Picked up a maxed-out 1040STe in the box with half a dozen programming books and some boxed games for $40 back in the late 2000s when people didn't care. Still works fine, and I still use it for MIDI.
I got a second hand Atari 520ST back in the 80s when i was a kid. It was the first time i had ever seen a "mouse". It probably sounds silly to kids these days, but i had no idea what the thing was for until i used it. I also had a good giggle at it being called a "mouse", this plastic thing with a cord coming out if it like a tail.
I really want a retro-looking machine that is like the 1040STe/f but with modern convenience like USB stick, large HDD, HD graphic ports and stuff. Bonus points if you can have an EXTERNAL socket with a nice box to plug the largest Video card into... Never going to happen, of course, but it would be nice. Someone had made the AtariST2 concept art a few years ago, it was a black backlit AtariST and looked absolutely amazing. To this day this holds the #1 spot in computers for me. Also lots of awesome game/softwares that I still remember (and some case play with emulation) to this day. What a GREAT value for money this was, it lasted me 7 years (86-ish to 93, when I switched for a 386/25) - I sill have the AtariST in storage, last time I pulled it out of storage in 2014 it was still working like an absolute champ ! @3:20 I remember buying an adapter that lead to an external connexion box... Made the whole undercarriage thing far less annoying. 🙂 Awesome video, thanks !
I had gotten an Atari 1040 STFM with b/w monitor from my friend about 20 ago, a time where this piece of hardware wasn't worth anything. With this I also got an Amstrad CPC 464, green monitor and with lots of accessories from the same friend. Must have cost a fortune back then. He got 2 disk drives with it, a light pen to draw onto the screen and a complete desk made especially for the CPC. Both computers were working fine but especially the Atari was extremely yellowed because his father worked with it and he was a heavy smoker. I owned them for several years until I gave them for free to a computer museum here in Luxembourg, because I moved to another place and lacked space. Nowadays, you would get quite some money for it, but back then it was just electronic scrap for those who didn't care about it and most people didn't care about it.
The "hidden" joystick/mouse ports are for cost reduction. The keyboard controller handles these inputs, and the controller is on the keyboard-board connected with a ribbon like cable to the main board. So the cheapest choice was to put the ports also on that board and get rid of a lot of wires and traces. It's a prime example why the ST was so cheap compared to other computers.
I just think it was a poor aesthetic choice - even on the keyboard, they could have rotated the ports 90 degrees to come out on the right, similar to the ste game ports on the left. Somebody probably said that it looked cleaner on 3/4 profile photos without the connector in view.
If you want to connect "modern" USB devices like mouse, joystick or gamepad (Xbox 360/One, PS3/4/5) I really would recommend the mouSTer! A bit pricey, yes, but worth every penny. The configuration possibilities via text config file is brilliant. Mouse speed, button config of gamepads (e.g. normal fire on one button, configurable autofire on another) and many more parameters! I just bought a second mouSTer for my Ataris! 😉
May I ask where you got your Gotek ? If I understood properly, it was already flashed with the correct firmware, right ? I got one, but there are two problems with it. First, it's half broken. Not broken in half ... I mean, I can flash the FW, but it does not operate as a floppy at all now. It worked few times on a PC, before the flash, but the ST needs the special FW. The second problem, not related to the first one until proven otherwise, is that the original Goteks had STM32 MCU, but mine has another Cortex M MCU because of supply chain problems. The FW exists for the alternative MCU, but it's an additional question mark in the chain. And may I add few informations ? I still have my 1991 STe, which has a bigger color palette, a stereo 8 bits DAC and a maximum memory capability of 4 MB as far as I can remember. Before this one, I had an ST. Yes, ST, not STf, not STfm, just ST. I deeply regret selling it to buy the other one. It had mouse and joystick connectors on the right side, much easier to access. The floppy drive was not in the ST body, it was external, and used a thick connector. I still have such a connector, with a simple switch soldered inside; doing so, you could format floppies on one side of 360 KB (instead of 720 KB double sided), and, when flipping the switch, the (internal) drive (of the STe) thought it was accessing the same side of the floppy, but in fact, it was the other one. This way, you could store two small games, each one on its own side of the same floppy ! Floppies were expensive at that time ! Another thing was not in body too : the power bricks, one small for the floppy drive, one bigger for the computer !
Yes, you will find NES style RF adaptors and any of the auto switching type (NES/SNES/MEGADRIVE etc) DO NOT provide a good image even by RF standards with consoles and computers that came prior, you know the the era when they all came with RF switch boxes that had a slide switch to select between the system / TV. The older systems in fact do NOT put out the proper signal to FULLY engage the auto switching that later systems could and so the image is always very snowy with lots of interference. I am glad you touched on this as I OFTEN see many of these older computers and consoles sold used and bundled with the NES styled auto RF switcher with the seller thinking it's "good enough" and should do the job just fine which clearly is not the case, you will even get people swearing up and down they have personally used one and it works just fine which they are obviously lying about because they either cannot be bothered to source a proper manual RF switcher or the RF adapter that allows you to plug it in directly bypassing the need for the RF switcher OR they stubbornly insist it works because they are ignorant and assume it will even though they have not confirmed it to be so. AND YES THIS IS A PET PEEVE OF MINE IF YOU CANT TELL 😆 because I have encountered this situation so many times over the years with people who insist on arguing the point with me even though it is proven FACT. 🤷♂️Anyway.......great video, I also have an Atari 1040ste AND 1040stf that I really need to pull out from storage and give some attention to again.
but wait the ST can format to above 720k it goes to 800 and 900kb respectively thanks............... and bless u lots................@@FutureIsBlue-tq1xy
Depends on the make/type/quality of floppy drive. Some of them can format 720k disks close to 1 MB, but generally we used 80 tracks 10 sectors for 800k which was a good compromise.
I have some distant memory of hearing the ST mouse connection being a straightforward DB9 serial port with the TX and RX pins reversed, but that may be complete nonsense. The hard drive interface was known as DMA - which was a subset of SCSI - not many of these kicking around nowadays, but hopefully a starting point. There used to be an interface card in the UK known as a "megadrive" which predated the console, but they had to shut down/ rename it after Nintendo threatened to sue them. Hope that helps
The mouse works similar to a joystick. If a joystick is connected instead of a mouse, each press an release into one direction moves the cursor by one pixel. So, very simple logic.
Wow I knew Nintendo was litigious but sueing over the name of a Sega console is next level! Unless of course tou meant Sega, because that would make a lot more sense. But knowing Nintendo, nothing is impossible when it comes to lawsuits.
@gdob, no the hard disc port uses the acsi protocol which is a subset of scsi. It was often called a DMA port because DMA was used to move data relatively quickly to the port directly from memory such as for printers.
I love that older machines like the ST and the Amiga still get a ton of love!
Picked up a maxed-out 1040STe in the box with half a dozen programming books and some boxed games for $40 back in the late 2000s when people didn't care. Still works fine, and I still use it for MIDI.
I got a second hand Atari 520ST back in the 80s when i was a kid. It was the first time i had ever seen a "mouse". It probably sounds silly to kids these days, but i had no idea what the thing was for until i used it. I also had a good giggle at it being called a "mouse", this plastic thing with a cord coming out if it like a tail.
You're not alone. Most compute owners then were still using non-mouse computers.
I really want a retro-looking machine that is like the 1040STe/f but with modern convenience like USB stick, large HDD, HD graphic ports and stuff. Bonus points if you can have an EXTERNAL socket with a nice box to plug the largest Video card into... Never going to happen, of course, but it would be nice. Someone had made the AtariST2 concept art a few years ago, it was a black backlit AtariST and looked absolutely amazing.
To this day this holds the #1 spot in computers for me. Also lots of awesome game/softwares that I still remember (and some case play with emulation) to this day.
What a GREAT value for money this was, it lasted me 7 years (86-ish to 93, when I switched for a 386/25) - I sill have the AtariST in storage, last time I pulled it out of storage in 2014 it was still working like an absolute champ !
@3:20 I remember buying an adapter that lead to an external connexion box... Made the whole undercarriage thing far less annoying. 🙂
Awesome video, thanks !
I had gotten an Atari 1040 STFM with b/w monitor from my friend about 20 ago, a time where this piece of hardware wasn't worth anything. With this I also got an Amstrad CPC 464, green monitor and with lots of accessories from the same friend. Must have cost a fortune back then. He got 2 disk drives with it, a light pen to draw onto the screen and a complete desk made especially for the CPC. Both computers were working fine but especially the Atari was extremely yellowed because his father worked with it and he was a heavy smoker. I owned them for several years until I gave them for free to a computer museum here in Luxembourg, because I moved to another place and lacked space. Nowadays, you would get quite some money for it, but back then it was just electronic scrap for those who didn't care about it and most people didn't care about it.
You should use a SD HD 🙂
The "hidden" joystick/mouse ports are for cost reduction. The keyboard controller handles these inputs, and the controller is on the keyboard-board connected with a ribbon like cable to the main board. So the cheapest choice was to put the ports also on that board and get rid of a lot of wires and traces. It's a prime example why the ST was so cheap compared to other computers.
Conjecture or source?
I just think it was a poor aesthetic choice - even on the keyboard, they could have rotated the ports 90 degrees to come out on the right, similar to the ste game ports on the left. Somebody probably said that it looked cleaner on 3/4 profile photos without the connector in view.
Port extender cables, an essential piece of kit for any serious ST owner.
If you want to connect "modern" USB devices like mouse, joystick or gamepad (Xbox 360/One, PS3/4/5) I really would recommend the mouSTer!
A bit pricey, yes, but worth every penny. The configuration possibilities via text config file is brilliant. Mouse speed, button config of gamepads (e.g. normal fire on one button, configurable autofire on another) and many more parameters! I just bought a second mouSTer for my Ataris! 😉
I haven't heard of that one. Sounds cool
I might have some extra Atari st. keys if you want them.
That black bit wasn't broken they are removable.
I recall TOS as Tramiel Operating System by Shivji Shiraz. I had the 1040ST, though. Maybe the documentation differed for that version.
I remember there being a huge debate on that, it was quite a thing back in the day...
can this Atari emulate the BBC Micro?? thanks........
Good project! Had to gag though when you blew out that much (of someone else's) dust inside the house. *cough*
Don't tell me these things
May I ask where you got your Gotek ? If I understood properly, it was already flashed with the correct firmware, right ?
I got one, but there are two problems with it. First, it's half broken. Not broken in half ... I mean, I can flash the FW, but it does not operate as a floppy at all now. It worked few times on a PC, before the flash, but the ST needs the special FW. The second problem, not related to the first one until proven otherwise, is that the original Goteks had STM32 MCU, but mine has another Cortex M MCU because of supply chain problems. The FW exists for the alternative MCU, but it's an additional question mark in the chain.
And may I add few informations ? I still have my 1991 STe, which has a bigger color palette, a stereo 8 bits DAC and a maximum memory capability of 4 MB as far as I can remember.
Before this one, I had an ST. Yes, ST, not STf, not STfm, just ST. I deeply regret selling it to buy the other one. It had mouse and joystick connectors on the right side, much easier to access. The floppy drive was not in the ST body, it was external, and used a thick connector. I still have such a connector, with a simple switch soldered inside; doing so, you could format floppies on one side of 360 KB (instead of 720 KB double sided), and, when flipping the switch, the (internal) drive (of the STe) thought it was accessing the same side of the floppy, but in fact, it was the other one. This way, you could store two small games, each one on its own side of the same floppy ! Floppies were expensive at that time !
Another thing was not in body too : the power bricks, one small for the floppy drive, one bigger for the computer !
same sound chip as the spectrum 128k...interesting atari could not make up a soundchip themselves.
Yes, you will find NES style RF adaptors and any of the auto switching type (NES/SNES/MEGADRIVE etc) DO NOT provide a good image even by RF standards with consoles and computers that came prior, you know the the era when they all came with RF switch boxes that had a slide switch to select between the system / TV. The older systems in fact do NOT put out the proper signal to FULLY engage the auto switching that later systems could and so the image is always very snowy with lots of interference. I am glad you touched on this as I OFTEN see many of these older computers and consoles sold used and bundled with the NES styled auto RF switcher with the seller thinking it's "good enough" and should do the job just fine which clearly is not the case, you will even get people swearing up and down they have personally used one and it works just fine which they are obviously lying about because they either cannot be bothered to source a proper manual RF switcher or the RF adapter that allows you to plug it in directly bypassing the need for the RF switcher OR they stubbornly insist it works because they are ignorant and assume it will even though they have not confirmed it to be so. AND YES THIS IS A PET PEEVE OF MINE IF YOU CANT TELL 😆 because I have encountered this situation so many times over the years with people who insist on arguing the point with me even though it is proven FACT. 🤷♂️Anyway.......great video, I also have an Atari 1040ste AND 1040stf that I really need to pull out from storage and give some attention to again.
Good to know! Still, I'm glad I'm on the RGB SCART train, though. There's really no need for RF in the modern-day.
this Atari St, can it format discs to above 1meg?? also can it format to 1.2 meg too?? thanks lots and bless you !! happy christmas!! bless you!!
It could only format 720Kb disks not 1.44mb disks.
but wait the ST can format to above 720k it goes to 800 and 900kb respectively thanks............... and bless u lots................@@FutureIsBlue-tq1xy
Depends on the make/type/quality of floppy drive. Some of them can format 720k disks close to 1 MB, but generally we used 80 tracks 10 sectors for 800k which was a good compromise.
Great Stuff. My AtariST520 gives a black screen with my RF cable :-( Any advice on what I could do or test? Thanks.
Hi, do you think I can connect the GOTEK player as an external player? (it would allow me not to disassemble the computer)
You forgot to mention flip the floppy ribbon cable to the gotek
He flipped the gotek
I have some distant memory of hearing the ST mouse connection being a straightforward DB9 serial port with the TX and RX pins reversed, but that may be complete nonsense.
The hard drive interface was known as DMA - which was a subset of SCSI - not many of these kicking around nowadays, but hopefully a starting point.
There used to be an interface card in the UK known as a "megadrive" which predated the console, but they had to shut down/ rename it after Nintendo threatened to sue them.
Hope that helps
The mouse works similar to a joystick. If a joystick is connected instead of a mouse, each press an release into one direction moves the cursor by one pixel. So, very simple logic.
Why would Nintendo sue over a console name for a saga product?
Wow I knew Nintendo was litigious but sueing over the name of a Sega console is next level! Unless of course tou meant Sega, because that would make a lot more sense. But knowing Nintendo, nothing is impossible when it comes to lawsuits.
No that’s not how the mouse works.
@gdob, no the hard disc port uses the acsi protocol which is a subset of scsi. It was often called a DMA port because DMA was used to move data relatively quickly to the port directly from memory such as for printers.
Inspiring (and stressful) to watch..
Those "supports" for the drive aren't broken, they really are just that s*** at stying where they are supposed to be...
crazy i threw mine away 7 years ago
why you didn't even wash it???
I did wash it. There's scene of me scrubbing it in the laundry sink
@@retrogameon th-cam.com/video/TsXVa1sjgRw/w-d-xo.html don't you love what you see?
Mmm SCART connector.