jl@french.UUCP (Jean-Louis Ecochard) (05/01/88)
I am looking for an interface for the Cypher 525 tape drive ( pn 960273-601 )
It is a 1/4 cartridge tape drive presenting a floppy interface ( SA450 ) to
the host ( it spins at 78ips ). The interface should be compatible with either
a IBM/PC bus or a Multibus.
( Apple bus, 7300 bus are acceptable but not prefered ).
Before you telling me to use a standard 5 1/4 floppy disk controler for the PC,
let me tell you more.
The cartridge tape is a 78ips. In order to format the tape, you must maintain
streaming ( this is because you need to write the index marks at exact
positions ). The IBM/PC floppy controller ( and clones up to 8Mhz ) cannot
maintain the data rate necessary to obtain a correct streaming ( this would be
OK with a 39ips model ). This is a restriction of the hardware. I wrote a small
efficient 8086 assembly routine to format the tape ( running stand alone on a
PC ) and I was not able to maintain streaming. I never tested it on a Multibus
for I do not have a floppy controller. I believe the tape drive requires the use
of an off-board engine in order to work properly. I know of one for the AT&T
3B2 computer familly but haven't heard of any for other systems.
Thanks in advance
Jean-Louis
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