Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bellcore!ulysses!burl!codas!akgua!usl!elg
From: elg@usl.UUCP (Eric Lee Green)
Newsgroups: net.micro.cbm
Subject: Re: Does anyone use 1541 Flash?
Message-ID: <948@usl.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 26-Sep-86 13:49:22 EDT
Article-I.D.: usl.948
Posted: Fri Sep 26 13:49:22 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 9-Oct-86 01:47:09 EDT
References: <269@mtuni.UUCP>
Reply-To: elg@usl.UUCP (Eric Lee Green)
Distribution: net
Organization: USL, Lafayette, La.
Lines: 33

In article <269@mtuni.UUCP> jjp@mtuni.UUCP (John Pittas) writes:
>Skyles Electric Works of Mountain View, CA manufactures an
>installable chip called "1541 Flash" which supposedly
>speeds up operation of the drive by about five times.
>When I heard this I said GREAT!, until I called them and
>they told me the price was $69.95 + $4.50 shipping.
>
>I am still interested in this product, but would like to
>hear some feedback from anyone who has used it or knows
>anything about it (or any other similar product) first
>before I rush out and buy one.  
>John Pittas			...!ihnp4!mtuni!jjp

I haven't used it, but a friend has.  He reports that he had to do
extensive mangling to his C-64, including installing new ROMs etc.,
plus extensive mangling to his 1541. The modification basically
consists of running more data lines from the C64 to the 1541 (if
Skyles had REALLY wanted to do it right, they would have figured out
how to add a 6526 to the 1541, and used the hardware shift registers
like the 1571 does!). After all the butchery was finished, yes, the
1541 ran quite a bit faster, but most copy protected software would
NOT run.

All in all, I like my solution better (buy an IEEE-488 interface, a
SFD-1001 disk drive, and enjoy the same speed with 1 megabyte of
storage). 
-- 

      Eric Green {akgua,ut-sally}!usl!elg
        (Snail Mail P.O. Box 92191, Lafayette, LA 70509)

" In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of
 people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move."