I have just installed a sata dvd rw, mobo is an ASUS A8V series and the os is xp home, unfortunately the system does not "see" the drive..............any help gratefully received

Can u see the drive from BIOS? Did you overclocked ure frequencies? Most likely u missed some setting in bios regarding sata devices. Look in bios, u may have some answers there

the bios sees the 2 hdd.s and both dvd's installed previously (all ata) but not the sata....no overclocking undertaken

Sata devices ar known to suck up a lot of power, try starting the pc using only one optical drive connected(SATA). Check BIOS to see if your SATA controlers are enabled.

the electrical load should be OK, I have a total demand well below the 450w psu, I will try however. The sata controller is enabled......begging to doubt the drive!!

I'm begging to doubt the drive myself. Try installing the drive on another pc. See if it works

Hey Guys,

@John - Welcome to PCHF. We have a wonderful staff of techs here, and I feel certain that we can get you up and running with your new HDD.

@Crab - Ordinarilly, power would not be a first concern in a situation like this.

@John - OK, did you reinstall XP after installing the new HDD? Are you using the new HDD as an additional, or as your main? It is always a good idea to reinstall your OS after installing a new HDD, it allows the OS to reconnect. You should be able to reinstall without losing your data, but you will probably need to reinstall some drivers, programs, etc. I wouldn't give up on the drive just yet.

Looking forward to your reply,

TTFN

LGW