I have an old Mac Quadra 610. I'd like to see what is on the hard drive. I don't have an old monitor and I removed the hard drive and it looks like it's a SCSI 50 pin style. Is there a way to adapt the hard drive to connect to my current Macs or is it possible to connect the Quadra 610? What is my best option for viewing the information on the hard drive on this older machine? Thanks.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
How to view hard drive on old Quadra 610 Mac
- Thread starter stuuke
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
One possibility is to get a DB-15 (Apple video out) to VGA adapter, to allow you to get video on your Quadra.
(first Mac that I bought new was a Quadra 605...)
One such adapter here: https://smile.amazon.com/DB-15-HD-15-Female-monitor-Adapter/dp/B001I22L9C
You would need a monitor that supports VGA, of course.
If you discover that you want to get data off the internal (SCSI) hard drive, then that will be "interesting", I think.
(first Mac that I bought new was a Quadra 605...)
One such adapter here: https://smile.amazon.com/DB-15-HD-15-Female-monitor-Adapter/dp/B001I22L9C
You would need a monitor that supports VGA, of course.
If you discover that you want to get data off the internal (SCSI) hard drive, then that will be "interesting", I think.
I'd also be fine sending off the hard drive if there are any services out there that could transfer the data. I'm sure it would fit on a $5 thumb drive. I guess I could try the VGA adapter and see if there is anything on the computer worth saving. I might also need a mouse or keyboard though with an older connection.
Moving this to our PowerPC forum where you may get more responses....
I'd call around to third party Apple Service Providers. See if any have the means to clone the data off an old SCSI hard drive to a modern flash drive. Because it doesn't sound like you have anything necessary to do it. If you aren't interested in reviving a vintage Mac (assuming the capacitors aren't toast). You'll be wasting probably $100 on a VGA adapter, ADB Keyboard and mouse. Just to see if there are any files. Which would likely pay for the service.
Then you'll have to devise a way to get them off. The cheapest probably being an AAUI to Ethernet adapter. Then researching how to get the two to communicate.
Otherwise getting a SCSI Zip Drive then a USB Zip Drive. To transfer files. Which as I recall. Isn't straightforward either. You'll need a USB 3.5 floppy drive to make a driver floppy or burn a CD if the Quadra has a CDROM. With the hopes those drives still work. Probably needing at least a thorough cleaning and lube job. Most likely a new gear.
I'd probably go with the Ethernet adapter. You don't have to rely on so much working.
Odds are that the hard drive is dead. A lot of those old drives Apple used failed. I seem to recall there was some sort of bumper or gasket material inside which turned to sticky gunk and the read head would get stuck. Also those old capacitors in the Macintosh tend to leak and most need to be recapped by now.
Then again. If you don't want to deal with it. You can probably find someone here interested. Pay them by letting them keep the Quadra. It's fun screwing with the old stuff but not for everyone.
Whether you get the files or not. If you aren't interested in the old Mac. Please don't throw it out. You can sell it on eBay. There are plenty of collectors who will restore it. A booting HDD is a huge bonus.
Then you'll have to devise a way to get them off. The cheapest probably being an AAUI to Ethernet adapter. Then researching how to get the two to communicate.
Otherwise getting a SCSI Zip Drive then a USB Zip Drive. To transfer files. Which as I recall. Isn't straightforward either. You'll need a USB 3.5 floppy drive to make a driver floppy or burn a CD if the Quadra has a CDROM. With the hopes those drives still work. Probably needing at least a thorough cleaning and lube job. Most likely a new gear.
I'd probably go with the Ethernet adapter. You don't have to rely on so much working.
Odds are that the hard drive is dead. A lot of those old drives Apple used failed. I seem to recall there was some sort of bumper or gasket material inside which turned to sticky gunk and the read head would get stuck. Also those old capacitors in the Macintosh tend to leak and most need to be recapped by now.
Then again. If you don't want to deal with it. You can probably find someone here interested. Pay them by letting them keep the Quadra. It's fun screwing with the old stuff but not for everyone.
Whether you get the files or not. If you aren't interested in the old Mac. Please don't throw it out. You can sell it on eBay. There are plenty of collectors who will restore it. A booting HDD is a huge bonus.
USB to SCSI adapter — needs a driver because it doesn’t appear as mass storage device.
FireWire to SCSI adapter — uses SBP-2 commands so doesn’t need any drivers.
Last edited:
The one I was responding to was a USB to SATA/IDE adapter. But the ones you link should work. Not sure how much those things cost nowadays.
Last edited:
They're listed for that much but I don't think people are buying them at those rates.
Zip drives were also available with a USB interface.
I’d remove the HD from the Quadra.
Are any of your “current Macs” G3 or G4s?
And funny I never thought about this before - with all of the old external SCSI drives here.
There are still many low-cost, Adaptec SCSI Controller / PCI cards available for G3 and G4s.
One, the Adaptec AVA-2906 has both an external DB 25 female connector and a 50-pin male, ribbon connection socket "inside". A DB 25 cable with a Centronics 50 connector (on its’ other end) could easily attach to an external SCSI HD enclosure. OR one could “simply” connect the SCSI drive to the internal connector available on the AVA-2906 with a 50-pin SCSI ribbon cable and provide power to that SCSI drive via Molex power connector.
Might be easy to place a loose SCSI drive in an external SCSI HD case and then connect it via the AVA’s external connector to recover any long-lost forgotten files? But, the AVA-2906 “internal method” might be simplest.
Of course, Adaptec drivers for OS 8 & OS 9 and drivers for OS X would be necessary for G3 & G4 machines and those are still available for download.
Are any of your “current Macs” G3 or G4s?
And funny I never thought about this before - with all of the old external SCSI drives here.
There are still many low-cost, Adaptec SCSI Controller / PCI cards available for G3 and G4s.
One, the Adaptec AVA-2906 has both an external DB 25 female connector and a 50-pin male, ribbon connection socket "inside". A DB 25 cable with a Centronics 50 connector (on its’ other end) could easily attach to an external SCSI HD enclosure. OR one could “simply” connect the SCSI drive to the internal connector available on the AVA-2906 with a 50-pin SCSI ribbon cable and provide power to that SCSI drive via Molex power connector.
Might be easy to place a loose SCSI drive in an external SCSI HD case and then connect it via the AVA’s external connector to recover any long-lost forgotten files? But, the AVA-2906 “internal method” might be simplest.
Of course, Adaptec drivers for OS 8 & OS 9 and drivers for OS X would be necessary for G3 & G4 machines and those are still available for download.
Adaptec - Adaptec SCSI Card 2906
storage.microsemi.com
And now I'm tempted to move it to the Collectors' forum since a Quadra isn't PowerPC
Although it can be upgraded to a PPC Mac - whether it would be cost effective (or if you could find the upgrade today) is another matter, of course...
That's what I do. I have a SCSI Zip drive that I use with my various Mac II (II, IIcx, IIvx) models. I use it to transfer various data to my G4.
Just note that with the SCSI Zip drive. You need to install drivers for your Quadra to be able to use it. This requires a properly formatted floppy disk. I used my G4 mainly because I needed OS 9 to create floppies from Stuffit images. Although I can't recall if the IOMEGA Zip installer was packed that way or if I was able to drag and drop the installer onto the floppy.
WARNING: The SCSI interface on the Zip drive looks like the Parallel Printer model interface. These are not compatible and may cause damage. Sellers often mix these up (probably because the SCSI model is worth more). Be very careful and look at the pictures for model identifiers before buying.
-------------------------------------
I think the easiest route is going to be networking with an AAUI to Ethernet adapter. Although I can't say for certain if there is a way to directly network to a modern Mac.
Be aware, as I recall Apple changed their file sharing protocol quite a while ago. On a modern Mac or PC, you might be able to still network directly by using an emulator (Basilisk II, mini vMac, SheepShaver, Qemu) running a classic Mac OS or Early Mac OS X. I've never tried this as my Mac II models don't have Ethernet or AAUI and I just fooled around some having them talk to each other over Localtalk.
Anyways, the AAUI to Ethernet option is cheaper. It also can use the built in Ethernet drivers and file sharing. According to Lowendmac.com. https://lowendmac.com/2001/what-is-aaui/
If the emulator does allow directly talking via Appletalk. Which I'm not sure why it wouldn't. You'll need to get an interim Mac. Such as a G4 running Mac OS 9/Early X. To talk over Appletalk. Which you would need with the Zip drive solution anyways. But you may not need to buy one. Assuming the emulator works for Appletalk.
---------------------------------------
I just realized another possible option. Buying a Beige G3. I think those are the only models with both IDE and SCSI (50 PIN). Plus you can install stuff like a USB card for a flash drive or SATA card. That or connect via SMB to any computer with Mac OS X. To transfer files directly to the hard drive.