can't boot off gentoo install cd

[TheBaron]

I can't seem to boot off the gentoo install cd on my primary system. I'm trying to use the Gentoo 2004.2 Minimal Install cd, and I've checked it in another system to make sure the cd works.

my main system is
p4 2.8c
abit is7
3 HDDs: Channel 1, a single Hitachi 120; Channel 2, a WD 200 and a Maxtor 250
all drives are on a Highpoint Rocket133

a Lite-on DVD-ROM, a Lite-On 52x Cd-rw

so the question is, why does it REFUSE to detect that this cd is bootable? I have all other boot devices disabled, and both drives read the cd and decide that its not a boot cd. wtf am i dont wrong here?

this is the x86 build, the only thing i can think of is that its scanning for a harddrive and not finding one. I really wanted to do the install with the HDDs on the controller because A) I dont want to go through and changed all the HDD mount paths and B) that IDE port is at the dumbest place ever and its a HUGE pain to get something plugged into it

I have burned several copies of this cd on several brands of CD-R, if it works on a 5 year old aptiva it ought to work on these brand new drives

[TheBaron]

moved HDD to onboard IDE, unplugged Highpoint Controller, still nothing.

is there some setting in the bios that allows me to boot off certain cds? because it works on all my other computers...

[TheBaron]

ruled out controller as being the problem, realized i didn't have onboard IDE1 enabled, tried that. still not able to boot off the cd, was thinking maybe i dont have UDMA enabled or something? im pretty sure I'm using an 80pin ide for the cd-roms... could this be the problem? because the windows xp cd boots just fine

the cdrw is a Lite-On LTR-52246S
the dvd is a Lite-On JLMS XJ-HD166S
both drives have DMA on, and Nero Infotool says that both have support for reading CD-R's (which they damn well should)

it lists the filesystem of the burned CD-R in question as being
ISO9660 (bootable), Joliet

[TheBaron]

going to gentoo forums, maybe they can help