nVidea / sata issues

[bill]

Hey guys, I stumbled across this (see links ) yesterday. Is this an old issue that has been resolved?


Maxtor drive not detected

nVidea NCQ/SATA temporary fix


Still trying to figure out all the details, anything to add?

Thanks

[Boba_Fett]

The nForce4 chipset has had a problem with Maxtor SATA drives since day one. If you choose to go the N4 route, then I would suggest just staying away from Maxtor HDDs (easy enough, as Seagate and WD are nearly always cheaper and better than Max anyway).

[LoneWolf]

While I'm not a huge Maxtor fan, Maxtor does have a firmware update available for the affected drives if you're already affected. You can find it in the support section of their website.

I agree, I'd choose Seagate and Western Dig. over Maxtor if you haven't already bought a Maxtor SATA drive.

[Alektron]

bill,

Make sure you are not using the Nforce IDE driver. If so, uninstall it, and let Windows install the Windows IDE driver.

[MonsterMan]

I've got an nF4 board with a Maxtor and haven't had any problems...yet.
Unless the Max had the firmware updated from the factory, it doesn't have it yet.

[hoxlund]

While I'm not a huge Maxtor fan, Maxtor does have a firmware update available for the affected drives if you're already affected. You can find it in the support section of their website.

I agree, I'd choose Seagate and Western Dig. over Maxtor if you haven't already bought a Maxtor SATA drive.

did some digging, care to elaborate on your information

i have the 6y080m0 hard drive

[bill]

Hi guys, thanks for the help . What started all of this are the reviews that I read at NewEgg for some of Maxtors sata drives. I'm not having trouble yet but I have been on a sata hard drive buying binge recently. None are installed yet but I intend to use the sata drives for the OS and back up storage that will hopefully compliment the optical media.

I've about worn Google out... There are a lot of forum threads out there regarding primarily Maxtor but including Seagate and Hitachi drives not being detected, data corruption and of course Nvidea raid issues. Unfortunately, the threads get confusing because folks are looking for answers too a wide range of problems.

Can anyone confirm;

1) The SATA hard drive detection issue is resolved by a firmware update for most drives?
It's my understanding ( to date ) that most of the problems are caused by the SATA specs that don't specify a maximum time limit for how long it takes a drive to initialize.. Am I correct?

2) Is there a problem with data corruption on Nforce 4 boards with NCQ enabled hard drives?


@ Hoxlund

I was just trying to give you a FYI over in the Hot Deals thread because I thought you were considering that Maxtor 300gig model at Outpost. Wanted to let you know that it might need a firmware update. As best as I can tell, you have to contact Maxtor for the firmware update.

[hoxlund]

my one NCQ enabled drive maxtor 6b250s0 has been working fine since day one

and i am running nvidia drivers, and as always with the latest mobo firmware

[LoneWolf]

While I'm not a huge Maxtor fan, Maxtor does have a firmware update available for the affected drives if you're already affected. You can find it in the support section of their website.

I agree, I'd choose Seagate and Western Dig. over Maxtor if you haven't already bought a Maxtor SATA drive.

did some digging, care to elaborate on your information

i have the 6y080m0 hard drive

This is the information I've found, so far it's consistent:

http://ngohq.com/home.php?page=articles ... &arc_id=59

Based on that, it might be necessary to call Maxtor to get the firmware update, it was supposed to be on their website, but apparently is difficult to locate. I'll keep looking though to see what I can find.

EDIT: Additional information I have found. It looks like you may need to contact Maxtor.

http://forum.novatech.co.uk/viewtopic.p ... 859bf010cd

Finally, Maxtor's link, similar to the Novatech one, but seems to blame the nForce drivers for some problems, and accept the firmware as at fault for others. Since no-one other than Maxtor seems to have the problem, I would tend to lay the blame at their doorstep.

https://maxtor.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/max ... 5488&p_sp=

P.S. To Bill, I have two Seagate 7200.7 SATA2 drives on my NForce4 chipset, and have had no issues whatsoever.

EDIT: They are the NCQ models.

[hoxlund]

well that doesn't apply to me, i have the 6y080m0

i think its just time to replace it, showing its age

[bill]

bill,

Make sure you are not using the Nforce IDE driver. If so, uninstall it, and let Windows install the Windows IDE driver.

Good reminder, thanks

[bill]

Well, the fourth sata drive was delivered today, a Seagate. That makes four drives, two from Maxtor and two from Seagate.

I'll start hooking them up on a Neo4 Platinum tomorrow and let you know if there are any problems.

The drives are-
Seagate- 7200.8 series, NCQ model ST3300831AS with firmware 3.06
Seagate- 7200.8 series, NCQ model ST3300631AS with firmware 3.04
Maxtor Diamond Max 10, NCQ model 6L300S0 with firmware BACE1G20
Maxtor Diamond Max 10, NCQ model 6V300F0 with firmware VA111630
Neither of the Maxtors appear to have the bad firmware.

Again, thanks for all the help

[bill]

Update-

All four drives are working ok.

Thanks to everyone for the help!

[hdd]

Hi guys, thanks for the help . What started all of this are the reviews that I read at NewEgg for some of Maxtors sata drives. I'm not having trouble yet but I have been on a sata hard drive buying binge recently. None are installed yet but I intend to use the sata drives for the OS and back up storage that will hopefully compliment the optical media.

Which brands/models did you purchase for sata hard drives? Have you tried them out, and do you have a preference between them now?

[hoxlund]

phew digging up an ancient thread, my preference is western digital, im running there 1tb black edition drive for storage