3.5" SATA HDD 12V USB Adapter Mod

[@minisynthmaniac]

To anyone doing this: although you may solder the 12v wire to any of the 3 pins for 12v, make sure to let some soldering lead run over the other 2 pins as well, to connect all 3. There is a reason for having 3 pins of the same, since the contacts are so small, each one one them can pass only about 1.5 A of current. So if the hard drive happens to want to draw more, problems can arise when the power supply is connected via just one tiny pin. Just my two cents.

[@sjm4306]

The three pins should be all shorted together to a single larger copper plane trace on the pcb but yes it's never a bad idea to increase connection surface area/current capability for higher current connections.

[@nathanielfuentes5294]

Power draw on my WD Caviar Black circa 2007 is 12VDC .55A

[@sjm4306]

The power supply requirements are the same no matter the data connection, 5V at around 1A and 12V at around 1-2A depending on the drive. For internal sata then you'd just need an adapter to connect the data portion of the connector.

[@Dikwili]

How would one go about doing this method with a molex power cable to power an IDE HDD? I’ve looked everywhere for a guide and can’t find anything.

[@tomgreysk]

OK this is the positive wire and negatív wire GO where?

[@kurtronaldtomascucal4207]

Finally a usefull video. Some are buying an enclosure but i was looking for converting 2.5 enclosure to 3.5. thanks to this video, i dont have to spend again.

[@JohnnyB43]

Thanks for the explanation. Won't be making a DIY cable like you, but is good to know that the issue is because the larger drives simply wont do anything if they have less than a 12 V supply connected. cheers

[@Deliquescentinsight]

You can rig up a power connection if you have power unit externally available , just use the provided cable/adaptor, can be done.

[@k1ortia]

you my friend are a life saver...just ripped a 3.5hdd out of an old sky hd box.... after 2hrs of frustration i only learnt that the 3.5 hdd need 12v to operate properly unlike the 3.0 and 2.5,s.Thats why it my laptop wouldn't read it as it wasn't even powering up. 10/10

[@k1ortia]

Just done this mod...it works flawlessly. I used an old 12v adapter, putting out 1.5amps. Soldered the positive and negative as shown, and it came straight up on my laptop. Thank you

[@sjm4306]

Awesome, glad to hear!

[@hiphopworld207]

can i connect the black 12 wire on the black cable

[@Frotan-xs9cj]

exactly what i was looking for

[@vaishalipatil712]

This worked flawlessly. THANK YOU so much. My PC had some important data in it I restored it all

[@cybcarr]

This is AWESOME! No bullshit talking, no this or that. The info what is needed is here. Thank you very much! Subbed! :)

[@hitori_gurashi]

i knew it, its about power thats why i cant test my newly bought 3.5" with my sata cable that is meant for a 2.5" nice video

[@DazzaDirect]

once again best ideas solve a problem, good advice to use a REGULATED 12v DC PSU , many thanks for the idea and upload

[@chard5106]

yes it is right, all 12 volts DC adapters are finely regulated, AUTO volts at input. (100~240 Volts AC)

[@krzbrew]

So, I've been trying several 12V adapters, 3A and 5A, notebook-style, but no-one of them seems to output voltage when connected to this contraption. They do work with notebooks and monitors they were intended for. Any solution to that? Yeah, I checked the continuity and it is present until the SATA contacts on the drive. The drive is working as well in the PC when mounted internally.

[@DazzaDirect]

@@krzbrew some drives require the 5v too from usb , also some psu's need a load to stay on, you mentioned checking for continuity which is good, have you checked at the sata socket for the 12v DC and 5vDC to see if they are there, ;-]

[@krzbrew]

@@DazzaDirect 5V is there, 12V is not there.

[@ThisOLmaan]

yeah i figured my 3.5's HDD didnt have enough power just using the 2.5 USB adapter, unfortunately, I don't own a soldering gun or other neat tools. But TY for confirming that you do need more power for the 3.5,

[@ziongite]

It's smart, because buying an external 3.5 hard drive enclosure is expensive, since they have their own power supply and are also over priced on top of that, here in Australia buying one from an online Australian store that can take 2 hard drives costs at least 125 dollars, which is a total waste of money. Yet you have made the same thing right here for a few dollars, enabling you to use USB and connect your powered 3.5 inch drive to your computer.

[@kirkmcintyre5745]

I wish I would have seen this before I bought more adapters. I had 3 of these wires already. I popped one apart today and had no problem making it work. If I can do it anyone can. Funny thing is today my adapters showed up in the mail after I had thought they had been lost (or never sent; ebay/China, nugh said). Anyway at least I found them on the cheap but this was fun to do. Thanks, I have subscribed to your channel and it looks like I'll be having a lot more fun in the near future.

[@sjm4306]

Thanks, I hope you find more videos on my channel that you like.

[@kirkmcintyre5745]

@@sjm4306 I'm actually looking for a way to fix sata to usb bridge card. I have 2. One is an enclosure that started kicking out (I think overheating) and the other came out of a 5tb seagate. It worked fine for a long time then just died. Let me know if you have any ideas or maybe you might make it into a future.video

[@sjm4306]

Do the 2 cards still spin up an attached drive but not enumerate when plugged into a computer or do they do nothing at all?

[@kirkmcintyre5745]

@@sjm4306 The enclosure works fine but if it's been on for a long time it kicks out and I must leave it off for a while before it will work again, making it difficult to transfer large files. The bridge I took out of the 5TB Seagate doesn't do anything. It worked fine and died suddenly. Hoping it can have a capacitor switched or something.

[@kirkmcintyre5745]

I will send you my email if you prefer to message privately.

[@jamiejoker118]

Brilliant just done one last 3 pins soldered together to 12v plus + Black to earth on usb black - Saved my bacon my docking station died due to short out on the mains Saved me £40 uk I did double check the pin data lol Nice video dude 👍

[@sjm4306]

Happy hearing that this simple hack helped someone

[@JoshuaVanderwallVandaleyez]

Thumbs up on the tutorial! I tried it and had no luck powering up three different 3.5" HDD's. I'll have to try another way. Thanks for the info though.

[@maze42d]

What curent was the supply? I could't get a drive spinning on .5A supply, on 2A it ran completely fine.

[@sjm4306]

I used a 2A supply as well and it worked on all my 3.5" hdds

[@marcusaplin]

Daniel Choutka “switching” power supply is most likely needed

[@joshvanderwall9372]

​@@maze42d I used a 12V 2A DC power supply. They would actually spool up, but the computer wasn't able to recognize any of them through the USB port. It could be a bad SATA cable. I've had a problem with SATA cables before.

[@sonypsp05]

Thanks for sharing this. Now I'm looking into modding my own.

[@mikepickett6679]

Thats really nifty.

[@ElvisRamirez]

you said it!!

[@ddarrenwillsond3620]

Just did this now and is working 👍

[@Zoom2point0]

Hi. I found your video really educating. I would just like to ask. I have a 3.5 HDD, the thing is, I found this adapter online for sale that is made for 2.5" and 3.5" Sata HDD already. The thing is, the package doesn't come with the power supply even though it has a port for one, just the adapter itself because it won't need external power supply for 2.5s. Just like to ask what is the safe voltage of power supply should I use for the 3.5s. I mean, you mentioned 12V, but i'm guessing that's the minimum? Would it be bad if I use 15V if I ever found one?

[@sjm4306]

3.5" drives require 12V for the motor electronics (this is a nominal rating not a min or max!), nothing more (15V will almost definitely blow something up) and nothing less (which will not spin up the drive). 12V adapters for use with routers are dirt cheap and commonly available at most thrift stores that have an electronics section, and any computer electronics store should have a few in stock. Hope this helps.

[@wolvrG]

Hey amazing guide.. just a question, if we connect 2.5" hdd to that adaptor and also give power (although it is not necessary), will it harm the hdd??

[@sjm4306]

Nope, the 12v rail pins on a 2.5" drive aren't connected to anything. I've swapped 2.5" sata drives into 3.5" bays plenty of times without issue.

[@ravenironwing]

It'd be just like plugging it into a desktop PSU sata cable with 12 and 5 volts.

[@skybenable]

Thanks for your tricks ! Very usefull 👍 For the 12V power supply, could you tell me what polarity to use please ? I have the adaptator from my guitar pedals, but I dont know which polarity to chose for my Seagate ironwolf. Many thanks SMJ

[@sjm4306]

Always double check with a multimeter, don't just trust the polarity label on the adapter.

[@saluprimusic4896]

Thanks you man! This is very useful, keep pushing UP New tricks

[@maximo4742]

If you plug in both USB's, Will that provide the additional power needed to spin up the 3.5?

[@sjm4306]

The USB will only supply the 5V rail, 3.5 hdds also require 12V which is why I had to solder the additional wires to an external 12V ac adapter.

[@JIMISTONED]

Whst a beautiful intro !

[@ravenironwing]

Nice simple mod.

[@aniyahudi]

Excellent video. Quick question. Can I somehow easily determine which connection is the ground with the volt reader? I messed around in the little USB circuit board and can't figure out where to solder the ground wire.

[@sjm4306]

The ground of a circuit is almost always any pad connected to exposed metal shells of usb female connectors, the large copper plane that surrounds everything, or easily any black wire coming or going to usb leads. To verify set your meter on beep continuity mode, plug the sata adapter into an unpowered drive, hold one of your multimeter probes on one of the screws on the hdd pcb, tap the other probe on a suspected ground point on the sata adapter board and if it beeps when held then it is ground.

[@aniyahudi]

@@sjm4306 thank you so much sir.

[@michaelcottrell6931]

Awesome video, thanks for making and sharing! I just have one question. When soldering the power lead to the sata cable, do you have to get it on ONE of the connections? Will it affect the power to hard drive if you get solder on the other 3 contacts for the 12 v supply? Thanks again!

[@sjm4306]

One lead or all three wouldnt make much of a difference, just make absolutely sure not to bridge with any adjacent pins that arent 12V or you could blow the board/hdd.

[@michaelcottrell6931]

@@sjm4306 Thanks for your fast reply! I got it done, but when I plug in the hard drive, I can feel it start spinning then stops. I checked with 2.5" latop HDD I have and it still works. I made sure it is 12v output. I put HDD in comp make sure it works. It just starts to spin up then nothing. Any ideas on that?

[@sjm4306]

@@michaelcottrell6931 What current is your 12V adapter rated for? If it is too small then the drive will not have enough power to fully spin up. It is a good idea to have at least 2A.

[@michaelcottrell6931]

@@sjm4306 It shows on the adapter 12v output and 1000mA? Is that enough to power up the hard drive?

[@sjm4306]

1000mA is a bit low, best to use 2000mA

[@Bweezy320]

So exactly HOW does one do this?

[@ethanstanley576]

Hello there quick question. Will any regular 12v power supply work or should I use a specific type.

[@sjm4306]

Must be a regulated 12v dc supply

[@vincepastor3616]

Is there a video of this with more explanation on the process of making the mod?

[@3liquidthree]

Hello.. Great Video! Watching it in 2021. Out of curiousity tho, Wouldnt external docking bay station work the same? with a higher degree of ease of use?

[@sjm4306]

Yeah an external dock would of course be easier, but this was a video more for getting it to work quickly with only a 2.5" adapter on hand without having to buy a dock online and wait for it to arrive. If you already have a dock then by all means use it.

[@gadgetmadlad6691]

I'm definitely going to use this, cool video

[@Schrumpelratte]

would be nice to power the whole 3.5 drive over usb. maybe with a stepup converter and a usb 3 port for higher power output

[@maze42d]

Still the USB 3 outputs like 800mA... That's 4W... I couldn't get a drive spinning from 6W supply. Maybe through a powerbank or 2A phone charger.

[@albertodiana2651]

Hi! Can I do the same for three hard disk 3.5 and use only one charger? Thanks a lot!

[@sjm4306]

Depends of the current rating of the charger and thr current draw from each hard disk. The numbers should be written on their labels. For examplr if each drive needs 2A at 12V then you would need at minimum 2x3=6A and I would add maybe 1-2A as a buffer so your supply needs to be able to provide 7-8A.

[@L3gion3r]

I am curious why you solder the adapter to the plastic piece, instead of splicing it to the second, unused, USB wire.

[@sjm4306]

12V at relatively high current through wires meant for 5V is not a good idea so better safe than sorry.

[@BinhTran-eo7wz]

Thank you for your sharing, i have an adapter but it use a separate cable called am-microbm, can you tell me where to solder the nagative wire on the adapter board, or can i solder it to one of the COM pins on the sata power pin (10th,11th,12th). Thank you!

[@HSRMF]

what is the project at 0:08 ? soo cool

[@sjm4306]

It's a pov display I prototyped a long time ago, never did finish it though. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJ_Pho2jnreVkKs kzbin.info/www/bejne/fqOYqqt9i71jgKc

[@27dhan]

instead of using a 12 V DC only PSU, why not use a ATX PSU? that way, you could potentially use more HDD as long as you have multiple SATA to USB converter.

[@sjm4306]

Yep, pretty much any regulated 12V supply can be used so long as it can supply more current than the sum of the current draw of all attached drives. In my case I'll only ever attach one drive so the little ac adapter I'm using will be fine.

[@27dhan]

@@sjm4306 I just tried this but my setup didn't work, I've tried: 1. solder 12 V DC to 13th pin 2. solder 12 V DC to 13th to 15th pin all of which is while the ground pin is soldered to the ground terminal of the converter. already tried it on 2 HDD. but those are old ones and I'm still gonna test if those still works (gonna connect it on my PC directly) do you have any suggestion? btw the drives are vibrating normally and in windows disk management, it says "not initialized" and when I click "initialize" it gives out an error message "the request failed due to a fatal device hardware error". tnx EDIT: tested my HDDs (connected directly to SATA port) and didn't work.

[@Dzo_ni]

Can i connect directly from adapter black and red wire? Without socket.

[@sjm4306]

Yep, no issues wiring directly

[@ivankirsch9143]

Duuuude i was looking everywhere 'couse i bought the wrong adapter xD Greetings from Argentina!

[@sjm4306]

Greetings!

[@memobsa2497]

could you tell us and make a vedio how you made this cable

[@Funny-hu4kz]

You only told about where do we have to solder one wire of the 12 v cable but I didn't figure about the another wire of the 12v cable . Where will we soldier the another wire of 12 v adaptor.

[@sjm4306]

The other wire is ground and thus can be soldered to any ground on the board (everything on the board is common ground so it's easy to find)

[@vikrambakshi1]

Can you please show clearly how to give the Adapter 12v of power....

[@sjm4306]

I cant show exactly as the specific adapter I bought years ago probably isn't even available anymore and the specific soldering locations will be different for different models. Just follow the description I provide in the video to find a suitable point to solder ground and +12V to (hint it's just following traces for those pins on the sata connector).

[@RappersDelight808]

I have 5his problem but I can't do what you have, can you buy one? Thanks

[@sjm4306]

They sell 3.5" hdd enclosures that are plug and play.

[@flyingscotsman7778]

Hey nice video, I've done all the soldeing, positive to the outermost part of the sata and ground to the ground, and it spins up noicely, and ive tested past 2.5" hard drives and the actual sata to usb thing works, but despite spinning up it isn't detected by windows or disk manager or device manager. Any ideas? thanks

[@sjm4306]

Thanks, one thing to note is some of these adapters have limitations as to what size drives they will recognize. For instance one of my modified adapters wont read 3.5 drives larger than 2tb. Not sure if this is the problem you are having but possibly.

[@sjm4306]

Oh yeah and make sure the data wires havent broken. Mine were soldered really badly and handling the board could break the joints.

[@SiLenCce_de]

Had the same problem with one of these cables. Try to plug the cables into the usb ports on the back of your pc. The ports on the front of my pc wont deliver enough power :)

[@VerbindingMislukt]

@@SiLenCce_de Why would the ports not have enough power? The drive is already being powered by 12v!

[@SiLenCce_de]

@@VerbindingMislukt I really dont know. But I couldn't get it to work with the front ports

[@henlofren7321]

I'm planning on using a sfx power supply to power the drives, but I can't find any usb to sata cables without sata power... Do you know of any place that sells them?

[@sjm4306]

You could probably bodge a desktop sata data cable into the female end of a usb sata adapter. Afaik no one sells sata usb adapters with only the data pins broken out

[@devin275]

Hey, I know this video is a little old but where did you put the negative wire?

[@sjm4306]

Any ground point (black usb wire is an easy place)

[@neilgraham1358]

This worked perfectly, Thanks

[@woodrunner51]

This worked, thank you so much!

[@LeahcimSsadlama]

Hey can u tell me how many volts and amps u supplied to ur hdd and the type/model of ur hdd, thanks

[@woodrunner51]

@@LeahcimSsadlama nope, i havent measured it. It was a pretty chunky old 1TB HDD, i think it had 12V 0.5A written on it

[@thecrudelab3204]

hey, do you know how to do that with a sata extension cable? coz my laptop cannot provide enough power for my 3.5 inch hdd,

[@sjm4306]

You would need to splice into the power side of the extension cable. Use this image (i.stack.imgur.com/HB4Mc.gif) to splice in 12V and ground (pin with the same name are all tied together) like I did for my adapter in this video but wired straight to the sata power connector going to the 3.5 hdd.

[@ekardonsenior2894]

so the second usb cable isn't there to increase voltage, then what is it for? plus i wonder what would happend if you would give 12v at the usb end of that connector, instead of adding 12v directly to the sata port.

[@sjm4306]

The second usb cable is to supply more current. If you were to give 12v to the usb plug instead of the 5v it expects you will likely fry the sata drive and usb bridge and possibly the usb bus circuitry on your computer. You can only safely supply 12v directly to the 12v sata pins.

[@ekardonsenior2894]

@@sjm4306 thank you for your quick response. so we need 2 usb ports + 12v external adapter

[@sjm4306]

Probably only need 1 usb port and then an external 12v adapter if you want to power a 3.5" sata drive.

[@sailendrasandeep]

what shouldbe the power input to 2.5 inch HDD with externalpower source ? I want to use the only external power . Any suggestions

[@sjm4306]

A 2.5" hdd only requires 5V

[@jordanvelazquez6321]

Looks convienient. Ive had trouble with those.

[@joaofelipemaximo3961]

Hi. Can I use my PSU 12v sata cable to power a small amplifier? Or maybe mix it with the other 12v for hdd and use 24v? Thanks

[@sjm4306]

So long as the peak current of the amp is less than the max the psu can supply then I dont see why it wouldn't work.

[@LEXASAS]

Очень интересно. Еще было бы хорошо прикладывать схематичную схему к проектам для наглядности, или ссылки на исходники с подробным описанием. спасибо)))

[@gowtham_12]

which ac adaptor brand was best. Do you have any suggestions?

[@sjm4306]

I dont know the brand of the adapter I used off the top of my head unfortunately. I would suggest though you get one for a good branf wifi router like linksys or belkin so long as the voltage is correct and the current is greater than what is on the drive's label.

[@retro_online6927]

pretty good mate can i use computer power supply and what if i get hard and give him a power from power supply that isn't the main power supply

[@sjm4306]

Yeah a computer supply will work, you'd just need to find a way to splice only the data from the usb adapter to the drive and the power connector to the supply. With this usb adapter as is it would block the power pins and not allow you to plug an external supply in there.

[@devasurya9438]

Bro i need one help if you don't mind please sent the circuit diagram please bro please send me the link or file please bro please

[@sjm4306]

There really isn't a schematic, just solder two wires (red and black for positive and negative of the 12V supply) to the specific points I show in the video.

[@devasurya9438]

@@sjm4306 thank you

[@jotirlingswami9357]

I have segate expansin and seagate backup plus external hdd I have question that can i use 12 volt 1 amp for powering the hdd ? Please replay me its urgent for me Thanks

[@sjm4306]

It'll probably work fine, but if it doesn't have enough power to start then I'd suggest going with a 12v 2a supply to be safe.

[@idiyerbill1968]

Actually u can just plug 12 v to the yellow cable of the hdd and 5 v to the red one the two black wires are ground . And that's it

[@sjm4306]

That's technically exactly what I did, but directly soldering to the 2.5" adapter pcb

[@DusanStoilkov]

Works perfectly. Thank you very much!!!...

[@thepostalteenager2206]

The intersting thing is the computer shows the hdd as an internal drive not as an external drive why this thing is happen?

[@rubenmeza2690]

Hi, I'm late you can say, but I was wondering what cables did you use to hook up to the data reader, I have an old PS3 and wanted to remove it from there and use a 320gb hdd I wanted to use as external storage, thanks

[@sjm4306]

I bought a cheap usb to sata adapter off ebay

[@rubenmeza2690]

@@sjm4306 I didn't wanna buy my own I wanted to diy myself one

[@sjm4306]

You cant really do much diy unless you just so happen to have a usb to sata bridge ic and design a pcb for it. By that point you might as well have just bought one of the cheap usb sata adapters for the already working board and chip.

[@rubenmeza2690]

@@sjm4306 oh ok thank you

[@mccrac5247]

What is the lower limit for amperage that will work? My understanding is that 12V 2A is the max....is there a performance loss or stability issue from using 12V at

[@sjm4306]

You'll have to check the label on your hdd for the required current for the 12v supply. The short answer is if you dont provide enough current to a drive's 12v rail best case the drive just wont work but worst case is the drive could crash during peak operation, damaging the heads and/or platters.

[@duhmanthapz]

What if the current is more than 2A.such as 3 A or 5A..? What could possible worst happen?

[@sjm4306]

The load (the drive) will dictate how much current it wants to draw. The rating on the power supply is how much max current it can supply. So if your drive only needs 2A and your supply is 5A, the drive will still only draw 2A.

[@nickromano8851]

Hi! You made the best video on this subject! Will it work on Windows 10?

[@sjm4306]

Yep, this should work on any modern operating system that supports usb mass storage devices.

[@Converse-ty7dt]

can a 9.5 power supply instead of a 12 v power supply be used

[@sjm4306]

No, you will likely kill the drive if you give it more or less than the required 12v. Keep in mind the 12v is powering all motors so 9.5v could actually do something catastrophic like start the spindle but stall the heads over the platters causing a head crash, not worth the risk.

[@avanaraveloson5017]

The procedure is the same weather it is a usb 2.0 or 3.0 cable right?

[@sjm4306]

Yep

[@thomas4891]

Is that black soldered the green cable or the black cant make out in vid as having some difficulty getting mine to spin.

[@sjm4306]

Black goes to black (or any other ground point). Green is data+, do not ground it or you could damage the adapter board.

[@thomas4891]

@@sjm4306 actually the green is also taking ground. Think this cheap Chinese one is crap. Test another one later see what happens.

[@thomas4891]

@@sjm4306 yeah the green is also taking ground just tested and lights leds. Hansen destroyed it as still working fine with 2.5. I have same one as you.

[@janmichaelyonzaga1168]

i have many files in my 3.5 hdd, and i wanted to use it to my laptop as external but i want it to be modified, im wondering if i can use the dvd rom of the laptop to be modified connected to my 3.5 hdd, can someone do this kindi of scenario to help me.

[@donaldhenke2750]

question? will a usb hub work with 4 say 1tb 3.5in hdd

[@sjm4306]

No reason I can see why it wouldn't so long as each drive receives sufficient power.

[@wisdomwithwit]

Late question but do you plug both USB cables into the pc or only 1

[@sjm4306]

I got away with plugging just one in, but I guess it would depend on how much current your computer can push over a single usb port.

[@wisdomwithwit]

@@sjm4306 thanks. I ended up getting and external case with a DC power supply. It works on multiple style drives.

[@sixbrokeneggs]

2:29 Any of those three OR can I go over all of three for better solder

[@sjm4306]

Yes to either. Just make double sure you do not short to any adjacent pins or you can kill the adapter, your computer usb port, and/or the attached drive.

[@sixbrokeneggs]

@@sjm4306 I had to google what adjacent means, but thanks . I'm doing this trick right now thanks for the reply

[@jackmehoff1370]

Are u able to solder the wires back onto the board from the usb tip mines came off

[@sjm4306]

Should be easy to just strip back the wires and resolder

[@rotaxrider]

I got a question. You can have to separate cables correct? One that would power it from a separate power connecting to the Sata port and then a USB cable plugged into the other data port on the HDD. I got a 3.5 that was running slow so I upgraded to a SSD but like to have access to the 3.5 to get some files off of it that I didn’t back up when I removed it?

[@sjm4306]

Yes you can have separate data and power cables going to a drive. For instance you can even use a pc power supply just to power the drive and then one of these usb sata adapters with a data only extension lead to talk with the drive

[@rotaxrider]

sjm4306 Ok great Im gonna buy something off of Amazon that has both cables that plug into a hub connector Should work fine Thanks again

[@rotaxrider]

So I’m assuming that I would need to change a bios to boot up this drive because it had windows on it so I could send files to a USB drive or a CD-ROM

[@sjm4306]

You can do that or just mount it as an external drive and then root through the file structure to find your files (you may need to change file access permissions to read/write files over though). I usually just create a folder on the root of my boot drive for random files so in the event of windows corruption preventing boot I can use a sata adapter and directly access my files without any permission funny business.

[@rotaxrider]

sjm4306 Ok I’ll be back when I’m ready

[@abod898]

ok here im after getting the connector but i have a problem when using it on phone , hdd eats phone juice too quickly , like 5% in a minute or more i make external 5v wires but hdd doesn't work if powered with external 5v it works only if powered by phone what can i do ? i have to mention that 12v is already connected

[@sjm4306]

You'd need a powered usb hub between the phone and hdd to prevent it from drawing current from the 5v rail from the phone

[@abod898]

@@sjm4306 Yes i tried using the usb hub it doesn't work at all neither with external power nor without it when using the hub with usb flash drive or a keyboard it works normally *only without external power* but when using it for the hdd it doesn't work either ways

[@hwrnetwork6145]

Thanks you brother this is tutorial the best work

[@jimaki_37]

Hey, I want to do something similar but internally in a thin client by taking the 5v from a usb header (or somewhere else) and the 12volt externally. I'll connect those in a sata power cable and then, use the sata data cable. Will it work?

[@sjm4306]

Yep it'll work

[@jimaki_37]

@@sjm4306 Cool, I'll update you when the parts arrive!

[@jimaki_37]

Well, turns out that the board did have a internal floppy connector. So I made an adaptor and I'm good. Although other skus don't have the connector. I was lucky...

[@yasminkhatun8553]

What about for all those that are so new to all this and do not have the equipment. Is there any other way to have the power go into the hard drive.

[@sjm4306]

Not really, soldering the two wires is basically necessary for reliability

[@mrbennotmrban]

does the last three pins have to be soldered to 12v or only one is enough?

[@sjm4306]

One will technically probably be fine but two or three would be better.

[@shubhambehl1890]

I am sorry but i heard ISO backups for ps4 ?

[@victorblack3872]

soldered to socket please explain

[@adrianzabiello9839]

Hi, where did you connect minus from 12v line ? what pins in power connector ?

[@sjm4306]

You can attach ground to any point that's connected to the ground plane (use a multimeter set to continuity to beep it out if you are unsure).

[@adrianzabiello9839]

sjm4306 Perfect, it's working, Thanks a lot man :)

[@devjitpaul1191]

still works thanks

[@stephenyoung5386]

hi, i soldered exactly as you have done it 3.5 spins up but the 2 lights on the adpter the blue goe`s off and the red stays on but the pc can`t read the drive where have i gone wrong any ideas?

[@sjm4306]

What capacity drive? A lot of the adapters have trouble reading drives over 2tb

[@stephenyoung5386]

tried 1tb and a 500gb

[@stephenyoung5386]

seems like it starts to read the drive then the blue light goes of leaving just the red light on

[@sjm4306]

What is the current of the 12V adapter you are using? 1-2A should be enough, but if the drive requires more it may be shutting off.

[@fawadumair2791]

do we have to connect all last three wires with 12 v + or any one of them is ok ??????

[@sjm4306]

Technically just need one, but connecting to 2 or 3 of the 12v pins doesn't hurt.

[@FreedumbHS]

you wanna make sure the ground potential on the wall wart is the same as the device you are connecting the drive to

[@sjm4306]

Pretty much all wallwarts I've seen have isolated outputs so they'll effectively float the drive, which will then get grounded thru whatever computer they get plugged into. In the case of laptops running on battery everything will just be left floating.

[@FreedumbHS]

​@@sjm4306there's a lot of cheap Chinese junk flooding the market these days imo. I don't assume anything anymore

[@sjm4306]

True, trust but verify

[@vlive1141]

Can anyone explain the connection of the 12v adapter wire to the "socket" first. Im not uderdtanding why the 12v adapter wires are not just connected directly to one of the 12v pins on the sata plug and a ground connection on sata plug board?

[@sjm4306]

That's literally exactly what I've done. +12Vdc from the wall adapter barrel jack to the 12v sata pins, and ground to any ground point on the pcb

[@vlive1141]

@@sjm4306 - sweet thanks so much for the response and for the video

[@ABD0U1111]

I am not sure if mine worked but my hdd spin and then stops why please a help

[@sjm4306]

Double check your usb connection and if it's enumerating on the computer.

[@JakeobE]

Is there any way to buy an adapter that powers the HDD and allows the data transfer? Is soldering a custom made adapter the only way to do this on a 3.5 inch HDD?

[@sjm4306]

There are usb docks and adapters for 3.5" hdds, but they tend to cost quite a bit more than the mod I've done and if all you have is a 2.5" adapter and you dont want to spend more money or wait for another adapter to arrive then this is just another option.

[@kirkmcintyre5745]

@@sjm4306 My easy work around was that I took an old PSU, shorted it out with a paperclip to keep it running and bought a $3 sata to USB adapter. It allows me to watch shows I download onto a 3.5" hard drive on my TV using the USB port. For my PC I had extra sata connectors I wasn't using so I strung them out through the back of my PC. Now they can power the 3.5" hard drives and again I just use the sata to USB connectors.

[@fadli1987]

Finally someone has test my idea, but I'm still doubt can I use it on my Rpi 2 since, it's use USB 2.0?

[@sjm4306]

It'll work with any usb port since the usb standard is fully backwards compatible. I used a usb 2.0 adapter/port in this video and it works.

[@fadli1987]

@@sjm4306 i tried, unfortunately rpi can't read usb plugged. I check lsusb nothing there. I saw that USB 2.0 only gives 500mA, while my hdd said need 700mA for 5VDC 😭 *Update: Above condition due to i used 2 usb to sata 2 ea on USB, one using SSD and the other is HDD 3.5", maybe RPI couldn't delivery proper current. Buat after I removed the SSD, 3.5" can read perfect!

[@sjm4306]

Yeah sounds like the rpi 5v usb current isn't enough to power the drive. An externally powered usb hub should work in that case.

[@thecrudelab3204]

would it work if you got at sata to sata adapter for your computer coz the hdd is too big to fit on my mother board...

[@sjm4306]

I dont see why that wouldnt work

[@thecrudelab3204]

thanks

[@thecrudelab3204]

wait.. what addapter did u use? like... is there a spicific type of extention cord for different hdd's?

[@sjm4306]

I used a cheap generic usb to 2.5" sata adapter you can find on ebay for around $3. Nothing special about it.

[@k3lc138]

Awesome advice Works well. 10min and done

[@exodbalzac]

Thank you . works perfect !!!

[@tusharsingh7578]

where to connect the black wire if our converter has usb 3?

[@sjm4306]

The ground wire can be connected to the usb input ground or anywhere which connects to that point (use a multimeter in continuity/beep mode to find those points).

[@tusharsingh7578]

thanks mate you are awesome

[@synxc1716]

How about the negative wire (black one)?

[@sjm4306]

It can be soldered to any ground pad (an easy spot to find it is on the metal shell of the usb connector or pad which are visibly connected to the large ground plane that covers the entire pcb.

[@synxc1716]

Can I solder it to the 10,11,12 pins?

[@ameeral-abayechi8758]

The other wire (black) with any wire form 4 color connected?

[@sjm4306]

I'm sorry, I don't quite understand the question?

[@ameeral-abayechi8758]

Ok.i do it thanks 🙏

[@gowtham_12]

How much volt and amp is requires for 3.5" hard disk. Please reply

[@sjm4306]

Every hard drive is slightly different so I cant give you an exact value but luckily the values are written on the label on top of the drive. Usually 12V should be at least ~1.5-2A and 5V should be ~0.5A.

[@gowtham_12]

@@sjm4306 thanks bro

[@gowtham_12]

@@sjm4306 i am gonna buy 12V 2A AC adaptor

[@kvamsidharvamsi5800]

What about another USB (power supply)we want to connect or disconnect after adding 12v ,can you reply

[@sjm4306]

To be safe you should always disconnect the 12v supply first before disconnecting the 5v supply. Likewise always connect 5v before 12v. The reason for this is the 5v is for the controller logic and the 12v is for motor drive/actuation so it could cause catastrophic to have motor drive potential before any of the logic has woken up and initialized. I'm sure there is some safety mechanisms to protect against these types of faults but better safe than sorry.

[@kvamsidharvamsi5800]

sjm4306 thanks for your reply bro , have a nice day

[@kvamsidharvamsi5800]

I thought if we off 12v first the head in hdd can stop there itself know,it doesn't come to initial position

[@kvamsidharvamsi5800]

I removed usb after ejected hdd then automatically disk spinning is off and i reconnected again then disk spins automatically and data is also shown

[@kvamsidharvamsi5800]

Can you reply

[@abod898]

they says hdd Doesn't support hot swap , is that real ? + the connector have some electronics , is that limiting data transfer speeds ? thanks in advance

[@sjm4306]

It's best to always manually safely unmount disks before swapping them. And yes, the usb bridge chip on the adapter board plays a big role in determining max data transfer speeds (the drive specs also affect this).

[@SoftEndy]

My GBA was corroded but I cleaned it. It half way booted up for a little bit but not anything from it now. Do you have any ideas?

[@sjm4306]

Skeebeep Boopeepeep When you say half way boot up what exactly do you mean? Does the gameboy logo appear on the screen, does the Nintendo logo pop up with a cart inserted?

[@SoftEndy]

sjm4306 The Gameboy logo would appear but only halfway. The sound came out as well. Now nothing happens.

[@sjm4306]

Skeebeep Boopeepeep If it won't power on at all try pulling the battery, taking apart the gameboy, and putting a bit of isopropyl alcohol in the power switch and working it back and forth to clean it. Other than than you may need to really get in the cart slot and individually clean the pins.

[@SoftEndy]

sjm4306 ok

[@SoftEndy]

sjm4306 The system still doesn't boot. Do you think cleaning it has fully broken it somehow?

[@jeuno880]

If I do this mod will the bridge still be able to be safely used for 2.5" ??

[@sjm4306]

Yep, the 12v pins on 2.5" drives are not connected to anything so you can just use the bridge without connecting the 12v dc adapter and it'll work like normal

[@jeuno880]

@@sjm4306 thank you very much for the explanation and tutorial