IDE adapters

[stevo1210]

I have one of these 2.5" --> 3.5" IDE adaptors to make a notebook hard drive compatible with a desktop PC. Only problem is that I don't know which way it goes into the laptop drive. It fits both ways so I am wary about this and I don't want to burn my laptop hard drive either. I can see that on the adaptor there is an indication of "pin 1", but I don't exactly know where pin 1 is on a laptop hard drve. So to make things easy, looking from a bove the drive (from the top where the labels are on the drive), which side is pin 1? left or right?

My IDE adaptor is similar to this one: http://cgi.ebay.com.au/IDE-2-5-in-to...QQcmdZViewItem

Thanks.

[370forlife]

Re: IDE adapters

My experience with hard drives is that if a cable is plugged in backwards, it will just not detect it or throw a error. Also, i believe pin 1 is always the top, left hand side, but don't take that as fact, i don't usually work with laptop hard drives.

[linuxguru]

Re: IDE adapters

Heads up: If you plug in the 50-pin cable reversed into a 2.5" IDE drive, it will usually release its magic smoke. The reason is that the connector also carries power (+5v) since there is no separate power connector. The power pins, if reversed, map onto something that trigger the smoke release (I forgot exactly what - maybe GND, maybe signal pins). Whatever it is, don't try reversing the cable. Pin 1 is on the side which has the configuration jumpers/pins (4-8 pins that are separated from the remaining 50).

[Wizard]

Re: IDE adapters

Not just that, there are ground pins in wrong places and swapping connector adapter on HD around or the cable too shorts out the chipset and goes the useful die in them. Poof.

Take a clear pic of your adapter both sides and we can find it.

Cheers, Wizard

[willawake]

Re: IDE adapters

hmm there should be one pin missing no?
i will check tomorrow at the office

[Scenic]

Re: IDE adapters

pin 1 is always the one next to those 4 master/slave jumper pins



dont mind those slightly bent pins.. i used one of those 2.5" HDD adapters waay too often on this HDD

[Gendo Ikari]

Re: IDE adapters

I need to get one of those to work on my notebook drive.
So, who makes a good adapter?

[dood]

Re: IDE adapters

I need to get one of those to work on my notebook drive.
So, who makes a good adapter?

Any old cheap thing will do. I usually get mine from Cyberguys for a couple bucks. I get a few, because I have a tendency to lose them somehow. There's nothing to them, so I've never seen a crappy one!