I posted this a few days ago, but I made an error and referred to disks
in the first line.  It should have mentioned tape drives.  So I am re-
posting.  I have gotten quite a few responses that mirror my experience,
some had even worse experiences.  HP responded that someone from the
peripherals division would be contacting me for more info.
So, please, send me your info if you are having problems.
 
Original post begins, with correction.
I crossposted this to the general hardware group, but I am specifically
have trouble with MPE/iX machines.
 
Hello.  Has anyone else had trouble with HP 1.3 Gigabyte tape drives delivered
        with their PA-RISC systems?  I have a 937 and 947 and both have
        had 3 different tape drives in 3 years.  I find this unacceptable.
        Is my dis-satisfaction unwarranted?
 
        I also believe that the drives are damaging my tapes.  I currently
        perform a full dump every night, and each tape is used once a month.
        Each tape has been used about 30 times.  I realize this is the low
        end of expected life, but I really expected them to last quite a bit
        longer.  I have some tapes stored in the same place, that are still
        going strong, and have been used the same number of times.
 
        So, what are your experiences?  You can email me and I'll summarize,
        or post if the consensus is that this is of general interest.
 
Chris
--
Christopher L. Davis       Systems and Network Administrator
The Principia                   PHONE:  (314)-434-2100
13201 Clayton Road                FAX:  (314)-275-3538
St. Louis, MO  63131         INTERNET:  [log in to unmask]
 
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Christopher,
             You didn't mention what length tapes you are using in
the 1.3Gb DDS. Most of the calls I take (I'm a CE) for damaged or
otherwise failing tapes in 1.3Gb DDS drives are followed by my tearing
a 90 metre (or meter depending on where you're from) tape cartridge
out of the drive. A 1.3Gb capacity by definition specifies a 60 meter
tape. While often a 90 meter tape will work (making the 1.3Gb drive
store 2.0Gb on a cart) it is risky.
 
Bob Jankalski - - Ideal Computer Services