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My email
address: ianm@trs-80.com
Looking for FreHD images, Auto Boot EPROM files, PIC updates and
Hi-Res Auto Boot file? Go to the DOWNLOADS
page.
"FreHD"
HARD DRIVE EMULATOR PAGE
(Model
I, III, 4, 4P, 4D)
(Updated 20th February, 2018)
Invented by Frédéric Vecoven in
Belgium, the FreHD hard drive emulator enhances your TRS-80 with fast,
unlimited, inexpensive storage on SD cards.
For insight into the design process of the fantastic FreHD, check out the
inventors web site!
QUICK
FreHD PRICE LIST:
NEW!! F48: FreHD
for 8in TRS-80s (II/12/16/16B/6000): $A149.00 or $USD109.00
System 80/Video Genie FreHD
Adapter V2.0: $A85.00 or $USD63.99
Bare Naked FreHD: $A90.00 or $USD64.99
FreHD Kit C: $A175.00 or $USD149.99
FreHD Kit C for Diskless Model III or 4: NLA (just use a FreHD
Clearly Superior kit)
BoHx: $A30.00 or $USD25.00
Hard Drive Cable: $A45.00 or $USD35.00
Auto Boot Eprom (all systems): $A25.00
or $USD20.00
Model I hard drive adapter: $A50.00 or $USD40.00
Quinnterface: $A125.00 or $USD95.00
---------------------------------
IT'S
A SUCCESS!
So far more than 80 have been made
and sold to TRS-80 enthusiasts in Australia, New Zealand, USA, Germany,
Netherlands and Canada. It's the best
new product for the TRS-80 in decades!
Orders are being taken by email and usually shipped within 5 days. Email being what it is, sometimes it doesn't
get through, so keep trying!
---------------------------------
New!!
F48:
FreHD for 8in TRS-80s
(Released 1st Qtr 2022)
Who
is it for? It's a FreHD but for the 8in TRS-80s, runs CP/M, TRSDOS-II, and Xenix! (Xenix requires a 68K
processor system like a 16B or 6000, or upgraded II/12). You need a Type-II HDA in your computer, and
you are good to go!
ONLY $USD109.00 + shipping
--------------------------------
NEW!!
Dick Smith System 80/FreHD Adapter
V2.0
(Added 17th July, 2018)
For the System 80/Video Genie using
the X-4020 or EG3014 Expansion Unit. Use
this to connect a FreHD to your System 80 or Video Genie. Comes with everything needed (pictured below)
and easy to follow instructions.
Only $A85.00 + postage.
Want a quick read of the installation
instructions? Download the PDF
HERE.
--------------------------------
NEW!!
Bare
Naked FreHD for TRS-80 Enthusiasts
(Added 4th June, 2018)
It's
completely assembled and tested and is only $64.99 so what's the catch? It's designed for enterprising enthusiasts
who need to supply their own cables and SD card, and make their own boot floppy
diskettes or burn their own Auto Boot Eproms. Price
reduction is achieved by eliminating every part not needed for basic operation,
which leaves just the core SD card hard drive emulation and real time clock.
Even the Information and Support CD is left out and it's contents is emailed to
the buyer in a single very large ZIP file.
$A90.00 or $USD64.99
+shipping
--------------------------
"BoHx"
A
small neat enclosure for your FreHD!
(Added 1st January, 2015)
The FreHD
is sold as a naked PCB which allows end-users to mount the device any way they
like... inside the TRS-80, in a box, or just leave it a naked PCB on their
desk. People who like a simple solution
asked if I could recommend a small, neat, sturdy box for their FreHDs, that didn't cost the earth. I finally devised one which I now call the
FreHD BoHx for $30+shipping which includes all the hardware
needed to mount your FreHD.
--------------------------
AUTO-BOOT
FreHD EPROM FOR MODEL I!
(Added 29th June, 2014)
Due to the hard work of the FreHD
team and Dean Bear in particular, the Model I version of the FreHD auto-boot
EPROM is in beta test phase. It's a
major upgrade to your Model I system but if you can solder and add a small
switch auto-boot is now within the reach of the most dedicated TRS-80
enthusiasts - the Model I owners.
This video shows the auto-boot Model I in
action.
GREAT NEWS for people who are capable of burning their own EPROMs, the upgrade is free.
Just go to the downloads
page to get the EPROM BIN file and installation instructions.
If you need me to supply a burned EPROM for your system, no
problems! They are $25ea
--------------------------
AUTO-BOOT
WITH MENU SYSTEM!
(Model
III/4/4D)
(Added 10th November, 2013)
(Model
I and 4P to follow soon)
The FreHD team are pleased to present a new product
which greatly simplifies the start-up of FreHD-based TRS-80 Model I, III, 4
Non-Gate-Array. A reprogrammed EPROM
replaces one inside your computer, and with firmware update to version 2.13,
and a small program on your SD card called frehd.rom
your FreHD boots to a menu which allows you to choose which DOS you with to
load off the SD card and run. Goodbye to
unreliable boot disks!
This video shows the menu system in action
on a TRS-80 Model 4 with replaced ROM C.
GREAT NEWS for people who are capable of
burning their own EPROMs, the upgrade is free. Just go to the downloads
page and get the correct BIN file for your computer and burn it to an EPROM.
If you need me to supply a burned EPROM for your
system, no problems! They are $25ea, and
will be sent with a CD with everything you need to get your TRS-80 auto-booting
off FreHD. I still need info on your
system, but so far this upgrade can be done to the Model I, Model III and Model
4 Non-Gate Array, Model 4 Gate-Array, 4D and 4P. Model 4 Gate Array, 4D and 4P need
experience in soldering.
--------------------------
IT
NOW WORKS ON THE MODEL I!
(Added 18th August, 2013)
The last of the problems which was stopping FreHD working on the
Model I have now been solved! FreHD now
works on the Model I as well as it does on the III/4/4P/4D. I supply Model I FreHDs
with LDOS 5.3.1 on which has support for all popular Model I modifications like
lowercase characters, double density and double sided drives. To use FreHD on a Model I you need a M1 HD
adapter board, and you can it on the Newstuff
page.
NEW
OPERATING SYSTEM SUPPORT!
When I started taking orders for the
FreHD unit we had one operating system we know ran properly, LS-DOS 6.3.1 for
the Model 4/4P/4D. Shortly after we
added LDOS 5.3.1 support for Model III users so you can store all your
favourite old Model I/III games on your FreHD SD-card and load them instantly!
LS-DOS
6.3.1 AUTO-BOOT ON MODEL 4P!
(Added 21st July, 2013)
Thanks to the help of Gary Howarth in
Sydney, we can now offer an auto-booting image for TRS-80 Model 4P owners. The 4P has always had the ability to boot
directly from a hard drive, but for whatever reason Tandy decided to keep it a
secret and have a consistent booting sequence for all Z80 TRS-80s using a boot
floppy. Patches to 2 files on your hard
drive could make it auto-boot without a boot floppy disk, and it turns out
these patches also work on FreHD. So I
can now offer a 4P hard drive image of 4 partitions, total capacity around
30Mb, which auto boots on your 4P.
Anyone who wants it can have it for free, just DOWNLOAD
it.
Montezuma
CP/M 2.2 READY!
(Updated 18th August, 2013)
CP/M is now approved for use on FreHD
for Model 4 users. As a nice bonus, on
the 4P it will even auto-boot! It works
well and comes with a version of VHD Utilities called VHDUTL/COM. The other utilities (IMPORT2, EXPORT2, and
FUPDATE) may be modified to work properly in the future but for now the FreHD
CP/M image is supplied without them, and feedback from CP/M users is they can
get by without them; they are just happy to have a fast reliable hard disk
system.
FreHD CP/M HISTORY:
I started getting emails from CP/M
enthusiasts and asking if FreHD was compatible with Montezuma CP/M 2.2 as an
operating system, and J. Andrew Quinn tested it out and got it successfully
running in four 7.5Mb partitions (Drives A: through D:) spread over 2 files on
the SD card. He then made some
modifications to VHDUTL/CMD to become VHDUTL/COM, a specially patched version
of VHDUTL/CMD for the CP/M world.
NEWDOS/80
2.5 READY!
(Updated 10th November, 2013)
The last great Model I/III operating
system, NEWDOS/80 did have hard drive support in its version 2.5 variant. Enthusiasts Brett Paulin, Ray Whitehurst, J.
Andrew Quinn have been working on getting NEWDOS/80 2.5 working on FreHD and I
believe they have been getting encouraging results. If you thought TRS-80 operators had too many
options with PDRIVE settings, just wait till you add hard drive configurations
into the mix! Currently in the testing
phase, I should have it ready to release as an alternative operating system to
LDOS for those who prefer it.
VIDEOS
OF THE FreHD IN ACTION:
I've made a few videos to show the
FreHD working, to help people decide if the device suits their needs:
Video 1: Compares the FreHD with an actual TRS-80 MFM
Hard drive.
Video 2: Shows what comes with Kit C, how to connect
it and get booted up.
Video 3: Shows CP/M 2.2 running on
FreHD.
Video 4: Shows 4P auto-boot LS-DOS 6.3.1 and CP/M 2.2
Video 5: Shows FreHD working on the TRS-80 Model I
Video 6: Shows FreHD auto-booting on a customer's
Model 4
Video 7: Shows the auto boot menu system on a Model 4
Video 8: Shows FreHD Kit for Diskless Model III and 4
Video 9: Shows FreHD auto-booting on a Model I
Video 10: Shows how to update the PIC firmware on
FreHD
--------------------------
NOT SURE WHICH FreHD KIT TO BUY?
Have a read of
our Knowledge Base and other information to decide whether you wish to buy a
completely assembled FreHD or a Kit form which will need to be soldered
together and parts supplied.
How
to set up LS-DOS Boot Floppy Disk
--------------------------
ORDERING FreHD:
It's easy to order Frédéric Vecoven's SD card Hard Drive Emulator (called the FreHD
from now on). Just send me an email
outlining the items you wish to buy, what computer you wish to use it on, your
choice of DOS - LDOS for Model I or III or LS-DOS or CP/M for Model 4/4D/4P),
and I will send you my direct deposit details or if you're outside Australia I
can accept PayPal payments.
For those after more details and
discussion on the FreHD drive check the following web sites: Fred Vecoven, Yahoo
TRS-80 group, JAQ,
and VCF.
--------------------------
FreHD Kit C - is the fully assembled kit,
tested, partitioned and loaded with DOS
ready to plug into your Model III, 4, 4D or 4P. Boot floppy disk, and hard
drive cable (pictured below) included $A175 ($USD149.99)
(Kit
C is completely assembled and tested, ready to plug in and use)
--------------------------
Hard
drive cable - to connect the emulator or a regular TRS-80
hard drive to a Model III/4/4D/4P (NOTE: if you already have a TRS-80 hard
drive you don't need this cable) $A45
--------------------------
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