9114B disc drive vs 82161A tape drive

[rprosperi]

(09-11-2016 07:15 PM)4ster Wrote:  Are my pros and cons hitting the mark? What have I missed?

Virtually all 82161A tapes require the pressure pad behind the tape to be replaced. Many tapes seem to also have lost magnetic material, but not all; some are working fine (with new pad). The loss of material may be due to how tapes were stored?

For the 9114B, it's best to use DS/DD (aka 720KB) media and not the DS/HD (1.44MB) type. Also, you can easily make an adapter to let it run directly off the external power supply, and no battery is needed, though you are right, it is fairly easily rebuilt/replaced.

9114B is MUCH faster, though for 41-sized objects, and under 41 HP-IL control, the difference is not dramatic, except for tape seek time (to find and transfer files stored at the end of the tape).