SMS FAB 0005476 REV B MFM controller

SMS FAB 0005476 REV B MFM controller - not detected

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First post, by kotel

Posted on 2025-01-18, 18:26

kotel Offline

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Hi,

This is my first time ever seeing irl and using an MFM controller, so please excuse me 😀
Recently got an SMS FAB 0005476 REV B MFM controller card. No visible damage.
Plugged it into my ms6163 board correctly. BIOS didn't show any extra controller cards besides the intel one. Same as 98se (tried add new hw wizard). Weirdly the Zilog chip and the eeprom close to it get warm while the rest stay cold.
I don't have any MFM drives to test this card, so I at least want to see if this one is detected. I have no idea what I did wrong. Is this supposed to be an IBM pc or compatible MFM controller?

I couldn't save them, but that doesn't mean I can't save myself!
Ready yourself!

Reply 1 of 8, by Grzyb

Posted on 2025-01-18, 19:28

Grzyb Offline

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That controller is ISA 8-bit, primarily for XT-class PCs.
Your board is Slot 1, several generations later.

There's still a chance for them to work together, but:
- BIOS won't detect that controller as an ISAPNP or PCI device
- Windows 9x won't detect it, either

Without an appropriate drive, probably all you can do is to try to enter the Low Level Format utility contained in the controller's BIOS...

In 2003, I voted in favour of joining the European Union. However, due to later developments - especially the restrictions on cash usage - I have withdrawn my support. DOWN WITH THE EU!

Reply 2 of 8, by kotel

Posted on 2025-01-18, 20:10

kotel Offline

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Weird how there's no pop up "detecting drives..." with that MFM controller. Oh well. Guess I'll wait tilt I get my hands on an IBM XT or clone PC.

I couldn't save them, but that doesn't mean I can't save myself!
Ready yourself!

Reply 3 of 8, by Grzyb

Posted on 2025-01-18, 20:41

Grzyb Offline

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MFM drives aren't detected.

If the controller's BIOS is enabled, it *may* display some message during POST.
But for anything more, you need to enter the utility from DEBUG.

In 2003, I voted in favour of joining the European Union. However, due to later developments - especially the restrictions on cash usage - I have withdrawn my support. DOWN WITH THE EU!

Reply 4 of 8, by kotel

Posted on 2025-01-19, 08:32

kotel Offline

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I don't see any jumpers for BIOS enable/disable other than HDD activity LED(?) and W1-8 jumpers.

I couldn't save them, but that doesn't mean I can't save myself!
Ready yourself!

Reply 5 of 8, by Grzyb

Posted on 2025-01-19, 09:59

Grzyb Offline

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kotel wrote on 2025-01-19, 08:32:

I don't see any jumpers for BIOS enable/disable other than HDD activity LED(?) and W1-8 jumpers.

See the links I posted - W7 enables/disables the BIOS.

In 2003, I voted in favour of joining the European Union. However, due to later developments - especially the restrictions on cash usage - I have withdrawn my support. DOWN WITH THE EU!

Reply 6 of 8, by kotel

Posted on 2025-01-19, 10:40

kotel Offline

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W7 is opened, so the BIOS is enabled, or at least should be.

I couldn't save them, but that doesn't mean I can't save myself!
Ready yourself!

Reply 7 of 8, by Grzyb

Posted on 2025-01-19, 10:46

Grzyb Offline

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You can try to run DEBUG, and then:

G=C800:5

AFAIR, for some BIOSes the correct address may be C800:4 or C800:6

In 2003, I voted in favour of joining the European Union. However, due to later developments - especially the restrictions on cash usage - I have withdrawn my support. DOWN WITH THE EU!

Reply 8 of 8, by Allannon

Posted on 2026-06-30, 13:40

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Yeah, these old MFM controllers can be a real pain to get working if you're not on the original hardware. I tried messing with one ages ago, plugged it into a newer motherboard just to see if it'd show up, but nothing was ever detected. Had to wait until I finally got an XT clone before I could even play around with the formatting utility. Pretty much was stuck at the same spot as you, just making sure jumpers were right and no obvious damage. Not much you can do without the original drives, but one thing I learned from my day job in real estate tech is that retro hardware has its own set of quirks, kind of like working out the kinks in things like ringless voicemail for real estate. Sometimes you just have to be patient and get the right setup before stuff clicks.

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