Thanks guys for the very useful suggestions. What a great list this really is! I realize.
For my immediate needs: collecting all those family digital pics, reference texts/images scatterred all over the HD, MP3s, etc. and move them to external volumes (CDs), I think the ZIP 650 will suffice. I would defer buying a replacement CD-RW though, but would definitely check the Yamaha CD-RW drive most of you have recommended.
I'll find the time to give my aging 7600 a major clean-up. Thank you Charlie for reminding me about that. Hopefully, that's all it takes for my CD drive to work properly.
I apologise for this rather late response. Your replies to my post have been very helpful.
------------------------------ Date: Fri, 24 Oct 2003 08:17:34 +0800 From: Charlie Reyes <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Re: CDRW Replacement for 7600
Hi Listers!
The CDROM Drive (24X salvaged from another Mac to replace the original 4X one) on my Powermac 7600/120 is showing signs of giving up. It now can't recognize some CDs that it used to. It sort of just hangs there forever with the cursor, although moveable, not being able to click-effect anything that I eventually had to push that button to pop that CD out. The ones that it does recognize though takes ages for their contents show up on the window. I've decided to replace it with a CDRW before it dies on me.
Try a liquid (isopropyl alcohol) impregnated CD Lens cleaner first - it may restore function. Some generic uncoated CDRs lose their ability to be read in a matter of months so it may not be the drive.
After much scrounging among the 2nd hand shops (new SCSIs are impractically expensive), I found a Sony CRX-140s SCSI internal CDRW (8x4x32) yanked from a disused PC that the shop owner tried to convince me would work on my 7600. Is this true? If it is, what do I need to do with that "volume knob(?)" on the lower left hand of the front?... and any adjustments to the SCSI connections?
You will not be able to boot from this drive (for lack of an Apple ROM) in case you need to reinstall from CD if your drive crashes. Best to connect it to external SCSI. and retain your Apple CD drive.
On further lookaround, I found a shop selling a brand-new IOMEGA ZIP650 4x4x6x USB at about the same price as the used CDRW I mentioned. I have 2 Port USB Card v1.1 installed and I was told this is just as fast as I could go with my USB connection.
Can anyboby please guide me to make the best decision. I am leaning towards buying the ZIP650 but the Sony CRX-140s' speed is not easy to ignore.
iMac users who bought Iomega's USB 1.1 CDRW have nothing but regret after realizing it will burn audio CDs at 2x speed only. Not worth it unless it's free. Look for more Mac compatible SCSI Yamaha CDRWs in the used market at Sham Shoo Po or Causeway Bay. (HKG Mac Users Group have swap meets too).
Thanks in advance, Arnel, Hong Kong
Charlie in Manila
------------------------------ Subject: Re: CDRW Replacement for 7600 Date: Thu, 23 Oct 03 21:56:42 -0400 From: Jason <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
With USB, 4X is about as fast as you can burn, according to Que! drives. That said, I'd still lean toward a slower external drive than a faster internal. The main reason (as someone else already has pointed out) is that you probably won't be able to boot from an internal CDRW drive like you can with an Apple-ROMed internal CD-ROM. Unless you plan on doing a great deal of CD burning, I feel the ability to boot from a CD outweighs the speed issue.
If you do need the extra speed, perhaps aquirong an external Apple CD-ROM drive might work well for you. I've got a 4X (model 600e) CD-ROM drive that I keep around just for booting my 7300, should I ever need to. It's not hooked up to the machine unless I need it.
>Can anyboby please guide me to make the best decision. I am leaningtowards buying the ZIP650 but the Sony CRX-140s' speed is not easy to>ignore.
I would agree with you on buying the external drive. If you were able to find another internal CD-ROM drive, you could also easily make backups of CD's directly, instead of having to dump their contents onto the HD, and then back onto a blank CD.
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Oct 2003 23:56:07 -0400 From: "Dr. M. Burek" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Re: CDRW Replacement for 7600
I also highly recommend the Yamaha CD-RW drives. I bought an external SCSI drive off of the swap list (a CRW4416SX, 4x4x16, I think), and it is darn near bulletproof. Boots the Mac without problems, even on the external SCSI bus, works with iTunes in OS 9 and OS X, works with Disc Burner, and Toast 3,4,5, and 6 without any problems or hacks of any kind.
In fact, I am thinking of pulling the drive out of it's external case and sticking it into the Mac, pulling the older Apple CD-ROM 12x drive. It is SCSI-2 capable as well, so it can handle the increased speed demand without slowing down the bus.
If you decide to get an EXTERNAL Yamaha though, I do warn you about one thing. If you wish to use it externally, make sure the SCSI cable is included with the drive, or make sure you have one already. It requires an HDI-50 high-density 50-pin SCSI connector that isn't easy to find a cable or adapter for. Locally here (Florida, USA) the cables, when you can find one, run $80 USD for a two-footer. The adapter is $50. So, the cable may cost much more than the drive! The swap list won't help, as few people have them, and fewer are willing to part with them, as they are so hard to find affordably.
I would suggest an internal Yamaha SCSI-2, in the 4x4x16 up to the 8x8x32 range or so, they will be very affordable. Probably in the $20-$45 USD range.
Good luck
------------------------------
Thanks,
Arnel, Hong Kong
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