Barracuda XT, Barracuda, Barracuda Green, DiamondMax and other desktop SATA and IDE drives

[ymkxxx]

I posted earlier under the title "Burnt controller" and I think "Controller" is not the correct word so I post again with more details. I have this 1Tb internal drive and the board got burnt at the sata power connector. PN 9SL154-336 Firmware CC34 Warranty will only replace the drive for another one and standard Data Recovery is way over my possibilities. I want to buy a similar drive and change the board. I remember that you have to make sure it is from the same serie or else it will not work. What do I have to make sure is similar?

[ymkxxx]

Drive model ST31000528AS PN 9SL154-336 Firmware CC34.

I remember changing the controller board many years ago on a WD HD. I was told to make sure the controller is from an identical drive.

I would like to know what are the specs I have to look for for a replacement controller board.

BTW. the drive is still under warranty.

I live in Israel and I don't know what I am entitled to. The store I bought it from are willing only to replace the drive for a new one but I need badly the data on it.

[fzabkar]

I suspect that you may have a shorted TVS (transient voltage suppression) diode. Upload a photo of your board to an image hosting site and one of us will identify the component for you. If your power supply can be trusted, you can remove the diode and your HD will then run quite happily without it, albeit without protection on the affected supply rail.

See the PCB at this URL for more info:

http://hddscan.com/doc/HDD_from_inside.html

If the following is your board, check the two small side-by-side components at the top RHS, directly above the Winbond RAM, for short circuits:

http://www.wzlu.com/article/UploadPic/2009-2/2009226124655121.jpg

[ymkxxx]

Thanks for the great link at hddscan!

It looks like you are right and it is the TVS diode that burned but unfortunately, it looks like some other componants got also burnt in the process...

I have taken pics but I have no clue where to post them.

Do you know an answer to my other question? IS it ppossible to take a board from a similar disk if it is not exactly the same PN? And what must be identical in this case?

[ymkxxx]

Thanks for the great hddscan link!

Please have a look at these pics of the HD

http://picasaweb.google.com/isellcomputers/BurntPCB#

It looks like you are right and one TVS burnt but unfortunately it looks like some other components also got damaged in the process. Do you think it will still work by removing the TVS?

Also do you have an answer for my other question?

Is it possible to use a PCB from a similar if not identical drive? If I buy a ST31000528AS drive, do I have to check the firmware version and PN that they are identical or it is not necessary?

I only want to recover data at an affordable price and dump the drive.

[fzabkar]

The damage looks extensive. It appears that the copper tracks are probably burnt as well. :-(

A straight board swap from a drive with identical model and firmware version may work. If it doesn't, you will need to swap the 8-pin EEPROM chip. AIUI, the EEPROM chip contains part of the firmware, with the majority being on the platters. The chip also stores the "adaptives" which are determined during calibration at the factory. Its part number will probably be something like "29xxxx".

[ymkxxx]

Thanks for the reply.

I think I will try with a board from a similar Drive and hope it works.

I can see the chip but I don't think I will be able to solder it correctly on the board.

Let's hope...

[ymkxxx]

Well.. I bought a drive with FW CC37 and not CC34 and when I connect it I hear the drive spin and then it Ticks a few times and then quiet.  I suppose bios ignores the drive.

Is it because of the FW or the EEprom?

The memory chip is also not from same manufacturer ESMT / Winbond

[fzabkar]

I suspect that an EEPROM swap should work, but I would ask the data recovery experts at HDD Guru for their opinions:

http://forum.hddguru.com/hard-disk-drives-data-recovery-and-repair-f1.html

I would think that the brand of SDRAM wouldn't matter so long as the capacities were identical. I'd search for their datasheets and compare them.

The MCU ASICs may also differ in their mask ROMs, but I don't know if this would be important.

[pawn3d]

Did it look like this?

Or how about this?

Seagate needs to address this issue and replace our PCB boards!

It's very easy to swap out a PBC board, (just remove 6 screws and it pops off) but Seagate would rather just replace the whole drive instead of repair it. This doesn't make any sense. 1, you lose all of your information 2, replacing the drives would cost Seagate more money, so why would they do that? I'll tell you why...

Seagate KNOWS that you can't put a price on your data. That's why they opened up their own Data Recover House that charges THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS to recover your data. (Hey, if Seagate has their own data recovery facilites, why is my data recovery under warranty?) Hmmm...  Because they want money! Money for a defective product! This is why Seagate tops my Hall of SHAME.