Re: Got my GS, Addittional questions

[supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer)]

"get bent" <yougottabedreamin@aol.com> wrote:

>> >What models of apple/mac RGB monitors plug into the IIgs (other than the
>> >standard II monitors) and can I use my TV adapter from my IIe? Will a
>> >Supermac Monitor work? There's a -huge- one (25"+?) at the GW for $50 is
>> >it worth it?
>>
>> The model called the AppleColor RGB monitor works on the IIGS.
>> Amiga and Atari ST monitors also work with the right cable.
>
>What might the "right" cable be? Is this something I can buy or find, or is
>this a DIY project?  (I need a monitor for the A500 I just bought (-with- a
>HD & power supply for $3) so potentially I could use one for both?!?) Now
>regretting the AtariST w/monitor I gave away not too long ago...

It is a DIY project although I do remember that there was one
place you could get one custom built for you.

Here's how to build one:

CUTblakeney@home.com (Jeff Blakeney) wrote:

On Sat, 15 Jan 2000 08:12:57 GMT, me2@nowhere.org (Bart) wrote:

>Where might one find the schematic for such an adaptor?  I have access to an 
>Amiga 1000 monitor (or will later this month) and could do this thing.

The cable I am currently using to connect my IIgs to a Commodore 1084S
monitor is as follows:

Monitor's   Apple IIgs'
6 pin DIN      DA-15      Description
---------   -----------   -------------------------
    1            5        Green signal
    2            3        Horizontal/Composite Sync
    3        1, 6, 13     Ground
    4            2        Red signal
    5            9        Blue signal
    6           N/C       Vertical Synce

The pins are numbered the following ways looking at each end of the
cable:

Monitor's 6 pin DIN end
     _____
    /  3  \
   /4     2\
  |    6    |
   \5     1/
    \_____/

Apple IIgs' DA-15 end
___________________________________
|                                 |
\  1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8  /
 \                               /
  \  9   10  11  12  13  14  15 /
   \___________________________/

Also, I used to use a Commodore 1084 that had a DE-9 connector on it.
Here are the pinouts of all three connectors:

IIgs DA-15            1084 DE-9             1084S 6 pin DIN
-------------------   -------------------   -------------------
 1 = Red Ground       1 = Ground            1 = Green             
 2 = Red              2 = Ground            2 = Horizontal Sync   
 3 = Composite Sync   3 = Red               3 = Ground            
 4 = N/C              4 = Green             4 = Red               
 5 = Green            5 = Blue              5 = Blue              
 6 = Green Ground     6 = Intensity *       6 = Vertical Sync     
 7 = -5V              7 = N/C
 8 = +12V             8 = Horizontal Sync
 9 = Blue             9 = Vertical Sync
10 = N/C
11 = Analog sound
12 = NTSC/PAL Composite video
13 = Blue Ground
14 = N/C
15 = N/C

* This line is only used when the monitor is set to digital RGB mode.

Both the Commodore monitors I have used have accepted the composite
sync signal on the horizontal sync line without any problems.  There
can be some problems encountered with just wiring a cable like I
described above but for the most part this cable should work as is.
If not, you may need to modify the cable slightly to account for
differences in signal levels and for impendence matching.

>>  Mac
>> and PC RGB/SVGA type monitors do not work without a IIGS
>> SVGA card called the Second Sight.  This card is quite rare.  I'm
>> not selling mine.  ;-)
>
>Who made it & how do I identify it? (Not that I would ever skip a IIgs at a
>thrift ever again, but they do sometimes pull all the cards out of them &
>try to sell them indvidually.)

Sequential Systems made it.  It should be easy to identify
by the OAK VGA chip on the card and the 1MB of video
memory.  The connector part of the card fits in an Apple II
slot, not a PC slot so you can tell right off it is not a PC
SVGA card but a IIGS one.  24-bit color at 640x480 or
256 colors at 1024x768 are yours if you can find the card,
but I'm pretty sure those who have one are keeping them.

Sequential Systems only closed its doors recently.

>There are several apple monitors here. I take it "AppleColor RGB" is a
>nameplate on the back?

Yes.

>How rare is the above monitor? What would be a "fair" price in the US?

$25 is a fair price.  You might be able to find it for far
less at a thrift shop, but if you were to find it locally or
on eBay, $25 is fair.  If in good condition.

>Another nested question:
>
>Hard drives: Wasn't there an external drive (winchester?) that worked with
>the IIc & IIgs? I know there was one for the IIe, and any info on it would
>be appreciated, since I now have several IIes and a IIc. (now kicking myself
>for skipping that winchester a year ago, but it was $50 and had no manuals
>and I had no way to test it at the time!)

Any external SCSI hard drive in an external SCSI case
will work with the IIGS.  The Iomega Zip drive and Jazz
drive will also work on the IIGS.  For the Apple II High
Speed SCSI card, 2GB SCSI hard drives have been
tested and found to work.  There is no reason to believe
that even larger ones won't work.

But if you think $50 for a used drive is reasonable, then
just hop down to http://www.allelec.com/ Alltech
Electronics and order a NEW Focus hard disk drive
card.  It is internal, uses IDE notebook drives, and
is plug and play with the OS preinstalled and a library
of shareware and freeware.  Sizes typically run from
300MB to 700MB.  The last batch was 500MB but
now they are doing 300MB to 400MB ones.

>thanks in advance & please post to the newsgroup
>
>Get Bent of C.B.I.

Good luck.  Read through that IIGS Tour message I
posted.  I know it is long, but it has good information.