Bitbinders
1581DH - A horizontal version of the dual 1581 drive that Commodore should have made
1581DH - A horizontal version of the dual 1581 drive that Commodore should have made
5.0 / 5.0
(1) 1 total reviews
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A Dual Commodore 1581 in a horizontal configuration.
Commodore never made a dual 1581 drive and so we did! The 1581DH has internal power circuitry that allows us to use any standard "wall wart" transformer between 7.5 and 12 volts. That means that if something happens to your wall transformer (like misplacing it!) you can grab another that you likely have lying around the house.
Finally, all internal integrated circuits and the internal power circuitry are on sockets, meaning that replacement decades in the future are simple to do.
Both drives are powered by one wall transformer. The back of the drive has two switches that set the address of each individual drive. Either drive can be set to device number 8, 9, 10, or 11.
Please note that in order to achieve 100% compatibility, some of the internal components are obtained from previously used and new-open-stock sources, To ensure the highest reliability, all components and the drives themselves undergo extensive testing during manufacture and prior to shipment. See How We Test Our Products for detailed information.
In the Box
(1) BitBinders 1581DH Disk Drive
(1) 9V Wall Power Supply (US plug - 110V/220V Compatible)
(1) “Commodore 1581 Test/Utilities” Floppy Disk
(1) "1581 Toolkit" Floppy Disk
*(1) EU Plug Adapter for EU Shipments
Specifications
Commodore 1581 compatibility: 100%
Wall adapter requirements: 7.5 - 12Vdc, 3A min
AC adapter cord length: 4 feet (1.2 meters)
Dimensions: 2.6in x 9.8in x 8.8in (65mm x 250mm x 224mm) (H x W x D)
Weight: 4.4lbs (2.0kg)
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First off, I need to say that even offering something like this is unreal! This is something Commodore should have released back in the day, and they probably would have sold tons of them. Not sure I really needed it, but I definitely had to have it.
When I first unpacked the unit, the first thing I noticed was the quality of the 3d printed case. It is an extremely high-quality print! It’s much better than anything I can do with my own equipment. I plugged it in and ran the drive through its paces. I first copied several DS/DD disks back and forth between the drives and then ran a demo that loads multiple images one after the other continuously on both drives. After a few hours, I was satisfied. Everything worked flawlessly. Since it has PC drive mechanisms, I decided to try HD disks. Copied to and from them, and everything worked perfectly. Still have quite a few DS/DD disks which are holding up well, but I had to know if I could use HD disks. Not sure unit is rated for HD disks or how well they will hold up, but so far so good.
I did notice a minor problem with the LEDs. Bitbinders were very quick to respond and took care of it immediately.
Unfortunately, I had problems with receiving the drive via USPS. No fault of Bitbinders. They stayed on top of it to make sure everything was resolved, which it was.
Overall, I’m extremely satisfied with the drive and the support. Great company to deal with.