Advanced stealth modding an optical drive.

[Pug]

Okay, many people are familiar with the normal stealth mod (as seen here (http://freespace.virgin.net/water.cooled/microGamer.htm)) but it kinda relies on being able to mount a drive further back in the bay to align it with your front panel without fouling anything. (I had to replace a cap on a BX6r2 once after my Plextor vibrated it loose through touching it when in place and nowadays, the location of my Aquatube (http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/miscPics/aJeta.jpg) in Hexadragon means that longer drives would be compromised for location in the top bays without this particular approach to the mod. )
Having said that, my new Lite-on burner is really quite stumpy, so I may break out the velcro on that one for warranty's sake...

As with any guide - read it fully first before considering attempting any modification, then read it again.
Remember ... it's just a guide. I've documented a mod I've performed. However you use this information is up to you. If you decide to duplicate these actions, make sure you know the consequences of your actions... oh and please don't have power connected to the drive during any of this. :rolleyes:


The first time I did this was to a 40x Teac CDRom.
It was a drive that we'd replaced as faulty in the PC shop I used to work at and another technician & I got it working again during lunch break - I bought lunch and gained the working drive, so it was a pretty inexpensive test subject.
The AquaDrive plates were kindly donated by Aqua Computer (http://www.aqua-computer.de/) after I explained what I wanted to do so thanks go out to them in respect of this. :)


Here's the quick & dirty on that one - I've included it as a bit of a pre-guide foreword to show that the insides of the drives vary from model to model.

Pre-guide

Split the drive up so you can get at the insides (don't worry if this isn't second nature to you, I'll explain it in depth with better pics lower down).

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/images/cdMod1.jpg


Once you've done this, free up the circuit board at the front of the drive that has the volume control, headphone socket, activity LED and eject button on.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/images/cdMod2.jpg


I don't know about anyone else but I don't use the first two. You could take this opportunity to replace the LED (mine's now bl00) and even remote-mount your eject button if you were so inclined but for now, let's whip those off.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/images/cdMod3.jpg


Now you should have a clean edge at the front of the board, free of protrusions that might foul your new drive front when it's in place.
Using suitable adhesive, you can now slap a front on in the manner outlined below.

[Pug]

Guide (proper)

Tools needed :-

Paperclip (unless you can find that nifty eject stick that came with your Plexwriter...)
Screwdriver set (smallish ones) - you may find the occasional drive using hex or torx screws, so use what's applicable.
Soldering Iron
Solder (and flux, unless using flux-cored solder)
Solder sucker or braid
Helping hands stand (optional but handy. You can pick them up for around a fiver normally)
Hot glue gun & sticks (or your preferred adhesive - Blu-tac can help when positioning and test fitting)
Disregard for warranty and personal safety (well, ok, take care and all but remember I'm not responsible for your actions here, I'm just telling you how I did this to mine. [/disclaimer] :p)

Method

Ok, for the next victim, it's my Pioneer DVD-113.
Eject the tray with a paperclip in the eject hole (bear in mind you will lose the ability to do this after the mod is complete but you can generally activate the same release button by removing the cover again if need be).

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod1.jpg


Once the tray's out, the end of the assembly should pop off fairly easily with pressure applied to the right spot (generally on the underside lip). Have a look underneath and it should become apparent where this is.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod2.jpg


Now that this is out of the way we can slide the rest of the front bezel off the tray itself. It's easier to release with the underside of the casing off (and we need to get in there anyway), so remove the four screws as shown.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod3.jpg


Now you'll see we're at the stage shown in the earlier pics with the guts of the thing exposed.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod4.jpg

Going in closer, you'll see the ribbon cable attaching the circuit board we want to work on to the rest of the drive electronics.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod5.jpg

[Pug]

Release the smaller board from its retaining clips and detach the cable at the clip on the right in this pic. You can keep it connected if you're not confident enough in your ability to re-attach it properly (and you have enough play in the cable)...

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod6.jpg


... but here you can see how much easier it is to get a good working angle on it when it's out.
Notice the volume control and headphone socket standing proud of the board? On my drives, they reach the foremost edge of where we want our new front to be, so we have the option of either making new apertures for them or, as I prefer, removing them completely.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod7.jpg



To do this, we need to get at the other side, where they're attached with solder. Identify which lugs belong to each component and make note so that you don't desolder the wrong parts.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod8.jpg


Here's my headphone socket freed up...

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod9.jpg


... and subsequently removed by simply applying the tip of the soldering iron loaded with a small amount of hot solder to each joint (someone will probably tell us to flux the connection first but I'll take advice on this point) and having a solder sucker or braid to take up the melted solder as you can see as we move on to the volume control.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod10.jpg


Effectively, each leg gets stripped in this way,

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod11.jpg


until all legs are freed up - in this case, five points at the back and two at the front.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod12.jpg


After which, a little gentle persuasion should see it either fly off and embed itself into the nearest exposed body part or preferably just drop onto the desk in front of you if you plan properly in advance...

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod13.jpg

[Pug]

Refitting the internals is pretty much a reversal of the procedure outlined here, so just scroll backwards and look at the pictures in that order if you're not sure.
Once it's back together, mount your drive in its intended location (thank Cheiftec for rail mounting if you have it) and affix your plate with a line of Blu-tac or something similar (chewing gum is probably best avoided though) and align it till you're happy with it.

Remove the plate. Work out where your eject button is by rough measurement/calculation and stick another blob of Blu-tac in the approximate location. Re-affix the plate and press lightly so that the eject button makes a light depression in your blob.

Now you know where to apply the hot glue for an actuator and roughly how much of it to put on there.

Put a blob of hot glue where you need the eject actuator and either build it up to the required length through repeat applications or turn it over and allow it to stretch, then just dip the glue into some cool water to solidify it before it stretches too far. If you're using a metal plate like I did, be careful not to get that in the water as the glue tends to fall off due to thermal shock.
If you make the actuator too long, you can trim it with a scalpel.

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod14.jpg


Refit with the blu-tac and check that your button works ok (alright I didn't actually use any blu-tac which is why there's none in the pics but hindsight is a wonderful thing, so you guys may as well benefit from mine :)).
Once you're happy with it, on with the last bit of hot glue to hold the tray in place.
Hopefully you'll get it right first time if you've had a couple of practice goes with the blu-tac but don't worry if you misalign it on your first go. Simply remove this line of glue and try again.
I actually tested my eject button with the power on and quiet as my machine is, forgot to power down when I attached the plate. Don't do this - it's really hard to keep it aligned when the drive's ejecting...

http://www.wizarddesigns.co.uk/guides/imgs/dvdMod15.jpg


Wouldn't you know, I've lost the pic of the completed unit and the drive's installed now, so here's a pic of the Teac in a half-completed Hex until I find it or take another one.

http://freespace.virgin.net/water.cooled/Pics/Dragon/240rad/_PrmdOp1.jpg
Closed (http://freespace.virgin.net/water.cooled/Pics/Dragon/240rad/PrmdOp1.jpg)

http://freespace.virgin.net/water.cooled/Pics/Dragon/240rad/_PrmdOp2.jpg
Open (http://freespace.virgin.net/water.cooled/Pics/Dragon/240rad/PrmdOp2.jpg)

A final word on it to consider before undertaking this mod - unless you get creative with some thin foam or something, this may not be suitable for cases with negative air pressure.
The cases I'm using have mostly intake fans and adequate ventilation for exhaust. If most of your fans are exhaust, you may find yourself with dust-laden drive internals before too long.

[fillip]

CRAP that is one humoungus guide. excellent though.

sorry to hear you lite-on drive is afflicted with 'stumpiness' it appears to be contagious as both mine are 'stumpy' too :( *wipes away tear*

how many guides do you have lined up??

[Pug]

Hehe, yeah. I surprise myself sometimes. :lol: Thx.

Actually, innuendo aside, the stumpiness is a bonus in my book. Longer drives can be a pain at times.

As for the guides - in my head, loads; I just need to make time to get them all down... :)
We weren't sure if the VB3 upgrade was going to wipe out any posts, so we've been saving big posts for a while but it seems like now, it may be ok after all.

[fillip]

i do prefer the shorter drives too, break up from uni tomoz for easter and i'm trying to amuse myself.

Have you just performed the vb3 upg in the past few days? i noticed the boards were a bit sluggish the last 72 hrs?!?! maybe my NTHell.

lookin' foward to more of the same then

[Pug]

Lol, I see. Sorry, I've been in serious mode too long...

Nope, no upgrade yet, just confirmation of a solution to a problem we faced with it.

Will do. :)

[Edd]

I'm considering going the much cheaper option and wetsanding the drive plates to bring them out in a chrome-esque finish. We'll see how that goes :/!!
Funny because I thought of this exact same mod a few days ago, but thought that the silver AC plates would be a little too expensive compared to normal stealthing.

[Starbuck3733T]

Making the Soldering Iron Jockey inside me feel proud pug! Good job.

[Pug]

:D Cheers Star. I'm building the confidence to delve inside my AquaPower slowly!

Edd. I'm going to make some enquiries as to whether I can get hold of some more of these plates for resale. They do complete the look nicely but I've used Lian Li covers and sanded & painted in the past too. Anything but beige unmodded, eh? B)

[Klekkus]

Nice guide, but you dont need to remove the eject button. Just solder on some wire on the back of the button, much more easy ;)

[gregnash]

The read through for this guide is awesome but all your pics are broken as well as your link for the normal stealthing.:duh:

[Pug]

The read through for this guide is awesome but all your pics are broken as well as your link for the normal stealthing.:duh:

Thanks for the props. Unfortunately, the hosting is slightly out of my control for the moment... the server that those pics are on is with Domainbuster who, it would seem, are currently having issues (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/31/fast24_uksolutions/).

If the problem persists, I'll look into hosting them elsewhere.