melting SATA cables help please

Building a htpc and have now melted 2 sata cables.

put everything together and every time I tried to start computer the fans on cpu, psu, and the light would flash for 1/2 a second. I tried another PSU and had the same issue. I then unplugged everything, hdmi cable, usb extension cord with usb stick in it(windows), wireless network usb device. Same issue. then I unplugged the SSD sata and power cable and she booted. I was so happy to see bios.

Slowly plugged items back in. All seamed to work until I saw smoke. SATA cable complacently melted to my SSD. FYI:, MOBO, cpu, and ram all new. Used new SATA cable that came with mobo. I was using an old 120GB SSD and assumed it had a short. Went to micro-center and bought new SSD. Same issues as before with 1/2 second power. Now I am thinking my PSU could have a short..... tried another psu, same issue.

Kept trying different psu's, sata cables, and modular cables. Finally having it running and smoke again. This time I was on the watch and unplugged power before it melted another SSD.

My conclusion is there is a short on the sata side of the mobo.

Any thoughts.

if you think its a short on the mobo then yea try out a sacrificial HDD or ODD and see if it happens again.

i'd be curious if it would do this in a regular case. I'm wondering if its, for what ever reason, not grounded real well and finding a better ground through the SATA datelines for what ever reason

Yikes.

If not the grounding, It's either the sata port. If your mobo has sata ports from a different controller, try those amd see.

Is this also resulting in fried SSDs?

trents said:

Is this also resulting in fried SSDs?

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From what he said in the first post, I am assuming so, yes.

It wasn't clear to me that it ruined the SSD. He said the SATA cable insulation melted to the SSD and he assumed the new SSD had a short at that point but that if the SSD itself was damaged and not just the cable is not clear to me. Did he clean off the melted plastic from the cable and try the SSD in another computer?

This time I was on the watch and unplugged power before it melted another SSD.

Click to expand...

This line, to me, meant the SSD died. I wouldn't bet my life on it, but good money says at least one died.

Not sure if he tested it or not.

I figured it out. I was using a modular PSU and I grabbed the shortest modular cable for my SSD from my pile of modular cables. The issue being I thought all modular PSU's had a standard pin layout. I have now learned you can't mix up your PSU's modular cables with other PSU cables.

Using a very old 430w thermaltake that is not modular while I sort out my cables.

I lost two brand new with mobo SATA data cables and the first 120GB Samsung SSD.

Ahh.. yeah...that will do it! Glad you found it sooner than later!

I actually thought about that at one point 'cause I accidentally found that out by accident a year or two ago myself. EVGA tech support tipped me off to the different cable pin sequence on modular PSUs. I think there are two arrangements commonly used by manufacturers and you can't mix them.