[sebhc] Floppy Drive questions.

[Peter Shkabara]

I can verify from personal experience some of the drive compatibility.
Double-density drives will work with the H17 or H37 controllers. This
includes 40-track and 80-track 5.25 inch drives, as well as the 3.5 inch
drives. The 3.5 inch, however, cannot be used on the H17 controller unless
you provide some sort of adaptor that simulates the hard sector holes - this
was discussed at length recently on the list.

To use high density drive, such as the 1.2M 5.25 and the 1.44M 3.5, you
would need a controller that can handle the high density mode. This includes
the H47, H67, Magnolia, and CDR Systems. The H37 controller can also handle
high density mode (including an 8-inch drive), but it requires modifications
to the hardware. Articles for such modifications had appeared in REMark
magazine, if I recall correctly. Don't know if the list has an archive of
such articles.

Using 3.5 inch drives is great, since the media is much smaller and
sturdier. It is also possible to connect the H37 and H17 controllers
simultaneously to the same drives - I have done this with a rather simple
adaptor. I found it recently in my garage as I was packing for our move.

Sorry, but I don't know if you can have more than two controllers. I don't
remember having the H17, Magnolia, CDR, and H37 installed at the same time,
although I did own all of them at one time.

If others are interested in some of my archive of knowledge regarding these
items, contact me sometime in October - after I am settled in my new home ;)

Peter
-----------------------------------------------------------
peter59 at sbcglobal.net - http://www.geocities.com/anapro.geo/
 

> -----Original Message-----
>  I hope to be getting a soft-sector controller also. Based on 
> the mounting holes in the H77, it appears that I will be able 
> to put 4 half-height drives in it. I'm thinking, I should 
> have one or two more hard-sectored drives and 2 or 3 
> soft-sectored drives. 
> 
> I have heard that I can put the old 1.2M 5 1/4" drives in and 
> they will provide 400K with the Hard-sector controller and 
> 800K with the soft-sector controller. Has anyone tried this? 
> What were the results.
> 
> I have also heard that 3.5" 720K drives were electrically the 
> same the 5.25" drives and can be connected up to the 
> soft-sector controller. Again, has anyone tried this, and was 
> it successful? If this is possible, it might be the cheapest 
> route for finding media. 
> 
> Also I heard that the 3.5" 1.44 drives were electrically the 
> same at the 8" drives, and a H47 controller can handle them. 
> Has anyone tried this and what were the results? Any special 
> cable needed?

>   Mark

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