*UPDATE* (Still need help!!!)My Computer is really whacky...PLEASE HELP ME!!!!

[Ronstang]

I have been having PC problems for over a month. The machine got to the point where it would not even POST half the time so I contacted MSI and they replaced my motherboard. While I was waiting I used an ECS K7S5A in the interim. I plugged in my Athlon 1 gig processor and everything worked except it would not recognize any of my 3 CD drives connected to the mobo IDE controller (I use a PCI ATA card for my 4 HDs). The only way it would recognize any CD drives was if there was only one present as master on the #1 IDE channel....adding a second to the #1 channel or any to the #2 channel and none would show up at all and it would take forever to start. It was a temporary solution so just lived with only 1 CD drive for a while.

I also noticed funny happennings with the PCI ATA card....sometimes it would not recognize any HDs and other times it would recognize 1 or maybe 2....sometimes even 3 of my HDs but rarely ever all four. Fiddling around a bit would bmake them all show up eventually and everthing would be fine as long as I didn't mess around inside the machine.

I replaced the 1st ECS K7S5A and all my CD drives showed up fine.....for about 3 days!! Upon a reboot magically the thing recognized NO CD drives again....unplugged all but the Primary Master and everything is cool. Once again, fiddling with my HDs and movig them from one machine to the other and the PCI card is whacky at times.

Now...today....I returned from Florida last night to find my new mobo on the kitchen table. I rebuilt my system using the new mobo and the same processor I have been using in the ECS mobo. Once again the system recognizes no CD drives is all are hooked up....but will recognize 1 if it is primary master. The PCI ATA card has been dong it's little rendition of "now you see it -- now you don't today also. I finally have it seeing all my drives but am not sure what I did. I did switche out the PS but the new one wouldn't come on...took it out and jumped it to test and it works so I put it back in and now it works in the case.

I think this thing is possessed. Sometimes the PS won't turn on...somtimes my HDs aren't recognized...and I can't get it to see but one CD drive now. I am totally stumped. Can my processor be the probelm? I am typing from it now but I still have ony 1 CD drive and I really need access to my DVD drive.

**UPDATE**
Here is the sequence of events I just went thru as a test with the 350W PS:

Added my DVD drive as a primary slave to my Lite-On 32X CD/RW and no drives are now detected on the primary channel of the mobo IDE so I remove the DVD drive and try to restart the system and the following boot attempts:

2 boots with the ATA 100 card not initializing
2 boots all 4 HDs show up and then the system hangs
5 boots with the ATA 100 card not initializing

I unplugged the two HDs on the secondary channel of the PCI ATA 100 card and the system booted up fine, initialized the ATA card and loaded Windows

I then tried to hook all the HDs back up and I got a series of 3 boots where the card was initialized and the last HD was recognized as the wrong size with all kinds of wierd charatcters showing up on the screen and so I just turned the machine off and kept trying.

Fourth time all HDs were recognized correctly and bnow I am typing this message.

--- This is getting stranger than fiction and I am more confused than ever....now remember this problem has migrated from different mobos and PSs now....?




Can anyone help?

Thanks

 

[foofoo]

hi,
it may be helpful to give a complete list of your components.
the thing that comes most often to mind when using the esc board is the power supply. it sounds as if you are running fair amount of components. is it a "good" high wattage brand name ps?
also, you may try running only 1-2 hd and a cdr and see if that is stable. if adding more devices causes problems it is likely the ps.
good luck.

 

[Ronstang]

The PS I was running was an Antec POP-303X. It has worked for quite sometime with all these HDs and all 3 CD drives. I never use all the CD drives at the same time. Right now I have an Antec SmartPower 350 watt in the box but I have not tried to get the CD drives running again. I am no longer using the ECS mobo....I am now using a brand new MSI K7T Turbo2. The crazy thing is the probem has migrated from one motherboard to the other and they are different brands...I tried this 350 Watt PS on the ECS before and it did not settle the problem so I went back to using the 300 watt one. I will try the CD drives again to see if that is fixed as well. The reason I didn't think the PS was the problem was that I have been running this system for months with all this hardware inside:

Athlon 1 gig processor
Originally on a Pro-2A mobo then an ECS K7S5A and now a MSI K7T Turbo2
512 megs of Crucial CAS2 PC133
GeForce 3 Ti 200 - nonoverclocked
Sound Blaster Audigy with live Drive IR
Netgear FA-311 NIC
Maxtor ATA 100 PCI card
Lite-On 32x CD/RW
Lite-On 24X CD/RW
Creative 12X DVD
Maxtor ATA100 46 gig
Maxtor ATA133 40 gig
Western Digital ATA100 120 gig
Western Digital ATA100 60 gig
and a Floppy drive which is never used.....

like I said it has been working fine for quite some time with all this hardware inside but the PS could be going out I guess. I will have to give theis 350W PS a try for a while and see.

 

[Viper96720]

That sure is a lot of drives in there. Could also be the cable. I had a similar problem drive would be found sometimes go reboot and the drive couldn't be found. Ended up being a bad cable.

 

[Ronstang]

I have replaced the cable a while back.....when the problem first appeared but I have been pulling on it so much you never know....I will try that again later....please read the update

 

[Ronstang]

Maybe the night crew has some good ideas.....a new cable on the CD drives had absolutely no affect.....I will try another new cable on the HDs later but my machine is actually working to some degree at the moment so I don't want to mess with it.

 

[foofoo]

hi,
this begins to look like there may be something wrong with the ata card, especially since it migrated from the other computer. have you tried just using the onboard ide and rotating your devices through the onboard ide channels? if they all are recognized and without problems, this may indicate a suspect ata100 card.
also, i have to ask, you do install the drivers for the ata100 card dont you?
good luck

 

[Ronstang]

I have already switched out the ATA card when the problem first apeared....I have 2 Maxtors and 2 SiG and it dind't make a difference at that time....I may try it again. BTW, the drivers don't do squat upon bootup....it is the onboard BIOS that initializes the card, the drivers only have an affect once windows loads and the latest drivers available are already in the XP build I am using.

Thanks for your help.....I am getting really frustrated....logic is not working in this case!!!!!!!!

 

[foofoo]

hi,
one more thing, hopefully it might help. is this problem localized on the chanels that you have your western digital drives on?
i had some problems getting my wd drives recognized and i had to set them with the cable select setting for single drive and master and slave when other drives were present. never had this problem on any other makers drives. if it's localized to chanels with wd drives on them, this might be it
good luck, this seems like one to drive you crazy.

 

[Ronstang]

Each channel has one WD and one Maxtor drive on it...not by design it just happened that way. I sometimes have problems with both channels...like right now my WD 120 isn't available on the primary channel and before the entire secondary channel wasn't available. I don't use cable select. Each drive is set to it's particular designation thru the jumpers and I have double checked those jumpers also.

 

[kursplat]

i just got done with a very similar problem (drives on a ATA100 card would disaper , wouldn't see all the IDE devices at times , ect) new power supply (antec350w) took care of it.
good luck

 

[Ronstang]

I am on a brand new Antec SmartPower 350W PS...and the problem still persists just like with the 300W PS and it didn't correct the fact that I can only have one CD drive connected to the mobo IDE channels at one time.

 

[Ronstang]

Any ideas from the morning crew?