By Mekishiko
Fri Jan 23, 2009 10:23 am
*Disclaimer* I am not responsible if you break your machine!
In my 14 years in the IT field, I have realized one upsetting truth: Mechanical things sucks. Specifically: Hard Disk Drives.
Hard drives have the benefit of providing tons of storage space. They have their downfalls though:
1) The moving components use a lot of power and generate a lot of heat
2) The Moving parts are going to fail eventually, Laptop hard drives especially
3) They are sensitive to shock/movement (IE: Banging on your Pads)
So with that Idea in mind I decided to Mod my MPC1000 with a Compact Flash Drive Internally to act as the HD.
First you need the Hard drive installation Kit:
http://www.mpcstuff.com/hard-drive-install-kit.html
Then you need a 2.5" Laptop Hard drive to CF Adapter that fits these requirements: It must be BOOTABLE, have NO DRIVERS NEEDED, and it MUST HAVE ALL 44 PINS and it can NOT REQUIRE A POWER ADAPTER.
This is the one I purchased from China on Ebay for about $4 after shipping:
http://search.stores.ebay.com/e2wholesale_cf_W0QQfciZQ2d1QQfclZ3QQfsnZe2wholesaleQQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQsaselZ818968071QQsofpZ0
Next you need a large CF Card, and it has to be cheap in order for this setup to be worth-while. You could use a more expensive card and get better write-speeds, but that's up to you. I used the Adata 32GB CF Card available at newegg for $62 here (Mine was ordered 6 months ago so the label looks a little different):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211244
Here is my Adapter and Flash Card:
On to the instructions:
-Power down your MPC1000 and remove the Face Plate: Unscrew the 2 screws under the MPC
-Unscrew the single flat screw on the front of the face plate next to the CF slot:
-Take the HD kit and remove the Interface board from the chasis by removing the 2 screws:
(IF YOU HAVE DOUBLE SIDED FOAM TAPE USE THAT TO MOUNT THE ADAPTER IN PLACE OF THE CARD/PLASTIC: STILL BE SURE TO BEND THE TAB DOWN AND PLACE A SQUARE OF DOUBLE SIDED TAPE ON THE TAB AS WELL)
-Then Get a peice of Plastic (I used an Anti Static Bag) and cut it to fit within the frame, and make it about 2 inches long. I also cut a piece of thin card stock to give further padding in order to prevent the CF adapter board from shorting on the bottom of the frame in case it were to poke through the bag. First I taped the Card stock down, then (this is important) Take your screwdriver, and Press the Screw Tab down (this is done because when the adapter is installed it will scratch the underside of the adapter where a vital trace is located):
-Now take the peice of plastic you cut, slide it under the left tabe, and lay it OVER the right tab (The one you just bent down) and Tape it down (The arrow points to where the bag needs to be OVER the tab):
-Screw the HD Interface Board that came with the kit back into place:
-Slide the CF Adapter board oriented ALL THE WAY TO THE RIGHT of the socket as illustrated (The pin sockets on the left will be left open, this is how you want it) and then slide your CF card into the Adapter:
You are almost done! Slide the HD tray inside the MPC1000 and screw it in, install the Faceplate, and power on the machine. Press MODE+PAD2 and use the arrow keys to go to the HARD DISK and press WINDOW and F2 to Format your new 32GB Solid State Flash Drive! (It will show ~31GB because of drive geometry)
Now you never have to worry about your Hard Drive Crashing, and your MPC will run much cooler as well!
In my 14 years in the IT field, I have realized one upsetting truth: Mechanical things sucks. Specifically: Hard Disk Drives.
Hard drives have the benefit of providing tons of storage space. They have their downfalls though:
1) The moving components use a lot of power and generate a lot of heat
2) The Moving parts are going to fail eventually, Laptop hard drives especially
3) They are sensitive to shock/movement (IE: Banging on your Pads)
So with that Idea in mind I decided to Mod my MPC1000 with a Compact Flash Drive Internally to act as the HD.
First you need the Hard drive installation Kit:
http://www.mpcstuff.com/hard-drive-install-kit.html
Then you need a 2.5" Laptop Hard drive to CF Adapter that fits these requirements: It must be BOOTABLE, have NO DRIVERS NEEDED, and it MUST HAVE ALL 44 PINS and it can NOT REQUIRE A POWER ADAPTER.
This is the one I purchased from China on Ebay for about $4 after shipping:
http://search.stores.ebay.com/e2wholesale_cf_W0QQfciZQ2d1QQfclZ3QQfsnZe2wholesaleQQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQsaselZ818968071QQsofpZ0
Next you need a large CF Card, and it has to be cheap in order for this setup to be worth-while. You could use a more expensive card and get better write-speeds, but that's up to you. I used the Adata 32GB CF Card available at newegg for $62 here (Mine was ordered 6 months ago so the label looks a little different):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211244
Here is my Adapter and Flash Card:
On to the instructions:
-Power down your MPC1000 and remove the Face Plate: Unscrew the 2 screws under the MPC
-Unscrew the single flat screw on the front of the face plate next to the CF slot:
-Take the HD kit and remove the Interface board from the chasis by removing the 2 screws:
(IF YOU HAVE DOUBLE SIDED FOAM TAPE USE THAT TO MOUNT THE ADAPTER IN PLACE OF THE CARD/PLASTIC: STILL BE SURE TO BEND THE TAB DOWN AND PLACE A SQUARE OF DOUBLE SIDED TAPE ON THE TAB AS WELL)
-Then Get a peice of Plastic (I used an Anti Static Bag) and cut it to fit within the frame, and make it about 2 inches long. I also cut a piece of thin card stock to give further padding in order to prevent the CF adapter board from shorting on the bottom of the frame in case it were to poke through the bag. First I taped the Card stock down, then (this is important) Take your screwdriver, and Press the Screw Tab down (this is done because when the adapter is installed it will scratch the underside of the adapter where a vital trace is located):
-Now take the peice of plastic you cut, slide it under the left tabe, and lay it OVER the right tab (The one you just bent down) and Tape it down (The arrow points to where the bag needs to be OVER the tab):
-Screw the HD Interface Board that came with the kit back into place:
-Slide the CF Adapter board oriented ALL THE WAY TO THE RIGHT of the socket as illustrated (The pin sockets on the left will be left open, this is how you want it) and then slide your CF card into the Adapter:
You are almost done! Slide the HD tray inside the MPC1000 and screw it in, install the Faceplate, and power on the machine. Press MODE+PAD2 and use the arrow keys to go to the HARD DISK and press WINDOW and F2 to Format your new 32GB Solid State Flash Drive! (It will show ~31GB because of drive geometry)
Now you never have to worry about your Hard Drive Crashing, and your MPC will run much cooler as well!
Last edited by Mekishiko on Fri Jan 23, 2009 1:53 pm, edited 2 times in total.