I would like to add additional drives to my hp media center. Their tech tells me i cannot. I currently have two. I have an open drive bay that i could convert to 3.5 and install one and i have an external media bay that i would like to convert if possible.
The motherboard spec sheet says:
Motherboard description Motherboard manufacturer's name: ECS MCP61PM-HM
HP/Compaq name: Nettle2-GL8E
CPU/Processor Socket: AM2
Supports the following processors:
Athlon 64 X2 with Dual Core technology up to 5600+ (up to 89 watt)
Athlon 64 less than 4000+
Sempron less than 3800+
Front-side bus (FSB) 2000MT/s (2.0 GT/s)
Chipset NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
BIOS features System BIOS core brand: Award
Keyboard combination to used to enter BIOS: F10
Form factor Micro-ATX: 9.6 in X 9.6 in
Memory Dual channel memory architecture
Four 240-pin DDR2 DIMM sockets
Supported DIMM types:
PC2-4200 (533 MHz)
PC2-5300 (667 MHz)
PC2-6400 (800 MHz)
Non-ECC memory only, unbuffered
Supports 2GB DDR2 DIMMs
Supports up to 8 GB on 64 bit PCs
Supports up to 4 GB* on 32 bit PCs
NOTE: *Actual available memory may be less.
Expansion slots Two PCI
One PCI Express x16 graphics (for a graphics card)
One PCI Express x1 (for cards such as network, sound, tv-tuner)
Video graphics Integrated graphics using nVidia GeForce 6150SE
Uses up to 256MB of PC memory (with 512MB or more total PC memory)
Also supports PCI Express x16 graphics cards*
NOTE: *Either integrated graphics or the PCI Express x16 slot are usable at one time; they are not usable concurrently.
Parallel ATA One 40-pin UltraDMA 100/66/33 connector
Supports PIO, multi-word DMA modes
Supports two PATA disk drives on one PATA ribbon cable (two drives total)
Serial ATA Four SATA connectors:
SATA1 = Black
SATA2 = White
SATA3 = Blue
SATA4 = Yellow
Supports 1 SATA-150 or SATA-300 disk drive on each SATA connector
Speed up to 1.5Gb/sec or 3.0Gb/sec, complying with SATA 1.0 and SATA 2.0 specifications
NOTE: The faster rate of 3.0Gb/sec requires that both the hard drive and the motherboard support it. If one or the other does not support 3.0 Gb/sec, the PC negotiates down to the slower 1.5 Gb/sec.
RAID Some Nettle2 models ship with RAID (model dependent)
nVidia's onboard RAID solution is called nVidia MediaShield Storage
RAID modes supported*:
RAID 0
RAID 1
NOTE: RAID 5 and 10 are not supported by this motherboard.
Onboard audio 8 channel high-definition audio
Audio CODEC: ALC888S
Onboard LAN PCI Realtek RTL8201N 10/100Mbps
Onboard USB USB 2.0
Ten ports total
Four connectors on back panel
Four headers on motherboard support 6 additional ports/devices
NOTE: Some USB ports may not be available externally for customer use. For more information, see model specifications.
Onboard 1394 Type: IEEE 1394a 400Mb/s
VIA VT6307 controller chip
Two ports total
One port on back panel
One header on motherboard supporting one additional port/device
Back panel I/0 One PS/2 mouse port (green)
One PS/2 keyboard port (purple)
One Coaxial SPDIF out port
One VGA port
Four USB 2.0
One IEEE 1394a
One RJ-45 networking port
Six audio ports support 8-channel audio:
Line-in (light blue)
Microphone-in (pink)
Line-out (lime)
Center/Subwoofer-out (yellow-orange)
Side speaker-out (gray)
Rear speaker-out (black)
Internal connectors One 24-pin ATX power connector
One 4-pin ATX power connector
One PATA connector
Four SATA connectors
One floppy drive connector
Two 12v fan connectors for CPU fan and PC fan
One 9-pin header for power button, reset button, power LED, and HDD LED
One SPDIF digital audio output header
One front line input connector (interrupts line input on back panel, Vista capable, requires matching front audio jack module)
One 9-pin audio header for headphone-out and microphone-in (yellow, Vista capable, requires matching front audio jack module)
Four USB headers supporting 6 additional USB 2.0 ports or devices
One 1394a header
One Intel high-definition Audio/Modem Link (not used by HP)
One jumper for resetting BIOS settings
One jumper to disable BIOS password checking
but the tech tells me i cannot install more than two because the motherboard will not support it and it would make the system very slow. WTF, the specs say it does support it. Can i add two more drives for a total of four? Can i run a raid configuration?
The motherboard spec sheet says:
Motherboard description Motherboard manufacturer's name: ECS MCP61PM-HM
HP/Compaq name: Nettle2-GL8E
CPU/Processor Socket: AM2
Supports the following processors:
Athlon 64 X2 with Dual Core technology up to 5600+ (up to 89 watt)
Athlon 64 less than 4000+
Sempron less than 3800+
Front-side bus (FSB) 2000MT/s (2.0 GT/s)
Chipset NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
BIOS features System BIOS core brand: Award
Keyboard combination to used to enter BIOS: F10
Form factor Micro-ATX: 9.6 in X 9.6 in
Memory Dual channel memory architecture
Four 240-pin DDR2 DIMM sockets
Supported DIMM types:
PC2-4200 (533 MHz)
PC2-5300 (667 MHz)
PC2-6400 (800 MHz)
Non-ECC memory only, unbuffered
Supports 2GB DDR2 DIMMs
Supports up to 8 GB on 64 bit PCs
Supports up to 4 GB* on 32 bit PCs
NOTE: *Actual available memory may be less.
Expansion slots Two PCI
One PCI Express x16 graphics (for a graphics card)
One PCI Express x1 (for cards such as network, sound, tv-tuner)
Video graphics Integrated graphics using nVidia GeForce 6150SE
Uses up to 256MB of PC memory (with 512MB or more total PC memory)
Also supports PCI Express x16 graphics cards*
NOTE: *Either integrated graphics or the PCI Express x16 slot are usable at one time; they are not usable concurrently.
Parallel ATA One 40-pin UltraDMA 100/66/33 connector
Supports PIO, multi-word DMA modes
Supports two PATA disk drives on one PATA ribbon cable (two drives total)
Serial ATA Four SATA connectors:
SATA1 = Black
SATA2 = White
SATA3 = Blue
SATA4 = Yellow
Supports 1 SATA-150 or SATA-300 disk drive on each SATA connector
Speed up to 1.5Gb/sec or 3.0Gb/sec, complying with SATA 1.0 and SATA 2.0 specifications
NOTE: The faster rate of 3.0Gb/sec requires that both the hard drive and the motherboard support it. If one or the other does not support 3.0 Gb/sec, the PC negotiates down to the slower 1.5 Gb/sec.
RAID Some Nettle2 models ship with RAID (model dependent)
nVidia's onboard RAID solution is called nVidia MediaShield Storage
RAID modes supported*:
RAID 0
RAID 1
NOTE: RAID 5 and 10 are not supported by this motherboard.
Onboard audio 8 channel high-definition audio
Audio CODEC: ALC888S
Onboard LAN PCI Realtek RTL8201N 10/100Mbps
Onboard USB USB 2.0
Ten ports total
Four connectors on back panel
Four headers on motherboard support 6 additional ports/devices
NOTE: Some USB ports may not be available externally for customer use. For more information, see model specifications.
Onboard 1394 Type: IEEE 1394a 400Mb/s
VIA VT6307 controller chip
Two ports total
One port on back panel
One header on motherboard supporting one additional port/device
Back panel I/0 One PS/2 mouse port (green)
One PS/2 keyboard port (purple)
One Coaxial SPDIF out port
One VGA port
Four USB 2.0
One IEEE 1394a
One RJ-45 networking port
Six audio ports support 8-channel audio:
Line-in (light blue)
Microphone-in (pink)
Line-out (lime)
Center/Subwoofer-out (yellow-orange)
Side speaker-out (gray)
Rear speaker-out (black)
Internal connectors One 24-pin ATX power connector
One 4-pin ATX power connector
One PATA connector
Four SATA connectors
One floppy drive connector
Two 12v fan connectors for CPU fan and PC fan
One 9-pin header for power button, reset button, power LED, and HDD LED
One SPDIF digital audio output header
One front line input connector (interrupts line input on back panel, Vista capable, requires matching front audio jack module)
One 9-pin audio header for headphone-out and microphone-in (yellow, Vista capable, requires matching front audio jack module)
Four USB headers supporting 6 additional USB 2.0 ports or devices
One 1394a header
One Intel high-definition Audio/Modem Link (not used by HP)
One jumper for resetting BIOS settings
One jumper to disable BIOS password checking
but the tech tells me i cannot install more than two because the motherboard will not support it and it would make the system very slow. WTF, the specs say it does support it. Can i add two more drives for a total of four? Can i run a raid configuration?
