Dell Inspiron 1520, new MB, wont see hdd in bios

[Driven1787]

I am not sure what I am missing here, but sure would appreciate a fresh take on my issue.

I am working on a Dell Inspiron 1520. I replaced the Intel MB, with a refurbished model and for the life of me cannot get it to recognize the hard drive in the bios. I ran the system diagnostic and got the following three errors:

Error Code 2000-0411 - Hardware Detect Error - Microphone Board not detected

2000-0141 - No drive detected

Error Code – 2000-0123 – Memory Integrity Test Failed
Address=0_4B37E680h, Actual-00000000h, Expected= 00000002h
Location = DIMM_A

So I replaced the RAM in both slots to the same size and ran the diagnostic again. Replacing the RAM cleared up the memory issues, but I still received the previous two errors.

I have tried every available option that I know of and that I could find online searching and all I have been able to find is a load of other folks that had the same problem and no one had an answer.

I have updated the bios and even tried to install a brand new hard drive (same exact hd as the old one). I stick the old hard drive in the external usb dock and can see the disk fine when using the system cd.

This is the error I get when just trying to boot up.

---No bootable devices--strike F1 to retry boot, F2 for setup utility, Press F5 to run onboard diagnostics.

So far I know that my hard drives are good, and I am half convinced that I got a foxtrot uniform motherboard, but I wanted to try every possible fix before hanging my head in defeat and coming to that conclusion.

I might just be missing something simple here, but it has me stumped.

Any and all help is greatly appreciated!

 

[tim fitzgerald]

Did you format the new hdd first?

 

[lcoughey]

Did you format the new hdd first?

You need not format a drive for a BIOS to see it. You need the BIOS to see it so that you can format it.

I'd start by connecting the drives to another system to ensure that they are not the problem. If they detect, then you know that it is system related. Have you changed the cables?

Also, if you are using IDE drives, have you set the master/slave jumpers correctly?

 

[PCX]

Did you format the new hdd first?

Formatting the hard drive should not make a difference in the bios.

If you have tested the hard drive, memory and processor and all that is good to go, then the only thing that is left if the SATA controller on the MOBO. This is why I do not buy refurbished motherboards.

 

[Driven1787]

@ PCX: Yeah, that's my thoughts exactly. I tried to explain to the customer/friend that the price of a refurbished drive w/ s&h was around $130 and a new replacement is ridiculously expensive in relation to the value of the computer overall. I tried to just convince him to bite the bullet and buy a new laptop and I would copy everything over from his old drive. --- Nope, he wanted to buy a refurbished motherboard. What can you do?

@ Tim: I shouldn't have to format the drives to have it seen in BIOS, but yes, I did.

@ lcoughey: This is a laptop. There are no cables, but rather a female SATA receiving module that is soldered directly to the motherboard.

It appears that this *tested* item was just another ebay flop. I figured I had pretty good odds because the seller had 99+% rating on sales. It could just be a lemon though. I will wait to see what response I get from the seller. In the mean time, if anyone else has a different perspective, I would appreciate the feedback.

Thanks a million!

 

[PCX]

@ PCX: Yeah, that's my thoughts exactly. I tried to explain to the customer/friend that the price of a refurbished drive w/ s&h was around $130 and a new replacement is ridiculously expensive in relation to the value of the computer overall. I tried to just convince him to bite the bullet and buy a new laptop and I would copy everything over from his old drive. --- Nope, he wanted to buy a refurbished motherboard. What can you do?

@ Tim: I shouldn't have to format the drives to have it seen in BIOS, but yes, I did.

@ lcoughey: This is a laptop. There are no cables, but rather a female SATA receiving module that is soldered directly to the motherboard.

It appears that this *tested* item was just another ebay flop. I figured I had pretty good odds because the seller had 99+% rating on sales. It could just be a lemon though. I will wait to see what response I get from the seller. In the mean time, if anyone else has a different perspective, I would appreciate the feedback.

Thanks a million!

To answer you questions "but what can you do" the answer is not do it at all.
Had it been me, I would have told the customer that they can either buy a new motherboard at so many dollars or we can charge them so many dollars to transfer the data to a new computer. If they had asked about a refurbished motherboard, I would have told them that we do not do any repairs that we cannot warranty.

So in short, you refuse to do the work. This is another reason why I charge a diagnostics up front before every repair. If the customer chooses not to do the repairs, at least I get paid for my time.