Toshiba XS32, XS54, XS35, (all XS models) - HDD swap info!!! - Page 9

Good to know, either way still going to put something together. If external enclosure with removable IDE drive trays works I'll do that, thanx nextoo.
I'm still waiting for the two hdds I ordered from geeks anyway. Maybe by the time get them somebody will have tried the IDE to USB method.

thanx scorpio3

You have to recycle the power. There are a few ways to do this. One is of course to unplug the machine. I found this too cumbersome. You can also recycle the power by doing a soft reboot. Hold the power button on the machine for 10 seconds or so. This is a benign process and recycles the power without having to unplug the machine. The key is to get the Toshiba to go into the "wait" process. During this "wait" process the Toshiba registers the HDD. I timed it once - it took 57 seconds in the wait state before the normal startup process began. So it's a pretty easy exercise.

As far as media players / streamers I've been looking at two. And they are both great. The Mvix 5000R and the MediaGate MG-350HD. The MediaGate MG-350HD is the more fully featured between the two. But it is probably not a fair comparison. The MG-350HD should be compared to the Mvix MX-760HD.

These media players are excellent. My MG-350HD can play a ton of formats as well as VOBs and more importantly a DVD ISO image. Playing an ISO image with the MG-350HD is just like playing the disc. All menu options are available. Special feature content etc.

A great feature of the MG-350HD is that it can be a USB host. Meaning you can plug in an external USB drive and play files off of it. So storage is unlimited.

It also supports NDAS, Samba, FTP. It has an eithernet connection so it can be hooked up to your network. So you can have terabytes of storage tucked away somewhere on your network and the MG-350HD will stream them and incorporate this storage into your entertainment center for instant access and playback. It plays ISO DVD files great from remote locations on the network. And of course plays most of the formats used for online audio/video downloads.

It even offers wifi. I've been able to stream ISOs from my wireless notebook to the MG-350HD for playback on my HD television. It has both optical and coax digital audio output. The MG-350HD also has a DVI connection for hooking up to an HD television. It can do 1080p.

These things are great. And they are cheap. I found my MG-350HD for $199 delivered. I'm surprised they are not more mainstream.

I bought a refurbished XS-32 a few days ago and the hard drive is beginning to have some problems. I bought as is so I guess I'm stiuck with it. Perhaps the problem is not the hard drive? It works for about a day perfectly and then the pictures start to pixelate. When I got see the contents the thumbnails are altered and it shows a green screen on them. My unit also freezes.

I manage to fix this problem by pulling the plug ( I want to keep my settings). Later I delete all files or reformat the HD and it is ok for 1 or 2 days again.

Can anyone tell me if the problem is the hard drive or not? Would replacing it solve the problem?

This is exactly what i'm looking for. I'll do some shopping around. I've seen what they have done with the XBox and it's great but i don't have one and don't want to go that way.

Thanks for the info.

hi, just got everything for multi external hdd enclosure, quick question is the jumper set to master or cable select on hdd for the seagate 160gb. i'll be using this with the xs32. i am assuming that it would be cable select but could be wrong.
thanx scorpio3

i swapped my 80gb hdd with the seagate 160gb formatted perfectly full 160gb. also the jumper is set to master, didn't get any replies to my previous post so i set to master same the one in the xs32. couldn't do external setup, didn't have gender change cable male/male. was just wondering if i could use a single cable with male on one end and female on the other. the reason i ask is that the website nextoo posted for mycableshop will make them to any length, thought it might be better with less connections.

thanx
scorpio3

scorpio3 - sorry I missed your post on the drive setting. Yes you do need some sort of gender changer in order to have a break off point when connecting the external drive especially when using an external enclosure. I wound up making my own m/m cable as a junction point and it works fine.

The custom cable route is a bit pricey. I also found these:

http://cablesonline.stores.yahoo.net/40pinmaidc2p.html

Cheap and I am sure they will work fine.

Anyone know where else I could find the FFC -> IDE adapter besides partstore? Looking to get two of them!

Thanks,
CJ

You could try here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showp...5&postcount=59

scorpio3 - here's an example of the M/M IDE cable I made up. The ATAPI adapter is plugged into the cable inside the case and the other end on the outside that is shown makes a nice breakout point. This is on an XS54. The black piece you see attached to the side is a fan regulator. It allows you to adjust the speed of the fan.

[IMG][/IMG]

Report on unambitious swap: I bought a used RD-XS32 for $90 and the hard drive was going flaky (failing to format, etc.). Also the unit was powering on unpredictably, suggesting a possible power supply problem. I replaced the original Maxtor 80GB with a refurbished Maxtor 80GB from Santech. For two days everything worked perfectly. Then powerups began to yield the dreaded 7061 error. By fiddling then, I somehow got rid of the error. Now I find that if I leave it on 24/7 it reliably records to and plays back from the hard drive. Timeslip also works perfectly. Now I understand that I'm generating additional wear on the DVD drive but that doesn't bother me a lot because I use this one only for HDD recording and playback. (I have a second Toshiba-refurbed unit and everything works on it.) I have set economy mode and HDD powerdown, etc., to minimize power consumption given that it's on all the time. For now I'm fine. If Toshiba would make a unit just like this with an ATSC tuner, though, I'd be near the front of the line.

I have successfully replaced an original 80 GB Seagate with a 160 GB Maxtor (4R160L0) on an XS32 -- in case anyone might want to try this.

From what I have read so far, many people have successfully replaced an original 80 GB Maxtor with a 160 GB Seagate. Now we know the swap can go either direction on an XS32 (as far as Maxtor/Seagate brands go, and as long as you use the correct part number).

ASCENDTECH
Has the ST380012a for $33.99
I bought 2

Which model Toshiba do you intend them for?

I might like to get one as a spare for my XS32 but I don't see this specific HDD on the "DO work" list for the XS32.

rickc5 - welcome back!

kx50

Welcome back, Rick. Hope all is well with you and yours.

BW

I tried two HDD drives in my Toshiba RD-XS32 without success. The first was a new 160G Maxtor STM3160815A on sale at Office Depot for $29.95. The second was a 300G Maxtor 4A300J0OEM that I had high hopes for since it is listed on the same data sheet as the Maxtor models (4R080 and 4R160) that have been reported to work, it just had more platters than the others. I have not been able to find either of the 160G drives that have been reported to work, the supply seems to have dried up.

I installed the new ST380012a per instructions on the
first page(kx50). No luck. No boot, ER7034 I think.
I then booted with the old drive (ST380012ACE), replaced the drive
hot and formatted.
Still no luck. No boot, The drive just errors
Any Suggestions???

Thanks 5
I'll try the other drive tonight (I bought 2).
If that don't work I'll check them out in the PC.

hi everyone,
i found this spec sheet by accident. they are supposed to be dvr compatable harddrives. by chance has anyone tried any of these or have any to test. just a thought.
scorpio3

http://eclipsecctv.info/Faq/Knowledg...ty%20List.aspx

I tried all the jumper settings on the "A" drive, ERROR on all.
So,
I swapped the circuit board on the ST380012ACE with the board on the ST380012A and I got ER7016.
The drives checked out good on the pc today.
I don't know what to try next
Does it have to be formatted before I put it in the kx50?
If so what file sys?
Thanks,
Mark

Check the ends of the ribbon wire to make sure that they are securely placed either in the board or the ATAPI connector. Sometimes, when you are swapping drives, the ends of the ribbon can slip out slightly.

Also, check the ribbon wire very carefully. The slightest nick can short the wire out. When I was swapping HDDs, the cover of the dvr slipped down on the ribbon wire when I had the hard drive on top of the cover. The sharp edge of the cover placed an almost microscopically small nick on the wire. I actually needed a magnifying glass to see the nick. It disconnected one of the 40 wires in the ribbon; thus, the 7000 error code.

I am waiting for a replacement ribbon which I believe will resolve a similar problem I'm having on an XS-32. The part is taking forever to be restocked.

Hope this helps.

ThanksBingo
The original drive works (but won't format) so I am sure
the wiring is fine.

LongFish - I can only assume you tried a hotswap after reading my post #114 (around page 4 I believe).

It has been determined that performing a "hotswap" was a no go, and ultimately a dangerous move to perform, not only for the machine, but a person's physical well being.

It was a necessary step to perform at the time as part of the troubleshooting routine, and it seemed like a good idea at the time, but you know what they say about hindsight being 20/20.

The only reason I haven't completly cut that section out of my post (and many others) is because I believe every new person to this board needs to see the evolution of our intermittent successes and failures.

Like RickC5 has said numerous times: Read the entire board before trying anything. He has also provided a very handy and detailed roadmap (post #1) to quickly get (mostly more advanced) users up and running. But it's still a good idea to stop and read over all the posts. That way you can get a feel for what's going on.

I'm not trying to cut you down, buddy; I just don't want your next post to be about how you never knew a Toshiba could flame out like that, or worse, see something on the national news networks.

BW

PS - I have updated my post #114 to reflect my opinions in this post.

i finally got a chance to run this by some of the techs at work and they all seem to agree that it would be the firmware that recognizes the drive brand and sets the limit. lets say the motherboard will recognize a 500gb seagate harddrive but the firmware would only let it format to 250gb also if the harddrive is not listed in the firmware that is why it not be recognized. i don't know if i'm explaining it they way they did but it sounded reasonable to me.
scorpio3