refurb KX7-333R won't post

[PLtNmHeLiX]

Well just got this mobo from newegg. Trying to use it with 256 pc2100 crucial ram, 1600+. When PSU is plugged it, the orange LED shows (good, bad?). Once everything's installed, and i turn the comp on all devices startup, the green and orange LEDs light up but no post. I reseted the cmos, tried it with 2 different HDs, 2 different graphic cards and 2 different sticks of crucial ram. Any suggestions would be great if I don't have to RMA it.

(O and not in raid)

 

[AMDfreak]

specifically which video cards were used? also, how powerful is the PSU?

 

[PLtNmHeLiX]

It's a msi geforce 3 ti500, and a generic 400W PSU but I've used these with my epox 8k3a and 5 case fans and never had a problem. also, I removed all the PCI devices.

 

[ChampionAtTufshop]

any beeps?

 

[PLtNmHeLiX]

No

 

[cmaMath13]

I just ordered a KX7-333R refurb from Newegg, too. I hope it posts.

Any updates?

 

[CaptnKirk]

You said you had reset the CMOS jumper, did you try putting it in the reset position and trying to run it with the jumper there?

 

[cheffz]

Make sure you have the cpu fan in the fan1 connector on the motherboard. I've got the same board and was having some serious hiccups with posting until I put the connector in the right spot. Really strange, my guess is the temp monitoring in the bios is affected by the position of the connector and to keep it from frying the mobo won't post.

 

[cmaMath13]

Mine was suppose to be delivered today, but I was not home. I'll have to wait to see Friday.

 

[CaptnKirk]

I've had 2 motherboards from ABIT that at first would do nothing, by moving the CMOS jumper to the other position
they work fine - seems that someone put the jumper in the discharge position for shipping.
usually they are in the correct setting, but as I said - I did get 2 that had to be moved over.

 

[cmaMath13]

Thanks for the information. My concern is knowing the layout of the motherboard, since I may not get a manual. I tried to download the manual, but I keep getting some error.

 

[colonel]

I got the Rebu from New Egg the kx333R , I install it today with 2700 DDR. the Soft Menu is driving me nut cause I got a 1900+ and if I go higher the mobo wont boot. I set up the DDR with agressive times and is ok. Another thing is the Keyboard, I must use my old P/2 to get to Bios........there is any tread for this mobo...

I got the Manual, cd, floppy no usb bracket @#$%

 

[cmaMath13]

I got mine and it booted fine, but I had trouble with IDE3/IDE4/RAID. Plus, windows was really unstable. I am going to RMA. I am not sure I should have made this kind of an upgrade choice based on a refurb.

Oh yeah, mine came with everything and I am running a 1900+, too.

 

[CaptnKirk]

double check the BIOS settings to manually set the keyboard to the USB settings.
My XP2100 boots with the BIOS set to 2200.

 

[colonel]

see one thing I dont undestand about the mobo is , my 1900+ is unlocked , it work like a champ with my Soltek I was able to go over and under the Multipliers, but here is running 1800+(133) if I go over, o under I will have to clean the cmos.....I like the mobo cause the Memory timings are excellet I can make 1T..

 

[CaptnKirk]

Check on the Owners manual for setting your BIOS to the MANUAL SETTINGS - you should be able to set is as a 2000, or a 2100, or even a 2200.
I helped a friend set up his KX7-333 with an XP1600+, we set it to the selection as an XP2000+, and changed the memory settins to FAST -
which is where you should run the 166 (DDR333) settings (ULTRA is for 266) and his works fine.
Yes the BIOS says "1600" but that NOT how is runs.

 

[colonel]

Ok, I was running with Ultra, good point

 

[SevensWorld]

To: PLtNmHeLiX

This might seem a little picky, but before you junk that board, did you consider that the CMOS battery might just be dead?

Also, the opinion that the BIOS might be causing a no-cpu-fan shutdown doesn't really play out, unless the battery is up...and the bios was programmed and retained to do so.

In that case, consider this: the orange light that lights up when the psu is switched on just indicates that power is available to the board; the green light indicates that the board is switched on. If the green light goes out just following your attempt to post, then something is causing the board to power down.

The lower of the two fan headers, next to the ATX power connector, is the cpu fan header. but if you cleared the CMOS by moving the jumper to the left two pins (with the power disconnected, of course), then moved it back to the right two pins and powered the system up again, the defaults would disable auto power down, so that suggestion does not really apply.

That NORMAL, FAST, ULTRA setting that was referred to should return to NORMAL position, as a result, as well. FAST is unnecessary at this time, if you cant first stablize the board, so leave it alone. You'll probably never be able to get a boot on ULTRA anyway, so try to stay away from that.

As a side note, the add-on USB adapter should be installed with the red wires on the right end, if you're using the USB 2 connector ~ I added that in because there really is no clear explanation about that, even in the FAQs on Abit's site...but that's how it goes.

One last note: It is possible that someone flashed the board wrong and fried the BIOS chip. Are you up to reflashing the BIOS chip...just for snickers? in case it's programming is recoverable.

When you download the bios from Abit, save it into an empty folder on your desktop before you click on it to auto-extract it. It'll open into 5 separate files. Take a clean floppy disk and format your system files into it; then copy and paste the extracted files into it. Reboot the machine with the floppy in its drive; at the A prompt, type runme and let the program run; it'll do a reread of the bios on the lower range of progress bars, then you can exit (F10), immediately shut the system down, clear the CMOS again (with the power unplugged). When you reboot, you need to immediately enter the BIOS (on XP, you just press DELETE until the CMOS setup screen appears) and setup the CPU parameters ~ (133FSB; 4:2:1 on the FSB ratio) Dont fuss around with all the controls too much, but besides the CPU, you might want to make sure that the memory is set to by SPD and Auto, and since you're using PC2100 the 4:2:1 is what you'll need to specify.

Funny side note on that "press DELETE" thing: If your keyboard is not ps2, but usb, the defaults on the CMOS wont recognize a usb keyboard until you go into the BIOS and change that setting to enable USB keyboard support. Fire up with a ps2 board.

The "manual" download is actually easier to get off the global or taiwan server; for some reason when I went to download it off the USA site, I had continual problems as well, so I stopped using it.

Am I boring you yet?

To: cmaMath

The RAID ports wont allow any kind of ATAPI devices...and if the flash screen indicated that you had HPT 2.31 bios, but you had another "driver file" loaded for the HPT372, you'll lose functionality and have problems ~ they have to be same series.

For God's sake, dont flash the BIOS with anything setup on a RAID channel, or it will likely destroy all the data on your drive.

P/S Dont let me get on your nerves, I just happen to like these boards.

 

[SevensWorld]

Almost forgot ~ you DID go into the BIOS on your first startup of this board, and try the settings that will work with a 266 FSB processor, right. I mean, I'm not just going on and on confusing the issues, am I?

Because, from a technical standpoint, all this board really is...is a KR7A(whatever) with a 333FSB capabilty, and a 5:2:1 splitter.

 

[colonel]

this is my second board from the Rebuf , the first one was running great with cas 2 and 1T but I could not get into bios with the BIOS unable for the Keyboard. The second one is ok , but my questions is How can I overclocked this board with the Soft Menu, anytime I push the FSB I need to clean cmos. My 1900+ is stuck in 1800+(133)

 

[SevensWorld]

Colonel:

I think I see your problem. And I can lead you there, but I'm not going to make the final decisions for you. Enough said about that.

The first line in the Softmenu III Setup is CPU Operating Speed. If you click "enter" while it's highlighted, and "User Define" appears, select that and hit enter.

The next line down will be CPU FSB. If you're going to try running a 160 fsb, then after you enter that dec number, and hit enter again,

Two lines down you'll have to run about a 10X multiplier to end up with your 1.6 Ghz, for a 1900.

After you've entered your multiplier, and hit enter again, the next line up wil be your Ratio settings ~ {FSB:AGPCI}.
Just to confirm your CPU, with a 5:2:1 split your resultant AGP/PCI freqs. would then be 64/32; with a 4:2:1 split your resultant AGP/PCI freqs. would be 80/40. So I suppose you can see where this is going.

What it occurs to me you were doing was upping your FSB without adjusting your Multiplier. Is that what was happening?

If you can actually reach a 166 FSB, and I'm not saying you can on that board, but who knows, you'd have to run a 9.5 Multiplier to get about 1577 on the CPU. A 5:2:1 split would then give you AGP/PCI of 66/33 ~ that's why you can run PC2700 mem on that board, basically, because of the KT333 chip ~ and a 4:2:1 split would give you, of course, 83/41.5 other buses.

I dont know what peripheral cards, or memory you're running, but can they take that!? Good question, right?

There's a gap between all those wonderful lines we were just discussing and the next set of lines in the SMIII setup menu. They're the CPU Power Supply, which is probably on CPU Default...
If you hit enter when CPU Default is highlighted, all kinds of new options are going to open up to you ~{Core Voltage, I/O Voltage, and DDR Voltage}, when you exit the CPU Power Supply setting screen. But in the CPU Power Supply screen, again you need to select User Define. Is it starting to come together for you now?

Whoops! My daughter's calling me. Gotta run for a few.

Ok, I'm back. Moving on... Right under the Multiplier Factor, on the same SMIII screen, there's a setting called Speed Error Hold. It is selectable as either Disabled, which is the default, or Enabled. If it's enabled, and the CPU speed setting is wrong, the system will hold.
If you've commited an invalid clock setup, you wont be able to boot, but then you've got a couple of options...just in case you're having trouble getting back into BIOS. Well, yeah, you can split the case and reset the CMOS. Ok, that's one...but there's another.
If you just press the INSERT key (assuming you've enabled USB keyboard support in that erroneous BIOS, of course) when powering on, the system will revert to it's standard parameters so you can reenter the BIOS again (given appropriate followup keystrokes) and make changes. If that's annoying, maybe you're just like me anyway, and the side of your case is already off. Just kill the CMOS and start over.

Is or has any of this been of real use to you, at clearing things up?

 

[SevensWorld]

checking out for the evening. logged a shortcut to this page on my desktop; will check back as I can.