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What to replace DVD slot with on G5?

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I like that. It means you cut the case, make a drive bay and then make it look a bit like a G5 again....or I suppose more easily, remove the DVD tray opening and then push the Lian Li holder up against the opening. You could also maybe find a way to use the DVD mounting screws to make it removable easily.

Doh, I never thought of that... maybe just use a piece of the case mesh in your cutting any out of your case for a backplate.
 
@minihack - Haha, I was thinking about this exact same idea for when I eventually get around to starting my G5 mod! Had been keeping it secret because I hadn't seen anyone do this yet but sounds like you'll beat me to it! :)

With regards to the lack of an 'eject button' on the G5 I was thinking about something like an IR sensor fixed behind one of the little mesh holes above the drive bay (facing up towards the 'handle' on the top of the G5 to avoid accidental triggering of the circuit). Wave your hand in the space above the drive (underneath the handle) and the drive would eject for you. At least that's the theory!

I've also been looking for a touch sensitive switch (resistance based) that could be mounted inside the case near the optical bay and which would be triggered just by touching the case around the drive bay. Not sure how feasible this last one is though... by the time the case is painted, it might effect the conductivity too much and the switch/sensor wouldn't work.

Anyway, I'm very interested to hear how you get on with hacking that DVD drive.

EDIT - good point about powering the drive and thus its lack of suitability as a system drive - hadn't thought of that!

Did you find a IR that worked with hand motion and opened the bay? I'd like to see what you came up with this sounds like an awesome idea.
 
Wolfie, your post got me thinking.

Pic shows some rough and ready modding to see if it is do-able to turn the G5 DVD player into a fancy slot loading hot swap caddy. I think with a little bit of work it can be done......and also with storage room for another 2.5" drive in the body of the player beneath the "pop out" drive.

Could you post more pictures with the drives installed, the wiring, and how it works the hatch? Maybe a vid of it working if possible?
great idea with. The card reader though.
 
Could you post more pictures with the drives installed, the wiring, and how it works the hatch? Maybe a vid of it working if possible?
great idea with. The card reader though.

I got distracted with too many other projects!

Basically though it would work - I got as far as making enough room for a standard 2.5" drive to be ejectable through the DVD hatch.

However, it needs a neat mechanism to actually do the SATA connections to and from the drive. A cable would be the simple solution, but not very elegant - it would be in danger of just looking like a mess. A hot swap plug that automatically connects when the drive is in and disconnects when it ejects would be the elegant thing, but I am not convinced the DVD mechanism would cope well with that.

As I am a bit anal about not having a mess I put the project into the corner and got on with something else.....

A small USB card reader on the tray though would be simple to wire and quite cool.
 
Did you find a IR that worked with hand motion and opened the bay? I'd like to see what you came up with this sounds like an awesome idea.

Hey tlittle, no i haven't found one yet but I haven't really looked for a while. I think I'm attempting the worlds slowest G5 mod.... :)

IR sensors are actually pretty easy to find but all the one's I'm familiar with from my university days work on a beam principle (ie. you interrupt the beam to trigger the circuit) but this means there are 2 parts to the IR circuit, a transmitter and a receiver.

I don't really want to 'stick' anything to the underside of the G5 handle (ie. the reciever) as a it would look messy with the circuit and its wiring trailing to the inside of the case.

I'd rather all circuitry and wiring is contained inside the case hidden behind the mesh. I think a sensor similar to what you get on a security light or those home alarm thingies you see in the corners of rooms might do the trick..... but I think they may be triggered by heat (as seen by IR) which could be a problem in of itself what with fans blowing hot air all over the place.

I'll be sure to update here if I get any further with the idea but its not likely to be anytime soon I'm afraid.
 
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