MrBenn

I found it on eBay. I thought it would fit ok but actually it's just a little bit too big unfortunately. However, having found the service manual for the unit (if you Google for 'NW-HD5 diagram' you'll find it too) I now have all the circuit diagrams which include the pinouts for the Sony ZIF to CF ZIF adapter. Once I have found the corresponding pinouts for the HDD ZIF, it should be possible to create an adaptor which directly connects the Sony ZIF to the HDD ZIF without an intermediate adaptor. I'll report back once I've made some progress, but it'll be a few weeks before I can look at it again as I'm about to move home. Why? The front panel button assembly is simply glued to the case with double-sided sticky tape. It was easy to prise this off the case and remove it. The whole (very simple!) button assembly then comes apart and the ribbon cable can be extracted. After a few twists and turns I found a Sony consumer goods parts supplier. They are called Seme NEDIS and you can call them on 0870 850 8501 (they have a web site - or a domain name at least - but it seems to be broken). They have been incredibly helpful so far and they're busy tracking down this unusual parts request for me.

Hi All, I am ready to attempt upgrading my NW-HD5 hard drive with a 60GB version (Toshiba MK6028GAL 71mm x 54mm x 5mm from Span). I found an adaptor to convert the ATA-50 connector to ZIF-40 and it looks like it will all fit ok as the new hard drive is slightly shorted than the original (it's tight though!). BUT I have unfortunately torn the ribbon cable from the button panel so I can't switch the unit on to test it. I have searched the web in vain for a spare and can't even find a broken unit on eBay. Can anyone point me in the direction of a spares supplier or perhaps one of you has a broken player we can do a deal on? If I can find the part I'll definitely publish the procedure, assuming it works.