I have a WD5000AAKS-22A7B2 that makes all the normal noises after powering up, but won't identify. I don't even get a 0 LBA. The BIOS knows SOMETHING is there because it hangs for a while, but then gripes about a USB issue (seems to be the catch-all gripe when the BIOS doesn't know what is wrong).

Any ideas? I have read the forums and it seems people say these get weak heads. That is beyond my skill set.

I think for now you can do just one thing, remove PCB, clean contacts and try again.
If same thing happens you should stop and contact a pro, as it's probably a FW issue.

I got a copy of WDR-DEMO, and I am able to access the drive. When I select Marvell, I get:

FW:05.BQE SN: (MARVELL selected) port 0xA800
Logical: Cyls 0, Heads 0, Sectors 0, LBA 0, 0Gb
Controller Buffer Size: 0Kb
Family: Unknown

And when I select ROYL, I get:

FW:05.BQE SN: (ROYL selected) port 0xA800
Logical: Cyls 0, Heads 0, Sectors 0, LBA 0, 0Gb
Controller Buffer Size: 0Kb
Family: Unknown



Trying to read SMART gives me NOTHING in either case (the window opens but isn't populated).

When I go into Passport, I get the proper modem # and serial # of the drive. LBA 0, 1, 2, and HPA are all 976773167. Heads is 16, Sectors is 63, Tracks is 0, and password flat is $0001.

Ediding the P-List brings up a table that (at the bottom of the window) says All: 1767, Tracks 364, Sectors 1403.


I didn't make any chages. I'm just wondering if it still seems like a firmware issue, or a head issue, or ???

Is there anything I can do in WDR-DEMO that may help diagnose/fix the issue?

You shold choose ROYL not Marvel.
If you get again "Family: Unknown" something is wrong with the Flash or the PCB.
I suppose you drive is Atlantis with 3 heads active and one depoped. The PCB should be 701590, but if it is different, please, tell us.

Right, that is the correct PCB (701590).

Now, just getting another PCB isn't going to do anything for me, right? There are values stored on the board (maybe in the flash) when the drive is manufacturered, right? And one board's "adaptive" data won't match a different drive? Am I getting that right?