Woohoo! K8T Neo / Kingston ValueRAM instability fixed

This is my system, that I've been having random, intermittent instability and corruption problems on :P
AMD Athlon 64 3400+ (2400 MHz)
MSI K8T Neo FIS2R (MS-6702)
eVGA NVIDIA 5900 Ultra 256 MB with original BIOS, latest drivers
2 x Kingston PC-3200 Value Ram 512 MB (2.6 V 2.5 3 3 8)
SoundBlaster Live! Value
HSP56 Micromodem
Win98 SE with unofficial SP 1.6.2
DirectX 9.0c
Old keyboad, PS/2 connection
Intellimouse Optical with USB connection (but plugged in with PS/2 adapter)
Western Digital 100 GB & 40 GB hard drivers
NEC CD-ROM
Basically, Windows would crash randomly, Rar's would fail to unpack randomly, and games would die rapidly (within minutes). memtest86 did not show anything however Prime95 detected a hardware failure every time within a minute.
The solution? Do not use 1.8 bios! Use 1.4 bios instead!!
Even in 1.8 bios with the memory slowed down - 333 Mhz, 3 6 15 6 (the slowest) it still had problems. But with Auto settings in 1.4 BIOS, Prime95 test does not produce failures! And it has the same temperature.
Now I just need to track down all the corrupt files in my windows installation :(

Quote
Originally posted by azagahl
This is my system, that I've been having random, intermittent instability and corruption problems on :p
AMD Athlon 64 3400+ (2400 MHz)
MSI K8T Neo FIS2R (MS-6702)
eVGA NVIDIA 5900 Ultra 256 MB with original BIOS, latest drivers
2 x Kingston PC-3200 Value Ram 512 MB (2.6v 2.5-3-3-8)
SoundBlaster Live! Value
HSP56 Micromodem
Win98 SE with unofficial SP 1.6.2
DirectX 9.0c
Old keyboad, PS/2 connection
Intellimouse Optical with USB connection (but plugged in with PS/2 adapter)
Western Digital 100 GB & 40 GB hard drivers
NEC CD-ROM
Basically, Windows would crash randomly, Rar's would fail to unpack randomly, and games would die rapidly (within minutes). memtest86 did not show anything however Prime95 detected a hardware failure every time within a minute.
The solution? Do not use 1.8 bios! Use 1.4 bios instead!!
Even in 1.8 bios with the memory slowed down - 333 Mhz, 3-6-15-6 (the slowest) it still had problems. But with Auto settings in 1.4 BIOS, Prime95 test does not produce failures! And it has the same temperature.
Now I just need to track down all the corrupt files in my windows installation :(
It sure sounds like something in Win98se is not liking something in the 1.8 Bios or vice versa. As when I had Win98 crashes could happen and It was not a Secure OS either. I didn't bother to upgrade to 98se, I bypassed It and ME and upgraded to Windows 2000 when It came out instead, Now I use Windows XP Pro, And I have no problems(I use the NTFS file system too). Besides I'm not sure that Win98se is even fully supported on a 64bit cpu/motherboard, So I'd get an upgrade soon as possible. When 98se came out cpus were 16bit and 32bit, Not true 64bit cpus like Yours is.

Similar Messages

Suggested K8T Neo BIOS settings for CL 3 Kingston Value RAM

G'evening!
I'll be putting together a system with the Athlon 64 3000 and K8T Neo board and had a question about optimal BIOS settings for paired Kingston non-ECC DDR 3200 RAM (2x512mb) that's CAS 3. Should have gotten some CAS 2.5 probably but this is what I have for now so in it goes. I'm reading the quick users guide and noticed that you can manipulate the CAS, TCRD, TRAS, and TRP.
First question: Will the board's auto detect do a good job in picking out a stable configuration?
2nd question: If you had to or wanted to make manual settings, what would you suggest? The CAS value is rather easy since I guess it should be set to 3 but what settings would one pick for the others?
And if I still have your attention...
The other things that will be going in the system are the infamous Maxtor 120 gig SATA HD, a XFX 5900FX video card, Lite-On combo burner. Powersupply is an Antec Solution Series 400W PS. After reading the forums for a bit I get the impression that you shouldn't forget to load the SATA Promise drivers so the HD will get recognized. My SATA drive will be the only drive in the system and will of course be the boot drive. Any other possible pitfalls or problems I should know about with the Maxtor SATA's and the K8T Neo board?
Also, I had thought I read from a review that the Zalman Al-Cu CPU heatsink/fan will fit on this board. Of course after seeing it in my hands for the first time I thought that it was a pretty damn big heatsink. Anyone else using this heatsink? (haven't taken it out of the packaging yet so that's why I wanted some impressions).
Thanks for any advice you can give me. It's been a bit of time since I built a computer and I'm sure there's alot of basic things I'm relearning along with the fact that the Athlon 64 is fairly new technology. On the other hand, when it's running smoothly...

Cant offer anything on the Timing, (sorry as I am Intel Fodder ), But I can assure you that the Zalman 7000-AlCu, Will Indeed Fit onto your Motherboard (With Room To Spare!) :biggthumbsup:I can attest to this because My buddy just installed the Zalman 7000-AlCu on his K8T ....And He loves it! As do I ....It's about the only thing that we have in common as far as PC'S Go .........Sean REILLY875

K8T Neo-FIS2R / Kingston KVR400X64C25/256

As a first time poster my apolgies if this has been covered elsewhere - I have read most of the posts on this forum but found no specific reference. Please just point me in the right direction if i am wrong!
I bought the Kingston KVR400X64C25/256 modules because:
a) they were listed by MSI on the list of tested Ram
b) they were on Kingston's list for the K8T NEO &
c) they were in stock. However...
If installed in DIMM 2 & 3 (as per MSI tested RAM pdf) the system crashes on trying to load Windows. DIMM 1 & 2 'works' if that allows for 8 or 9 restarts/day. I tried 1 & 3 to see if that improved the situation, but if anything it was worse. I have tried increasing the RAM voltage to 2.6 but there is no discernable difference. Upping the TRCD to 4 makes little or no difference.
Memtest86+ initially found no errors (16 hrs/93 passes) but when left running for a week came up with 10 errors (8 in test 6, 2 in test 4). MemTest (http://hcidesign.com/memtest/) gives me an average of 10 errors for 300% pass.
I'm now trying running the memory at 2.7v (within Kingston's ±.25v range).
In the meantime, has anyone run this memory without any problem - i.e. is it a simple case of faulty memory? Equally, has anyone had similar problems and found a solution?
thanks
MSI K8T Neo-FIS2R
AMI rev 1.2
AMD Athlon64 3000+ AMD heatsink/fan (working temp around 32°C)
2 x Kingston KVR400X64C25/256 (DIMM 1, DIMM 2)
NVidia GeForce3 driver v53.03
Antec TruePower 430W +3.3V 28A, +5V 36A, +12V 20A. Max load 410W
IDE1 ST340016A (master) ST320014A (slave)
IDE2 MSI DVD-ROM D16 (MS-8216)
Soundblaster Live 5.1 platinum
Windows XP Pro Version 2002 service Pack 1

Quote
Originally posted by Bas
Hi,
Sorry to say, but as soon as you get errors in memtest, no matter after how many hours, you need to try other memory.
As your memory seems to be unstable....errors in memtest are a NO-NO
hmmm! What if memtest, Prime95 etc. detect no problem over lengthy periods when sticks are individually tested in DIMM1 - as well as the system not crashing once - , but boot failures/memory dumps etc. abound when same sticks are individually placed at 2 or 3? Is this still a memory issue?
For what it's worth I have found Kingston's technical support more than helpful.
MSI K8T Neo-FIS2R
AMI rev 1.2
AMD Athlon64 3000+ AMD heatsink/fan (working temp around 40/42°C)
2 x Kingston KVR400X64C25/256 (DIMM 1, DIMM 2)
NVidia GeForce3 driver v53.03
Antec TruePower 430W +3.3V 28A, +5V 36A, +12V 20A. Max load 410W
IDE1 ST340016A (master) ST320014A (slave)
IDE2 MSI DVD-ROM D16 (MS-8216)
Soundblaster Live 5.1 platinum
Windows XP Pro Version 2002 service Pack 1

My Unofficial K8t Neo Guide

Disclaimer: You try any and all troubleshooting at YOUR OWN RISK!!
Here is my unofficial guide to the K8t Neo fisr2 If you Like It give it a thumbs up so it will stick out. I will warn you it is long and I will edit off and on.
to add as needed.
first I'll start off with components,
CASE..you will need an atx case with good cooling a few extra fans like a blowhole at the top can help cooling, also bundle cables and power leads
so that they don't interfere with airflow.
MOTHERBOARD,...This is based on the K8TNEO series, when you attach it to your case make sure that is is mounted to risers to keep it from contacting case, they are usually small brass pins, also make sure that all the mounting screw are secure and in place, this will prevent the PCB from flexing and cracking as you install components, there should be around 9 or so screws, that usually go into the riser pins or raised case mounting points,don't forget to use those fiber or plastic insulated washers. These should be the only case contact point to the mobo other then the back plate with all the usb, net jacks etc..
Also use all of the mount points you can..if not you can crack mobo putting in cards etc...
CPU...Athlon64 processor2800+, 3000+, 3200+, or a 3400+, all 754 pin chips...k8neo CAN NOT USE FX chips or Opterons. 3200,&3000 are basically the same chip, same clockspeed of 2.0 ghz but the l2 cache is different 3200 1mb...3000 512k, you may not notice the difference in many applications but will see 2~10% diff in benchmark testing, the 3000 is usually about $75 cheaper
the 2800 is a newer model an a good way to get into 64bit without high cost.
PSU.... one of the most overlooked and most important component,
that old 300 watter you have from your old duron 800 don't even try.PSU's have caused a lot of trouble with a64 systems, they use a lot of power Get a good name brand psu if you can, and make sure it is at least 400 watts and has at the minimum of 20a on 12v, also look at combined total wattage
the psu must have a 20 pin connector and a 4 Pin( Square) Connector, and there is Only 1, Called the+12V 4 Pin Processor Connector.
some of the recommended brands are enermax,and antec.
Here is the reason most problems are the psu
amd64 uses 12v power, Intel chips used a lot of 5v power.
so until now most big psu's pushed 5 v not 12v
almost everything in your computer uses 12v except ram (3.3V)
AMD 64 and motherboard =12a @12V
so your already at 12A with no fan,s no hd, no CD,no DVD ,no mobo chip-set , no mem, no sound..etc
so what happens is your mem gets starved for power and then gives out errors,in your data, which = corrupt sata,or it fails to post. .
MEMMORY...Another big trouble spot,not just with the MSI board but with Via chip-set, and or the A64 memory controller.
DDR non ecc- single channel 400 is baseline although slower chips also work, The CPU's memory unit only supports 4 banks total so in order to use three sockets at least two of the memory sticks have to be 1 bank,.one bank or two bank chips look similar so check specs, dual bank chips usually have chips on the back as well. mem should match type and speed. if you run into problems try going into bios and limiting ram to 333.mem should match type and speed.
(edited out till i find more info [STRIKEOUT] if using two mem sticks it is best to use slots 1 and 3,[/STRIKEOUT])
edit :ok tiresmoke just replied so have a look. "One thing that often does not get addressed. I had a couple Blue Screens early on. Here is how I fixed it. I run my RAM in sockets 1 and 3. 1 and 2 gave a little instability.Yes I decided to keep mine in slot 1/3 but I did test in 1/2 since I changed Bios. Typically slot 1/3 can slow you down but it did not with mine so best to say that difference RAM will give different symptoms. Try combinations to find what works best for you."
LOL Keep in mind that Jocko uses 3 sticks of dual bank RAM and according to AMD they only support 4 banks total. Jocko has 6 so you do the math.
you can check msi's website for compatible ram, but be careful it can be confusing,
they list by part numbers,
but some known configurations that work are:
I would stay away from corsair xms mem right now many people have problems.
corsair and kingston owners may want to look here
AMD 3000+ systems...
BIOS 1.2
2 x 512 - Corsair CMX DDR400 @2-3-2-5
2 x 512 - Corsair Twin Pro DDR400 @ 2-3-2-6
2 x 512 - Corsair Value Select DDR400 @ defaults
1 x 512 - Geil Golden Dragon DDR400 @ 2-3-3-6 (2.7V)
2 x 512 - Hynix DDR400 @ 2-3-3-6
2 x 512 - Kingmax DDR433 @ 2.5-3-3-6
2 x 512 - Kingston DDR400 @ 3-3-3-8
1 x 512 - Kingston HyperX DDR400 @ (defaults?)
1 x 512 - Kingston ValueRam (KVR400X64C3A) DDR400? @ (Defaults?)
2 x 512 - Muskin Level 1 DDR400 @ 2-3-2-6
2 x 512 - Muskin Level 2 DDR433 @ (defaults?)
2 x 256 + 1 x 512 - Muskin Basic DDR400 @ 2.5-3-3-8
1 x 1024 - OCZ EL DDR400 @ 2-3-2-6
BIOS 1.3b2
2 x 512 OCZ EL DDR433 @ 2-3-3-7
AMD 3200+ systems...
BIOS 1.1
2 x 512 - Mushkin Level 1 Black DDR433 @ 2.5-3-3-6
BIOS 1.2
2 x 512 - Apacer DDR400 @ 3-4-4-8 (2.5v)
2 x 512 - Corsair Twin X DDR400 @ 2-3-2-6
1 x 1024 - Corsair TwinX DDR400 @ 2-3-2-6
2 x 512 - Crucial DDR400 @ defaults
2 x 512 - Elixer OEM DDR400 @ defaults
1 x 1024 - GeIL GoldenDragon DDR400? @ defaults
2 x 512 - Geil Value Series 512MB DDR 2.5-3-3-6
2 x 512 - Hynix DDR400 @ 2-3-3-6
2 x 512 - Kingston HyperX KX DDR433 @ 2-3-3-8
2 x 512 - Kingston HyperX DDR400 @ (defaults?)
2 x 512 - Kingston HyperX DDR400 @ 2.5-3-3-8
2 x 512 - Mushkin Level 2 DDR400 @ 2-2-2-5 (2.75V)
2 x 256 - Mushkin Level 2 DDR400 @ 2-2-2-5
2 x 256 + 1 x 512 - Muskin Basic DDR400 @ (defaults?)
2 x 512 - Twinx CLPRO DDR400 @ (defaults?)
2x512- Pny Verto DDR433 @defualts
AMD 3400+ systems...
BIOS 1.2
2 x 512 - Kingmax (MPXC22D-38KT3R) DDR400 @ defaults
2 x 512 - Mushkin Level 2 Black DDR433 @ 2-3-2-5
you may have to email you mem manufacturer and manually set timings and voltages to get your memory working.
HARD DRIVES......Here you have alot of choices, basically two categories, SATA and PATA(IDE). There are many brands and speeds, IDE drives come in different speeds, such as ata33, ata66, ata 100, ata 133 for hard drives, the 33,100,133, being theoretical maximum transfer rating MB/sec.
newer ata(IDE)hard drives are ata100 which is ultra 5, and ata133 ,ultra6 is ,
PIO mode is the standard data transfer mode without the ultra enhancements, the fastest being 16.66 mb/sec. ultra 2 is 33 mb/sec . So when i say my CD,DVD, and DVD are ultra 2 it means they transfer at a maximum of 33 mb/sec, and my Maxtor hardrives are ultra 6 and have a maximum transfer of133 mb/sec. my old zip100 transfers at a max of 16 mb/sec since its in pio mode. Note these are maximum speeds, my hardrive transfers more like 65 mb/sec sustained according to SIS Sandra.
That is why SATA 150 is such a big deal, vs say a Western digital ata100
SATA is a different interface all together and can transfers closer to its maximum
theoretical speed. BUT the pci bus itself is limited to 133 mb/sec so an add-on card
should never be able to reach over 133, regardless, of SCSI,IDE, or SATA
so on the k8t neo you have some choices. With the IDE you can use, IDE1,2, or 3
IDE1&2 are ata100. ) to attach use a 80pin round or flat cable, the first slot goes into the mobo, the middle connector is for a slave or should be left empty, use the end for master, or single drive. you must also setup jumpers for hd or cds.
The master is primary unit and the slave is secondary unit, for each channel.
Or use the Cable Select jumper and USUALLY the BIOS will select the drive for you.
IDE1 & 2 is ata100, or 133 depending on board if using for only 2 drives put them on different channels
...ie master on IDE 1, and master on IDE 2 . that way they will have maximum bandwidth. especially for disk to disk copies or burning
IDE3 RAID is ata133, or can be raid 0 or 1 by the promise chip. 0 being striped for performance,1 being mirrored for safety, mirror only protects hd from failure,not viruses,or corruption for that you need a backup or as i prefer a drive image program such as accronis trueimage..linux compatible.and Norton ghost.you will first have to enable the promise chip in the bios, then you have to load drivers by hitting F6 during windows installation, and insert floppy drive, yes you will need a floppy, at least for initial setup. If you want to set up raid you will have to do that first before loading windows,by hitting ctrl+F (read quick user's guide Serial ata raid, serial ata) only hd's can use ide3.If you don't have enough IDE slots you can add on pci card with one or two more headers for up to 4 more drives, I added a Maxtor ultra ata133, since i have 5 idehd's and 3 DVD/cds.
SATA, here you have two choices, use the Promise chip set or the Via. Either one or both can be set to raid0 or 1, see users guide to setup, You will also have to enable them first in bios, and F6 and load floppy drivers to use in windows install, or load drivers in windows if using an existing install. either chip-set can be set for raid, in the manual, opinions are that the Via is faster, but you wont have a HD LED activity indicator light, The promise will have a HD light, but is slightly slower.
Also note that SATAs don't OC as well as IDE hard drives, they can even crash and loose data.
always make a backup of your computer, and remember raid 1 does nothing for virus, or contaminated installs.
SOUND....Here you have a few choices, On board or Card, unfortunately not both, yet.(UPDATE Bios Version 1.5 and above will fix this)... If using a card there have been some issues with Audigy 1 cards, but there may be a cure in this threadhttps://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?threadid=46849&sid=( Moved to stickies) audigy2 and 2zs cards work fine as do turtle beach.
on-board sound is not as high definition and uses some CPU cycles, so a card might be advantageous to gamers.
REALTEK GIGABIT...Is the on-board Ethernet, you will need to load drivers once in windows, it has caused some problems booting, as it can be set to a boot device as well. you will get a message "failed to boot press any key."..then "ntdlr error"...to fix this you may need to hit the key combination during boot to set it up, it will bring you to a menu, you need to set boot order, i recommend setting it to bios, and you can adjust or disable message and time length it is displayed.
VIDEO CARDS- You should install an agp 8x directx9 video card for best performance. Ati has better directx support so is better for gaming, but Nvida has better OpenGL so if you want to do 3d in Linux, you have better luck with Nvida.
When you set up windows, install via 4-1 drivers first, then the video drivers, check video manufacturer's website for updated drivers. make sure any extra power leads are plugged in. In bios Agp should be fast write enabled, and
if you are using 1024 of ram aperture size to 256, but check 3dmark to see which setting is faster.
BIOS- NO BIOS INSTALLED This is a message that you see during boot up from the promise on-board raid saying that it found no drives attached to its SATA or IDE channels so it's not installed the BIOS.This IS NOT a problem or anything to worry about!
jumping Bios reset jumper, be careful, make sure power is off. jump it and return it to the original position. If you power on with jumper in reset position you can erase your bios...requiring a Return to Manufacturer Authorization(RMA)
I have had no problems using windows updating to the latest bios ,It cured some issues, such as firewire ports, sound blaster audigy1 troubles,tweaked temps displayed,and so on. but be sure to have a backup of original bios disk. I have heard new 1.8 beta bios cures Newcastle temp problems.
some good settings are.. SMART enabled this will warn you of hard disk failure,System bios cacheble and shadow ram are more for older computers and should be set to disable.boot to os2- disable...memory setting vary by card and some even need to be set manually so check with manufacturer or get familiar with cmos reset jumper.(just be sure to have power off)...plug and play os to disable(more of a win 98 thing) disable serials and parallel ports if you don't need them, as with on-board sound firewire etc. this is just a few pointers the rest is a more personal thing, but i have heard turbo setting causes problems and is best left to fast, and dynamic oc'ing is similar use at your own risk
USB keyboard don't forget to enable USB in the BIOS. This caused some problems when installing XP. Without USB enabled in BIOS when you come to the "Hit any key to proceed" the install will fail with the ntldr error
POWER SAVINGS...Having trouble getting fans or case lights to shut off on standby set to S3, then disable apm, and be sure to set a wakeup event..such as wake from usb, or keyboard command. I have agp boot disable, but depends on card.
Want to know more about bios, and what those settings are? click this link
http://www.rojakpot.com/(eb1mg5zatgcf5r55lv5no155)/default.aspx?location=9
CORE CENTER....Another personal choice, I like it and use it a lot, to increase and decrease fsb without going through bios. the NB fan sensor should read 0 unless you plug a fan onto it, personally i have an 80mm antec and it doesn't read it, but i tried a old CPU fan and it worked fine.
COOL AND QUIET Another personal choice, I don't use it because some people have had there CPUs power down in the middle of games, and such
(it goes down to 800 MHz) others had small bugs in there system that went away when they disabled it. But some like it and use it a lot. Good for energy savings.
want to get your boot time down
start by selecting OS drive as first in boot sequence, you can always change bios when you want to boot from floppy or CD(which isn't often).disable floppy drive seek
then clean out your startup folder under rt click explore start button.
try and get services set to auto down to about 25. defrag your hdrive routinely,
. ditch wall paper, and get rid of windows startup screen.(msconfig,boot.ini.and check noguiboot). keep your drivers updated
if you can find it you can use then try bootvis, but microsoft doesn't support it anymore.Programs ..some useful free utilities are listed below, check goggle, until i make links for them.
SiS Sandrahttp://www.sisoftware.net/, a good all around benchmark,burn in and, info display
3DMARK.http://www.futuremark.com/download/.Mostly a Video tester, good for checking OC though.
Microsoft Memory testerms memtester
+86memtest.http://www.memtest86.com/..and Prime95http://www.mersenne.org/freesoft.htmvery good mem testers, and tests for stability
spybot search and destroy, http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?page=homeand
Lavasoft's ad-aware http://www.lavasoftusa.comgot to have for house cleaning.
atitool, http://atitool.ocfaq.com/oc ap for ati cards,click find max core let it go for 15min or so,then set back to default, and click find max mem...for 15min or so, and now you have the max you can set your video card too.(but set safety limits before manually setting)
[STRIKEOUT]mbm5 mbm5 link good alternative temp readings to corecenter.[/STRIKEOUT]
good program but discontinued.
OTHER USEFUL PROGRAMS
Norton utilities, good all around disk and OS utility
Norton Internet secuirity, or similar firewall and virus protector
Norton ghost, or other drive image software fantastic for backups
BF1942...lol just fun
HOME NETWORKING I will add this part because of additional posing of errors
dealing with USB Broadband routers...try using on board realtek or other Ethernet connection it will save your sanity.
well i have a real poor mans router setup for you
2 Ethernet slots, one for for broadband router and one to share.
if you only want one other computer, use a crossover cable, otherwise, use a hub or switch(better) and let Internet connection wizard and home networking on your machines work their magic,want a firewall download some software there are even, fairly decent free ones.the speed of the card isn't important because broadband still isn't over 10mb/sec yet, so blow the dust off that card in the closet and put it to work.or if your really brave or really cheap you can try to use the usb input from broadband, and on board ether, or firewire port, to link computers
Trouble shooting
for total no boot/post failure
I know you may know how to build a computer, and i know this is basic, so bear with me here, but at this point you have to do a methodical by the book check list.
revision
A: when you first install your motherboard make sure it does not contact case,
use all nine mounting points, make sure that your case either has built in risers, or use the small brass standoffs, and don't forget the fiber washers.
when you installed your CPU you:
1 ___you properly handle equipment so no static damage can occur, (properly grounded)
2____.you fully lift the CPU ziff socket arm up, orient the gold triangle marking arrow,pins and it easily dropped into socket, with no bent pins ,
3 ___ backer plate mounted carefully no missing pieces of the board flying off, ( i have seen people launch capacitors, and the like )
4 ____obviously you removed the plastic thermal pad cover, and heatsink was evenly locked down, and fully seated, and correctly plugged into mobo cpufan1.
and you fully removed old thermal pad/grease and applied new artic silver, or new heatsink with plastic on pad,you didn't reuse old paste or pad.
memory
5 _____memory stick(not sticks, at this point you just want to get it working, not full blast with a gig of ram etc)is fully seated and properly oriented in slot, and is 184 pin ddr non-registered , non ecc ram , and you have tried different non corsair, non twinmoss, brands that have been known to work. and/ or
tried to set manually mem speed/voltage for some models of corsair, twinmoss, and kingston)
6.____ plug in only power switch pins 6,8and power led to jfp1, pins 2,4 and they are turned correctly,
7. ____your new psu has the 20 pin and square 4 pin power connector plugged in to jpw1 turned right and fully seated. and has a bare min of 18a on 12v+ rail.
8 ____your video card is fully seated an locked down,also securely screwed in.
9 ____your floppy drive cable iss facing right way (pin1 is matched with red stripe)
10. ____you have ata cables for hd and CD set to master/slave or cs. with hard drive set as master, end of cable.
11 _____the power plugs are all fully seated, including psu rear plug,floppy ,hd, and CD.
12. _____keyboard(ps2) and mouse plugged in, monitor plugged into video card,
13 ______every thing is fully secured in case, side cover is off.
14 ______CMOS jumper is set 1,2 keep data, all usb stuff is unplugged, except for dbracket.
power it up, one beep, fans spin, in psu and CPU, and video card,
you get no bios found error,(promise adapter not finding satas..no worries)
or hit Del to go into bios, set boot order, and .......
.........your now at the end of the road, and it should by all means work,
now what i am after,
there are no bent pins, on CPU, you reapplied artic silver paste.
no loose wires,
properly applied heat sink with fan cooling,
you have tried different brands of known ,to work in an MSI k8tneo
ddr ram 1 stick at a tme.
you have tried different video cards, and in case of higher end card, the external molex power supply as plugged in,
you have tried different ata hard drives
you then have tried have set up your SATA drive correctly .
everything is securely plugged in ..fully seated and oriented the right way?
what are d-bracket error light, and any beep codes?
you have tried a different wall outlet, you have changed surge protectors,
you never hot plugged video cards, hd cables or power etc.
i know this redundant , and basic , it is not meant to be insulting , it is meant to be a checklist and rule out all basic errors and potential problems
if your mem bandwidth is slower then 3000..like 2400 this may help
Received from a user - Slow memory 1T Command fix
OK, here's what to do. Download the following ftp://ftp.vector.co.jp/pack/win95/hardware/other/wpcrs120.exe extract it, and run InstDD.exe. It'll ask to reboot, you don't need to do it right away, at least I didn't have to. Fire up WPCRSET.exe and do the following. Under startup, click on start, and under device, click enable. Now click add. The bus device and function will be 0,24, and 2. The register and data values will be the 93,08. There we have it! Enjoy everyone. I know I'm much happier now.
Here's a graphic to make it easier:
I will add more by edit, or post as needed but i should post now so it can be put to use.
I would like to Thank BAS,wonkaboy, Jocko, ethereal, Tiresmoke, Reilly, and the many others whose valued input helps solve problems.

Quote
amd 64=12a @12V
ati 9800=7.5~10.5a @12V (assuming 90~125 watts) a max load,
a 9600 ir nvida 5200 used far less power
so your already at 18a with no fan,s no hd, no cd,no dvd ,no mobo chipset , no mem, no sound..etc
If you exclude the motherboard, memory, etc like you did there, the amd 64 draws 7.2A @ 12V.
90~125W for an ATI 9800?! [irony]Are you working for a PSU manufacturer or what?[/irony] That's just absurd.
Go read this post to get a feel for the actual power consumption: https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?postid=297061&sid=#post297061

HEAVY Problems with Linux x86_64 on K8T Neo

Hello, Community!
I experience *HEAVY* Problems with Linux on my MSI K8T Neo (FSR). Since the customer support of the german dependancy seems to ignore my call for help I'm in good hope that maybe you can help me out or give me some useful advise.
First some Hardware Specs of my system:
MSI K8T Neo FSR, Rev 1.1, BIOS 1.5
AMD Athlon 64 3000+
3x 512MB Kingston DDR400
Enermax EG365P-VE (350W) PSU (3.3V/5V 185W Combinded)
MSI GeForce FX5200 TDR 128
Adaptec ATA RAID AAR1200A (HPT370A) in PCI Slot 3
Hauppauge WinTV PCI in PCI Slot 5
Maxtor 4K040H2 (40GB) as Primary Master
JLMS XJ-HD166S DVD-ROM as Primary Slave
LiteOn LDW-411S DVD+/-RW as Secondary Master
LiteOn LTR-52327S CD-RW as Secondary Slave
2x Maxtor 6Y060L0 (60GB) on HPT370A as Primary Master/Slave
Seagate ST380020A (80GB) on HPT370A as Secondary Master
Maxtor 32049U3 on HPT370A as Secondary Slave
KeyTronic KT2001 USB Keyboard
Microsoft Optical Wheel Mouse Blue USB
I've downloaded Fedora Core 1 x86_64 as well as the lately released Fedora Core 2 test 3 x86_64 distribution. Both CD sets have been burnt ok.
If I try to install Core 1 x86_64 (Kernel 2.4.22-1.2179) the kernel crashes with a "attempted to kill idle task" panic. As far as I've learned the workaround is to give idle=poll as kernel parameter. This resolves the kernel panic, but the installer randomly crashes with segfaults at a random stage; sometimes while loading anaconda, sometimes during package install.
If I try to install Core2 test 3 x86_64 (Kernel 2.6.5) I get a, completely new, error message while the kernel does the PCI Scan:
******* Your BIOS seems to not contain a fix for K8 errata #93
******* Working around it, but it may cause SEGVs or burn power
******* Please consider a BIOS update
******* Disabling USB legacy in the BIOS may also help
I removed my USB keyboard, connected a PS/2 keyboard, disabled to USB Legacy option (I need it enabled in order to use Ghost) in the BIOS and booted again.
The error message is gone now, but as in Core 1 the installer still crashes randomly with segfaults. I'm still unable to go all the way through the installation routine.
I even tried to install Fedora Core 1 "i386": again there are segfaults during install.
Contrary to the problems I experience while trying to install Linux my Windows XP (32-Bit), as well as a test installation of Windows XP 64-Bit, run like a charm without any problems. Strange but true.
Since I already read trough several posts in this forum I already tried running my system with memory sticks from another manufacturers as well as with a more powerful PSU. I even removed my tv-card and raid-controller.
Nogo - Linux still crashes randomly and Windows still works without any flaws.
Has anyone a clue what I can/must do to successfully install Linux?
Might it be that the BIOS has some flaws that might cause the problems?
Has anyone managed to install Linux (what distribution) on this Mainboard?
I would greatly appreciate any help. If you need to know something I haven't provided here please feel free to ask. I'll answer ASAP.
Thank you in advance.
P.S.: The system is *NOT* overclocked in any way.

And now even the last problem is solved ...
Since I was successful in installing a basic Gentoo system but still failed to install Fedora I reflashed BIOS 1.5. This time I cleared the CMOS by unplugging the PSU, setting the jumper and removing the backup battery.
Yesterday I only flashed it with the /a switch, which should have cleared the CMOS as well - so far for the theory. However, it once went fine as I upgraded from BIOS 1.1 to 1.4.
After setting up the BIOS options again I gave it another try and booted from Fedora (Core 2 test 3) install CD: No more complains about the CPU errata, although USB legacy is enabled, and I even went through the installation without any problems.
It seems as I will stick with Gentoo as my primary distribution since the kernel makes a more "mature" impression than the one from Fedora (i.e. the K8 PowerNOW! Driver seems to be missing in Fedora's Kernel 2.6.5).
By using an spare Athlon XP Mainboard I worked out that only one of my three Kingston memory sticks had errors - I'm going to replace the faulty stick tomorrow.
Now for the conclusio:
Thanks, especially you JLP, for helping me with my issue. Without the advise to use Gentoo, and the included MemTest86, I wouldn't have been able to track down the error to a faulty memory stick that fast since Windows always ran fine.

Best bios settings for K8T Neo + Athlon 64 3200+ + ATI 9700 Pro ?

Hi, i just got my k8T Neo (MS-6702) and can't figure out the best/most stable settings in the bios for my system yet. I am mainly using my computer for GAMES, so this is what i am talking about when i say "optimization"
I got an ATI 9700 Pro, an Athlon 64 3200+ and 2x512 mb of Kingston Value Ram (bank 1 and 2).
The main settings i really don't know how to set are:
-Internal Cache
-External Cache
-System Bios Cacheable
-C000, 32k Shadow
-MPS Revision
-AGP Fastwrite
-AGP Aperture Size
I wish i could get rid of any instability problems, i had a few crashes so far. Yet, i would like to set my system to get the most of my hardware in terms of speed.
Thanks in advance for your help guys !

internal cache-on
external cache-on
system bios-disabe
c shadow stuff-disable
agp fastwrite on unless you have problems, you'll know fast
agp apperature size..depends on sys ram if over 512 best to atleast 128, if not 256
(official recomadation is 1/2 your system ram)
disable any onboard stuff you dont use like sound,sata controlers,
quick boot enable. smart enable
logo disable, floppy drive seek disable,
i wouldnt mess with mps table version.
power management to s3 usb wake enable..power management agm-disable
suspend time-disable-...set wakeup events hit enter, choose kbc & or mouse.
that should get you started.

Random crashes - K8T Neo

I'm a bit of a novice, and I'm not quite sure how to diagnose this, so I'm looking for some advice.
The computer will freeze for a few seconds, the monitor will blank out, and then I'm stuck. No beeps or any other kind of alarms. The power stays on. I have to reset the power to reboot and I generally find quite a few hard drive errors on the ensuing chkdsk (deletes incorrect indexes, corrupt files, etc). Sometimes this occurs within one or two minutes or booting up. Sometimes the computer can be powered on for a day or two with no problems. Sometimes it'll happen multiple times a day; sometimes not at all - you get the idea. I'm using a new mb, cpu, and hard drive, so I'm sure where to start looking for the problem. Here's what I'm running with:
Motherboard: K8T Neo-FIS2R
CPU: Athlon 3000+
Bios version 1.8
Aspire AS500W Series Power Supply
Voltage (as read from bios)
VCore: 1.504
+5.0V: 5.140
+12V: 11.802
-12V: -12.071
-5.0V: -5.026
Battery: 3.552
+5VSB: 4.993
Ram
Dimm 1: 256MB Samsung PC3200
Dimm 2: 256MB Samsung PC3200
Dimm 3: 512MB Kingston ValueRam PC2700
Seagate ST320082 200GB SATA Drive (Promise driver)
ATI Radeon 9800XT Video card with Catalyst 4.1 driver
Win XP Pro SP2
CPU temp idles at 38C, goes up to about 43C when maxxed. Using stock AMD cooling and 6 case fans
My first guess is that my mis-matched RAM could be the problem, but I don't know much about this myself. Any advice or suggestions would be much appreciated.
Thanks...

Quote
Originally posted by Apple renegade
Quote
Originally posted by zoom314
Quote
Originally posted by DoubleOZero
Eh well, it crashed again this morning. So far temp problems, memory problems, connection problems, and video card seating problems have been ruled out... any idea what I should try next, or is it time to RMA this thing?
Do You have any other psu unit? I'd try and see If getting an Enermax or an Antec cures Your problem.
C'mon. The guy has 34amps on his 12v rail.
Even Q-tec PSU's aren't that flaky, to cause that amount of crashes.
It was just a thought and I was trying to help. Geez...
Half of what He's asking about look like power problems to Me and It's not like It's an Antec or an Enermax or even a Thermaltake for that matter.
This person does possibly have a few too many fans though and the Temps don't look too bad, As They are cooler Temps than My 2600+ NF2 system has, Currently 42C/46C(It's in a Desktop ATX case, Not a Tower), I do have a Tower case with temps like His/Hers is, So they don't seem too bad.
As what isn't being said is, Does this person have enough actual amps coming from the psu for what is running in the PC?
I've looked at some of those Aspire psu's and I don't think much of the heatsinks on them, It might work Ok on an Athlon xp-m (K7) system, But not on something newer and faster.
And This Person should try running with just the Kingston ram, It couldn't hurt to try and make sure that the ram is fully seated too.
And Yeah update those drivers for both the chipset and the video card.

Ms-k8t Neo 2 Fir

I have problem with new MS-K8T NEO 2 FIR. I am using Athlon 64 3000+ and Kingston KVR400X64C3AK2/512 set of two 256 MB PC3200 CL3 DIMMs. If I put 1 DIMM in slot 2 and second DIMM to slot 4 (as recommended from MSI for dual channel) systems hangs after turning on with one greed diode (1) on D-bracket (early chipset inicialization). If I remove DIMM from slot 4 system boots up normally (to memtest86 from CD). If I put only one 512 MB Kingston PC3200 module to slot 2 system boots up but reporting only 256 MB of RAM. DIMMs are tested in other machine (Intel P4 3GHz) without any problem. What should I do ? What is wrong - board ar processor ? Please help !!!

Quote
Originally posted by Jocko
Quote
Originally posted by hondo
Quote
Originally posted by Jocko
Hi
I think thats one up for the flashers vs the don't flash unless you have to lot.
Sad to say I am a flasher
Jocko
:-))ermmm You don't say, you don't say. is it true about the underneath of a kilt then.
Then you ask Tiresmoke. Quote "Does Clara know about this tendancy"
Might have known it would be you Hondo.
Kilts, as Daniel O'Donnell always says when he does a little jig in his , ' 2 pairs, to be sure, to be sure', but he would, He's Irish, just like that other immigrant boy in Pennsylvania, who's really a Scot, the one that Clara keeps trying to get a proper kilt on.
cheers
jocko
:lol_anim:Sorry jocko couldn't resist the temptation above and now also below that doesn't sound good, does it.
Let the wind blow high, let the wind blow low,
Through the streets in my kilt I'll go,
All the lassies say "Hello hondo
Donald, where's your troosers?"

Onboard 5.1 sound noisy - K8T Neo FIS2R

Hi guys, i'm new here.
Well, i got a K8T Neo FIS2R and the 5.1 sound is noisy. I've tried many different drivers, replaced my 5.1 speakers for new ones and it doesn't work properly at all. I've been using a 2.1 system and it works just fine. Has anyone seen this problem? any advice?
Thanks in advance
Kein

LOL OK you can save us time by replying to that end the next time. Thanks.
I know it may seem trivial but I can't count how many times a suggestion was assumed to have been tried and it turned out to be the fix in the end. So if we seem grouchy about getting a reply remember that we aren't the only one's that waste time chasing stuff when no one let's us know what they have tested.
OK back to your problem. There are no magic buttons to push. If you have tried other speakers and drivers then it is likely something on the MB that is causing the problem. It could be a power line somewhere close to a chip or connection, it could be a bad ground. If you have a Sound card handy you could also check it to see if the problem goes away. Otherwise you may have to RMA it.

PC with K8T Neo stopped powering up

Hello,
I built a pc with MSI K8T Neo motherboard, Athlon 64 3200+ processor, 1 Gig (2 x 512) Kingston value PC3200 RAM, ATI Radeon 9600 XT with 128 RAM, Maxtor 80 gig hd in a PowMax case with 400 W power supply. I installed Window 2000 on my machine with no problems. After I installed the video driver (3.10) the machine told me to reboot, which I did. However, the machine did not power back up and did not turn on through the power button. I used a volt meter to test both the power supply and the power button -- both work. I also took out the battery on the motherboard to reboot CMOS to no effect. I am starting to think that the problem could be with the motherboard but I am not sure.
Thanks for any advice.

did a cord maybe come loose or something?
this is the wierdest problem i have heard of so far...

Should I flash the bios? K8T NEO FIS2R

Ok... I have a K8T NEO FIS2R mobo. A couple of friends of mine have been telling me to flash the bios to the most current version... Then some other people have been telling me that it is too risky and I should hold off untill something goes wrong that I know a bios flash can fix...
I'm just wondering what is the concencious here... should I flash it, or should I stay with the current version I have now(the one that came with the mobo) I Like to have my computer as up to date as possible, but all the reports of bad flashes have me a little worried. This is a procedure that I have never done before, and I dont want to mess it up.
If I should flash, Any insight, tips, tricks, special instructions, etc... would be greatly appriciated.
Thanks!
Magnum

Thanks guys for the quick responces... I'm used to not getting a responce from forums for 12-24hrs and here it is less than 24hrs later and I have 10 responces.
I'm not at my computer in question right now, but I am almost positive that my bios is ver1.0. Same one that came with my mobo.
At this point I am leaning towards flashing... If basically the only way to mess it up is to have my power fail, then I dont think I will have a problem. I'll just borrow an UPS from work here to be on the safe side.
hypothetically if i follow the instructions to a tee(windows flash/live update) are there any other ways it can mess it up? I just want to get a hold on all the places where I could mess it up.
Will live update take me all the way through the procedure, or do I need a separate set of instructions to read off of during the flash?
Also what gear will I need... floppy disk? anything else?
Sorry about all the questions, just want to make sure I do this right the first time!
Thanks!
Magnum

K8T NEO FSR problems and questions.

I read this in an article on http://www.hardware.no:
"MSI is one of the companies that offer free upgrade to a new motherboard with better
specifications, if you have bought 915P Neo2 Platinum, 915P Combo-FR or 915G Combo FR
in the period of time between 21st and 27th june."
Late in june, I bought myself MSI K8T Neo-FSR motherboard, and an Athlon 64 3200+2.2GHz.
When I run "Core Center", the program shows that my CPU idle temp is 60 Celsius and my
sys temp is 36 degrees, which is COMPLETELY wrong?!?!.
This is very weird, because I have a nice computer case with 5 fans that blow out all
the warm air inside. When I play games, the CPU goes up to 65 degrees and my computer
restarts. This is VERY annoying. How do you turn this off in BIOS settings?
I'm quite frustrated with the thought that my CPU temp. shows 60-70 Celsius.
I have read tons of other forums and I have found out that it's not only me that experience
this problem. I seriously hope that you will fix this bug ASAP.
Does this offer also apply to K8T NEO-FSR? Can I get a free upgrade?
If I don't get my problems fixed, I will take further actions.
My System specifications:
MSI K8T NEO-FSR, Athlon 64 3200+2.2GHz, Asus Geforce 4 Ti 4400, TwinMOS 1024 DDR3200 RAM, Western digital 80+120+80 GB 7200 RPM, Chieftec BX Tower BX-03SL-SL-SL P4 / AMD, 2x papst 120mm fans, 2x 80mm papst fans, 1 fan in the door of the computer case.

I never heard MSI was doing such an offer...
Anyway, you need the latest BIOS, that solves the temps reading thing, this happens because AMD changed the CPU a bit.
It's not getting that hot, it's just a reading failure.
A BIOS flash should solve it.

K8T Neo: Problem at power-on...

Hello!
Somehow I experience a strange startup-problem ... and I could really need some advice to resolve this issue as I'm out of ideas.
Last weekend I completely disassembled my rig for the annual "spring-time maintenance". I cleaned out dust, I cleaned the inside and outside of the case and I replaced my DVD-ROM and CD-RW drive with a LG DVD+/-R(W)/RAM drive. After everything was put together again I powered up my system - and it started to act strange.
Symptom: At power-on the system hangs at "Early Chipset Init" (D-Bracket 1-4: GRRR) and keeps on self-resetting. Several seconds (10-30) later the system starts to POST as expected and runs smoothly until ... power down.
During the night the system is completely disconnected from the power as it drains a lot of juice in stand-by (~12W for the rig + ~18W for several other external components like scanner, audio, ...).
What I've done so far to track down the error:
- Reseated power connectors. Nope - problem persists.
- Pulled all unnecessary components (just MoBo, CPU, RAM, GFX-card, Keyb). Nope - same prob.
- Pulled all memory sticks, left only one in the slot (and tried every other one). Nope - same prob.
- Cleared CMOS - Nope - same prob.
- Ran memtest86+. Showed no errors after 10+ passes.
Now I'm out of ideas ... except for the power-on problem the system runs just fine as before. No crashes, no malfunctions, no nothing.
Technical Data:
MSI K8T Neo FSR (BIOS 2.0)
AMD Athlon 64 3000+ (Clawhammer Core)
Zalman CNPS7000B CPU-Cooler
3x 512MB Kingston CL2.5 PC400 DDR-RAM (@DDR333 - 3 sticks = DDR333 only!)
NVIDIA GeForce 6600GT AGP (Power Connector is plugged in)
Highpoint HPT370A IDE Controller (PCI 3)
Hauppauge WinTV PCI FM (PCI 5)
Seagate 80GB SATA - Operating system
Hitachi 160GB - OnBoard Pri IDE, Master
LG 4167B - OnBoard Pri IDE, Slave
Maxtor 200GB - HPT370A Pri IDE, Master
Seagate 400GB - HPT370A Pri IDE, Slave
Maxtor 80GB - HPT370A, Sec IDE, Master
Tagan TG480-U01 480W PSU (3.3V@28A, 5V@48A, 12V@28A)
As I have a Wattmeter at my avail: After power-on and boot-up the system "sucks" ~315W (rig + monitor). If I put load on the system (CPU at full clock, GeForce displaying 3D) it drains ~390W.
As mentioned above I never had any issues with the system.
Does anyone have a suggestion how to resolve the rather annoying power-on problem ?!?
Thanks,
Jochen

Quote from: Tiresmoke on 06-April-06, 20:09:53
Did you checl and replace the CMos Battery? You may need to do a complete Bios Clear and start fresh there as well.
Also as the Optical drives changed did you try removing them one at a time and see if the system acts noirmally then?
Hello, Tiresmoke!
. I unplugged the PSU from the wall socket and removed the battery while clearing the CMOS. The CMOS Battery is OK - ~3.34V (reading from a Voltmeter - matches with the display at PC Health Status).
. I already took out the LG DVD-RAM drive and put the old optical drives back in. Even in its old "original" configuration the aforementioned problem persists.
. I already reseated the CPU and renewed the thermal compound.
However, I even get the "Early chipset" startup when the system is bareboned ... CPU + 1 memstick (doesn't matter which one out of the three I plug in) + Keyb + GFX. D-Bracket shows "Early Chipset Init", the boards goes through several reset-loops and fires up fine.
BTW: Maybe this will give some clue ...
. When I do a warm reset (reboot triggered by OS) the board restarts fine - Reset, POST, Boot.
. When I shutdown and disconnect power from the PSU, lets say for about 5 minutes, then reconnect it and power-on the "Early chipset init" shows up.
Are there any chances that the PSU is actually causing the problem although this particular problem never showed up before the "spring-cleaning"?
Thanks,
Jochen

K8T Neo Eary Chipset initilisation hang

I've just got my MSI K8T Neo Motherboard replaced and the replacement arrived today. I plugged in the cpu, cpu fan and the D-Bracket and it seems to hang at the 'Early Chipset Initilisation.' Same thing happens with the ram and gfx card installed. I've put both the 4 and 20 pin psu cables in and in the manual it doesn't say what's wrong if it hangs at this stage so does anyone know what the hell is going on?

Quote
Originally posted by Jocko
It could still be ram, you may have to try a few.
It could also be a ground, either form a cable touching case or Mobo, or a fixing screw on MOBO touching board, no USB devices plugged in? The fans are working OK.
Other thing that can cause this is a bent pin on CPU, if you remove make sure and replace with silver artic paste or similar.
good luck
jocko
Tried several sticks of ram, don't think it'd be this though because if it does have a problem with the ram, the d-bracket will let me know if it's broken or not in place properly.
The motherboard isn't in the case atm, it's put on an anti-static sheet to eliminate this problem.
Had a look at the CPU and all the pins look alright.
Edit> Also, no devices conected at all, and fans work ok, even the gfx card so power getting around it looks ok
Thanks for help

K8T Neo IDE3

Maybe someone can help me with a problem I have. I just recently had to replace my K8T Neo motherboard with a K8N Neo Platinum motherboard. The problem comes in that on the K8T I was using IDE3 with a couple of HDs. Since I have replaced the motherboard, the K8N does not have an IDE3 so I installed a PCI IDE controller for the other drives. I just moved all of my HDs over to the new motherboard and started WIN XP up. During the process I had to recover XP due to the driver difference between the motherboards and have gotten past this, BUT in the process XP thought there were errors on the drives now connected to the PCI IDE controller (previously on IDE3) and "fixed" them. I now have massive corruption in the files on these drives. Is there a difference between IDE3 and another standard IDE controller as to the way the data is stored? From looking at some of the images that were there, it seems that the data getting mixed up within the files.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Terry

as far as i know an IDE drive is an IDE drive, nomather on whats it installed (ide 3 or pci ide) de data is stored the same way.
when the data is corupted there isnt anything to do about it anymore.
exactly the same thing happens if you use data recovery on data you have deleted. the deleted and restored files get mixed up.

Woohoo! K8T Neo / Kingston ValueRAM instability fixed

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