Swapped PCB - drive spins up , not recognized. BIOS issue?

[kcroy]

I cannot say thank you enough for the education and help I received on this forum.

They swapped out the main IC (very quickly - they have machinery for it I think ) - drive is working and I am backing up files.

Next step: Putting together a real back up process!

[pcimage]

That is surprisingly good news, but good news nonetheless!!

Glad it worked out for you!!!

[fzabkar]

3. On the other hand, $1500 for a pcb swap (in the event preamp is ok) is outrageous. So is $800+parts.

A PCB swap, including a free "PCB adaptation service", should cost no more than US$50.

See http://www.donordrives.com/services

$50 is ridiculous, unless the person you are getting it from is not planning to stay in business for long.

$50 is a perfectly sensible price for someone who is in the business of selling PCBs. In fact for every board that is sold to a DR company, there must be 100 that are sold, or could potentially be sold, to end users. IMO, a vendor whose business model incorporates a comprehensive PCB "adaptation" service is destined to become the premier supplier to the industry. My mailbox is full of requests for help in locating appropriate suppliers of HDD repair and data recovery services. Until now I have been recommending two other suppliers (http://www.onepcbsolution.com and http://www.hdd-parts.com), both of whom have received positive feedback from end users. Nowadays I recommend all three, and not just on this storage forum. AISI, good service advertises itself, and word quickly gets around, especially on the Internet. No need for spam. Fake testimonials are easily spotted. For example, some inept spammer recently advertised a physically damaged PCB for sale at Seagate's forum. Coincidentally (?) the OP in that thread also had a physically damaged PCB.

[kcroy]

That is surprisingly good news, but good news nonetheless!!

Glad it worked out for you!!!

yes I was lucky, in all 3 cases the damage was only to the PCB, and not the preamp.

[kcroy]

That is surprisingly good news, but good news nonetheless!!

Glad it worked out for you!!!

Thanks!

Is there anything I can do to prevent a surge from the PSU damaging my drives in the future?

[northwind]

Yes buy a decent PSU and use a UPS.

[kcroy]

I had a decent PSU (Thermaltake Toughpower 750) and a surge protector... I assume the surge came FROM the PSU. Would a UPS have helped in this case?

Should I have some sort of inline protection between my PSU and my drives?