SY99: the 999-disk USB emulator (no software needed)
Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2014 7:45 am
Recently I tested a second generation USB floppy emulator that features a 3-digit LED display. It offers the ability to attach up to 999 virtual floppies to a keyboard and does not require any special software to work with. The device, model SFRM72-FU-DL, costs around $40 with fast 1-week shipping from China. There are many USB floppy emulators that look exactly the same as the SFRM72-FU-DL and they even have model numbers that start with "SFRM72" but their functionality is different. The SFRM72-FU-DL is equipped with a non-volatile 720k internal flash RAM chip. I have seen pictures of some that don't come with the chip though, especially the 1.44M version SFR1M44-FU-DL.
The emulator was tested initially with the SY85 and the 24-pin to 34-pin adapter that we developed and discussed on this forum long ago. The results were posted on the SY85 category. This thread deals with the performance of the emulator after it was installed on the SY99. Simply put, it was EXCELLENT, something I cannot claim about its performance with the SY85.
A few years ago I tested a first generation 720k USB emulator (2-digit LED display) with the SY85 and the SY99. The process to make that device work with the two keyboards was described in these threads:
http://www.yamahaforums.co.uk/forum/vie ... =55&t=5723
http://www.yamahaforums.co.uk/forum/vie ... =56&t=5716
The conclusion of those tests? The SY99 was much easier to work with than the SY85 when both were equipped with the same emulator. Guess what, that's the case with the second generation emulator that is reviewed here.
You will not be able to see any pictures in those two threads (as well as ALL of my other threads on the forum) because the account that I had with a certain ISP was closed and thus all the pictures are gone. In addition those threads are old and I cannot edit them anymore. If the admins have a way to restore the picture links and store my pictures on the forum server I'll be glad to send them to them.
The emulator I tested came with a software CD that should be tossed away for various reasons: the software is old, stolen and mostly useless, not to mention that some of it is in Chinese and Win7 here in the USA cannot translate the menus. Even the instructions can be confusing as to how the whole scheme works. Basically the ebay seller that sold the emulator to me had no idea about the item he was selling. Nothing is new about this of course but at least he was very polite.
You connect the emulator to the SY99 through the 26-to-34 pin adapter that we have discussed in some other thread of the forum years ago. Then you use one jumper only, S1, that "selects" drive B according to the original specifications of the IBM floppy drive interface. "M0", "S0", "JA", "JB", "JC" and "J5" are left open. I know that everybody suggests to use jumper "JA" for the "/READY" signal but the 26-to-34 adapter does not require the use of that jumper.
You will need a USB stick with a capacity of 2GB. Anything bigger is unnecessary because 1000 x 720k = 1000 x 0.7MB = 700MB (or 1.4GB if you use the 1.44M emulator). I have been told that you may be able to attach a USB card reader to the emulator and use a CF card with it but I did not test that option yet. You must use your Win7 (or WinXP) machine to format the stick in FAT (meaning FAT16) or FAT32 and as soon as this step is over you create folders on the stick labeled as "001", "002", "003", ..., "999", without the quotes. You don't have to have 999 of them, only as many as you wish and they do not have to be in consecutive order. I went from "005" to "512", "555" and "991". I only had 8 folders on the stick.
What about "000" that pissed me off greatly until I finally understood what was going on with it? "000" is the root directory. If you create a "000" folder on the stick and access it with the emulator, your 2GB stick will suddenly turn into a 720k one. If that happens you can format it as a 2GB with the v123_sfd utility that comes on the CD or it can be downloaded from various sites on the web. The v123_sfd utility works only on WinXP and older operating systems. There is also a newer version of that utility on the CD, UFloppyManager v2.0, that runs on Win7. So the CD is not completely useless but if things are done right nobody should have to use it.
When you are done with the creation of folders you start filling them up with files for the SY99. Anything above 720k per folder will be ignored by the emulator, simply because its on-board flash RAM chip is limited to 720k.
To load data to the SY99
Turn on the synthesizer but do not plug in the stick yet. DO NOT FORMAT the virtual disk using the disk menu of the SY99. By means of the two buttons of the emulator, select the folder you wish to access. Left button is for decades, right for units, both for hundreds. Plug in the stick and press the RIGHT button. The display will show "d0" for 5-6 seconds. It means that the data from the folder you chose on the stick is copied to the internal 720k flash RAM chip. As soon as the process is finished you can use the SY99 to load the data from the virtual disk. If you want to load data from a different folder you must remove the USB stick from the emulator and repeat the process all over again. One solution to the required stick removal could be to install a push-on/push-off switch and cut the D+ line of the USB connector from the emulator board. This is something I'll check out in the future. Every time I cycled the power to the SY99 I was able to access the data of the emulator's 720k flash memory. It's non-volatile as I mentioned.
To save data from the SY99
Turn on the synthesizer (if it's off) but do not plug in the stick yet. Using the two buttons of the emulator, select the folder you wish to store data to, up to 720k only. Plug in the stick and press the LEFT button. The display will show "d2" for 5-6 seconds. It means that the data from the SY99 virtual disk inside the emulator (the flash RAM chip) is copied to the folder you chose on the USB stick. Anything saved by the SY99 using the save command is actually saved on the emulator's RAM, not on the stick. You can repeat the "save" process without having to remove the stick from the emulator. If you wish to store the SY99 data on a different folder you must remove the stick and repeat the selection process explained here without cycling the power. So, why did I say to avoid formatting the virtual disk? Because if you do you will be able to use that virtual disk with the SY99 but the emulator won't copy it on the stick.
Another neat future of this emulator is that it allows you to create folders on the go, without using your computer. Assume that you are not sure if one of the folders is empty and instead you want to store your SY99 data to a new folder that does not exist on the USB stick. By means of the two buttons of the emulator, choose the folder you wish to create, say 703. Plug in the stick and press the LEFT button. The display will show "d2" for 5-6 seconds. In this case the emulator creates a new folder named "703" and copies the contents of the flash RAM to it. Your PC will be able to access and read the data as you would normally do. It's that simple.
No software is needed and the only drawback at this point is the required removal of the stick in order to change the working folder. A small price to pay for not having to deal with specialized software, I would say.
My emulator came with only one LED and only one hole for that LED above the folder selection buttons. After I opened the emulator I found inside a second 2-color LED. Naturally I drilled a second hole on the faceplate and now I have two LEDs working. The original one shows when the synth is accessing the emulator's RAM, while the second LED shows when the emulator is accessing the USB stick. Please note that some of the second generation USB floppy emulators come without the second LED installed. The only way to know is to open the one you buy and check it out.
I plan to buy one more of these emulators to install it on my QX5FD sequencer but I need an adapter to go from 34-pin Shugart (QX5FD) to 34-pin IBM (emulator). I'll post the results after I have a working adapter.
DrF
The emulator was tested initially with the SY85 and the 24-pin to 34-pin adapter that we developed and discussed on this forum long ago. The results were posted on the SY85 category. This thread deals with the performance of the emulator after it was installed on the SY99. Simply put, it was EXCELLENT, something I cannot claim about its performance with the SY85.
A few years ago I tested a first generation 720k USB emulator (2-digit LED display) with the SY85 and the SY99. The process to make that device work with the two keyboards was described in these threads:
http://www.yamahaforums.co.uk/forum/vie ... =55&t=5723
http://www.yamahaforums.co.uk/forum/vie ... =56&t=5716
The conclusion of those tests? The SY99 was much easier to work with than the SY85 when both were equipped with the same emulator. Guess what, that's the case with the second generation emulator that is reviewed here.
You will not be able to see any pictures in those two threads (as well as ALL of my other threads on the forum) because the account that I had with a certain ISP was closed and thus all the pictures are gone. In addition those threads are old and I cannot edit them anymore. If the admins have a way to restore the picture links and store my pictures on the forum server I'll be glad to send them to them.
The emulator I tested came with a software CD that should be tossed away for various reasons: the software is old, stolen and mostly useless, not to mention that some of it is in Chinese and Win7 here in the USA cannot translate the menus. Even the instructions can be confusing as to how the whole scheme works. Basically the ebay seller that sold the emulator to me had no idea about the item he was selling. Nothing is new about this of course but at least he was very polite.
You connect the emulator to the SY99 through the 26-to-34 pin adapter that we have discussed in some other thread of the forum years ago. Then you use one jumper only, S1, that "selects" drive B according to the original specifications of the IBM floppy drive interface. "M0", "S0", "JA", "JB", "JC" and "J5" are left open. I know that everybody suggests to use jumper "JA" for the "/READY" signal but the 26-to-34 adapter does not require the use of that jumper.
You will need a USB stick with a capacity of 2GB. Anything bigger is unnecessary because 1000 x 720k = 1000 x 0.7MB = 700MB (or 1.4GB if you use the 1.44M emulator). I have been told that you may be able to attach a USB card reader to the emulator and use a CF card with it but I did not test that option yet. You must use your Win7 (or WinXP) machine to format the stick in FAT (meaning FAT16) or FAT32 and as soon as this step is over you create folders on the stick labeled as "001", "002", "003", ..., "999", without the quotes. You don't have to have 999 of them, only as many as you wish and they do not have to be in consecutive order. I went from "005" to "512", "555" and "991". I only had 8 folders on the stick.
What about "000" that pissed me off greatly until I finally understood what was going on with it? "000" is the root directory. If you create a "000" folder on the stick and access it with the emulator, your 2GB stick will suddenly turn into a 720k one. If that happens you can format it as a 2GB with the v123_sfd utility that comes on the CD or it can be downloaded from various sites on the web. The v123_sfd utility works only on WinXP and older operating systems. There is also a newer version of that utility on the CD, UFloppyManager v2.0, that runs on Win7. So the CD is not completely useless but if things are done right nobody should have to use it.
When you are done with the creation of folders you start filling them up with files for the SY99. Anything above 720k per folder will be ignored by the emulator, simply because its on-board flash RAM chip is limited to 720k.
To load data to the SY99
Turn on the synthesizer but do not plug in the stick yet. DO NOT FORMAT the virtual disk using the disk menu of the SY99. By means of the two buttons of the emulator, select the folder you wish to access. Left button is for decades, right for units, both for hundreds. Plug in the stick and press the RIGHT button. The display will show "d0" for 5-6 seconds. It means that the data from the folder you chose on the stick is copied to the internal 720k flash RAM chip. As soon as the process is finished you can use the SY99 to load the data from the virtual disk. If you want to load data from a different folder you must remove the USB stick from the emulator and repeat the process all over again. One solution to the required stick removal could be to install a push-on/push-off switch and cut the D+ line of the USB connector from the emulator board. This is something I'll check out in the future. Every time I cycled the power to the SY99 I was able to access the data of the emulator's 720k flash memory. It's non-volatile as I mentioned.
To save data from the SY99
Turn on the synthesizer (if it's off) but do not plug in the stick yet. Using the two buttons of the emulator, select the folder you wish to store data to, up to 720k only. Plug in the stick and press the LEFT button. The display will show "d2" for 5-6 seconds. It means that the data from the SY99 virtual disk inside the emulator (the flash RAM chip) is copied to the folder you chose on the USB stick. Anything saved by the SY99 using the save command is actually saved on the emulator's RAM, not on the stick. You can repeat the "save" process without having to remove the stick from the emulator. If you wish to store the SY99 data on a different folder you must remove the stick and repeat the selection process explained here without cycling the power. So, why did I say to avoid formatting the virtual disk? Because if you do you will be able to use that virtual disk with the SY99 but the emulator won't copy it on the stick.
Another neat future of this emulator is that it allows you to create folders on the go, without using your computer. Assume that you are not sure if one of the folders is empty and instead you want to store your SY99 data to a new folder that does not exist on the USB stick. By means of the two buttons of the emulator, choose the folder you wish to create, say 703. Plug in the stick and press the LEFT button. The display will show "d2" for 5-6 seconds. In this case the emulator creates a new folder named "703" and copies the contents of the flash RAM to it. Your PC will be able to access and read the data as you would normally do. It's that simple.
No software is needed and the only drawback at this point is the required removal of the stick in order to change the working folder. A small price to pay for not having to deal with specialized software, I would say.
My emulator came with only one LED and only one hole for that LED above the folder selection buttons. After I opened the emulator I found inside a second 2-color LED. Naturally I drilled a second hole on the faceplate and now I have two LEDs working. The original one shows when the synth is accessing the emulator's RAM, while the second LED shows when the emulator is accessing the USB stick. Please note that some of the second generation USB floppy emulators come without the second LED installed. The only way to know is to open the one you buy and check it out.
I plan to buy one more of these emulators to install it on my QX5FD sequencer but I need an adapter to go from 34-pin Shugart (QX5FD) to 34-pin IBM (emulator). I'll post the results after I have a working adapter.
DrF