Need a plain PATA controller card that works with ATAPI devices.

[Proto]

Seeing as my next motherboard only come with a single channel PATA
controller and I regulary have 3 or 4 DVD drives in my case I need to
find a PATA controller card which actually works with ATAPI devices (ie
CD/DVD drives).

Most cards seem to be software RAID and support only HDD.

One chipset I found that supposedly works is ones based on the ITE 8212F
chipset, after a BIOS flash using a ATAPI BIOS you end up with a non
RAID controller which supports CD/DVD drives. Unfortunately there seems
to be 2 versions of these cards knocking around, one with a flashable
BIOS and one where the BIOS isnt flashable.

I managed to get hold of a 8212F based card myself, but unfortunately it
seems to be the unflashable kind.

Using the ITEFLASH (and a clean DOS boot disk) the flasher recognises
the card, goes though all the stages saying its blanking the flash etc,
but fails when it tries to verify.
Rebooting the systems show the RAID BIOS to be totally untouched.

So I'm looking for any recommendations on either a specific brand of ITE
8212F based card which can flashed or any other brand/chipset which is
guaranteed to work with optical drives.

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

Seeing as my next motherboard only come with a single channel PATA
controller and I regulary have 3 or 4 DVD drives in my case I need to
find a PATA controller card which actually works with ATAPI devices (ie
CD/DVD drives).

Most cards seem to be software RAID and support only HDD.

Oh, really?

One chipset I found that supposedly works is ones based on the ITE 8212F
chipset, after a BIOS flash using a ATAPI BIOS you end up with a non
RAID controller which supports CD/DVD drives. Unfortunately there seems
to be 2 versions of these cards knocking around, one with a flashable
BIOS and one where the BIOS isnt flashable.

I managed to get hold of a 8212F based card myself, but unfortunately it
seems to be the unflashable kind.

Using the ITEFLASH (and a clean DOS boot disk) the flasher recognises
the card, goes though all the stages saying its blanking the flash etc,
but fails when it tries to verify.

So likely the flash chip is dead in some way or other.
Usually a flash program looks whether the used flash chip is support-
ed and apparently it decided it was, or it wouldn't have continued.

Rebooting the systems show the RAID BIOS to be totally untouched.

So I'm looking for any recommendations on either a specific brand of ITE
8212F based card which can flashed or any other brand/chipset which is
guaranteed to work with optical drives.

ATAPI support is not a chipset problem, it is a driver problem.
BIOS has nothing to do with it unless for some strange reason the
drivers rely on the bios for ATAPI support, which is unlikely.

IINM, current Promise controllers 'support' ATAPI.

 

[Proto]

Oh, really?



So likely the flash chip is dead in some way or other.
Usually a flash program looks whether the used flash chip is support-
ed and apparently it decided it was, or it wouldn't have continued.

Unlikely, theres quite a consensus that a number of these card have been
made unflashable deliberately (tried all the version of ITEFLASH I could
find), while other makes allow it.
Why it appears to continue the flash procedure, even saying it
successfully blanked it and then checking its blank successfully when it
clearly hasn't done so at all I don't know, clearly its either
deliberately misleading or the program itself if faulty.

Unfortunately these cards seem to be rebranded by a lot of companies (as
well as white-box) and so unless theres a visibly identifiable
difference its pot luck.

While I'm annoyed I didn't get a flashable card myself it only cost £9
so its not the end of the world.

ATAPI support is not a chipset problem, it is a driver problem.
BIOS has nothing to do with it unless for some strange reason the
drivers rely on the bios for ATAPI support, which is unlikely.

I know its not a chipset problem, but more a BIOS/firmware problem. For
the type of card I mentioned ITE themselves provide both a RAID and
ATAPI as separate firmwares. Attach an ATAPI device to the card when
its got the RAID BIOS and the card completely ignores it (ie its
expecting HDDs only).

IINM, current Promise controllers 'support' ATAPI.

Thanks. I'll check them out one I found a supplier of Promise
controllers in the UK.

p.s. Also thinking maybe a better route would be to get some IDE>SATA
Adaptors for my extra DVD drives instead, as like most new MB it has
plenty of SATA connectors.

 

[Timothy Daniels]

Seeing as my next motherboard only come with a single
channel PATA controller and I regulary have 3 or 4 DVD
drives in my case I need to find a PATA controller card
which actually works with ATAPI devices (ie CD/DVD drives).

Try this:
http://siig.com/product.asp?catid=103&pid=437

It says it does ATAPI. I use it for multiple HDs
with no problems in more than 3 1/2 years.

*TimDaniels*

 

[Arno Wagner]

[...]
Unlikely, theres quite a consensus that a number of these card have been
made unflashable deliberately (tried all the version of ITEFLASH I could
find), while other makes allow it.
Why it appears to continue the flash procedure, even saying it
successfully blanked it and then checking its blank successfully when it
clearly hasn't done so at all I don't know, clearly its either
deliberately misleading or the program itself if faulty.

That looks like a software problem. The way you make a FLASH
unwritable is by setting a specific cell. The chip then refuses all
further writes and clear operations.

Unfortunately these cards seem to be rebranded by a lot of companies (as
well as white-box) and so unless theres a visibly identifiable
difference its pot luck.

While I'm annoyed I didn't get a flashable card myself it only cost £9
so its not the end of the world.

Probably the reason it was so cheap: They hoped to sell you some
specific other hhardware with it.

I know its not a chipset problem, but more a BIOS/firmware problem. For
the type of card I mentioned ITE themselves provide both a RAID and
ATAPI as separate firmwares. Attach an ATAPI device to the card when
its got the RAID BIOS and the card completely ignores it (ie its
expecting HDDs only).
Thanks. I'll check them out one I found a supplier of Promise
controllers in the UK.

p.s. Also thinking maybe a better route would be to get some IDE>SATA
Adaptors for my extra DVD drives instead, as like most new MB it has
plenty of SATA connectors.

You can get these. But you have to make sure they support optical drives.
Many do not and only work for HDDs (different command set).

Arno

 

[Ted]

Seeing as my next motherboard only come with a single channel PATA
controller and I regulary have 3 or 4 DVD drives in my case I need to find
a PATA controller card which actually works with ATAPI devices (ie CD/DVD
drives).

Have you read this thread?
http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?t=90930

Sil0680 based cards are generally a good choice for such use and cheap.
Again though there is many that haven't got flashable chips. I have one such
card which I run extra burners from and no complaints.

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

Unlikely, theres quite a consensus that a number of these card have been
made unflashable deliberately

Or made 'dead'.

(tried all the version of ITEFLASH I could find),

Right, so it's likely the flash chip (or how it's configured), dead.

while other makes allow it.
Why it appears to continue the flash procedure, even saying it
successfully blanked it and then checking its blank successfully when it
clearly hasn't done so at all I don't know,

Possibly because the write or erase function wasn't implemented or is simply dead.

clearly its either deliberately misleading or the program itself if faulty.

Or the chip is 'dead'.

If the program is faulty depends on whether the xxxxROMs are actually
flash or (P)ROMs (One Time Programmable or OTP) which you should be
able to tell from the partnumber.

Another possibility could be that the Flash program only recognizes cards
and just assumes that one specific Flashrom is used for that particular card.
That would be rather silly though.

Unfortunately these cards seem to be rebranded by a lot of companies (as
well as white-box) and so unless theres a visibly identifiable difference its
pot luck.

Here's a revolutionary idea: ask the seller.

While I'm annoyed I didn't get a flashable card myself it only cost £9
so its not the end of the world.

I know its not a chipset problem, but more a BIOS/firmware problem.
For the type of card I mentioned ITE themselves provide both a RAID and
ATAPI as separate firmwares. Attach an ATAPI device to the card when
its got the RAID BIOS and the card completely ignores it (ie its expecting
HDDs only).

What makes you think it is ignored? The fact that the bios scan doesn't
show it doesn't necessarily mean that it isn't visible to drivers.

Some non-RAID drivers run on RAID cards as well.
It all depends on what P&P ID they accept for recognizing the
used chip series that the driver is designed/programmed for.

Thanks. I'll check them out once I found a supplier of Promise controllers in the UK.

p.s. Also thinking maybe a better route would be to get some IDE>SATA
Adaptors for my extra DVD drives instead, as like most new MB it has
plenty of SATA connectors.

Or replace the drives themselves with sata versions.
They are becoming cheaper now.