Upgrade H140 to 100GB

[Shapeshifter]

Hi,

A friend of mine was interested in buying my H140 and as I really was running low on space on my H140, I thought i might just give away that little treasure and get myself... an iPod. I have more than 110 GB of music and I really listen regularly to more than the H140 can carry and given the fact that there simply is no other company left on the market which is selling compact high capacity players I got myself the Classic 160GB version.

And I hate it. I hate it so much. I never liked the iPod, but really, this product must be a joke. Besides of the usual lack of features, the sound quality is so dramatically low, lacking both bass and mids, and the EQ is not usable because if it's turned on the sound get's distorted. All the menus have a strong lag, coverflow is practically useless and of course it lacks all kinds of formats. I never liked the H140 firmware - I think it is a piece of junk as well - so I'm using Rockbox, but still, the hardware inside the H140 is just amazing! It might look like an ugly brick, but it did it's job so damn well. I know many iPod owners whose players died just weeks after the guarantee ran out, and I don't know any iPod which can still hold its original battery time. My H140 still plays 14h non-stop and it's over three years old. *sight

Enough complaining. But really, this is so frustrating, why isn't there anyone else manufacturing high capacity hdd players anymore. There is this bloated junk, huge expensive bricks from archos, or all those numbrous flash players that reach up to a maximum of 16GB, but the iPod is the only player left in its segment.

Anyway, my question:

I found that some people upgraded their players to a 60GB hdd and I also read that they all used Toshiba drives and that they must be IDE ATA unless you would be able to build a really small adaptor to ZIF which is practically impossible. Anyway, I found this Toshiba MK1011GAH 100GB drive for around 170$ and which apparently has the right interface.

I read that it's only possible to upgrade to up to 80GB but why should that be? I would definetly return my 400$ iPod and upgrade my H140 for 170$ if that was possible. I just hate this useless piece of junk so much, but on the other hand I can't bear only having 40GB anymore.

Has anyone tried upgrading to 100GB before, or can someone please explain to me why that shouldn't be possible?

[Mike]

Is there an architecture limit? I thought it was a limit as to what drives were available.

[jumbuck]

The Toshiba MK1011GAH has a 40 pin zif connector and therefore you would need to "build a really small adaptor to ZIF which is practically impossible" .

[Shapeshifter]

Is there an architecture limit?

I wouldn't think so, at least not before 120GB. But I really don't know, that's why I'm asking.

Originally Posted by jumbuck

The Toshiba MK1011GAH has a 40 pin zif connector and therefore you would need to "build a really small adaptor to ZIF which is practically impossible" .

Well, I see. Are there any other limitations? What if I would get hold on to a 160GB drive, or drives that aren't made by Toshiba? Assuming that it would be possible to build such an adaptor, could I use those harddisks?

[jumbuck]

I dont know if there is a size limit in GB's but the physical size of the drive is crucial , ie: there ain't no room to spare. For some info on zif conversion's check out ZIF connector drives on H320/H340 and stolltech"s web site http://www.stolltech.ch/i_projekte.html (click on the iriver pimpen pdf link in stolltech's site) you may need to use bablefish or similar to read the site.

[HunterGreen]

Have you looked at the Wolverine products?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=1NW4SVX3B1FTZ
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=1NW4SVX3B1FTZ
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=1NW4SVX3B1FTZ

I haven't gotten one, so for all I know the software is just as bad as on the iPod, but they're a lot less expensive for large capacity and they work as USB drives so no mucking about with dumb iTunes or the equivalent. So that's probably where I'll go when I move on from my H140.

[Shapeshifter]

Too bad the wolverine (or actually vosonic) products aren't available in europe
I'm so disappointed with this iPod. It's a horrible piece of junk. I think I'm goinig to return it.

[Pseudonym]

find yourself an older (5.5g) 80 gig ipod. rockbox it and call it a day.

[Dwyloc]

I upgraded my h140 to 60GB but sadly thats about the largest disk you can find that will fix the hp140.

As some one else already suggested you best plan if you need a larger disk and still want to run rockbox is to get an 80GB ipod video. It may be possible to but an even larger disk in the 80GB ipod video 5.5G players it you really need more than 80GB's of disk space as it uses a newer style connector but I don't know if anyone has tried that yet.

[HigherGround]

So the drive inside your new ipod, the 160 gb drive, it definetely wouldnt fit in the iriver? because im thinking you could take it our and put it in your h340, the ipod is so thin its hard to believe the hard drive inside would have trouble fitting in the much thicker h340

[jamato8]

Toshiba made a ide 80gb 1.8 hard drive that would fit but they are harder to find than the MK4007GAL. The only way to get good sound out of the ipod is to get a good IC made for ipod to mini and use a good headphone amp, if you are listening to headphones. There are some good quality amps out there that would go with many portable players. They also work well with the iRiver and enhance the sound. Go to www.headfi.org and do some reading on the amp section. You can also get a lot of information on iPods and just about anything else portable and music related.

[cormie]

I'm in the same boat, desperately want a higher capacity drive. I've had the H140 for about 3 or 4 years now and it's everything I need, except the capacity is just too low. It's my only DAP and I've been tempted with 4x the capacity of the Classic but I just can't, iTunes and giving up file tree browsing and sacrificing rockbox and everything, noooo!

I suppose I'm just hoping that the classic will someday be rockboxed or that some other 100GB+ Dap will come out that's worthy of the efforts of a rockbox crew.

If the 160GB classic drive DID fit, could a zif/ide or whatever it is adapter actually be made to use the drive in the H140?

[Scrypt]

I'm not an "iPod hater" -- I own a 4G and 5.5G, in fact -- but in my experience, the iHP140 is without question the best and most versatile PMP/R ever made.

I own two iHP-140s and use them sparingly. The optical I/O is a rarity; I will never part with either player until it becomes unusable.

The most usable iPods are the 4G Photo 60GB and the 5.5G 80GB. Both can be modded by Vinnie Rossi of Rd Wine Audio to sound far superior to the normal iPod (though the 5.5 mod is more expensive and requires an Audio Line-Out Dock). I recommend the larger 4G for modding and the more versatile 5.5 for everyday Rockbox use. The 5.5 is also the only iPod that records 44.1 CD-quality audio without extensive surgery. Since you can't buy them refurbished/refreshed on the Apple site any more, I might try individual Apple stores.

The distortion of which you complain will be alleviated by the Rockbox EQ and the iMod, though you'll need a limiter cable from Radio Shack at the very least -- I haven't listened without a headphone amp, but Vinnie reports the limiter adapter works.

As for your real question -- whether a larger HD will fit -- I'd search this site thoroughly, since several people have swapped out their HDs. I'd then email one of those people and ask your question, since they'd know more about it than many of us, who have merely thought about the idea.

[Dunno]

Compare the dimensions of the current drive to whatever you intend to install, its not only the physical size which needs to be correct but also the connector type, the link below will provide you with all the info required.

HardDriveReplacement < Main < TWiki

[cooperpwc]

Sadly we will not find new model hard drives using the old H140 ATA connector (same as iPod Gen 1 and 2).

[mapstec]

The German Company ESSKabel has developed a ATA to ZIF adapter (ADA-HDD-1.8-ZIF-CF) that allows to put the bigger ZIF Hdds (up to 100GB) into the likes of the iriver H1x0 series.

I have put a 60 GB MK6008GAH into my H120. Of course the H120 comes with a 5mm hdd, so the case can not be closed unless you remove the battery, but the harddisk works and the player recognises and plays music stored there.

Now all we need is a cheap source for the 100GB MK1011GAH.

[choppidge]

100GB MK1011GAH has anyone found these cheap and does it work?

[jamato8]

I would wait until they get a CF card at 128gb. They are coming out with one at 64gb and all you need is the adapter that replaces the hard drive in the 120 or 140. I am getting the adapter and a 32gb but in a few months a 64gb CF card will be out making the H120 capable of being a 62gb unit with no moving parts and lower current draw for longer battery life.

[stuffedspacedog]

I bought a MK1011GAH on eBay for $164, and a ZIF to IDE adaptor for $10... I now have a H140 with a 100Gb hard drive... hurrah! Beware, it's a tight fit in there, and I had to remove the blue rubber protection around the hard drive in order to close up the case without putting too much pressure on the HD. I also had to break off one of the small plastic pins on the iRiver's IDE connector.

However, it's working perfectly, so it can be done!

Be warned, I could not get the Esskabel adapters to work, they always broke (the cable I think) as soon as I closed the player (I broke 3 out of the 5 I bought, the remaining 2 are still in their wrappers!). The adapter I bought off eBay from h2electronics worked fine, maybe because the ribbon cable is much thinner and more flexible.

[juanpa74]

Which adapter from h2electronics? I searched on their shop on ebay and can't find it.
Can you post a link?
Also how did you buy the Esskabel?
I have been trying to put a 80Gb ZIF one on my H340 and it works but I can't close the cover back..
I may have to try again and take out as much as possible.
I used one IDE2ZIF connector from eBay.
The H140 are longer than the H340. I think that is the key.

[ivar00]

1.8" ZIF Hard Disk to Laptop 1.8" micro IDE HD Adapter - eBay (item 300214298083 end time Apr-12-08 18:37:01 PDT)
And there are many more similar ones found on ebay.

I will have 2 spare ones soon (in GermanY0, as I ordered those adapters from several places and got already one which more or less worked for me.

I also got Esskabel for 30 euros, and I confirm that the cabel is thicker, so that you may have real difficulties to get it out from the zif connector once it is inserted and closed.

Each of the adapters have their pros and cons (for MY purpose of upgrading my Dell X1 subnotebook). The optimal solution would be a flixible cable solution with the micro-ata connector on one end and the 40 pin zif cable to be inserted to the zif connector on the other.

[juanpa74]

I already have an adaptor from ebay. I just wondered if the one from h2electronics was different.
And you are right a flexible cable solution would be perfect.

[Copperjacket]

I am full of admiration for those who do this conversion but to ask the obvious question why do you feel the need to carry so many tracks at once unless of course you are going around the world?