ESC Combo troubles

[linc1fl]

Hi to the group,
Got the link to this board from HTT and this is my 1st discussion, hope someone can help me out. I am no expert but have been in some type of electronics for about 40 years. I amy not make myself clear at times so please bear with me. I have a motherboard cpu combo made by ECS i got a few months back and have not got around to putting it in. It has a AMD cpu on the board. Got it from a computer shop in N.C on ebay, they said the only problem was the battery for the board was bad that it would not displat the time and date . Anyway i put mine up on a table out of the case and make sure everything boots before installing. Hooked a keyboard and mouse up to it with 512 megs of ddr, this is a cheaper board and came with no manual, board starts up, cpu fan runs as well as case fan but no video, has onboard video so i put an agp card in the slot, still no video. Went to the ESC site but can't find anything out about the board or cpu, board is a L7VMM3 and all they list is a 1 or 2. Did a little searching on the net and found a place that said it was the same as a pc chips board which is where i found the front panel connections. Said on there if the battery was weak it could cause boot problems but you could by pass that by holding the page up button down when booting and that would also clear the board. Tried all that and still no video. Monitor i am useing with cable hooked up is black, disconnect cable and the screen on monitor tells you there is no signal. Just need to get the video up so i can check farther. Any ideas?. Thanks, Jerry

 

[furballi]

Is this a joke?

First mistake was to buy stuffs with no manual and warranty from FLEABAY. Second mistake was not to test the combo IMMEDIATELY after purchase. Third mistake was to buy a known defective board (hmmm...bad battery...a $3 fix).

I'd throw the thing in the garbage and learn from your mistake.

 

[furballi]

Fry's often has the ECS NF3/Sempron3100 combo for $70. This combo comes with a warranty.

I suspect replacing the Lithium battery and clearing the CMOS will NOT fix the problem.

 

[linc1fl]

Thanks for the reply, i have been on ebay for 8 years and have gotten some good deals on there. I got this from a computer shop and they had good feedback. In over 500 deals i have only been burned a couple of times. Have gotten a couple of good boards on there and saved a little which is good since i am disabled and 60 years old living on a fixed income. I really think it is a good board and i may be able to get it going, at least i will try. Before on boards that i didn't have a manual with i could allways download them from the manufacturer. Again thanks for the reply. Jerry

 

[furballi]

You can swap out the battery and retest. It's a standard $3 Lithium cell available at Radio Shack. Go into the BIOS (usually hit DELETE key repeatedly during boot) and set the system to boot from AGP (if possible). Save and exit.

Make sure you have a known good monitor and stick of RAM. Also reseat the CPU. Always test the MB outside of the case to eliminate ground-related issue. Start the PC by shorting the two power pins on the MB using a screwdriver.

 

[linc1fl]

Thanks again for the reply, i allways set up the boards outside the case, on this board i believe the cpu is soldered to the board. I set the board on a cardboard box and run the header wires from the case to the board then connect the monitor after the memory has been installed and then keyboard and mouse and try for a boot to the bios. This monitor with the cable disconnected displays a block on the screen that says no signal. With the cable hooked up it is just black and the power light is flashing on the monitor. I know this is the cheaper board and in researching it what i could it seems as if pc chips has the same board, that is where i got the case connections from. Would a regular energizer battery with the same # work? it doesn't say lithium on it. I have a feeling someone has cut the onboard video off and i can't get in there to see if that is the case. Again thanks for your time in replying. Jerry

 

[furballi]

You can remove the battery from the MB (CR2032 about the size of a nickel) to reset the CMOS (revert to factory configuration). Replace the battery if you suspect it is defective.

Still think you have a LEMON.

 

[linc1fl]

Thanks for the reply, will p/u a new battery and jump the pins and see what happens, also have another monitor i can try but no pci card. Thanks again, Jerry

 

[furballi]

No problem. Good luck with the troubleshooting!

It's always a good idea to check out the hardware immediately after purchase, even if the item comes with full mfr warranty.

 

[linc1fl]

That was definetly a mistake on my part. As i said i go by peoples feedback and i am sure in my mind the seller did not know of any problems with the board but then again you never know what happens in shipping. Many years back when i worked for Zenith i have had tv s that were working great and stored under the workbench and when i went to plug them in they blew caps. sounded like fireworks going off. Just a case of my laziness on this one. Thanks again, Jerry

 

[furballi]

I saw a post on the HOT DEAL forum...ECS MB/Sempron 2800 for $30 at Fry's. I have extensive experience with the ECS NF3 board. Good overclocking board. I'm sure you'll be able to pickup a similar ECS/AMD combo for less than $50 in the next few months.

Good electronics rarely fail during shipping. I believe you had a LEMON from day one.

 

[linc1fl]

Hi, Just wanted to say thanks again and to let you know i located the problem. Not really a problem with the board as much as with me. Had been a couple of years since i put one together and i used my old power supply and as i said the board didn't come with a manual but the pc chips 825 is the same board. After downloading the manual for the pc chips and glancing at it for a couple of days i saw a square 4 pin connector and looked it up and it supplys the v core voltage to the cpu. My power supply does not have this plug so i got an adapter and replaced the battery and the board came alive, i now have video. Again thanks for your replies. Jerry

 

[furballi]

Yes, you need to connect the 20 pin AND the 4 pin plugs. Glad it works for you!