The Sinclair QL Forum

Hi again Martin!

Ok, so readable MDV carts are your first step.

There are utilities out there to help, but they can't do miracles with ageing tape quality.

The best in my experience is Daniele Terdina's 'MDump v2' but to run that you need an upgraded QL (e.g. with a Gold or SuperGoldCard fitted ...

OK great thanks very much!

Hi,

I have an original untouched QL UK power brick which seems to be reliable at the moment and provides a clean 9v DC according to my scope. I'm wary of old PSUs especially from some of my other machines like the C64 where they're known to fail destructively and send 9v AC where it shouldn't be ...

Thanks very much both of you - yes I'm interested in looking into QLUB that sounds fun.

Sorry one side related question - I'm getting some errors reading some files on the the MD carts despite replacing the felt pads. I don't want to run them too much in case use makes them fail, but are there ...

Thanks very much - it doesn't sound like serial is a valid option then. I'll have a bit more of a look into the modern data projects to see if there is an affordable route there.

Thanks again

M.

Does anyone have any experience of archiving using a serial cable please?

Thanks for the tips, yes I've replaced the felt pads and the drives have been serviced.

M.

Thanks both of you, I've enquired about getting a QIMSI, but I'm quite interested in the serial cable route (oddly enough I have a crimping tool and plugs for BT style phone connectors!).

Thanks very much for the link. In the end I sent the QL to https://www.mutant-caterpillar.co.uk and it turned out the the 74LS245 buffer chip for the data bus had failed.

Best

Martin

Hi,

I've got my father in law's QL and would like to archive his many programs on microdrive to something more modern to preserve them and use them under emulation. Is there a method of transferring the contents of a microdrive via serial, or does anyone have any other tips on how to do this please ...