Thanks, I have a V20 in the mail so I guess it's that version I would need.

Looks like the XT-IDE works, at least the BIOS part. What a great piece of hardware! I'm seriously thinking about hardwiring one to the bus expansion port of my 8086 laptop, I reckon the XT-CF and a card would fit in the empty HDD bay.

Well the XT project is coming along nicely, I tried a spare SB16 CT1770 and it worked fine in an 8-bit slot (tested with Prince of Persia). Although this machine is way too slow for digital sound, no harm in having Adlib & a joystick port. I might wire the PC speaker output to the SB16 and connect the internal speaker to one channel, using the diagnostic header. That way it's still a self-contained system without external speakers.

I also have the V20, a black Gotek and an 8-bit EGA on the way for some 16-colour goodness. Will play around with some composite games first though!
I'm going to try using a microdrive instead of normal CF, just for a change. Bought some black spray paint to spray the 5.25->3.5 bezel.

XT-IDE+ BIOS with HD Floppy support:

(note: only for CPU's that suport 80186 instructions like NEC V20 and up)

XT-IDE BIOS with HD Floppy support:

(the following version will work with 8088/8086 and up)

Enjoy!!!

bjt wrote:

Although this machine is way too slow for digital sound

Not really.
With 8088 Corruption and 8088 Domination you can play streaming video AND audio, even on a 4.77 MHz 8088, over a SB.

Alright, we have a new hard drive! The CF-IDE bracket I bought from eBay doesn't work, I'm not sure why yet. I borrowed the CF-IDE adapter from my Thinkpad to test for now. The microdrive is such a cool piece of (obsolete) tech, can't believe there is a tiny platter in there.

Still not happy with the amount of noise generated by the PSU fan, so I drilled out the rivets and replaced it with this Noctua & rubber fan mounts.

Because the 5160/5153/Model F package is a nice self-contained system, I didn't want to introduce non-matchibg speakers into the mix. The stock PC speaker is quite loud so a volume control would be nice too.

I ran the PC speaker to the SB16 and the internal speaker to the SB16 diagnostic header for mono output. This provides volume-controlled PC speaker, FM and digital sound via the internal speaker. The PC speaker input is prone to audio RFI but it can be minimised by setting the PC speaker input level to minimum. The 5160's speaker output is extremely loud so I used a ~1k resistor to match levels with FM/digital.

Nice!

I've also noticed the RFI on the speaker input. I've read somewhere that one can only connect the + side of the cable, and insert a capacitor (I think 1µF) between the speaker + and - on the mainboard. Can't remember where I found it though, and haven't tried it yet. Maybe I'm misremembering.

How's the noise level with the new fan?

oerk wrote:

I've also noticed the RFI on the speaker input. I've read somewhere that one can only connect the + side of the cable, and insert a capacitor (I think 1µF) between the speaker + and - on the mainboard. Can't remember where I found it though, and haven't tried it yet. Maybe I'm misremembering.

I think that's only if you want to do a raw tap of your PC speaker:
http://www.oldskool.org/guides/speakerrecording/#Alternate

But the SB has a PC Speaker input for its mixer, and afaik all the required circuitry is already on there (the manual doesn't mention that you need to do anything other than just connect the wire from motherboard to card).
On my SB Pro 2.0 it's very quiet in my 5160, used it to capture the party version of 8088 MPH: https://youtu.be/yHXx3orN35Y.
The final version was done with a direct tap using a capacitor: https://youtu.be/hNRO7lno_DM.
The SB sounds different, as if it runs through a low-pass filter, to remove some of the noise, and make it sound more pleasant/speaker-like.

oerk wrote:

How's the noise level with the new fan?

It's nice and quiet now, just an air moving sound. I think fan bearing tech has come a long way since the 80s.

Next up - flash my new Gotek with the HxC firmware and install it with the black bezel.

Loving this thread! Keep up the good work 😎

bjt wrote:

It's nice and quiet now, just an air moving sound. I think fan bearing tech has come a long way since the 80s.

I don't think these systems run all that hot anyway, under normal conditions... Perhaps a temperature-controlled fan would be even more silent 😀

Scali wrote:

But the SB has a PC Speaker input for its mixer, and afaik all the required circuitry is already on there (the manual doesn't mention that you need to do anything other than just connect the wire from motherboard to card).

I think you're right. Still can't remember where I found it. I just noticed that my AWE 64 (I know, wayyy too modern for this thread 😵 ) adds noticeable bus noise with the PC speaker input connected. It's practically silent when it's disconnected. I don't mind it, it's just something I noticed.

EDIT: Found the solution I was talking about:
http://www.deinmeister.de/e_sbpcqlnk.htm

Scali wrote:

Perhaps a temperature-controlled fan would be even more silent 😀

Yep... I have a few AC8025TC, these work great, for instance in AT PSUs with unregulated fans.

Apparently there's a new model out - still dirt cheap:
http://www.arctic.ac/de_en/arctic-f8-tc.html

oerk wrote:

I think you're right. Still can't remember where I found it. I just noticed that my AWE 64 (I know, wayyy too modern for this thread 😵 ) adds noticeable bus noise with the PC speaker input connected. It's practically silent when it's disconnected. I don't mind it, it's just something I noticed.

Well, the PC speaker output on an IBM PC is very crude and unfiltered (basically just toggling a 5v line on and off), so if you have eg a bad PSU or some bad capacitors on your motherboard somewhere, delivering lots of noise in the power, you will hear that through the PC speaker.
Apparently my IBM 5160 is in reasonably good shape, and isn't very noisy at all.

I have only one comment for this thread: it makes me freaking jealous 🤣 🤣 🤣

Keropi: Your turbo XT is a lot nicer than this machine 😀

Some more progress, swapped the 8088 for a V20. Still feels glacially slow 🤣

Tested the Gotek with HxC firmware, works great. Here's the HxC file manager running on the XT (black and white composite).

After a lot of messing around with the brackets, got the Gotek installed. Spraypainted bezel came out OK I think. Half height drives on an XT are a pain.

heh, if you were close I'd swap with you in an instant 😁
I am looking to get a 515x here, they do pop up from time to time....

Nice work bjt!

With the Gotek installed and the NEC V20 you can use the XT-IDE BIOS with the high density floppy extensions. 😎

Yep, just need to get another floppy controller. I'm on the lookout for a suitable multi I/O card.

A standard 16bit one will work fine in an 8bit slot. If i remember correctly only IDE won't be available.

Waiting for a few more bits to come in - standoffs to mount the CF adaptor and an activity LED, and the multi IO.

Started installing software in the meantime, loving the Gotek - download images, convert to HFE using the HxC software, assign multiple discs to slots and away you go.