Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!sdd.hp.com!decwrl!bacchus.pa.dec.com!shlump.nac.dec.com!norge.enet.dec.com!chad From: chad@norge.enet.dec.com (Chad Leigh) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware Subject: Re: Do it yourself Harddrives Message-ID: <14802@shlump.nac.dec.com> Date: 22 Aug 90 13:34:36 GMT References: <1990Aug15.123628.12944@cbnews.att.com> <505@litle.litle.com> Sender: newsdaemon@shlump.nac.dec.com Reply-To: chad@norge.enet.dec.com (Chad Leigh) Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation, Nashua NH Lines: 38 >Yes, you can interface a pc style drive to a Mac. You can use the Adaptec >4000A SCSI conversion board. This board will allow you to use an ESDI >disk drive on a SCSI bus. The are a few things you need to know about >though. You need an OEM guide for both the Adaptec 4000A controller and >for the ESDI disk drive you are using. The reason you need these documents >is you need to know things like the number of heads, cylinders and blocks >per cylinder the disk drive uses and also you must know the various command >opcodes that the Adaptec controller uses. Are you sure the Adaptec 4000(a) board allows ESDI drives? My Adaptec 4000 board allows ST506/412 compatible drives to be controlled. I have a 5 1/4 Micropolis (OEMed by DEC as RD53) and a Quantum 5 1/4 Q540 (OEMed by DEC as RD52) running (The RD52 won't boot but otherwise works -- the RD53 will boot). I am using the Vishniac driver (Yes, I'm sending the shareware fee in as soon as I settle on using this drive setup as my permanent drive set up and not just as an experiment). Also, you don't really need the OEM guide for either. If you are using someone elses driver you don't need to know much about the adaptec board (you need to know about the jumpers and stuff but a query here on the net could probably help you there). You do need to know things about the drive but there are a lot of sources for things like num of heads, cylinders etc. There are plenty of places to get that info -- for example, I have a listing for almost every drive from every manufacturer that came from a western digital bbs. It doesn't hurt to have the adaptec manual (my board came with it -- i bought it used) and the drive guide -- they just aren't necesarry as the amount of info needed isn't that great. Good luck Chad chad@norge.enet.dec.com Vi elsker dette landet! -------------------------------------------------------------- DEC has its opinions, I have mine. --------------------------------------------------------------