My SSD not recognized in 2006 MBP

[fearN4UT]

Hello this is my first forum post ever. (My main computer is a Vaio Laptop and I have a desk external HDD.) I am posting because I was gifted a MacBook Pro 2006 non-unibody A1150 Core Duo 1.86(not Core 2 Duo). My boss didn't want it and so my wife wanted a Mac just to do simple school work on and I wanted one because I am a geek. He said the battery exploded(expanded). I can see evidence of the battery expansion from slight damage on the lower case near wear it closes. It came with no hard drive and the optical "SuperDrive" was removed as was the RAM. So first thing I did spur of the moment was buy a "SanDisk SSD Plus" 240gb I saw in Best Buy. I don't need the best one because granted this generation MCP has SATA I-1.5Gbit/s so it won't take advantage of the SATA III- 6Gbit/s the SSD has. 300 MB/s write speed is fine I imagine since I will max-out/bottleneck at 130 MB/s or so anyhow. But compared to the 25 MB/s or so of 5400rpm HDD which I'm used to this will be nice.

Sorry for ranting. I just prefer to say as much now so I answer least questions later.

So I immediately purchased a power supply, battery, and the 2 GB(Max ram) for this machine.

Before it all arrived in the mail, I installed the optical drive and hard drive. Followed by properly preparing a USB boot drive with snow leopard on it. Once my power supply, battery and ram arrive I install it and boot it up to find I have a snow leopard install disk in the optical drive my boss left me as well.

Now I went to install snow leopard and HERE IS THE PROBLEM:

The new SSD isn't recognized. I came to the understanding that I had to format it in disk utility so I went to disk utility and what do you know IT DIDNT SHOW UP THERE EITHER. So I started reading all types of forums.

I first thought it was the difference of SATA 3 and SATA 1 not being backwards compatible but I soon learned that they are cuz I saw video and read about others who installed a SSD on same computer and the SSD was using SATA 2.

So then, I was almost positive it was my hard drive cable because SSDs essentially are more sensitive to a BAD cable then HDDs are. Many people who work in shops said it could be that cuz they said it most often times is the problem and for a lot of people that seemed to work.

After that I read it could even be a firmware problem or an EFT 1.6 or 1.7 thing/problem...idk?! what is that?!

Nor do I know about TRIM and if that applies.


So I don't have another spare HDD laying around or anything. I could acquire one if needed. I just am looking for a solution. What do I do?! Please help me! Thank you for patience in advance

 

[Weaselboy]

Based on everything you said here, it does sound like a bad drive cable. It could also be just a completely bad logic board, but that is less common. Do you have an old 2.5 SATA drive laying around you could pop in there to test just to see if it is recognized?

 

[fearN4UT]

Based on everything you said here, it does sound like a bad drive cable. It could also be just a completely bad logic board, but that is less common. Do you have an old 2.5 SATA drive laying around you could pop in there to test just to see if it is recognized?

That's for your prompt reply Weaselboy.
As I said at the end of my original post I do not have an extra HDD laying around. I could open,remove and plug in the 3.5im HDD from my external HDD. Or just go buy one and return it (less ethical though lol)
So let me get this right: I am just doing that to see if it really is a bad HDD cable and that if it really does work with a HDD then the suspected problem of bad HDD cable is confirmed?


My other issue is if it has anything to do with firmware or EFT 1.6 vs. 1.7 have anything to do with it? Or can I test it or fix that issue if I get it going with another HDD first?

Thanks again let me know what you think

 

[Weaselboy]

I don't think the firmware updates would have anything to do with this.

I was thinking if you could even temporarily plug a hard drive in there and it can be seen by the system, that would help you troubleshoot.

 

[fearN4UT]

I don't think the firmware updates would have anything to do with this.

I was thinking if you could even temporarily plug a hard drive in there and it can be seen by the system, that would help you troubleshoot.

Gotcha for sure. Understood.

Someone on another thread said this:

"Sadly you are facing a SATA speed issue here. Lets review the specs for this SSD: SanDisk SSD Plus If we look at the Interface line we can see the drive is a fixed SATA III (6.0 Gb/s) drive. for the sake of argument lets look at a different SSD: Samsung 850 EVO. If look at its interface line, this drive has auto sense technology so it will work across all three SATA specs.

You'll need to get a drive (HD or SSD) that is able to work with a SATA I (1.5 Gb/s) system. To get this system running."


What is your opinion? Is that valid?

 

[Weaselboy]

What is your opinion? Is that valid?

No that is completely wrong. SATA is backwards compatible so any SATA III SSD should work in your Mac. There is nothing "fixed" about the SATA interface of the SanDisk or any other SATA SSD.

 

[fearN4UT]

No that is completely wrong. SATA is backwards compatible so any SATA III SSD should work in your Mac. There is nothing "fixed" about the SATA interface of the SanDisk or any other SATA SSD.

I feel the same way but just as some drive are better than others couldn't be a problem with the technology used in scaling down the speed from 6 to 1.5 interface?
[doublepost=1456423389][/doublepost]Also, SanDisk offered me a replacement disk is all they offered. So in short should I return this drive and buy a new one and test it for kicks? And maybe also a HDD to see if it loads?

 

[redheeler]

No that is completely wrong. SATA is backwards compatible so any SATA III SSD should work in your Mac. There is nothing "fixed" about the SATA interface of the SanDisk or any other SATA SSD.

Not all SATA 3 drives are backwards compatible with SATA 1, and some need to be manually set using a jumper to work on SATA 1. I also have a 64 GB SanDisk SATA 3 SSD that will refuse to be recognized in my Power Mac G5, which uses SATA 1.

Most SATA 2 drives will work with SATA 1, so the OP should be safe with a SATA 2 SSD.

 

[Weaselboy]

I feel the same way but just as some drive are better than others couldn't be a problem with the technology used in scaling down the speed from 6 to 1.5 interface?

It is not really any "technology" that one drive is using as opposed to another brand. There is nothing at work in the drive that is recognizing the slower SRA interface and slowing things down. All that is happening is the controller on the Mac can only move data at SATA I speeds, so that is all it does.

Also, SanDisk offered me a replacement disk is all they offered. So in short should I return this drive and buy a new one and test it for kicks? And maybe also a HDD to see if it loads?

I guess that would be worth a try. But my experience has been these SSDs are almost never DOA like this. I would be surprised if you got a bad SSD. Could be though.

 

[fearN4UT]

Not all SATA 3 drives are backwards compatible with SATA 1, and some need to be manually set using a jumper to work on SATA 1. I also have a 64 GB SanDisk SATA 3 SSD that will refuse to be recognized in my Power Mac G5, which uses SATA 1.

Most SATA 2 drives will work with SATA 1, so the OP should be safe with a SATA 2 SSD.

How do I manually set it using jumpers? And also a solution is return drive and get a better one maybe too right?
[doublepost=1456423826][/doublepost]

It is not really any "technology" that one drive is using as opposed to another brand. There is nothing at work in the drive that is recognizing the slower SRA interface and slowing things down. All that is happening is the controller on the Mac can only move data at SATA I speeds, so that is all it does.



I guess that would be worth a try. But my experience has been these SSDs are almost never DOA like this. I would be surprised if you got a bad SSD. Could be though.

I gotcha. I doubt it's a bad drive too. I just heard people saying some drives work and others don't. Ima try the new Samsung HDD since that is quicker option for me since its in town. And I can check and see if it works by today or not.

So far thanks for the help. Still open to more feedback please

 

[Weaselboy]

Not all SATA 3 drives are backwards compatible with SATA 1, and some need to be manually set using a jumper to work on SATA 1. I also have a 64 GB SanDisk SATA 3 SSD that will refuse to be recognized in my Power Mac G5, which uses SATA 1.

I have never seen or read about any SATA III SSD that is not backwards compatible. That is part of the specification. If your G5 does not recognize a SATA III drive, that is an incompatibility issue with the G5. For example, there are some Nvidia chipset based Mac portables that have troubles with some brands of SATA III drives, but that is an issue with the Nvidia controller and not a result of a lack of SATA III backward compatibility.

What SATA III SSD have you seen with jumpers? We are talking about SSDs here, not old hard drives.

 

[redheeler]

How do I manually set it using jumpers? And also a solution is return drive and get a better one maybe too right?

I doubt your SSD has jumpers. Your best solution is to return it and get one designed for SATA 2.

 

[fearN4UT]

I doubt your SSD has jumpers. Your best solution is to return it and get one designed for SATA 2.

Is there even any SSD for sale designed to be used with SATA I or even SATA II? ( My MBP uses SATA I) If so can you point me in the right direction?
[doublepost=1456424211][/doublepost]

I have never seen or read about any SATA III SSD that is not backwards compatible. That is part of the specification. If your G5 does not recognize a SATA III drive, that is an incompatibility issue with the G5. For example, there are some Nvidia chipset based Mac portables that have troubles with some brands of SATA III drives, but that is an issue with the Nvidia controller and not a result of a lack of SATA III backward compatibility.

What SATA III SSD have you seen with jumpers? We are talking about SSDs here, not old hard drives.

So what do you recommend I do? Still get a regular HDD and see if I can use that to troubleshoot possibly and go from there?

 

[Weaselboy]

So what do you recommend I do? Still get a regular HDD and see if I can use that to troubleshoot possibly and go from there?

I hate to see you spend money on a hard drive. You don't have access to one somewhere? You don't even need to format it or install anything to it. Just stick it in the Macbook and see if the installer can see it in Disk Utility.

 

[fearN4UT]

I hate to see you spend money on a hard drive. You don't have access to one somewhere? You don't even need to format it or install anything to it. Just stick it in the Macbook and see if the installer can see it in Disk Utility.

Hmm good idea. Should I test with the 3.5 inch drive inside my external HDD? That should work right?

Btw thanks

 

[redheeler]

I have never seen or read about any SATA III SSD that is not backwards compatible. That is part of the specification. If your G5 does not recognize a SATA III drive, that is an incompatibility issue with the G5. For example, there are some Nvidia chipset based Mac portables that have troubles with some brands of SATA III drives, but that is an issue with the Nvidia controller and not a result of a lack of SATA III backward compatibility.

What SATA III SSD have you seen with jumpers? We are talking about SSDs here, not old hard drives.

Sure the specification is backwards-compatible, but that doesn't always mean the drive is. Like I said, not all SATA 3 drives work on SATA 1, and this seems to be true for the SanDisk ones especially.

Is there even any SSD for sale designed to be used with SATA I or even SATA II? ( My MBP uses SATA I) If so can you point me in the right direction?

I've seen the Intel 320 Series SSDs recommended for use on SATA 1.

 

[Weaselboy]

Sure the specification is backwards-compatible, but that doesn't always mean the drive is. Like I said, not all SATA 3 drives work on SATA 1, and this seems to be true for the SanDisk ones especially.

Yes they will. Like I said, there are some controllers like the Nvidia I mentioned that have trouble with certain SSD controllers.

 

[Ries]

Check both ends of the cable are properly inserted.

 

[fearN4UT]

Check both ends of the cable are properly inserted.

Did that.
[doublepost=1456478254][/doublepost]

Sure the specification is backwards-compatible, but that doesn't always mean the drive is. Like I said, not all SATA 3 drives work on SATA 1, and this seems to be true for the SanDisk ones especially.

I've seen the Intel 320 Series SSDs recommended for use on SATA 1.

Redheeler I bought a Samsung 850 Evo (returning my other one and had a gift card and other stuff so I only paid like 3 bucks) and guess what? It doesn't work still I have the same problem. So please help. Do I buy the hard drive cable now (even though it looks in good condition) ? Where do I buy cuz most are all used cables?

Anyone know? Anything?

 

[duervo]

Put your Sony laptop drive in to test visibility of it.

I would have tried that first, and then a new cable. Cables are a lot cheaper than drives, and it's not like you're "down" a system, so time is not critical here, from the looks of things, so getting a cable shipped in 3-5 business days shouldn't be a big deal.

 

[fearN4UT]

Put your Sony laptop drive in to test visibility of it.

I would have tried that first, and then a new cable. Cables are a lot cheaper than drives, and it's not like you're "down" a system, so time is not critical here, from the looks of things, so getting a cable shipped in 3-5 business days shouldn't be a big deal.

Kk will do in the morning.(I'm in bed) My laptop just finished backing up in case anything happens. THEN I'll order it? What if it the Sony drive is visible? What if not? Let me know.

 

[Weaselboy]

Kk will do in the morning.(I'm in bed) My laptop just finished backing up in case anything happens. THEN I'll order it? What if it the Sony drive is visible? What if not? Let me know.

If it still cannot see the hard drive, then that proves it is not the SSD that is the issue here and it likely the cable. It could also be just a completely bad logic board, but that is much less common. This looks like the cable you need from iFixit for $15.

If the hard drive can be seen, and the SSDs cannot, then there may be an incompatibility between the MacBook's controller and the SSD controller, but with you now having tried two different brands, I doubt this is the case.

 

[fearN4UT]

Ok the HDD from my Sony laptop didnt show up either. So new cable it is. I'll update you when I get it and test it. Thanks everyone.