WD caviar black 500 gb 3.5" spinning issue

solarwills

Junior Member
Feb 23, 2015
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0
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Hi,

So I wanted to format this new HD before installing it in my PC so I plugged it to a sata-usb adaptor.
The light on the adaptor is turning on, but the hd isn't spinning at all.

I read that this could mean it is defective. Anything I could try? I've heard about freezing it, but I'm not sure I really want to try that, lol.

I bought this on ebay and I don't want to leave bad feedback without be assured that it's indeed defective.

Thanks
 
Feb 25, 2011
16,777
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SATA-USB adapter could also be at fault. Try installing the drive in the computer and formatting it from there.

A lot of those adapters are intended for 2.5" HDDs and don't provide enough power for 3.5" drives without an additional power adapter. (I see that mistake a lot.)
 

solarwills

Junior Member
Feb 23, 2015
17
0
66
Hi dave, thanks for your answer!

That adapter is a vantech and it's marketed as being compatible with 2.5 and 3.5's. There's a dedicated power cable with it, so the HD isn't only powered by usb. Could that still be the problem? Last time I tried it with an other disk and it was working fine.

I'd do as you say and format the drive directly from the computer, but I'm replacing my C drive, meaning that I won't be able to enter the OS. Can I format it from the boot menu or something like that?
 

solarwills

Junior Member
Feb 23, 2015
17
0
66
Ok so I looked into Dban to format it directly from the BIOS. In the meanwhile, if anyone has some tips/advice, I'll gladly take them. Thanks!
 
Feb 25, 2011
16,777
1,466
126
Hi dave, thanks for your answer!

That adapter is a vantech and it's marketed as being compatible with 2.5 and 3.5's. There's a dedicated power cable with it, so the HD isn't only powered by usb. Could that still be the problem? Last time I tried it with an other disk and it was working fine.

I'd do as you say and format the drive directly from the computer, but I'm replacing my C drive, meaning that I won't be able to enter the OS. Can I format it from the boot menu or something like that?
Your computer doesn't have a spare slot to hold two HDDs at once?
 

corkyg

Elite Member | Peripherals
Super Moderator
Mar 4, 2000
27,370
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Echo what Dave said. I can't imagine a PC with only one SATA port.

BTW, what does the adapter power cable connect to?
 

UsandThem

Elite Member
May 4, 2000
16,068
7,380
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If it's anything like when I hook up a new SSD using a USB cable when cloning, I have to manually go into 'disk management', and mark it as 'online' (it's in the grey box where disk 0 and CD-ROM are listed, and to the left of where the individual partitions would show). After that, I can format, create partitions, and Windows can actually see it.

It's been a while since I used a spinning disk, so I am not 100% sure if this would work or not
 

solarwills

Junior Member
Feb 23, 2015
17
0
66
Hi again,

Yeah my PC does have an other SATA port, the thing I forgot to mention is that the HD that's currently in the comp is starting to die (see my last thread on this forum) and it might be a pain to try to format the new HD through it. That's why I was looking into formating right at booting.

Corkyg, the power cable is connected to a 5v 2A power supply.

I'll look into that disk management thing see if it helps, thank you UsandThem.
 
Feb 25, 2011
16,777
1,466
126
Hi again,

Yeah my PC does have an other SATA port, the thing I forgot to mention is that the HD that's currently in the comp is starting to die (see my last thread on this forum) and it might be a pain to try to format the new HD through it. That's why I was looking into formating right at booting.

Corkyg, the power cable is connected to a 5v 2A power supply.

I'll look into that disk management thing see if it helps, thank you UsandThem.
5v? That won't work. Must be a laptop dock.

3.5" drives need 12v, 2A+
 

solarwills

Junior Member
Feb 23, 2015
17
0
66
Hi all. So the HD is installed and running. Pretty crazy that it's written on the adapter box that it's supposed to work with 3.5" drives yet it doesn't provide enough voltage!

Thanks for the help, you guys rule!