Similar to its MFM counterpart: roughly as reliable, similar speeds, similar level of operating noise. The seek sounds are different, but unique in their own right. I found this drive to be picky about its controller and had the best results with the Seagate ST-01/02 SCSI controller. This drive also has the interesting ability to test itself by shorting 4 sets of pins on the 50 pin SCSI connector (2 ,12 ,16, and 32 to ground) making verification of the drive easy. Overall, an excellent vintage hard drive if early SCSI drives are what you like.
Verified purchase: No
I'm not entirely sure why anybody would want one of these aside from those of us that collect drives, but for those that do, this model offers most of the "character" of the classic Seagate stepper drives, but in a drive that can be connected to a modern computer via SCSI. The only real downside of this model as compared to the ST-251 (aside from the lack of MFM/ST-506 interface support) is that it doesn't quite make the same noises as an ST-251. You can expect it to sound more like a cross between an ST-225 and an ST-157A. Same spin-down sound, at least, so there is that.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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