Replacing disc drive with 2nd HDD on A1181

[Fluke32]

Hi
I have an A1181 and decided to replace the disc drive with a second hard drive. I bought the caddy which was great but the problem I have is connecting it to the cable that connects to the motherboard. The caddy is a mini SATA but the cable that attached to the disc dive is a small single oblong ended one. I spoke to the seller who said he didnt have those cables (and to be fair it did say that ion the advert. At the end. In small writing).

Does anyone know what this connection is and where I misght be able to get the adapter to connect to the mini SATA. I have tried googling it and ebay but no luck (but thats probably down to not really knowing what Im looking for). I have attached photos if that helps. The first photo is the end of the lead to the motorboard, the second photo is the back of the caddy itself.
Thank in advance
Fluke

 

[joevt]

Be more specific about the model number: https://everymac.com/ultimate-mac-lookup/?search_keywords=a1181

Then select the model from here: https://eshop.macsales.com/upgrades/macbook

Maybe it will have a Replacement/Service Parts section
https://eshop.macsales.com/upgrades/macbook-13-inch-mid-2009-2.13-ghz
https://eshop.macsales.com/upgrades/macbook-13-inch-mid-2009-2.13-ghz/service-parts

 

[Alpha Centauri]

Shouldn't have to do any of this. The adaptor (caddy) I've got for my MBP 5,3 just plugs straight into the standard SATA connector used originally by the CD drive.

 

[Amethyst1]

A1181s use IDE/PATA optical drives, not SATA ones. So, you need a caddy that has a SATA connection to the hard drive which is installed in it, but connects to the MacBook using IDE/PATA.

 

[Alpha Centauri]

A1181s use IDE/PATA optical drives, not SATA ones. So, you need a caddy that has a SATA connection to the hard drive which is installed in it, but connects to the MacBook using IDE/PATA.

Aha, I see now from the Author's pics. Anecdotally I removed my caddy from my 5,3 again until I get a second SSD for it. After 10 yrs of SSD for the main drive, the noisy of a HD become annoying. That and having to unmount it constantly. Became spoiled I guess.

 

[rampancy]

To be more precise, A1181s falling under the MacBook 1,x, 2,x, 3,x and 4,x line all use IDE/PATA for their optical drive interfaces, so you will need a SATA-IDE optical drive bay caddy. These can be found on eBay/AliExpress for pretty cheap, though last I checked they often ship from China.

The A1181 MacBook 5,2 (both the 2.0 Ghz and 2.13 Ghz variants with the Nvidia GeForce 9400m) use SATA for their optical drives, so you can easily use any SATA optical drive bay caddy with them. If possible, try to get a 9.5 mm tall caddy; 12.7 mm tall caddies do work, but they may cause issues with the topcase/keyboard flexing due to the extra height.

Also, because these caddies are very cheaply made, the size tolerances aren't always as good a match for the optical drive bay as the original drive, resulting in a very tight or difficult fit. I've also experienced issues with IDE/SATA caddies being a little finicky at times (i.e. not recognzing the drive, drives suddenly vanishing), so you may want to get a second backup caddy just in case.

 

[Amethyst1]

To be more precise, A1181s falling under the MacBook 1,x, 2,x, 3,x and 4,x line all use IDE/PATA for their optical drive interfaces [...]
The A1181 MacBook 5,2 (both the 2.0 Ghz and 2.13 Ghz variants with the Nvidia GeForce 9400m) use SATA for their optical drives,

Thanks for clearing this up. Very good to know.

 

[Fluke32]

Thank you everyone for your advice, I really do appreciate it. I have ordered a new IDE caddy from China that I can put the SATA SSD in. I made sure I got the right one this time!
Many thanks
Fluke

 

[dandeco]

To be more precise, A1181s falling under the MacBook 1,x, 2,x, 3,x and 4,x line all use IDE/PATA for their optical drive interfaces, so you will need a SATA-IDE optical drive bay caddy. These can be found on eBay/AliExpress for pretty cheap, though last I checked they often ship from China.

The A1181 MacBook 5,2 (both the 2.0 Ghz and 2.13 Ghz variants with the Nvidia GeForce 9400m) use SATA for their optical drives, so you can easily use any SATA optical drive bay caddy with them. If possible, try to get a 9.5 mm tall caddy; 12.7 mm tall caddies do work, but they may cause issues with the topcase/keyboard flexing due to the extra height.

Yep, I had that same issue when I was replacing a failed optical drive in a 5,2 MacBook Pro. Even the eBay seller accidentally sold me the wrong drive, despite the photos showing it being SATA. Luckily I was able to return the wrong drive and specify to the seller the type of connector I needed, and everything was sorted out (and I even gave the seller a 5-star rating for great communication with the buyer.) I think it's because Apple finally updated the motherboard somewhat with the 5,2 MacBooks, with the faster front side bus, and of course the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics. Definitely the best of the A1181 MacBooks, IMO.