Stitch,
Re: Head-Platter-Channel Electronics
I agree with you regarding the importance of some kind of control over the heads, platters and the channel electronics. The critical shortages of the past have been in heads and platters. Increased density, however, has also turned the mixed-signal R/W electronics into one of the gating factors. I believe it was Chuck Bleakney who first raised this issue on this board several months ago.
Drive designers rely on new technology mix --
Capacity growth harder to come by
techweb.com
Improved electronics are but one of the stumbling blocks in this path. The pre-amp and read-channel chips that move data coming off the drive's head are already a limiting factor. Though ICs meet the requirements of today's desktop drives, designers of high-end SCSI-compatible drives have to lower disk density to keep from overwhelming the read channel.
Re: Next-generation channel electronics
Would you know anything about MDFE (Multilevel Decision Feedback Equalizers) and its M2DFE variants? The Data Storage Institute in Singapore seems to be ground zero for the research on this channel recording tech, which DSI is promoting to succeed PRML/EPRML.
An international R&D consortium on was lauched on August 1, 1997 to develop a superior channel recording technology, MDFE, to be used in hard disk drives.
Members of the MDFE consortium include IBM, Fujitsu, Hitachi,Motorola, Serial System of Singapore and DSI.
Here's more background info on MDFE:
dsi.nus.edu.sg
It's probably too early to hang any kind of time-to-market on this tech but I would appreciate it if you can keep us posted on any developments from where you are across the Pacific. If this industry down cycle is anywhere close to being as vicious as I think it is going to be, the reasonable assumption to make, I think, is that the pace of innovation will pick up considerably.
For example, SEG's introduction of the 7200 rpm drives in 1992 was instrumental in their continued dominance of the high-end which in turn allowed them to remain profitable while everybody else was losing money in the 1992-1995 time frame.
Already we see IBM and SEG try to bring 7200 rpm drives to the desktop, IBM and Toshiba (along with TDK and Yamaha) accelerate the move to GMR, SEG transition its entire drive lineup to fluid-bearing motors, Maxtor embrace TXN's DSP channel electronics (EPRML) and DSP architecture, RDRT try to increase density at a 70-80% CAGR instead of the industry 60% CAGR, etc...
It's the old tech saw: Technology leaders capture higher margins, technology followers compete on price...
Thanks, duude.
Gus |
