Assembly Process: Step 5 - Installing the CD/DVD Drive

Installing the Optical Drive

For this final installation step, we need:

The optical drive
2 CD drive screws (short with many thin threads, also have a head that appears to have an integrated washer)
The secondary connector on the IDE cable
Our trusty screwdriver

Let’s start by checking the jumper settings on the rear of this drive. According to the diagram above the jumper, shorting the middle pair of pins with the jumper will make this drive a slave. The jumper is already set here, so no change is needed.

We can install the drive in a 5.25” bay as soon as we clear the way. Since the secondary connector on the IDE cable will only easily reach to the bottom bay, our decision is already made for us. Peering inside, you may notice some annoying metal plates blocking the bottom 3 bays. Let’s remove the one from the bottom so we can install our drive here. Simply twist the plate back and forth and it will easily break free. Be careful to not cut yourself on the sharp metal. You can toss this piece of metal in the same pile you threw the old I/O panel.

Now we can remove the plastic bay cover. The sides of each of these bay covers are locked onto the front panel by plastic clips. Simply unclip one side and the other should follow without any effort. You can do away with this piece or keep it. You’ll probably never use it again unless you remove the drive from the computer, but if you’re like me, you’ll have half a dozen in a box anyway.

We are finally ready to install the drive. Insert the drive, back-end first, from the outside of the computer until it is flush with the rest of the front panel. Fasten it down with a pair of those CD drive screws in opposite corners. As with the hard drive, if you’re planning on transporting the computer often, it’s not a bad idea to lock down the other side with another pair of screws.

Let’s connect the final component in our system! The layout is similar to that of the hard drive, so connect the keyed 40-pin connector in the only direction it will go. You may have to twist the cable, which is just fine. Connect a 4-pin Molex power connector the same way you connected one to the hard drive.

Finally, connect the IDE cable to the slot labeled IDE 1 by the motherboard manual. It happens to be the blue slot on this motherboard. I recommend developing the good habit of tucking away the excess cable since it’s very restrictive to the airflow if left to roam in the middle of the case.