[Meloncoly]

I sold my iRiver off to a friend ages ago, but I have missed it since then and bought it back from her, so now I have it again! Back then, the option to replace the HDD to a flash drive cost $50+, but now, the adapter just costs a few bucks, and they have 32GB CF cards! So I got it and replaced the battery with a 2200mah Cameron Sino battery, and I also have a 32GB A-Data CF Card.

Noticeable Differences:
-There is no hard drive sound anymore! Lol.
-When I shake it and it rattles now, I know that it's the loose plastic click button, not the HDD platter.
-Everything on Rockbox is faster because there is no spin-up lag, or whatever it's called.
-Battery life is way longer since the battery doesn't have to power a motor.
-Write speed is slower than on HDD. (2.1GB in 8 minutes)

This should definitely be a upgrade for those people who own a iRiver H120! Don't think about it! Just do it! I did it without any guides, it's pretty damn easy...but you might want to get help replacing the battery though...the stupid molex connector is placed at a VERY stupid position. I am now VERY happy with my new 32GB iRiver H132!

WARNING!
Although the mod can be done with the H120, when you get the CF to 1.8" converter board from Ebay, you might have to shave some plastic off, and you HAVE TO bend the jumper leads to a 90º angle or it doesn't fit in the player.

Scroll a little bit downwards for the guide. or click here if you're lazy.

 

[Zathan]

pretty sexy indeed

 

[nsx_23]

Dammit, I just got a 16GB D2, but now I want to go out and buy a 32GB CF card as well.

My H320 has only become an H301 atm.

 

[ZarakiSan]

Damn. I so want to do this to mine.

 

[Meloncoly]

@nsx: Wow a 301 lol. Should get a 316

Not too expensive.

@ZarakiSan: You should! Although I don't know the pricing of CF cards in the Netherlands.

I fiddled around with it more. My battery life is BARELY dropping...this thing takes conservative sips of battery juice, like it was a $10K wine...marvelous!

 

[steviebee]

This is soooo tempting....if I could surgically remove my brain & fingers & replace with them with those of an electronics wizard...lol

 

[Ricardo Dawkins]

I miss my H320. Take care of your iriver....dont let the power circuit issues get to you.

 

[RedSky0]

Damn, I wish iRiver would just pack whatever audio hardware they had in the 120/40s or 320/340s and put it into a compact player with an SD slot, and passable video display.

I'd buy it in a heartbeat.

The mod you did sounds like a great idea though, might look into it.

 

[Meloncoly]

@steviebee: What do you mean by that? Do you mean that you don't posses the skills to replace it? Or is there another meaning?

@Ricardo: I still have the old charger that came with it, and I have read about people using alternative chargers and totally frying their board...I won't do that anytime soon! The battery replacement was easy too, but the molex connector was placed behind some module thingy where I broke the old molex connector on the old battery just to get it out, and I had to shave parts of the new molex connector to get it to fit.

@RedSky0: I wish they did that too, then I wouldn't need to spend money modding the hell out of the iRiver. The mod is definitely good. MisticRiver sells H120s now so it's more accessible than ever. The converter board cost me under $10 including shipping from China, since that's like the only place where they sell it, and the 32GB CF I bought on Newegg for $140 total with shipping. It's the 32GB A-Data one.

 

[nsx_23]

Which CF cards work well? I seem to recall people saying that the Transcend ones don't work well because they don't support true-IDE or something like that...

The Ridata 32GB CF seems to be the most often used for the H320..

 

[royewest]

Would someone be kind enough to post fresh links to the details on this procedure, including specs and sources for the SSD, adapters, battery, and related parts? Thanks!

 

[wolfen68]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nsx_23 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Which CF cards work well? I seem to recall people saying that the Transcend ones don't work well because they don't support true-IDE or something like that... The Ridata 32GB CF seems to be the most often used for the H320..

It seems everyone keeps recommending the A-data's.

 

[Meloncoly]

@ NSX: Yeah, everyone is using the A-DATA. It's the one that just works and it's one of the cheapest of the bunch. The write speed might not be as good as the competitors but it works, and RockBox doesn't fuss about it.

@Royewest: I did this all myself, without much help from anywhere. It's not that hard. I searched around MisticRiver and found you some guides. They don't specifically show you how to do the flash part of the mod, but it's so easy that I can even show you, which I will in a few minutes or so. For now, look below for reference on how to remove the HDD and remove the battery if you want.

The flash drive you want to use is this:
32GB @129.99: Newegg.com - A-DATA 32GB Compact Flash (CF) Flash Card Model SPEEDY CF 32G - Flash Memory

16GB @ 57.99:
Newegg.com - A-DATA 16GB Compact Flash (CF) Flash Card Model SPEEDY CF 16GB - Flash Memory

They are both A-Data because A-Data has been proven to work every time assuming the card is working the first time.

Then after that, all you need is the converter board. I got mine from Ebay shipped from China!
SSD flash adapter, for iPod 1.8 hard drive to CF - eBay (item 290235110426 end time Jun-07-08 06:20:41 PDT)

If you want to change the battery, here's where I bought it.
Extended 2200Mah Battery iRiver H140 H320 H340 FREE S/H - eBay (item 220240952656 end time Jun-06-08 09:23:11 PDT)

The battery is thicker than the old battery, so it's a pretty tight fit, whether you're using the HDD or the Flash variant. Just a warning. It's not an issue with me though, and it keeps the CF card snug in place.
That's all you need. You don't need a new battery, and with flash, the battery life of the previous battery is even longer, but if you want to change your battery to a higher capacity one, this one will do it.

Here's instructions to remove the HDD courtesy of NPswimdude500 from the MisticRiver forums:
MisticRiver :: For iriver Enthusiasts - View Single Post - H1XX and H3XX Series FAQ's

Here are guides to replace the battery if you wish to do so:
H1xx Internal Battery Replacement - MisticRiverWiki

Here he uses a Cameron Sino battery that's meant for the iPod. Cameron Sino makes batteries for the H120 directly so you do not need to switch the wires around, but remember to check when you get the battery that the polarity is correct. Also, do not forget to see how the polarity of the original battery is first before and after disconnecting the battery. It may seem like common sense but many people forget this step.

 

[Meloncoly]

Phew...that took a lot of work.

NOTE BEFORE STARTING:
-> DISCLAIMER!! I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGES INCURRED BY ANYONE FOLLOWING THIS GUIDE!! DO THIS MOD AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION!! THIS DOES VOID WARRANTY!

-> PLEASE USE PROPER ANTI-STATIC MEASURES! GROUND YOURSELF FOO! Not my fault if you short your board.

-> HAVE ROCKBOX INSTALLED AND WORKING BEFOREHAND. You need to have the Rockbox Bootloader USB functionality to access the CF card.

-> THIS DOES NOT WORK WITH ORIGINAL FIRMWARE. You HAVE to use Rockbox.

-> THIS REQUIES A T5 TORX SCREWDRIVER. All the screws within the player uses the T5 Torx bit. Get one on your own accord.

Alrighty, let's get to the nitty gritty.

First off, I have uploaded my images onto Rapidshare and Megaupload for your viewing pleasures. In case you want a larger resolution copy for yourself. These will be unmodified so I will leave it to you to brighten or sharpen things up a bit.

Rapidshare: Link
Megaupload: Link
Sendspace: Link

PM me if these links stop working. Also PM me if you like me to use another upload service if you can't access any of these.

Then now the web version! Sorry to make you have to click links for images. I thought it would make it less laggy for people viewing this with a slower internet connection.

First of all, take off the screws on the top and bottom of the player. There is one screw on the left side, and another one on the right side. Don't take these off if you're just doing the flash drive mod, otherwise it makes the process more annoying, keep them on. If you're doing a battery replacement, you would have to take those screws off.

Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Then use a tool similar to the one in the picture to take the covering off. Do the same for the top and bottom. Pulling really hard works as well, but accidents can happen.

Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Here's how it should look like totally disassembled.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Now let's remove the hard drive. Lift the back end up a little bit. Then wiggle slowly and carefully left and right, while exerting a little bit of backward force until it has come out. Do not do this in the rush. Screw up the pins and you're not going to have fun for the next hour or so removing the battery and straightening the pins.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Here's how it should look like without the HDD.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Here's the converter board and the CF card hand in hand.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

If you take a close look at the board, and my photo, you can see the two grooves are shaped differently. Then if you look at your CF card, you see slots that reflect that. Match it and stick it in. It can only fit one way like a USB port...so you THEORETICALLY cannot mess this up.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Here's how it looks like assembled.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Assuming you look at the previous pictures with the converter board, you can see the jumper leads bent at a 90º angle. This is to have it fit in the iRiver. If you do not bend it, it does not fit. I bent it with my fingers, no effort.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

I have also shaved off one tab on the board. If the tab is not shaved down, it doesn't fit into the HDD pin area.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Here's a picture of the before it's placed into the HDD area. I've matched up the holes with the pins. You can see at the end, there are 6 holes remaining. That is NORMAL. Don't worry about it. Also this picture shows a REALLY nice 90º bend for the jumper if the previous pictures didn't do justice.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

A closer look at the remaining 6 holes.
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Now just slip it in the pins when you're confident and you're done! You should have it look like this:
Picasa Web Albums - Mark - H120 Flash Dr...

Pat yourself on the back, you deserved it. You're done with the hardware section!

Oh, for image use, I don't care if you spread it around, nor do I care if you credit me or not, and you can even take it as your own work. BUT...it would be nice if you give my name a mention here or there, but I'll leave that up to you.

 

[Meloncoly]

I am NOT going to teach you how to install RockBox. There are any guides available, plus a PDF telling you simple steps on the Rockbox.org site. Please refer to them if you need help. All you do after the hardware, turn it on with the USB plugged in, and just drag in the Rockbox folder in. Boot it up and make sure it works. Tell me if you have any issues regarding that matter. Hope this all helps anyone.