new HD causes computer to shut off

[stygianapothegm]

i bought a 120 gb HD today but whenever i hook it up my computer will go on for like 2 seconds.. then ill hear this litte noise like something is getting zapped... but i smell nothing. and then my computer just completely shuts off.... fan shuts off... no power... nothing. and if i turn it back off then on it'll do the same thing. however when i take the HD out, everything is back to normal.

i have my old 10gb HD set as the master and the new 120 gb HD set as the slave. ive tried different IDE cables and updated my BIOS and i still have problems.

my motherboard is a few years old so maybe it just isnt compatible? do you think the HD is defective?

 

[Tazman2]

i bought a 120 gb HD today but whenever i hook it up my computer will go on for like 2 seconds.. then ill hear this litte noise like something is getting zapped... but i smell nothing. and then my computer just completely shuts off.... fan shuts off... no power... nothing. and if i turn it back off then on it'll do the same thing. however when i take the HD out, everything is back to normal.

i have my old 10gb HD set as the master and the new 120 gb HD set as the slave. ive tried different IDE cables and updated my BIOS and i still have problems.

my motherboard is a few years old so maybe it just isnt compatible? do you think the HD is defective?

Sounds like your getting a short somehow and the power supply is turning off after it detects a short. Is the drive NEW NEW or from somebody? If NEW NEW then your shorting your power wire somehow or the ide cable (somehow i managed this by putting the cable backwards i think).

 

[stygianapothegm]

Sounds like your getting a short somehow and the power supply is turning off after it detects a short. Is the drive NEW NEW or from somebody? If NEW NEW then your shorting your power wire somehow or the ide cable (somehow i managed this by putting the cable backwards i think).

does a short mean that i basically dont have enough power? i dont see how that is likely. i even unplugged all my CD drives and floppy and only hooked up the 2 HDs, but it still shut off.

do you know of any way to fix this?

 

[Snugglebear]

A short circuit is where electricity takes a path it shouldn't. Power supplies should detect this and automatically power off to prevent damage. Take a good look at the plug and drive to make sure there's nothing awry.

 

[stygianapothegm]

A short circuit is where electricity takes a path it shouldn't. Power supplies should detect this and automatically power off to prevent damage. Take a good look at the plug and drive to make sure there's nothing awry.

are shorts common? does it mean the product is just defective?

 

[Snugglebear]

Shorts are very uncommon and usually caused by human error during installation. Inspect where the drive is mounted to make sure nothing other than the sides of the thing are touching the case or any other conductive material. Inspect your power cables to make sure the connectors aren't pulling apart. Inspect the drive itself for any burn marks or things that look out of place; a lot of people will do case mods or just dick around inside for a while and leave crud in there (be they metal filings, pieces of bare wire, etc.) that will cause shorts.

If you see nothing awry, try one last thing: pull the drive out of the case and set it on the case or floor with some cardboard or plastic underneath, plug it in using a different power molex, and fire it up. Should it still make the zap sound and the power shuts off, it's probably a defective drive.