WD1600 Used both Power Connectors

WD Internal Drives Desktop & Mobile Drives
1

I mistakenly connected both the SATA and Legacy (Molex) power cables and energized the WD1600JS.  Now it will not spin.

Is there any hope the data can be recovered?  Do I need to send it to a data recovery outfit?  They will probably charge over $150/hour just to look at it and then tell me it is not possible to recover the data.  Any help will be appreciated.

2

See http://www.users.on.net/~fzabkar/HDD/TVS_diode_FAQ.html

If your drive is an earlier model without protection diodes, then you will need to transfer the 8-pin serial flash memory chip at location U12 to your replacement PCB. This chip stores unique, drive specific, “adaptive” information. Some board suppliers include a firmware or “ROM” transfer service for US$10 - $20. Alternatively your local TV/AV repair shop should be able to handle it.

http://www.hdd-parts.com/firmware-transfer.html

I’m assuming that your drive’s preamp (inside the HDA) has survived. If not, then data recovery will be very expensive.

A photo of the damaged PCB may help.

3

I was afraid to remove the PCB as I do not have a clean room.  I have taken the drive to ADR to see if they can recover the data.  Thank you for your kind advice.

4

If some data recovery company has told you that you need to remove a PCB in a cleanroom, then they are reprehensible liars and should be avoided.

At the moment, a board swap and firmware transfer should cost you around US$70.