HDD Install Problem

[olds]

I purchased a RMA'd hdd from the FS/T forum to put in a machine I am building. The machine POSTed and when I went to install XP it said that no hdd was found. I restarted and hit F6 to install SCSI/RAID drivers and got the same message.
I took the hdd out and put it in my machine (also XP) as secondary master. I was going to format it and try it in the first machine again. My machine started booting and would go no further than the screen that shows hdd info. My primary hdd and the Maxtor were listed with the Maxtor as the secondary master. But the machine just freezes up at this point. It won't finish booting. I tried to boot to a floppy with Maxtor's' utility on it but it freezes at the same screen. There is a sticker on the hdd that says "Replace With COMPAQ Spare" on it. Do you know if hdds can be "branded" to specific machines/BIOS'?
MSI 6340 mobo
XP Pro
256 MB 133
EDIT
I just put in a generic hdd I have for a backup in place of the Maxtor and I would have been able to install windows but I canceled it. It wouldn't seem to be a controller issue.

I tried in in the 2 machines with a total of 3 different cables. It shows when posting/detecting ide channels on both machines. It is listed as "MaxtorARES C64K VAM52JB2". In the machine I am building, I get to the windows install then it tells me no hdd is detected. That sounds like a controller or hdd problem. When I put it in my main machine it is listed during post but hangs right there.

 

[Zepper]

Make sure the drive is jumpered properly. A lot of OEM drives are jumpered for CS (Cable Select). The drive would then have to be connected to the right kind of cable to work properly. All 80-wire/40-pin cables are 'supposed' to be CS cables with Primary (Mast) on the end and Secondary (Slv) in the middle. The blue end plugs into the mobo. Set the drive(s) to Mast/Slv, then neither the position on the cable nor the type of cable matters, though it is customary to put Mast on the end and Slv in the middle. Some 40-wire/40-pin cables can be CS cables too (usually found in big name machines - Dell, Cpq etc.), they are usually marked as to which connector is for which drive and the mobo connector. Good luck.
..bh.

 

[olds]

I am using single device, ATA 100 cables. Blue connector to mobo, black to hdd. I tried 3 different cables and put the hdd into 2 different machines. I tried both master and cable select. Any hdd I put into the new machine works except this one. That leads me to believe it isn't a controller issue.
I looked over Maxtor's site and see no special info on setting up the hdd. I tried running Maxtor's utility on it but I can't even boot to a floopy. At this point, I have to assume the hdd is bad.
Thanks for the input.

 

[compudog]

Sounds to me like you tried every possible configuration, and I would also have to assume that the drive is toast. Being that it was sold by Maxtor to Compaq, you may not be able to RMA it to Maxtor. I don't think that any drive manufacturer actually makes drives that will only work in a specific brand of machine. I have seen Compaq, Gateway and Dells that have had Maxtor, WD and IBM drives.

 

[tennesota]

Originally posted by: compudog
Sounds to me like you tried every possible configuration, and I would also have to assume that the drive is toast. Being that it was sold by Maxtor to Compaq, you may not be able to RMA it to Maxtor. I don't think that any drive manufacturer actually makes drives that will only work in a specific brand of machine. I have seen Compaq, Gateway and Dells that have had Maxtor, WD and IBM drives.

I agree that you probably cannot RMA a Compaq drive.

Originally posted by: oldsmoboat
I am using single device, ATA 100 cables. Blue connector to mobo, black to hdd. I tried 3 different cables and put the hdd into 2 different machines. I tried both master and cable select. Any hdd I put into the new machine works except this one. That leads me to believe it isn't a controller issue.
I looked over Maxtor's site and see no special info on setting up the hdd. I tried running Maxtor's utility on it but I can't even boot to a floopy. At this point, I have to assume the hdd is bad.
Thanks for the input.

Chris, have you searched for specs on the drive? I know from my own experience that Compaq drive numbers may not show up on Maxtor's web site. I'm curious if the drive might be detected in BIOS with a 40 pin cable vs. 80 pin.

 

[olds]

It appears to be a new line of drives, Fireball 3 and is ATA 133. I only tried 80 pin cables. I shipped it back to the seller and he is going to RMA it for me. Seeing as how it wouldn't work in either machine and other hdds worked in both, I just have to assume that it is bad.
Thanks for the input.