Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!apple!sun-barr!texsun!convex!dpz@convex.com From: dpz@convex.com (David Paul Zimmerman) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems Subject: Practical Peripherals (was Re: low priced modems) Keywords: quality Message-ID: <1673@convex.UUCP> Date: 6 Sep 89 15:32:12 GMT References: <434@tron.UUCP> <9411@chinet.chi.il.us> <984@urbana.mcd.mot.com> <513@wet.UUCP> <3245@zygot.ati.com> Sender: usenet@convex.UUCP Lines: 109 Well, I called Practical Peripherals and talked to Roland, the PP Supervisor of Tech Support. I read your message to him, and after calming him down, he suggested that I call their support BBS (1-818-706-2467) and talk to the sysop, who's been using PP modems on it. Roland is not aware of any recurring problems with the series, and claims that they're fairly studly beasts. He also mentioned that they're being bought by Hayes, but that they will still be "Practical Peripherals". That's got to mean something, even if you don't trust what companies say about their own products. Here's the replies I got from the BBS: From: David Zimmerman Pvt Rec'd To: Paul Hansen Msg #234, 05-Sep-89 01:12pm Subject: PM2400SA Check out this article that I found on USENET... I'm about to recommend purchasing 8 PM2400SA modems for dialup access to a terminal server, but this article makes me nervous about the quality of PP modems. Perhaps you can quell my fears? . David . In article <513@wet.UUCP>, epsilon@wet.UUCP (Eric P. Scott) writes: > In article <984@urbana.mcd.mot.com> feldman@urbana.mcd.mot.com (Mike Feldman) writes: > >Also, can anyone recommend any of the low-priced modems, eg. Practical > >Peripherals? My father's under $100 1200 baud modem-in-a-plastic-box > >cooked itself in under 10 hours of use, and I don't want to see him or > >me sink $$$s into that level of quality again. > > We have/had 2 Practical Peripherals 2400SA modems from younger > -and-more-(penny-wise-and-pound-) foolish days. They've never > quite worked right, and multiple firmware replacements have > helped, but not cured them. I say "had" because one of them > recently failed completely, and has been sent back to the > manufacturer. As soon as we get the bucks, tthese turkeys are > history. . Sounds like my experience wasn't unique. I have purchased a total of four Practical Peripherals over the years and two of them were out-and-out defective. One of the remaining couldn't be used in uucp service because of firmware screwyness. It would not really honor the "AT&D3" mode which calls for resetting the user parameters when the DTR line goes false. As a result, the modem would get into death-grip with the getty and shut down the line. Calls to the manufacturer were useless. They had never heard of the problem. A second one did this intermittantly. From: Ken Johnson Pvt To: David Zimmerman Msg #238, 05-Sep-89 10:39pm Subject: Re: PM2400SA David, I am a SYSOP of the PPI BBS along with Paul Hansen as well as being the Manager of Technical Support for PPI. I know when you hear of someone having trouble with a device of any kind that you are planning to purchase, it can make you uneasy. And I know that people do have some problems with our modems but when the number is measured against the thousands of units produced per month, the failure rate is less than 1%. I realize that you have not had that experience but the units are considerably better than you may be imagining. This BBS had been running on 1 2400SA for over 1 and 1/2 years, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week without a problem. Now for the past several months the task has been taken over by our 2400SA MNP without interruption of service. In fact it is usually busy not down and unavailable. Yes, I believe that the &D3 was a problem several EPROM revisions ago but that has been corrected and works fine. In our tech group we have an avid Xenix system user and he has been constantly checking the new revisions with his system and found no problems using the &D3 or with the system hanging up. If you could identify the revision of the EPROM in the units you are having trouble, we should be able to verify if the revision has the problem and send you the newer revision to allow you to test them for yourself. Let me know what we can do for you. Ken* From: Paul Hansen Rec'd To: David Zimmerman Msg #241, 06-Sep-89 04:27am Subject: Re: PM2400SA David, I have great difficulty with messages such as the one you have posted here - because it is 'out of context' to say the least. As Ken has pointed out to you in his message, the return rate for the PPI modems are less than one percent. Relative to the specific claim that 'one of these fried itself,' I am not sure what that means. But, if the unit is stacked in a stack with a dozen other modems creating heat - and there is inadequate ventilation - there can be sufficient heat to do all sorts of 'unfriendly' things. As Ken points out the PM2400SA was used on this BBS 7 days a week, 24 hours a day for more than 18 months without a failure. During that time it was sitting on top of the monochrome monitor. This is NOT the best way to treat a modem - but it worked flawlessly and never 'melted' the case. As to the &D3 thing - well, Ken is younger that I am and has a better memory - but I do not recall any problems with that particular parameter on any revision of the firmware that I have dealt with. There really is no addressing the sort of 'anger' expressed in that message. The PM2400SA remains, in my opinion, one of the best values in the 2400bps modem market. It is a solid operator and the company provides the very best support available anywhere, regardless of what this angry person has had to say. - Paul 09/06 04:43 David Paul Zimmerman dpz@convex.com CONVEX Computer Corp convex!dpz