Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!asuvax!mcdphx!phx.mcd.mot.com!teroach!stan
From: teroach!stan@phx.mcd.mot.com (Stan Fisher)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: 2091 Interface
Keywords: In article <5357@crash.cts.com> denny@pnet01.cts.com (Dennis Anderson) writes:
Message-ID: <13925@mcdphx.phx.mcd.mot.com>
Date: 30 Oct 90 21:50:06 GMT
References: <5357@crash.cts.com>
Sender: listen@mcdphx.phx.mcd.mot.com
Reply-To: teroach!stan@phx.mcd.mot.com (Stan Fisher)
Organization: Motorola Microcomputer Group
Lines: 53
Summary:

>drive works fine on anouther friends 1000 using a Supra controller. When
>asking around for help we were told by SEVERAL Amiga dealers that the Roms in
>both the 2091 and 590 are not able to handle MORE THAN ONE SCSI DRIVE. Is this
>true??? We were told that our machines would NOT be able to be repaired under
>waranty with new roms, is this true??? If what we are hearing is true then we
>are very angry!!! The ads for both the 2091 and 590 state that UP TO 7 SCSI
>DRIVES may be daisy chained from the controller. If this does not work then
>the required upgrade to do so should be done for free no matter when our
>computers were bought as this is false advertising. If it is an innocent
>mistake then Commodore should still fix it free as that was how our
>controllers were advertised to work. If Commodore sees fit not to do this rom
(stuff deleted)
>                                               Dennis Anderson

I know many of us 2091 owners (590 too) have experienced this problem..  I
asked a while back on the net about the SCSI bus hang problem (multiple
drives on the buss going poof) and was told to disable the reselection
option in the HDTOOLBOX program's advanced options area.  This was
"supposed to fix the problem" which in reality is only a patch workaround
to reduce the occurance of the problem.  The REAL problem is that Commodore
got a batch of bad Western Digital SCSI controller chips with reselection
problems and is trying to avoid doing the right thing and fixing everyones
boards with new controller chips! I also was told that the firmware
(ROMS) had been updated and were available at local dealers.. I didn't
realize at that time that the firmware change was only to fix the location
zero bug that CBM had left in the file system handler in ROM.  I went to
the dealer with the problem...  (a mistake I now know).  The dealer said,
"Yes the new firmware will fix up the location zero bug and the SCSI reselect
problem and fix you right up there, yesiree".  Much to my dismay the price
for fixing a CBM propigated problem was to be somewhere around $30 - $40 for
the ROMs and if I wanted them to install them tack on another $30 - $35 !!!
I bought the chips and installed them myself.  Now some time has passed and
I still have occasional SCSI buss hangs.  I got mad enough to attempt to
get some resolution to the problem from Commodore... I called cust. support
and chewed on their ear for a while and the guy said he'd have someone call
me back with the answer.  About 1 week later I did get a call.  This person
said another rev. of the firmware was just about ready, and when it got to
the dealers, it would be offered as a free upgrade.  I wanted to know how
they planned to fix the hardware problem with software. He wasn't sure but he
said "they hoped it wouldn't effect the performance of the controller"
 !!!!  WHAT !!!!  Gee I hope so too!!!  If my company worked things this
way you can bet we'd be losing alot of business.  How would CBM like it if
we went ahead and shipped them a bunch of '040's for production systems and
when we found out we had floating point problems we just said uhh  well how
about disabling any floating point, re-compile, and things will be just fine!
Somehow I think they would take a dim view on that.


(BTW..  opinions expressed here are mine and not those of my employer)

  Stan Fisher -  stan@teroach.phx.mcd.mot.com  -  asuvax!mcdphx!teroach!stan
  Motorola Microcomputer Division, Tempe, Arizona   -   Voice (602) 438-3228
  ^^^^^^^^