SkydivinGirl
Retro Girl
Hi everyone!
I’ve wanted to mount one of my HxC devices in my A4000D for quite some time. Unfortunately, mounting an HxC Rev B or C has always been a bit of a challenge. I thought about mounting the device, along with the screen, into a 5.25” bay, but I couldn’t figure out a good way to do it with the standard screen. It may be possible with the mod mfilos did to add a small screen, but I had started this project a while ago. https://www.amibay.com/showthread.php?p=449093
I decided the A4000D front would be an excellent location for the screen, but I didn’t want to ruin my A4000D’s bezel. Fortunately, I was able to get a spare bezel here that I didn’t mind cutting up. J I also picked up a blank 3.5” bay 2.5” drive mounting tray that I was able to mod to hold the HxC board and buttons. http://www.shopaddonics.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=AAMKHD25W&eq=&Tp=
One of my goals was to do a mod that did not change the HxC in any way. Of course, making the buttons useable from the front is not possible with the default HxC button configuration. Luckily, all the buttons trace back to contacts on the empty 14-Pin header. So, I bought a 14-Pin header but it wouldn’t fit on the board because the components are so close together. Some simple trimming of plastic and a little soldering later and I had a great connection point for my new buttons.
In addition to mounting the board and buttons, I had to have a way to display the lights on the front of the A4000. I was able to take some LED pipes from a broken router then mount them in holes I cut in the front of the 3.5” tray. Since they were somewhat large, they did not line up exactly with the LEDs on the HxC. I order to direct the light, I cut up a dead floppy disk to make light tunnels to direct the LED light to the pipes.
I cut off all the unnecessary pins from the connector that connects to the 14-pin header then I encased it in heat shrink tubing. The main purpose for this was to cover the cut-off pins so I could bend the ones that were left without fear of a short.
I hot-glued front panel buttons to the 3.5” bay then wired them to the header plug.
I picked up some inexpensive female to female 2.54mm extension wires from eBay to use as the display extension cable. Since the A4000D’s faceplate doesn’t have much room behind it, I had to put the extension on a 90 degree angle. To do this, I used a couple 90 degree male headers.
Cutting the bezel to make the hole for the display panel was time consuming because I used a Dremel to cut out the basic shape then use a file to get a really nice fit. I then drilled the display mounting holes. I used a larger size bit after cutting those holes so I could counter-sink the screws I was using.
Finally, I assembled everything and it works a charm.
This mod is 99% finished. I want to get or make a cover for the display that will frame the display and cover the screw holed. The front panel needs a serious Retr0brite bath. You can tell there was a Video Toaster sticker on the panel by the nice clean spot. J
Unfortunately, my drill moves off center a bit whenever I start to drill a hole in a metal plate. Because of that, but LED pipes on the front of the 3.5” tray are uneven. I’d like to fix that at some point.
I hope you all enjoy the pics. This mod took a good bit of time, but I’m fairly happy with the results.
Heather
I’ve wanted to mount one of my HxC devices in my A4000D for quite some time. Unfortunately, mounting an HxC Rev B or C has always been a bit of a challenge. I thought about mounting the device, along with the screen, into a 5.25” bay, but I couldn’t figure out a good way to do it with the standard screen. It may be possible with the mod mfilos did to add a small screen, but I had started this project a while ago. https://www.amibay.com/showthread.php?p=449093
I decided the A4000D front would be an excellent location for the screen, but I didn’t want to ruin my A4000D’s bezel. Fortunately, I was able to get a spare bezel here that I didn’t mind cutting up. J I also picked up a blank 3.5” bay 2.5” drive mounting tray that I was able to mod to hold the HxC board and buttons. http://www.shopaddonics.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=AAMKHD25W&eq=&Tp=
One of my goals was to do a mod that did not change the HxC in any way. Of course, making the buttons useable from the front is not possible with the default HxC button configuration. Luckily, all the buttons trace back to contacts on the empty 14-Pin header. So, I bought a 14-Pin header but it wouldn’t fit on the board because the components are so close together. Some simple trimming of plastic and a little soldering later and I had a great connection point for my new buttons.
In addition to mounting the board and buttons, I had to have a way to display the lights on the front of the A4000. I was able to take some LED pipes from a broken router then mount them in holes I cut in the front of the 3.5” tray. Since they were somewhat large, they did not line up exactly with the LEDs on the HxC. I order to direct the light, I cut up a dead floppy disk to make light tunnels to direct the LED light to the pipes.
I cut off all the unnecessary pins from the connector that connects to the 14-pin header then I encased it in heat shrink tubing. The main purpose for this was to cover the cut-off pins so I could bend the ones that were left without fear of a short.
I hot-glued front panel buttons to the 3.5” bay then wired them to the header plug.
I picked up some inexpensive female to female 2.54mm extension wires from eBay to use as the display extension cable. Since the A4000D’s faceplate doesn’t have much room behind it, I had to put the extension on a 90 degree angle. To do this, I used a couple 90 degree male headers.
Cutting the bezel to make the hole for the display panel was time consuming because I used a Dremel to cut out the basic shape then use a file to get a really nice fit. I then drilled the display mounting holes. I used a larger size bit after cutting those holes so I could counter-sink the screws I was using.
Finally, I assembled everything and it works a charm.
This mod is 99% finished. I want to get or make a cover for the display that will frame the display and cover the screw holed. The front panel needs a serious Retr0brite bath. You can tell there was a Video Toaster sticker on the panel by the nice clean spot. J
Unfortunately, my drill moves off center a bit whenever I start to drill a hole in a metal plate. Because of that, but LED pipes on the front of the 3.5” tray are uneven. I’d like to fix that at some point.
I hope you all enjoy the pics. This mod took a good bit of time, but I’m fairly happy with the results.
Heather
I would have just used that if it fit flush with the other devices.
