New board: MonSTer

[Fujiyama]

Aha! JBLOCK = "jumper block"!
So it should be like this:

megaSTe_jumpers_pinout.jpg

A picture usually explains things better

Troed: there's no Fuji logo in the top left, so that must explain why I can't boot with the CF drive.
Hold on..... (inserting FLASHON jumper, then rebooting)... yes, you're right -the Fuji logo now comes up and my Swedish TOS appears as before, so I'm definitely in TOS 2.06.

But why the CF card still won't boot is a puzzle

[alanh]

I'd attach directly to pin 10 on the ACSI port itself, the clip will fit into the DMA port on the right side to ensure you are picking up the correct signal.

[troed]

But why the CF card still won't boot is a puzzle

TOS 2.06 can only autoboot IDE from port 1 IIRC. Unless you're sure that's how your CF adapter is connected, you can try jumpering IDESW as well (swapping ports).

[Fujiyama]

Success at last!
The problem could be a combination of things (likely also a wrong installation of CBHD on the boot drive), but somehow I've succeeded in partitioning and booting from the CF card with a "C" and "D" partition. I've also had the same success with making the IDE hard drive bootable, so that's great news!

DMA interrupt worked fine from resistor R525, but a direct connection was worth trying. Also the CF drive was already attached to the "primary" IDE connector on the MonSTer board, but I did mess around with the IDE-CF card jumpers along with the "IDESW" jumper. I ended up removing one CF card, setting the IDE-CF card's jumper to "Master/Slave" (instead of "Slave/Master"). I'll see about installing the other CF card, then look into why HDdriver won't work because HDdriver (a recent version) is needed to handle the ALT-RAM, isn't it? In any case HDdriver has lots of useful features which will probably come in handy.

UPDATE: I now also have the second CF-card working as additional partitions, and even booting up (from the first CF-card) with HDdriver 8.13!

[Fujiyama]

After all that it's time to give something back.
Here are a some photos with instructions on how to attach the various wires, jumpers etc, in case others are wondering as well...
(this is for the MegaSTe version of the MonSTer).

DMA interrupt wire (for booting from an IDE drive connected to the MonSTer)
This is pin 10 of the ACSI connector, but finding it difficult to solder in a wire there, I used one side of R525 instead, as shown here (I'll be soldering it to the resistor later).

20170308-183834_IMG_1263-Edit.jpg

20170308-183600_IMG_1247-Edit-2.jpg

The other end of the wire goes to one of the two "ACSI" pins of the MonSTer's JBLOCK (see photo further down)

Re-enabling the Blitter chip
You need to attach wires from 2 ICs on the MegaSTe main board which go to the MonSTer board.
First locate these ICs on the Mega STe main board:

• U1 (74F244) found underneath IDC-cable attached to the VME-port
• U6 (22V10) found just right to the MonSTer IDE ports
• U11 (22V10) found just right to the MonSTer IDE ports

20170313-233849_IMG_1342-Edit.jpg

20170313-234016_IMG_1346-Edit.jpg

You need to connect the wires from U1 to the MonSTer.
Then connect a wire from U6 or U11 to the MonSTer.
Here are the connection pins of the MonSTer which goes to those ICs. You also need to insert a jumper to actually enable the Blitter as shown here:

20170313-114228_IMG_1335-Edit.jpg

JBLOCK connection pinout
The JBLOCK (jumper block) contains the two ACSI DMA interrupt pins (see "DMA interrupt wire" above), connections for activity LEDs (for each of the two IDE buses), connections to a realtime battery backed clock and jumpers for various functions. The MegaSTe already has a built in battery backed clock so this is probably not of much interest to most people, but I'm considering one of those cheap DS1338 based modules (available on eBay etc) because of the more handy battery

20170308-134223_IMG_1215-Edit.jpg

MonSTer orientation/placement and CPU insertion and removal
This information should probably be in the beginning, but anyway...

20170308-132332_IMG_1200-Edit.jpg

The removal part of the 68000 is mostly when you unplug it from the MegaSTe main board, then insert it (the correct way -see photo) into the MonSTer which in turn is inserted into the (now) empty 68000 CPU socket on the main board.

If something's incorrect please let me know

[Fujiyama]

As nobody else can confirm if the connections in my previous posting is correct I can now confirm it myself as I just wired it all up and added the "Blitter" jumper as instructed in the "MegaSTE-solders.txt" text-file

20170419-225302_IMG_2158.jpg

All seems to work fine initially (the TOS 2.06 desktop's "Blitter" option in my Mega STe is no longer greyed out, so I can turn it on and save the desktop settings).

I do have another problem (though this may be at my own ignorance): when I run M_ALTRAM.PRG from the AUTO folder I get these strange black boxes replacing icons and other window elements. This happens whenever I select one of the memory options (2 MB ALT-RAM, 4 MB ALT-RAM or 6 MB ALT-RAM) then reboot (as instructed earlier in this thread I believe). If I choose "No ALT-RAM" I don't have this problem. The messed up graphics can even be seen in M_ALTRAM.PRG after rebooting.

N_AHBLTR.png

N_AH0002.png

N_AH0001.png

Another strange thing is that whenever I run M_ALTRAM.PRG I'm told that the firmware is obsolete.

N_AH0000.png

How do I update the MonSTer's firmware? I just re-downloaded all the MonSTer software from the Alan's site, just to ensure I hadn't ruled out any updates and can't find any info about the MonSTer's firmware.

My setup: a 4MB Mega STe with the MonSTer's re-enabling of the Blitter (as per the wiring instructions), "Blitter" jumper enabled, "Flash off" jumper enabled (to run TOS 2.06 ROMs already present in the computer as I haven't yet looked into how to flash TOS into the MonSTer) and the MonSTer's DMA interrupt pin connected to pin 10 of the ACSI connector to allow for booting from a CF-card. A dual (master and slave) IDE to CF board is attached to the first IDE port with HDdriver 10.02 installed on the primary CF-card for booting on its own.

[joska]

All seems to work fine initially (the TOS 2.06 desktop's "Blitter" option in my Mega STe is no longer greyed out, so I can turn it on and save the desktop settings).

I do have another problem (though this may be at my own ignorance): when I run M_ALTRAM.PRG from the AUTO folder I get these strange black boxes replacing icons and other window elements. This happens whenever I select one of the memory options (2 MB ALT-RAM, 4 MB ALT-RAM or 6 MB ALT-RAM) then reboot (as instructed earlier in this thread I believe). If I choose "No ALT-RAM" I don't have this problem.

Disable the blitter or use NVDI.

Another strange thing is that whenever I run M_ALTRAM.PRG I'm told that the firmware is obsolete.

Send a mail to Alan. There has been some changes to the MonSTEr firmware with better support for MSTE.

[Fujiyama]

Thanks Joska. So you're pretty much ruling out any hardware mistakes I might have made when hooking it all up?
Hopefully Alan's reading and will comment here (so other people can read it as well).

[alanh]

I do have another problem (though this may be at my own ignorance): when I run M_ALTRAM.PRG from the AUTO folder I get these strange black boxes replacing icons and other window elements. This happens whenever I select one of the memory options (2 MB ALT-RAM, 4 MB ALT-RAM or 6 MB ALT-RAM) then reboot (as instructed earlier in this thread I believe). If I choose "No ALT-RAM" I don't have this problem. The messed up graphics can even be seen in M_ALTRAM.PRG after rebooting.

This usually means the cables to the MonSTer are incorrect for the BliTTer to function. Can you show me a full picture of the connections to the MonSTer board ?

Another strange thing is that whenever I run M_ALTRAM.PRG I'm told that the firmware is obsolete.
N_AH0000.png
How do I update the MonSTer's firmware? I just re-downloaded all the MonSTer software from the Alan's site, just to ensure I hadn't ruled out any updates and can't find any info about the MonSTer's firmware.

If this happens, there is some newer firmware that I haven't released yet, but I can provide it. The problem is you'd need appropriate software like Xilinx IMPACT to flash it to the device.

[Fujiyama]

Here's how I made the Blitter connections in my MegaSTe:

First, ACSI (MonSTer) to pin 10 (ACSI connector).

20170419-225449_IMG_2171.jpg

20170308-134306_IMG_1219-Edit.jpg

Then various pins from the U1 chip (74F244) to pins on the MonSTer:
pin 12 BRW (U1) to BRW (MonSTer, yellow wire)
pin 14 BUDS (U1) to BUDS (MonSTer, red wire)
pin 16 BLDS (U1) to BLDS (MonSTer, orange wire)
pin 18 BAS (U1) to BAS (MonSTer, brown wire)

20170419-225306_IMG_2159.jpg

20170419-231419_IMG_2179.jpg

20170313-234016_IMG_1346-Edit.jpg

Then pin 9 BDTK (U6 (22V10) ) to BDTK (MonSTer, blue wire)

20170313-235149_IMG_1361-Edit.jpg

And finally, a jumper placed across the two "Blitter" pins (MonSTer) -not pictured, but here's an overview I made earlier showing where it goes:

20170313-114228_IMG_1335-Edit.jpg

It looks very messy after securing the wires with bathroom silicone, but being relatively stiff wires and delicate connections I had to do something to prevent them from breaking loose. The only possibly flaky connection could be the wire going to pin 9 on U6 as I didn't want to solder directly on a hard-to-replace component, so I tightly wrapped a wire around one of its pins and covered it with a heat shrink tube. It should be OK, but could a bad connection there cause the black box graphics I showed earlier? Note that the problem only occurs whenever I enable Alt-RAM.

Is the "MonSTer firmware obsolete" message common with MegaSTe computers or am I the only one who's getting this every time I run the Alt-RAM program? I don't know anything about Xinlinx impact -is it a matter of connecting certain pins of the MonSTer board to a USB port which goes to a PC and running the software to put in a new firmware, or something else?

EDIT: it looks like I might have mixed up the wire colours. I'm doing a double-check now, but feel free to comment the above.

[czietz]

Note that silicone (the bathroom variant) is probably one of the worst ideas to secure electronic components. While curing, this type of silicone will usually produce acetic acid that will corrode copper wires and traces.

[Fujiyama]

Note that silicone (the bathroom variant) is probably one of the worst ideas to secure electronic components. While curing, this type of silicone will usually produce acetic acid that will corrode copper wires and traces.

Ouch!!!
Obviously I didn't know, so thanks for telling me. Apart from ripping/cutting it off, how do you recommend I get rid of everything to avoid any corrosion?
Hot glue might be a better solution then.

Aha! Having re-checked the wires it looks like I've flipped the 5-pin connector (BDTK, BRW etc.) around, so I'll flip it back and see what happens (and remove the silicone)

[piku]

I believe for this job hot melt glue is the best choice.

[alanh]

EDIT: it looks like I might have mixed up the wire colours. I'm doing a double-check now, but feel free to comment the above.

Yes, it looks like your header connector is completely reversed, making all the connections wrong. Please double check them.

[Fujiyama]

I'm on it!
The silicone had fortunately not cured completely so it was easy to remove. Out with the hot glue gun instead

I'm not that happy with the wire I've wrapped around pin 9 of U6 (PAL22V10) but I'm not comfortable soldering it directly on to the (hard to replace) IC either. Does anyone have any good suggestions for a permanent connection? I've gone through the schematics and apart from pin 21 of U11 (also a PAL22V10) there doesn't appear to be anywhere else (on the component side) to solder a wire (yes, there's a tiny via but I'm afraid it'll get ripped out and being so small won't give a good connection anyway).

[Fujiyama]

It appears to be working fine now
And I carefully soldered wires directly to the IC pins this time (carefully removing any dirt/oxide etc. before soldering using a fibreglass pen).

How about that error message I get whenever I run M_ALTRAM.PRG? Should it just be ignored or is it cause for concern?
Joska said a few posts ago that there were some improvements to the MegaSTe with a newer firmware -what are those?

[Fujiyama]

erhm.... and after posting the above my MegaSTe has started getting its hickups and coughs of sorts and it's time time do some troubleshooting
It's one fine machine, so I'm aiming for a total recovery soon

I'm wondering: what was the final verdict on using a MegaSTe version of the MonSTer inside a regular STe?
Apart from the obvious physical differences (which won't allow the case and/or power supply to fit -doesn't matter to me anyway), are the two boards electrically the same and use the same firmware (which I'm confusingly told is obsolete)?

[mikepears]

20170904_193000.jpg

20170904_193000.jpg

Hi

finally fitted up my monster board into my Baby ST

I have a small physical clash with my Exxos 4MB board, question, are there any PCB traces in the bottom RHS of the Monster board, it looks relatively unpopulated, perhaps just a ground plane?

What i would like to do is file a small part of the Monster board off, perhaps just 1mm, any ideas if this will trash my Monster?


thanks

[Fujiyama]

Hi

finally fitted up my monster board into my Baby ST

Those images just show up as black, empty boxes here (I've tried it with two different browsers with the same result).

[Fujiyama]

The Mega STe seems to be well and alive again

I've got a 44-pin IDE-CF adapter which I intend to use with the MonSTer but it has a missing pin on its female connector meaning it won't fit the MonSTer (because pin 20 is present). According to information on the 2.5" 44-pin ATA connector pinout this particular pin (20) is sometimes/optionally used as a "key" pin to prevent the ATA-connector from being inserted the wrong way round.

So I need to cut one pin on each of the two 44-pin male ATA connectors on the MonSTer, but I would like some confirmation that I've got it right before I possibly cut the wrong pin. Are the pinouts in the following photos correct, meaning I can cut the two yellow-coloured pins on the MonSTer board?

20171011-171832_IMG_8526-Edit.jpg

Here's my dual slot IDE-CF adapter (which works great with the MonSTer), but I intend to use it in another computer. Its pin numbering (43) and arrow helped me make sense of the MonSTer pinout, so I'm 99% sure I've got it all right :

20171011-171823_IMG_8525-Edit.jpg

Here's the new IDE-CF adapter which I want to use instead.
Without a cable it can be mounted directly to the MonSTer board and not need any special mounting inside the computer. First, the component side:

20171011-171854_IMG_8527-Edit.jpg

Now for the rear (connector side):

20171011-172019_IMG_8536-Edit.jpg

[joska]

Are the pinouts in the following photos correct, meaning I can cut the two yellow-coloured pins on the MonSTer board?

Yes.

[Fujiyama]

Thanks. I had to desolder pin 20 from the MonSTer. Perhaps future MonSTer boards could have this pin omitted by default?

It works fine, but for some reason the IDE-CF adapter's activity LED stopped working! It worked to begin with, and the actual LED still works (I tested it with a multimeter). And the activity LED on the dual IDE-CF adapter lights up. Ideas?
It's probably a good idea to connect the LED meant for the hard drive (mounted at the right/front of the Mega STe casing) to the MonSTer board. I believe there are a couple of pins for just that.

UPDATE: I found the external activity LED pins (according to the MonSTer docs), but I must have gotten it wrong because the LED doesn't light up. I tried both polarity directions but no go. And yes -I've confirmed the LED works. I've got the IDE-CF adapter attached to the primary IDE bus.

20170308-134223_IMG_1215-Edit-Edit.jpg

[alanh]

pin20 isn't used on the MonSTer or connected, so it can't affect the CF cards LED.

[Fujiyama]

pin20 isn't used on the MonSTer or connected, so it can't affect the CF cards LED.

I'm not implying the (now) missing pin 20 is the cause of no LED light but wanted to suggest it being omited in future releases of the MonSTer because it (mechanically) prevents a keyed 44-pin IDE female connector from being attached.

[Fujiyama]

Something strange is definitely going on because the "activity" LED of the dual IDE-CF adapter is constantly lit when both CF cards are inserted (the LED only lit up when there was actual drive activity from either CF-card) and the "slave" card doesn't show up on the desktop. I've checked the "slave" CF card by swapping it with the "master" CF-card and even re-partitioned it and both cards are OK.
If I remove a card from the "slave" slot the activity LED works normal again (isn't stuck), so it appears there's something in the interaction between master and slave.
Another thing is that the blitter is grayed out on the TOS 2.06 desktop whereas it's been working fine until today when I tried out the new CF-IDE adapter (and had to remove pin 20 on the primary IDE bus on the MonSTer to make it physically fit). The MonSTer looks fine however (no short circuits around pin 20 as far as I can see after desoldering).

I'll be very happy when everything inside the Mega STe works and I can close the lid for good!