Hi all I've got a pismo 400 basically stock does have 1gig RAM, the DVD drive died and was wondering if it was possible to install a hard drive in the old DVD caddy? what kind of cable/connector/adaptor would be required? thanks in advance
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Am I On The Pipe???
- Thread starter umrdad
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That's not a bad idea. Unless it can't work, then it's horrible and you should be executed for coming up with it.
well duh
of course its a good idea (i came up w/it) but that dosen't answer the question if anyone has tried i know there were expansion bay hard drives available from VST and MCE in fact MCE still has the empty case for $70 just add drive . . . . . was wanting to consider less expensive alternative . . . unless of course it just won't intercoursing work
of course its a good idea (i came up w/it) but that dosen't answer the question if anyone has tried i know there were expansion bay hard drives available from VST and MCE in fact MCE still has the empty case for $70 just add drive . . . . . was wanting to consider less expensive alternative . . . unless of course it just won't intercoursing work
If I follow, you just want to replace the CD drive with a 2.5" HD, in which case I don't see why not--there's nothing fancy inside that expansion bay unit. Look up laptop DVD drives (or crack the one you've got open) and see what the connector on them is like; if it's the same as the one on a 2.5" HD, then no problem.
yes thats the idea
finally some encouraging responses, thanks, looks like i will be limited to 2.5 inch hdd i believe a 3.5 hdd will be too tall (dammitt) although the other 2 dimensions should be ok. . . . . .some of you may be wondering why worry or bother? . . . . . well i happen to like this machine, it runs 10.4 smoothly and faster than 10.2, best available connection at home is 56k dial up, son's in college so airport card will be installed in next few weeks (if anyone has an xtra one around, working of course, they'd part with. . . . let me know your terms & conditions) son lives at home and we share this unit seems to me an expansion bay hdd would be perfect solution . . . . 2 computers in 1 . . . .an idea that appeals to each of us and yes i'm keeping my eye on ebay looking for IT and could buy the enclosure for $70 but i'm just allergic to doing that except as a last resort . . . . . .since you've been so patient listening to my rant which processor upgrade would you suggest? 500 or 550 G4 or 900 G3 or if can find one the 1ghz G3?
finally some encouraging responses, thanks, looks like i will be limited to 2.5 inch hdd i believe a 3.5 hdd will be too tall (dammitt) although the other 2 dimensions should be ok. . . . . .some of you may be wondering why worry or bother? . . . . . well i happen to like this machine, it runs 10.4 smoothly and faster than 10.2, best available connection at home is 56k dial up, son's in college so airport card will be installed in next few weeks (if anyone has an xtra one around, working of course, they'd part with. . . . let me know your terms & conditions) son lives at home and we share this unit seems to me an expansion bay hdd would be perfect solution . . . . 2 computers in 1 . . . .an idea that appeals to each of us and yes i'm keeping my eye on ebay looking for IT and could buy the enclosure for $70 but i'm just allergic to doing that except as a last resort . . . . . .since you've been so patient listening to my rant which processor upgrade would you suggest? 500 or 550 G4 or 900 G3 or if can find one the 1ghz G3?
1. you may need to take the connector off the old CD drive and put it on the new HD
2. there may be problems with some HD drives - check this out:
http://www.lowendmac.com/pb2/pismo.shtml
3. why not an external via USB/ firewire? (USB is cheap, would meet your needs, firewire cost more, but a 2.5' HD enclosure might be able to run off your pismo battery.)
4. Wild solution: if a 3.5'' HD fits in terms of width and depth, but not height, why not cut out the bottom of your case to fit it in?
xx
RedTomato
2. there may be problems with some HD drives - check this out:
http://www.lowendmac.com/pb2/pismo.shtml
3. why not an external via USB/ firewire? (USB is cheap, would meet your needs, firewire cost more, but a 2.5' HD enclosure might be able to run off your pismo battery.)
4. Wild solution: if a 3.5'' HD fits in terms of width and depth, but not height, why not cut out the bottom of your case to fit it in?
xx
RedTomato
thanks for the reply redtomato, true the external drive is a possibility in fact waiting on the fedex truck now w/30 gig FW drive, but after removing the dead DVD drive from the caddy there seems to be a lot of space inside it the main limiting factor is height are all 3.5 drives same height? i suppose i could get an internal cd/dvd burner
3.5'' HD drives are mostly the same height.
Laptop CD / DVDs are more variable beasts. There's a few variations of the 'slimline' versions.
Have to do some research and see what will fit, both in terms of physical size, and in terms of being compactible with the OS on the Pismo (could be very tricky).
Or buy an 5.25 inch external enclosure, which will take any CD/DVD drive on the market.
(My 5.25'' FW external enclosure actually has a 3.5'' HD in it at the moment. Works fine no problems)
.. RedTomato..
Laptop CD / DVDs are more variable beasts. There's a few variations of the 'slimline' versions.
Have to do some research and see what will fit, both in terms of physical size, and in terms of being compactible with the OS on the Pismo (could be very tricky).
Or buy an 5.25 inch external enclosure, which will take any CD/DVD drive on the market.
(My 5.25'' FW external enclosure actually has a 3.5'' HD in it at the moment. Works fine no problems)
.. RedTomato..
wow, i'd forgotten how cool it was to post on bulliten boards, from what i've been able to read any removeable media bay drive devices can have a max height of 12.7 mm i think that shoots the idea of a 3.5 in the ass guess i'll have to win the lottery tonight to retire early
umrdad said:
Hence option 4 as mentioned above: cut the bottom of your pismo out to accomodate a 3.5''
Depending on your skills, you might be able to find a way of stopping it falling out afterwards...
.. RedTomato ..
just a couple more tokes
hmmm i've got a VST superdrive (yeah yeah i know floppy??? wax tablets??) wonder if the internal plugs would be the same for floppy drive as hdd???? see those all the time on ebay for next to nothing . . . far less than MCE's $70 empty box . . . . any pismo freaks, hardware guru's, mystics, or anyone else in the know?
hmmm i've got a VST superdrive (yeah yeah i know floppy??? wax tablets??) wonder if the internal plugs would be the same for floppy drive as hdd???? see those all the time on ebay for next to nothing . . . far less than MCE's $70 empty box . . . . any pismo freaks, hardware guru's, mystics, or anyone else in the know?
umrdad said:
No. Very different.
umrdad said:
You don't need to buy a 'mac compatible' external enclosure. anything with a firewire or USB connector will do.
.. RedTomato ..