EPOX 8RDA+ will not POST

[BigdaddyF]

Just got this board after reading lots of good things about it. Stuck xp1700 and ATI 9500 and loaded winxp on it...so far so good.

Next I start playing with the cpu multiplier (everything else was set to default)...got to 10 x 200 easy. When I tried 11 x200, it will not boot. No video and the LED will show C1 and then stop at AA. After about 5 sec MB will start beeping.

Figuring I need to lower my multiplier, but I can't get into the BIOS menu since nothing shows up on the monitor

I tried resetting the CMOS but no luck.
Tried booting with the insert key depressed
Pulled the JCLK jumper
Moved the memory to different slots
Reseated CPU heat sink
Popped the BIOS chip/battery and set CLR

Any ideas how to fix this and BTW what is the meaning of code AA (its not in the manual?

 

[Viper96720]

Wonder if it's related to this Text

 

[BigdaddyF]

And there lies the problem. Setting the FSB too high can stop Nforce 2 motherboards from POSTing. Once the motherboard has stopped POSTing, the only way to get it going again is to reset the FSB back down to 100MHz. Only most motherboards don't have the jumper so you can't do that.

THATS really crappy! Whats the point of having a CMOS reset jumper if it does not force it to its default settings :disgust:

Guess its RMA back to Newegg!

 

[videobruce]

It's not Newegg's fault YOU over-overclocked the board is it?

Remove the CMOS battery AFTER you unplugged the ATX connector for a minute and try again.

 

[Viper96720]

A bios update should fix it

 

[screw3d]

C1 is a memory error. Have you tried swapping it with another stick?

 

[BigdaddyF]

Tried many times to reset the BIOS, even popped the chip out and let it sit overnight...no luck.

Also stuck a different DDR stick and tried it on different slots...nuthin

Guessing the BIOS is corrupted beyond repair?

 

[BuckNaked]

I had a similar problem, and had to buy a stick of PC21000 RAM to get it to post. After updating my BIOS from the 1/29 to the 5/7 BIOS, my board no longer would boot with my Corsair 3200C2 stick of RAM.... No post or anything, and I would get the C1 error... Put in a stick of Crucial 2100 and booted up fine. Tried different memory settings and everything, but it just didn't like the Corsair memory until going back to the 1/29 BIOS. It seems with the newer BIOS, the board doesn't like the fast Corsair, but will boot with slower stuff.... Adjust your RAM settings in the BIOS and replace with the faster stuff....

Dave

 

[Colombo]

I don't quite understand the FSB issue, because what about the chips that are designed to run at a higher FSB? That just seems screwy at best.

I'll try different ram and see how that works. If it's ram, I'll either have to get different ram, or go back to the older bios.

Josh

 

[Colombo]

Well......I got some cheap no name brand pc 2100 ddr ram from a buddy. Tried it in my system. Did the exact same thing as with the corsair. So I don't think memory is the issue.

I'm going to RMA the board. I don't see what else would be causing it. It sucks cause I went through all the hassle of putting heat sinks on the north & south bridge chips.....now I'll have to redo them.....grrrr

 

[BigdaddyF]

Finally got a reply from EPOX about my problem.

I tried to get them to ship me a new BIOS but they insisted on RMA back to where I purchased the MB.

Whatever happened to warranty service?

The manual mentions it exists but the terms are not listed. Of course their website is currently down (as usual) so I'm SOL there....:frown:

 

[Colombo]

At least they say to RMA it.

They gave me the obvious list of stuff to try, which I pretty much have.....but I'll humour them and try one more time.

 

[Cybordolphin]

Bigdaddy...

I know this sounds really stupid...
But would you try something for me before you RMA that board.

Check your front case connectors going to your motherboard. Make sure that the connectors have the white lettering ALL facing towards the TOP of the case. Do this and see what happens.

Let me know if it solves your boot problem.

 

[BigdaddyF]

Check your front case connectors going to your motherboard. Make sure that the connectors have the white lettering ALL facing towards the TOP of the case. Do this and see what happens.

Not sure what you mean by your suggestion...but I do not think I have a hookup problem because everything was working just fine until I started changing the cpu multiplier values in the BIOS.

Thanks for the tip tho...altho the MB has been RMA'd already.

For others considering RMAing, considering that shipping cost over $10(unless you live out on the west coast)...a new BIOS would have cost me only $5 more and it would be already been here plus I can hotflash the old one to use as a spare in the future.

Shouda, woulda, coulda ordered the BIOS instead...seriously

 

[Sk8rdd00]

have you tried just holding down the insert key when booting? works for me

 

[BigdaddyF]

have you tried just holding down the insert key when booting? works for me

Tried it both ways, when I hit reset and also from switching on the power...I guess the BIOS must be totally trashed

 

[Cybordolphin]

With this board YOU MUST have all of the connectors that come off the front of the case connected to the motherboard (HD LED, Power Switch, etc..) with the "white" print (printed on the small connectors), facing to the top of the case, and be careful to NOT attach to the "turbo" pins. Otherwise you will have boot problems. I spent a great deal of time troubleshooting my first 8RDA+, (I could only boot if i removed the IDE channel 1 cable!) until I found this out.

Believe me.... I thought the idea was crazy too. But that is exactly what it turned out to be. Others have found this out the hard way also. So..... before you RMA the boards (I understand you already have), be sure to check this simple fix first.

JMO

 

[Colombo]

JMO,

Question about your theory for the lettering issue. I honestly don't see how this could cause any problems. It may just be a coincidence.

The reason I say this is for the the case lights. They are LED's. They will only light up if power flows in the correct direction. So those can only be connected one way.

The power & reset switches are just momentary switches. Unless they're using some fancy switches that react differently when power flows different directions, I don't see how they could be causing an issue.

The turbo LED thing, that I may have to give a shot, because I have my power LED hooked up to that because the power output from the normal power LED connector wouldn't illuminate the power light enough.

For my issues, I did some troubleshooting, and turns out my ATI video card was causing my no-boot issues. I put in an old pci card and it worked like a charm. So I had to spend another 100 bucks on a different card. I'm not 100% sure the vid card is working the way it should. I need to try it in another machine, and/or possibly send off to ATI.

I still have a weird issues when if I unplug the computer, and then hit the power button to use any of the power in the power supply. However when I plug it back in, it won't boot unless I hold the power button down for a couple seconds, release it, and then press it again. It will then boot, however it gets a C1 error. If I press the reset button, it will then boot fine, and have no issues.

I may try that turbo led thing.

Josh

 

[Cybordolphin]

Hello,

As I said, I know this is unusual... but if you doubt me, just try flipping your connections and you will see that if the connections are not made this way, you will experience boot problems. It is something I found only with this particular motherboard. Others have also discovered this.

AND DO NOT CONNECT TO THE TURBO I OR II!

 

[Colombo]

Thanks,

I'll give it a shot.

Josh

 

[Colombo]

Well I did some more testing.

For the record, most of my connections had the lettering facing down. I swapped and made the lettering face down. This resulted in the LED's not work.

The lettering facing a certain direction really doesn't matter. As long as you have the pos. & neg. lead on the correct pins, you should be fine. As I mentioned earlier, and LED is a Light Emitting Diode. Diode's will only flow current in one direction. So if you have them hooked up wrong, the LED's won't light up. So as long as your LED's work, it doesn't matter about what way the lettering on the pins face.

The power & reset switches.....again they are simple momentary devices when depressed allow current to flow through them. They will allow current to flow in either direction, and when they're not depressed, they're an open circuit, and it's like they're not even connected.

These comments on the LED's and switches are not my opinion, they're fundamentals of electronic circuits/theory.

The speaker, in theory should work if it's hooked up backwards, but one lead is red & one is black, so it's pretty easy to discern which goes where.

The turbo light pins. I unhooked my power LED from it, and tested things, and got the same results. I'm not saying it won't cause issues on other boards, but on mine, it made no difference whether I had something hooked up to it.

I don't know why the board has issues if I completely drain the power from it.....but it does.

Josh

 

[Cybordolphin]

In theory a helicopter should never be able to fly.

I am sorry also, as it is not just my theory. It is a known issue with this board. Just thought I'd share the info.

The connectors not connected properly on this board WILL cause your system to not boot up. Even the LED to the HD if not connected properly (reversed) will cause the problem.

Hope you were able to locate your trouble.


Oh.... and I would not bother hooking up the case speaker.

 

[mechBgon]

Uhhh, I'm sorry, but I've read a lot of silly stuff and that just tops it all. You're saying that the board won't work if you have the LED's plugged in correctly? You say it's a known issue, but I've troubleshot hundreds of nForce2 boards and never seen any evidence to corroborate your idea, nor ever heard of plugging the LEDs in the right way being a "known issue."

<---- post count: over 10000, not obtained by neffing either


Let's not get a myth started here, people. The fact is, Cybordolphin was HOT-plugging his IDE cables into his powered-up motherboard at one point :Q Anyone starting to see...?

Yeah. I'm not trying to dis him, just giving you a bigger picture of his idea of troubleshooting.

 

[pspada]

Originally posted by: mechBgon
Uhhh, I'm sorry, but I've read a lot of silly stuff and that just tops it all. You're saying that the board won't work if you have the LED's plugged in correctly? You say it's a known issue, but I've troubleshot hundreds of nForce2 boards and never seen any evidence to corroborate your idea, nor ever heard of plugging the LEDs in the right way being a "known issue."

<---- post count: over 10000, not obtained by neffing either


Let's not get a myth started here, people. The fact is, Cybordolphin was HOT-plugging his IDE cables into his powered-up motherboard at one point :Q Anyone starting to see...?

Yeah. I'm not trying to dis him, just giving you a bigger picture of his idea of troubleshooting.

Umm, what's neffing?

I had a guy pull a network card out of a running computer once. Great light show - the network card and slot were shot. Surprisingly, the machine continued to work thereafter. Unlike a machine that has had the ide cables plugged in while running, apparently.

 

[mechBgon]

Neffing: In this thread, Zim Hosein illustrates what neffing is Any questions...? Oh, and the term comes from a former Forum member whose nick was Nef.