Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!samsung!umich!vela!sycom!rkushner
From: rkushner@sycom.UUCP (Ronald Kushner)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy
Subject: Re: The Amiga's Future
Message-ID: <rkushner.3263@sycom.UUCP>
Date: 27 Jun 91 06:13:55 GMT
References: <rkushner.0343@sycom.UUCP> <1991Jun21.183216.29240@news.iastate.edu> <88@ryptyde.UUCP> <17300@chopin.udel.edu> <rkushner.1515@sycom.UUCP> <1991Jun25.164959.16960@infonode.ingr.com> <rkushner.2657@sycom.UUCP>91Jun25.164959.16960@infonode.ingr.com> <rkushne
Organization: Michigan Information eXchange
Lines: 53

peterk@cbmger.UUCP (Peter Kittel GERMANY) writes:
>In article <rkushner.2657@sycom.UUCP> rkushner@sycom.UUCP (Ronald Kushner) wri
>>
>>their horror stories with their dealings...I am not alone, and it seems there
>>are quite a few starting to pop up, including another local BBS that has ALOT
>>of downtime because of his GVP HD controller sending his heads out of range o
>>his Seagate hard drive(same problem I had, which started my nightmare with
>>dealing with GVP)...
>
>Huh, there was a long thread here several months before about that
>"stiction" problem with Seagate drives. Are you sure the problems
>are with the controller and not with the drive?
>

Yep, its the GVP controllers, for some reason, they somehow go flaky and on
296N's they send the heads out of range. They make an very LOUD POP or CRUNCH
and then R/W requester comes up on the next access...If you click Retry it
will run fine until the next crunch..

I had a CBM 2091 that no local dealer told me about turning off re-selection
(I would still have it today, probably not this A3000), but other than the
2091 lockups now and then, the two drives functioned properly. I went and
traded in for the GVP Series II with ramcard, and it ran both drives fine
until Christmas or so, then the Seagate started "CRUNCHING", went to
CompUSA(Soft Whorehouse at the time) and they swapped the drive for a new one.
Took it home and within 3 hours it crunched as well...Called GVP and they
suggested sending in the controller, but I can't go down, got too much going
on here to totally loose the system. Made an arrangement to have one mailed
out and then I would mail my old one back, they took 7 days to ship and then
billed me for it after I mailed the defective one back!! Anyways, it fixed the
crunching problem for about 2 months (Until March) and it started crunching
again..Borrowed a newer 2091 and they worked great for 24 hours(it was common
enough to be go down once in a 24 hour period), and then hooked up the GVP and
the sucker crunched again within a half hour...Sold the GVP S II and my A2000
and haven't had any simular problems yet with the A3000...

(The guy at CompUSA seems to still think its because SCSI isn't standard
enough to daisychain a Quantum and a Seagate, I think he's stuck in PC land)

I am not alone on this, gfradl@instem.UUCP has the same problem, along with
someone else who mailed me(I forget)...It works fine with 1 drive, dies with 2
or more daisychained(with a 296 somewhere in the chain)...Played with
termination on first drive, on second drive, no termination, chaning ID
jumpers, parity jumpers on/off, you name it...Extra special care was taken
with the SCSI cable as well, to make sure it didn't cross any other ribbon
cables, or power cables...

-- C-UseNet V0.42e
 Ronald Kushner                          Life in Hell BBS  +1 (313) 939-6666
 P.O. Box 353                               14400 USR HST V.42 & V.42bis
 Sterling Heights, MI  48311-0353              Complete Amiga Support
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