Yamaha FL512M to FL1024M Upgrade

Yamaha FL512M upgraded to FL1024M


Recently I picked up a Yamaha FL512M Flash Expansion board from an eBay sale.

I bought this card primarily to upgrade it to 1GB using the 4x JS28F00A Flash ICs leftover from the Mutec FMC-05 Upgrade Project.

Unlike the Mutec board this product is a double-sided design:
FL512M Version: 512MB capacity with one side populated.
FL1024M Version: 1024MB (1GB) capacity with both sides populated.

Upgrading the card to 1024MB should be as simple as fitting the missing components to the unpopulated side.


Yamaha FL512M Photos:

Yamaha FL512M – Populated Side
Yamaha FL512M – Unpopulated Side


Bill Of Materials:
Using a photo of an original FL1024M board as a reference a Bill Of Materials was compiled:



Once the missing components were fitted the board was looking complete.
After the board was cleaned the serial number was moved to show FL1024M rather than FL512M

Extra Components Fitted: C83, R97, R98, R102, R104
Extra Components Fitted:
IC31, IC41, IC71, IC81
C33, C43, C73, C31, C32, C41, C42, C71, C72, C81, C82
R31, R41, R71, R81
RA31, RA32, RA33, RA34, RA41, RA42, RA43, RA44
RA71, RA72, RA73, RA74, RA81, RA82, RA83, RA84

Format Success!

The MOXF took a while to format the board and finally declared 1022.5MB under the hood 🙂

// END

sector101

3 thoughts on “Yamaha FL512M to FL1024M Upgrade

  1. I tried this procedure, but the modified FL512M board will only format to 512mB, not to 1024mB as it should.

    I’m an experienced technician and did the SMT rework carefully under a microscope, so I don’t think I made any mistakes in the assembly. The modified board appears to work properly, but repeated attempts to reformat it show only 512mB available. I even tried shutting the keyboard down during a reformat, which then gave me the “Unformatted Memory Module” message,on my next attempt, but it still formatted to only 512mB after that.

    There were only two differences between my assembly and yours. First, I had to use different memory IC’s, which were listed as direct replacements by Digikey. Second, I installed the C100 component, which is under the serial number label, as I found that part was installed on the FL1024 board I had as a sample. II discovered that minor difference from your procedure when I was inspecting the modified board to see if I’d done anything wrong after it didn’t format as expected.

    Since the board still works as a 512mB module, I’m really no worse off, other than the cost of the parts and a few hours of my time, but I’d certainly appreciate any suggestions as to how to get things working as they should.

    Thanks for your very detailed and complete procedure, and more thanks in advance for any assistance you could give me in obtaining the same results that you did.

    1. I didn’t fit the C100 as both pads connected to the large GND plane so it seemed redundant. Any image I found of the FL1024 did not have this fitted, I don’t know why that item is on the PCB.

      What IC’s did you use for the upgrade? The MOXF may be looking for a specific Vendor and IC model.

      Also check the continuity of all the resistors you fitted. It is possible to fracture the metal end caps so they may look normal but are damaged. Probe the solderpads rather than the components themselves.

  2. I’ve gone over all the parts installed several times, and I can’t find anything that is open, shorted, or otherwise incorrect, so that leaves the flash chips as the most likely source of this particular trouble.

    The memory IC’s I used were from Cypress, PN S29GL01GS10TFI010. These were listed by Digikey as a “direct” replacements for the Micron / Intel parts, which Digikey states are no longer available, or are obsolete.

    I’m not sure if these chips were actually made by Cypress, but whoever made them, they certainly don’t act like I expected a “direct ” replacement would.

    I consulted a friend who has a lot of experience with this type of memory, and he suspected the same thing that you did, that the MOXF is looking for a specific vendor and chip type, and won’t recognize (or format) parts that it isn’t happy with.

    He stated that because different chip vendors may use slightly different command structures when reading or writing to their flash chips, that even a “pin compatible” chip might not work, assuming that the MOXF firmware didn’t reject it straight away because it lacked the correct ID or credentials.

    I’m in the process of trying to locate a few of the Micron / Intel parts, and I’ll update you if I can install them and get them to work.

    In the meantime, I’d suggest that anyone attempting this upgrade take care to use flash memory IC’s which are the same as those already on their FL512M board (if they can get them), as that may be essential to making this upgrade work correctly.

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