[comp.sys.hp] 3rd party disk drive for HP720 ?

rhodesii@idaho.uucp (III) (06/09/91)

Does anybody have any experience/recommendations/comments
on hanging an external 3rd party disk (> 1GB) off of an HP-720 ?
With the IBM-320 we had to go through several iterations
to get the special "IBM" SCSI cable. We'd like to avoid
this with the HP and get it right the first time.

tnx
-joel
-- 
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Joel Rhodes                 *   rhodesii@othello.studsvik.com
Studsvik of America,INC.    *   uunet!idaho!othello!rhodesii
Nuclear Code Development    *   Idaho Falls,ID. USA  ph 208-522-8443

alex@opal.idbsu.edu (Alex Feldman) (06/09/91)

In article <1991Jun8.211659.1137@idaho.uucp> rhodesii@idaho.uucp (III) writes:

>Does anybody have any experience/recommendations/comments
>on hanging an external 3rd party disk (> 1GB) off of an HP-720 ?
>With the IBM-320 we had to go through several iterations
>to get the special "IBM" SCSI cable. We'd like to avoid
>this with the HP and get it right the first time.
>
I don't know if this solution will work for a 720, since I have only
used it on the 400 series, but I expect that it will, and anyway it
is probably about time for me to post this rather generic article again.

We have a 400t connected to a 660S SCSI enclosure (I think that's
redundant, but that's life).  We shopped around for another disk to
put in it, and the best deal (overall) that we could find was a 1 GB
HP drive.  The odd thing was, this particular drive was only sold
through distributors and was not supported for Unix.

Incidentally, the cable to connect the enclosure to the 400t is a
specialty item.  Grit your teeth and pay HP their outrageous price for
the cable and the enclosure.

I don't have the model number of the drive handy, but I am told that
the internal designation is a Coyote IIG.  We bought it through Anthem
Electronics in Salt Lake City (sorry, I don't have the phone number
handy, either), and I understand that the same disk is sold through
several different distributors, at several different prices.  The disk
comes with a 5 yr. guarantee, which was the clincher for us.  I think
we paid ~$2700. for the drive.  The first drive they sent us was
defective, but they sent us a new one right away, we plopped it into
the enclosure, and bingo...  worked like a champ.  It is as quiet and
fast as the original 660 MB that was already in the enclosure, and we
boot off it with no problem.  I did get some help from a guy at the
plant (solicited through this newsgroup) setting the jumpers, but even
without that we would have gotten it going (once we got a working
drive) as there were only a few jumpers to set, and they were all
correct but one as they came from the factory.  Not that I didn't
appreciate the help... unlike some readers of this group, I am very
pleased by the interest HP employees show in this group, and I have
found their contributions to have a *very* high signal-to-noise
ratio... I just don't want anyone scared off by the prospect of
setting some jumpers.

The guys downstairs have a cluster of DecStations, and they liked the
drive, the price, and the warranty so much they went right out and
bought their own (they put it in a slightly modified TK-50 chassis).
They don't boot off it, but it has worked fine for them.

HP makes too many different kinds of disk drives, and I am convinced
that they are only hurting themselves with this strategy.  I will
spare readers of this group my analysis of the situation, but the result
is that when you look for 3rd party drives for HP systems, consider HP.
Perhaps someday they will rationalize their product line, but until
they do, it pays to play these games.  
--
	--alex			alex@opal.idbsu.edu

hardy@golem.ps.uci.edu (Meinhard E. Mayer (Hardy)) (06/09/91)

We had a 720 out for a 2-day evaluation and connected an external disk
to it without any problems (I think it was a Wren, with disktab
entries in the original distribution). 
This, and my experience with connecting a Maxtor disk to a 370, lead
me to conclude that the the difficulty of connecting 3-rd party
(including HP-disks sold by 3-rd parties) is a myth. It takes about 30
minutes if you don't wnat to squeeze the last MB out of the drive.
But it is imporrtant to make sure that the seller will take the drive
back if you don't succeed!

Greetings,
Hardy 
			  -------****-------
Meinhard E. Mayer (Hardy);  Department of Physics, University of California
Irvine CA 92717; (714) 856 5543; hardy@golem.ps.uci.edu or MMAYER@UCI.BITNET

knechod%peruvian.utah.edu@cs.utah.edu (Kevin Nechodom) (06/11/91)

In article <ALEX.91Jun8172647@ruby.idbsu.edu> alex@opal.idbsu.edu (Alex Feldman) writes:
[deleted]
>I don't have the model number of the drive handy, but I am told that
>the internal designation is a Coyote IIG.  We bought it through Anthem
>Electronics in Salt Lake City (sorry, I don't have the phone number
>handy, either), and I understand that the same disk is sold through
[more deleted]

By looking in my local phone directory, the Phone Number for Anthem is:
(801) 973-8555

lampi@polari.UUCP (Michael Lampi) (06/12/91)

>In article <1991Jun8.211659.1137@idaho.uucp> rhodesii@idaho.uucp (III) writes:
>
>>Does anybody have any experience/recommendations/comments
>>on hanging an external 3rd party disk (> 1GB) off of an HP-720 ?
>>With the IBM-320 we had to go through several iterations
>>to get the special "IBM" SCSI cable. We'd like to avoid
>>this with the HP and get it right the first time.
>>
R Squared offers 3rd party peripherals for HP-720's, 400's and other
workstations. Since I work for them and head the HP support group, I am
slightly biased :-) in their favor :-).

BTW, you can use the so-called "SCSI-II" or Sparcstation cables with the
high density connector at one end, and the connector of choice at the other
end. The connector on the back of the 720 (& the 400's) supports either
the thumbscrews or the squeeze clip latches. However, *some* of the 400's
have troubles with *some* of the squeeze clip latches, and don't secure
the connector adequately. Make sure that the cable is doubly shielded, twisted
pair, and you should have no problems.

Good luck!

-- 
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Michael Lampi            polari!lampi@sumax.seattleu.edu