New Asus Maximus Formula Won't Boot

E

ElectroM

n00b
Joined
Jan 27, 2006
Messages
11
I just got a new Asus Maximus Formula and it won't boot. It will power up but never even initializes the video, much less get to the bios screen. I installed the little code reader that comes with it and it is hanging at testcmos. Has anybody seen this problem or anyone has an idea what is going on?
 
Most likely you've got to ground your case properly.
What frequently happens (Happened to myself a bit ago) is that you install the mobo but have a few too many motherboard mount stands installed on the case. Those that aren't screwed in and are just sitting there often cause a short in the system.

My recommendation is check the motherboard seating and remove the excess mount screws/stands on the case and only leave those you need to screw in the motherboard's screw holes. It should boot fine after.
 
Thanks for the reply. The board is not mounted. It is laying on the shell it was shipped in. I am using one of the new E8400 chips. Could this be the problem? I thought these boards would support the new chips out of the box.
 
Is this packaging you have it lying on anti static? Some anti static bags are conductive enough to short out a board, if any pins on the back are sticking into the plastic.
 
The board is laying on the hard plastic shell that it ships in. I just checked with my Fluke meter, it is not conductive. When it is powered up, the debug device starts with cpu init, then it says det dram, then it gets to testcmos and hangs. I thought the board would support the E8400 chip out of the box. I suppose I could try to get another cpu so I could flash it, but I would like to be sure that is the problem first, if I can.
 
ElectroM said:
The board is laying on the hard plastic shell that it ships in. I just checked with my Fluke meter, it is not conductive. When it is powered up, the debug device starts with cpu init, then it says det dram, then it gets to testcmos and hangs. I thought the board would support the E8400 chip out of the box. I suppose I could try to get another cpu so I could flash it, but I would like to be sure that is the problem first, if I can.
Click to expand...

The formula has a cmos reset on the side of the board near the usb ports mak sure that it isnt being pressed by anything or just disable the back button on the motherboard. The instuctions to do this are on page 2-24 in your manual.
 
The cmos reset button is clear, nothing near it. I am following a thread on another forum started by a guy with the same problem I have. He got another cpu and it still won't post.
 
Guys I have exactly the same problem with my new Maximus just unboxed and my new E8400. I read on another forum that the MB required a Bios Flash before it worked, this is what i suspected. My problem is I don't have a spare Core2 CPU laying around and I don't want to spend any more money on getting one. The ASUS Wolfdale Support List doesn't mention that a Bios flash is required for compatibility. Any ideas!
 
I finally got it to post. I went to a local computer shop this morning and bought a Celeron D for about $45. I was able to post and flash the bios to 0907. It came with version 0401 on board. It recognized the E8400 now. I will finish the build over the next day or so. Thanks for the help.
 
It must be that particular BIOS version. I just received a new Maximus Formula and E8400 from Newegg yesterday. Popped it in and it booted right up into BIOS. My board came with BIOS version 505. It did display a message that the CPU could not be identified, but it booted up to BIOS.

I flashed it up to the recommended 907 and all has been fine.
 
I ordered mine + a q6600, wouldnt boot - talked to asustek and decided to rma for bios - updated to 0901.

what i might suggest - unplug everything, take the battery out, switch the cmos to the left for 30 mins. then switch to the right, put the battery back in and plug it up - if that doesnt fix it you could have other problems.
 
K2rn2g3 said:
I ordered mine + a q6600, wouldnt boot - talked to asustek and decided to rma for bios - updated to 0901.

what i might suggest - unplug everything, take the battery out, switch the cmos to the left for 30 mins. then switch to the right, put the battery back in and plug it up - if that doesnt fix it you could have other problems.
Click to expand...

What did your LED poster say? I had initial problems with mine, but it turned out to be memory related (voltage), and it was a quick fix once I knew what the problem was from the poster.
 
RMA it . These new ASUS boards are crap . Get rid of it . If you fool with the new bios's you will eventually find a way to make it boot ...but so what ? From what I can see these ASUS boards have one or two components that do not like heat of any kind . They will run fine for a short time , then quit .

RMA it , then , while you are waiting 2 - 6 weeks , buy something better , from someone that offers a 30 day exchange policy . Hate to say it , but this chinese crap that we are testing lately is not worth the trouble . Buy one , test it , return it , test another one , return it , ... eventually you will find a good one .

good luck
 
No_bull said:
RMA it . These new ASUS boards are crap . Get rid of it . If you fool with the new bios's you will eventually find a way to make it boot ...but so what ? From what I can see these ASUS boards have one or two components that do not like heat of any kind . They will run fine for a short time , then quit .

RMA it , then , while you are waiting 2 - 6 weeks , buy something better , from someone that offers a 30 day exchange policy . Hate to say it , but this chinese crap that we are testing lately is not worth the trouble . Buy one , test it , return it , test another one , return it , ... eventually you will find a good one .

good luck
Click to expand...

I WAS going to buy this board for a new computer build, but after reading numerous threads like this one, I am not sure of a Maximus or Asus -- what brand has better quality control and tech support?

MikeSp
 
No_bull said:
RMA it . These new ASUS boards are crap . Get rid of it . If you fool with the new bios's you will eventually find a way to make it boot ...but so what ? From what I can see these ASUS boards have one or two components that do not like heat of any kind . They will run fine for a short time , then quit .

RMA it , then , while you are waiting 2 - 6 weeks , buy something better , from someone that offers a 30 day exchange policy . Hate to say it , but this chinese crap that we are testing lately is not worth the trouble . Buy one , test it , return it , test another one , return it , ... eventually you will find a good one .

good luck
Click to expand...
dude, what you're spouting goes against a lot of people on these boards who swear by the maximus. you have no facts to back up what you're saying, you just come off as some random ass n00b with a chip on his shoulder. link me to some facts on this, and i'll entertain what you're saying as a possiblity. as it is, i call BS on your whole post (kind of ironic what with your username and all).

plus, asus is not chinese crap. they're a taiwanese company with a high quality production line.
 
MikeSp said:
I WAS going to buy this board for a new computer build, but after reading numerous threads like this one, I am not sure of a Maximus or Asus -- what brand has better quality control and tech support?

MikeSp
Click to expand...

Dont listen to that dumbass. I have an A8N32-SLI deluxe currently being RMA'd by them so I will tell you one thing, they're quick to help. Just use the right email and they give you an RMA # and address after serial verification within a day!
 
well i tried another CPU in it and it does the same thing. looks like its DOA


I will rma it and try again
 
McCartney said:
Dont listen to that dumbass. I have an A8N32-SLI deluxe currently being RMA'd by them so I will tell you one thing, they're quick to help. Just use the right email and they give you an RMA # and address after serial verification within a day!
Click to expand...

Oh man ! Sorry buddy , but that flame is not required , and actually , not allowed in this forum . Even the lowest of the low among us realize that one persons experience can be totally different that anothers .

You had a good experience , but many have had bad experiences . Calling someone a "Dumb Ass" only serves to make your credibility , suspect . Why would you even want to react in such a negative way to such an innocent post ?

If you need to flame , pick another forum . If you need to post more manufacturer's propoganda ... well , carry on and good luck .
 
Zinn said:
dude, what you're spouting goes against a lot of people on these boards who swear by the maximus. you have no facts to back up what you're saying, you just come off as some random ass n00b with a chip on his shoulder. link me to some facts on this, and i'll entertain what you're saying as a possiblity. as it is, i call BS on your whole post (kind of ironic what with your username and all).

plus, asus is not chinese crap. they're a taiwanese company with a high quality production line.
Click to expand...

Ah , seems I have found another "paid" ASUS man . They are everywhere . Too bad that kind of energy was not spent in ASUS engineering . If you want facts , just go to the ASUS tech support forum (I freakin' dare you) . It is well known there that :

first -, the forum does not work (posting can take , literally , days)
second - many boards do not work (not all boards , but many-many-many boards)
third - yes , RMA is possible , certainly , but the exchange board received is often garbage also .
fourth - ASUS boards were the best , but the poor chinese slaves that build them are finally fed up with the horrendous pay and working conditions . The quality has suddenly and mysteriously , disappeared (who could blame them?)

People like myself who have been posting for years and years on these forums , know full well that ASUS people post here too . They will flame , they will discredit , they will sob , they will go out of their way to discount the truth ... and the truth is , at this point in time , the ASUS line up of boards is extremely - "hit & miss" .

I recently visited a retired friend who just opened a computer shop in his town . At the moment , he is probably ranked #3 among 7 or 8 players . I asked him what boards he sold . He told me Intel , or Biostar , mostly . I mentioned ASUS and the latest can of worms that they are producing . He immediately shook his head and said , "stay away from ASUS , they are garbage, and their boards almost sunk me when I first started out" .

You want proof ? Go to the ASUS tech support forum and talk to those people the same way you just responded to my post . They will rip your nuts off !

Ohh , and by the way , and not that I care , but Taiwan has been part of China for many years now (since world war 2) . You get what you pay for , and these poor slaves , building our dirt-cheap boards are completely fed up about working for $2 a week ... wouldn't you be ?

get with the program , and just for the record , who's side are you really on ?

ooooouuuttt !!!!
 
The Maximus can be a good board, however it's glitchy/tempermental. I've fallen victim to the dreaded CPU INIT and DET DRAM issues, and it's no fun.

My first Maximus Formula board ran perfectly from day 1, OC's my Q6600 G0 to 3.6 GHz (1.42v) with no problems, and is absolutely stable.

My second Maximus suffered from the DET DRAM problem and wouldn't POST, even with the components from my Q6600 rig. (CPU, RAM, video card and power supply, all outside ofthe case to rule out grounding issues.) After swapping the parts back to my other computer, everything fired up perfectly. That one was RMA'd for a replacement.

The replacement Maximus board suffers from the CPU INIT error when I try to boot with an E6420 CPU, but runs perfectly when I put in the Q6600. The E6420 also has the CPU INIT error when I tried it in my first Maximus board. I thought the 6420 may have been fried, but when I test it in my P5B Deluxe, it runs perfectly. (3.2 GHz @ default voltage)

I'm still not sure what the issue is with the CPU INIT error, but I have a new 8400 arriving Wednesday and hope that it will run in one of my two Maximus Formula boards. I've tried a variety of solutions and hardware mixes, but this board won't POST with anything but my Q6600.

Tried:

* Flashing to various BIOS versions (0505 - 0907)
* Booting with 1 stick of RAM, in different RAM slots. (Transcend DDR2-800, AData DDR2-800, and Crucial Ballistix DDR2-1066)
* Different CPU's (Q6600 and E6420... E8400 to be tested later this week)
* Different video cards (7900GS and 8800GT)

Good luck figuring this one out. Let us know if it works/how you fixed it.

Vix
 
I just got a Max Formula and 8400 and it seems great. 8800 GTS G92 and crucial ballistix 1066.
 
I installed my new E8400 into my Maximus Formula SE and it fired right up! I booted into the BIOS, changed a few settings, and within 10 min I was flying at over 4 GHz!

GAWD I LOVE THIS BOARD!
 
No_bull said:
Ohh , and by the way , and not that I care , but Taiwan has been part of China for many years now (since world war 2) . ooooouuuttt !!!!
Click to expand...



Excuse me?? Taiwan is has been part of China since WWII?? That might come as a surprise to the Taiwanese or the mainland Chinese inhabitants. China may want Taiwan to be part of "China", but the last I heard, it hasn't happened yet. Not to say they don't do business together. You might want to check out the facts you don't care about before you rant.
 
I got this mobo and cpu despite the issues reported with it. I also got 1066 Crucial memory sticks.

Perhaps the CPUINIT problem is resolved more simply by not paying any attention to the LCD display.

This mobo out of the box defaults to a power off condition. So if you simply put it together (including the 4/8 pin ATX connection required for the CPU to run) and turn on the PS, then the mobo powers up for about a half second and "dies" with a CPUINIT error.

You need to push the button on the front panel to power on the system.

Yeah, painfully obvious.

My E8400 chip and Crucial memory didn't want to play nice together, so I swapped the cpu and memory to an older set, and flashed the BIOS from a thumb to 907. I changed the memory voltage, reset the BIOS to startup on "last state", and put in the new cpu and memory.

It's all good now.

My apologies if this is too simplistic and you really do have a DOA mobo.
 
The problem with the CPU INIT error doesn't have anything to do with powering on. you put the CPU in, you press the power button, then observe the following:

1. The motherboard powers on and the fans spin up.

2. The motherboard powers off for approximately 3 seconds.

3. The motherboard powers back on, the fans spin up, but the system never POST.

4. You push and hold the power button and everything powers off.

5. Pushing the power button again leads you back to sep #1 above.

It's not an issue of power on, because everything is running (fans, lights, HDDs, video card fan, etc.)

As I stated above, the issue is odd, because I only get the CPU INIT error with certain CPUs, and only on one of my Maximus Formula boards. All parts check out fine in another IDENTICAL board, with identical settings and the same exact BIOS. (0907)
 
Glad I saw this topic as I have an E8400 and a Maximus Formula on the way. Hope it works out of the box for me, but if not at least I have seen some good ways to fix it.
 
Derangel said:
Glad I saw this topic as I have an E8400 and a Maximus Formula on the way.
Click to expand...

Same. Crossing fingers newegg sends me a 0505 board ...

Worst case scenario - local comp store has a decent service shop - will prolly be able to "flash while I wait" (that or buy the cheapest 775 chip i can find and then use it as a tiny ashtray :D .)

cheers
 
Sorry, Vix.

Sounds like you have a prime RMA candidate.

That sucks, but not much to be done for it, if you've already done all that can be done.

All I know is that I was pulling hair out over this mobo/cpu/memory combo and finally got a grip on it.

Perhaps I was just lucky.
 
No_bull said:
Ah , seems I have found another "paid" ASUS man . They are everywhere . Too bad that kind of energy was not spent in ASUS engineering . If you want facts , just go to the ASUS tech support forum (I freakin' dare you) . It is well known there that :

first -, the forum does not work (posting can take , literally , days)
second - many boards do not work (not all boards , but many-many-many boards)
third - yes , RMA is possible , certainly , but the exchange board received is often garbage also .
fourth - ASUS boards were the best , but the poor chinese slaves that build them are finally fed up with the horrendous pay and working conditions . The quality has suddenly and mysteriously , disappeared (who could blame them?)

People like myself who have been posting for years and years on these forums , know full well that ASUS people post here too . They will flame , they will discredit , they will sob , they will go out of their way to discount the truth ... and the truth is , at this point in time , the ASUS line up of boards is extremely - "hit & miss" .

I recently visited a retired friend who just opened a computer shop in his town . At the moment , he is probably ranked #3 among 7 or 8 players . I asked him what boards he sold . He told me Intel , or Biostar , mostly . I mentioned ASUS and the latest can of worms that they are producing . He immediately shook his head and said , "stay away from ASUS , they are garbage, and their boards almost sunk me when I first started out" .

You want proof ? Go to the ASUS tech support forum and talk to those people the same way you just responded to my post . They will rip your nuts off !

Ohh , and by the way , and not that I care , but Taiwan has been part of China for many years now (since world war 2) . You get what you pay for , and these poor slaves , building our dirt-cheap boards are completely fed up about working for $2 a week ... wouldn't you be ?

get with the program , and just for the record , who's side are you really on ?

ooooouuuttt !!!!
Click to expand...

Wait wait, as far as I know Taiwan is independent from china. If you have them so much go tell them that. As you said earlier on depends from person to person. I have had a great experience varies from person to person. I had a nice person working with me for RMA. They were quite slow but it was during the holidays namely christmas, furthermore I wouldnt say all of their new boards are crap, some are good some arent just like you said. I have had pretty damn good experiences with their RMA and boards for the most part. My point is get this flaming out of here and send them a feedback email to tell them how much you hate them so they can change and stop complaining about them.
 
Perhaps relevant, maybe not.

The mobo I got from Newegg 10 days ago was a 505 BIOS.

For what it's worth.

Can we maybe just concentrate on getting this mobo booted and flame ASUS and Taiwan elsewhere?
 
My Max Formula and e8400 will be arriving this week. And I just learned the issues of this board with the said CPU and other memory (Ram) related problems in other forums. I've been reading them over and over again coz this will be my first build.

I know some people are saying that by dropping any compatible CPU, you can update the bios of this Mobo and your good to go . Well I do have another PC with Pentium D in it, so maybe I can use it to update the bios. My very noob question is, what happens to my Pentium D after bios update? Can I still put it back to my old PC and use them, like nothing happens? Thanks!:)
 
Yes, the CPU is completely reusable ;). Actually, you'll have to re-apply the thermal paste to the HSF, but other than that, you should be fine.

I'll throw my $0.02 here. I've had the Maximus for 3 months or so, and have had very few issues. I had the DET DRAM error, but I booted with different sticks and adjusted voltage and haven't had that problems since. I'm running 0907 bios now. I think I got 04XX with my board shipped and it worked fine with a Q6600 (B3).

I bought a new motorcycle with all the Asus money :p.
 
I got one of these boards from NewEgg last week and it had the 607 BOIS on it. I had to get a different processor than the E8400 I had. Not a biggie, I planed on upgrading my server anyways. Popped the E2200, flashed the BIOS up to 907 and the E8400 works like a champ. Well sort of, I got a CMOS Error after that, but it was because I forgot to plug the monitor back in. Whoops.

So now I need to find a cheap board for the 2200.
 
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