Long 44 pin ide cable

Dustyarddog · 23 January 2020, 22:17

Evening all

I'm planning on adding a scsi bezel / holder to the rear of my A1200 to mount my cf adaptor. This is because I like to be able to swap cards for different builds occasionally.

I have had conflicting advice on the length of 44pin ide cable needed for this, ranging from 30 cm to 50cm. What do you guys recommend as the best length?

I know, it sounds daft!

I will most likely grab what I need from Amigakit.

torsti76 · 23 January 2020, 22:28

First of all, for anything longer than about 15cm you should install some buffered IDE adapter to the 44pin connector on the motherboard first. Connecting a long cable to the onboard connector will be unreliable and possibly fatal for your data.

Second, 50 cm is too long, while 30 cm - as I found - is a bit too short if you want to reach the back expansion bracket. I'd opt for 35 or 40 cm.

aeberbach · 24 January 2020, 10:52

Buy the long one, then move the connector once you see the exact position of the CF adapters in relation to the main board connector. It is not supposed to be removable and then reapplied but can be done if you are careful. Make sure to get the individual wires dead-centre on the IDC pins before gently squeezing together with a press (if you have one) or a vise or similar.

Even better - buy some cable and some IDC connectors, make it exactly how you want it. Looks like Element14 still stocks what you need.

Once re-fastened just trim off the excess cable poking out of the back of the repositioned connector. Do it with a sharp knife and be sure to inspect for a clean cut, making sure that you have no individual copper strands bridging contacts.

As others have said if not using a buffered adapter you need to keep the cable as short as possible.

Lord Aga · 24 January 2020, 12:45

I have a big one (giggety). I'd say 50cm. Enough to peek out of the back expansion bracket for comfortable CF swapping. It has been working for years without a buffered adapter. No hiccups here.

Now people say it might go crazy if you tried to add a second device. I can't vouch for that as I have never tried.

Those cables aren't very expensive. Buy a 50cm one and see how things go. That was my idea, and it turned out fine.

Dustyarddog · 24 January 2020, 15:10

Hi guys, this is all good advice.

Are you able to provide examples of buffered adaptors as I cant seem to find any.

Cheers

Jope · 24 January 2020, 16:04

https://amigastore.eu/en/129-4xeide-99-interface.html best regards, your friendly surrogate googler.

I'm sure there are others for less money too. :-)

Dustyarddog · 24 January 2020, 18:45

Thank you Jope, lol.

I wasn't sure what I was looking for. It seems to me that the board goes between the mb connector and cf adaptor.

Ill get googling!

torsti76 · 24 January 2020, 19:16

The 4xEIDE does much more than just buffering. It even comes with a licensed copy of AllegroCDFS to get Atapi CDROMs working very easily and conveniently.

One of its downsides is that it needs a driver that has to be loaded from the very top of startup-sequence, forcing a reboot afterwards. While the adapter itself somewhat accelerates the built-in IDE of the 1200, the additional reboot means longer startup times.

There are much simpler buffered IDE interfaces around that work without a driver.

Jope · 24 January 2020, 19:23

The driver is only needed to enable the second IDE connector. The adapter itself works fine without.

Dustyarddog · 24 January 2020, 22:46

Ok, thank you all for the advice.

Has anyone heard of cf to ide adaptors, or anything else for that matter, being damaged by using long ide cables without the unbuffered part?

aeberbach · 24 January 2020, 22:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jope

https://amigastore.eu/en/129-4xeide-99-interface.html best regards, your friendly surrogate googler.

I'm sure there are others for less money too. :-)

This is what I use, and I found once you can use 40-pin connectors with separate power life gets much easier. 44-pin dual IDE cables can be a little rare.

-Acid- · 24 January 2020, 23:18

50cm works fine for me, go to 2:40 to see it installed.

[ Show youtube player ]

Dustyarddog · 27 January 2020, 20:49

Ok, great thank you guys. Some really great advice here.

This discussion has helped me decide my approach and kind of proves my initial point that there are different approaches and thoughts on using long cables.

amigakit.com · 28 January 2020, 11:32

We recommend our new 4xIDE Buffered IDE Adapter. We have made this high quality adapter available at a very low price:

It will of course work great with our A1200 CF Adapter Backplate Kit:

23 January 2020, 22:17	#1
Dustyarddog Officially retro Join Date: Jan 2020 Location: Maidstone, Kent Posts: 35	Long 44 pin ide cable Evening all I'm planning on adding a scsi bezel / holder to the rear of my A1200 to mount my cf adaptor. This is because I like to be able to swap cards for different builds occasionally. I have had conflicting advice on the length of 44pin ide cable needed for this, ranging from 30 cm to 50cm. What do you guys recommend as the best length? I know, it sounds daft! I will most likely grab what I need from Amigakit.

24 January 2020, 10:52	#3
aeberbach Registered User Join Date: Mar 2019 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 433	Buy the long one, then move the connector once you see the exact position of the CF adapters in relation to the main board connector. It is not supposed to be removable and then reapplied but can be done if you are careful. Make sure to get the individual wires dead-centre on the IDC pins before gently squeezing together with a press (if you have one) or a vise or similar. Even better - buy some cable and some IDC connectors, make it exactly how you want it. Looks like Element14 still stocks what you need. Once re-fastened just trim off the excess cable poking out of the back of the repositioned connector. Do it with a sharp knife and be sure to inspect for a clean cut, making sure that you have no individual copper strands bridging contacts. As others have said if not using a buffered adapter you need to keep the cable as short as possible. Last edited by aeberbach; 24 January 2020 at 10:57. Reason: Buy parts instead

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23 January 2020, 22:28	#2
torsti76 Registered User Join Date: May 2018 Location: Germany, Baden-Wuerttemberg Posts: 387	First of all, for anything longer than about 15cm you should install some buffered IDE adapter to the 44pin connector on the motherboard first. Connecting a long cable to the onboard connector will be unreliable and possibly fatal for your data. Second, 50 cm is too long, while 30 cm - as I found - is a bit too short if you want to reach the back expansion bracket. I'd opt for 35 or 40 cm.

24 January 2020, 12:45	#4
Lord Aga MI clan prevails Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Belgrade, Serbia Posts: 1,443	I have a big one (giggety). I'd say 50cm. Enough to peek out of the back expansion bracket for comfortable CF swapping. It has been working for years without a buffered adapter. No hiccups here. Now people say it might go crazy if you tried to add a second device. I can't vouch for that as I have never tried. Those cables aren't very expensive. Buy a 50cm one and see how things go. That was my idea, and it turned out fine.

24 January 2020, 15:10	#5
Dustyarddog Officially retro Join Date: Jan 2020 Location: Maidstone, Kent Posts: 35	Hi guys, this is all good advice. Are you able to provide examples of buffered adaptors as I cant seem to find any. Cheers

24 January 2020, 16:04	#6
Jope - Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 43 Posts: 9,916	https://amigastore.eu/en/129-4xeide-99-interface.html best regards, your friendly surrogate googler. I'm sure there are others for less money too. :-)

24 January 2020, 18:45	#7
Dustyarddog Officially retro Join Date: Jan 2020 Location: Maidstone, Kent Posts: 35	Thank you Jope, lol. I wasn't sure what I was looking for. It seems to me that the board goes between the mb connector and cf adaptor. Ill get googling!

24 January 2020, 19:16	#8
torsti76 Registered User Join Date: May 2018 Location: Germany, Baden-Wuerttemberg Posts: 387	The 4xEIDE does much more than just buffering. It even comes with a licensed copy of AllegroCDFS to get Atapi CDROMs working very easily and conveniently. One of its downsides is that it needs a driver that has to be loaded from the very top of startup-sequence, forcing a reboot afterwards. While the adapter itself somewhat accelerates the built-in IDE of the 1200, the additional reboot means longer startup times. There are much simpler buffered IDE interfaces around that work without a driver.

24 January 2020, 19:23	#9
Jope - Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 43 Posts: 9,916	The driver is only needed to enable the second IDE connector. The adapter itself works fine without.

24 January 2020, 22:46	#10
Dustyarddog Officially retro Join Date: Jan 2020 Location: Maidstone, Kent Posts: 35	Ok, thank you all for the advice. Has anyone heard of cf to ide adaptors, or anything else for that matter, being damaged by using long ide cables without the unbuffered part?

24 January 2020, 23:18	#12
-Acid- Registered User Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: South Shields Posts: 812	50cm works fine for me, go to 2:40 to see it installed. [ Show youtube player ]

27 January 2020, 20:49	#13
Dustyarddog Officially retro Join Date: Jan 2020 Location: Maidstone, Kent Posts: 35	Ok, great thank you guys. Some really great advice here. This discussion has helped me decide my approach and kind of proves my initial point that there are different approaches and thoughts on using long cables.

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)

28 January 2020, 11:32	#14
amigakit.com Registered User Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: www.amigakit.com Posts: 2,051	We recommend our new 4xIDE Buffered IDE Adapter. We have made this high quality adapter available at a very low price: It will of course work great with our A1200 CF Adapter Backplate Kit: