PowerMac G4 MDD - Powering SATA HDD

[bocktacular]

Hello! First time posting in this forum. Hoping that someone might have advice or insight on a project with my PowerMac G4 MDD. Complicated question about powering SATA HDDs.

I recently unearthed this machine from my closet - I purchased it back in 2003 and it has sat largely dormant for about decade. I’ve cleaned out the dust and booted the machine - it seems to work pretty well. Obviously boots. Fans are loud, as is characteristic of "wind tunnel" machines." I have tested it as a file server on my network with no issues. Because of the limitations of ATA/IDE, it really isn’t super useful as any kind of file server in terms of storage.

I recently purchased a Firmtek 1v4 SATA PCI card for the machine (arrived yesterday, haven't yet opened) with the intent to add some larger capacity SATA hard drives. My current obstacle is powering the hard drives, because - as far as I can tell - the card doesn’t power the drives - it only allows for the data transfer.

I have been reading about the potential fire safety hazards of using Molex to SATA adapters to power SATA drives (as the saying goes “Molex to SATA, lose all your data”). Understanding the safety risks as well as the cabling spaghetti nightmare from having four SATA drives, I would really like to avoid this scenario.

• An example of what people are saying about the hazards of Molex to SATA Adapters (there are a number of other stories, Youtube videos, articles, etc. written about this) -

My thought at the moment is taking the current molex power cable chains for the hard drives that each have the two female 4-pin molex connectors (e.g., the connectors that are labeled P4 and P5 on the ends) and carefully adding two “push-in” inline SATA connectors to the chain. I also plan on leaving the molex connectors attached, in case I would need to connect an ATA/IDE drive (I suppose I could also just cut them off entirely).

• I would be using these types of connectors
• I would be following this process (but leaving the original 4-pin molex connectors at the end)
• Here's a photo of my current machine to further illustrate what I am thinking about:

What I observe about the current molex connectors that Apple installed is that they also of the "push-in" type, which I find fascinating as I have researched this process - they are the same type that is used in the video above, but for molex instead of SATA.

I’m not intending to add more drives to the chain - I would still only have two drives in each bay. I would just be adding the SATA connectors to draw the necessary power from the molex cables for the drives. The original molex connectors would just be sitting disconnected in the computer, like they would normally if hard drives weren’t attached to them.

So, I am really just asking for thoughts, expertise, and experience on this subject. Some questions I have:

• If properly done, do you think this is safe? Is this something that could be done? Has anyone tried this?
• Those who have installed SATA HDDs in older PowerMacs with Molex connectors, what have you done to address the issue of powering the SATA drives?
• Are there other solutions besides these?

I appreciate any thoughts. Thank you!

 

[eyoungren]

I've used Molex to SATA adapters for years. Never had any issues, never lost any data.

Currently doing that now on a G4/500. No problems.

Don't know what to say in regards to what you linked concerning this, but the 'saying' you mentioned is the very first time I've ever heard of that. My experience entirely discounts it.

But again, just my experience.

 

[1042686]

I too am using them in multiple machines without issue. Never had a problem with them.

 

[weckart]

I wouldn't necessarily discount the anecdotes on your Reddit link out of hand. They seem soberly written and credible with explanations as to how the shorting occurs. Personally, I have had the same experience as RhianB and eyoungren. Never had a short and this is the first time I have heard that Molex to SATA adapters are a fire risk.

The only thing I can suggest is to look at the quality and layout of the cables going into the SATA connector. If they seem a bit bunched or twisted then maybe choose another brand. Most adapters seem to have moulded connectors so unless you want to crimp your own you are going to have to trust someone else's work. If you have a multimeter and a steady hand, you can plug in the adapter and test the output at the SATA pin ends to check for any discrepancies from the pin out schematics. That should detect any shorting en route.