Asus KFN5D-SLI Motherboard Problem???

[rkoenn]

I am pretty experienced in building systems having probably built 300+ over the years but have a problem with a new dual Opteron board, the Asus KFN5D-SLI. I just put the system together last night for a buddy with 2 Opteron 2210s. This is the first time I have used these new Socket F CPUs. It also has a PNY 1400 video card, 8 GB RAM (EEC/Registered). 3 SATA HDDs, Antec 550W power supply, DVD drive, and that is pretty much it. Also at this point in time, I did not have CPU coolers on yet as they no longer come with the CPUs and I have them arriving tomorrow. I assembled everything and when power is applied to the power supply a good power LED on the board shows green. However, I only wanted to power up for a few seconds prior to installing the CPU fans tomorrow, the system does not power up when I just attempted to to verify the machine would work. I have checked all the items I could think of with no luck. I guess one question is is there any link between not having the CPU fans installed and prevention of power up? I didn't think there was and know on all the past systems I have worked on that there is none, I mean how can the board know whether a CPU fan is installed and operating before the board even starts? I am hoping that maybe there is because if not I am at a loss at this time to know what is wrong. With an "exotic" board and system like this I don't have the spare parts to do much troubleshooting. Any help, knowledge, suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

 

[tomt4535]

You have built 300+ computer systems and you ran a brand new high end dual opteron system without heatsinks on the processors? That dosent make sense to me.

 

[rkoenn]

It has never run yet. My plan was simply to verify I had a good hardware configuration, I would have only had it on long enough to see the first text on the screen, then immediately power down. In that short time the CPUs would never have gotten hot enough to damage them and I also believe that their are thermal sensors in these opterons that protect them like Intel does. I would never have let it get that far though. However, I am not even getting the power supply fan to switch on. Tonight I plan on testing the PS separately although I don't think it is the problem. Fans will be here tomorrow. Still looking for help, maybe the memory is the culprit but I still think I should get the power supply to fire up, maybe the board won't boot but the power supply should run.

 

[VooDooAddict]

Do prepare yourself for the possibiltiy that those CPUs are dead. I had done something similar once ... dead Athlon MPs. With such experience in PC building it's bound to happen once to you .. or to someone you know.

Though with no fans on the CPU fan headers you may be lucky. I have used Tyan workstation boards that wouldn't start for thtat very reason. Aftermarked fans without using the CPUFan headers prefented it from startup. I just had to plug a fan into the CPU fan header then tell the bios to ignore the CPU fan speed.

 

[rkoenn]

I got a reply from another board that Intel motherboards won't start without CPU fans attached. That would seem to indicate some type of physical interlock through the wiring loop. That would be great and I will find out tomorrow. I am certain the CPUs are not fried. I never got "real" power to the board, the power supply fan never came on. Today I lifted the power supply leads and jumpered the signal leads and the power supply does operate. If I had gotten it to power up I would have turned it off within seconds of seeing any display. I only wanted to verify it worked, not run it. In that little bit of time there is no way the heat generated could have soaked into the metal can and got the CPU hot enough to fry. Maybe 30 seconds but probably even longer than that, The old Athlons with silicone sitting on a substrate package would fry in a few seconds, nothing for the heat to soak into. These new packages allow you a little bit more time. Still, I don't recommend it. Tomorrow I hope to find out, I hope there is a physical fan interlock, nice safety feature if there is.

 

[rkoenn]

I have the machine working now. It appears to be something to do with the power supply, a brand new Antec TruePower Trio 550. I kept playing with the system, testing the parts in other boards that I could, using the power supply on an older MSI K8 board, etc. I also checked the power supply by shorting the signal on leads and it appeared to work, it also worked with the other board. It has a couple of unique connectors for this server motherboard. However every time I connected it to the Asus motherboard the system would not power up at all. Then, I started it with a minimal system, single CPU and video and 1 memory module using the paper clip short and it started. Then I tried with the normal power switch and it worked. I continued to add components and after each step everything continued to work. However, if the machine is off for a extended time frame it fails to start until I remove the main plug, start the power supply stand alone, and then replug it. I don't know if this is actually a power supply problem or motherboard problem. I installed WinXP 64 and it has run like a champ all through everything. This morning I flashed a BIOS rev and maybe that will prevent this problem. I don't know yet but can't sell it to my buddy until it powers on each and every time normally. So if anyone has any other suggestions let me know.