Help to fix my Trump Card Mini

[javier2112]

Hello. Recently I assembled a Trump Card Mini, designed by @aalea:
https://github.com/alvaroalea/QL_MiniTrump3

It's just a small Trump Card, with no RAM expansion:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/sYfw8mPWTAyQTY1n7
https://photos.app.goo.gl/F45n8gz9kWtzhG5A7

I know this design works properly, even with standard Sinclair ROMs, because @aalea provided an updated version of the GAL for this purpose.

So, when I connect the card in a stock QL, it boots as expected:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/S2Yqart6RxaGfWLr6

But if a connect more cards, regardless of which one, the boot process doesn't finish. For example:
With a QubIDE:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/CmiGjda4d4pdFUMP7

With external RAM expansion:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/MvgkhP3n6KMG9axC7

It seems the QL is waiting for something: maybe another inexistent card?

I know the problem is focused on this card, because the QL and all the other cards work fine as long as the Trump Card Mini is not connected.

I've checked the GAL, the ROM, the WD1770 and they are all OK. Also soldering seems good, but I'm not sure at 100%.

@aalea has suggested me to extract the WD1770, the 74LS175 and the 74HC04 to make tests, beacuse they really aren't needed to boot, but the result is the same.


I would appreciate some help in getting the card to work.


Javi.

[dilwyn]

Assuming all the cards work when plugged in individually (one card at a time) it's most likely an addressing clash. Ensure the Qubide is set at an address where it won't clash with the Trump Card's use of address space. I don't know if a Trump Card with no RAM will affect the peripheral ROM area in the same way as when it has a full complement of RAM.

In some versions of QDOS (<= v1.03) there is an obscure bug which prevents more than one card with onboard ROM from being recognised in the peripheral ROM areas, as described by Andrew Pennell in his Sinclair QDOS Companion book, here's an extract:

https://dilwyn.theqlforum.com/docs/hardware/PeriROMs.pdf

[javier2112]

Assuming all the cards work when plugged in individually (one card at a time) it's most likely an addressing clash. Ensure the Qubide is set at an address where it won't clash with the Trump Card's use of address space. I don't know if a Trump Card with no RAM will affect the peripheral ROM area in the same way as when it has a full complement of RAM.

QubIDE configuration is the correct to work toghether and, in fact, I've seen another QL with the same configuration that works. However I agree that it looks like an addressing problem.

In some versions of QDOS (<= v1.03) there is an obscure bug which prevents more than one card with onboard ROM from being recognised in the peripheral ROM areas, as described by Andrew Pennell in his Sinclair QDOS Companion book, here's an extract:

https://dilwyn.theqlforum.com/docs/hardware/PeriROMs.pdf

That's a good point, although in my case, all the cards looks recognised, but the routine never ends (maybe expecting response from another one more? who knows).


Thank you.

[Peter]

With external RAM expansion:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/MvgkhP3n6KMG9axC7

If your RAM expansion has a passthrough connector, try plugging it into the QL first, and the Mini Trump Card second.
The latter has not all signals routed to the passthrough connector. Which might cause the issue, although not likely.
Also, try setting JP1.

[javier2112]

With external RAM expansion:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/MvgkhP3n6KMG9axC7

If your RAM expansion has a passthrough connector, try plugging it into the QL first, and the Mini Trump Card second.
The latter has not all signals routed to the passthrough connector. Which might cause the issue, although not likely.
Also, try setting JP1.

Peter, I forgot to say I had to make some modifications to the MiniTrump Card, because the A5 line wasn't routed, but now it's really fixed:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/TvaRLR4R5jXJSegB8

So I can connect them on any order, but the result is the same.

Also, try setting JP1.

This MiniTrump Card has no JP1 switch.

[Derek_Stewart]

Hi

The Trump Card uses decoding that used the 256Kb of ROM expansion. I assume the Trump Mini uses the same process, to add ram gives upto 768K extra ram in addition to the 128K on the QL.

On a real Trump Card the only area left for expansion is the ROM Port. The Qubide must be configured to address 0C000 hex.

The Trump Card Mini is a Disk Drive interface with no RAM on board, so the Miracle decoding of the 256K ROM space make not apply.

I would put the Qubide in the ROM Port area 0C000H, as detailed in the Qubide manual.

The photograph of the Qubide boot up looks okay just you have not got a WIN partition on the QubATA IDE device. The QubATA manual does go through all this, of creating partitions and WIN drives.

[aalea]

To give some additional ideas, because we are out of ideas:

I have 2 version of the card:
-the original, it's only mapped on 0x10000 and only work with Minerva, so it free all the top area of the RAM.

-the second one, only change the GAL code, incorporare the original ROM mechanism, and is compatible with all ROMs, but use the 0xC0000 area during boot, in the same way that original trump card.

Apart from that, the modification is the line AS (not A5, so nobody check the picture for A5) and allow to install a memory card after the mini trump nothing more.

He is using the Qubide from José Leandro that incorporate 512kb of RAM, and configured the ROM in the cartridge area of memory. 0x0C000 (He do not have TK2 or anything connected), it has no passthrough, so need to be the last.

Also he can not change the ROM, it's using the original of the QL, so he can not check the "version 1" with Minerva.

The other modification in the board is a trick that I do to allow a additional external card of 256Kb, and use "free" pin in the outer conector (Berr, I know it's not free but no interfaz use It, so it's NC in my interfaz) this work with the mapping of the mini trump and allow the 892kb of the original trump card, so I think having it is not related with his problem.

I have the same configuration, JS ROM, empty cartridge, minitrump and qubide with 512kb of RAM and everything work, so we run out of ideas.

I also have the Qubide without HDD and got the same message, but I got the monitor/TV message and allowed to continue.

[jobdone]

any chance you could supply some pics (reasonable resolution) of the top and bottom of the card?

[Peter]

Also, the actual hardware and the schematics provided by weblink do not match.

[javier2112]

Also, the actual hardware and the schematics provided by weblink do not match.

Because my card is a beta version, with some differencies: basically, the position of the resistance array and the routing of the AS signal.

(...)
In some versions of QDOS (<= v1.03) there is an obscure bug which prevents more than one card with onboard ROM from being recognised in the peripheral ROM areas, as described by Andrew Pennell in his Sinclair QDOS Companion book, here's an extract:

https://dilwyn.theqlforum.com/docs/hardware/PeriROMs.pdf

Superbasic reports JM as QDOS version, so I think the problem is that. I'll tell you when I receive the Miverva EPROM from Chris.

Thank you all.