AMD FX-60 on Foxconn C51gu01 MB gets to XP screen and then reboots?

[pwstevens1234]

Hi, I need some serious help with this so someone please help! I have a GT5032 Gateway that had a good 4400+ 64x2 chip but I wanted to upgrade, I thought it should be as simple as dropping it in? Did I need to disable 'cool n quiet' first? The computer turns on but only gets to the xp screen then goes to the countdown to start wondows normally, safe mode etc., over and over. When the 4200+ it came with went bad I couldn't get anything on my monitor at all, so myself don't believe the new processor is bad, but I'm new to this so please bear with me! Thanks in advance.

Gateway GT5032
Foxconn C51GU01 mobo.
2.5Gb (1x1 & 512x3) PC3200 DDR
320GB 7200RPM SATA HD
780W PSU
22in 4:3 LCD
PNY 9600GT 1GB
Z-5500 5.1
uBTX Case

 

[EXT64]

Do you know if that board/bios supports the FX-60? The FX60 was the last 939 chip so subsequently only the newest bioses/boards support it.

If you go into the BIOS, does it name the chip/recognize it?

You can try running memtest86+ 4 (bootable) to see if the system is hardware stable.

Do you have a second partition or hard drive that you could install another copy of Windows on?

 

[pwstevens1234]

In the bios I can see the temps and voltage of the cpu but it doesn't show the specific cpu, unless I can't find it, I don't believe it did before with the other cpu's either, just the temps and voltages. I do have a spare hard drive, does installing the OS update the bios? Thanks for replying!

 

[EXT64]

No, unfortunately finding and updating the BIOS on a prebuilt (Gateway, Dell) can be a pain, if one even exists.

The windows reinstall is just to see whether this is purely a software problem (in which case the second windows will work) or a BIOS/MB problem.

 

[pwstevens1234]

Ok I will try that I suppose on the second hard drive, so it doesn't sound like the cpu is bad? probably a mb/software issue?

 

[megamanx00]

Disssable Cool n Quiet. Are you sure it was your old CPU that went bad and not your motherboard? I say you may want to try a BIOS update. Of course, if it restarts during that your board will really be dead 😱. You may also want to do a fresh install of XP since it may simply be a driver issue. Even though that shouldn't happen (the FX-60 is very close to the 4400X2) if your motherboard doesn't know what to do with it (Because you didn't update the BIOS) it could be reporting bad data to XP which in turn doesn't know what to do with it and just crashes.

 

[pwstevens1234]

It came with a 4200+ that went bad about 2yrs ago, so I put a 4400+ it works and I had it in my computer for 2yrs or more, took it out today to put in the FX-60. Will try to reinstall windows and if that don't work I'll probably just put the 4400+ back in when my grease comes and try to O.C. it a tad hopefully.

 

[pwstevens1234]

If I wanted to update the bios is it very difficult? Where would I begin to look for the update? How would it affect my data or wouldn't it?

 

[EXT64]

I guess check the manufacturer's support site. Normally any BIOSes they have will be listed there.

 

[pwstevens1234]

Well I tried updating my bios with no luck, they are no longer available on gateways site and I found Foxconn has an identical board with a different model number and am a lil' curious about that, I also tried to reinstall Windows on my spare drive with no luck either. I noticed recently my bios used to say Phoenix Technologies 6.0 PG Award Worksation but doesn't anymore?

 

[pwstevens1234]

Oh Foxconn's site neglects the driver for my board but has the other for the identical board with different model number!

 

[pwstevens1234]

Could it be that I have to put the older processor back in so I can update my bios?

 

[Tech 2089]

To pwstevens I dunno if it is too late to talk about this Foxconn C51GU01 motherboard in your Gateway but here goes.
I ran into a Gateway GT5028 machine that uses the socket 939 AMD cpus. After reading your post, describing what is happening (reboot) I am almost 100% sure that your mobo has "dried up" overheated capacitors on it. When this happens to a capacitor (especially the cheap ones most branded computers use) it's as if they weren't even there. Now the engineers who designed these mobos put capacitors in strategic parts of the circuitry to act mostly as filters. Since computers need rock steady DC current to operate in a stable manner these capacitors must be doing their job/s on that mobo.
THIS IS WHY your computer is unstable and constantly rebooting. I have successfully repaired many desktop machines by replacing the overheated capacitors. It's also a good idea to at least test or replace your power supply too. Take the mobo to a good old fashioned electronics tech who can replace these electrolytic capacitors for you before it's too late. It has been my experience that if this problem is not resolved early the mobo will at some point no longer start. This yoyo effect (voltages fluctuating) on the mobo will somehow destroy the bios chip sort of like electrically erasing or corrupting the firmware.

Computers get hot....cheap electrolytic capacitors dry up, computer becomes unstable and eventually dies. Hardware problem.
As with everything in life, we get what we pay for.....cost cutting measures keeps us consumers consuming!

In today's world, we don't do what is right....we do what pays best.

Bob M. from Canada.