Motherboard Help
When I built my computer, I bought an ASUS P4P800 DLX because Asus has had a good reputation, however since the day I put it together it has been nothing but a series of many problems for me and for many others apparently. I'm Not into overclocking or anything and I'm just looking for a new motherboard that is reliable, fast, stable, and will not have any problems running at stock. Should I get an Intel motherboard? Abit? One more question, if I get a new motherboard will I have to reformat my hard drive?
Currently I have:
P4 2.4C
ASUS P4P800 Deluxe
2x256 Kingston Value Ram
Ati Radeon 9500 Pro
40gb IDE HD
52x CD-RW
Antec %%WORD84%700 amb
I'm need to buy a new motherboard because my P4P800 DLX has a very annoying problem that I do not know how to fix. You can read more about this problem here:
When I purchased the motherboard I had no idea until it happened to me and I did a google search. I tried the solution he suggests but it only worked for a time. Soon it was back to not working because the heatsink/fan was so loose that it was easily shaken and would immediately freeze. I could manually reset with trial and error until it would work but if anyone so much as stepped too hard I am screwed again and again.
I can only think of one thing I haven't tried and I have no idea if it will work or not. If I bought a 3rd party heatsink/fan for it that does not used the arms but a different way of securing itself (no pressure?) it might fix it. But I have no experience with one and don't want to waste money if it will not work.
My question is this. If you guys have an idea or know of a solution, PLEASE tell me.
Basically I am fed up with the whole thing and I am going to buy a new motherboard. What motherboard should I buy? I hear Intel is very stable and reliable. I've also built a computer for a friend using an Abit motherboard(IC-7 Max 3) which worked great. Could you guys suggest a motherboard that would work great with my parts and has no known problems around the 100$ price range? I'm a noob with this stuff so I have no idea which to get. I want something with onboard audio and lan. I don't know what Onboard SATA/RAID and Onboard 1394 is but I'm pretty sure I don't use it. I'm considering this:
Moderator v2.0
Posts: 2746
(3/15/04 8:25 pm) Reply
Re: Motherboard Help
Asus does have a good reputation, but if you search the web for Asus problems of course you're going to tind others with problems (just like if you were to search for problems with any popular motherboard). It's simply a law of averages. I have an Asus P4P800 that's been working great, but I don't go around posting that it works great on every website.
Firstly you have to fix whatever you're doing with the stock heatsink. You say it's loose, but you don't say how - did you read the instructions to make doubly sure that you've installed it correctly? Examine it to see why it's loose; don't just think "replace everything and my problem will go away".
Secondly, what bios are you using, and what are its settings. Try setting everything as conservatively as possible; it could be instability caused by an aggressive bios setting. Looking at Asus' website the "system fail cpu test" is a result of a manually selected multiplier which doesn't match the CPU. Try resetting the BIOS by clearing the CMOS.
Ive heard really good things about the ABIT boards over the last few months.You can also look at there selection of 865 Chipset MB's. Only other boards i can recommend based on sales at newegg are the Gigabyte and Asus intel boards.
Re: Motherboard Help
I just recently built a new box and I used the Abit IS7-E and it has been a rock solid screamer. For under $100 ($89 currently at newegg) I doubt you'll find a better performing board. I have no problems with the heatsink (stock one that came with my p4 2.8c retail) and everything went together with ZERO problems.
Calyxto Registered User
Posts: 549
(3/16/04 5:16 am) Reply
Abit
I'll second the Abit IS7-E for good, stable performance on the cheap. The IS7 comes in several flavors, with the IS7-E lacking only firewire and RAID support for Serial ATA. If you want those things, you can get a regular IS7 for a bit more.
Basically from around $90 on up to $185 there are various versions of the IS7 and IC7 boards with the features/performance scaling up with the price. I have a co-worker that loves his IC7-Max3 while I have everything I could want in the IS7-E.
Re: Abit
Sorry for not explaining more Ruccus. This is my first computer that I have tried building, I built it in August. I put everything toghether and actually thought that the heatsink/fan was pretty dang tight when I installed it. So I double check everything to make sure it is connected and when I turn it on it says "System Failed CPU Test" over and over. So I google that and come up with some articles explaining the problem. In the links I posted everyone has said that for some reason their ASUS P4P and P4C doesn't say this when they un-tighten the arms on the heatsink/fan. So I try this and sure enough it starts to work. The solution which seemed to work for many that have this problem was to file down the pressure points on the arms. Well I do this and it has worked well since August until about January. Ever since it has been really unstable and I have to move it around with trial/error to get it to work. And when it does work its very unstable.
Moderator v2.0
Posts: 2748
(3/16/04 9:58 am) Reply
Re: Abit
You don't loosen the heatsink; it's supposed to be tight so there's good coductivity between the IHS and the heatsink (so it can cool properly). While it may be a temporary fix, it's still not doing anything about what's really wrong.
Did you check to see if the problem is the solder that was mentioned by one of the posters? He mentioned "...There, located beneath the bracket on the underside of the board, he found the problem. There is a small glob of solder located beneath where the bracket sits that, when pressure from the bracket is applied, shorts the motherboard. Upon cleaning the glob from the contact and resoldering it, the board now runs perfectly fine...". Here's a picture of what you're looking for.
While Abit makes fine motherboards (I loved my VH6; it was an excellent budget performer) and the IS7 is a very good board, I'm more a fan of finding out what a problem is rather than just saying "screw it, I'm getting another board".
Re: Abit
Well, I didn't actually see if there was a blob underneath the motherboard. I did try something - I figure if pressure is being applied to it between the motherboard and the case then try to loosen the screws that attach the motherboard to the case. Well I tried that and the computer turned on and windows starts. I hope this is a final solution because I would not know how to clean and resolder something. Thanks a lot Ruccus, I hope this will be the end of my motherboard problem.
Moderator v2.0
Posts: 2752
(3/16/04 12:25 pm) Reply
Re: Abit
You are using motherboard risers, aren't you? The motherboard should be about 1cm away from the side of the case when the risers are installed, so the tightness of the motherboard shouldn't factor into anything. If you fastened the board straight to the case, it will be short out because the case acts as a bridge.
Here are three types of risers (the risers screw into the case, the motherboard screws into the risers):
I hope this is a final solution because I would not know how to clean and resolder something. Thanks a lot Ruccus, I hope this will be the end of my motherboard problem.
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