zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 I have tried to install a 3.5" floppy drive.The problem is that I cannot access to it with windows.Both wires are connected properly, since there are only one possible way to connect them. What calls my atention is that the green light of the floppy is green since I turn on the PC, and If I remember correctly that only should happen when access is required.Any help would be appreciated.
Gobalopper Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 I think that usually means the cable is backwards, are you absolutely sure you have it the right way?Does your BIOS detect it?
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 I think that usually means the cable is backwards, are you absolutely sure you have it the right way?Does your BIOS detect it?BIOS detected it. np there.About the wire thing, that's strange, because both power and bus data wires only fit one way, well, I guess I could put it backwards but it would requiere hard push and for sure damage in those plastics. If I remember right, I think that the "red" side of the bus data (one single red line) should go to the side of the floppy where one pin is missing, am I right ?
Gobalopper Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 Some drives have a number 1 which you would line up with the red line side. But the easiest way to know is most cables have the bump on the end of them which you can line up with the hole on the disk drive.But if you have to force it then its probably right. Can you boot to DOS? If you can try that and see if it works there.
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 I am just checking the wires.I think the data bus is correctly placed, since on top of the black end of the wire there is little block in the middle and in the part of the floopy there is a slot that matches perfectly with that little block, putting it backwards would requiere to "grind" that block. So I think the problem is not there.Power wire, well, I've tried it both ways, (one way needed much push) but same problem.The strange thing is that the green light is always on, never offI can try booting to DOS, but the as I said the green light is always on as soon as turn on the pc. The thing is that I don't have a 1.44 boot disk. Any suggestions ?
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 I just noticed that this drive has two jumpers, maybe that ?
Gobalopper Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 Does your cable have three connectors? I just remembered a time where I had troubles and it turned out I was using the wrong connector. It had two places to connect drives too and I had to use the first one on the cable not the second one.
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 Any idea what those jumpers are for?not a single idea, I just got this drive from my old 486DX system to put in my currently one, and if there was somekind of manual of the floppy drive is lost now.Thinking about it, in my old system I guess this was the floppy to boot not the hard drive, now my boot floppy is the CDROM, perhaps that ?I don't know if it's safe to start trying the other 3 combinations of those jumpers.what do you think ?thx in advance. :)wow, my last grammar was terrible.
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 Does your cable have three connectors? I just remembered a time where I had troubles and it turned out I was using the wrong connector. It had two places to connect drives too and I had to use the first one on the cable not the second one.Yes it has three connectors, one goes to the MB, one middle and one in the other extreme, early today I tried both, same problem. And when you say the first one you mean the one in the middle ?
Gobalopper Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 So you are using an IDE cable to connect your harddrive and floppy? Is this a special cable or maybe floppy drive? Because normally they use different cables and connectors. Floppy is usually not as wide as a hard drive connector.[pre][]================[]================[][]----------------[]----------------[][]----------------[]----------------[][]----------------[]----------------[][]----------------[]----------------[] / || this one for floppy[/pre]But that example was me thinking you just had one floppy drive on the cable. The only floppy drive I know that will work on an IDE cable, ie hard drive cable, is the SuperDrive or maybe Zip drives but that isn't what you're connecting is it?
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 So you are using an IDE cable to connect your harddrive and floppy? Is this a special cable or maybe floppy drive? Because normally they use different cables and connectors. Floppy is usually not as wide as a hard drive connector.HD has a different cable. Not IDE I guess. The CDROM and the HD share the same cable that goes to the MB.And yes checking it the other cable looks a bit wider. (and has a blue line instead of the red one)[pre][]================[]================[][]----------------[]----------------[][]----------------[]----------------[][]----------------[]----------------[][]----------------[]----------------[] / || this one for floppy[/pre]But that example was me thinking you just had one floppy drive on the cable. The only floppy drive I know that will work on an IDE cable, ie hard drive cable, is the SuperDrive or maybe Zip drives but that isn't what you're connecting is it?I am not connecting SuperD or Zip just a simple 3.5 drive.What do you think, any other idea ?, the jumping guess is the only thing that comes to my mind.Thx again.
Gobalopper Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 So you are using a different cable for connecting the floppy? And all that is on that cable is the floppy?
Gobalopper Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 And you've tried every possible arrangment of the floppy at this connector, motherboard at the another?
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 And you've tried every possible arrangment of the floppy at this connector, motherboard at the another?Now that you mention, what I have not tried is to put backwards the connector that is currently in the MB, what I've tried is to put the other two connectors to the floopy, in those two cases the problem kept happening.What I don't know is if the connector that goes to the MB is the same kind of the one that goes to the floopy ?, I can't really check it because the pc is on (i am using it right now), so if there is a way to put it backwards in the MB or the connectors in the cable are the same kind I will try it. Can you tell me ?
Gobalopper Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 You could try flipping it around. Put the end you have been putting into the floppy into the motherboard instead. Worth a try I guess.
Nyarlathotep Posted May 19, 2003 Posted May 19, 2003 The part which has the twist on the end is which should be in the floppy drive. The other end should be on the motherboard. Usually on the motherboard is printed on which side pin 1 is. Pin 1 should match with the red single wire on the floppy drive cable. btw, there's no way you could mistake a floppy drive cable with the IDE cable for harddisk and cdrom. The IDE cable has more pins (ie larger).Most likely you have put it wrong on the mobo.
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 The part which has the twist on the end is which should be in the floppy drive. The other end should be on the motherboard. Usually on the motherboard is printed on which side pin 1 is. Pin 1 should match with the red single wire on the floppy drive cable. btw, there's no way you could mistake a floppy drive cable with the IDE cable for harddisk and cdrom. The IDE cable has more pins (ie larger).Most likely you have put it wrong on the mobo.Yes, the connector that has the twist part is on the floopy.The connector in the middle is not being used. The other one is connected to the MB, and (about what me and Gob where trying), is not possible to put it backwards, it has somekind of slot on top of the connector that makes it impossible to put it other way.So I mean that I cannot put it wrong in the MB, there is only one way.So, any other ideas ?
zamboe Posted May 19, 2003 Author Posted May 19, 2003 So, there is only one way to put the connectors to the MB and to the floppy. The twisted part goes to the floppy.One one easy way to connect the power cable to the floppy and it's that way.The problem keep happening, not being recognized by windows (bios accepted it), I run out of ideas myself. btw, the green light of the floppy is always on.
zamboe Posted May 20, 2003 Author Posted May 20, 2003 I've triple checked the connector thing.I've located the pin1 of the MB and lined up with the red line.I've located the pin1 of the floppy (V sign) and put the connector with the twisted part on it. (For both of last cases, there is no other possible way).I've used another cable, same precautions.Bios detect the floopy.I've tried putting the jumpers (that are on the floopy) on all possible combinations, and the problem kept happening. (in two cases the light never turned on and access was not possible also)Problem : as soon as I turn on my pc the green light still on continuosly and I cannot access the floppy from windows.I've even found this site, and I did everything as they say, but the problem keep happening.http//biorobots.cwru.edu/server/howto/buildcomp/mounPlease advice.
Nyarlathotep Posted May 20, 2003 Posted May 20, 2003 I'm still puzzled about the jumpers on the drive. As long as I build computers I haven't seen that before. Do you have another drive you can try ?
zamboe Posted May 20, 2003 Author Posted May 20, 2003 I'm still puzzled about the jumpers on the drive. As long as I build computers I haven't seen that before. Do you have another drive you can try ?I have the other floppy that was on my old system, a big 5 1/4 " floppy drive, the thing is that the connectors are different for that floppy, I guess I could use the cable of the old pc.Yes, in all the websites about installing a floppy I've read, there are no mentions to jumpers, but this floppy Sony MPF 520-1 has two jumpers in 6 pins. After trying in all possible combinations I put them as I saw them first time.Should I try with the old 5 1/4" floppy? , I can tell you that I don't have disks for that unit though, and I don't think I can find those disks to buy.
zamboe Posted May 20, 2003 Author Posted May 20, 2003 I found this, however as I said I've tried the combinations....http://www.osemidlands.co.uk/support/insight/insight/en/common/drives/floppy/so520-1f.htmyou can see the jumpers between the power input and the capacitor. Any idea what can mean "drive select 1" and "drive select 0" ?, that says in the jumper configuration of that page.
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