Ebay: Floppy controller for four drives on MX4 format - Vortex compatible!

[GUNHED]

Have a look at this, it's the Vortex F1-D controller on a MX4 expansion card:

https://www.ebay.de/itm/266837430605?itmmeta=01HZ4WGKM0PBY239GTB72PH42V&hash=item3e20c0114d:g:uxYAAOSwXmRmWH2m&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAA0PUvk1N%2BYTfhVpjXVWhO5mB4zERjUZACSfSIPhDObnwhDe4CMasK8NgQsmbxAPU%2B4TgxWJafU2Xtz5chCs4qgcMqtv7vlYUEcqq3xag3IUvdWdQgVhha9Dlg70daJUhtrrCaUP7%2Ba0nb1Q%2BAEYESa1IT4Pft%2B8%2BhZBn%2BdNwTCvmGAOrltc2VXibhhEhIS6e8Bj04wpFlfLvF2Ye6CMWdDtTxqwsoB%2BECLAVEkcstRRR3lByxgonogqyoRyY%2FX5rseBiGOW3KjrUYlQoSf6tm%2Frw%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR5K6wpz5Yw

[GUNHED]

Since somebody asked on ebay: This controller works for CPC464/664/6128 and 6128plus. It provides the feature to work with four floppies or floppy emulators at the same time. In addition you can use the internal floppy A and the B-drive of the internal FDC / DDI-1 on CPC464.

[eto]

I guess this only works if you add a ROM with another expansion?

[Bryce]

Really nice old school design, even the traces! Only the crystal and the caps on the back let's you know it's a modern design. Pity about the "Bodge-wires" on the back. Hopefully he can resolve those on the next batch of boards.

Bryce.

[GUNHED]

There are ideas for an expansion card with FDC to read HD floppies, but this is very early pre-pre-everything brain storm stage ;-)

[GUNHED]

Well, I should add this information: Basically this 100% working prototype of the Vortex-Kontroller-MX4 is especially for collectors. It's the only one existing unit. And it's a small piece of CPC history. 

[eto]

You mean it's a prototype for this project?

https://github.com/hanshuebner/cpc-floppy-controllers


And if I understand it right, it's purpose is to attach up to 4 more floppies to a CPC but I need a specifically patched ROM for this? Where do I get the patched ROM?

[GUNHED]

There are the following ways:

- Use FutureOS (works 100%)
- Patch ParaDOS by yourself
- Or use the decoded VDOS (didn't test it up to now)
- Ask the ParaDOS maker to add Vortex I/O port
- Wait for me to do the alteration of ParaDOS (which can take some time, because I'm pretty busy right now).

[eto]

In other words, except for FutureOs it was not tried with anything else?

[GUNHED]

No, not now. And I see no need to do that, because I don't have the time.