# problems with Seismic Unix in Obspy
**URL:** https://discourse.obspy.org/t/problems-with-seismic-unix-in-obspy/95
**Category:** Users Mailing List Archive
**Tags:** archive
**Created:** [January 10, 2012, 8:28pm UTC](https://discourse.obspy.org/t/problems-with-seismic-unix-in-obspy/95 "2012-01-10T20:28:26Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@schiemenz](https://discourse.obspy.org/u/schiemenz)
#### Post date: [January 10, 2012, 8:28pm UTC](https://discourse.obspy.org/t/problems-with-seismic-unix-in-obspy/95/1 "2012-01-10T20:28:26Z")
Dear list,
I'm having a problem with using Seismic Unix files in Obspy. I have files
that are supposedly in Seismic Unix form, which have been generated by
SPECFEM3D. An example is found at:
/import/segfault-data/schiemenz/0\_dz\_SU
When I naively try to open the file with Obspy, I get an error:
> > from obspy.segy.core import readSEGY
> > st = readSEGY('0\_dz\_SU')
SEGYError: Unable to determine the endianness of the file. Please specify it.
Regardless of the 'endianness' that I specify, I get the same error:
> > st = readSEGY('0\_dz\_SU','\<')
NotImplementedError: Extended textual headers are supported yet. Please
contact the developers.
> > st = readSEGY('0\_dz\_SU','\>')
NotImplementedError: Extended textual headers are supported yet. Please
contact the developers.
... Any idea what's going on?
Thanks,
Alan
---
### Author:  [@LionKrischer](https://discourse.obspy.org/u/LionKrischer)
#### Post date: [January 11, 2012, 8:11am UTC](https://discourse.obspy.org/t/problems-with-seismic-unix-in-obspy/95/2 "2012-01-11T08:11:08Z")
Hi Alan,
you are trying to read it as a SEG Y file not a Seismic Unix file.
The easiest way to read SU files is to just use ObsPy's normal read method:
> > > from obspy.core import read
> > > st = read("SU\_file.su")
You could also use the obspy.segy.core.readSU() method but since SU has
no file wide headers it does not matter which method you use.
Best wishes,
Lion