Anyone have a VAIO desktop?

[iivtecracerii]

anyone have a vaio rx-series desktop and know how to take out the cd-rom drives? i got a new cd burner and i dont know how to take out the old cd-rom

[tim.s]

I do (have a Vaio)...but I don't...(know how to remove the drive for certain). Do you have one of the models that has the flip down cover when the drive ejects? I don't, but one drive bay is a bit taller than the other - so I don't know how well mine would upgrade either.

I'd suggest the standard approach:
- power down
- disconnect all cables
- remove the side access panel (mine has the thumb tabs for easy removal)
- locate the drive to be removed
- mark or make note of the cables connected to it
- make sure your new drive matches
- disconnect the drive cables
- unbolt the old drive and remove
(reverse for new drive)

[iivtecracerii]

nope, i have the one thats silver and lavender without the flip down covers.

the main problem is the other side panel doesnt come off easily (i assume its similarly attatched to the metal like the top panel...) that means you cant get to the other two screws that bolt down the drive.

supposedly, the drive cage that houses the cdrom drives can slide back, then you can lift it up. i cant seem to get it to budge

you'd think sony would make these a lot more upgrade friendly, with the tool-less side panel removal and all. i just did a hard drive upgrade and that drive cage lifted right out after pulling on a tab...why cant the optical drives be the same

[tim.s]

You shold try looking around this Vaio forum. You might find something specific about your model or the model series.

[iivtecracerii]

i figured it out.
just FYI if you or anyone with a VAIO wants to upgrade optical drives...

1) remove top cover. theres 2 tabs on the back of the PC. press the tabs up and pull the top cover towards the back. it will slide back and you can lift it up.

2) disconnect the IDE and power cables from the drives

3) take a flathead screw driver and insert it inthe space between the chassis and the drive cage (see pic..), then twist. the entire drive cage will move back a little, and it should now be easy to slide it all the way back and lift it up and out.

4) take old drive(s) out and put new drive(s) in

5) reverse steps 1-3

turns out the drives are only attatched with 2 screws each.

[iivtecracerii]

shot of the drive cage

[jay]

Originally posted by iivtecracerii
shot of the drive cage

Great pictures. We love pictures! Thanks for sharing, as it may help some poor soul in the future.

[iivtecracerii]

note that the end result will be something like this, unless you find some way to graft on the sony faceplate. i taped mine on so it looks completely stock

52X burn rocks! i can burn a CD in about 2 mins, vs 30+ mins with the DVD-RW (8x cd burn) shown below...