[RAQemUP]

Yeah pretty much once you replace the Ipod Mini hd with a CF, once you connect it back to the PC, Itunes will ask you to format the card and ask if you want to do the latest firmware update. That's it. After that it will act as it always acted.

 

[Hayduke]

Quote:

Originally Posted by auee /img/forum/go_quote.gif Ladies and Gentleman, I have been following the procedure for replacing the mini's HDD with a CF; however, I do not understand what, if anything, needs to be done on the software side after the drive replacement. Will my mini immediately work with itunes? If not what needs to be done. I mention this because I like the simplicity of itunes and do not want to use other software with my ipod mini. Thanks for all your assistance.

If you want to keep the Apple OS, then it's pretty much that easy. Open the Mini. Replace the HD with the CF card. And put it all back together.

There is only one minor issue you may run into. If you connect it to the PC, iTunes may not see it at first. It is possible you will need to put the iPod into disk mode to let iTunes Restore it. Here are instructions on putting it into disk more. Don't worry, it's easy

Putting iPod into Disk Mode

 

[auee]

Thanks to all who responded to my question. I am very grateful and intend to proceed with the modification when time permits.

 

[Hayduke]

Hopefully some folks that have already done this mod are still watching this thread

Is anyone else using a battery from e-bay?

I've bought 3 total, and all 3 are causing problems. I've been having charging/battery issues since I got the first mini. Two minis and three batteries later, I figured out it's the higher capacity batteries.

I've been working on my Mini project for awhile now. The batteries have been a constant problem. They would die, so I would swap it out, and it would work fine for awhile. Because I kept re-opening the Mini for other experiments, I had decided I may have damaged the click wheel cable, so I ordered 2 more. After a lot of testing tonight, I finally got one working again by using the old Apple battery.

The batteries came from 2 different sellers and are different capacities (800mah and 850mah). Two from one seller and one from another, but all three from e-bay. Do you think a battery from a more "reputable" vendor (ie more expensive) would make a difference?

Other then some cosmetic stuff, the only mod is the CF card (at least on the one that works hehe). I've been running Rockbox on it (and my Video), but I think I'm going to convert all my FLACs to ALAC and switch back to the Apple OS. Rockbox has just turned into more hassle then any added benefit is worth. The iPod Video has to rebooted almost every day. I don't recall the Apple OS ever needing that. Hopefully Rockbox is also causing the charging/battery problem.

So I was wondering about other folks' experience with replacement batteries and this mod. I still think a 32GB CF Mini is a great device! I just can't be the only one with these problems. Or am I?

 

[nickyboyo]

I bought an 850mah battery from ebay, and a 16gb cf card. Both slotted in with no drama's at all. Rockbox runs steady, not even much of a noticeable decrease in battery life. The mini mods with rockbox make for an excellent sturdy player in my experience.

I may of been just lucky

 

[davidcotton]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hayduke /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hopefully some folks that have already done this mod are still watching this thread Is anyone else using a battery from e-bay? I've bought 3 total, and all 3 are causing problems. I've been having charging/battery issues since I got the first mini. Two minis and three batteries later, I figured out it's the higher capacity batteries. I've been working on my Mini project for awhile now. The batteries have been a constant problem. They would die, so I would swap it out, and it would work fine for awhile. Because I kept re-opening the Mini for other experiments, I had decided I may have damaged the click wheel cable, so I ordered 2 more. After a lot of testing tonight, I finally got one working again by using the old Apple battery. The batteries came from 2 different sellers and are different capacities (800mah and 850mah). Two from one seller and one from another, but all three from e-bay. Do you think a battery from a more "reputable" vendor (ie more expensive) would make a difference? Other then some cosmetic stuff, the only mod is the CF card (at least on the one that works hehe). I've been running Rockbox on it (and my Video), but I think I'm going to convert all my FLACs to ALAC and switch back to the Apple OS. Rockbox has just turned into more hassle then any added benefit is worth. The iPod Video has to rebooted almost every day. I don't recall the Apple OS ever needing that. Hopefully Rockbox is also causing the charging/battery problem. So I was wondering about other folks' experience with replacement batteries and this mod. I still think a 32GB CF Mini is a great device! I just can't be the only one with these problems. Or am I?

My battery (forgive me for not knowing the exact rating but think its around the 850) seems to be ok, Get away with having to charge it once a week over night. This is running a mix of flac and mp3. With regards to the flac draining the battery quicker this is one of the more well known drawbacks to using the format on portable (I've read various arguments about the need for flac/alac on a portable when your going to be using the device in situations where you couldn't hear the difference anyway!). Not sure if converting to alac is going to achieve ALL that much as its just apples version of flac to start with. The real saving on battery life would be to convert to mp3 and maintain a dual library, though this to me defeats the whole point of installing rockbox in the first place. I was getting fed up of having to convert stuff that I wanted to listen to at work, as well as the space it was taking up on the hard drive.

Just a thought, maybe those who aren't having any issues with battery life could post where/which seller they got theres from so others could try?

 

[Hayduke]

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidcotton /img/forum/go_quote.gif My battery (forgive me for not knowing the exact rating but think its around the 850) seems to be ok, Get away with having to charge it once a week over night. This is running a mix of flac and mp3. With regards to the flac draining the battery quicker this is one of the more well known drawbacks to using the format on portable (I've read various arguments about the need for flac/alac on a portable when your going to be using the device in situations where you couldn't hear the difference anyway!). Not sure if converting to alac is going to achieve ALL that much as its just apples version of flac to start with. The real saving on battery life would be to convert to mp3 and maintain a dual library, though this to me defeats the whole point of installing rockbox in the first place. I was getting fed up of having to convert stuff that I wanted to listen to at work, as well as the space it was taking up on the hard drive. Just a thought, maybe those who aren't having any issues with battery life could post where/which seller they got theres from so others could try?

Switching to ALAC isn't the change that will increase battery life. Switching to ALAC will let me ditch Rockbox and go back to the Apple OS. I still want to have the option of putting lossless files on the iPod, so ALAC is really the only option without using Rockbox. The Apple OS has much better battery life, so that's what will improve that. My main reason for wanting to go back to the Apple OS is usability. I have to reboot the Rockbox iPods (minis and Video) too often.

I haven't really had issue with the battery life itself. I was getting 20+ hours. The issue is the batteries seem to be draining below where the iPod can charge them or something. I'm reluctant to buy a 4th battery without any new info. I might just get a hold of another Mini. I'm pretty sure one of them has a bad mainboard. It's possible I have 2 bad ones I guess.

 

[moriez]

Im using the original battery and tested it by playing for 10 hours straight (without fiddling). It was still charged for at least 1/4th when I turned it off. No probs whatsoever.

 

[Hayduke]

Quote:

Originally Posted by moriez /img/forum/go_quote.gif Im using the original battery and tested it by playing for 10 hours straight (without fiddling). It was still charged for at least 1/4th when I turned it off. No probs whatsoever.

Well with all the experimenting I've been doing with my Minis, I thought I had ruined the click wheel cables, so I ordered some replacements. Turns out they were fine. The batteries were dead. I got a Mini working last night using one of the old original batteries. The battery doesn't hold a charge very well, but it did power on the Mini.

Maybe I'll try building a charging circuit for the batteries and charge them externally. This wouldn't be something I would want permanently, but I can use it while I figure out what's going on.

Maybe I have 2 bad mainboards, and the one that "works" has a problem with the charging function. *shrug*

I'll keep you guys posted. I let the project sit for awhile, but I really want my 32G Mini back. I get nervous hiking with my Video. Now that I have a flash based player, I don't like using my hard drive player when I'm active.

 

[buddhashenglong]

So my main reason for wanting Rockbox on the mini was to avoid itunes, then I found out about Media Monkey. After restoring my mini with a 32 gig A-Data cf, itunes went straight to the recycle bin. One question, who/where to get the best battery for the mini? I bought one locally and its 3.6 volt 630 mah with about an 8 hour runtime. I am a long time MD user 1 AA 40-50 hours so I am spoiled in that regard.

 

[Hayduke]

Quote:

Originally Posted by buddhashenglong /img/forum/go_quote.gif So my main reason for wanting Rockbox on the mini was to avoid itunes, then I found out about Media Monkey. After restoring my mini with a 32 gig A-Data cf, itunes went straight to the recycle bin. One question, who/where to get the best battery for the mini? I bought one locally and its 3.6 volt 630 mah with about an 8 hour runtime. I am a long time MD user 1 AA 40-50 hours so I am spoiled in that regard.

I switched my iPod Video back to the Apple OS just yesterday. I converted all my FLACs to ALAC over the weekend, but I kept the FLACs too for now. I'm going to give it a couple weeks to decide which I want to go with permanently. I actually don't like the Apple OS so much anymore after using Rockbox for the last couple of years. It will take a little getting used to, but so did Rockbox. It's only been one day

In regards to batteries, I can't help you there. I've bought 3, but I've had battery issues since the beginning. I've always been able to just swap out a different one when I had problems, but that isn't working anymore. I think both of my Minis might have problems with the mainboards charging circuits. I'm going to go ahead and pickup one more Mini to experiment with.

 

[elliot42]

I just got three 2nd gen iPod minis from eBay, all with dead hard drives. I've tried a number of CD cards I had around the house (plus the 16gb I bought that arrived today). Some were successful, some not. I thought I'd give a run down for anyone looking at getting a card.

Works:
- DSE brand CF (Bullet Series 266x) 2gb
- Ridata Pro 150x 2gb
- PQI 120x 16gb

No Go:
- Kingston (the regular consumer line) 1gb and 2gb: Neither worked for me, iTunes said the iPod was corrupted and needed repairing. It then repaired it and said it was still corrupted. Apple OS reported a disk size of zero.
- Kingmax 256mb: Same as Kingston
- Random OEM 2gb: Same as Kingston

The ones that work all have rockbox running on them as well.
Transfer time seems OK, probably slower than my iPod Classic, but perfectly acceptable; 1gb just took ~4:10 (4mb/sec).

 

[madmaxmedia]

An updated list of CF card compatibility can be found here-
iFlash Compact Flash Compatibility - Help Needed… » Tarkan Akdam’s BORED

I just bought a working 2nd Gen Mini and will be buying a 16GB card soon. This great mod has really taken the shine off a lot of new music players for me, since I really love the Mini form factor and can continue to upgrade the player as flash prices continue to fall. The new 16GB Nano is $199 which is nice and all, but I like my <$100 16GB Mini!

When I replace the 16GB card in my Mini, I will just throw it in my Canon Rebel anyway.

 

[spookygonk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spookygonk /img/forum/go_quote.gif Just checking now, plugged directly into the headphone socket and for about two minutes the music's fine. When I swap over to the LOD the music starts getting choppy with static bursts almost straight away. I can wiggle the connector to get more of the problem. Now wondering if there's something shorting out inside. Just tried the LOD with a Mk1 Nano Rockboxed and that's all fine. (see also post #286

)

Up late 'cos I can't sleep (am working night shift from tommorrow, so it doesn't really matter) so I've dismantled the Mini again. The audio still crackling on and off (with the odd burst of louder distorted sound). Giving the circuit board a wiggle or a twist gets it working and then the crackling again. When the sound goes off the track count down timer freezes. I've checked all the main ribbon connectors, reseated them, but to no avail.
If I can't find the fault, I guess I'll have to ditch this and buy another Mini to put the battery and CF card in.

 

[davidcotton]

Well after a couple of months running rockbox on this thing I am reluctantly coming to the conclusion that flac and portables just don't mix due to the battery life. Ease of use is nice in the drop and drag factor, but thats not much help if the batterys going to die on me so often. So am considering reverting back to the original firmware and convert the flac library to mp3. Shame but not going to muck about with batterys from ebay. Environment I am using the mini in I am not going to notice anyway tbh.

Cheers.