Replacements for ST-406/ST-512 drives

From: Dwight K. Elvey <dwight.elvey_at_amd.com>
Date: Mon Feb 7 18:34:06 2005

>From: ard_at_p850ug1.demon.co.uk
>
>>
>> On Sun, 2005-02-06 at 19:04 +0000, Tony Duell wrote:
>> > A second problem is low-level formatting these hard drives. Some machines
>> > don't seem to have the software to do it, and just about every controller
>> > has its own format.
>> >
>> > You mentioned the HPIB drive boxes. I use an HP9133 (I forget the suffix
>> > letter, its a 20Mbyte one in the more modern, smaller, box) on my
>> > Integral. Althoguh the drive mechanism is a standard ST225, I can tell
>> > you from experience that putting a 'blank' ST225 in there just causes it
>> > to turn on the fault light. Whether there is some way to get the unit to
>> > do an LLF, whether you need a different firmware EPROM, or what, I don't
>> > know. But I jaut hope that disk keeps on working.
>>
>> How hard would it be for someone far more competant than me to rig
>> something up to just sample the data stream from such a drive and save
>> it to some form of modern media?
>
>That's basically what was suggested before, and what I mentioned last
>night. Sample the sata stream at several times the data rate (16 times,
>or 80MHz, would seem OK), record that bit pattern on the CF card or
>whatever, then play it back.
>
>There are quite a few 'interesting' details to get this to work, and
>which substantially increases the amount of logic needed. But it should
>be very possible.
>
>-tony

Hi
 As I stated before, if you place a simple toggle flip-flop that
is clocked by the pulse from the drive, the rate of sampling
is reduced by a large factor ( at least about 10 ).
Dwight
Received on Mon Feb 07 2005 - 18:34:06 GMT