Vista 64 failed - now can't install 32 either.

[Cogwork]

Ok this is a very annoying one.

Have been running vista ultimate 32bit for months with no problems.
Decided to try upgrading to 64-bit version today.
Vista 64 wouldn't load - bsod . It wouldn't boot to safe mode into safe mode either.
After some reading I thought it might be the 64-bit 4gb issue, so removed 2gb, reformated partition and clean reinstall - no luck exactly the same.

Eventually I decided to give it up and go back to 32-bit.
So again reformat partition and reinstall - now it won't even install 32-bit, bsod half way through installation. 0x0000007a

So clean installed XP, with full format beforehand (which took bloody ages). XP seemed to run fine. So went back for another shot of vista, and again bsod during installation (same error)

So, any ideas out there? This machine has been running ultimate 32 for months with no issues. could initial 64 installation screwed up the bios or something. I've been clean installing so would think any dodgy kernel would have been purged. Also XP is running ok.

The only thing I haven't tried is reformating my second partition (data only - no OS) although I can't see how that would affect the OS boot.

So I'm stuck and annoyed. MS seem to have managed to screw up my machine.

 

[Cogwork]

my specs:
Q6600 quad core
gigabyte GA-P35-DS3P
OCZ 2x2GB PC2-5400C5 ram
Nvidia 8800GT

which until this morning was running vista ultimate 32 fine and dandy (grrr)

 

[Cogwork]

Unfortunately it's a partition rather than a seperate drive.

What I can't work out is why there should be any conflicts if I'm reformatting and clean installing vista 32 bit.
I could understand if new hardware, but this exact hardware has been running ok for months.
The only thing that has changed is that I tried a clean install of vista 64 bit, and since then vista 32 won't install

 

[Cogwork]

seems to suggest either a bad cable to the hard drive or dvd drive (or both)

i would have said "check ram, check cables, check drives" before reading that

XP is running OK and doesn't seem to have any issues with the drives.
Unless Vista is less robust or more fussy than XP regarding SATA drives?

Would Vista and XP addressing the drive in different ways? Possibly there is some SATA / AHCI bios setting which Vista doesn't like - I must admit I'm pretty hazy about SATA drives. Will have to have a rummage in the BIOS.