CPU upgrade problem fx6100 to fx8120

[juanveliz626]

NOTE: THIS IS THE SAME MESSAGE I SENT TO ONE OF MY FRIENDS... EVERYTHING ELSE APPLIES, PLEASE HELP

Hey man, what's up! I'm having problems upgrading my processor for my desktop PC and William said that you are pretty good with these things.

I'll just cut to the chase: I bought an AMD FX-8120 processor from ebay @ $115, pretty good deal. I have an AMD FX-6100 installed (pretty fast, but the FX 8120 has 8 cores and is significantly faster). I did my homework, so I know that the AMD FX-8120 is compatible with my motherboard.

Here's my current specs:
Motherboard: MSI 760GM-P34 (FX)
CPU: AMD FX-6100
Graphics card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 650 Ti
RAM: 8 GB RAM

So I already tried installing the new AMD FX-8120, and it just freezes at the MSI splash screen. I can't even get into the BIOS setup by tapping the DEL key (i also tried the F2 key). Then, I took off the AMD FX-8120 cpu, and put in the old one that I have (the 6100), and THAT TOO!... It just stops at the MSI splash screen, doesn't get past that.

One of my concerns is that the first time around, I might have put too much thermal paste on the 8120 when I was installing it (I bought it at RadioShack, pack of 2 small tubes for $12). Turns out that I didn't even need to have done that, because the heat sink already had a block of thermal paste on it and was ready to just attach it to the CPU in place. That was my first screw up; didn't notice that at all.

I had never installed a CPU in the past, this is the first time. But I did my homework and I researched to make sure the 8120 was compatible with my motherboard (and it is), and I also watched some YouTube videos on how to actually install the new processor.

Anyway, if you have any ideas, email me back and if you're free later on tonight, maybe we can have a voice chat here on gmail.

Here's the link to the MSI cpu support page, for my motherboard:
http://us.msi.com/support/mb/760GMP34_FX.html#support-cpu

Here's the link to the actual processor I bought:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103961

 

[Outlander_04]

Ok so after the swap , and swap back , the computer wont POST .

Assuming you made no other changes , then your issue might be the thermal compound shorting an electrical connection . Not likely to be a pin on BOTH cpu's so get a magnifying glass and inspect the socket , and the board around it in detail . Use a cotton bud and isoprpyl alcohol to clean any goo you find .

Then try reseting the BIOS . If the board doesnt have a switch or jumper just pull the battery out for a couple of minutes .

Put it back together , probably with the 6 core , and see if it boots



If you did change anything else .......like maybe where the hard drive SATA cable is plugged in to ..... change that back too

Also worth trying is to remove the graphics card and try one of the ports on the mb . It seems less likely but maybe you damaged the graphics card

 

[juanveliz626]

Ok so after the swap , and swap back , the computer wont POST .

Assuming you made no other changes , then your issue might be the thermal compound shorting an electrical connection . Not likely to be a pin on BOTH cpu's so get a magnifying glass and inspect the socket , and the board around it in detail . Use a cotton bud and isoprpyl alcohol to clean any goo you find .

Then try reseting the BIOS . If the board doesnt have a switch or jumper just pull the battery out for a couple of minutes .

Put it back together , probably with the 6 core , and see if it boots



If you did change anything else .......like maybe where the hard drive SATA cable is plugged in to ..... change that back too

Also worth trying is to remove the graphics card and try one of the ports on the mb . It seems less likely but maybe you damaged the graphics card

Hey, thanks for replying I appreciate it. Enlighten me a little: what's the POST thing? Seems like an acronym for something. Furthermore, from your reply I take it that if any of the thermal compound got on the socket where the CPU goes, that's a bad thing? And taking a q-tip with isopropyl alcohol won't harm the motherboard and/or components? Of course, I won't shower it with alcohol, though. If I remove the graphics card, my computer would theoretically still startup if everything else were fine? didn't know that. And last, but not least, how do I reset the BIOS? haha, sorry, I'm so ignorant with these things (although I did successfully install the graphics card before, that was easier though).

 

[huntersw2]

POST stands for Power On Self Test. Basically just a few quick test takes place during that time.

 

[juanveliz626]

POST stands for Power On Self Test. Basically just a few quick test takes place during that time.

is that when you hear a quick beep from the tower, and then the computer usually starts the boot up process? that's the POST?

 

[huntersw2]

Yes, now if you are hearing continuous beeps. Then you have to look up beep codes.

 

[juanveliz626]

Yes, now if you are hearing continuous beeps. Then you have to look up beep codes.

check this link out, this is exactly my motherboard, where is the place to reset (or flash? seems like reset and flash are used interchangably?) my BIOS? There's supposed to be a button? or a battery?

http://fr.msi.com/pic/product/five_pictures2_2527_20140408181620.png

 

[huntersw2]

Flashing your bios is something you do when you are updating bios. That can be a risky thing. Reset not 100% certain. But i think that is the chip on the board that saves bios settings. And resetting it supposed to reset bios settings.

 

[juanveliz626]

Flashing your bios is something you do when you are updating bios. That can be a risky thing. Reset not 100% certain. But i think that is the chip on the board that saves bios settings. And resetting it supposed to reset bios settings.

Alright, so what happens if I try to flash the bios, and i somehow screw it up and it doens't reset. then what? What are the consequences, and solutions after that? Would I have totally jacked up my computer if it doesn't reset correctly?

 

[huntersw2]

If you do not flash bios correctly. Then you need a new board. But flashing is only done for bios update. Go with outlander suggestion.

 

[Outlander_04]

Reseting is perfectly safe

You are just returning it to original condition , and cannot harm it

By taking the battery out [ and back in ] it will eliminate the possibility that it is corrupted

 

[juanveliz626]

Reseting is perfectly safe

You are just returning it to original condition , and cannot harm it

By taking the battery out [ and back in ] it will eliminate the possibility that it is corrupted

That's exactly what I did. I took out the battery for a few seconds, put it back in, and it works now, even the new processor! Something must have happend with the damn bios, anyway everything works fine. I guess my only gripe is that it's noisy as hell... tomorrow i'll check it out; maybe a fan is hitting some wire(s).