Ok I'm probably missing something obvious, but I am having trouble setting up a new hard drive on the empeg. I am using builder_bigdisk_v6, and end up with a bad pump error. I am trying to install a 160gb drive. I have also tried another 20gb drive with the same result. I have read numerous topics on here and still can't solve this problem. I have a new IDE cable and the serial port and cable are in working order. I have checked all the connections and they seem to be fine...didn't see any broken solder, and IDE cable doesn't show any wires. What other information should I provide for help? My brain is fried after going through all these posts so I apologize if I missed something. Thanks for the help.

Bad pump can be:

- Corrupted builder file.
- Serial port trouble, serial cable trouble.
- Disk drive trouble.
- Connection between mobo and disk drive trouble.

Although you say you checked some of those things, what steps did you do to truly rule them out with certainty? For instance, what grounds do you cite for expecting the 20gb or 160gb drives as being truly good? Have you made sure the serial cable is good by looking at the device in a terminal program? Have you made sure the IDE chip isn't bad by looking at a boot log? Does Mark supply a checksum for the builder files (not sure?)?