TI Disk Controller vs. Expansion Box

[RickR]

I've recently acquired both, but I have no idea how to use either.  Do either of these peripherals make sense to use in 2024?  Is there any advantage to using one over the other?  And what kind of hard disks do these use???

Any information would be most appreciated.

 

Edited May 4, 2024 by RickR

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12 hours ago, RickR said:

I've recently acquired both, but I have no idea how to use either.  Do either of these peripherals make sense to use in 2024?  Is there any advantage to using one over the other?  And what kind of hard disks do these use???

Any information would be most appreciated.

 

 

The peripheral expansion box (the big one) would be the one to use, because it can support many types of expansion cards.  Originally the TI did not have hard drive capabilities, that comes with obscenely expensive outdated hard drive controllers... if you can find one.

Does it make sense in 2024 to use floppy drives?  Unless you are a purist, the short answer is no.  My suggestion would be to use the P-Box version of the TIPI and mount a Raspberry Pi 3B on it.  This way you can transfer files directly from the Internet with your PC and slide them onto the TI over your local WiFi network.

The only real benefit to having a P-Box is if you are more than a casual user or simply a game player as 95% of everything out there will run off of a TIPI32K unit housed in a speech synthesizer sized case.

[RickR]

2 hours ago, - Ω - said:

 

The peripheral expansion box (the big one) would be the one to use, because it can support many types of expansion cards.  Originally the TI did not have hard drive capabilities, that comes with obscenely expensive outdated hard drive controllers... if you can find one.

Does it make sense in 2024 to use floppy drives?  Unless you are a purist, the short answer is no.  My suggestion would be to use the P-Box version of the TIPI and mount a Raspberry Pi 3B on it.  This way you can transfer files directly from the Internet with your PC and slide them onto the TI over your local WiFi network.

The only real benefit to having a P-Box is if you are more than a casual user or simply a game player as 95% of everything out there will run off of a TIPI32K unit housed in a speech synthesizer sized case.

Good info, thanks!

I think what I'll do is open up that p-box and seeing if there's anything good inside.  If not, probably just put it on a shelf in the attic for now.  The small sized TIPI is probably my best bet, but I don't think I want to spend the time or expense figuring that out.

 

 

[RickR]

Anyone care to guess what is in my P-Box?

 

Looks like a 32K memory card and a disk controller.

Edited May 5, 2024 by RickR

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Yep, basic box with plenty of room for other items.  The first thing I did with my P-Box's was to replace the stock fan to something a lot less noisy than a Boeing 737.