I am piecing together a PC for my dad and I am having an issue with a MOBO that could be fried (lightning strike took out the PSU attached to this). I have two Mobo's to choose from and the one I that doesn't work is the best one. I am using the same components that worked on the worse one and tried getting them to work with the newer/better one, but it won't display anything on my monitor, yet all the connected fans turn on. It also powers on as soon as I hit the switch on PSU instead of letting me hit the Power Switch which I find strange (I also can't turn it off via the switch either). Here are the parts that I am trying to get to work (outside of the case btw) with the newer Mobo: (I will label the parts the were working seconds before taking them off and trying them with the older Mobo) Gigabyte GA-7NNXP AMD Athlon XP 2700+ (Working) X1650 256MB AGP (Working) Corsair XMS3200 512MB 400Mhz CL2 (Working) 500W L&S PSU (Working) I am almost 100% positive that it's the Mobo since all the parts work with an the Gigabyte GA-7S748 Mobo as soon as I take them out of the newer one and into it. I also cleared the CMOS by taking the battery out for 10 minutes and putting it back in (there isn't a jumper for clearing the GA-7NNXP) and it still didn't get it to display anything. I even tried putting in another stick of RAM in DIMM1, as well as using another AGP8X card that didn't require an extra power connector and it still doesn't display anything on screen. I honestly don't know what else to try. Any suggestions would be appreciated. UPDATE: Here is a comparison of the Mobo's: http://tw.giga-byte.com/Products/Motherboard/Products_ComparisonSheet.aspx?ProductID=1707,1644. The main things being Dual Channel and SATA/RAID.
Is that 2 stick of RAM? If so, only attach 1 and see if it works. If not try a different socket. One it works attach the second done. I had this weird problem once.
You may want to try the CLK_SW switch and see if you can get it to boot up with that. Can you get a PC speaker connected and see if there are any beep codes? Might you knoe a PC tech or have a friend who will let you borrow a diagnostic card to read POST codes? I'm assuming the video card and monitor both tested fine with the other board.
No, I only switched out the Corsair PC3200 RAM with a working PC2700 Generic RAM (working) that I have. I also replace the X1650 AGP card with an older (working) Nvidia GeForce2 card. It still didn't display anything. I also can't hear any codes so I will have to find a speaker.
Hmm...what do you think that will do? I will try to get a PC Speaker on it and see if I hear anything. Thanks for the help so far guys!
I put a working speaker on the "not working" Mobo and it didn't make any beeps/sounds. Again, everything turns on in terms of fans and LED lights, but no display. I don't know what else to do other than say that it's toast.
No beep codes means one of three things I can think of off the top of my head. The first is that the CPU is not fetching code. The second is that nothing is wrong. The third is that the BIOS is hanging somewhere and no error is reported. Normally, I'd use a port 80 code reader to check for progress codes. But unless you are a tech, firmware engineer, or you really really need to know, getting a reader for a one time test doesn't make a lot of sense (but it is also why I like boards with build on diagnostic LEDs). The CLK_SW can be used to firce the FSB to 100MHz instead of trying to do an autodetect on the FSB speed. It's a long shot, but it might get you to where you get some other information. Something else to look into, the board has a feature where there is a backup BIOS bank (at least, it looks like it does in the manual). It might be worth trying the backup bank.
I think I tried doing the switch, but I will try again. Also, how do you use the backup BIOS? I've never done that before..... The CPU that I put in there is working, same with the RAM and Video Card, yet I can't get it to display anything. The other mobo I can get (using the same parts as above) to the BIOS and to display on screen. Hopefully using the 2nd BIOS will fix it. I will try that tomorrow. Thanks Splynncryth for your help!
I should have double checked the feature in the manual. It looks like Gigabyte tries to detect if one BIOS image is bad and automatically boot the other part. So it depends on the first block of the flash part being OK. It doesn't look like there is a manual select and both flash parts are soldered onto the board :/ So it doesn't look like you can rule out a bad BIOS chip and the board is just as dead as if some oher hardware on the board is bad.
It sounds like your Mobo is shorting out to me, which is what happens when you mount it wrong inside your case. Are you sure it's mounted correctly with all the rubber stoppers and everything?
Oh boy! This reminds me of my super old Celeron 300Mhz back in the days. Haha, it's been sooooo long I did not see them. I REALLY think it is unnecessary thing. In fact if you look closely to the motherboard they are no connectors that pass near a screw hole. Also, the case is usually grounded by not only the PSU but also the USB plug (usually the frontal ones). I personally don't think it is the issue, of course unless, the PSU doesn't ground itself and the case, same for your case that doesn't use a USB ground (or any ground plug) to ground the case, or that you did not connect the cable to your motherboard.
Yeah, the only piece of HW on the board that looks to be bad is the "burn" mark on one of the chipsets.....I wish I could try the other BIOS. It's just sad, the fans turn on as well as the lights on the fans, yet it won't POST or turn on the monitor...nothing...
Say what?! Was that a joke? lol Lightning is a pretty serious issue Even though one component isn't killed doesn't mean everything else is alright. If there indeed are burn marks and suspcion of lightning strike then I'd hurry up and ditch the board. You may be able to re-use ram and cpu and stuff in PCI/AGP/PCI-E slots but you will never know. Lightning + IT =
Well, let me present you with something new for your computer and electronic devices. It is called a PowerBar. Not to be confused with with a power splitter that looks pretty much the same. A powerbar is more heavy than a power splitter, and also cost significantly higher. More you pay, the most protection (in joules) it will give you. Such device protects you against such situation.
Well he is not the first, I can't say how many times I saw this. People going at a dollar store and get these power splitters, or get an extension cord (like these:http://www.homemate.cn/images/yuns/extension cord.jpg) of 3 plugs, and breaks the ground plug of all electric plug, to be able to connect them. When I commented on what they did they go "But it works, so it MUST be fine and safe. Also isn't the ground just a plug that reach the soil, so it goes nowhere either way, it's a waist and tricks for you to spend more money on expensive stuff".
