Obsolete connector identification Created 15 years ago2009-05-17 17:52:02 UTC by srry

I know it's a long shot posting this here, but I'm trying to identify a very obscure connector on an old slimline HP PC that I'm trying to get running with a CD drive. Documentation for this model is extremely poor, and there's barely any references to it anywhere on the internet.

Here's the connector I'm talking about. It's the smaller one below the main IDE connector, simply marked "CD_ROM":Now, I'd just as well use an ordinary IDE CD drive for this, but as it turns out there's a single power connector inside the computer, and it goes directly from a plug on the motherboard to the hard drive it powers. Branching off of this apparently overloads the connector or something, because it won't power up if I have it connected to a CD drive and the hard drive. This mysterious CD connector must have a built-in power feed going to it, not like regular IDE cables.

So, uh... any ideas? I will be amazed if anyone figures this out.

Never seen such a thing... the distance between rows seems smaller, is it?

Looks like a floppy drive cable to me.

I think floppy drive connectors are fatter than that.
Also, this one have ~50 pins. Floppy drive connectors have 30 something if I recall correctly.

DiscoStu, yes the distance is smaller than an IDE connector. It's really slim.

Ninja'd
Could it be this one?

Equal to ATA (44) connector, except 50 pin connector used.

Looks like it might be. Now, where to get one... along with a compatible CD drive.

On a related note, finally got the video drivers to work now. Wee, 300Mhz Celeron, 32Mb RAM, ATI Rage IIC!

/installs Half-Life on 3GB HDD

Hey srry, here's a couple of links to two sites that I have used before to get some really old computer parts not easily found. The first link, Oldcomputers.net, is more like a hub of links that could point you to the right direction. The second link, Partmedics.com, is perhaps the best site out there to help you find what you are looking for. They even have live support, just tell them what you are looking for.

The Obsolete Technology Website: http://oldcomputers.net/

Part Medics: http://www.partmedics.com/

Well, it's obsolete , but I don't think it's that old. It was only made probably in '98 to '00. And that Part Medics site, it says they charge a minimum of $150 for an order.

I'm probably just going to look for a cheap external USB drive. Until then, I can run everything off my laptop's drive over the network.

It has USB?? Are you sure? Maybe you should try 24p Serial, or if supported Parallel

Sure I'm sure. It even has an ethernet port, but no modem. It was supposed to be some kind of network terminal in the late nineties, it only came with Windows NT on it originally. It's not that it's really old, it's just very low end because they fit it in a small form factor case.

Man, Windows 98 is a bitch for drivers.