external HDD killing USB-Cables... ??

[Nord]

So I've got 4 external HDD's, some as old as 10 years and they all still work flawlessly w/o any issues whatsoever, apart of one which seems to be killing its USB Cables..?

 

The external HDD in question is a "Maxtor Basic Desktop - 1.5TB - USB 2.0" which I bought around 2007.

Here is a picture of it: 

 

thats how its been standing for the past 4 or so years, right next to my WD 2TB ex. HDD, both run theyr cables the exact same path, pretty much next to each other.

 

 

Now around a year ago, the first USB cable got shot on the Maxtor ex. HDD, so I figured, well.. can happen & replaced it. Yesterday however, the replacement cable didnt work either anymore, which struk me as odd.

When the cable "breaks" pretty much everything is normal untill I plug the cable into an PC, which will tell me "USB Device not reckognised", tryed it on 2 PC's.

 

So I went to try a few things:

1.) I put the USB cable from the HDD next to it into Maxtor HDD(which is the cable killing one) -> it works.

 

2.) I plugged another USB cable that I had lying around into the Maxtor HDD, and again it works.

 

3.) I did try the freshly "broken" cable, on 2 different HDD's and on 2 PC's  -> does not work, always "unknowen USB-device"

 

4.) While having the cable connected and the HDD running, I wobbled the cable around a bit, lift & tilt it a bit and apperantly, if I move it just right on the mini-USB part it will work. However the slightest adjustment of the cable afterwards will kill the connection to the PC again and we go back to "Unknowen device". Tryed that with 2 HDD's and on 2  PC's to verify.  (mini USB part, is the part of the cable that goes into the HDD enclosure)

 

5.) Having discovered above, I went to dig up the first cable that the HDD has "destroyed" and did just as in point 3 & 4, with exactly the same outcome.

 

 

 

So is this just a insanely crazy coincidence, that 2 USB cables, on the same external HDD break in the exact same way or is it actually possible that the external HDD is killing the USB-cables?

Logically, it cant really be that a external HDD enclosure kills USB cables, right? But then again that 2 different cables break the exact same way, on the same device, that one hell of a coincidence aswell .. so I'm kinda lost here on what to think...

 

I dont even use the external drives much, maybe a 6 hours backup session every month or so but thats it..

Also if its may or may not important, the HDD is connected to a USB 2.0 Hub (passiv) which goes into a USB 3.0 port into my PC. The hub also has the HDD next to it, my webcam & my mouse connected next to the maxtor HDD.

Edited May 12, 2016 by Nord
formating

[Nord]

nobody? .-.

[D4RK]

4 hours ago, Nord said:

nobody? .-.

do u normally unplug that cable alot, and use it some where else?

[Nord]

nope, at the most I plug it out of the USB hub itself, if windows refuses to "safely disconnect the device".

Other than that the cables have been connected to only that one single HDD and never pluged out of it, ever.