lee@gdc.portal.com (Seng-Poh Lee, Gen DataComm, +1 203 758-1811) (06/26/91)
Are DC600A 600' tapes the largest that can be used on QIC-60 tape drives? I see DC6150, DC6250 tapes advertised that can store 150 and 250 Megabytes compared to the 60 Megabytes of the DC600A. What are the differences between DC600A's and DC6XXX tapes. Is the recording method totally different, etc, or is it just tape length? Thanks -- Seng-Poh Lee <lee@gdc.portal.com>
schuster@panix.uucp (Michael Schuster) (06/27/91)
In article <16763@gdc.portal.com> lee@gdc.portal.com (Seng-Poh Lee, Gen DataComm, +1 203 758-1811) writes: >Are DC600A 600' tapes the largest that can be used on QIC-60 tape drives? >I see DC6150, DC6250 tapes advertised that can store 150 and 250 Megabytes >compared to the 60 Megabytes of the DC600A. > >What are the differences between DC600A's and DC6XXX tapes. Is the >recording method totally different, etc, or is it just tape length? They differ in tape length and in the maximum density (tracks per inch) that the tape can reliably hold. -- Mike Schuster | -CIS: 70346,1745 -NY Public Access UNIX: schuster@panix.com | -MCI Mail, GENIE: -The Portal (R) System: schuster@cup.portal.com | MSCHUSTER
dtb@adpplz.UUCP (Tom Beach) (06/28/91)
In article <16763@gdc.portal.com>, lee@gdc.portal.com (Seng-Poh Lee, Gen DataComm, +1 203 758-1811) writes: > Are DC600A 600' tapes the largest that can be used on QIC-60 tape drives? They are the largest that can be used safely but see below! > I see DC6150, DC6250 tapes advertised that can store 150 and 250 Megabytes > compared to the 60 Megabytes of the DC600A. The DC150 tape is fundamentally Identical to the DC600A tape and can be used in QIC-60 tape drives, but you won't get any more data on it. The DC600A and DC6150 are both 620 feet long 550 Oersted tapes. The 6150 is certified for higher data and track densities than the 600A and will support the QIC-150 data format. The tapes are differentiated by the distance between the load point and the data area. A QIC-60 drive will write 60 MBytes on either media. A QIC-150 drive will read QIC-60 format from a DC600A tape but will not write it. The DC6250 is 1020' long. It is the same magnetic coating as the DC6150 but is on a thinner substrate to provide a larger data capacity. It would be possible to use this tape in a QIC-60 mechanism and get 100 MB volumes. IT IS **NOT** RECOMMENDED!!!!! Unlike the QIC-150 drives, the QIC-60 drives did not use hardened steel heads. These heads wear in a different pattern with the thinner tape. Use of 1000' tape in a DC-60 tape drive will result in loss of data integrity. Particularily on 600' tapes. Don't risk it! > What are the differences between DC600A's and DC6XXX tapes. Is the > recording method totally different, etc, or is it just tape length? Both! See above. DC6320 tapes are 620' tapes with still higher data and track densities. DC6525 tapes are 1020' tapes with the same magnetic coating. The DC6320 tape will provide 60 MBytes of capacity on a QIC-60 drive. QIC-525 drives will read QIC-60 or QIC-150 tapes. To summarize: There are 2 lengths 620' and 1020' There are 3 data formats QIC-60, QIC-150, QIC-320 You can use any 620' tape in your QIC-60 drive but you'll only get 60 MBytes! Hope this helps! Tom ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | Tom Beach : Sr Project Engineer : Mass Storage Technology | | phone : (503) 294-1541 | | email : uunet : dtb@adpplz.uucp | | ADP Dealer Services, ADP Plaza, 2525 S.W. 1st Ave, Portland OR, 97201 | ------------------------------------------------------------------------