RM7000A RECALL - Information
zolo
heard about the recall. So, I just wanted to pass along some more
info regarding the recall to anyone who might be interested:
The support engineer with whom I spoke today said that there were some
hardware conflicts with the new CPU, as well as some problems with
certain software packages, most notably Maya. He didn't mention
specifics, but said that SGI decided to initiate the recall in light
of the scope and severity of the problems.
SGI is supposed to contact me tomorrow to discuss the next course of
action, but the support engineer said that SGI would probably be
offering a QED RM5200 CPU in addition to some extra RAM in exchange
for the return of the RM7000A CPU.
I did not ask if refunds would be provided to those who upgraded to
the RM7000A from the RM5200.
I'm curious if anyone could detail the problems they experienced with
their O2s since upgrading to the RM7000A (or since purchasing their
O2+).
I also find it very curious that there is no mention (as of a few days
ago) of the recall on SGI's website, or on the supportfolio site.
I guess this should serve as a lesson to those who are constantly
whining and clamoring for the newest/latest/greatest MIPS CPUs (even
though some of them are strictly embedded designs!). Rushing a
product into production at the expense of thorough testing can have
disastrous results.
-zolo
Tony 'Nicoya' Mantler
zolo...@excite.com (zolo) wrote:
[...]
: The support engineer with whom I spoke today said that there were some
: hardware conflicts with the new CPU, as well as some problems with
: certain software packages, most notably Maya. He didn't mention
: specifics, but said that SGI decided to initiate the recall in light
: of the scope and severity of the problems.
[...]
This is interesting. I had heard rumblings last year that SGI was holding off on
the RM7000 cpu due to, exactly, hardware conflicts and problems with certain
software packages.
It actually quite surprised me when SGI released the RM7000 O2, as I got the
impression that the problems were of the type that would need, say, a new
revision of the CPU to overcome.
I then assumed, considering they were now shipping RM7000 O2s, that they had
fixed the issues, but I guess not.
Go fig.
Cheers - Tony 'Nicoya' Mantler :)
--
Tony "Nicoya" Mantler - Renaissance Nerd Extraordinaire - nic...@apia.dhs.org
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada -- http://nicoya.feline.pp.se/
SGI
Please contact SGI directly at rm7000com...@postofc.csd.sgi.com if you have any concerns about the replacement of
the PMC Sierra RM7000A processor for your Silicon Graphics O2+ visual workstation. We are committed to working with each
customer to arrive at a satisfactory solution and have been actively contacting all known affected customers toward that
goal.
As our customer, you are our most valuable resource, and we sincerely regret any inconvenience this may have caused you.
It is precisely because there is not a single solution that fits every customer requirement that we have taken the
approach of contacting customers directly. We welcome your contact at e-mail rm7000com...@postofc.csd.sgi.com if
you have questions or concerns that have not been addressed by your local SGI sales office or SGI authorized service
provider.
Thank you,
Desktop Marketing Division
SGI