I have searched the internet for a solution to this problem so far to no avail, so hopefully someone here can give me some ideas.

I recently purchased some extra RAM for my computer, but after installing it, my computer fails to recognise my second HDD. (system drive IS recognised though) The only possible explanation I can think of is that my PSU is not giving out enough power for the new RAM to be used as well as the other components and it is at full capacity without the additional RAM.

The HDD is recognised in the bios but not in windows. I have tried taking some RAM out, using only my new RAM, RAM in different slots etc so the RAM and slots appear to work fine.

Is there anything else that could be causing this problem before I splash out on a new PSU? Here is a list of my components (hope that will help)

Seagate ST3250410AS 250GB HDD SATAII 7200rpm
120 gig IDE drive
OCZ 2x1GB DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 CL 4-4-4-15 PLATINUM
OCZ 2x512MB DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 CL 4-4-4-15
Point Of View 7600GT 256mb DDR3 PCI-E
Asus P5N-E SLI 650i Socket 775
Intel Core 2 Duo E4300 1.86ghz
DVD +-RW and card reader drive.
I-Cute ATX 400w/p4 (+3.3v 28A; +5v 40A; +12 18A) PSU is 3 years old

Hope someone can help, thanks in advance
Ben

Check the cabling to the drive. RAM shouldn't cause that problem.

XP seems to have a nasty habit of losing drives. Check to see if it's seen in Disk Management. If it is, try changing it's drive letter.

I've had it happen to me 4 times and I repartitioned/formatted the drives to get them back. I didn't fool around with it very much because I had backups.

It might be worth a try to use the Recovery Console and try a Fixmbr.

Reinstall your old RAM to see if the problem goes away. Personally, I doubt the PSU as being the culprit.

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Thanks for all the quick responses
I've checked the cabling and that all seems fine.
There is no mention of the drive in the disc management either unfortunately!
As for reinstalling the RAM, I've tried it with 3 sticks using 2 new and one old stick, 2 old one new and in different slots and that works fine, its just when i put in the final 4th stick it starts to play up!

Thanks again for all your help

Ok I suggest that you try each stick by itself.

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Look at the link below. It is a list of qualified RAM vendors and the modules approved for your MBoard. Your RAM isn't on the list. That doesn't mean it WON'T work, just means it hasn't been tested and will work.

http://www.asus.com/999/download/pr...

The RAM seems to work fine but I guess it could be causing the problems! I guess I'll try and send it back and get something from the approved list.

Thank you all for your help

Did you run memtest86 to check the RAM for errors?

While I agree this particular issue is probably not a PSU problem, I-Cute is not a good brand & a single +12v rail of 18A is inadequate for your hardware config.

"And that's the fishing line, because Sharkboy said so!"

I have just run memtest and it said everything was fine! I was hoping it would find a problem and all would be explained!!

I was certainly considering a new PSU so if you feel it is inadequate I'll order one right away.

Would anyone recommend either of the two below? I don't want to spend too much, but obviously it would be nice if it lasted a few years.

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/124927
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/127861

Thanks again

Did you run memtest while all 4 sticks were installed?

I did only run it with the 2 new sticks but after your comment I tried it with all 4. Again it came up with no errors. This is driving me mad! lol

Thanks

Well then the RAM is good but may be slightly incompatible with the MBoard.

If you are willing to replace the PSU then I would suggest you do that first. 18A on the 12V rail may be marginal.

Yep diddo what OtheHill said, I completely agree.

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I've ordered a new PSU which I can hopefully have installed by Friday. I'll let you know how it goes.

Thanks everyone

Quick update:
I've installed my new PSU and so far everything seems to be working fine. Not sure if that was the problem, but it certainly is doing the job for now. (it's also a lot quieter so I'm happy either way!)
Thanks everyone for your assistance

You're welcome.