The XH1541 hybrid cable and the XH1571 hybrid cable are companion cables for the X1541 cable, to get the most possible out of SPP ports, by creating an additional semi-parallel connection between a Commodore 1541, 1570 or 1571 drive and the PC parallel port. This semi-parallel connection speeds up the PC-to-drive direction to about triple speed and the drive-to-PC direction to about 150% speed (the actual value depends on the transfer software, as well). They're compatible with all parallel ports and come in two flavors: the XH1541 hybrid cable for 1541 drives and the XH1571 hybrid cable for 1570 and 1571 drives.
You need the following hardware to make use of this cable:
A PC with an SPP parallel port
A Commodore 1541, 1570 or 1571 drive or compatible clone
An X1541 cable between the drive and the PC
The cable is supported by the following PC software:
The Star Commander (© by Joe Forster/STA, 1994-2005)
Don't let the name "XH1571" fool you. This cable flavor also works with Commodore 1570 drives, not only Commodore 1571 drives. The other "XH1541" flavor is for Commodore 1541 drives only.
This cable needs modifications in your Commodore drive. If you're not good at hardware hacking, don't try doing it yourself but ask for an expert's help instead.
This cable is a companion, it doesn't work alone. It can, actually, be used with any parallel port, the need for an SPP port is a restriction of the X1541 cable, which this cable must be used with.
Because of the conflicting pin layout, this cable can't be used along with the XE1541 extended cable, the XM1541 multitask cable or the XA1541 active cable.
This cable gives you parallel transfer only in the PC-to-drive direction; in the drive-to-PC direction, only 4 bits can be transferred at a time. If you have a PS/2, EPP or ECP port then, for a parallel connection, you might want to build the XP1541 or XP1571 parallel cable instead.
This cable contains no GND connection because the serial cable already has one. Multiple GND connections may result in a "ground loop", when current is flowing between the two machines via the GND lines. This can cause not only unreliable behavior but also damage to your equipment. It may be possible to filter the GND lines so that they fulfill their primary purpose but not create a ground loop, however, such solutions may be relatively complicated and expensive.
You have several methods to build this cable. You may share the parallel port between this cable and the X1541 cable, by building a Y-shaped cable and soldering the extra connections of this cable onto the parallel port plug you already have. See the XXH1541 cable combo for more details.
Method 1. Your drive has no parallel capabilities yet and you want to connect the cable directly onto the periphery chip in the drive. If possible, you shouldn't use this method because, this way, you won't be able to make use of it with a Commodore machine. You can find the details on how to build this cable at the construction page for 1541 drives and the construction page for 1570 and 1571 drives.
Method 2. Your drive has no parallel capabilities yet and you want to create a parallel port on your drive and then connect the cable to it. This is the preferred method because you can also make use of it with a Commodore machine. You can find the details on how to build this cable at the construction page.
If you have successfully finished the parallel port on your drive then you can also build the Commodore parallel cable, to use the parallel capabilities with a Commodore machine.
Method 3. Your drive already has a Commodore parallel cable and you want to make use of it. In this case, you'll have to build an adaptor, through which you can connect the cable to the PC parallel port.You can find the details on how to build this adaptor at the construction page.
If you built a cable and you created or already have a parallel port on your Commodore drive then you can connect one end of the cable into it; otherwise the cable is, probably, just hanging out of the drive. If you built an adaptor then connect the user port plug onto it, being very careful to exactly do it upside down, that is, the top side of the user port plug should be leveled with that side of the adaptor without circuitry. In any case, connect the parallel plug of your cable or adaptor into the parallel port of your PC.
Important! Do not plug or unplug cables while your equipment is switched on. Make sure that all components of your equipment are connected to the same, properly grounded power outlet. Put your equipment far away from monitors, TV sets and other devices with strong emission, otherwise cables may pick up interference and you may experience data loss or corruption. Never leave this cable connected alone, only if the serial cable is also connected, otherwise the lack of GND connection may severely damage your equipment.
The XH1541 and XH1571 hybrid cables are © by Bigfoot, 1997. If you produce and sell cables or adaptors that are compatible with this cable then you must give credits to the copyright owner. If your adaptors are built onto printed circuit boards then you must also make the complete layout available in a format and resolution that is suitable for high quality reproduction.
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