Finally!

Finally!
I'm finally getting started. After some missteps with parts I'm finally ready to get building. Starting with a rev 2 because I currently see no advantage to the rev 3 given that the rev 2 works and is stable up to 50Mhz with working IDE.

Of course I started with the most difficult parts first. That being the CPLD'S. The sockets are just sitting there to test fit them. I'm going to install just enough parts to enable programming of the CPLD'S and then I'll program them. If that goes successfully I'll finish the rest of the board.

#TF530CCC

Amiga 500 Uber ROM

Amiga 500 Uber ROM

In an amazing stroke of luck that I still can't believe, both my Amiga 3.1 ROM and my supply of ST M27C160 EPROM's showed up in the mail today. This completed my collection of Amiga 500 ROM's and I was able to rip all three of them and convert them to the appropriate format to burn onto one 27C160 EPROM which you see here. It contains:
- Kickstart 1.2
- Kickstart 1.3
- Kickstart 3.1
- DiagROM - TerribleFire edition

Now I just have to build the converter board to mount it in a Rev 5 Amiga 500 ROM socket and allow switching between ROMs via DIP switches (for now).

TF530 programming tip

TF530 programming tip

I found this in a post on EAB today and thought I'd share it here.

"If your Xilinx programmer is of the cheap Chinese Digilink knock-offs, you'll need to download Digilink Adept and install the plugins for it. It is a matter of copying them in to a folder underneath C:\.Xilinx and selecting that unit under "Cable Setup." Mine is such an interface, and although it appeared to somewhat work with the default settings, I was never able to program or obtain consistent chains."

#TF530CCC

Use standard USB mice with retro computers

Originally shared by Christopher Gaul

Use standard USB mice with retro computers

If you've ever tried to find a replacement mouse for a vintage computer, you'll appreciate this project. If your vintage computer uses a quadrature encoder type mouse (ie most of them) then your choices in the past were to pay out the nose for an original mouse, or buy a specific converter for your computer only to use an old PS/2 mouse which themselves are getting harder to find. Now you have this device which can support most old school computers and uses standard USB protocol that works with standard USB mice.
http://www.waitingforfriday.com/?p=827

Can't afford the ridiculous prices the few surviving C=65's fetch at auction?

Can't afford the ridiculous prices the few surviving C=65's fetch at auction?
The Mega 65 is coming, and you can own one!

This is a great project idea, recreating the ultra rare, only ever made it to prototype, Commodore C=65, and doing it in a way that can be recreated with available parts at sane prices.
https://hackaday.io/project/11096-mega65-open-8-bit-computer

UPDATE and comments on the Terrible Fire Amiga accelerators

UPDATE and comments on the Terrible Fire Amiga accelerators

I know that some people are a little frustrated with the lack of progress here with regards to the TF530 and other Terrible Fire projects so I wanted to post some comments and encouragement.
The good news is that the project leader, Stephen (aka Terrible Fire, aka Plasmab) is back at full steam and making good progress on the project. The Rev2 TF530 is pretty much as feature complete and stable as it's going to get. Work on the Rev3 is progressing and a new model TF530S has been announced. The Rev2 is stable up to the 40-50 MHz range and feature complete with the exception of SPI which may never function on that board. Not a big loss at this point and time for someone that just wants a decent, reasonably priced, 030/882 board for their 68k Amiga with a little bit of really fast RAM and decent IDE.
The Rev3 adds some stability and hopefully will eventually eliminate the need for any jumpers like the remaining _INT2 jumper.
The TF530S is a major iteration in the lineup which explains the name change. This revision adds a new CPLD with more pis and more macro cells, allowing all the functions to be fully implemented. SPI for example. This model will also move to SATA from PATA IDE. As well Stephen is looking at moving to 4MB of SRAM and Autoconfig'ing that RAM in Zorro-III space, leaving all 8MB of Zorro-II space free for other boards and devices.
The TF530S will, hopefully, be the final design in the 530 lineup.

All this leads us to two conclusions.
I - Lots of progress is being made and the future looks good.
II- Lots or progress means lots of change and a moving target for us here looking to build the project.

This means that were going to have to continue to be patient and accept the issues facing us. The upside is that the Rev2 is a solid, usable design that's a great option for those simple wanting a reasonably priced boost in performance on their 68k Amiga along with a decently fast IDE interface. This device seems ideal for vintage A500 gamers wanting the performance to play 90+% of Amiga games at acceptable performance levels.
I'll be working to get those of us content with that up and going soon.
The rev3 is a transitional step that does improve on the Rev2, but that isn't absolutely necessary.
For those wanting the kitchen sink for their 68k Amiga 030 accelerator it's best to wait for the TF530S to become a stable design. This means we'll need to remain patient as the design gets tested and iterated.
Keep in mind that even the hyper fast paced tech segments like cell phones take at least a year to iterate designs and that's by company's with multi million/billion dollar budgets and massive human and technology resources. Given this is a project led by one man, working in his home, in his spare time, it's progressing amazingly fast. Compared to how long some Amiga and other vintage community projects have taken to see the light of day, this is moving at light speed.

SO hang in there, be patient, and you'll be rewarded.

#TF530CCC