Replacing a floppy in an EPS rackmount

[merovie]

The floppy drive in my Ensoniq EPS crapped out and isn't reading any disks. (Disk not formatted error - but I can tell from the sound it simply isn't turning the drive.) I got a new one and installed it and had the same problem and I put the old one back in and it started working again but it's back to not loading the OS.

I have heard on these boards to get a GoTek floppy emulator. I was wondering how one transfers the instrument and song files from old floppies onto the GoTek. I got an external floppy drive today because I was hoping to recover some song files from a corrupted disk when I discovered the floppy drive in the EPS itself is once again not reading the disks.

My guess is you use the external floppy to extract the songs and sounds to a file folder and transfer them to the GoTek but that is me just assuming.

I love my Ensoniq EPS but I also love my 100+ songs that I have written, that I am now using midi-out to send the MIDI files to Cubase and REAPER and controlling the VSTs in those DAWS.

It'd be nice if my haunted machine would just magically start working again like it did when I put a new floppy drive in and then out and then put the old one back in but I am not hopeful.

I just want to know before I buy a GoTek will I be able to transfer my songs and instruments and the OS to it?

Thanks for being patient with me

[meatballfulton]

You can probably get some detailed answers at the HxC forums.

[blueknob]

VSE member rasputin seems to have the knowledge on this kind of thing. I put a Gotek in a EPS16+ using the r-massive website, a few tweaks and it's something I should have done years ago.

I have a feeling, use Omniflop to make an "image" and the Gotek can read those files. But I think there's a number of hurdles to get over along the way. rasputin has good knowldge of the Omniflop situation. I have Geblier EDM and a Win98 machine for my Ensoniq floppy stuff.

[Rasputin]

I have heard on these boards to get a GoTek floppy emulator. I was wondering how one transfers the instrument and song files from old floppies onto the GoTek. I got an external floppy drive today because I was hoping to recover some song files from a corrupted disk when I discovered the floppy drive in the EPS itself is once again not reading the disks.

External floppy drive will not work with Ensoniq floppy disks.

To do what you want, you must use a desktop with an internal floppy drive. It's possible to do with pretty much any version of Windows/DOS, but most modern computers will not support internal floppy drives, so it is generally best to find an old XP desktop.

Once you've read the floppy diskettes using an internal floppy drive, you can copy the disk images onto a USB drive to use with the Gotek.

But here's another caveat: Standard Goteks will not work with Ensoniq gear without special preparation. You have to install custom firmware onto the Gotek hardware and use a special configuration file for the EPS before the Gotek will work in this context.

I can give you more details, but it depends on how you want to proceed. Feel free to send a private message to me... I have a lot more info.

[Hyde]

Have a close look at the floppy drives. I revived my Mirage Drive with a good cleaning. the arbor that spins the disk had a very small amount of dust wrapped around it. Causing just enough tension to keep it from spinning up properly. Some of the older drives also so had plug connections that can be re-seated. While you're at it, reseat the cables & check for anything that looks amiss. Good luck!

[merovie]

I have heard on these boards to get a GoTek floppy emulator. I was wondering how one transfers the instrument and song files from old floppies onto the GoTek. I got an external floppy drive today because I was hoping to recover some song files from a corrupted disk when I discovered the floppy drive in the EPS itself is once again not reading the disks.

External floppy drive will not work with Ensoniq floppy disks.

To do what you want, you must use a desktop with an internal floppy drive. It's possible to do with pretty much any version of Windows/DOS, but most modern computers will not support internal floppy drives, so it is generally best to find an old XP desktop.

Once you've read the floppy diskettes using an internal floppy drive, you can copy the disk images onto a USB drive to use with the Gotek.

But here's another caveat: Standard Goteks will not work with Ensoniq gear without special preparation. You have to install custom firmware onto the Gotek hardware and use a special configuration file for the EPS before the Gotek will work in this context.

I can give you more details, but it depends on how you want to proceed. Feel free to send a private message to me... I have a lot more info.

Sorry it took so long to get back Rasputin. this pandemic is making everyone crazy and nothing is really going according to plan but I do know that the special preparation part of the Gotek is the real headache so instead of paying 40 bucks for one I was thinking of spending extra money on this bad boy because as advertised it seems to come already prepared. What are your thoughts?

https://www.amazon.com/Nalbantov-Floppy ... ec_signin&

[blueknob]

Yeh the pandemic is crazy, it's supposed to be However, rise above the propaganda... get grounded...focus...
I was a little hesitant about the Gotek thing. The r-massive guide I think was revised to accomodate.. me Meaning, made simpler.

Approach the job like this, treat it as a stand alone project, take your time. Buy the "blank" Gotek unit (or two). Then take casual time working through the r-massive guide. I got caught out on the file naming of Ensoniq ede files the Gotek needs to see, but once sorted, it all worked.

Two things to consider, it does work, I've done it so can you, and secondly, once you've learnt how it's done, you'll start looking at other kit you own that "needs" a Gotek too!

[madtheory]

If you have SCSI on your EPS (or an internal HD), use that instead with a SCSI2SD card. Much faster.