Bubba B1 failure mode

[Clive]

Sorry for placing this in the B2/B3 support channel, but I don't think the B1 channel is still monitored.

I first bought a Bubba B1 in 2007, it provided good, but slow, service until 2011 when it died, just as the B3 was released. So it went in a box where it stayed until now.

The failure mode was no HD spin up, but a clicking of the seek heads when power was supplied, I assumed it was a failed HD.

Except tonight when I rediscovered it, I replaced the HD and... same problem. No HD spin-up but a clicking of the read heads. I checked voltages and all seemed good, but something seems to be stopping the hard drive from spinning up.

Anyone with long memories know if this was a common failure, or what caused it ? I have no practical use for it but interested on why it stopped working.

[fredrikj]

Have you tried to carefully wiggle the hard drive into the board connector. It could be a glitch or bad connection between the drive and board. Another long shot would be that it is a power issue. Check the power levels from the power supply, and try moving the power plug to another outlet, perhaps even on another fuse.

Otherwise i agree, loud clicking noises from hard drives normally means the drive has failed.

Was the drive you swapped in new? Does either drive work if you plug it into another computer?

If you look at the board, is anything that is obviously broken. Things like swollen capacitors or damage to the board due to overheating. I mean things that could be caused by a power surge, or just age.

PS. I do not know the B1 specifically, so I'm just guessing here.

[Gordon]

Frederik might be on track here. The clicking sound could also be from the head park mechanism. Either way my guess would be that it supplies insufficient power to the hard disk which is probably not due to the B1 itself but rather its PSU.

[Clive]

Thanks !

I agree, it sounds like power supply issues, although I measured them and found the correct 5V/12V supplies, but it doesn't mean they can supply them under load and the correct current. The replacement drive was 10+ years old, but worked when I last used it, which means little.

But I have sourced an IDE/SATA to USB converter, so I should be able to find out in the next few days where the issue is.

Stupidly, I did not try to spin up the drive with it not connected to the Bubba's disk controller, which would have told me if it was the Bubba stopping it spinning, or a power issue. I will update as soon as I know.