GA-EP43-DS3L -- HELP! System won't post; Bios / mobo issue

[GlumBum2]

Hey guys, I purchased two new sticks of RAM for my board.... corsair xms2's.... and the problem still occurs. I've tried every slot and every config, but the computer continues to go into a recurring boot cycle even before it POSTs or beeps at ALL. I don't think RAM is the problem. I replaced both sticks of Crucial Ballistix (which are ON the recommended list) with two sticks of Corsair XMS2 (which are also on the recommended list).

I tried resetting the CMOS with the new ram, and that had no effect as well

can anyone help me figure out what the gigabyte warranty is like, and how to return the board etc? I bought the board brand new from newegg in July.

 

[major53]

GlumBum2 do you have a old power supply you can stick in the pc.

 

[GlumBum2]

im buying a psu tester, i dont have a psu on hand that i can use to check it out.

 

[zachthurston]

This probably has nothing to do with it but you say that you have a e8400 with the F4 bios and Gigabytes website says it doesn't support Wolfdale until F5. Maybe you could try putting a Conroe or something in there...not likely because you've used it for a while but I guess worth mentioning...
Try taking out the CMOS battery and leaving it out overnight. That's saved me more than once 😀

 

[djwazzup06]

I believe Gigabyte motherboards use Award Bios, and if there was a faulty/incompatible CPU in the motherboard, you would get a POST with beeps telling you what's wrong. However i've also read that without a working CPU, then there's nothing to POST with.

Same with the RAM. If the RAM was bad, it would POST also, even without RAM being in there it should still POST and give you beeps.

I'm also having this problem with an AMD Gigabyte motherboard. My assumption is the mobo is dead.

 

[Guest]

Hi there I also have this board with a few issues...

I don't think the problem you're having is CPU related - I'm using the shipped BIOS (either F2/3) with an e5200 and although the gigabyte site says it isnt' supported until F7, this just meant I had to set the CPU's properties manually, i.e. 200fsbx12.5 for stock.

I've been experiencing poor overclocking and poor 3D performance from the HD4670 1Gb I've installed. But hopefully when I update the BIOS to f7 on Thursday, this will solve my woes...

Does anyone know how to activate the backup BIOS?

 

[Coolbri1191]

ive had these problems before....

i have this same EXACT board, and im sitting in the bios right now.

i have an e8400 @ 3.00ghz
F8 bios update
i HAD 2x1GB's of G.SKILL ram, but i think one of them failed, because i was getting horrible BSODs, that would restart my computer, and put itself into these loops, just like glum was saying. i somehow got out of the loops and was able to get into bios to reset to fail-safe defaults.

Ive come to the conclusion (hopefully) that i have a dead stick of ram, because i tried each stick in single channel, and dual channel modes, and single channel worked for awhile, then i got bsods and restart loops. memtest actually worked in dual channel mode (before the problems started happening) and reported no errors, but as of now, i only have one stick in, because the other stick wont let me even boot into bios or post so i cant test it anymore..

 

[Guren]

I have the same board too, except that I know why it doesn't post:
DQ1 shorted out. Entire ATX 12 V circuit near the CPU is toast. You can even see the discoloration on the back of the mobo. Where is DQ1? It's behind the usb ports. It prolly doesn't help you much, but check the power circuits around the board.

 

[Guest]

Hey, sorry I am bumping this thread but I have the same motherboard and the same problem.

I have a dual core 2.8ghz processor (not sure about anything else on it, I got it from a pre built comp), 2 gigs of corsair PC2- 5400 675 mhz ram and a 500 watt PSU.

I have everything plugged in and I get the whole continuous reboot jazz...

I played with the ram, one stick rather than two, tried using different slots all combinations and no luck.

I then unplugged the 12v CPU cable and it stopped rebooting, but it also didnt post.

I'm not hot on computers at all, I just managed to build one but the mobo died (dodgy line of Asus P5K boards) so I swapped to this one and accidently opened a new can of worms...


I was wondering if anyone knew if this was a cpu problem or memory? I am going to get some 800 mhz PC2- 6400 ram off a friend to see if it makes any difference on my build. If not, he's kindly offered me to paste up his brand new quad core processor to see if I need a new cpu due to incompatiblity.

Thanks!

 

[dgabor30]

hey, is there any solution for this, or the mobo could be dead...just got one of this mobo, i encountered the same problem

 

[bob78h]

Hmm I had a similar problem but your's seems worse.
My system (similar specs but HD4850 and OCZ Reaper RAM) wouldn't post if I ran the RAM in dual channel. Put it in single channel (slots 1 and 2 or 3 and 4) and it would work fine.
I wouldn't recommend the EP43 now, probably would've been better off with a P45 or a different manufacturer's board...

 

[Shadow703793]

(Not sure if this has already been mentioned)

You need to increase your RAM voltage. Those Ballastix need ~2v.

 

[bilbat]

I concur - bump the RAM voltage, & then MemTest one stick at a time, at least overnight...

 

[abc123_10]

I have the same motherboard and the same problem - blue screens - and I solved it by installing windows vista instead of windows xp ... sory for my english