2.5" SCSI SSD Project

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Nah, I'm only really interested in the T-Rex Card Cage of the 1400, because it's the one that would have shipped in the UltraDock if the project hadn't been $#1^Canned after being announced.

I really think Apple wanted the Duo to go away, because they only had Bigger, Thicker, MonstrocityBooks in the pipeline, (read Kanga, Wallstreet & Toilet Seat) with the notable exception of the 2400c.

Apple never wanted to fulfill the promise they'd made to provide a PPC upgrade path for the Duos, but you don't wanna tick off a boatload of people who paid $5k+ to join the DockableBookClub!

Good notion though, B! :approve: Check back a few pages & you'll see some discussion about my T-Rex spelunking/hack and its applicability across the whole '030 spectrum!

 

[insaneboy]

just checking in

 

[techknight]

project has halted, i have hit a brick wall a long time ago.

I will pick back up on it soon eventually, i just stepped away for a bit.

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Since the only stupid question, is the one that doesn't get asked . . .

Are any of the traces on your board anywhere near the length of the wavelengths of the signals they're carrying? :?:

 

[techknight]

i dont know what the wavelength of the signals are. the CPU cant run any faster than 16mhz, and the board is WAYYYYY smaller than 1 full wavelength of a resonant circuit of a dividend of 16mhz.

Now a multiplicand harmonic is something different.. Like i said, i think all efforts in this "board" is dead. saving some cash and going to route a new one, 4 LAYER.

 

[trag]

Found these guys while looking for something else:

http://www.compuvest.com/Desc.jsp?iid=1206341

Fifty 1" 5GB IDE disks for $141, or about $3 each. They're kind of slow, but on a 5MBps SCSI bus who would notice? They might be a useful option for fitting your whole assembly into an older Mac's 2.5" space.

 

[techknight]

its not showing up, maybe already gone? Anyway, I havent made any more progress, too many big projects came up at work. late nights. long weekends.

 

[trag]

Interesting. I guess someone bought six sets of fifty. I wonder who had a use for all those obsolete tiny drives. They claimed to have six sets of fifty available.

Here's a link for the individual item, but at $7+ each, I don't find it nearly so interesting. However, they claim to have 600+ in stock, so I'm not sure why they couldn't sell more sets of fifty...

http://www.compuvest.com/Desc.jsp?iid=1183657

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Somebody probably ran a spreadsheet analysis on on the inventory after they got a decent offer for a couple of drives. :-/

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

I've got a different approach for you:

Build a 2.5" IDE <-> SCSI adapter for those inexpensive 1.8" ZIF IDE <-> SD card converters

1) you've got half the work done already

2) a 1.8" ZIF <-> 2.5" IDE header <-> 2.5" SCSI header hack still leaves LOTS of cubic available

3) SD <-> Chiplet Converters are a dime a dozen

4) chiplets are almost throwaway technology as compared to 2.5" IDE, much less 2.5" SCSI!

5) IDE <-> SCSI would be useful across the entire spectrum of old Macs

I'm not sure if I've got this right, I'm in a hurry and I haven't thought it through or done fact checking yet . . .

. . . that's what tech qualified comrades do best anyway . . . :approve:

I'm in the loony tunes idea Chain of Command! [] ]'>

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

SD memory card to 1.8" ZIF/50pin toshiba IDE adapter

OOPSIE!!!! :lol:

I forgot about the 50 pin 1.8" IDE connector and the fact that it shows up like a HDD to begin with. :beige:

IDE <-> Mac SCSI =

ATAPI <-> Mac SCSI, while you're at it, would be just . . . 8-o

 

[techknight]

my issues arnt in the ata, CF area...

my issue is on the scsi/negotiation end

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

I know you were having trouble with the SCSI end of things, I was just thinking about your project when I found these adapters and figured they might be a good way to kick start the project again.

If you plug the 1.8" 50 pin adapter's female connector into a matching RA DIP header on one end . . .

. . . and hang your 2.5" SCSI connector on the other end of your board . . .

. . . you've got the entire 2.5" form factor board as empty real estate to play with . . .

. . . and two well documented, industry standard, interfaces to funnel through your chip/thingie . . .

OODLES-n-OODLES of surface area open up as compared to your original 2.5" AIO layout . . .

. . . or so it would seem to an old hardware guy like me . . . :-/

< . . . shrugs . . . ambles back to his IIsi card demolition site . . . >

 

[techknight]

yea, that would definitely entice a hell of a lot more room.

just gotta figure out the SCSI issues. SCSI and IDE CMDs are really not all that different. just a small translator program and its done.

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

[] ]'>

 

[insaneboy]

good to keep this one up near the top... those PB180's are still waiting.

 

[register]

Artmix seems to offer a New CF PowerMonster II. At least the English manual on that web page seems to be recently updated (2011). The price tag of Yen 9900 equals about USD 130 today. Add some bucks for shipping, import tax, and probably an adaptor to connect to the standard 50 pin connector for a 3,5 Inch HDD. This is not exactly the price region we desired, but exactly the footprint and function we want.

To provide SD card support one could use a cheap CF-SD card adaptor (like DeLOCK CF Adapter for SD(SDHC/MMC, for less than USD 10). Such connector should also allow to connect an extension cable to a SD card slot for external access }

The benchmark results given on that page are impressive. The predecessor CF PowerMonster works well in any old Macintosh. Did someone ask for availability, yet?

 

[ajacocks]

I have ordered several of the 2.5" to CF card adapters, from Artmix. I'm expecting them sometime, in the next few weeks.

I was told that my order will come from production samples, and that full production should commence soon, after, so hopefully the price will come down.

Indeed, $129 USD is the price.

Thanks!

- Alex

 

[insaneboy]

sweet, let us know how they do when you get them... I'll have to put in an order as soon as I get some cashola.

 

[Arbee]

Does Artmix accept email orders in English? I could really use one of these for my new (to me) PowerBook 180c, but I can't make a lot of sense out of their site.