Device:
Western Digital 1TB
Model WD10EADS-00L5B1
PCB: 2060-701590-000 REV A

Current Status:
Dead and Over Heating when it is connected

Scenario:
after a normal Shutdown for the PC The Hard disk has been connected to a PCI-E 6 pin port instead of the Normal 5 pin Port in the PSU, and on turning on the PC the Hard Disk didn't Work.

inspection and Investigation:
I swapped the Cables and connected the Hard disk to the right cable and it didn't work too, and on taking the drive out of the chase I smelled the board like it is fired. and it was over heated.and on taking off the PCB I saw that the SMOOTH CHIP is Damged from the two Sides that are facing the MCU CHIP.

Image:

you will see the damaged Smooth IC in the picture and for better resolution check this link http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/5591/4p5n.jpg

Things Done Till Now:
I take the Drive to a local Engineer here and he swapped the PCB but I couldn't hear the drive at all and I figured out that he even didn't feel the hard is working as he tried to out hear ear on the drive to hear it but nothing. then he took the PCB off and told me that it is an internal issue.

Online search:
I have Googled a lot and read to many similar topics here in the Forum; as I need the DATA on my Hard Drive back. and all what I found is that similar issue has been solved. i don't understand exactly how they managed to get it solved. I do believe that as long it is an Electrical Damged thin my Data on the platters are safe as I never dropped the drive and it was Normally switched off. also as my driver was made on May 2009 I do believe that there is a very low cost things that can protect the HDD circuit. or things that sacrifice them selves to protect the important things inside.

Sorry for taking to long to reach to this line but i wanted to clarify the situation:
I'm searching for the experts here who have faced similar cases and what is your advises guys and how can I figure out if the Motor and Heads are working. waiting to read from you on this Thread.

Did the engineer swap the pcb with same type of the original one?
2060-701590

Also, is he sure that the donor pcb is good?
Maybe donor pcb is not the same type, or maybe has been damaged by an electrostatic discharge (sometimes happens when you touch some sensitive components with fingers).

If there really is an internal problem (assuming that the pcb is suitable and in good condition), I would expect at least some slight noise as biping or buzzing, but if there is any sound most likely the donor pcb is not working.

_________________
My firmware database:
https://mega.nz/folder/O01DkBRI

Thank you for your reply, actually I'm not sure about the whole serial of the board ... but i'm sure that it was a working 1590 as he took it of from a working device.... so lets say yes he know what he was doing and he used the right working PCB.

What do you suggest that might cause the drive to be silent that far ? Does the preAmp cause this symptoms ?! Isn't there any method to test the preAmp externally without causing a further damage to the hdd?!

The damage to the SMOOTH motor controller is on the side that controls the Vcore regulator and the negative supply for the preamp. This suggests that there may have been an overvoltage on the +5V supply rail. To confirm this, check the resistances of the two TVS diodes (D4 and D3), and resistors R67 and R64, near the SATA power connector.

See http://www.users.on.net/~fzabkar/HDD/bi ... diodes.jpg

You will probably find that D3 is shorted and R67 is open circuit.

To test whether the preamp is shorted, place a business card between the HDA and the HDA contacts on the PCB (20-pin J1). If the drive now spins up, then the preamp is dead.

If the drive still doesn't spin, then it may be because your board is one of those where the MCU needs to detect a preamp as part of its POST. In this case we will need to measure the resistance between ground and each of the preamp's supply pins. Let us know if you get to this point.

_________________
A backup a day keeps DR away.

I'm not a pro but i have a bit of experience in hard drives recovery with faulty pcb and firmware issue.
As i know if the drive it totally silent the problem 99,9% is on faulty pcb or maybe something due the pcb rom.
As i can see in the pic, your original pcb doesn't have a rom chip so it means that the rom is embedded in the MCU, the donor pcb does have the rom chip or not?

_________________
My firmware database:
https://mega.nz/folder/O01DkBRI

Good suggestion, try this first with donor pcb as fzabkar wrote.

_________________
My firmware database:
https://mega.nz/folder/O01DkBRI

The 1590 PCB doesn't have a ROM CHIP and the PCB that the engineer has swapped doesn't have a ROM chip too, but according to a previous experience if is was a ROM issue the heard at least will spine or produce any sound. and this is confirmed with my readings through forums. thank you alot for your Hint, I really wished that it is only a faulty PCB issue.






Thank you fzabkar and michael chiklis for your replies here is my findings:

For the D3: yes it is Shorted.
For the D4: isn't Shorted but instead of giving a value on a side and open Circuit on the other side I get avery High Values on booth sides.
For the R64: Is shorted !! :/ I can hear the buzzer
For the R67: is giving very high values.

I'm not sure how can I measure the resistance between ground and each of the preamp's supply pins? I have two lines of 10 pairs pins can you demonstrate from where should I start? lets say that HDD is located in a position that PreAmp pins are locate on the top right side.
Hmm really I don't want to try the Business card thing to make the Hard spine just to avoid any mechanical damage that might occur which will lead to a harder recovery route.

Thank you For your Help, Waiting to Read back from you.



hmm, ok lets go with your theory that looks like it is based on experience, how can make sure that it is PreAmp not a PCB fault ? we can proceed from his point just to make sure it is an a preAmp issue and then we can look forward what can be done in such case.

Thank you All for your Help it is appreciated So far.

D3 and R67 are damaged, so this confirms an overvoltage on the +5V supply.

Your photo isn't clear, but the preamp's supply and ground pins should be around 2,4,6 IIRC.

You can determine the +5V and ground pins by testing for continuity with the SATA power connector.

http://pinouts.ru/Power/sata-power_pinout.shtml

The -5V pin can be located by testing for continuity with the anode (left side) of diode D2 below the SMOOTH chip. Once you have located these pins, then test for short circuits between ground and each of the +5V and -5V pins at the HDA.

_________________
A backup a day keeps DR away.

Thank you again fzabkar pardon my Basic Electronic Knowledge I'm not a specialist at all and I'm not one of those who are insisting on DIY on every thing but this case is different as nearly 99% of the technicians here once the PCB swap didn't work they tell you nothing could be done and they consider the Hard DEAD. and that why I'm trying to make sure about the PCB and PreAmp and that's stuff so I can decide weather I will have to get a donor or only a an exact matching PCB. and then we can proceed with a specialist from there just to low the budget to something affordable. So please let me know know in a simple way in which pin can i put the Common cable to measure the HDA pins.

I'm attaching you two a bit clearer pictures for the HDD it self for the HDA pins and the PCB

have a look from This link for the PCB https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/oALiZqRhFW-J_ASz1ajvzVlY5sYXRJxGMbenaePoXTqsKYdkYiL0RSWNmcS6C_RwsM9s4UyNeSU

and for the HDA pins from this Link https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/3UV0P9FV14dqZvqFuUY2ztmOmKUOtk4Dhu_vitxBBNKCziqRW8hc6HazfGqfrn30Nwk7weQ9dyg

Thank you again.

_________________
A backup a day keeps DR away.

There are many things working against you that will not take your testing far:
1) from your pic, the smooth chip seems damaged as well and that will prevent any spinning whatsoever, even with the business card trick, which is a good test that would not cause any additional mechanical damage.
2) since the damage is extensive, there could be even more damage, such as with the preamp as other suggested, but also with the motor windings.
3) since there is no external ROM, an easy PCB swap will unfortunately not work. The ROM will ha e to be rebuilt or MCU controller swapped which is no easy task.
4) providing a part, whether it is PCB or whole drive, should be the least of worries about keeping cost low. This will be an expensive recovery.

_________________
Hard Disk Drive (HDD), Solid State Drive (SSD, SATA, NVMe, etc), USB Flash Drive and RAID Data Recovery Specialist in Massachusetts

labtech : ditto !

Unfortunately this is a case where "it's not always Sunday" = it's not a NON-FAILURE like a TVS or straight PCB swap with a little more work to move a chip.

I have never seen a TRUE case where remote multimetering/help/diagnose over a forum - including this one - done by inexperienced user has lead to a successful repair of a PCB when the problem was only a bit more extended than a single component failure like a TVS or a fuse-like component.Moving SOIC chips like an ext. flash to a working PCB doesn't count.
Replacing a broken inductor or broken component - assuming it is easily available, doesn't count too : the PCB was fully functional, just with a broken piece.
Only saw few case where a successful transplant of a combo chip or MCU or so, done with adequate equipment , lead to successful repair of the PCB. IF they were not between the people we know here, for sure they knew what to do and had at hand what it takes to get the job done.

The disaster list, instead, is longer than Brooklyn bridge.

My opinion : this PCB is badly damaged and probably there is something else (internally) damaged too, you'll never know unless you can perform a complete diagnose. NO, a simple multimeter can not give you certainty, you can ONLY see if there is a complete short (well, that's better than nothing) but you can't diagnose a potential overload or another kind of damage that fry a new PCB at power on.
Testing the motor is the same : there are dedicated solutions for checking and testing it without damaging anything and being 100% sure about functionality, but again it's not a multimeter : if there is a small short on one winding, depending on where, you have almost the same reading on "cheapo" multimeters, and it will kill a new PCB or make it malfunction.

If you really want to do something, you should need a compatible PCB and a dedicated HW tool to work with such drive: the tool is used to "jumpstart" the drive. All this if you cannot be certain of the integrity of the headstack. Scenario 1: the new PCB is killed : it's game over for sure , need cleanroom work and a lot of things more.
Scenario 2 : it starts - it's 50%. Need to move ROM or build it from the drive, then make it work and access data.

Sorry for bringing bad news, anyway good luck.

The test was meant for the donor PCB. Sorry if that wasn't obvious.

_________________
A backup a day keeps DR away.

Thank you labtech for your Hints yes I know that an Easy PCB will not work and I'm not even trying to do it myself I'm sure this particular case isn't a DIY at all and that is why I'm trying to to gain as much info as i can so i can decide with whom i will proceed. but thank you again you now makes me worry about the Motor too instead of paying attention to the PreAmp only. and thanks for confirming the the B.Card Test will not Cause any further Damage when it is tried with a working PCB for sure not a Faulty one. What o you suggest to test the PreAmp or even the Motor with an External Multimeter?!.



BlackST Thank you for your long reply that confirms my opinion and agreement with you that this isn't a DIY job. But I have some Questions:

but according to the history of this case lets say the whole PCB will be replaced which has been done with someone with experience and he knows what he is doing regarding HDD PCB swapping but this didn't make the Hard work. as I mentioned above I wasn't able to hear any thing coming from the hard disk nor normal or abnormal sounds.

So the question is How can I externally using a multimeter detect a general Short using the PreAmp Pins. yes to make sure that the preAmp is shorted will give hope that the Motor is fine as simply if it is a faulty motor no one in my country will be able to do a platter replacement at all. I don't think we have a proper tools here that can help in doing this. so as far as can be done here it is a Head Stack Swap which i'm not sure about 100% that can be done smoothly.

So according to your too Scenarios I'm sure that the 1st scenario didn't occur for any one of the replaced PCB as they were still working after putting them on another drives after using them on mine.



Thank you again fzabkar I'm still waiting for your demonstration to help me doign an external MultiMeter test for through the PreAmp Pins.


Thank you All you are really helpful. waiting to read back from all of you.

Here they are.

_________________
A backup a day keeps DR away.

Np, I also just intended to clarify what to expect based on the test.

_________________
Hard Disk Drive (HDD), Solid State Drive (SSD, SATA, NVMe, etc), USB Flash Drive and RAID Data Recovery Specialist in Massachusetts

yes it is Shorted on both -/+5V Pins. So Now we can say its a Head Stack replacement Nothing else right ? Thank you.

Yes, it looks that way. It would explain why your donor board didn't spin up the drive.

What bothers me, though, is that you didn't mention whether the donor PCB survived the transplant. Also, if there were a short circuit on the +5V supply, then the patient HDD plus donor PCB combination should have shut down the "engineer's" power supply. I would have thought that should have rated a mention.

_________________
A backup a day keeps DR away.

Hmm yes i guess that the PCB survived after the SWAP but I'm not sure if his PSU turned off or not but I saw him checking his PSU if it is working or not .. this might be due to this shutdown because of the short.

Hmm So for Now, What is your advice?! I'm a volunteering student and this data more or less they are our materials that we have been working on through years in helping the community so really we can't afford the average expensive data recovery process. and I'm afraid of trying to go with one of the local Engineers here so it turns to be unrecoverable case or a forever Loss.

also I wanted to ask about if I put the drive in anti-static case and left it in dry safe place how long should the data survive on the platter ? in another words is the data on the platter affected by the time factor ?

How can I make sure about the guys who might work on my Hard disk ? is there any way so i can make sure about there experience and tools .. etc ?

I have been asking for Clean Rooms but 99% of the Guys here don't have clean rooms but they say they turn the atmosphere of the room to a suitable one using air conditioner and something like this.

My Region is North Africa and Middle East, and yes I have got suggestion to ship the Faulty HDD to China.. but I can't really decide as I don't want to proceed with any one who might worsen the case and also regarding the Budget we can't afford going with the Western Digital certified Data Recovery agencies.

hmm thank you for your advice, and please fulfill my concerns as it is important to have an idea about each point of them.

waiting to read back from you.