Laptop CD/RW/DVD in a1200

Yo,

I feel the need to install an internal CDrom drive inside my a1200 after seeing Zetro a600 project.

My questions are:

1. do I need to obtain a specific brand/type of drive/size/price
2. and I assume I will need a JAE adaptor?
3. what do I need to pay attention to, any oversights etc..

Thanks for the input.

Skippy

[Zetr0]

Heys Skippy,

okies,

there are many methods of getting a SFF CDROM,

the first as you have seen in the A600 version (its my homage to Smiley's A600 Mod!) hacks the corner of the case inline for the ROM,

another method that might interest is one I used in a heavily modified A1200 chassis for my fantasy x86 project, this is where I to built a caddy that bolted to the keyboard. see here for a complete project over view of the Fantasy X86 Amiga it might get some of your creative juices flowing

Another Idea I have been working on (now waiting for a component to arrive) is to use an IDE to SATA bridge from this use external SATA ports and then one can not only plug in external sata devices, but also convert IDE's to SATA and have a nice external solution or even a cable reduced internal version.

just some thoughts

I would like to thank both Alexh and Coze for the help with finding a SATA bridge, and Jope for the input on the IDE to SATA converter (proves difficult with some drives)


Now yes JAE is VERY important otherwise its not gonna get connected

There are Slot Loading SFF roms that look the biz when modded properly! infact i think they look the best! and these can be modded neatly using a left attitude of arrangement (on the left, with loading from the side) they certainly look awesome!

good luck with you mods... i would suggest getting another set of plastics for worse case scenario, and the right tools for the right job i cannot stress enough, lots of 100 grit, filing and 800 grit sanding my friend... you will be spending a lot more time doing the finishing touches of sanding, filing and probably more sanding. i would suggest you get some metal / acrylic epoxy (around £2 from Wilkinsons or ebay.)

The juices are definately flowing...

It's your a600 case hack, I'm interested in trying. I've been looking through those links - GREAT stuff!

I've also been examining this option too: http://eab.abime.net/showpost.php?p=...&postcount=105
CF mount on top of PCMCIA, so I could plug the card into the side through a crafted slot giving more room to rest a slim-line cdrom drive on top of the rf case.

Unfortunately the ide express is too close to the pcmcia, so no go.

The Slot Loading SFF roms is definately the way I was thinking of going. And yes, oneself will require plenty of gritting to achieve much greatness.

[Charlie]

Like Zetr0 says:

My A1200 has a slot-loader mounted top-left as you look @ the keyboard, pointing out the back - there are other options, but to my mind this is easiest & leaves the most room for other stuff.
Slot cut in the case @ the rear & looks pretty neat & stealthy, even though I say so myself.

How to mount it?
Now I'm a bit of a butcher, but here's the cunning bit...
-Glue the slimline drive to the underside of the keyboard with fishtank sealant!
Strong + gooey enough to be easy to use but can be peeled off if necessary. Also gives an element of soundproofing for the drive mechanism. You'll need to remove 2-3 unnecessary screws from the keyboard to make a flat surface.
-Using the drive bezel as a template, shove it into the the far-back corner of your A1200 & draw through the slot onto the inside of the case. This will be the position of the external slot on the case & should line up well with the drive mechansim. Don't worry about messing the bezel up a bit - you won't be keeping it anyway, the computer case will do its job.
-With the help of a straight metal edge cut the slot with a thick cutting disc FROM THE INSIDE so any cock-up's don't show! Now cutting wheel + a metal edge could result in broken discs & bits flying into the eyes so be CAREFUL. You want to do this though so your slot is totally straight - a wobbly slot will look pretty skanky.
-The outside can then be fettled for fit & finish by trial-assembling the lot & seeing if an old CD will go in-out without rubbing.
-How to get a neat / factory-look for the slot? Easy, butcher-time again! Run the pointier half of a pair of scissors up & down inside the slot - the cutting edge on the side to be fettled. Finish jaggies with a craft knife & some wet 'n dry.
This way the mod is:
1) Easy - just needs some care lining things up - the more flush the drive is with the rear + side of the case, the better.
2) Mounts the drive as high in the case as possible so leaving room for other stuff & reducing the chances of the metal drive shorting-out your mobo & killing it.

N.B.
Choose your JAE-44pin adapter carefully! Too wide & you won't be able to close the case - especially if you have something plugged-over your Gayle chip. One that is no more than the height of the slimline drive will be fine.

I like modding computers
I'm lazy
I can't be bothered measuring anything - so I don't
The result has got to look good
The answer to these 'needs' lies in a steady hand, the creative use of what's laying about and a dollop of bravery

Have fun.

Well, certainly food for thought.. cheers Charlie.

Would a tray-loading version look less appealing?

Just that I've seen one with a bezel that compliments the same colour as the a1200s case.

God, I'm sooooo excited. All the modding about.

Skippy

** Added was it CU Amiga that did an article on these drives?

[Charlie]

Slot-loader or Tray-loader...
...I think it comes down to personal taste.
(and what you may have laying about)

Getting back to the lazy thing:
I'd say the slot-loader is easier because *all* you need to do is cut a nice straight slot, which can then be fettled if there's any allignment issues...
...a slot just wide enough for a CD or wider because you had to fiddle - once it's done either way is going to look fine.

Tray-loader is going to take a lot of careful fiddling or you'll end up with cr*ppy shut-lines that will never look nice...
...you may then be into mixing up epoxy paste to help blend to shape of the case to the tray, then re-shaping because the mechanism sticks, then painting it so it all matches, then re-shaping again because now the depth of paint makes the mechanism stick - grrrr!

Still down to taste, but for me lazyness is a big issue.

Um, for ballance it's worth saying that if you get your slot wildly wrong you're stuffed! But a cut-out for a tray can be endlessly remodeled.

[StevenJGore]

Hey guys, I was just wondering... How do you provide power to the internal CD drive?

I didn't think the A1200's internal IDE connector could cope with supplying power to more than one device? Or is it just a case of ensuring a large enough PSU is used?

I'm thinking of giving this a go, and I don't want to blow the motherboard.

Steve.

[Zetr0]

@StevenJGore

Its all about the PSU my friend

the basic vanilla PSU outputs 25 watts, from this 3-4.5amps are dedicated to the +5

Soooo remaining current lets DRAW PUNK!

• SFF DVDRW will use 1.5a on the +5
• CF card with adapter 'n LED will be around 300ma 0.3a
• 030 Apollo / Blizzard Accelerator 2.5 amps
• Other devices will be in the milliampere range

If you notice the acclerator really whacks home the weakness of the PSU, and how a lot of psu's over the years just cannot cope with an expanded Amiga.

My best advice would be to mod your own from an ATX psu, there are a few schematics on here to help, and if you get stuck or are a little worried just put up a post and we can help

the bonus is you get anything from 15-35amps on the +5, and its GOOD CLEAN power so it wont tax the components so hard! i cannot tell you how much good power really improves general operation as well reduce the stress on the components caused by dirty power.

[Charlie]

Hmmm, dirty power!

Originally Posted by StevenJGore

Hey guys, I was just wondering... How do you provide power to the internal CD drive?

I ported off the a1200 internal floppy drive power connector with a homemade splitter. Works fine.

I'm using an a500 PSU rated at 4.5A(5v) 1.0A(12+)

Check out my hotness at http://eab.abime.net/showthread.php?t=36999 with some demonstration pics if you're interested. Also to wet your appetite even more see http://eab.abime.net/showthread.php?t=37015 a little promo ad I put together of my proud new a1200, boasting its Compact Card and SFF CDrom, inspired by Abime.net

Cheers, Paul

[Zetr0]

some great work on that demo skippyAR!

Originally Posted by Zetr0

some great work on that demo skippyAR!

Cheers, just for fun...

Paul

[StevenJGore]

@Zetro,

That's a very useful breakdown of current. I will definitely consider a better power supply. I've already got a spare 60W A500 PSU, but I also have an old-style (ie. proper on/off switch) 200W PSU. Both are very old, though, so I fancy getting a brand-new PSU and converting it.

@SkippyAR,

Thanks for the two links. I'd already seen the thread at the first link, and it was that thread combined with this one that has wetted my appetite to give this a go myself!

I ported off the a1200 internal floppy drive power connector with a homemade splitter. Works fine.

Sounds good, I think I'll do the same thing too.

I'm currently trying to find a suitable SFF optical drive on eBay. Presumably pretty much any drive will do?

Steve.

[Zetr0]

@StevenJGore

There is some contention about the 60watt A500 PSU, I have a lot here, and they all at 35Watt max. Although i could sware that some were 60watt, I am yet to see one. could you type out the info on the base of the PSU ? or even take pictures for hardware pron... yes.... HARDWARE PRON, i like that

Originally Posted by StevenJGore

@Zetro,
I'm currently trying to find a suitable SFF optical drive on eBay. Presumably pretty much any drive will do?

Steve.

If you see this guy http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Computers-in-Pieces he still has some x24CDROM, I got one from him, nice chap, from Bristol.

They also come with the JAE adaptor which is even better, because it saves you the hassle of looking for one on Ebay.

Glad you've got the bug, you'll really appreciate doing it.

"They seek him here, they seek him there, that Amiga chap called Skippy gets everywhere!"

The most cumbersome part is the slot making, time and patience is required. Plenty of sanding and smoothing to get that "to die for" finish.

[StevenJGore]

I've just ordered a black Dell SFF DVD-ROM drive off eBay for £8, and it comes with a cable that ends in an IDE connector. I don't know what connector the drive has on the back, but since it comes with the right cable I guess it doesn't really matter!

I've also just won a spare A1200 case (slightly yellowed) for £2 which will become the subject of my experiment! I don't want to wreck my beloved white A1200 case with slot-cutting and spray paint.

I'll post some pics in a separate thread in a couple of weeks when it's hopefully all done!

Steve.

[T_hairy_bootson]

My Jae adapters arrived today and I had some old slimline laptop compaq drives laying around. First I tested the cdrom on an external USB HDD enclosure and it works fine on my PC.

My 1200 on the other hand doesnt seem to like it. I use this Elbox 4xEIDE'99 Interface I bought from amigakit a few years ago and that works great with my regular 3.5 DVDROM. I have a 2.5 HDD internal and the 3.5 CDROM mounted and powered externally as my regular setup. The 1200 just boots to the kickstart screen with this slim drive installed as master or slave on the secondary 3.5 ide. Any ideas? suggestions?

[StevenJGore]

I have the exact same Elbox 4xEIDE'99 Interface as you and have found that there is a rather strange problem with it. The 2.5" passthrough doesn't appear to work. Try putting your 2.5" hard disk as primary master, and slim CD-ROM as secondary master, and I reckon it will work.

BTW, my post above from nearly two months ago reminds me that I was never brave enough to make a black A1200, I went for standard beige instead!

Steve.

[alexh]

Does anyone use optical disks anymore?? I've not used them (unless I am sending other people data) for many, many years.

I use use solid state storage (Compact Flash / USB Key) or the network.

With an A1200 surely it is so much easier to get data in and out using the PCMCIA slot than farting around with optical disks?

[T_hairy_bootson]

Originally Posted by StevenJGore

I have the exact same Elbox 4xEIDE'99 Interface as you and have found that there is a rather strange problem with it. The 2.5" passthrough doesn't appear to work. Try putting your 2.5" hard disk as primary master, and slim CD-ROM as secondary master, and I reckon it will work.
Steve.

That's how I have it setup with my 2.5HDD and 3.5 CD-ROM and it works great just doesnt work with my laptop cdrom with JAE connector.