I'm selling a Psygnosis Amiga 3000.

FromWithin · 15 December 2018, 14:25

I've posted in marketplace, but I think it's worth mentioning here as it certainly has nostalgia and memories for me. There's some trivia in the auction post (amongst other things, it was used to create the original Lemmings intro and logo), but I'm happy to answer any questions about it or Psygnosis in general here.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/202538125854?ul_noapp=true

talybont · 15 December 2018, 15:33

Great story, and good going rescuing this from the dump.

I'm not bidding, I gotta eat.

speshady · 15 December 2018, 22:00

Nice piece of kit you have there.
Would be good if you could make a backup of the files on the HD and share on here? if that is possible of course.

FromWithin · 15 December 2018, 23:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by speshady

Would be good if you could make a backup of the files on the HD and share on here? if that is possible of course.

One of the reasons that I'm selling it is that it's a pain to get the files off and I can't afford the time and resources needed to do it. I'm hoping that the buyer can sort that out. It will likely otherwise sit there for another 20 years.

fgh · 16 December 2018, 00:05

Anyone with a working scsi setup (old pc/mac/amiga etc) can image your drive, it’s a real shame if it’s lost.
Or someone could come over with a scsi2sd adapter and easily image it on your a3000

Hewitson · 16 December 2018, 00:26

I'm afraid this drive may not survive being transported. It needs to be imaged with dd_rescue or similar software as soon as possible.

This data is absolutely irreplaceable.

lesta_smsc · 16 December 2018, 02:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by FromWithin

I've posted in marketplace, but I think it's worth mentioning here as it certainly has nostalgia and memories for me. There's some trivia in the auction post (amongst other things, it was used to create the original Lemmings intro and logo), but I'm happy to answer any questions about it or Psygnosis in general here.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/202538125854?ul_noapp=true

I only just saw this today whilst doing a search on eBay!

Getting the HDD imaged would be awesome, but might be best to avoid postage as most HDD usually get damaged in transit.

If you're okay for someone to come over and image the HDD for you, then I could look at asking a friend with expertise in such matters to try and pop over before the bidding ends (if he available as I know it's Christmas close approaching).

If I had the funds, I would have bought it, alas, I hope it goes to a good home!

oscillik · 16 December 2018, 15:12

I'm in the Liverpool area (I live in Widnes, and travel to Liverpool daily for work), and I can image the drive.

FromWithin · 17 December 2018, 18:22

I just replied on reddit to oscillik with the following:

Unfortunately, the A3000 uses a SCSI bus and the only SCSI to USB products that I've seen are old, expensive, and have SCSI 3 connectors. Once of those converters would also need a SCSI ribbon to female SCSI-3 connector and I've never seen such a thing.

You've just made me think of something that I didn't consider before...the drive might actually be fine and the on-board SCSI controller is the thing that is faulty.

But you see, it's all so complicated that I just haven't got the time to try to sort it out. I spent a few days on it and now I fear continuing with it knowing that I can't fix it just in case mutiple power cycles really do kill the hard drive. I was hoping that whoever bought it would be an Amiga aficionado with the capability to resolve the problems.

oscillik · 18 December 2018, 17:49

Thanks for replying! Yeah, as I mentioned on Reddit — I didn't realise the drive is SCSI, so I can't help here unfortunately

fgh · 18 December 2018, 18:03

It’s not complicated for an amiga user with scsi.
Just add your disk to their system and create an image of your drive.
Or someone local with a scsi2sd adapter can add it to your system and do it there onto the sd card.

high-5 · 18 December 2018, 20:54

Had a similar challenge when I found my old Amiga SCSI HD some weeks ago. I bought an old SCSI controller AHA2940U (10€) and transfered files via PC. WinUAE can also create a HDF file from the HD.

Hewitson · 19 December 2018, 04:54

Yep, was going to suggest buying a cheap PCI SCSI controller off ebay.

I've actually got a spare Adaptec, but by the time it reached you you'd probably have found one elsewhere.

4pLaY · 22 December 2018, 01:12

Seems this one fetched a hefty sum of GBP 1,850.00

hth313 · 22 December 2018, 01:21

Wow, that is probably close to what it costed new (not counting inflation).

nexus · 22 December 2018, 04:00

i have a Maxis A2000 wish i could get info on
was donated to a toaster training school all i have to go by is the barcode/serial property of maxis label on the back
guessing it was once a simcity dev unit as its the old old maxis logo sun with blue ribbon just like on the 1st simcity box

TjLaZer · 24 December 2018, 08:01

Just a comment about the Quantum HD. They have a very common failure where there are rubber bump stops in them that get really sticky and the read/write lever will get stuck on it when it moves. That is the usual failure for them. Opening them up and gently moving the lever will get it moving again and the HD will work. It's a good idea to backup the drive asap at that point. Maybe connect a SCSI Zip Drive to it to do it. The drive can be fixed, I just fixed one in my 3000. I used a thin piece of clear packing tape, a long thin strip and I carefully placed it on the rubber bump stop so it does not allow the lever to stick to it. Drive works perfect now. PM for more info on this fix.

See here at 15:41
[ Show youtube player ]

nexus · 24 December 2018, 08:38

considering the value of contents on this drive opening it should only be done in clean room/box if the head is stuck like that then best way to free it without opening is too freeze it then tap it etc rinse repeat few times if that doesnt work then you must use a clean room or make 1
i used to do data recovery years years ago
i had to do same fix as you on a conner drive from dave haynies a1200 hoping it had something good too bad it didnt

lesta_smsc · 29 December 2018, 01:57

Yes, unfortunately well outside my budget! Anyone known if the new owner is on this forum!?

FromWithin · 06 January 2019, 20:41

An update for any interested parties. The buyer has now taken the machine. The hard drive was recognized fine by a SCSI controller in a separate PC and an image of the drive was taken. The drive then booted up okay when placed back into the Amiga 3000, which was a relief. The data has been rescued and the buyer has a fully working machine.

15 December 2018, 14:25	#1
FromWithin Music lord Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Liverpool, UK Age: 50 Posts: 630	I'm selling a Psygnosis Amiga 3000. I've posted in marketplace, but I think it's worth mentioning here as it certainly has nostalgia and memories for me. There's some trivia in the auction post (amongst other things, it was used to create the original Lemmings intro and logo), but I'm happy to answer any questions about it or Psygnosis in general here. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/202538125854?ul_noapp=true

24 December 2018, 08:38	#18
nexus Registered User Join Date: Aug 2017 Location: USA Posts: 728	considering the value of contents on this drive opening it should only be done in clean room/box if the head is stuck like that then best way to free it without opening is too freeze it then tap it etc rinse repeat few times if that doesnt work then you must use a clean room or make 1 i used to do data recovery years years ago i had to do same fix as you on a conner drive from dave haynies a1200 hoping it had something good too bad it didnt Last edited by nexus; 24 December 2018 at 08:45.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Selling my "high-end" Amiga 3000	astuermer	MarketPlace	12	25 June 2021 18:56
Someone has regretted selling their Amiga?	Flash951	Nostalgia & memories	68	19 May 2018 12:14
Modern games in Psygnosis/Amiga style	dex	Nostalgia & memories	17	16 September 2017 22:15
Podcast: Tribute to Psygnosis, Part I: The Amiga Years	Bobic	News	2	26 November 2012 21:02
AMIGA: Psygnosis Shirts, Cinemaware Games and more...	cebulba	MarketPlace	3	26 November 2004 00:15

15 December 2018, 15:33	#2
talybont Registered User Join Date: Oct 2016 Location: Norway Posts: 170	Great story, and good going rescuing this from the dump. I'm not bidding, I gotta eat.

15 December 2018, 22:00	#3
speshady Registered User Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: currently in Glasgow, from Derbyshire/England Age: 50 Posts: 172	Nice piece of kit you have there. Would be good if you could make a backup of the files on the HD and share on here? if that is possible of course.

16 December 2018, 00:05	#5
fgh Registered User Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Norway Posts: 817	Anyone with a working scsi setup (old pc/mac/amiga etc) can image your drive, it’s a real shame if it’s lost. Or someone could come over with a scsi2sd adapter and easily image it on your a3000

16 December 2018, 00:26	#6
Hewitson Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Melbourne, Australia Age: 41 Posts: 3,771	I'm afraid this drive may not survive being transported. It needs to be imaged with dd_rescue or similar software as soon as possible. This data is absolutely irreplaceable.

16 December 2018, 15:12	#8
oscillik Registered User Join Date: Aug 2018 Location: UK Posts: 50	I'm in the Liverpool area (I live in Widnes, and travel to Liverpool daily for work), and I can image the drive.

17 December 2018, 18:22	#9
FromWithin Music lord Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Liverpool, UK Age: 50 Posts: 630	I just replied on reddit to oscillik with the following: Unfortunately, the A3000 uses a SCSI bus and the only SCSI to USB products that I've seen are old, expensive, and have SCSI 3 connectors. Once of those converters would also need a SCSI ribbon to female SCSI-3 connector and I've never seen such a thing. You've just made me think of something that I didn't consider before...the drive might actually be fine and the on-board SCSI controller is the thing that is faulty. But you see, it's all so complicated that I just haven't got the time to try to sort it out. I spent a few days on it and now I fear continuing with it knowing that I can't fix it just in case mutiple power cycles really do kill the hard drive. I was hoping that whoever bought it would be an Amiga aficionado with the capability to resolve the problems.

18 December 2018, 17:49	#10
oscillik Registered User Join Date: Aug 2018 Location: UK Posts: 50	Thanks for replying! Yeah, as I mentioned on Reddit — I didn't realise the drive is SCSI, so I can't help here unfortunately

18 December 2018, 18:03	#11
fgh Registered User Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Norway Posts: 817	It’s not complicated for an amiga user with scsi. Just add your disk to their system and create an image of your drive. Or someone local with a scsi2sd adapter can add it to your system and do it there onto the sd card.

18 December 2018, 20:54	#12
high-5 Zone Friend Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Cologne, Germany Age: 49 Posts: 52	Had a similar challenge when I found my old Amiga SCSI HD some weeks ago. I bought an old SCSI controller AHA2940U (10€) and transfered files via PC. WinUAE can also create a HDF file from the HD.

19 December 2018, 04:54	#13
Hewitson Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Melbourne, Australia Age: 41 Posts: 3,771	Yep, was going to suggest buying a cheap PCI SCSI controller off ebay. I've actually got a spare Adaptec, but by the time it reached you you'd probably have found one elsewhere.

22 December 2018, 01:12	#14
4pLaY www.resistance.no Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Norway Age: 43 Posts: 200	Seems this one fetched a hefty sum of GBP 1,850.00

22 December 2018, 01:21	#15
hth313 Registered User Join Date: May 2018 Location: Delta, Canada Posts: 192	Wow, that is probably close to what it costed new (not counting inflation).

22 December 2018, 04:00	#16
nexus Registered User Join Date: Aug 2017 Location: USA Posts: 728	i have a Maxis A2000 wish i could get info on was donated to a toaster training school all i have to go by is the barcode/serial property of maxis label on the back guessing it was once a simcity dev unit as its the old old maxis logo sun with blue ribbon just like on the 1st simcity box

24 December 2018, 08:01	#17
TjLaZer Registered User Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Tacoma, WA USA Age: 52 Posts: 1,915	Just a comment about the Quantum HD. They have a very common failure where there are rubber bump stops in them that get really sticky and the read/write lever will get stuck on it when it moves. That is the usual failure for them. Opening them up and gently moving the lever will get it moving again and the HD will work. It's a good idea to backup the drive asap at that point. Maybe connect a SCSI Zip Drive to it to do it. The drive can be fixed, I just fixed one in my 3000. I used a thin piece of clear packing tape, a long thin strip and I carefully placed it on the rubber bump stop so it does not allow the lever to stick to it. Drive works perfect now. PM for more info on this fix. See here at 15:41 [ Show youtube player ]

29 December 2018, 01:57	#19
lesta_smsc Registered User Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 3,173	Yes, unfortunately well outside my budget! Anyone known if the new owner is on this forum!?

06 January 2019, 20:41	#20
FromWithin Music lord Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Liverpool, UK Age: 50 Posts: 630	An update for any interested parties. The buyer has now taken the machine. The hard drive was recognized fine by a SCSI controller in a separate PC and an image of the drive was taken. The drive then booted up okay when placed back into the Amiga 3000, which was a relief. The data has been rescued and the buyer has a fully working machine.

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)