ACA500 tested

[Amicol]

Originally Posted by fitzsteve

Did you stop OS3.9 from doing it's own Rom update?

Maybe post your Startup-Sequence here

Yeh, I'm using the noromupdate option in setpatch

Just tried the rom image again in winuae and that is doing the same. Worked fine as normal (512mb) & extended (512mb) in Winuae, but when I put them together as one file (using the A500 1mb Rom option in Remus) it doesn't work.
Do you know how to make a 1mb Rom that works with acamaprom?

[FOL]

Originally Posted by Amicol

Yeh, I'm using the noromupdate option in setpatch

Just tried the rom image again in winuae and that is doing the same. Worked fine as normal (512mb) & extended (512mb) in Winuae, but when I put them together as one file (using the A500 1mb Rom option in Remus) it doesn't work.
Do you know how to make a 1mb Rom that works with acamaprom?

I had this before, think it was a rom module to do with joystick and serial module. The one remus wants to split.

[Amicol]

Cheers FOL, I now have a confirmed 1MB rom (works fine in Winuae), still reboot loop in my A500. Here is the Startup-Sequence;

acamaprom Devs:Kickstarts/OS39.rom

C:SetPatch NOROMUPDATE QUIET
;C:SetPatch QUIET
IF EXISTS C:StackAttack
C:StackAttack
EndIF

C:Version >NIL:
FailAt 21
Resident >NIL: C:IconX PURE
Resident >NIL: C:WBRun PURE
Resident >NIL: C:Assign PURE
Resident >NIL: C:Execute PURE
Resident >NIL: C:SetEnv PURE REPLACE

IF EXISTS L:env-handler
C:MakeDir RAM:T RAM:Clipboards
L:env-handler
ELSE
C:MakeDir RAM:T RAM:Clipboards RAM:ENV RAM:ENV/Sys
C:Copy >NIL: ENVARC: RAM:ENV ALL NOREQ
Assign >NIL: ENV: RAM:ENV
EndIF

IF EXISTS C:PatchRAM
C:PatchRAM
EndIF

IF EXISTS C:TagLiFE
C:TagLiFE
EndIF

Assign >NIL: T: RAM:T
Assign >NIL: CLIPS: RAM:Clipboards
Assign >NIL: REXX: S:
Assign >NIL: PRINTERS: DEVS:Printers
Assign >NIL: KEYMAPS: DEVS:Keymaps
Assign >NIL: LOCALE: SYS:Locale
Assign >NIL: LIBS: SYS:Classes ADD
Assign >NIL: HELP: LOCALE:Help DEFER

IF EXISTS C:BlazeWCP
C:BlazeWCP
EndIF

IF EXISTS SYS:System/FBlit/FBlit
SYS:System/FBlit/FBlit
SYS:System/FBlit/FText
EndIF

BindDrivers
C:Mount >NIL: DEVSOSDrivers/~(#?.info)

C:LoadMonDrvs

SetEnv Language "english"
SetEnv Workbench $Workbench
SetEnv Kickstart $Kickstart
UnSet Workbench
UnSet Kickstart

IF EXISTS C:CyberBugFix
C:CyberBugFix
EndIF

IF EXISTS C:IconBeFast
C:IconBeFast 0
EndIF

C:AddDataTypes REFRESH QUIET
IF EXISTS SYS:System/VPrefs/VisualPrefs
Run > NIL: SYS:System/VPrefs/VisualPrefs
EndIF
C:IPrefs
SYS:System/FPalette/FPPrefs
C:ConClip

Path >NIL: RAM: C: SYS:Utilities SYS:Rexxc SYS:System S: SYS:Prefs SYS:WBStartup SYS:Tools SYS:Tools/Commodities

SYS:System/REXXMast >NIL:

IF EXISTS S:User-Startup
Execute S:User-Startup
EndIF

Resident Execute REMOVE
Resident Assign REMOVE

IF EXISTS C:StackAttack
C:StackAttack AUTO
EndIF

C:LoadWB

EndCLI >NIL:

Update: it goes into a reboot loop with a standard 512k rom too....

As far as I can tell, the acamaprom feature doesn't work. I'll fall back to WB 3.1

[Toni Wilen]

acamaprom does not do any version checks, you need to add correct version checks in startup-sequence.

[Amicol]

Originally Posted by Toni Wilen

acamaprom does not do any version checks, you need to add correct version checks in startup-sequence.

Thanks Toni


Would I need to add something like:

C:Version exec.library 45 >NIL:
If WARN
Acamaprom Devs:Kickstart/OS39.rom
EndCli
EndIF

Apologies Toni, I misread your post,

[Amicol]

It works!

System wizing along with a custom 1mb ROM

Hope this helps someone....

What an amazing piece of kit this is, the A500 bounces back!
You're a genius Jens

[Amicol]

Will there be a decent case released for this? The one on Vesalia is crap.
It deserves a good one to better match the A500

[amilo3438]

Originally Posted by Amicol

Will there be a decent case released for this? The one on Vesalia is crap.
It deserves a good one to better match the A500

Just found this interesting "do-it-yourself" solution:

ACA500 Gehäuse / Case Mod -> http://www.amiga68k.de/?p=2906

And it using only this part -> http://www.voelkner.de/products/3984...33mm-Grau.html

p.s.
But should also work on further improvement in terms of better ventilation.

[BarryB]

Ventilation AND a cutout for use with an ACA12xx!

[Photon]

Originally Posted by amilo3438

Just found this interesting "do-it-yourself" solution:

ACA500 Gehäuse / Case Mod -> http://www.amiga68k.de/?p=2906

And it using only this part -> http://www.voelkner.de/products/3984...33mm-Grau.html

p.s.
But should also work on further improvement in terms of better ventilation.

Looks like my cardboard 1cm box with structured black adhesive vinyl is still generations ahead.

I cannot think the ACA500 needs any type of ventilation. At least I've never noticed it even getting lukewarm.

[elpiloto]

i have the same behaviour that jacques described, i cannot use the kickstar 3,1 boot option from de early startup menu, otherwise will crash in a red screen, in the other hand, i did not have any CF problems, ok i cant have 2 os on the same cf, i still can use another cf, so is not a heavy problem i think, at least for me, im very happy with my aca500, it gave lots of posibilities to our old beloved a500, and more to come with the usb/ethernet thing, cheers for that! and cheers for all the amiga new hardware developers!! they do theyre best effort, may be the final product is not 100% compatible, but hey, is better a 95% than nothing.

[Toni Wilen]

Originally Posted by elpiloto

i have the same behaviour that jacques described, i cannot use the kickstar 3,1 boot option from de early startup menu

I think this is totally different kind of problem. Jacques' problem "only" caused instant hang (system hang due to bad reset signal, this can be fixed with ugly software workaround) but in your case CPU keeps running and rom checksum code seems to detect crc error.

Do you still get red screen if you do following: power off at least 10 seconds, remove all CF cards, power on, F1, enter early boot menu, click reboot button? Or you do only get it if you boot from CF card first? (=some weird patch in startup-sequence?)

Do you have physical 1.3 or 3.1 ROM chip?

[Jacques]

I've got a question regarding memory expansion of ACA500 enhanced Amiga.
Would adding +2MB of RAM under trapdoor (e.g. expansion with socket connecting to Gary):

1) result in trapdoor 2MB and ACA500's 2MB sum up having +4MB of additional SLOW/FAST RAM?
2) If so (p. 1 true), could some part of it still be set as +0.5 MB CHIP in ACA500 menu?

I haven't found such information anywhere and it would be good to know "WHAT IF", thanks in advance for clarification

[Lockon]

1) Yes.
2) No. Only 512Kb trapdoor expansions on A500s with onboard 512Kb CHIP and 8372 Agnus can be used to map it to CHIP totalling 1024Kb.

[Jacques]

Thank you.
And what will happen in case +2MB trapdoor could be set by its jumpers to add +0.5 MB CHIP (1 MB in total) by itself, will the rest of SLOW/FAST add to the ACA500 RAM?

[elpiloto]

Originally Posted by Toni Wilen

I think this is totally different kind of problem. Jacques' problem "only" caused instant hang (system hang due to bad reset signal, this can be fixed with ugly software workaround) but in your case CPU keeps running and rom checksum code seems to detect crc error.

Do you still get red screen if you do following: power off at least 10 seconds, remove all CF cards, power on, F1, enter early boot menu, click reboot button? Or you do only get it if you boot from CF card first? (=some weird patch in startup-sequence?)

Do you have physical 1.3 or 3.1 ROM chip?

Hi toni, well, you must be right, because i cant repeat such behaviour today.

[Schoenfeld]

Originally Posted by Jacques

And what will happen in case +2MB trapdoor could be set by its jumpers to add +0.5 MB CHIP (1 MB in total) by itself, will the rest of SLOW/FAST add to the ACA500 RAM?

That might work. I always had the internal 1.8MBytes memory expansions in the back of my head when I designed the ACA500. These expansions were popular in Germany, and since they were a lot more cost effective than any external memory expansion, I think they were popular outside Germany, too.

Keep in mind that only a few of these 1.8M expansions can turn part of the expansion into Chipram. While it is *possible* to do that all with just a Gayle-adapter (and no CPU adapter), I don't know if the knowledge how to accomplish that was already out there in the late 80s/early 90s when these expansions were popular. Those expansions that actually worked with 1M chip and 1.5M ranger-mem mostly used a CPU-adapter, but that won't work properly with the ACA500.

So.. if you have one of those rare internal expansions that give you 1M chipram and 1.5M ranger-mem with just a Gary-adapter but no CPU-adapter, then you can expect it to work with the ACA500. If you are unsure if your expansion will work properly, I'm happy to take a close look at the Gary-adapter - please open a new thread in another part of this forum for that, so we can discuss technical details outside this news-thread.

Jens

[Jacques]

Hi Jens, thank you for reply.
I don't own such configurable +2MB (or so) trapdoor expansion (yet?), but I'm considering my options and thinking about finding and buying one. That would be nice addition to increase number of games preloading under WHDLoad. The only downside in my situation would be removing KCS Power PC Board emulator, which I really like and which gives standard +0.5 MB SLOW/CHIP as well. So maybe I'll opt for installing hardware Kickstart 3.1. to at least regain 0.5 MB from ACA500 fo starters
But if I do manage to get such configurable expansion, I'll be more than happy to test it and share results with You (and the rest) in appropriate thread. Thanks

[fitzsteve]

Is there any way to force the early config menu? With my Transcend CF card it starts to boot immediately with the default settings and I can't access the menu with a mouse button.

My other CF's don't have this issue and even if I change the settings and save them with another CF or with no CF the transcend always causes them to default so I get no AUX slot or Fast Ram on my ACA1232, it's very strange I never noticed this before I re done my CF's today!

If you think it's a bug worth reporting I'll get in touch via the site

I'm using the latest firmware of course.

[Schoenfeld]

Originally Posted by fitzsteve

Is there any way to force the early config menu? With my Transcend CF card it starts to boot immediately with the default settings and I can't access the menu with a mouse button.

That's just an incompatible CF card - use a different one. The CF card slots and the flash chip share the same bus (both address and data), so CF cards *can* interfere with the overall functionality of the ACA500. Also mentioned in the manual :-)

Jens