Can't get MSATA working on real machine

Glen M · 06 August 2020, 10:39

I've been pulling my hair out over this for the last month.

I've been trying to get an MSATA drive working without luck. Started with an SSD but after some reading it appears that MSATA is perhaps more compatible but having tried 2 different adaptors for each and I'm getting nowhere.

Everything works fine on the PC under WinUAE.

On the 1200 or CD32 all you get it a pause and then the kickstart screen. No HDD activity light so my best guess is a power issue. Would I be better using an adaptor that takes an external power source and tap that off the floppy drive? Other thing I've considered is the fault is in the MSATA drive itself but why then does it work on the PC.

For information this MSATA drive I'm using

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/16GB-Soli...72.m2749.l2649

and these are the 2 adaptors I've tried

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-5-Inch-...72.m2749.l2649

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/mSATA-to-...53.m2749.l2649

Any ideas why this isn't working?

Can anyone suggest a known compatible MSATA drive and adaptor?

nogginthenog · 07 August 2020, 16:29

I've been using a mSATA drive for some time in my A4000.
http://eab.abime.net/showpost.php?p=...7&postcount=18

40pin device so a little different. Power comes off the motherboard via a molex cable.

As far as I know 44pin IDE should supply power.

Anything showing in HDToolBox?
Is your drive set as Master?

solarmon · 07 August 2020, 16:53

Has the A1200 ever worked with the IDE for other storage options - like a normal hard disk, or CF, or SD card?

Does it appear in the boot menu (hold down both mouse buttons).

Use a Workbench boot floppy disk and load hdtoolbox to see if it is detected at all.

Are there any cap corrosion near or on the IDE connector?

Also try a different, preferably a known working, ribbon cable.

Mikerochip · 07 August 2020, 17:15

Glen, I had a weird problem, something similar to yours.

I used a noname mSata drive, and whenever I turned on the A1200, the power light blinked rapidly

I first tried with the first adapter you have listed, then the second, but both had the same results.

I made sure they were the right way connected, checked the power pins etc etc.

Problem solved itself when I got a different mSata drive: I got a Sandisk one.

Glen M · 07 August 2020, 18:26

I have a cf card in the CD32 and an ide drive in the 1200s so nothing wrong from that point of view.

I'll try booting to workbench off disk and see if it's visible in hdtoolbox but I've set up countless drives before and never had the issue hense why I think it's more a problem with the msata rather than anything I'm doing.

Kin Hell · 16 August 2020, 10:44

Not all mSATA adapters will work in an Amiga.

I tired the exact one you got on eBay....

https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/1338405435?iid=323804713721

No luck what so ever.

This one from Amazon works okay; https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
but is very very slow to boot. Sometimes it needs a few three finger salutes to get my 1D4 mobo to see it & the HD LED is always half lit.

Despite the slooow boot time, it performs equally as fast as a 1GB Fujitsu MicroDrive in Mb/Sec. This fella boots in about 3 seconds, where as the mSATA takes almost a minute.

Using WB 3.1.4 ROMS here & a 32GB mSATA device.

Cable orientation is also easy to mess up.

*edit*

What you get from Amazon is different from what's shown in the link pics. Here's a shot of mine with it's 32GB device mounted.

Thinking about a buffered IDE Interface. It might address the LED staying half on & increase boot time. Hard drives usually have an onboard Cache, where as Memory type cards do not.

Mikerochip · 28 August 2020, 11:35

GlenM, just FYI, this is the cheaper mSata adapter I use:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000084351137.html

Works perfectly.

It's not listed, but, Pin1 is on the same side as the mSata socket.

So, if you're using a KA60 like me, https://rastport.com/products/KA60/

The mSata would be fitted on the left, but, the mSata drive and socket are facing down.

The 5v cards that work, btw, have 'M811' printed on the front.

The ones that have 'HX-811' printed on them don't. (I see one of the adapters you have has HX-811 printed on it)

Kin Hell · 06 September 2020, 17:31

I must apologise my comment above, stating the eBay 44 pin to mSATA wouldn't work. - I've tried again and can confirm it does work.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/1338405435?iid=323804713721

Issue for me was seeing a dead display, over & over again. My 1D4 Mobo with 3.1.4 ROM's appears to lock up. Unless you see a Grey screen that bounces in & out of Black & Grey a couple of times, the mSATA device will not be seen.

I'm hoping a 4 Way Buffered IDE Device & the Fast ATA Gayle adapter from AmigaKit will stop this happening. The Fast ATA Gayle adapter also has a Fix for the PCMCIA bug which I believe to be the culprit.

Sorry Glen M.

Glen M · 07 September 2020, 12:52

Thanks gents I'll look into this again and have another go, hopefully get it working this time!

06 August 2020, 10:39	#1
Glen M Registered User Join Date: May 2017 Location: Belfast Posts: 750	Can't get MSATA working on real machine I've been pulling my hair out over this for the last month. I've been trying to get an MSATA drive working without luck. Started with an SSD but after some reading it appears that MSATA is perhaps more compatible but having tried 2 different adaptors for each and I'm getting nowhere. Everything works fine on the PC under WinUAE. On the 1200 or CD32 all you get it a pause and then the kickstart screen. No HDD activity light so my best guess is a power issue. Would I be better using an adaptor that takes an external power source and tap that off the floppy drive? Other thing I've considered is the fault is in the MSATA drive itself but why then does it work on the PC. For information this MSATA drive I'm using https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/16GB-Soli...72.m2749.l2649 and these are the 2 adaptors I've tried https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-5-Inch-...72.m2749.l2649 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/mSATA-to-...53.m2749.l2649 Any ideas why this isn't working? Can anyone suggest a known compatible MSATA drive and adaptor?

16 August 2020, 10:44	#6
Kin Hell 0ld0r Git Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cornwall, UK Posts: 1,570	Not all mSATA adapters will work in an Amiga. I tired the exact one you got on eBay.... https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/1338405435?iid=323804713721 No luck what so ever. This one from Amazon works okay; https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 but is very very slow to boot. Sometimes it needs a few three finger salutes to get my 1D4 mobo to see it & the HD LED is always half lit. Despite the slooow boot time, it performs equally as fast as a 1GB Fujitsu MicroDrive in Mb/Sec. This fella boots in about 3 seconds, where as the mSATA takes almost a minute. Using WB 3.1.4 ROMS here & a 32GB mSATA device. Cable orientation is also easy to mess up. edit What you get from Amazon is different from what's shown in the link pics. Here's a shot of mine with it's 32GB device mounted. Thinking about a buffered IDE Interface. It might address the LED staying half on & increase boot time. Hard drives usually have an onboard Cache, where as Memory type cards do not. Last edited by Kin Hell; 16 August 2020 at 15:30.

28 August 2020, 11:35	#7
Mikerochip Registered User Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Ireland Posts: 304	GlenM, just FYI, this is the cheaper mSata adapter I use: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000084351137.html Works perfectly. It's not listed, but, Pin1 is on the same side as the mSata socket. So, if you're using a KA60 like me, https://rastport.com/products/KA60/ The mSata would be fitted on the left, but, the mSata drive and socket are facing down. The 5v cards that work, btw, have 'M811' printed on the front. The ones that have 'HX-811' printed on them don't. (I see one of the adapters you have has HX-811 printed on it) Last edited by Mikerochip; 28 August 2020 at 12:07.

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07 August 2020, 16:29	#2
nogginthenog Amigan Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: London Posts: 1,309	I've been using a mSATA drive for some time in my A4000. http://eab.abime.net/showpost.php?p=...7&postcount=18 40pin device so a little different. Power comes off the motherboard via a molex cable. As far as I know 44pin IDE should supply power. Anything showing in HDToolBox? Is your drive set as Master?

07 August 2020, 16:53	#3
solarmon Registered User Join Date: Dec 2018 Location: UK Posts: 1,715	Has the A1200 ever worked with the IDE for other storage options - like a normal hard disk, or CF, or SD card? Does it appear in the boot menu (hold down both mouse buttons). Use a Workbench boot floppy disk and load hdtoolbox to see if it is detected at all. Are there any cap corrosion near or on the IDE connector? Also try a different, preferably a known working, ribbon cable.

07 August 2020, 17:15	#4
Mikerochip Registered User Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Ireland Posts: 304	Glen, I had a weird problem, something similar to yours. I used a noname mSata drive, and whenever I turned on the A1200, the power light blinked rapidly I first tried with the first adapter you have listed, then the second, but both had the same results. I made sure they were the right way connected, checked the power pins etc etc. Problem solved itself when I got a different mSata drive: I got a Sandisk one.

07 August 2020, 18:26	#5
Glen M Registered User Join Date: May 2017 Location: Belfast Posts: 750	I have a cf card in the CD32 and an ide drive in the 1200s so nothing wrong from that point of view. I'll try booting to workbench off disk and see if it's visible in hdtoolbox but I've set up countless drives before and never had the issue hense why I think it's more a problem with the msata rather than anything I'm doing.

06 September 2020, 17:31	#8
Kin Hell 0ld0r Git Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cornwall, UK Posts: 1,570	I must apologise my comment above, stating the eBay 44 pin to mSATA wouldn't work. - I've tried again and can confirm it does work. https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/1338405435?iid=323804713721 Issue for me was seeing a dead display, over & over again. My 1D4 Mobo with 3.1.4 ROM's appears to lock up. Unless you see a Grey screen that bounces in & out of Black & Grey a couple of times, the mSATA device will not be seen. I'm hoping a 4 Way Buffered IDE Device & the Fast ATA Gayle adapter from AmigaKit will stop this happening. The Fast ATA Gayle adapter also has a Fix for the PCMCIA bug which I believe to be the culprit. Sorry Glen M.

07 September 2020, 12:52	#9
Glen M Registered User Join Date: May 2017 Location: Belfast Posts: 750	Thanks gents I'll look into this again and have another go, hopefully get it working this time!

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