Well, the boot log you mentioned is normal. Any laptop IDE drive should work fine with this configuration (assuming it is not S-ATA, but the connector would not fit anyway). It is not that there are two test messages or the single vs. dual channel that is the issue - it is that the drive never responded at all. Typically, the drive will respond and correctly identify itself. Given that this is not the case, I suspect either cabling problems or a bad drive.

As for the fuzzy display - ouch! That is annoying, and I strongly recommend getting someone to replace that fuse.
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Paul Grzelak
200GB with 48MB RAM, Illuminated Buttons and Digital Outputs