SOYO KT333 Lite problems

[PoonDaddy007]

My friend purchased a setup tonight and I helped him out a little bit to try and set it up. However, when we tried to install Windows, FDISK, or format or anything, it will lock up.

When trying to reset, it will freeze without Posting sometimes and other times it will POST then freeze.

Sometimes when the POST screen comes up it'll say 2000+ but other times it will say Athlon 1250.

We have been able to FDISK it once but it froze on the reboot. Tried to boot again from the floppy and it'll freeze. Try to boot from the XP CD and it will freeze. But it doesn't freeze at the same spot everytime but at random times in the sequences.

Have taken out all the cards and reseated. Unplugged all the cables and such. Reset the CMOS about 10 times.

Heatsink is the retail one with arctic silver 2. Mushkin pc2700 RAM. IBM deskstar. Lite-on CR-RW. Geforce 4 by Leadtek.

I've done searches and it seems that a lot of people flashed the BIOS and got some response. But how can I flash the BIOS if it won't even POST or let me install any OS.

I have no idea what is wrong with this thing. Any suggestions?

 

[Nomans]

PoonDaddy007, it looks to me like you're having some hardware problems with the mobo. If it doesn't post, it's a dead one. The only thing you can do is to get RMA and return the board. In order to flash the BIOS, you must be able to boot it first. No boot, no flash, nothing simpler than that. I have an XP 2000+ running on a SOYO Dragon Ultra (Platinum) using the same chipset KT333. I've got both of them as a combo deal at Fry's SoCal a couple months ago (3 or 4 months max). Just open the box, install the CPU, memory, video, plug it in and it works until now. I know, mobo is a kind of lucky thing, sorry to hear about your case. Let me know if I can help...

 

[Nomans]

BTW, follow this procedure whenever you have problem to post:

1. Install only the barebone components: case, motherboard, CPU, memory, and video. No HDD, no floppy, no other PCI cards. If possible, make sure that all of these components (CPU, memory, video) work fine on other computer (it helps if you have more than 1 computer of the same kind, AMD or Intel). One time, I've got a bad case: install barebone components only and it didn't even post. I thought the mobo was bad until I tried the same mobo with all barebone components on another working computer and there it booted OK. Then I know the problem was the case and not the mobo at all.

2. If it works, start adding other cards

Hope it would help...

 

[PoonDaddy007]

Nomans - It was my friend's board, not mine. He decided to RMA it b/c it was giving him so many problems. Thanks for you help tho.

 

[Nomans]

You're welcome, PoonDaddy007. Sorry for your friend, but I believe the mobo is a DOA and should be returned. When a mobo freezes during boot up in different spot as you described, then I'm pretty sure, it's either memory or the mobo hardware itself. Memory, you said was Mushkin PC2700, so i'm confident it's not the memory. Only the mobo left. I'm just curious which mobo was that. I mean what brand?