home-made IDE cables

[mrchaotica]

Hey, I am building a new small-form-factor computer and I need some help with the IDE cables. Every IDE cable I have ever seen (except for some in a name-brand computer) is at least 12" long. Since my computer is going to be approximately the size of a portable CD player (except a bit thicker), that is WAY too long. Does anybody happen to know what I need to make my own IDE cables, and where I could get the materials?

 

[Bovinicus]

You could try finding a motherboard that supports serial ATA, and then use a serial to parallel converter so that the extra length won't be a problem. I think it would be quite a pain in the arse to shorten a regular IDE cable. You would have to cut it and splice all 80 wires individually.

 

[smp]

Get a regular two device ide cable.
Cut off the long part, leave teh part inbetween the two closer connectors. That should work fine, I've done this before.
Just make sure you insulate the exposed cut off part with some good electrical tape or something.

 

[mrchaotica]

I think y'all might be underestimating (overestimating?) what I am trying to do... I am using a mini-ITX form-factor motherboard (17cm by 17cm square) which does not have Serial-ATA and I am connecting a laptop CD-ROM and a 2.5" laptop hard drive (both with the appropriate adapters). I need IDE cables that are about three inches long (or maybe even less). To give you an idea of what I am talking about, the WHOLE COMPUTER will be about the size of a standard ATX power supply (but not nearly as tall)

 

[Bovinicus]

I would suggest looking for extra short cables on www.pricewatch.com perhaps. I have never seen an IDE cable that long. Good luck finding one.

 

[Links4me]

Where did you get that small a mobo and what about the case you are putting it in? I have seen those very short ide cables 2-3" in some systems that I have worked on but I couldn't tell you where to get them.....sorry.

 

[mrchaotica]

oh, by the way, thanks for the suggestion SMP... I might do that with the cable for the CD-ROM (the IDE connectors are at the front of the mobo, and the part where it connects to the back of the CD will be over the back of the mobo)

 

[mrchaotica]

links4me, I haven't gotten the mobo quite yet, because I am waiting for the new version to come out... However, I can tell you what it will be. It is called an Epia, and is made by Via. It has built in sound, video, ethernet, etc. and has an embedded C3 or Eden processor. I am waiting for the new Epia-M which will have DDR memory, USB2, and some other goodies : ) Anyway, you can find out all kinds of stuff here. I have not gotten a case either, because I plan to build my own. I have been thinking of a shoebox, or a small plexiglas thing, but haven't made any decisions yet.

 

[Bovinicus]

Just out of curiosity, what will you be using this system for? It sounds like a pretty powerful machine for a shoebox sized space requirement.

 

[mrchaotica]

Well, Bovinicus, I guess I just felt like building it for fun. My main machine is a nice AthlonXP in a big Antec tower (chock full of fans and drives and such) and I felt like making something different for a change. This computer will be the opposite of my other one: small:big, slow:fast, quiet:loud, linux:windows, $300 budget:money-almost-no-object, etc. Also, this will give me an oppertunity to get familiar with Linux (I need to have windows on at least one computer, and I am tired of trying to get stuff to dual-boot), and the computer will be quite portable. In fact, I am thinking about figuring out how to hook a battery up to it and getting a few other things (such as a head-mounted display) and making it a wearable computer. It's just sort of a recreational experiment, I guess.

EDIT: I didn't quite answer your question. It's not that it NEEDS to be small, it's just that I felt like making it that way.

 

[Bovinicus]

Well, I think that is just really damned cool. Creative projects like that are always fun. Linux is good to get into as well. You should put a link on these forums with a picture of your system in wearable form if you go that far!

 

[KF]

The connectors on ribbon cables for such things as floppies and IDE drives are IDC plugs. (Insulation Displacement Connectors). Ribbon cable and IDC connectors are available. You sometimes see them at computer shows. I have never attempted an 80 conductor cable such as the DMA66 cables for IDE hard drives, but I have done the 40 wire ones from time to time. 2.5 inch drives may use a different cable than 3.5, I don't know. You can pry the connectors off the cable and redo them. There is a plastic snap-lock on the sides that has to be undone before you try any prying, and the snap lock usually breaks in the process of trying to undo it. They really were not meant to be taken apart. The connectors still work OK without the snap lock. In fact, getting them off is d*mn difficult, even minus the snap lock. The connectors attach by sharp, dual prongs that pierce the insulation to make contact. One plastic half just has grooves that line up with the cable wires, and slots to accept the prongs. The other has the prongs. You line up the two halves of the connector with the wires, press them together firmly to get started, then clamp them together in a vise or with a C-clamp. To dig through 40 wires simultanously takes a terrific force. Be careful to do this evenly if you use a clamp.

Here is one outfit I found on Google.

some IDC connectors
I know nothing about this place. You get the idea.

 

[smp]

The method I mentioned was actually done to a 'wearcomp'
Something even smaller than a atx power supply.
Yes, it was a notebook hard drive.
A cyborg friend of mine needed my help making his case for him.