HELP odd hard drive problem

[ash303]

Ok, so here is my problem. I'm re-building an old computer, probably an early P2, not too sure, and when I boot it up the CPU fan turns on, but the hard drive doesn't boot. However if I unplug the hard drive's IDE cable, then it starts to spin. I though it was just a motherboard/hard drive problem until I got a different motherboard and a different hard drive and they do the same things. I've never run into this before, is this common? Is this just a matter of resetting something? Thanks for any help.

-ash

 

[AckNack]

Do you have the data cable plugged in with the stripe on the cable connected to pin 1 on the drive?

Also check that all other cables (both power and data) are connected correctly. Sometimes a mis-connected cable can affect other devices.

AckNack

http://www.computer-help-guide.com

 

[AckNack]

Also, if it's an 80 conductor IDE cable make sure the "long end" connects to the motherboard and the short end to the drive if the drive is set to master.

By long end, I mean from the middle connector on the cable one end is longer from the connector than the other end.

AckNack

http://www.computer-help-guide.com