Project - SSD Mods

My Supertalent FEM32GF13M arrived today.

Took about one hour from switch off to a fully patched, up and running Mint Gloria system.

I had done the ram upgrade before so I knew how to take it apart.

Seems to go much better than before, with Gloria on the 8gb ssd it struggled a bit.

Gloria seems to recognise all the hardware out of the box.

The only thing that doesn't work is the light for wireless, the wireless works however.

I will do my son,s tomorrow and the wife after that!!!

 

has anyone got anywhere with these problems with the CF and adapter with the install of xp working then failing to boot.

have been away and was just about to try the 8gb transcend at 600x with win xp and then 7.

hopefully this hasn't all been a big joke.

may just have to wait till better faster ssd drives make money sense.

how long are peoples install taking to boot to use on the talent ssds?

 

Hey key, which BIOS version do you have?
Version 3309 or 3109?
I just checked all the screenshots in this thread, and apparently everyone who got it working had BIOS version 3109.
At my AAO, it doesn't work, but I've got BIOS 3309. I'm considering a BIOS downgrade.

By the way, does anyone know where to download BIOS version 3109?

 

If anyone is interested, I did an unscientific "before and after" test.

Before I put the supertalent 32gb disc in my son's aspire one, I decided to compare it with mine (already upgraded).
Both have 1.5gb memory and both are running a fully patched default Mint Gloria system (installed from the same pen drive to the hard disc).

There was very little time difference between opening open office documents or the internet.

Start up and shut down times showed a difference though:

Start up: 8gb aspire 76 seconds 32gb aspire 41 seconds (to usable system including default option delay)

Shut down: 8gb aspire 25 seconds 32gb aspire 17 seconds (from hitting shutdown till power light went off)

Each test was done 3 times and the average taken (didn't vary by more than 2-3 seconds between fastest and slowest though).

I will also say that Gloria installed a lot quicker on the 32gb disc.

 

Guess what? Installed Ubuntu on the Transcend, it runs like a charm! :shock:
But, dear netbook, why don't you just run Windows! :x

 

Try using linux's GRUB loader to load windows. I wonder whether the issue might be that Window's boot system is just a wee bit too crap to handle this mod.

For example, google how to dual boot Windows and Ubuntu. Follow the instructions you find but keep the linux partition tiny or remove it later (unless of course you want it). The trick of course here is that none of the installing, partitioning or booting is done by windows.

I have ubuntu working, but I'll be wanting to dual boot myself eventually. If it works I'll let you know. Or you could let me know... either way

 

Also, you may be interested in this post if
* BIOS does not recognise your card
* your card does not boot or does not appear as a device with bootable sector in a partition editor.
* You've been at this for hours, your brain is pulp, you despise this temperamental little beast of a machine and you're desperate for something, ANYTHING, that might help.

I originally wrote a long(er) post, and it was boring(er), so I've summarised like so:

:!: Don't go for the Zif-CF Adapter mod unless you already have the Aspire One AND a CF card. If you have the adapter but not a card, cut your losses and think up other options. If this will be your first attempt at modding a computer DEFINITELY DON'T! This would be the best way never to want to pick up another machine and a screwdriver ever again. Start with something easier and more tolerant... like a home-built nuclear reactor for example.

My setup:

Acer Aspire One A110, 1GB RAM. Originally 16GB SSD.
I am successfully booting Ubuntu netbook remixes (installed from an Ubuntu live-image mounted off a USB stick) on two cards:
- HAMA 32GB 233x
- SanDisk Extreme IV 16GB 400x

Physically, I am using a 10cm flip cable, one end thick with a blue tab, the other thin without a blue tab. I bought a packet of 5 from some dude in Hong Kong. I attached the thin end to the motherboard, but made the fit tight by peeling off another cable's blue tab and holding it in place to match the way it is at the other end of the cable, which is unmodded and attached to the zif-cf adapter. I also used the anthracite filter thingy. I also just made this sound easy, but the reality is that I tried this a thousand times, in a thousand ways, I nearly killed a number of living things, and I'm sure that anyone who saw me in the deepest throes of my hatred for this temperamental piece of crap will never quite forget that I am most definitely capable of losing my temper... badly. I advise patience - hypocritically - and stubborness; don't let the little shite beat you!

Little facts and useful stuff

CF cards can definitely be up to 32GB using linux and GRUB boot

SanDisk Extreme IV cards (a non-'Fixed Disk' card) CAN be booted from with linux's GRUB boot loader

Don't trust the Bios's main information screen. Check the device listings under the 'boot' tab. My working setups show 'HDD: none' in the main bios screen but lists the card under the bios 'boot' tab.

If your setup doesn't work but *should*, undo the physical setup and try it again. Especially the cable! For example, swap which end of the cable goes into the motherboard. I must have tried it literally dozens of combinations multiple times each. :!: I cannot stress enough how much you need to check and retry the physical connections. In the end I am convinced this was my main problem (and I was at this for days!). Zif adapters are just crap.

Don't believe anything you read on any forum about something working or not working until you've tried it yourself again and again and with every other configuration. Try literally every combination, many times. It's lame that this is true, but it often won't work the first time Keep heart, and keep trying.

Don't think you can buy your way out of whatever problem you have encountered. You'll just have the same goddamn problem with the next expensive card or cable or whatever. (Of course, in the end, you might actually have a faulty card... see the previous paragraph).

:!: Again, don't do this MOD unless you've already started or REALLY enjoy hours of frustration and head-wall interactions of a banging nature. Buy a direct swap SSD HD specifically made for the Aspire One that's been confirmed to work for the setup you're trying to achieve. Or, if you're a noob and you've not understood anything in any post so far, sod it and just buy a Mac.


Good luck.

 

Hey lads,

Wel, concerning modding... I've done that before some times.
The mod worked in one go, just only for Linux, but not for NT-based or DOS-based systems.
Using GRUB or any other boot loader/manager didn't make any difference.
Ubuntu Netbook Remix worked like a charm, however.

End of the story: I've sold my CF-card and my Acer Aspire One A110, and bought a A150 second hand.
I'm now considering a Touch Screen Mod.

Die hards, good luck!

 

i have been thinking about upgrading my SSD for some time and reading this thread has been most enlightening.

The conclusion I have drawn from reading the 37 pages here is that this process is fraught with problems unless you just buy a new SSD. AFAICT those of you who have just replaced the original SSD with one of the Super Talent SSDs have found the process straightforward and worthwhile so that is the route I propose to take.

I am no stranger to the inside of computers, but having to buy 17 different ZIF cables and 11 CF cards just to find some combination that works (sometimes) is not appealing, so thanks to all you pioneers for showing me what can go wrong.

 

i was thinking of up grading to the super talnet ssd i had done the cf mod a while back and there is no problem with that i used a kingston 16gb 266x card but now i want more space one my main drive has any one compared the super talnet to this set up if there is a noticeable difference between the ssd and the cf mod then i would be wiling to sell my old set up to any one who is still interested in doing the cf mod.

 

The SuperTalent SSD is the proverbial buisness! When you're installing it, be sure to put in an extra gig of RAM too.

You can buy the 32gig version from Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Super-Talent-1-3- ... 11&sr=8-29

The US prices for this unit seem so much better than many European shops. Amazon's US price of USD 108 is just GBP 64, or EUR 72.

 

I would really like to buy one for this price, but as far as I know there's only one seller from UK and he wants more than 200 € for this item and it's in my opinion a rip off in regard to the US price.

 

Super Talent 32G sell for around £80 in UK. Its worth it.

 

You may also want to take a look at the Kingspec SSD's (usually found on ebay). I bought a 64gig 1.8 zif version my A110 and it works a treat. I would have bought a 128gig drive but couldnt justify the price.

 

how to format new ssd?

I've decided to install a runcore pro pata mini zif ssd. How do I format the new ssd before or after installation? The Acer has no CD drive and no installation disks. How do I get Windows and my other stuff off the factory-installed SSD and onto the new SSD? I know it is a dumb question. I have already upgraded the RAM and optimized various settings to enhance performance speed and that has all gone well. I am very mechanical and learn things quickly. I seem stupid only because of my stupid SSD formatting question!

 

Hi,

I want to install Win7 on an A-Data CF, but it doesn't work because it is a removable media. Changing it with the well known tools doesn't work. Does anybody have a idea how I could use it anyhow with Win7?

 

Just bought a 533x 8GB CF for my Aspire one. Really exicted to see how fast it is booting ubuntu Remix.

 

I sold the whole thing today ^^

 

I installed the Super Talent 32gb from Amazon - fits exactly into retaining screws used by original 8gb SSD. cost was $110. I Used the original ZIF cable. Specs on the Super Talent are read speed 80mb/s, write speed 40mb/s. This SSD is faster than the original SSD and faster than a 1.8 HDD alternative. As long as I had it apart, I also upgraded RAM to 1.5 gb, and I installed an AR5008 wireless-n card with a third antenna. I added the third antenna behind the LCD. I simply followed the path used by the first two antenna wires. The third antenna did not come with the AR5008, I had to order it separately. I now get up to 300gb wireless from my D-link DIR-655 router. I also installed Ubuntu 10.04 (Lucid Lynx) and this AOA110L netbook is now really FAST! And since I am not sucking up battery with a Hard Drive, I get long battery life. I also added a 32GB Transcend class 6 SDHC, and I carry another 64GB USB stick, so I have a total 128GB storage. Any questions?

 

Hey people need a little help here

Ok so i just got my cf 2 zif adapter and a Photofast G-Monster 533x UDMA CF. I put everything together but CF isnt detected in the bios. Under HDD it just says "None" and under IDE 0 it doesnt have anything listed. Im trying to use the zif cables that came with the adapter but niether are flip cables and both had the same results. I am running 3305 bios

heres my questions

1.) do i really need the flip cables and if so which one should i order (Toshiba, Samsung, Hitachi, etc)if it matters

2.) Do I need to upgrade the bios to 3309 or 3310

Thanks for any help. My aspire one is currently being used as a paperweight. Plus im dying to find out how fast a 533X CF will boot Ubuntu remix