Conference hydra::amiga_v1

1508.0. "C LTD and RD50?" by DPDMAI::ANDERSONA () Mon Jul 04 1988 11:35

    
    I am in the process of adding a hard disk and have run into a small
    problem.  My configuration is Amiga 500 C Ltd controller and Adaptec
    4000.  My drives are an ST4051 and an old RD50.  The ST4051 works ok
    but the RD50 gets a format command error 20 after the low level format is
    finished it never starts writing a pattern.  If I am reading the
    documentation right error 20 is a "record not found".
    
    The RD50 is fine I tested it on a rainbow and ran four patterns
    as a surface test no bad spots.  The SCSICHECK passes and CLEARSCSI
    passes.  Prior to the attempt to format both got a status 1C which
    is the Adaptec code for bad or unknown format.  So something is
    being written on it.  I also tried GENFORMAT and got a bad status
    response after the initial write (watching the stepper motor).
    
    Here are the setting under HDFORMAT
    
    SCSI Unit Number         1
    Blocks/Track            17   (also tried 16 and 18)
    Total cylinders        153   (also tried 150 to 154)
    Total heads              4
    Interleave               0   (also tried 1)
    Red write current       76   (also 154)
    w/precomp               76   (also 154)
    Park zone                0
    Step rate                0   (also 1 and 2)
    
    I have tried it as the only drive on the Adaptec 4000 as drive zero.
    Thie drive jumpers are the same as would be used on the Rainbow.
    All of DEC's documentation show is how DEC need them not their
    definitions, this could be my problem.
    
    This is no big problem it would be nice to use this drive if possible
    I hate to see good hardware sitting around getting dusty.  If anyone
    has ever gotten a RD50 to work I would appreciate their thoughts
    on this.
    
    Thanks in advance
    
    Alan
    
    

    OK I got some answers that I will post here.  First here are the
    jumpers assignments on the bottom of drive.
    
                        +-----+
                       9|-----|8   Jumpers 5-12, 6-11, 7-10, 8-9
                      10|     |7           DS3   DS2   DS1   DS0
                      11|     |6
                      12|     |5   Jumpers 2-15, 3-14, 4-13 in
                      13|-----|4
                      14|-----|3   Jumper  1-16 is not used and must
                      15|-----|2           be out
                      16|     |1
                        +-----+
    
            The above configuration is set up for DS0
           
            They are actually for an RD51 but should work for an RD50
            if you don't have the same problem that I have explained
            below.
    
    With this I still could not get the drive to work.  I called C.LTD
    and they say that a lot of the later ST506's will not work with
    the Adaptec controller.  According to C.LTD at the end of the product
    life Segate dumped a lot of the ST506's on the market cheap.  Most
    of those had bad cyl 0's.  The Adaptec expects to see the drive
    parameter information at cyl 0.  Without that the Adaptec cannot
    use the drive.  C.LTD says that they have a ST506 working but it
    is an older model.  Most of the newer ones will not work, but they
    should work with other controllers that do not use cyl 0 the same
    way.
    
    
    Thanks everyone that sent me information on this subject.
    
    Alan