motherboard issues...

[major]

i've just upgraded my gateway p2 450 mghz pc to a brand new asus motherboard and amd xp 2000 processor. when it first boots up it immediately goes into bios setup, but then when i make the correct changes and choose save and restart, it exits the bios screen and then does nothing. the monitor also goes into power save at this time where the led shows amber instead of greeen.

the computer will not beep at all during startup. if i manually power cycle the computer it will go back into the bios setup (where all the previous info is still correct) and when i choose save and restart it does the same thing again where the screen goes black and led goes amber.

i verified the the agp video card is functioning properly, and that the cmos clear jumper is not set to clear. the board is getting power, the fans on the heat sink for the cpu and the power supply both kick on, the monitor is ok and securely connected. it has a single 512 stick of ddr memory that is compatable with the board, have tried reseating all the cards and connections but to no avail. i'm beggining to think the board/cpu may have been damaged from static electricity since i was on carpet while doing this upgrade.

just wondering if anyone else thinks the motherboard may be damaged or have any other troubleshooting ideas. i put the original board and cpu back in and the computer then works fine.

thanks in advance.

[Budfred]

Welcome to http://www.pcguide.com/ubb/pcgubb.gif

If you are able to boot at all and get into BIOS, it suggests that the CPU and mobo are probably ok. It sounds like something is wrong with the BIOS settings actually. Have you tried it with just Default settings? I would give that a try and see if it works. I would also start with a minimal boot, just the basics and no drives. Add one drive at a time (shutting down in between) if the previous one works.

Good luck.

[Whyzman]

Yes indeed, go for the barebones boot with the default settings!

What PCI devices do you have and in what slots?

[BigBlue66]

If so, install a new CMOS battery. I have read many threads about the battery being a dud right from the factory.

Once the battery is replaced, it's a go.

If you have a voltage meter, check the battery for proper output. Or, if you don't have a volt meter, spend $2 on a new battery and give that a whirl. You will need a 3 volt battery with the model no. CR-2032.

Good luck.

I have a brand new A7N8X Deluxe sitting here waiting to be installed. I bought a new battery the same day I received the motherboard.

In fact, I always replace the CMOS batteries in all my systems annually, so as to avoid unexpected problems from a dying or dead battery.

[major]

that's the motherboard i put in.

i actually found out what the problem was. when the pc would first boot up and go into the bios settings screen, it gave the option of choosing the spu speed. well, since i had the amd xp 2000 i set it for 2000 mghz. when i changed just that one setting to either 1600 mghz or even 1200 mghz the pc now boots up just fine.

by the way, the bios battery was dead when i got the motherboard and had to replace it. i noticed that when it wouldn't keep its settings after a hard boot.

thanks again for all the replies.

[Whyzman]

I would say that when first firing up a system...it would be best to just go with the default values. That way you'd know before making adjustments that you'd be able to at least get a successful POST...

[Budfred]

The AMD XP 2000+ actually runs at something like 1.7ghz, so you were trying to seriously overclock it without even knowing it.... no wonder you were having problems.

[Active Techster]

Yes it sounds like an overclock- what you need to do is hold down Insert when the computer powers up it resets the CPU speed settings- do that and you should get a screen display again with default CPU speeds.