A3000T doesn't boot up

[dbf_ss581]

Hello everyone.

I'd appreciate any help you can give me on this one.

Can you tell me, if I install WINUAE on my PC, can I somehow hook up my Amiga hard drive to the PC and carry on with the Amiga word processing program?

I don't know why the A3000T won't start.  The Hard Drive light flickers but no joy.

Thanks,  Ben

[Flashlab]

Yes that's possible.

[potis21]

Hi there, Ben!

Will work. IDE or scsi?

 Read the readme of WinUAE on how to have the PC surely recognise the disk. (there is a checkbox that forces UAE to recognise HD's that initially fail to, so don't be dissapointed if it isn't recognised at first.

About the miggy, have you tried a different monitor?

Is the flashing of HDD like reading (booting) or it flashes shortly twice then dead?

Check for odd resolutions improperly loaded
using the two miggy mouse puttons pressed continously while swiching on the amiga and for at least 10 seconds,
to call early startup to see if it does anything. then boot with no startup-sequence if it does and load a backup of your startup-sequence and user-startup if it does.

which monitor are you using? Is it a PAL monitor or a VGA via the FlickerFixer?

A moderate shock could loose the CPU board, if installed.
Power disconnected, all cables too. open the cover, remove the HDD cable and push all chips that are base-mounted deep in place to ensure all chips haven't loose contacts due to vibration or mechanical shock. Do that with any boards, too. Cover back on,all cables attached but the HDD flat cable, try to swich on the amiga and watch the monitor for "insert disk" screen. If it shows, power off and put HDD Flat Cable back in place, then on.
A shock could have moved the

[dbf_ss581]

Thanks for the information.

I've installed Amiga Forever 6.0 on the PC now.
A couple of null modem cables came with the disk but I suppose they won't do me much good without a working Amiga.

The monitor is a 17", model# SA-770, year 2000 vintage
I don't know if that's PAL or VGA
I haven't tried a different monitor but I think I have another one around here somewhere.

I'll be cracking the case on the A3000T later and checking for loose connections.  That seems the easiest thing to do right now.  While I have the case off I'll look for how the two (yes, two) hard drives are hooked up in the tower (IDE or SCSI?).

I'll turn the power on after and pay closer attention to any signs of life (HD flicking) and report back here.

I regret my lack of technical knowledge and am hoping to avoid using the "hammer test" method.  It's nice having a Forum to go to.

R/  Ben

[dbf_ss581]

Here's an update.

I disconnected the "Seagate" 1Gb HD and turned on the computer.  The HD light comes on and stays on.  The monitor warms up for about 10 seconds then turns from blank to a dark gray.  No joy.  (The Seagate is at the end of the ribbon cable and is the 2nd HD.)

I reconnect the "Seagate" HD and disconnect the "Quantun Fireball" HD and turn on the computer. (The Quantum HD is also on the ribbon cable)  The CPU uses the "User-Startup file in S:" and works!  WB comes up and the SCSI window opens to tell me how my CD-ROM is "not ready" but the Seagate is (ready).  Fine.  One problem at a time.

(Note the Seagate is from a previous tower so its not surprising it has start-up files on it.  I was using it to back-up my files from the 1st or "primary" HD)

So apparently something is wrong with the other ("primary") HD.  Are my files lost forever?  Can I use the null-modem cable and transfer everything on the working HD to the PC?  Thanks.

R/  Ben

[rkauer]

 I think you have a mismatch or double SCSI ID in the hds. Check they if they have the same ID. If so, change one.

 If the hd LED stays on ,this means you have a validation problem. Just turn the Amiga on and wait up to a entire day (depending the size of the devalidated hd, of course).

 Keep us updated.

[potis21]

I would put my money on revalidation, too.

Plug in everything and switch on the miggy. Let it roll for the rest of the day. If it eventually boots, there at next boot all will be fine. If that proves to be the problem, keep an eye on the HDD leds and make sure they are off the next time you switch off your baby.

I hope everything goes well. But if not, keep on posting, we're standing by....

[dbf_ss581]

Interesting!  I'll let her run today.

In the meantime I'm out the door to the local computer place looking for a null modem cable that'll fit into my Dell PC.  It appears the only way I have to transfer the data from the 3000T is by using "Amiga Explorer"  The cable that came with the "Amiga Forever" software has serial port plugs and my Dell only has USB.  Hopefully there is something that's not just an adapter but also a null modem cable serial port-to-USB.

Thanks again for taking an interest.

R/  Ben

[rkauer]

 If the HDs are IDE type, you can hook them into your peecee and, editing the icon properties, add the following to the line who calls the WinUAE:

 "-disableharddrivesafetycheck" (no quotes, obviously);-)

 In the WinUAE config, adjust the emulation to match your real Amiga configuration (ROMs, RAM, etc) AND check "add windows devices at startup" (or some like that).

 This way you can use your Miggy's HD into the emulation to repair, reinstall programs (even the OS), make a backup, etc...

[dbf_ss581]

Cool beans.

I left the 3000T on for more than 24 hours and there's no change in the indications.  The HD drive light is still on solid and the screen is a dark gray.  I guess this means there's no hope of the HD validating.  I'm tempted to knock it about a bit with a hammer but have restrained myself so far.

Went to the computer hospital but the doctor was out.
I'm still in search of either:

 a) a null modem cable with serial port plug on one end and a USB on the other so I can hook up a running 3000T to my Dell, OR

b) an IDE cable to ATA serial cable so I can hook up just the hard drive to the Dell PC

I have a cousin in the non-Amiga computer biz so she may come through yet.

Thanks for standing up with me on this one.

R/  Ben

[potis21]

?!? how are you connecting your CDR to your PC?!? isn't there a Parallel IDE interface to hook your amiga's HD onto??? what do you need the serial ATA to IDE adapter  for???

you could remove the flat cable from your cdr's (all of them if there are more than one) and hook the Amiga's HDD and then...just boot. XP will recognise the disk and load some driver, but the HDD won't be accessible from XP.

You might want to create a virtual (image) HDD in UAE, setup with workbench adf's the virtual disk, then plug the disk to the PC and add the -disable.....check at a XP Dos prompt to start WinUAE and add as HD1 your amiga's disk. Then you can read your files and copy them to the virtual (image) disk, prepare your HDD back as you would in HDToolBox (or use a new one if you suspect further damage on HW itself) and restore your data on it.

[wildstar1063]

Do you hear the problem drive (Quantum?) spin up at all?
 and after it spins up do you hear a kind of pop (This pop
 is the latch releasing the heads on to the platter).

If you don't hear the drive spin up or the latch release,
 the drive controller might be talking to the drive, waiting
 for it to report ready, but never getting an answer.

If the drive is not spinning up it might have a bad field.
 When the power is on try rotating the drive sharply along
 the horizontal plane of the platter assembly, this might
 move the motor enough to start it. If it starts don't let
 it spin down 'till you get what you want off it.

This is how I saved the data off my old Seagate ST1480,
 when one of the fields on the motor went bad. This was
 about 3 weeks ago, and that drive was in my original
 A3000D. I believe I got that drive in 93 or 94.
  I was really suprised when it died, those 1480's
  were extreamly reliable.

I used to work in the clean rooms assembling drives here
 in Okc, 'till they moved everthing south of the border.

Wildstar1063

[TjLaZer]

You have IDE drives in your 3000T?  What IDE controller you using?

[dbf_ss581]

Hey potis,

As I understand it, the ribbon cable attached to the Quantum HD in the Amiga is an IDE (aka ATA) cable.  The Dell PC does not have this type of cable/connector in it.  Instead the Dell PC has an SATA type connector.

So if I decide to hook-up the Quantum HD directly to the Dell PC I'll need an IDE-to-SATA adapter.  (I know I said IDE-to-ATA adapter in an earlier post but that was before I learned there's a difference.)

Also, the Dell PC hasn't any 9-pin serial connectors.  They're all USB 2.0  So if I decide to transfer data via a null-modem cable using "Amiga Explorer" I'm thinking that can be done with the null-modem cable I have (9 pin to 9 pin)and attach an adapter on the end (9 pin to USB).

I've ordered the adapters and I intend to try the IDE-to-SATA idea first.

R/ Ben

[dbf_ss581]

Hey wildstar,

I just tried to fire up the 3000T again.  There's no sound whatsoever from the Quantum.  I also had my hand on it and felt no pulse, clicking or popping.

If it is well and truly dead then when I hook it up to the PC's SATA port I'll rotate the Quantum by hand as you suggested.

This all seems like a long shot but a year from now I'll be able to say there was no stone left unturned.

R/  Ben