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iPod Classic 6th Generation. Model A1238 / 80, 120, or 160 GB hard drive / black or silver metal front

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Installing a CF drive in iPod Classic 6th Gen

I am trying to install a CF adapter with a 64GB Compact Flash card in an IPOD classic 6th generation. This drive should replace a broken 80GB drive. Unfortunately, each time the IPOD boots it displays the Red X. IPOD works fine with a conventional drive. The CF adapter when connected to the computer through a USB enclosure works fine. For some reason in the IPOD the activity LED on the board does not light up, indicating a possible power issue. I am posting a picture of the setup. Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Does this setup require a special cable? Any suggestions?

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Answer this question I have this problem too

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@krams your CF adapter doesn't fit this model. Take a close look at the connector where you plug the cable in from the hard drive. It is missing almost half the connections. You do not need a different cable but a different drive adapter.

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Thank you for the response. I think it was a ribbon connector issue. I was using a toshiba ribbon cable 821-0386-03 which by the looks of it, has the connection pins that are shorter on the disk end. This initially did not work. I then found a second ribbon cable which I believe is for a Hitachi drive 821-0387-03. This has slightly longer pins. As soon as I connected with it, the IPOD worked and I was able to get it restored and running.

Then I tried with another Toshiba ribbon cable. This time I pushed the cable into the drive connector as deep a it would go before clamping it. Believe it or not, this one worked as well!

These boards actually fit exactly in the slot in place of the original drive. I believe the Hitachi cable is probably more stable due to the longer pins. Now I need to figure out where to get these ribbons from. The Toshiba ribbons are more popular. Lots of sellers on ebay. Hitachi cables unfortunately are a different story.

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my question @oldturkey03 . I really appreciate it!

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Hitachi cable

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Toshiba cable

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Kannan Ramaswamy will be eternally grateful.
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