Anyone recieved a bad +3200 venice?

A

Aaron_ATX

[H]ard|Gawd
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Oct 15, 2003
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Got my epox 9nda3j and +3200 venice from newegg this last friday. Upon assembling the machine (antec truepower 550w) and pressing the power button, the processor fan, chipset fan, and powersupply fan spin briefly and then die, and the board flashes FF before it cuts off. It will not reboot in anyway until the powersupply is unplugged for 10+ seconds. And when you do that, the same thing happens again.


If I remove the processor the motherboard fires right up with no problems.

I just contacted AMD for a RMA, hopefully this wont be much of an issue. This is the first time in 10 years of building computers I have purchased a "bunk" CPU.


Anyone else run into this, or RMA with AMD? What kind of service can I expect?
 
you sure the heatsink is on all the way and making full contact?

any way, i have heard they cross ship for free... dont know personally though.. good luck :)
 
Heatsink was installed correctly and the OEM paste/heatsink/fan was used (retail box).

I have built 50+ computers in the last 10 years so I have a fair amount of experiance with them.
 
psu works perfectly in my current rig in my sig.

and in the first post I stated that if I pull the processor out of the board it fires right up everytime.
 
Aaron_ATX said:
psu works perfectly in my current rig in my sig.

and in the first post I stated that if I pull the processor out of the board it fires right up everytime.
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I know, I read the first post.
I have seen the same thing happen before, except the PSU did it on every board tested.
 
Oh, and I did try another 400w antec powersupply I had sitting around. Same thing :(
 
Aaron_ATX said:
I have built 50+ computers in the last 10 years so I have a fair amount of experiance with them.
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Then you would think you would have ran across this before...
 
Have you tried removing the motherboard from the case and booting up like that? This sounds like a grounding issue to me, not a CPU problem.

A bad CPU, in my experience, will not cause cause the issue you are describing. More often than not it is a grounding problem with the motherboard or the fan on the heatsink is not plugged into the motherboard. I would definitely check these things out first.

 
Aaron_ATX said:
psu works perfectly in my current rig in my sig.
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means nothing. most athlon xp rigs draw power from the 5v rail, and the a64's draw power from the 12v rail.

care to tell us which psu it is? :D
 
TheToE! said:
Then you would think you would have ran across this before...
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HOLY CRAP, YOU SOLVED TEH PROBLEM :rolleyes:


Anyway, I have changed my mind on what the problem is. (I build all my pc's outside the case on first assembly)

The following is the procedure I used to get the motherboard/processor to boot.

What I had installed and how:
ep-9nda3j, retail +3200 venice, 1 512 stick xms pc3200 corsair, 9800XT. Outside case, sitting on a motherboard mounting plate I ripped out of an old ATX case. Brass standoffs only in the required spots, board fastened securely to it.

I tried, and repeated the following process with 2 different powersupplies: Antec TruePower550, antec 400w (older model but still had the 4 pin power connector)


The process: Install cpu, heatsink, ram, videocard, powersupply (LEAVE POWERSUPPLY IN THE "OFF" POSTION ON THE BACK), powerswitch.

Switch powersupply "on" via the button on the back of it.

Wait 10 seconds

Switch powersupply "off" via button on the back

wait 10 seconds

depress power on button to the motherboard. Fans should spin briefly and board should die.

wait 10 seconds

Switch powersupply "on" via the button on the back

depress power on button to the motherboard. Board should fire right up like nothing is wrong.

I was able to duplicate this exact process 10+ times in a row without fail with both of the aformentioned, confirmed working with no problem in other machine, powersupplies.

Reset button works perfectly. But if you try and power the board off with the motherboard on/off switch you cannot turn it back on without repeating the above process.


Exactly what this means, I am not sure. I have yet to try to install an OS or connect a HD to it as I discovered this about 45 minutes before I had to be at work. If I can make it through my 8 hour work day and stay coherant enough to continue testing this evening i'll see if I can get an OS to install.
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Another guy had the same issue a while ago, he eventually sorted it out but i cant remember what the hell he did, looking through my subscribed threads doesnt throw anything obvious up. First thing id reccomend is checking the 20 pin plug is in right, thinking about it that may have been the problem, also check you have teh 24 pin connector in. Check ram is seated properly, Sounds really stupid, but try it without the power switch, (just short with a screwdriver) ive had boards do that when it was a dicky switch, basically was bouncing all over the place just going on and off.
 
Did you plug in the 4 pin plug for the cpu?

Sounds stupid, but I forgot to do that, my cpu started but it only booted at 1ghz (5x multi) - it could cause your pc to not start if the board doesnt like it.

just my $.02

Good luck
 
All powersupply connections are in the correct spots, and I tried 2 different power on switches, and tried just shorting the connection to get it to boot. No change.
 
I am beginning to wonder if my 3ish year old truepower550 is not sufficient for this new a64 system I am trying to build. I'll pull the part number off it at lunch.....I can't seem to find it on the antec website, as the older version they show supposedly has sata powerconnectors, and I am 97% sure mine does not.
 
it should work. i had an older true430 (has sata though) that worked just fine with my clawhammer + 6800gt.

how many amps does your 550 say it has on the 12v rail? it should be listed on the sticker on the psu :D
 
I can GARANTEE you there's a short. I see this problem often as I build 100+ computers per month.

Basically, take out the motherboard out of the case, there might be a metal spacer making contact with the board at a place it's not supposed to.

Also, check the screws that you're using, try changing them as they might be causing a problem.

Also, unplug the internal USB attachments from the front, if you messed up in the order of the wires, it will cause the system to do that.

Bottom line: check to see what's shorting out! Then it will work.
 
This board has never been installed in a case. It sits on a motherboard mounting plate (with standoffs) that I yanked out of an old ATX case. I have tried it without the mounting plate as well, and let the board just sit on my anti static mat. No change.
 
well i really wanted to know what it said on the psu itself, as antec changes the specs. either way, it should be more than enough ;)
 
said the 12v rail would do 24amps max. I don't recall the rest of the specs, doh, i'll complete them when I get home from work.
 
Have you swapped out or played with the memory sticks? Plugged in the auxillary power to the video card?

My computer will exibit this behavior if I forget to connect the power connector to my Radeon 9700.
 
I just RMAed an nforce3 epox board for the second time for the same reason. I wish I would have seen this thread! I used a wrist strap to ground myself and just put the board on the antistatic mat and never in the case both times. Neither board would even power on with the CPU in it. Tried three known-good power supplies from 350w to 480w, two Forton FSPs and one Antec NeoPower. All the components worked fine in a gigabyte k8 triton.
 
WHere did you buy the board from? I know it soesnt help greatly, but it could be you have one of the older non venice bioses.
 
newegg, and my understanding is that the board will boot up no matter what bios is in it. An updated bios is just to show the processor correctly.
 
Thats the only other thing that immeadiately springs to mind, just noticed your thread over in the official EPoX forums, and that really does sound like a power supply issue, either the caps in your psu arent charging right, or those in the board.
First thing would be to try a new, new powersupply ( if you get what i mean), or if you havent got one handy bank on it being the board and RMA it.
To eliminate your psu, have you got an old (geforce 4 ish or less) gpu you can put in? That will help, cos if it works with an old gpu then its definately the PSU.
Try booting with no video at all if you dont have an old card, if you can get it to throw the right code its a step in the rigth direction.
 
quick update, this is the info from the side of my 3 yearish old Antec True550

+5v: max-40A
+12v: max24A
+3.3: max32A
 
That would be okay I think, but I'd still like a stronger 12v rail on an Athlon64 system.
 
my oc'ed clawhammer + 6800gt was fine with 20A.. the psu was definitly struggling though. i would think with a lower wattage cpu and video card, he'll be fine with 24A :D
 
And by the way, anti-static bags conduct (to an extent), I don't know if it's the brightest idea to run your motherboard on it. Then again, maybe it's just fine :p
 
That sounds much too much like a short out. Either the motherboards damaged from a previous jolt or making contact with something. I wouldnt be so quick to blame that PSU. A PSU that lacks power doesnt boot up and immediatly shut down over and over. ESPECIALLY when its doing the same symptom on 2 different power supplies. Most definitly is a short.

oh and just to add to my credentials that dont really matter one bit I build 200 computers a week!

Seriously though, RMA or replace the motherboard. Not worth frickin with it too much longer.

Just outa stupid curiousity you did try clearing the CMOS and/or replacing or at least removing/replacing the motherboards battery? Your jumper switch is in the right place? PSU's get way too much blame on alot of computer tech forums that its quick to judge for alot of problems. This, is not one where its the PSU. I can drop a 4 year old generic in my computer right now and boot up (which i have done) let alone a 3 year old antec.
 
I've armwrestled the board until its booted using an old, spare 400w antec powersupply. Going to try and flash the bios just for grins. I'd like to try and defeat it. If this doesnt work i'll RMA it.

And this is what I build all my computers on:



 
Why build on a metal plate? Sticking motherboards on something like wood or cardboard seems to work fine, and then you don't have to worry about mounting issues :)
 
Its a mounting plate from an ATX case, and it has standoffs in the correct positions. I use this specifically because the mobo is easy to move around without having to touch it directly and you can install agp/pci cards without having to prop up the mobo.


Flashed the board to the current bios (came with the 02/05 bios) just for grins, still having the same problem. Gunna RMA it.
 
Bumping this for closure....and a bit of embarassment for myself.

Turns out it was my powersupply after all. Infact, BOTH powersupplies (Antec Tru550 and a slightly more generic antec 400w) I tried, which worked perfectly in my overclocked +2500 setup, for years, just couldnt cut it when it came to the new A64 setup.

I will admit that I am very surprised at this. But at the very least, it was an expensive lesson for myself, as initially I figured Epox had sent me a broken motherboard....so I ordered a Gigabyte nforce3 939 board as a replacement, just to verify that the epox board was bad before RMAing it.....

Well I put the entire system together with the Gigabyte board last night and went to fire it up, and the exact same problem. In my bewilderment and frustraition I made it to the nearest Comp USA and purchased a new Antec 430w truepower p/s 5 minutes before it closed....installed that, and now it works like a charm.

I am still a bit baffled by this....just how different is the demand placed on the powersupply as it relates to an XP +2500 overclocked (11x210 ~ 2310mhz) compared to a non overclocked A64 +3200 venice chip, assuming all other pieces are the same? Heck if anything the A64 is supposed to consume less power!
 
on the athlonXP, the cpu power comes from the 5v rail.
athlon64, it's the 12v rail :p
 
Ahh, well, strange then that both of the other powersupplies I was trying to use had "weak" 12v rails, the Tru550 was certainly rated high enough.

Owell, it cost me extra time and money to learn this lesson....now I won't look like a moron when my friends ask me to build them new a64 setups. This will be our little secret........RIGHT?!?!
 
http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=792566
Hello everyone. This thread is meant to be an informative guideline about the purchase of your power supply, more specifically, what are some good companies to give your business to, and perhaps more importantly, which ones to avoid. It will be updated regularly. This is still under construction, and I will be remodeling it in the coming days, so if there is a broken link, or a psu that is now off the market, or something of the like, PLEASE bring it to my attention via a pm.
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In that thread, all he really ever talks about is the 12v rail. The other rails really aren't used too much anymore.
 
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