys.cbm article <01sIue74Q91010Je4Sk@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com>, dwl10@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com (Dave Lowrey) wrote:
]In article <849@ttrdf.UUCP> carus@ttrdf.UUCP (Bryce W. Carus) writes:
]>...there is a simple way to align a drive with minimum equipment and software.
]>
]>The principle behind it is to read the raw AC signal coming off the head and
]>feed that into a simple filter which rectifies it into a couple volts DC. This
]>signal can then be read with a simple analog voltmeter. The idea is to use the
]>output as a "peak" indicator...you are on track when the signal is at it's
]>peak. You'd want to do this with a decent disk...I use CBM's utility disk.
Will somebody post a few more details?!?!?!?
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