ACA500 short manual
CF card interface and accelerator for the Amiga 500 or 500+
Dear customer,
thank you for purchasing a product from Individual Computers. We're sure that your new accelerator will
satisfy all your needs. The ACA500 is easy to install and simply plugs into the side expansion slot of your
Amiga and can be used right away.
Package contents, unpacking
In addition to this manual, you will find the accelerator in a plastic bag in the box and an instructional sticker on
the inside of the box. The card comes with jumpers set for normal operation. The ACA500 is delicate
equipment, please handle it with extreme caution. If something is not clear after reading this manual, please
get help from a technician. If you have further questions, don't hesitate to ask your reseller!
Preparing the computer
Remove any expansion that you may have installed on the side-connector (=Zorro connector) of your A500.
Also, any accelerator that is installed inside of your A500 must be removed. If you've just taken an Amiga 500
out of storage to be used for the first time with the ACA500, you may want to check that the Amiga is in good
condition and works properly before installing the ACA500. Refer to on-line Amiga resources for common
problems and fixes such as battery leaks and re-seating the custom chips.
Installation
The card is for the Zorro slot on the left side of your Amiga. Please turn your Amiga off, then refer to the
picture on the inside of the box showing how to insert it. Note that the part of the card facing away from you is
very thin! You must make sure it's supported with your finger as you push the whole card in firmly, but without
excessive force.
Also note that the ACA500 has standoffs under it to make it level with the height of your Amiga expansion
connector. It must be level, so check that your Amiga's rubber feet are intact, and that there's nothing on the
desk under the card or the Amiga. This ensures proper contact between the card and your Amiga.
If you need to remove the card, turn your Amiga off, grab the card's left edge, and pull it leftward and away
from you, so that the thin, rear part of the card is pulled out last.
Adding an A1200 accelerator
The ACA500 supports upgrading your Amiga further with even faster Amiga 1200 accelerators. With the power
off, insert the accelerator board to match the gap in the keyed connector. Push firmly but gently, do not use
excessive force.
Compatibility is only guaranteed with Individual Computers Amiga 1200 accelerators.
Other
68020/68030 accelerators may or may not work. We will not answer any support questions if you're trying to
operate an accelerator that's not been made by Individual Computers. If the A1200 accelerator has a
Realtime-clock, it will not be used by the A500. Instead, only the RTC that is located on the trapdoor memory
expansion or the mainboard of an A500+ will be used.
Adding a Delfina, Silver Surfer, or Subway interface
With the power off, please follow the instructions in the manual for your interface, and heed the markings on
the ACA500 board for proper orientation of the red marker on the cable.
Adding a network/USB module
This connector is provided for a future Individual Computers interface. Please monitor our news and our web
shop for it's availability.
Jumpers
There's a 4-pin connector on the underside of the ACA500. By shorting the two pins nearest the CF cards
(with the provided jumper or a switch), you can disable the ACA500 – except for the ACA500 CPU, which will
still be used at 14Mhz. This jumper is marked J2 on the other side. The disable-Jumper should only be
changed when the computer is switched off. If it's state is changed in operation, your computer may crash.
The two pins furthest from the CF cards (marked De-brick on the other side) allows you to restore the
