Question about ECS K7VTA3 v8.0c w/ Athlon XP 2500+

[egretjhl]

This is my first time to assemble the computer myself. I got the CPU and motherboard combo from Fry's.

All Hardware I have:
CPU: AMD Athlon XP 2500+ "Barton", 333 FSB;
Motherboard: ECS K7VTA3 V8.0c; This is the bundle from Fry's
Memory: Centon 512M DDR2700;
Power Supply: 325W, don't know the brand,
Video card: ATI Readon 9200 128M SE;
HHD: Maxtor, 40GB, 7200RPM;
DVD: Lite-ON;
CD-RW: Lite-ON;

I can boot the computer, but when I load the OS Win2K,

first, it always came up with file copying error, during the process it copy the OS file, I have to retry to read the CD
many times, in order to complete the file copying step. Tons of times, the system dumped right after all the file copied, it said some hardware or software conflict. and memory error. Then the last time when I try it, it copy all the OS file complete and be able to enter the Win2K installation step.

But at this step, It always have error about the physical memory, and up till now, I haven't got it installed even one time. Alwady dead after win2K try to reboot from the installation.

Could anybody help identitfy what kind of problem I have? This is the first time of me to assemble to computer
together.

I have read the manual, tried pull out the memory and put it back in. Then I have no idea what else I should try.

Thanks for your help and suggestion!!

 

[o1die]

If you're sure your memory and cpu are seated properly in the sockets, you might want to consider taking the board and cpu back for exchange. I know; it's a major hassle, but I did it 4 times before I got my k7vta3 stable with a duron 1.6 (it runs flawlessly at 150 fsb and posts as a duron 1800). It's possible that either the memory or power supply are causing a problem. I would guess that the memory is the most likely problem, but it's just a guess. Unfortunately, this particular board has no voltage adjustments available, or you could try bumping up the memory voltage a little. Save all your packaging and accessories in case you decide to return it. You can return both the cpu and board within 15 days; after that, Fry's gives you 15 more days to exchange the board. One more suggestion is try running with the cpu jumpers at 100 or 133 fsb. The Fry's salesman actually told me to run the duron underclocked at 100 fsb, but this board still didn't post consistantly. 2 of the duron 1600's I tried ran flawlessly at 166 (2000), but the boards still failed to post about 50% of the time.

 

[egretjhl]

oh, so disappointing to hear about thoes. Then it means the board is not a very good one?
Definitely I already don't have the chance to return it to Fry's, and also. probably I also miss the
time to exchange it. I ask my friend to buy it for me at CA, and I am far from CA.

Wish luck for my board and any futher suggestion is definitely welcome!

Thanks again!

 

[Delorian]

I wouldn't have tried the same type of board 4 times. The ECS boards I've had were terrible, I switched to MSI boards and they're extremely stable w/overclocking and all. My best suggestion would be reseat the ram, try a different Ram slot (if possible) even test the ram in a known good machine to see that it works well and if all else fails, switch the board for a MSI or Asus, they are well worth a few extra bucks IMHO.

 

[Peter]

File copy errors are 99.999 percent of the time from bad RAM. www.memtest.org