If you ever want to recover your disk data, DO NOT TURN ON THE DISK AND SPIN IT EVER AGAIN.
It may be firmware problems. But, just as likely, it will have been a head crash that has now filled the disk with minute particles of disk substrate. Each time you turn it on, you risk further damage.
And yes, having have paid to recover two disks in years gone by, $1200 is the norm for such work. It has to be done in a clean room. It's a long process where data is removed sector by sector, then ultimately reassembled back into files. They don't always get every bit exactly right due to lost data.
I used Adroit Data Recovery both times. Besides being slightly cheaper than others, they definitely quoted faster processing times, and were recommended to me as the best in town. I concur.
http://www.adrc.com/
Edited to add: If indeed it is only a firmware issue, Adroit will either repair the firmware and/or transfer disc mechanics to a working disk and adjust costs accordingly.