RAID controller not detecting disks

Cafem · August 3, 2019

So I posted this to /r/homelab earlier but thought this forum is probably worth a cross-post;

I'm setting up a new homelab but I've hit a roadblock with the RAID controller.

Using a RocketRAID 3740A and 4x4TB WD Reds with a 4xSATA to Mini-SAS converter. All the drives work correctly and can be detected when plugged into the motherboard(ASUS WS C621E SAGE) SATA ports. The RAID card is being picked up correctly during POST and the 3rd party RAID BIOS utility can be reached and navigated, but even when the disks are attached to the card, the utility reports no devices are attached. I've tried the RAID utility native to the motherboard, but I am using ESXi 6.7 and it doesn't support the virtual RAID system offered.

None of the devices are defective; I transferred all of them into my main desktop (MSI Z170A M7) and the RAID card detected them as expected, was able to create the array according to the instruction sheet, boot into Windows, view the 'drive' in Disk Management.

I believe it's likely a BIOS setting, or a combination of settings, though at this point I feel like I've tried most combinations available. Suggestions greatly appreciated (also anyone who's had previous success with this motherboard and hardware RAID setups)