SCSI to USB/Firewire

[ABrosig]

I have an older Nikon 35mm scanner with SCSI interface. I'm looking for a way to connect it to a modern mac computer which only has usb/firewire inputs. I've found what looks like a working adapter online, but it always says out of stock on multiple sites. Anyone have any ideas? Any help would be appreciated. I've posted this question on another photo-related site and had no useful input. Thanks

 

[sevo]

Firewire is a serial variant of SCSI, so that would be pretty much seamless as the wire protocol and device nomenclature are the same. But the formerly available adapters seem to have been discontinued. USB adapters are more widespread and affordable, but there is more protocol mangling going on there. You will need confirmation by an actual owner that a particular scanner/adapter/driver/software combination will work - most adapters are marketed for hard disk access only (and the Nikon software is supposed to be bitchy even where regular SCSI PCI cards are concerned).

 

[willie_901]

You might be better off finding an ancient computer with SCSI compatibility and use that machine just to run the scanner.

 

[rfaspen]

First, you should know you are not alone. SCSI seems to have been really phased out more completely than I ever thought it would. It was a superior protocol for disk IO management (in Unix type machines) and is still used in that setting within mission critical computer servers, etc. But, for the general public, its gone.

I have searched for the same adapter as you. No success and I've given up. If you have an older laptop with PCMCIA, I just might still have an SCSI card for it. Yours if you want. PM.

 

[ABrosig]

... the formerly available adapters seem to have been discontinued.

Don't I know it! And the ones that are available on the auction site, listed "new" but out of stock for $30-$50, people are asking 10X that! It's just freakin' crazy.

I'd thought about the idea of an older computer for scanning, but then he problem arises of getting images into the new computer for processing. I suppose ethernet via a hub might work, but not sure.

Thanks for the info. Keep the good ideas coming.

 

[willie_901]

Image transfer using a wired ethernet-to-ethernet connection should be straightforward.

Even modern Macs can connect to traditional ethernet cable using a Thunderbolt to RJ-45 ethernet adapter that supports 10/100/1000 BASE-T networking.

 

[jdriffill]

Not sure I can help with a solution, but I share your frustration with the scsi/usb problem. I have an agfa duoscan HiD scanner which has a scsi connection, and I use it with the Adaptec Usbxchange adapter that came with it (when I acquired them both 2nd hand some yrs ago). This works under windows xp, but nothing newer. The scanner would work on linux or on a mac using vuescan, but the problem is getting a driver etc for the usbxchange adapter. I have read about a patch for linux, on the internet, but lack the knowledge to use it. It may be possible to get the adapter to work on some mac operating system, and then using the scanner with eg vuescan should be no problem.

This isn't my thread, of course, but if by chance anyone reading this knows how to get the Adaptec Usbxchange adapter working under linux, that would be great!

All best,
John

 

[mdarnton]

I went through this all some years ago with my little PhotoSmart film scanner. I got an SCSI>USB adapter and the computer would see it, but the software wouldn't. Very frustrating, because the scanner was a honey.

Sevo's SCSI>firewire suggestion sounds more plausible.