Amiga 3000: RDB won't save

[DarrenHD]

Hey guys. I have a new AA3000 - from hese on Amibay. It's essentially from a SCSI perspective the same as the Amiga 3000.

I'm trying to setup a SCSI drive on it but after going into HDToolbox and reading the drive configuration, setting up partitions, saving, etc, the RDB and partition layouts are never saved after a reboot. It's like it's not able to save the RDB. When I try to save changes to the drive in HDToolbox it says "Not changed". I can see the drive fine.

It's a WD-08 chip, terminating resistors are installed on the motherboard, and the single drive on the end of my SCSI cable is also terminated. As I mentioned I can see the drive fine via Mounter - it's there.

Any ideas? I've tried multiple different SCSI drives, cables, etc.

3.1.4 ROMS and Workbench.

Thanks
Darren

[matt3k]

Have you tried prepping it in another Amiga to see if it works?

Try removing termination, resetting nvram, turn sync off, try different dmac.

Good luck.

[DarrenHD]

Originally Posted by matt3k

Have you tried prepping it in another Amiga to see if it works?

Try removing termination, resetting nvram, turn sync off, try different dmac.

Good luck.

Yup, just actually solved the issue - it was a bad flash on one of the DSP support GALS. Replaced it with another chip and now it's booting and working from SCSI!

I have to tell you though that was a head scratcher!

[matt3k]

Glad to hear that!

I'm having fits with my AA3000 now also, wonder if it is a GAL flash issue?


Onboard SCSI works with SCSI2SD just fine. My Acard sata to scsi doesn't work with it. Hmmm...


What do you think?

[Kin Hell]

Originally Posted by matt3k

Glad to hear that!

I'm having fits with my AA3000 now also, wonder if it is a GAL flash issue?


Onboard SCSI works with SCSI2SD just fine. My Acard sata to scsi doesn't work with it. Hmmm...


What do you think?

Perhaps you may find some Liberation if you have a quick Flash!

@ DarrenHD

That was some serious Sleuthing there fella.

[DarrenHD]

Originally Posted by matt3k

Glad to hear that!

I'm having fits with my AA3000 now also, wonder if it is a GAL flash issue?


Onboard SCSI works with SCSI2SD just fine. My Acard sata to scsi doesn't work with it. Hmmm...


What do you think?

I'm using an ACard 7720U on one of my AA3000+ systems, and it is working, so it should work on yours. Termination resistors are installed on the AA3000+ (yellow ones behind the SCSI socket on the motherboard). make sure Term Power and Termination jumpers are ON the ACard.

What's the exact issue?

[matt3k]

It is definitely my AA3000+.

The exact issue is when it copies a large amounts of files it gives a file system error.

I tested the same acard and ssd in a plain 3000d and it copies without an issue.

I'm running a ramsey 7 and dmac 4 with the dsp on board.

What gal could it be?

[A10001986]

U122-U124, U701, any of them. Plus using a known-good DMAC2 for testing. This chip is weakest part of the entire A3000 design, and it has either aged badly or made with a considerable "production tolerance" from the beginning. In my machines, only one out of three DMAC2s works reliably with (any of) my CSMKIIs. The symptoms with a non-working one are exactly what you describe, file system errors during heavy usage.

Any accelerators in that machine?

[matt3k]

Originally Posted by A10001986

U122-U124, U701, any of them. Plus using a known-good DMAC2 for testing. This chip is weakest part of the entire A3000 design, and it has either aged badly or made with a considerable "production tolerance" from the beginning. In my machines, only one out of three DMAC2s works reliably with (any of) my CSMKIIs. The symptoms with a non-working one are exactly what you describe, file system errors during heavy usage.

Any accelerators in that machine?

Right now it has a Warp Engine with a 80MHz 060 in it.

I tried multiple DMACs (04 and 02) that were working in other systems.

This has to AA3000+ related. I will download and run the DSP stuff on Aminet to see it that gives errors? Any other ideas?

[A10001986]

In my experience, a SuperDMAC2 that works on a plain A3000 is not necessarily fit for a CSMK-II (the only accelerators I use on my machines). I don't know about the WE, though.

SuperDMAC 4 is a no-go for me. Does not work with the CSMKII either (SCSI errors, as usual...).

Anyway, sounds like a termination or cable issue if none of your SuperDMACs made a difference.

The DSP stuff (which I will update within the week to reflect my recent learnings) won't help diagnose the SCSI issues at all, but it will be interesting to see your results with dsp3210devtest regardless. For the DSP to be considered working reliably, you need to run this for at least 1000 passes, the more the better. Even only single error means you have a GAL timing issue with U122-U124 or U701. See https://github.com/realA10001986/Amiga for more information.

[matt3k]

Hmm, maybe it is a warp engine thing? Too bad the scsi on the warp engine will not run with acards 2000's, but I have to use the motherboard unless I go with something else compatible with the WE.

Could the GALS on the AA be an issue? I don't remember the combinations of accelerators and my 3000's. My CS MKIII just died, so I'm back to using the warp engines.

The Warp Engines are definitely built better than the CS MKIII, but the SCSI on the CS is much better. Maybe those new 060 cards by cslabs will see the light of day? Will pick one of those up.

Funny thing is the SCSI2SD (Older rev) works perfect on the controller, only the Acards bomb out. You are right that stock 030 3000's seem perfect with the acards. There is a reserved jumper that does something with Memory on the WE, maybe I will try that.

At first I thought it was my X-Surf-100 that was the problem. I removed that and the system seemed just dandy for a bit.

My poor AA has been sitting, I can't get warp 3d to work at all and the SCSI is flakey.

Do you have warp 3d working?

Will let you know my testing for the dsp.

Thanks!

[A10001986]

So you 're using Acard ARS2000s? I was - for some reason - under the impression we're talking about 7xxxs.

I have ARS2000s in all my A3000 and AA3000+s, no issues, be it plain, be it on CSMKII. But again, not with any old SuperDMAC02, but only a few ones (strangely the older ones, like 89, tend to work more often, than newer ones). I am usually testing this by copying my (huge) sys: volume to another hd scratch partition.

You could go for a FastATA, an SATA-ATA converter, and be done with it, on the other hand

I have no PCI cards in my boxes, I am not into that. I have FastATAs in both AA3000+s (for SD/CF-cards), and in one of them a ZZ9000 (the other one gets one, too, but they take incredibly long to be delivered). And, of course, said ARS2000s, and the CSMKIIs.

[matt3k]

Yes, I have the 2000SUP series most 50 pin and one 68 pin. What firmware version are you using? Have you ever tried them on a Warp Engine?

In stock Amiga 3000d's they work perfect off of the motherboard scsi, for CSMKIII it works perfectly off the card.

The Warp Engine SCSI will not boot with a drive in the Acard and the acard won't work on the 3000 scsi with the warp engine running.

At first I thought this was a AA3000+ issue, but I think you are right in that the 060 card messes with the DMAC. I will have to really dig to see if I have an old dmac.

Will keep you posted.

[A10001986]

No idea about the fw, and I have no WE.

Good luck with the search for a suitable SDMAC