Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!tnc!m0154
From: m0154@tnc.UUCP (GUY GARNETT)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.hardware
Subject: Re: A3000 Harddrive Update
Keywords: hell, harddrive
Message-ID: <779@tnc.UUCP>
Date: 28 Mar 91 17:35:11 GMT
References: <27548@uflorida.cis.ufl.EDU>
Reply-To: m0154@tnc.UUCP (GUY GARNETT)
Organization: The Next Challenge, Fairfax, Va.
Lines: 41

In article <27548@uflorida.cis.ufl.EDU> cr1@shark.cis.ufl.edu (Anubis) writes:
>
>Well, yesterday I turned off my Amiga 3000 (This is important, it is
>something I very rarely do...) and moved some wires around and tried
>to get everything to come back up again.  My second internal harddrive
>refused to come up.  (System Info: 1 40 meg internal quantum as boot
>drive, 1 ST157N as the second drive, 1 internal floppy).  I took the
>A3000 apart, listened to the seagate, and I SWEAR, imagine a little
>man inside the harddrive knocking on the case...THAT is EXACTLY what
>it sounded like.  
> 
>No amount of poking, proding, switching drives around, nor all the
>kings horses and all the kings men could get this drive back up.
> 
>Has anyone else had this problem with seagates in general?
> 
Well, I don't have two drives in my A3000 (I don't even have a 3000),
but I do have some experience with Seagate drives (I was responsible
for the installation and maintainance of about 30 PClones for a number
of years).

All of those PClones had Seagate drives, and I had no end of trouble
with drive failures.  One of the shure signs of a completely hosed
drive was a "Boooinkk, Booinkk" sound when power was applied
(sometimes accompanied by a very dim drive light).  To me it sounded
like someone was dropping a ball bearing onto the drive shell (is is
probably the sound of the drive heads smacking against their stops as
a demented drive controller has electronic spasms).

My diagnosis: dead drive.  Solution: replace it with a Quantum (or
some other non-Seagate manufacturer); drives that fail in this way can
also be repaired, but this is typically less cost effective than
replacing the thing.

Strangest Seagate failure mode I encountered: Dark smoke pours from
case of computer.  Power is rapidly disconnected, and the computer
brought down to the shop for examination.  A resistor on the drive
electronics board fried (so well that it actually scorched a hole in
the board).  How this could possible happen, I don't know.

Wildstar