best cheap/free scores 1.1

[Topcat]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

I haven't swapped HDD control boards since back in the SCSI days....and it was usually only for data recovery....I'd never do this, and then depend on the drive for anything...

[Dan81]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

Another free WD, also dead - WD10EALX 1TB.

This one did spin up once, sounding like a angle grinder, ironically did seek once but started clicking when mobo (MSI G41M-P26, nice little DDR3-based 775 board) tried to detect it.

Since I had nothing to lose, I cracked it open. Found out somebody hit it hard enough that the platters were bent. Can't understand how did it calibrate once though.

Will probably try to adapt it to my WD1001FALS since both PCBs look the same. That one does have a little scuff on top but it doesn't cause any issue.

[coreAngel]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

Another free WD, also dead - WD10EALX 1TB.

This one did spin up once, sounding like a angle grinder, ironically did seek once but started clicking when mobo (MSI G41M-P26, nice little DDR3-based 775 board) tried to detect it.

Since I had nothing to lose, I cracked it open. Found out somebody hit it hard enough that the platters were bent. Can't understand how did it calibrate once though.

Will probably try to adapt it to my WD1001FALS since both PCBs look the same. That one does have a little scuff on top but it doesn't cause any issue.

Shame older WD drives (not the newer ones, warranty is much lower) were the best. Im surprised the drive actually posted at all considering the platters were bent, what are you planning to do with it?


Decided to clean out some of the parts out of my office, one of them is a Trigem OEM Samsung Spinpoint 15GB EIDE made in June 2001, it made some noises but came to life, This came from my old Emachines eTower 667ir.

So i received from someone else today for free (from a family friend, where i got 2 other pc's ill post here) another Trigem OEM Samsung Spinpoint 20GB EIDE hard drive made in 2001, the drive was quite noisy but was able to install windows , i also got a Samsung CD Drive 48X max, and CD burner 16x4x26 both from 2001 drive still works fine.

A 120 watt ilsan (made in Korea) Powersupply still worked but for some reason today just made a noise and never turned on again main caps were Daewoo or Samwha, couldnt see the logo very well, (turns out chloroprene glue turned black and shorted out)



Trigem was a system builder that made eMachines PC's in korea in the 90's to early 2000's for retail, they used korean parts manufactured nearby (it lowered the price).

[Dan81]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

Shame older WD drives (not the newer ones, warranty is much lower) were the best. Im surprised the drive actually posted at all considering the platters were bent, what are you planning to do with it?

Probably keep it around and make a wall of the fallen. (dead stuff)

I already have a bunch of dead stuff that could make it there - a HD5770 (shorted core), the aforementioned WD10EALX, a dead Albatron K8SLI (no POST, no beeps, nada), and there's more.

[Curious.George]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

4 FX5800's

[brethin]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

4 XFX 7950 GT agp, they came in cases from a local gaming / hobby store that use to have lan parties, I grabed the boxes for $30 each because I knew they were for gaming. I guessed right they had some good stuff inside, lucky me all 4 run fine.

[ChaosLegionnaire]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

wow lucky u. thats a really nice sweet score there! the 7950 gt agp is the last and most powerful agp card made by nvidia and one easily auctions for at least around a hundred bucks on junkbay so u're looking at over 300% profit on what u paid for those cards there!

[Dan81]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

Got a free PS3, phat model CECHK04, 80GB. Has FW problems that should be easily fixable.

Also got two VHS tapes

[TechGeek]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

Got a free PS3, phat model CECHK04, 80GB. Has FW problems that should be easily fixable.

Also got two VHS tapes

I could digitize those for ya.

[Dan81]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

I could digitize those for ya.

Thanks, but I own a VCR too , a Grundig GV729M. Also have a digital capture card(Winfast PxDVR3200H) but I'm uncertain whether it works with Windows 10

[Topcat]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

I've been busy with other things lately, so the free/cheap stuff gravy train has been slow....but I was given an Asus P4S800 w/ IO shield this morning. Of course it needed caps. It also contained 2gb RAM and a P4 2.6/800fsb CPU.

Probably a complete waste of time refurbing this relic...but what the heck.... In fact, this post was created from it...and yet another HDD from a strange box of SCA SCSI drives that showed up here was also tested (good)....

[ChaosLegionnaire]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

nah it isnt a waste of time. those 800fsb s478 p4 boards still sell decently on junkbay. since its already recapped, it should still sell for around 40 bucks.

[Curious.George]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

I've a little 1.6GHz, 4GB, 250G USFF hiding under a dresser. It runs 24/7/365 providing core "services" to my internet (name, print, time, font, etc.). As it's UNDER the dresser, no room for a monitor. Wired small footprint keyboard tucked under there as well for the few times I have to (blindly) type shell commands:


PITA as I have to dig around under the dresser to retrieve the keyboard -- and hope I haven't unintentionally "typed" anything in the process!

Last week's rescue seemed it might be an improvement:


Leave the keyboard someplace unconstrained by the cord! Chiclet keys aren't much worse than on the wired keyboard -- and, it's used so seldom that I can tolerate that.

But, needs to be "out in the light" in order to ensure there's power available for the keyboard when it needs it. Presently sitting on my Unisite which makes it inconvenient to use that! <frown>

Newest rescue might make this even easier:

Stuff it in a drawer as it's hardly larger than my wallet. Just have to hope the battery holds a charge over long periods of non-use. OTOH, it charges in just a few minutes, so...

[Curious.George]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

Five Dell MD3200's (no drives) and three Dell R810's (24? core, 96GB -- but I think I can upgrade those to 192G). If I can chase down a few more odds and ends (and a shitload of sleds!), I can start building a second disk sanitizer!

[Dan81]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

Got a free ASRock ALiveNF5-eSATA2+ w/ a Athlon 64 x2 3600+, some 10/100 NIC that looks like a RTL8139 clone, a TEAC DVD-RW and a Titan TFD-8025H12C fan that I have to solder some wires on.

[Curious.George]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

yet another HDD from a strange box of SCA SCSI drives that showed up here was also tested (good)....

I've another ~15-20 in the queue (also known as "middle of living room floor"), waiting for suitable boxes.

And, some small (36G) "wide" (68 pin) drives, if there's a use for those?

[Topcat]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

I've another ~15-20 in the queue (also known as "middle of living room floor"), waiting for suitable boxes.

And, some small (36G) "wide" (68 pin) drives, if there's a use for those?

There most certainly is uses for all those, anything 68-pin!

[brethin]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

There most certainly is uses for all those, anything 68-pin!

68 pin was all I used when I used scsi in a pc. running on adaptec 39320 they screamed fast and we're raid host bootable which made them a dream, no drivers required.😎

[Dan81]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

Got an free ASUS A8V w/A64 3000+, 768MB of RAM, ANS LC-B400ATX PSU (24 pin), Maxtor 80GB HDD, Hitachi-LG GSA-4167B DVD-ROM and a Radeon 9250.

Haven't tested the PSU yet, but strangely NONE of the caps are bulged, and the internals of the PSU (which by the looks of it is a pretty solid 250W unit, which is enough for a Athlon 64 on Skt939) are surprisingly clean, to the point there's not even a burn mark.

[Curious.George]

Re: best cheap/free scores 1.1

There most certainly is uses for all those, anything 68-pin!

OK, I scrapped a DLT8000 so I can use its enclosure to interface to the drives. I'll try to wipe them this week. Hopefully, I can remember to look for a box, tomorrow -- I think I've collected enough bubble wrap...