Path: utzoo!lsuc!spectrix!tmsoft!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!dgp.toronto.edu!hugh
From: hugh@dgp.toronto.edu ("D. Hugh Redelmeier")
Newsgroups: tor.general
Subject: Re: 2400 Baud modems (Supra 2400)
Message-ID: <8803190820.AA17635@explorer.dgp.toronto.edu>
Date: 19 Mar 88 08:20:14 GMT
References: <88Mar18.175012est.26989@ephemeral.ai.toronto.edu>
Distribution: tor
Organization: University of Toronto, CSRI
Lines: 37

In article <88Mar18.175012est.26989@ephemeral.ai.toronto.edu> yann@ai.toronto.edu (Yann le Cun) writes:
>There is an other el cheapo 2400b modem on the market, the name is
>Supra. I have seen ads for it at 229 US$.
>I think it is available in Canada, i remember seeing ads in Toronto Compute.

I bought one a couple of weeks ago.  I paid $220 (Canadian) at a
computer show, but the best generally available price seems to be
about $250 (for example, I think Compuplace (my favourite Atari
dealer) sells it for that).

I am using it as the modem line on my Sun, supporting dial-in and
dial-out.  It seems to work fine.  Here are the only negatives:

- The command &D3 tells the modem how to react to the DTR line:
  "Modem initializes upon on-to-off transition of DTR".  This is what
  I want it to do, but I would expect it to drop the phone line while
  it is at it; it doesn't.  I have to use &D2 which says: "modem
  hangs up, disables autoanswer, and goes to command state upon
  on-to-off transition of DTR".  This does not reset the modem.  Does
  anyone know what a Hayes 2400 or others do with &D3?

- One radio seems to pick up RFI from the modem (and from my Sun).
  Other radios, even when put in the same position, don't seem to.

- The power supply is not CSA approved.  The retailer gave me a CSA
  approved power supply when I purchased it, but it was the wrong
  kind (DC, not AC).  It will be replaced soon.

- Although the modem box has the mandatory Hayes-compatible styling,
  it is much smaller.  Unfortunately, it is too small to hold my
  NE-500 handset (the most ordinary kind of phone) :-)

Supra is a peripheral manufacturer for Atari computers.  They have
made Atari-specific modems for years.  This modem is a generic
external modem.  I don't know the track record for this modem: I
first heard of it from Electronic Playworld's Boxing Day sale ($250).
There are several distributers.