Problems with First Build.

M

MrSweetie

n00b
Joined
Jan 22, 2005
Messages
33
Components, built about 6 months ago:

COOLER MASTER Real Power RS-450-ACLY ATX12V 450W Power Supply
AOpen i865PEa-7IF Socket T (LGA 775)
VGAATI|A-I-W RADEON 9600 128M 8X
CPU P4/3 GHz 800M LGA775 530J
GeIL Value 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM
ZALMAN CNPS7700-ALCU 120mm 2 Ball Cooling Fan
COOLER MASTER Praetorian PAC-T01-E1 Silver All Aluminium
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy2 ZS Platinum
Microsoft MN-130 Ethernet card
Windows XP Pro SP2
Cable Internet, no router
Two PATA hard drives (storage)
One SATA 250gb, with two partitions, a ~20 with the OS and the rest for storage.
Plextor 708a DVDrw.

(If I've forgotten something obvious, please just let me know and I'll add it.)

I'm having a number of problems with this system. First of all, and most curious: The system clock will drop two hours once a week, usually Sunday. If it's not available to do on Sunday (computer off all day, etc), then it'll drop two hours Monday. I think it's at a specific time during the day, too, maybe 5pm or so (not sure on this). It's done this possibly 10 times, and only once was it anything other than exactly two hours. That time, it was a month, a day, and two hours. Any suggestions on getting this fixed? This is most troubling because when I try to update the listings for my tv software (Guide Plus+), it won't sync because it recognizes the time as being inconsistent.

Secondly, and more important to me: Something is preventing me from using bit torrent to download anything. For the life of me I can't figure it out. I know for sure HTTP and FTP downloads work at my max speed (~400kB/s), but BT works at about 2kB/s. I understand BT, and know all about seeds and all that. I've tested with firewall and without, and it doesn't seem to matter at all. This problem is very very troubling. I will say BT has worked on this line in the past (old computer) and with this computer in the past. I've reformatted since it was working, however, hoping to fix the two-hour problem mentioned above (didn't work). I've tried multiple BT clients, I've tried many configurations of the clients, I've called to make sure my ISP doesn't block BT traffic (they say they don't). Other stuff too but that's all I can think of at the moment. I know this isn't a BT help forum, but I believe it to be a computer issue, not a BT issue, necessarily.

And the final problem is that I can't make the software that the videocard uses connect with my sound card, so I can't get sound while watching tv on my computer. Again I'll say that this has worked in the past with the same configuration, but I can't get it to work again (after the reformat).

Overall these three problems have made me disappointed with my build, and I sort of wish I'd poured the money I spent into something pre-built... Can anyone offer tips to get these problems resolved and help me believe I wasn't stupid to build this myself?

Thanks for your time! Any questions, or things I need to update, please just let me know.
 
Question 1:

I'd check to make sure that you've correctly set the windows clock for the time zone that you're in. If you're in the wrong time zone, then your clock will try and set itself to the time zone that it's currently set to sync with.

Question 2:

I'm avoiding it, just because I'm not entirely sure how taboo it is to talk about BT in this forum.

Question 3:

Could you just clarify what you mean? What software does your videocard use to connect to the soundcard? Have you made sure that all your drivers and such are installed?
 
DamienThorn said:
Question 1: I'd check to make sure that you've correctly set the windows clock for the time zone that you're in. If you're in the wrong time zone, then your clock will try and set itself to the time zone that it's currently set to sync with.

Question 2: I'm avoiding it, just because I'm not entirely sure how taboo it is to talk about BT in this forum.

Question 3: Could you just clarify what you mean? What software does your videocard use to connect to the soundcard? Have you made sure that all your drivers and such are installed?
Click to expand...
1: Hate to ask such a terribly n00b question, but how do verify the windows clock setting? As far as I remember when I set the computer up I set the correct time zone. But it makes sense now from the way you explain it that that could very well be the problem. If windows checked the clock every Sunday and reset it then, that'd explain that. So how can I verify this setting? (check) It can't be as simple as that. :doh: I did have it wrong. Very right you are, thank you my friend. :) (double click clock right corner, middle tab = time zone, I had it wrong.) Again, thank you!

2. BT is a perfectly legitimate means of file sharing, and plenty of legal things can be obtained this way, so I can't see the problem with discussing it here, when my issue is making it work, not obtaining illegal files. However, I respect your opinion, and won't press the issue. If it isn't discussed here, no problem.

3. The program I watch tv on is called [Guide Plus+, and the sound card is an SB Audigy 2 Pro. There is a physical connection between the two. The video card has a wire out[/]b to be connected to an in on the sound card. Something about the setup is not proper. I'll check the drivers for sure, but I was hoping someone might have experience between these two things and could point to something common that I might be overlooking. I should mention and may not have above that sound works fine for other things on my computer. I can play music fine, windows sounds work fine, in fact everything else sound-wise works fine. Only the TV sound doesn't.

Thanks again for your help, and I hope I've clarified somewhat. Again, if I've forgotten something or not answered properly, please let me know!
 
To 1: Double click on the clock in the lower right and side of your screen. Click the "Time Zone" tab, and double check that you've selected the right time zone.

To 3: I haven't dealt with ATI tuner cards before, so the best that I can do is direct you to the below forums, which exclusively deal with ATI cards:

For General Radeon Support: http://www.rage3d.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=69
For Multimedia Radeon Support (ie tuner cards): http://www.rage3d.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=24

Hope that helps some!

 
DamienThorn said:
To 1: Double click on the clock in the lower right and side of your screen. Click the "Time Zone" tab, and double check that you've selected the right time zone.

To 3: I haven't dealt with ATI tuner cards before, so the best that I can do is direct you to the below forums, which exclusively deal with ATI cards:

For General Radeon Support: http://www.rage3d.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=69
For Multimedia Radeon Support (ie tuner cards): http://www.rage3d.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=24

Hope that helps some!

Click to expand...

Thanks! I don't have the problem fixed, and I'm still at a loss. Now two more questions have arisen. One that I should have remembered before, another somewhat new problem.

First, (and this was a big problem in the past), sometimes my computer decides not to boot and I get a "insert system disk" error. I've found that if I disconnect the optical drive (plextor 708a) from the power supply (not the IDE cable, just the power) that I can boot and the computer will be like it was. Then after some time (with no changes having been made to the computer, I'll go through the same boot problem sequence, but it'll be just the opposite answer, ie that I reconnect the dvd drive.

Second problem, the new one, is that now I have no sound at all. I assume this is a driver problem, but I don't know, and I don't know how to tell. In my Device Manager, nothing has a question mark, so from what I know, all the drivers are ok. I've tried with onboard sound enabled and disabled, and I've rechecked my soundboard drivers. So while I was getting sound with everything but the TV before, now I'm getting no sound at all.

Can anyone help? Maybe just an explanaion of how to check the drivers would help. If I decided to find a local computer shop to take the computer to, is it likely that they would they be able to rebuild (or build) the computer so that it will WORK?

Thanks for your time!
 
Honestly, it sounds like most of your problems were software so dont waste your money getting ripped off by a local computer shop=)

1. Try a new power supply, thats a pretty odd problem that Ive never heard of before.

Read this http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=844691 It is an excellent thread packed with information.

2. Don't even bother checking the driver. Uninstall the driver via Add/Remove programs, and then download the newest drivers from soundblaster.com This should solve your problem.

3. For Bit Torrent, do you have a router? If so you need to turn on port forwarding. Make sure the windows firewall is off, or at least that you have the port you use for BT in your safe list. Last but not least, try changing the ports that you use for BT, I've heard that a lot of ISP's are limiting the most used ports to prevent all of their bandwidth from being used by BT.

Good luck, keep us updated!
 
MrSweetie said:
2. BT is a perfectly legitimate means of file sharing, and plenty of legal things can be obtained this way, so I can't see the problem with discussing it here, when my issue is making it work, not obtaining illegal files. However, I respect your opinion, and won't press the issue. If it isn't discussed here, no problem.
Click to expand...
...main reason BitTorrent isn't discussed here is....this is General [H]ardware, and it's a software issue.

You are correct, though - setup and configuration are fair game, but discussion of illegal activities or downloads will get you whacked alongside the virtual head, pronto.... :cool:

In addition to making sure Windows has the right time zone, does your MoBo have the latest BIOS? That may make a difference.

Good Luck - B.B.S.
 
Should I uninstall the drivers and all the software for both the video and soundcard? And should I unplud them both and plug them back, or would that be unnecessary?

On the BT problem: No router, I've tried with the firewall off, and my ISP swears that they don't block or limit anything.

Thanks!
 
BlindedByScience said:
In addition to making sure Windows has the right time zone, does your MoBo have the latest BIOS? That may make a difference.

Good Luck - B.B.S.
Click to expand...
My BIOS version is the original one, 1.00, and the newest is two revisions later, 1.03. I tried flashing with it, but I get a "Verify Error" and can't make it flash. I tried 1.02 instead, and get the same error. 1.01 is not available to use.

Any ideas on flashing the bios? I've found because of your suggestions that most of my software has newer versions at the company website (ie, BIOS, soundcard, videocard, LAN driver, etc, all are newer versions that I didn't have), but I'm not having much luck installing them.
 
MrSweetie said:
Should I uninstall the drivers and all the software for both the video and soundcard? And should I unplud them both and plug them back, or would that be unnecessary?

On the BT problem: No router, I've tried with the firewall off, and my ISP swears that they don't block or limit anything.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Soundblaster normally has one utility that controls everything your sonudcard has. You'll see it in your add/remove programs. Uninstall the software, download the newest drivers, then restart. Reinstall the drivers, and test. Reseeting the card isn't necessary.

Do you have your onboard audio disabled in bios? Although rare Ive seen that as the problem before. Go to "Integrated Chipset Features" or something like that and your onboard sound will be somewhere in there. Disable it save and restart.

Sorry, I totally ignored your TV tuner problem, here is my proposed solution...I have an AIW 9800pro and I think I had that problem, it involved the thing you select as your sound device used to output the audio. The cord from your tuner should be plugged into the "Line-in" port on your sound card (Usually blue) and then you can go through the different sound devices and test each one to see if it works.

For BT, Im not sure what your problem is...when you say it wont go faster than 2kbps, have you dled a popular file and left it on for 4 hours or so? BT can take a long time to pick up speeds. Other than that Im really not sure, although I know for a fact it's a software issue and not a hardware. Try posting on a BT support forum because Im sure they will know more about the in's and out's of the BT protocol than I do.
 
HotkeyCC said:
The cord from your tuner should be plugged into the "Line-in" port on your sound card (Usually blue) and then you can go through the different sound devices and test each one to see if it works.

For BT, Im not sure what your problem is...when you say it wont go faster than 2kbps, have you dled a popular file and left it on for 4 hours or so? BT can take a long time to pick up speeds. Other than that Im really not sure, although I know for a fact it's a software issue and not a hardware. Try posting on a BT support forum because Im sure they will know more about the in's and out's of the BT protocol than I do.
Click to expand...
Thanks to you I now have sound. From TV, from other media, etc. Seems to work all the way around. :) I really appreciate your help!! Still something curious, but something that's been from the very start. The controls on the ATI TV don't control the sound in any way. Thus the remote for the tv doesn't control the sound (making the volume useless). The sound on my speaker system has to be turned way up to make it audible. This could be a function of my speaker setup (shelf system with one connection).

As for BT, I've connected to a torrent with great seeds (~200 seeds), waited days (probably 10). I agree that it's software, I just can't figure out what. I have lots of minds working on it, and no one's hit anything useful. Next plan is to get another computer into my house to see if it can run torrents successfully from my specific line.

Again, thanks for all the help! Now I hope that when I turn my computer off and connect my optical drive, it'll work. That's one of the problems left to figure out. Thanks to you people here, I expect we'll hit something that's right.

Thanks!!!!
 
Excellent!! When I get home, I will mess around with MMC and see if I can help you on the volume issue. Im not familiar enough with it to know what the problem is off the top of my head (Im at work). And once again, the drive problem might be the powersupply. Try and get one that you know is functioning and see if that helps.

If you have any more problems, post them here:)
 
HotkeyCC said:
the drive problem might be the powersupply. Try and get one that you know is functioning and see if that helps.
Click to expand...
What I did was use a different molex than the one I was using before. The one from before had a couple of fans and something the front I/O for the soundcard plugged into it. While the total draw on the PS should be the same, it'll be more evenly spread across connectors. Might make a difference, might not. Either way, when I booted this way, the opitcal drive didn't cause any problems, and is working now.

I believe this leaves us with only the BT problem, which as has been mentioned here, probably won't get fixed here. That's cool, I was just throwing it out there as one of the problems. The others got fixed, and 4/5 is not bad! I'm really happy, in fact! Thanks to all of you!!!

Now to get the window side panel and the blue led feet for the case, and I'll be good to go. ;)
 
Ok, I've encountered the booting problem again. This time, however, unplugging my optical drive did not solve the problem. In the process, however, I believe I have nailed down something interesting that might be causing or influencing the problem. Maybe someone will be able to help:

I have two USB connections. One is a compact flash reader (sandisk) and the other is an Ipod cable. Both usually stay connected. I believe in the past (before ipod), if I had the sandisk plugged, but no card in the slot, I've had boot problems. This time when the problem arose, I had a card in and the sandisk plugged in, but the ipod cable was not plugged in. Leaving the ipod cable out, but plugging/unplugging the optical drive, I could still not boot. Now, realizing the usb problem possibility, I plugged the ipod cable in, and even with the optical drive plugged in, the computer will boot. So I'm suspecting something is requiring my USB connections to be plugged in.

Right, so just always leave them plugged in. That's an easy answer, but it could be that I don't always need them plugged in, or can't have them plugged in or whatever.

Anyone know why USB connections might affect my booting process?

Thanks, and I know this isn't a great description, but I hope it helps.

Also, when I boot, regardless if I can boot or not, I get two beeps, a short beep then a long beep. My MB manual doesn't have a troubleshooting guide for beeps in that sequence. In fact, short first = boot normal, and there's no message for a single long. So what it's saying is "booting normally" but then long beep (not continuous), with no description of that problem

Thanks again for all your help!
 
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