New Orleans Novice wrote:
> Hi ,
>
> Can you disconnect the 2nd data cable from the CD Rom and connect a 2nd HD
> to it?
>
> How is the speed and reliability of the CPU and the DATA cable affected by
> using one HD or using 2 HD's?
>
> How would you connect the average XP home PC to work with heavy duty Multi
> Media Video, etc. with 1 or more DATA cables and 1 or more HD's?
>
> Regards,
>
> Novice in New Orleans, Louisiana, Enjoy Your Gumbo
> XP Home ; Presario 2.6 ; 1GIG RAM
>
>
This is a long read, but you'll be a better person if you finish it.
http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/ide/conf.htm
The best data cables, are the ones with 80 wires (thinner wire).
The connector on the end of the cable should be populated first,
for signal integrity reasons. Placing a single drive on the middle
connector, means the end connector is a giant stub. And the
reflections upset the data and mean the transferred data can
be corrupted. That is why a single drive, goes on the end of the
80 wire cable.
The transfer rates of the two drives on the cable, for modern devices,
are independent of one another.
Obviously, if two drives are on the same cable, the computer
can only talk to one drive at a time. Consult the above guide,
for more comments on the subject of sharing the cable.
Paul