| Can anybody more familiar with VS2000s or maybe even electrical power
| systems shed some light on perhaps why a VS2000 would need a load on the
| drive power connectors to operate normally?

The VS2000 contains an H7848 power supply (according to the tech manual),
which requires:

	+5V	min 3.0 amps	max 10.0 amps
	+12V	min 0.5 amps	max 4.0 amps
	-12V	min 0.0 amps	max 0.25 amps
	-9V	min 0.0 amps	max 0.20 amps

When the VS410 box is used as a VS40B expansion box (containing an RD53
or RD54 for example) there is a PCB installed above the PS with a resistor
array on it to load the PS in order to meet the above requirements.

The manual says: "The resistor load module is installed in these boxes
to draw a sufficient amount of current to allow the power supply to
regulate properly." The load module draws 3 amps @ +5V and 1 amp at
+12V.

-- Ken