Reply 200 of 200, by Savior_04
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Thermalwrong wrote on 2025-05-28, 00:52:Savior_04 wrote on 2025-05-27, 13:21:Thermalwrong wrote on 2025-05-27, 03:08:Sure, I bumped into the same problem recently. It requires a mod to the CD-ROM caddy connector just like the Toshiba laptops: Pr […]
Sure, I bumped into the same problem recently. It requires a mod to the CD-ROM caddy connector just like the Toshiba laptops: Problem with use of modern ATAPI device in 1990s Toshiba 470cdt / 490xcdt / 530cdt and similar retro laptops
My Armada 1700's CD-ROM drive was useless and failing to read everything, so I tried putting a DVD/CDRW drive in and it did what you describe where the laptop wouldn't boot.I'm not quite sure of the logic because testing in DOS confirms that the CD-ROM is on the primary IDE channel as a slave device, probably a conflict on the IDE channel causes the laptop to not boot when you fit a regular drive:
The fix was to put a dot of solder between pins 47 and 45 of the flex cable connector that plugs into the optical drive:
Hope that works for other people, still not quite sure of the logic here since the mod I'm doing should force it to be a master on the IDE channel? But it works for me.
Hi, I too have problems with the player not working as it should and I tried to install a player very similar to yours with the modification you recommended but it didn't work for me, it gets stuck on the Compaq screen and the hdd light stays on all the time.
Yeah now I've posted about it, I'm not entirely sure the fix I've suggested is the one that worked. IT's entirely possible I just kept trying different drives til it worked, but I do seem to recall that the little solder bridge did make a difference.
Ok thanks for the clarification. I should be receiving some DVD players soon, I will try to use several with the bridge you recommended and I will write the results.
Retrò Tech is the best.