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  #22  
Old September 6th 03, 12:16 AM
Mike Calkins
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Dale, there were a few Presarios that supported very few IDE devices.

The Presario 425 / 433 and 460 supported only one IDE HDD and no IDE CD-ROM.
The Presario 520, 524, 526, 5526 and 5528 supported one IDE HDD and one IDE
CD-ROM. (and had no space or power connectors for additional drives).


"DEJ57" wrote in message
...
I have a few Compaq laptops that I'd love to see you pull this trick on.
Even a few Presario desktops that only supported one HD as shipped from
Compaq.


We weren't talking about laptops. Different animal, for the most part.

Both my 4112 and 7240 shipped with only a two connector data on the first
channal and the second channal. To add additional HDDs, I HAD TO USE

STANDARD
DATA CABLES--no SCSI data cables were easily available retail in my area.
Could have special ordered them or had them made, I suppose, but for what
reason?

I would argue against describing these Presarios as only supporting one

HDD as
shipped from Compaq (I have had a 386 and several 486 Compaq laptops that
support four IDE with a little bit of effort, and that Compaq will tell

you
can't be done--"its not supported") Compaq was simply too cheap to supply
three connector data cables on both the channels, nor did they want the

excess
cable stuffed into the boxes, I'd bet. On the systemboard of the 4112

they
were too cheap to include the sockets for additional RAM chips as well as

the
socket for upgrade video memory. But the solder points and board space

for
those sockets were there. But back to the HDDs--if you happened to have

CS
three connector data cables, these Presarios would support four CS

jumpered IDE
devices fine--and they would also support four IDE devices using standard

three
connector data cables just as well, jumpered as Master and Slave,
appropriately. The systemboard didn't care.
The "support" was there, just not the necessary number of connectors on

the
data cables. One just used the new three position data cable that comes

with
most new HDDs. But the included cables have never been CS, in my

experience.
Compaq 's going against the grain in using CS sure has been the source of

much
confusion and many questions in support forums for Compaq.

Dale