MSI Kt3 Ultra problems, lots of em.

[Pacinamac23]

Ok, so the first KT3 Ultra I got wouldn't even post.

I have an AMD Athlon XP 1800+, 2 sticks of crucial 256mb pc2100 ram, MSI Geforce 4 ti 4400, SB Audigy.

I tried all of these components (except the ram) in my older KT7 raid and they run flawlessly, no lock ups at all. I bring the KT3 back and get a new one, this time it posts and everything seems to be going well. Then I start getting random freezes. I was looking at my CPU temps (both in bios and the included temp monitoring utility) and my temps were 30 in the chasis and the cpu was around 39C. I have a Vantec CCK-#(i forget), it is a copper HSF with a 7000rpm fan.

So anyway, the freezes start popping up more often and it gets to the point where I cannot even boot. I keep messing around with it, sometimes it wil boot, sometimes it will not post at all. It would also restart as soon as windows loaded. I got the point where it was impossible to boot so I took out the cpu, reapplied thermal past (artic silver) and then popped it back in. The system booted but it locked on the "Checking NVRAM. . . No NVRAM" message when it was booting. I couldn't even get into the bios. I took out the bios battery and reset the bios, still wouldn't post. I let the system cool down a bit and then finally it started booting, so I went into the bios and loaded the best options I could. Keep in mind this entire time I have been running at a FSB of 100 (ddr) and I havn't been overclocking the cpu or ram at all, using default settings for the ram, clock and AGP.

It seems to boot fairly well for the time being, I did notice my temps went up about 10c. What I did was turn around my HSF the opposite way. I guess that caused the temp increases.

I really do not know what to do. Like I said, I tested everything on another motherboard but the RAM. I am thinking it may be a PSU issue. I have an AOpen 300watt PSU, it never had any problems with my KT7 raid. Also, I disconnected my cd-roms and cd-writer, so hopefully that would lessen the strain.

I have about had it with this mobo, I am thinking maybe I should get another one. I really do like all the features this mobo has but for christ sakes, I want to be able to use my system without going through the hours of hassle that I have been.

Also note, I have the latest VIA 4in1 and nVidia drivers installed.

blah

 

[Iron Woode]

PS and ram need to be tested. Like, immediately.

Sounds like a ram issue more than anything. Also on boot up, does the ram count up correctly? Maybe it is not inserted right.

More testing is needed.

 

[LOWDRAG]

do you have enough power coming from your power supply?

I have a KT3 Ultra and an xp200, I have a 550 powersupply running. Thing run's like the wind as a matter of fact only thing I dont like about the board is the onboard sound. But I'm running SB A just like you.

 

[nemo160]

what do your voltages look like? some mobos require more power than others
does the kt3 ultra read the temps from a thermistor or the onboard diode..if it reads from the diode a 10 degree increase is fine, you're just getting a true reading now as opposed to the thermistor reading before
what do you mean by turning you hsf around? did you flip the fan? is it set to blow or suck?
try one stick of ram at a time, then try the other just to find any ram related problems
more accessories onboard mean the board will be drawing more power...post your voltages
hope we can help you stabilize the beast

 

[Pacinamac23]

As far as the RAM goes, it could be that. But then it would have to be both sticks because I have tried taking each ofthem out and putting them in different slots.

It very well could be the PSU. But, what I did was disconnect my CD-ROMS and only had 1 HD connected, I took out all of my PCI cards and only had the video card in there. I mean, 300watts should be enough for that.

By flipping it around what I mean is turning the actual heatsink around 180 degrees. So the clip where you push down on goes to the other side of the socket. Thing is, it was reporting 33C from the thermal diode then went up to 40C with the same thermal diode(the MSI doesn't read from a thermasistor, reads the cpu internally).

I have been messing around with it agian and again I am to the point of no post. The onboard LED system is telling me that it is a CPU problem (4 red lights). This problem is just burning me like you wouldn't imagine. I may just get a new motherboard and see what happens.

How important do you guys think a PSU really is? Should I get a 400watt PSU and do you think that would make a difference? At the same time, disconnected all of my periphals should eleviate some of the power consumption of the system and thus I would hope that the system would run fine, for at least testing purposes. . .

 

[drewdogg808]

i've had random reboots and lock ups from bad ram before...sounds like that could be it. not sure about the ps. and if i recall correctly, the hs can only go on one direction...there's a recessed part that lines up with the raised portion of the socket on the motherboard. i would try to borrow or get some different ram to try in your setup. my kt3 has been really stable. good luck.

 

[Pacinamac23]

I took both sticks of ram to a computer store and they put it through a bunch of diagnostics tests on other systems and they said the ram was fine. . .

 

[onelin]

While I don't have your mobo, my A7V333 w/ AthlonXP 1900+ & MSI GF4 Ti4400 needed a new power supply to be stable... I think the USB 2.0 and/or firewire on these new boards can make it tougher on the 5V rail, but I'm no expert. anyway, I had an *ANTEC* 300W and it couldn't run stable, windows was barely operational, laggy/ weird oddities. I picked up a noname 350 (bad choice) and it was worse, then settled on an Antec True430W and all is well 😉 PSU is probably the issue... I don't have a lot of extra stuff in here either, but Athlons and GF4's are real power hogs 🙂 So I'd suggest saving yourself the hassle and getting a nice PSU for the long haul...hope it helps

 

[Pacinamac23]

Yea, one, you are probably right.

A computer store is letting me use their lab tommorow so I am going to test all my parts to see which one is messed for sure. I am pretty damn sure it is the PSU. I probably will get an enermax 430 watt PSU. I really just want one with 2 fans and that is fairly quiet, and of course, good quality.