VERY weird problem... PLEASE HELP

[LaValva]

ok, here we go... i'm gonna skip the beginning of why i was working on my friend's comp, and get right to the current problem. whenever i plug the secondary MASTER cable into either the dvd or cdrw, they die. they just stop working. there is no os on this computer yet. if i close the cd drive and plug in the cable, it stops right where it is, and once i unplug it, it finishes closing and the lights begin flashing again. once that ide cable is in the drive, it quits. the slave works fine and i've tried another cable. i don't know what to do, because i need to boot from this cd-rom drive. PLEASE HELP!

 

[Thalasi]

Hmmm, silly question but are you sure the slave is actually set to slave?
How 'bout trying to set your current secondary slave to master and the cd-rom to slave.

Anyone else got any ideas?

 

[LaValva]

yeah it's set to slave, i've tried another cdrom on the master and it doesn't work... the slave works fine

 

[LordAccord]

So let me get this straight... you are plugging / unplugging the cable while the computer is on? That possibly could be your problem

LoRdAccord

 

[dkozloski]

It sounds to me like you have the cable swapped end for end or one end flipped over. In rare cases the cable can be keyed wrong. The stripe on the cable edge should be at the pin one end of the connector. The blue end plugs into the motherboard.

 

[Alphazero]

<< So let me get this straight... you are plugging / unplugging the cable while the computer is on? That possibly could be your problem

>>



I agree. Go ahead and set everything up normally, paying attention to jumpers. Install the OS, and call us in the morning if symptoms persist.

 

[LaValva]

i tried setting everything up normally, thats when i noticed the problem with the cdrom. the cable is hooked up correctly.

 

[Pederv]

If you are using and 80 conductor cable (ATA66/100/133), have you tried setting the jumper on the cdrom to CABLE SELECT?

 

[LaValva]

 

[Pederv]

Does it act like this with only the CD drives? Have you tried making a hard drive master?
Could you possibly have a standoff under the IDE controller/ connector? I've known the floppy drive not to work because of that.

 

[BatmanNate]

Perhaps I am misunderstanding you, but what do you mean "Master" cable? There are two CHANNELS, the primary and the secondary, and to each is plugged in a single cable. The jumpers on the drive denote whether it is a master or a slave, not the port you plug it in on the cable itself. Also, unplugging and replugging cables while the computer is powered up is NOT a good idea. If there truly is a problem with one of your controllers, it was likely caused by you doing something like that. :Q

Another possibility is that you have the CDROM plugged in to a tertiary controller of some sort, like an onboard promise card, that does not support removable read only media or optical drives without the presence of a harddrive on the channel. (My old promise card was like this) And remember, the red stripe on the cable should face the molex plug on the drive, assuming the cable is in the motherboard correctly. Good luck!

 

[LaValva]

i mean the master on the secondary IDE. not the slave, the MASTER. i noticed this problem before unplugging the cd-rom drive. i just want to remind you that the slave drive works on the secondary, just not the master.

 

[LordAccord]

Did you read Batman Nates post?????

what do you mean "Master" cable?

You mean the drive that is SET TO MASTER... if you have 2 drives with the same jumper setting only one will show up more than likely if any. And you have tested each of the drives and determine that they work when they are slave?

Could it be an electrical problem with the cable? a wire crossed at one end.,.,..have you tried a different cable or have you tried the same setup on the PRIMARY channel to see if its the SECOND channel causing the problem....

It seems like you just expect a magic answer, have you actually tried / examined any of the suggestions?

Don't mean to sound like an a-hole, I am just trying to help...
LoRdAccord

 

[LaValva]

like i said, i have tried a different cable, i have tried all the jumper settings, i have tried another drive. i have tried everything everyone has posted about 5 times. i am just getting so frustrated because i hate not being able to take care of something myself... thanks for all your help, is there anything else i can try?