Sony 920 MPF z/121 fix for Amiga

kipper2k · 08 March 2009, 03:11

Hi All,
After trying to find an old PC Floppy drive to mod for the Amiga i gave up and decided to try to make a new model work.

This is what i came up with, i did see some schematics on a Czech site for the "Z" series but they did not work properly. I tested their fix using "The killing Game show" which took great delight in refusing to load the actual game with their fix. My fix works fine. I do not have X-copy so I'm unable to check that function, but i am pretty confident

that it will work fine.

The model i used is the Sony MPF 920 z/121 which is still on sale in stores (and also the z/131 which i have not
seen).

Here is a link i found in the UK...
http://www.twenga.co.uk/search.php?q=MPF920%2FZ%2F121

In Canada...
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=90...%20Accessories

The mod itself is pretty easy, 2 wires, cutting a trace and moving a Zero ohm resistor. The low res pic is shown below and the hi-res pic (Link below) shows everything you need to know.

Let me know if you have any questions etc.

the hires pic can be seen here...

http://www.kipper2k.com/images/mpf920-z-121-hires.jpg

Here is the HD disable pic (This forces the drive to treat all inserted floppys as Double Density) AKA 880k Amiga discs.

As you can see we just need to short the two points on SW3.

Here is what is needed to be done in order for the A1200 case to close properly. All the marked area has to be removed or bent back in order for the top case to fit properly. It is really easy to do, just use a dremel or hacksaw blade on the left and right side and then use a pair of pliers to bend the metal up and back.

and here is if finished and fitted. Notice that the button had to be trimmed on the left side so it didn't interfere with the top portion of the case. The button is a little on the short side, but works ok. Overall the drive is a lot quieter than the POS that was in there originally. I'll probably fashion a button extension piece out of scrap plastic and glue.

edit, i have added the Sony z/161 floppy too, it is further down this thread.

lopos2000 · 08 March 2009, 14:19

Nice mod. Well done.

prowler · 08 March 2009, 23:18

Thanks for sharing this with us, kipper!

cosmicfrog · 08 March 2009, 23:27

yes I`m thinkin of moddin a pc floppy soon so info like this is lovely

though if i do it with this drive I`ll dremal the metal off rarther than bending it, even though it is`t seen when the case is put back on

kipper2k · 08 March 2009, 23:54

yah, i was too lazy to go into work and use the grinding tool, so i took the easy route

Phiber · 09 March 2009, 07:44

So this should work ok in A500 and A600 too?

Or am I missing something due to fact that i just woke up..

Got one of these drives in my Desktop PC.. Hmh, maybe i should "stock" a few extra ones.. :P

kipper2k · 09 March 2009, 13:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phiber

So this should work ok in A500 and A600 too?

Or am I missing something due to fact that i just woke up..

Got one of these drives in my Desktop PC.. Hmh, maybe i should "stock" a few extra ones.. :P

Hi Phiber,

I tried this in a 1200, 500 and an external floppy and it all worked

prowler · 09 March 2009, 21:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by kipper2k

I tried this in a 1200, 500 and an external floppy and it all worked

In that case, thanks even more for sharing this with us!

15 June 2009, 07:29

Hi, I have this drive "Sony 920MPF z/161" the board looks identical to yours, I tried to make the mod and then tested on my A500, it makes the "asking disk" sound, but when I insert a floppy it tries to read, make a few tries and then stop.

I'm not very good soldering, I break the 0 ohm resistor and put a tiny piece of metal instead, but this is so small I can't tell if it's properly fixed.

Thanks!
BTW this is my first post on eab, and sorry for my english

@UAE · 08 July 2009, 09:53

i copied several games on Xcopy III , all works fine . i can say this drive is 100% compatible .

kipper2k · 18 July 2009, 23:58

I have 3 more drives to add to the list of compatible drives, 2 of them were already listed but in German and i have one that as far as i can find has not been listed. if you have an old panasonic sitting around or NEC dont chuck it. i'll post some pics later this week.

( I am upgrading computers at work and i get first pick of the old bits & pieces

Foul · 12 April 2010, 22:43

Just made the modifications ... working perfect in my A600 & A1200 !!

Thank you

Foul · 11 June 2010, 13:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by Foul

Just made the modifications ... working perfect in my A600 & A1200 !!

Thank you

uhmm work well but all my floppys are recognised as DD not HD

Jope · 11 June 2010, 20:32

That's how it goes. There are no generic instructions for modifying HD drives to work as Amiga HD drives.

Foul · 11 June 2010, 22:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jope

That's how it goes. There are no generic instructions for modifying HD drives to work as Amiga HD drives.

So why this :

Quote:

Here is the HD disable pic (This forces the drive to treat all inserted floppys as Double Density) AKA 880k Amiga discs.

if all floppies are recognised as DD ?

kipper2k · 12 June 2010, 01:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Foul

So why this :

if all floppies are recognised as DD ?

The way that i tested this specific drive was to use regular 1.44mb floppies and 720k floppies in this drive. In order for the drive to recognise HD floppies formatted to 880K the HD switch had to be disabled so that it "seen" a regular double density disc in the drive. I had no reason to experiment with HD 1.44mb floppies as all the adf images etc were all 880k etc. Feel free to experiment by leaving the switch enabled and try to use as 1.44mb but i don't think it will work in both DD/HD modes. I have never used an official HD floppy drive so i don't know if you need special drivers etc in order for the Amiga to read HD formatted disks.

edit.... I always use hot glue and fill the HD hole in the floppies so that they can be read in any Amiga regular 880k drive.

Foul · 12 June 2010, 08:07

ok, thank you

Hewitson · 12 June 2010, 09:04

A "regular" Amiga drive doesn't give a shit if theres a hole there or not. Why would a double density drive check for a high density hole in the disk?

Loedown · 12 June 2010, 09:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by kipper2k

yah, i was too lazy to go into work and use the grinding tool, so i took the easy route

Very nice unintentional double entendre. I'm surprised that there's really no proper floppy standard by now.

Loedown · 12 June 2010, 09:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hewitson

A "regular" Amiga drive doesn't give a shit if theres a hole there or not. Why would a double density drive check for a high density hole in the disk?

The standard A500 drives are 300 RPM, the high density A4000 drives are 300 / 150, perhaps PC drives operate in the same way?

08 March 2009, 03:11	#1
kipper2k Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Thunder Bay, Canada Posts: 4,323	Sony 920 MPF z/121 fix for Amiga ( added the z/161 and a few more) Hi All, After trying to find an old PC Floppy drive to mod for the Amiga i gave up and decided to try to make a new model work. This is what i came up with, i did see some schematics on a Czech site for the "Z" series but they did not work properly. I tested their fix using "The killing Game show" which took great delight in refusing to load the actual game with their fix. My fix works fine. I do not have X-copy so I'm unable to check that function, but i am pretty confident that it will work fine. The model i used is the Sony MPF 920 z/121 which is still on sale in stores (and also the z/131 which i have not seen). Here is a link i found in the UK... http://www.twenga.co.uk/search.php?q=MPF920%2FZ%2F121 In Canada... http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=90...%20Accessories The mod itself is pretty easy, 2 wires, cutting a trace and moving a Zero ohm resistor. The low res pic is shown below and the hi-res pic (Link below) shows everything you need to know. Let me know if you have any questions etc. the hires pic can be seen here... http://www.kipper2k.com/images/mpf920-z-121-hires.jpg Here is the HD disable pic (This forces the drive to treat all inserted floppys as Double Density) AKA 880k Amiga discs. As you can see we just need to short the two points on SW3. Here is what is needed to be done in order for the A1200 case to close properly. All the marked area has to be removed or bent back in order for the top case to fit properly. It is really easy to do, just use a dremel or hacksaw blade on the left and right side and then use a pair of pliers to bend the metal up and back. and here is if finished and fitted. Notice that the button had to be trimmed on the left side so it didn't interfere with the top portion of the case. The button is a little on the short side, but works ok. Overall the drive is a lot quieter than the POS that was in there originally. I'll probably fashion a button extension piece out of scrap plastic and glue. edit, i have added the Sony z/161 floppy too, it is further down this thread. Last edited by kipper2k; 12 July 2010 at 19:31.

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08 March 2009, 14:19	#2
lopos2000 Zone Friend Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Cider is best In The West Posts: 1,238	Nice mod. Well done.

08 March 2009, 23:18	#3
prowler Global Moderator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Sidcup, England Posts: 10,300	Thanks for sharing this with us, kipper!

08 March 2009, 23:27	#4
cosmicfrog The 1 who ribbits Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: leek, Staffs, UK Age: 56 Posts: 3,557	yes I`m thinkin of moddin a pc floppy soon so info like this is lovely though if i do it with this drive I`ll dremal the metal off rarther than bending it, even though it is`t seen when the case is put back on

08 March 2009, 23:54	#5
kipper2k Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Thunder Bay, Canada Posts: 4,323	yah, i was too lazy to go into work and use the grinding tool, so i took the easy route

09 March 2009, 07:44	#6
Phiber Hardware Freak Join Date: May 2002 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 50 Posts: 222	So this should work ok in A500 and A600 too? Or am I missing something due to fact that i just woke up.. Got one of these drives in my Desktop PC.. Hmh, maybe i should "stock" a few extra ones.. :P

15 June 2009, 07:29	#9
zonaps2 Posts: n/a	Hi, I have this drive "Sony 920MPF z/161" the board looks identical to yours, I tried to make the mod and then tested on my A500, it makes the "asking disk" sound, but when I insert a floppy it tries to read, make a few tries and then stop. I'm not very good soldering, I break the 0 ohm resistor and put a tiny piece of metal instead, but this is so small I can't tell if it's properly fixed. Thanks! BTW this is my first post on eab, and sorry for my english

08 July 2009, 09:53	#10
@UAE Registered User Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Dubai UAE Posts: 158	i copied several games on Xcopy III , all works fine . i can say this drive is 100% compatible .

18 July 2009, 23:58	#11
kipper2k Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Thunder Bay, Canada Posts: 4,323	I have 3 more drives to add to the list of compatible drives, 2 of them were already listed but in German and i have one that as far as i can find has not been listed. if you have an old panasonic sitting around or NEC dont chuck it. i'll post some pics later this week. ( I am upgrading computers at work and i get first pick of the old bits & pieces

12 April 2010, 22:43	#12
Foul Registered User Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Perigueux/France Age: 49 Posts: 1,516	Just made the modifications ... working perfect in my A600 & A1200 !! Thank you

11 June 2010, 20:32	#14
Jope - Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 43 Posts: 9,861	That's how it goes. There are no generic instructions for modifying HD drives to work as Amiga HD drives.

12 June 2010, 08:07	#17
Foul Registered User Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Perigueux/France Age: 49 Posts: 1,516	ok, thank you

12 June 2010, 09:04	#18
Hewitson Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Melbourne, Australia Age: 41 Posts: 3,771	A "regular" Amiga drive doesn't give a shit if theres a hole there or not. Why would a double density drive check for a high density hole in the disk?

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