I've felt exactly like that. Even when I went with a supervisor and PhD related to my group they pretty much talked to each other, wanted to be alone during the half day off, and didn't want to meet at meals. I was pretty miserable, and not even comfortable about my research which was on a narrow topic of the conference and had a small board at the back of the room. My supervisor never suggested appropriate conferences to go on, I found out by chance or by grilling my supervisor/advisor for suggestions. My supervisor just went off with his friends when he was at the same conference. He didn't think it was even worth updating my poster for the conference as people would ask if they were interested.

"I phoned up the Student Loans Co yesterday and the guy on the other end sounded like he'd just been lobotomised."
lol
Hope he is able to work it out, I have had bad experiences about customer phonelines in general....

My partner explained my PhD to our mortgage broker, but when I started talking about it he got uncomfortable and said he would have to go back to the lender. We had to get another mortgage in the end.

I lost confidence about 2 years ago. I'm not staying in research.
Anyway it's not ready to take to a conference. He's been to several conferences though on the postdoc's work and off again this week.

He's not really read anything of mine before my thesis as I have no papers, and whenever I've asked him if I should learn an area he's said no. I've ended up having to learn these areas to some degree, a lot in this, my 4th year but feel I now don't know what I should. He's not really showed an interest in my progress either and I worry I'm not where I should be after a PhD. My last few talks have gone badly too. The last I was questioned really harshly (not my fault) and my 3rd year talk my supervisor used the questions as a vehicle to talk to his friends about a related postdoc project and I just looked really stupid like I didn't know anything as not my project. I've just been left to work things out on my own, but I don't know if I have.

My supervisor is taking the last part of one of my thesis chapters away to read at a conference and wants to come up with a defendable conclusion. Shouldn't I be doing this? I've had a go in the chapter he's taking away, and some things I had to learn during the write-up so I'm not really an expert on this chapter. Does this mean I'm not doing very well? We've not discussed the final results before.

I haven't told anyone official, but have told one or two PhD friends. It probably depends on how supportive that person would be and if they would spread it round the department for whatever reason or use it against you. I presumed my supervisor wouldn't be any help if I told him and you can go weeks without him chceking on your progress anyway. I would say things like I had a block from writing for a while and he would say a lot of people can go through that. I found a nice younger lecturer who listens to me if I get really stuck and puts my work back on track.

I got a pay rise during my PhD, and they do go up for new students over time. Older people I talk to got paid peanuts compared with now, e.g. 8K but that was reasonable for the time.

Is the pay in addition to PhD funding? I would expect at least 10-12K funding as a Biochemistry PhD, don't know about new first years or other subjects.
It's worth quitting if it is just going to be a waste of several years, its an investment of time for you and the people around you. It is a good sign that the supervisor is nice though. Maybe you just need a lot more support as you are from a different area, or a change of project? Some people do quit, and quite a few people get no results for most of their PhD. It depends whether you are able to complete, and if you want to go through what that will involve. Probably asking your supervisor/people that know you and know the process would help more.

Taking into account waiting for my supervisor to read my thesis (lightly and looking at the bits I've highlighted) I can submit in July. Want to wait for the feedback.

I was so happy writing about my PhD in the past tense preparing a job application. Shame I have to go into today and look at my thesis again after a week off.

I've applied for my first permament job
I can't believe after years feeling I'm rubbish at my PhD, that my CV actually sounds so good (much hard work and careers help)
My supervisor asked if I was applying to postdocs, the no was embarrassingly quick

You don't need papers to pass a Ph.D.
Which is lucky
I have a book somewhere on how to get a Ph.D. that has about a page of examples about what is original, it is a lot easier than you would think. You can present minor bits of other people's work if it has not been presented anywhere before, or make a minor change to an existing method. Can't remember what the book said.

If you can get a control to work then it's that system, I'd seriously consider this if you haven't e.g. if on a protein buy/find a sample of a cheap generic protein that works
You could characterise your sample possibly to check it is what it is supposed to be. I had a friend who didn't check the pH of a sample from a collaborator and the collaborator was wrong.

Finally your results may be perfectly valid, it might be that there's a scientific explanation for why it doesn't work specific to that system. Maybe there is a different technique to show the same thing, or support what you are trying to show

Firstly I'd troubleshoot as said above.
In general for my sort of work (may/may not apply):

chemicals can have impurities/contaminants/use by dates/stored incorrectly and changing brand may help
glassware may be dirty or have a contaminant
there may be something limiting the reaction/binding kinetics
temperature/pH/buffer/cofactor may be needed
changing the concentrations of reagents may help
There could be an inpurity in your sample acting as an inhibitor
If another person gets the same results it's not your technique