Build Problems :(

[teddyv]

This is my first build and I went slowly and carefully. Everything went fine - assembly, WinXP Home, Mobo Drivers, ATi Drivers, until I tried to hook up to the Internet. I plugged in my Cable Modem (green light at connection) and got nothing. I went under Device Manager and all I had for Network Adapters was a Microsoft 1394 Adapter. I thought this was odd since I hadn't even hooked up my Firewire ports yet so I uninstalled it and opened the find new hardware. After a bit of hunting I found the RealTek Lan drivers and clicked on them. They appeared under the Network Adapters slot with a big yellow bang, saying "Error 10 Unable to Connect".

I have no idea where to go from here, when I rebooted the 1394 microsoft adapter was back, I still get no love from the Nic, and I have no idea what error #10 is. When I try to add a new Internet connection MS just tells me it is already done and that damn 1394 re-appears.

Did I forget to enable something in the Bios? Is my Mobo/Nic hosed and I need to RMA?

Thanks for any and all help!

Teddy

 

[JCKC]

Bump for ya. I'm getting ready to build a system with the same MOBO and would like to know as well in the event I run into any problems.

 

[teddyv]

After re-installing windows and the nVidia drivers four times it turns out it was a Bios issue You need to do a few things in the Bios, one of the things it turns out is enabling the nVidia Lan. Once I enabled it, all worked fine. That 1394 is still there, but sort of harmlessly just sitting there (I hope...)

Quick impressions -

- The Sonata case is tight, it is a mess in there now. Anyone have a primer for how to route wires and zip tie them up and out of the way?
- The stupid Epox auto install disk needs work! If you select reboot after the chipset drivers install, on boot-up it will automatically go to a dos-screen to create a Raid disk on A: with no alternative but to escape to a command prompt. I have no need for a Raid disk and I have no drive A. To complete the install of the other drivers I had to eject the Epox CD so it would boot to HD, wait for windows to boot and then re-insert the CD. It is the only real dissapointment I had with the whole install. That and calling customer support last night, having to leave a message and as of 7pm tonight still not getting a call back.
- The fold-out mobo chart is very well done, made attatching the tiny wires for the front case things a breeze.
- The SATA connectors look quite fragile.
- The 24-pin power connector is too close to the CPU fan.
- The screwdriver was a nice touch, and quite handy.

Recommendations for Epox...

- Some industrious soul could do well to revamp the Mobo disk install interface and fix the Raid disk thing.
- Resolve a less-than 12-hour turnaround on tech calls.
- Do a thorough walkthrough on the website for building a comp with this board, include bios settings and driver installs.
- Beef up the backplate - the one that came out of the Sonata was noticeably stronger.

Now I just have to figure out how to get 5 years worth of stuff from my current IDE drive to the new comp. Going to just install it in the new one and transfer stuff over I guess.

 

[JCKC]

Congratulations on getting the beast up and running! There's a lot of satisfaction in not only building it yourself, but also resolving problems that appear along the way.

All my stuff is scheduled for delivery tomorrow. I've already hit all of my component manufacturers' websites and downloaded the latest drivers. I went to Epox's website and donwloaded all they had but didn't see a driver specific to the LAN. I assume the driver is included as part of the nForce drivers, whcih I downloaded direct from NVidia.

Did you just use all of the drivers that came with your components or did you go out and download the newest ones separately?

Regarding the SATA connectors, my understanding is that they are inherently weak, regardless of manufacturer. I guess you might call it a design flaw. Or are you suggesting that the Epox SATA connectors are even less sturdy than you've seen elsewhere?

Good luck on your new system.

 

[teddyv]

This is my first build ever, upgrading from a pre-Sata Dell 8100 from 04/00 so I have no idea on the Sata connectors. They just looked a little fragile by design.

I had initially downloaded all the drivers, but switched over to the Epox disk trying to troubleshoot the Lan issue. I did use the latest Catalyst drivers off the ATi site instead of using the MSI disk for the vid card though.

Let me know how the build goes. I was going to do a whole fresh re-install Saturday now that the Lan issue is resolved just incase I nerfed something along the way. Please let me know how using the new nVidia drivers works, I'd rather use them than the Epox disk.

Ted

 

[imported_jondoe]

Might hang on the end of this thread myself... about to complete the same job. Unloaded the boxes and they're now just sat looking at me. Time to brew the coffee and open up the manuals.