Z68A-GD80 new owner questions

So I got a new Z68A-GD80 and have a Somme questions:
1. If I install my 4 X GSkill ripjaws (f3-10666cl7q-16gbxh) the board will power on for maybe 2 secs and shutdown and re power on for a other 2 secs and so on. If i go down to 2 Dim not in bank (slot 1 & 2) MB will start but will randomly freeze. If I run on only 1 Dim everything work like a charm.... well so far let knock wood Any one also got that ?
2. what is the deal with the 10 leds cpu phases flashing crazy while in windows ?
3. when I run the live update5 it report I currently have version I.51 for bios and version I.50 on the internet what is up with this ? should I downgrade or m'I a MSI test subject ? lol
Thanks

Quote
did boost the voltage to 5.36 giving me 4.88
Surely you mean 1,536 and 1,488V
Quote
enabled XMP on ram did a 5 GHZ peak
If you intend to overclock then start a new thread in the overclocking section of the forum.

Similar Messages

HI z87m New owner - Question on PCIE slots

Hello I am a new Z87M owner and I had a question about the PCIE Slots
I am building a new system and may because of the build have to use the Lower PCI-E slot for the one GPU board the system will have.
will either slot operate at 16x regardless of which slot I use? or am i taking a performance hot by using only the second slot? Thanks in advance

Quote from: misterx1969 on 07-June-14, 13:11:43
Hello I am a new Z87M owner and I had a question about the PCIE Slots
I am building a new system and may because of the build have to use the Lower PCI-E slot for the one GPU board the system will have.
will either slot operate at 16x regardless of which slot I use? or am i taking a performance hot by using only the second slot? Thanks in advance
Usually not. The lane configuration is generally always the primary 16X by itself, the other slot is 8X regardless if the primary slot is not used. Not that big a performance hit anyway with the 8X.

New owner questions...

Hi all,
I am thinking of buying a macbook. Just had some questions first.
1- Is there a way I can keep my files up-to-date on the mac book, in sync with files from my imac?... Or do I have to keep transferring manually?
2- When I close the screen, does macbook go into sleep mode? (I can't be bothered to keep shutting down/powering up on the go). Is macbook designed to do this?
3- As described above, in sleep mode, what is the battery life?
4- Does the aluminum scratch easily?
Thanks in advance

1. You can use a home network and file sharing to sync data files from one computer to another. You can use an external hard drive or USB flash drive to move files from one computer to the other. You can use your .Mac account if you have one to backup your data files and use it as the intermediary to sync files between the two computers. But there is no "automatic" system for that
2. Yes. That is the whole point of sleep aside from energy conservation.
3. Hard to say, but if you plan not to use the computer for extended periods of time (more than four hours) then either shut down the computer or keep it connected to the AC adaptor.
4. No more so than any aluminum surface.

Z68A-GD80 Wont post with new GPU.

I have two working Asus 7970 Matrix cards that my PC wont post with them in. All power connectors plugged in, tried two different PSU's a Corsair HX850 and a Corsair AX1200i. Tried both PCI-E slots on the motherboard with both cards.
The cards work in a second PC however, so it seems like its the motherboard.
No display signal, no beeps, no post.
Also, the system posts and works fine with a GTX 590 instead of the Asus 7970, and Sapphire's 7970 works fine as well.
i7-2600k
MSI Z68A-GD80
Corsair AX1200i / Corsair HX850
Asus 7970 Matrix
Corsair Dominator Platinum 4x4gb 1866

Hello Svet, even it has been posted more than one year ago. I experienced the same problem with a HD 7950.
I just want to say : Yes it works finally BUT where did you find this Bios ???
I use the global website and this version is simply missing !!!*
The first thing I did while seeing that I didn't have no video signal and no boot is to upgrade the bios but I only find the .H5 or the bios for Ivy.
Anyway I have a mixed feeling, quiet happy and yes ... thank you for your help now it seems working fine.
But on the other hand ...what a pity from MSI to have a so bad listing of their bios.
Once again thanks

Problematic Motherboard MSI Z68a GD80 (B3) and bad customer service

I opened a support ticket at MSI's support site (http://support.msi.com/index.php?mod=questions&dop=reply_list&question_no=102573) and still waiting for a response since last week. Not only that, but there is no way you can talk to customer support and you can only submit tickets online. What if your PC is not working because of the MSI motherboard? How is then the customer able to talk to customer support?! eh!!!?!?!???
To describe the issues I experience I will copy-paste some of the info from my existing support ticket....
Recently I noticed that my new PC's performance degraded considerably, without me having made any changes to its settings, software or hardware. After extensive testing I realised that the RAM was faulty so I replaced it with new DIMMs which I tested again and work correctly. However after replacing with new RAM (memeory is in the "approved" list of the motherboard) the PC's performance is still very slow, especially when it comes to hard disk access. So I tested all, memory, hard disks (checkdisk, defrag, and also used WesternDigital utilities to check all disks) and all tests came back fine. I also checked all BIOS settings and re-installed all Motherboard drivers to ensure that the issue was not due to a damaged driver file. But none made a difference. So given that everything appears to be working correctly and all tests for individual components come back as normal, I uspect that it's the motherboard to blame.
In addition to the above the PC has now started behaving strange too: when rebooting pc restarts..and then turns off and then on again and off again. ...or it restarts but then does not boot at all. Just now i turned it off and then on again and the pc behaves as if it boots up but nothing is showing on the screen. not even the bios.
Once, when i turned on the PC and when logged into windows I got a popup saying "you have booted from your second BIOS rom. Please update your BIOS using Live Update". I then went to live update and it said i am running the latest BIOS.
The issues exist also outside the OS. I also tried to boot from Norton Ghost DVD and take a backup from there and see the backup speed (which normally takes an hour). It took 2-7 times more, depending on the PC's "mood". I also tried booting from a DVD into Windows PE (pre-installation environment) and tried to take a disk backup from there too. Same issue everywhere.
I did various tests with Western Digital to eliminate the hard disk, and all come out fine. I even formatted the hard drive (low level format) and reinstalled a fresh OS. The problem was still there and the mouse pointed would stutter when the disk was active.
Another thing I noticed which might help: sometimes disk to pc/disk-over-network file copying works at a reasonable speed. But local-disk to local-disk copying is very slow and affects the mouse pointer and overall pc performance.
I use this PC for business so it's critical that this is fixed asap or that I am sent a replacement motherboard promptly before I send this one back so that I am not left without a working PC.
Any suggestions?
My spec:
   * CPU brand, model and speed: Intel i7 i2600K 2.5 GHz
   * Motherboard model: MSI Z68a GD80 (B3)
   * Memory brand, type/speed, size, number of sticks: Kingston KHX1333C9D3B1K2/4G (2 sticks x 2 Gb each. total of 4gb)
   * Video card brand, chipset type, memory size: XFX 7600GT 256MB
   * Hard drive(s) brand, size, type, speed: Westerd Digital Velociraptor 600Gb
   * Operating system and version (including if 32 or 64bit!): Windows XP SP3 32bit
   * Power Supply Unit brand and output in watts and DC output (amps) - OCZ 650W

Quote
Well on the MSI UK website that is the only support which is listed for motherboards! Global or not, that's the one listed there.
Yes, I know. But there is an E-Mail Contact listed for RMA procedures. When you go to the Global support site:
http://ocss.msi.com.tw/
... you'll find the same E-Mail contact address listed under the heading
Quote
If you live in the following country and have any request about RMA, please go to Online RMA Request:
Quote
Ok, I will contact both the reseller and send an email to the email address you mentioned and see what happens.
Quote
In fact the reseller has an online system specifically for returns and as per UK distant selling regulations their system does not accept any returns and won't allow you to make a returns request after 28 days from the date of purchase. ..and given that I've been dealing with these issues for 10-14 days weeks now I am not sure they will allow a returns request. But I will contact them and see what they will say.
Yes, contact them.
Quote
But have a look at the returns policy anyway: http://www.ebuyer.com/help/returns#1
Look:
Quote
Items Faulty in Warranty Period
If any of your purchases develop a fault, and it's more than 28 calendar days since receipt, then provided your item is within its warranty period, you are entitled to a warranty repair.
... more:
http://static.ebuyer.com/customer/help/index.html?action=c2hvd190ZXJtcw==&type=personal
Quote
9. Our refunds policy
9.1 When you return a Product to us:
   9.1.2 for any other reason (for instance, because you have notified us in accordance with clause 21 that you do not agree to any change in these terms and conditions or in any of our policies, or because you claim that the Product is defective), we will examine the returned Product and if you are entitled, we will notify you of your options to either repair, replace or refund via e-mail within a reasonable period of time. We will usually process your elected repair, replacement or refund as soon as possible and, in any case, within 30 days of the day you confirm whether you opt for repair, replacement or refund for the defective Product. If you elect a refund of a Product returned by you because of a defect it will be refunded as per our refunds policy, including a refund of the part of the delivery charge which related to that defective Product for sending the item to you and the cost incurred by returning the defective Product to us. If you elect a repair or replacement of a defective Product we will not charge you for redelivery of the repaired or replaced Product.
   9.1.3 If you elect to return the defective Product to us using your own method of delivery, we will refund up to £4.00 of the costs incurred by you. This will only be refunded upon the receipt of proof of the carriage costs.
Just for your record:
Quote
and still waiting for a response since last week.
MSI Technical Support has responded to you giving you the following advice:
Quote
Dear sir/madam
Thanks for contacting MSI technical support.
Regarding your concern,if the issue appears when loading windows,we suggest you reinstall your os for a try.If it appears when post,we have to suggest you contact your reseller (The place you bought this MB from) and have them test the MB completely for you to check if this MB is faulty or not, then ask for some help.
If the reseller for some reason cannot help, we have to ask you to contact MSI distributor or MSI office near your place to seek further help.
Thanks for your cooperation in advance!
Best Regards,
MSI Technical Support Team
... and as I said before, this is precisely the next logical step in your situation.

Z68A-GD80 (B3) + Corsair Vengeance: Which HSF will fit?

Greetings,
I just migrated from Q6600 + DFI INF 975X to i7 2600K + Z68A-GD80 (B3). This is my new motherboard with all of its technologies after not updating my knowledge since 2006. I know nothing about DrMosfet and why do they heatsink-ed. But, I just realized that that heatpipe and other heatsink would (or wouldn't) be my problem after I simply push the "OC Genie" button on my motherboard.
My i7 2600K can run up to 4.1GHz by simply pushing the OC Genie button. But then I realized that with stock HSF, my processor's temp was 71C when Prime95 was running. On an idle state, its temp is around 28-30C with 29C of temperature room (non-AC). My casing is Enlight (somewhat series I don't know) that has side fan for intake air flow to on top of Intel Stock HSF.
I'm thinking to give an adequate cooling accessories. My candidates are:
1. Noctua NH-D14
2. Noctua NH-U12P
3. Corsair H70
I put Corsair H70 as my last option, since the price is doubled from Noctua NH-U12P. The Corsair local dealer said that the liquid inside H70 will only last for 2-3 years in my country. So, I should also spare another $$$ to buy another HSF 3 years from now. Hence, I'm still thinking "conventional" HSF Aluminum would be my first priority over liquid cooling solution.
My questions are:
1. Will Noctua NH-D14 will fit to my mainboard? I'm affraid that the heatsink and heatpipe around processor will block the installation. Please also note that my Corsair Vengeance has passive heatsink and 50mm height.
2. What about Noctua NH-U12P? the performance based on review in overclocker forum only differs 1-2C above NH-D14.
Thanks.
MSI Z68A-GD80 (B3)
Intel Core i7 2600K
Zotac GTS 450 AMP Edition 1GB DDR5
Corsair Vengeance 2x4GB (9-9-9-24)
Corsair CX-600 power supply
WD Raptor 300GB 10k RPM
WD Green 2TB 5900RPM

Quote from: Bernhard on 01-June-11, 17:17:43
OCGenie pushes voltages higher than what is really needed. Thus part of your temps are probably a direct cause of this.
I'm totally newbie on over clocking. On Q6600 I just raising up the FSB without increasing up the voltage. Maybe I should learn in an advance way to over clocking 2600K. Thanks for OCGenie Info
Quote
Keep it that way. Mine is in the cupboard. I have The Noctua NH-C14 and it performs as well as the H70 on CPU core temps but has the added advantage of cooling the CPU surrounds. My 2600K goes to about 64-68C core at 25-30C ambient under fullload at 4,5GHz.
Is it Normal to have 68C on that speed? I thought any noctua could cooling it down to 53C based on review. Maybe I missed something in the review didn't stated whether it was conducted on winter or summer... I'll find that on local store.
Quote
It will be a tight fit, and you may have to install the RAM before the cooler.
Nice tips. I'll consider it if NH-D14 is my best option. Some said that I can put the fan little bit higher, since RAM Heatsink will touch the fan not touch the aluminum fin if it is installed on the right orientation.
Quote
Consider the Zalman 9900 as well, testing also only shows minor temp differences and HU16E has had excellent results on allhis builds with this cooler. I used one on a X58 before and it was really good. The advantage is the good clearance that allows easy RAM installation even with these oversized heatsinks on some RAM modules.
never heard of those series before, but I'll google it. I know Zalman as the brand of my 5.1 headphone gaming series thanks for recommendation. I'll find the availabilities of those recommended brand and type.

[newbie] overclocking i7 2600k / MSI z68a-gd80

Hi everyone,
I'm new here and I have no experience in overclocking. I've always build my own PC's but never touched overclocking because I always found all the options very confusing and was afraid of damaging something. But the time for change has come!
Goal
4,2 Ghz - 24/7 stable overclock (manual - don't want to use OC genie)
I don't want to do a hardcore overclock, just a small increase for gaming and more importantly videorendering.
System information
- i7 2600K @3.40Ghz
- MSI z68a-gd80
- 16GB ram @ 1600MHZ wit latency 9-9-9-24
- 1x 128GB SSD (OS)
- 2x 2TB raid 0 (storage)
- 2x GTX580 LE edition @ stock values
- Scythe Mugen Revision 3 cooler @100%
- 2 extra casefans @ 100%
- Windows 7 64-bit
Help
Main problem is that I have no clue what settings do change in the bios, also I don't really understand what they mean / do. I mean low vdroop what does that even mean?
What I know:
- Multipliers (is now at 34) - this is used for overclocking / increasing ghz.
- Baseclock (100Mhz) - this can also be used for overclocking but is little headroom - so rather leave this alone
- I have to do an Intel Burn Test do see if my system is stable
- I must use HWmonitor to make sure tempatures don't get to high (what are normal tempatures and what's max?)
My question:
What settings do I have to change / turn on or off to start overclocking. (e.g. I have no clue what the hell "low vdroop" means or does)
I hope I posted this in the right subforum and made everything clear and ofcourse I hope you guys can help / walk me through it.
Huge thanks in advance!

Hi guys,
I'm back with some more results. I've downclocked my DDR3 back to stock values again and tested X43. It worked. I moved on. Now I'm at X45. My results are as followed:
CPU X45
- ITB test "standard" 1 (2nd run of 10 failed, gave me instability error)
- ITB test "standard" 2 (10 out of 10)
- ITB test "standard" 3 (10 out of 10)
- ITB test "standard" 4 (10 out of 10)
Temps
According to RealTemp 3.0 my max degrees with test was for each core: #0 = 74 #1 = 84 #2 = 84 #3 = 81 (These temps were from the ITB test "standard" 4).
Test did it in 154 seconds.
Voltage
According to CPU-Z max voltage (auto CPU V) = 1.384
Rendertest
Rendering video in Vegas (clip 5 minutes @1080p) rendered by both GPU and CPU. Load CPU was about 65%. Max temp measured in low 70's.
Biossettings
- Adjust CPU Ration in OS = Disabled
- Internal PLL Overvoltage = Enabled
- EIST = Enabled
- Intel Turbo Boost = Enabled
- DRAM Frequency = DDR-1333MHz (for now )
- XMP = Disabled
- DRAM Timing Mode = Auto
- Spread Spectrum = Disabled
- VDroop Control = Low VDroop
- CPU Core Voltage = Auto
- CPU I/O Voltage = Auto
- DRAM Voltage = Auto
- System Agen Voltage (SA) = Auto
- CPU PLL Voltage = 1.8V
Under CPU features:
- Hyper-threading = Enabled
- Active Processor Cores = All
- Limit CPUID Maximum = Disabled
- Execute Disable Bit = Enabled
- Intel Virtualization Tech = Enabled
- Power Technology = Custom
- C1E Support = Enabled
- Overspeed Protection = Disabled
- Intel C-State = Enabled
- Package C State Limit = Auto
- Long duration power limit (w) = 200
- Long duration maintained (ms) = 1000
- Short duration power limit (w) = 250
- Primary plane turbo power limit (w) = 0
- Secondary plane turbo power limit (w) = 0
- Cores (all 4) = 45
Advice?
So the X45 I'm happy with. I don't feel the need to overclock it further. Only two questions left:
1) How should I now overclock my memory? (put it on @1600MHz and with voltage of 1.579 and then test it? ***I can't choose 1.575 )
2) Are there any settings I have to change in my bios overall for stability or something else?
Thanks in advance for all the help. Almost there!

PCIE 3.0 test with MSI Z68A-GD80 G3 :)

The Z68A-GD80 G3 is MSI’s first motherboard with PCIE 3.0 connectivity. Currently there are no PCIE 3 devices available yet but later on we can test its performance by using a PCIE SSD. Aside from this, the board has also a new UEFI Bios named “Click Bios II” which for me is way better than the previous version.
Before we take a closer look on the board, let’s check out the package first.
Box design is a bit the same as the GD80 B3 version before. Once you open it up, all main features of the said board are enumerated
Extreme Power Design, Military Class II Components (SFC, Hi-C Caps, Multi Bios), 3 PCIEx16 Slots, Super Charger and OC Genie II
For the bundled accessories, you have the same old story – Manual, Software Disc, four SATA cables, two Molex to SATA power connectors & SLI Bridge. Then for some extras - PCI USB 3.0 two ports bracket, guide headers for faster and easy connectivity and lastly voltage check points.
Next, the “Mainboard”. By physically looking at it and by comparing it side by side against the Z68A-GD80 B3 motherboard. You won’t find any difference except for the PCIE X16 locks. It has also the same black and blue color theme, two vrm heatsinks connected by a flat heatpipe and V-Check points.
Moving closer to the board you have 8 Power Pins to power up the processor, 2 PCI slots, 2 PCIE x1 slots for devices such as TV Tuners or Audio Cards. 2 PCIE Gen3 & 1 PCIE Gen2 x16 Slots. With one VC connected at the top most slot, speed will be @ x16. If both top and middle are used, it will be @ x8/x8. Lastly, by using the 3rd PCIEx16 Gen2 slot. You have x8/x8/x4. It would also disable certain onboard devices such as eSATA Port, Sata 7, one onboard front USB 3.0, two PCI Slots and firewire. So if possible avoid using the last VC slot.
At the top most PCIE x1 area. You will find a 6-pin power connector. This will provide more juice/power for multi-GPU setups.
Next, at the bottom part of the board. You have the Easy Buttons (Power and Reset) and the popular one button “OC Genie”. The red colored USB header is for the Super Charger while the blue is a regular USB 3.0. For the SATA Connectors you have a total of 7. 4 regular SATA 3GB/s, 2 SATA 6GB/s controlled by Intel chipset and another SATA 6GB/s by Marvell.
Wrapping things up, we have now the IO terminal ports. Starting from the left we have combo PS2 port and SPDIF Optical Out. Clear CMOS Button, e-SATA port running under Marvell, 2 USB 2.0 and Firewire ports controlled by Via. Moving across, 2 Gigabit Lan by Realtek 8111E, 2 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 3.0 run under NEC D720200 controller. Next, we have DVI and HDMI output connections and 6 analog audio ports by Realtek ALC892.
Once you are into the bios, you will find the new and improved Click Bios. Nice and professional looking, faster navigation and easier to use.
To test the performance of the new PCIE Gen3 technology, we will be using this Photofast PCIE SSD device http://www.photofast.tw/comboproducts.asp?pid=1.
We will be connecting the PCIE SSD device on the GD80’s Gen3 and Gen2 slots and compare the results using the disk benchmark software ATTO. I ran the benchmark 9 times for the two set of tests.
System Configuration as follows:
Processor: Intel Core i7 2600K at default stock speed
Memory: Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 2x2GB DDR3 2133MHz
SSD: OCZ Vertex 2
Motherboard: MSI Z68A-GD80 G3
Softwares: CPU-Z 1.58, Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit with SP1, Latest Atto Software 1.47 I think.
First test, Photofast running on Gen2 (third VC slot). One screenshot from the 9 tests made
Second, using the Gen 3 connectivity. One screenshot from the 9 tests made
Below is the summary of all the tests done on the board with the Photofast SSD PCIE.
That’s probably it. More forum posts to come 

Quote
I have a eSata hdd Seagate Freeagent Xtreme 1,5tb which cannot be recognized by win7
Did you have your previous board's BIOS set to AHCI or IDE ? You need to set this BIOS the same.
Firstly only insert one RAM module in the slot closest to the CPU. Remove the rest. Then do full CMOS clear >>Clear CMOS Guide<< also remove the MB battery.
What BIOS do you currently have ? The initial BIOS releases were plagued by CPU throttling which have been fixed in the cyrrent beta BIOS releases.

MSI z68A-GD80 (g3) "B2" error with ned gtx 970

Hey.
Hardware info:
MSI z68A-GD80 (g3) - Bios version. V18.8
Intel i5 2500k
4x4GB kingston hyperX 1600mhz
MSI 970 gaming g4
PSU : Seasonic SS-500GB
My problem is that when I'm trying to install the new GPU i get the error "b2" when i boot. If i chance back to my old gpu (560 ti) or the gpu on the CPU there is no problem. Also i have tested the gtx 970 in another PC and it works.
After some reseach i found out that i need a bios update. I have tried this but with no luck, cant upgrade bios. I have use "MSI Forum HQ USB Flashing" tools with bios from MSI hp (I choose the (g3) bios) . I can get the bios on the USP stick but when I'm trying to install the new bios i got the error "Bios corruption detected !!" and stopped. I don't know what to do now, i hope that you can help me
The usp stick is fat32

I had the exact same problem as the original poster - same motherboard, same old graphics card (560ti) and same new graphics card (970 gaming) and got the same B2 error code and the PC not going beyond that.
I flashed the bios and that fixed the problem - the exact version I used was on this page:
Ok, this forum isn't allowing me to post a link to it, but just go to the official page for the motherboard on MSI's website - then click on Support and Service Location, which should open up the list of BIOS upgrades...
The top one as of writing this is version 19.2
To do the flashing of the BIOS you must load the downloaded exe file onto a flash drive and run it from there. Don't worry if it seems like your PC is hanging, it just takes a while (while still in Windows). It then reboots and will finish up flashing the BIOS (you'll see a red bar with the warning on a black background with white text).
After doing that, my GTX970 GAMING works like an absolute charm! I can now finally enjoy Minecraft like it was meant to be played haha (kidding, I played GTA 5 the whole weekend with EVERYTHING to the absolute MAX!)
Hope this helps if you are experiencing this extremely annoying error.

New user - questions about email setup and synchronization

Hi,
I'm a not-particularly-techno-savvy new owner of a BlackBerry Curve 8900. My questions are:
1 I seem to only have the option to use a work email account with a BB Enterprise server and not the option to create or add an email addy. How do I resolve this?
2 I've installed the BlackBerry Desktop Manager but when I try to synchronize data from my device - organiser stuff and contacts - I get a message saying there are no applications configured, with subsequent instructions as to how to do this but I then have to choose from a huge list of folders and other stuff and have no idea what to do!
I'm really hoping someone will be kind enough to try and help as I'm floundering dreadfully.
Thanks in advance.
Jan

Jan,
When you install Desktop Manager it gives you the option to setup with an enterprise server or internet email, I can't tell from your post which you have.
However, to pick the applications to sync, assuming you have Desktop Manager 4.7,
open Desktop Manager
Click on Synchronize on the left side of the screen
On the next screen that opens, choose Synchronize under the word "Configure" (also put check marks in all the boxes that will allow you to check)
On the next screen to open choose Synchronization on the "right" side
In a couple of seconds another screen will open up where you can choose what applications to sync (calendar in Outlook, tasks in Outlook, Contacts in Outlook etc) just choose each program you need to sync and choose the program on your PC to use such as Outlook.
I also have the 8900 and it syncs with my Outlook 2003 for contacts, calendar, memo and tasks.
Hope that helps.
Steve

Z68A-GD80 (G3) power loop

Hi,
I have an MSI Z68A-GD80 G3 motherboard stuck in a loop. When I switch it on the lights and fans are on for a second then they switch off. Then, they switch on again for another second and switch off, repeat. Hard drives and optical drive will switch off and on too if they're plugged in. During this the screen stays blank. The BIOS light on the motherboard doesn't switch on and doesn't blink. A few power phase lights across the top of the motherboard switch on and off. The motherboard's previous owner told me this problem started after a BIOS update.
I read about a flash tool available from the forums. I haven't tried the flash tool, yet, but at this point I suspect the motherboard won't run long enough to do anything with a flash drive.
I read maybe the current BIOS is having trouble with the CPU. I put in a Core i7-2600K. I don't know what CPU the previous owner was using before the problem started. I could try a different CPU but I'm not sure which one. I thought this motherboard was supposed to work with the Core i7-2600K when it was knew out of the box- no BIOS updates needed.
There were a few bent pins in the CPU socket when I got the motherboard. However, I straightened them and now you can't see which ones were bent. I guess a pin not being connected properly to the underside of the CPU is possible but the pins look ok.
Suggestions?

Today I tried removing the RAM and CPU and powered on the motherboard. It behaves the same as earlier- powers on for a second, then off, then on and so on. Only the first two CPU power phase lights on the motherboard switch on when the CPU is out of the socket and the same when in. Seems like if one or two pins in the socket weren't connecting correctly with the CPU then I'd get different results with the CPU in the socket compared to having the CPU entirely gone. However, the specific pin(s) not connected to the CPU might make a difference.
I have a different Intel Z68 motherboard that works, more or less, that I could use to check the behavior of a motherboard when a pin doesn't connect but not sure I want to do that to a Core i7-2600K CPU. I could put a tiny piece of insulating material on one of the CPU lands, put the CPU in my working motherboard, and see what happens- assuming both motherboards behave the same when having CPU connection issues. There are CPU socket testers but I'm not sure I'd understand the results on the readout from one.
I noticed there's a header labeled JSPI1 on the motherboard. Looks like an SPI header for reprogramming the BIOS without desoldering the chip. I peeled the stickers off the BIOS chips. The labels were difficult to read. Looks like they are Winbond 25Q64CVSIG 1126. Any suggestions (brand name, model number) for a low cost SPI flash programmer that will work with those chips? What is the JCP1 header next to the JSPI1? The JCP1 header isn't mentioned in the manual.

Selling macbook Pro 2011. It came with Lion, I upgraded to mountain Lion and Mavericks. Can license be transfer to new owner? how?

selling macbook Pro 2011. It came with Lion, I upgraded to mountain Lion and Mavericks. Can license be transfer to new owner? how?

Good question now that Mavericks is free to all.
It used to be - and is probably still the case - that to comply with the license you should erase and re-install the OS that came pre-installed on the Mac when new. If there were restore disks they needed to be passed on with the Mac.
I'm happy to be corrected on this by someone who's more au fait with the legalese, but an upgraded OS is tied to an AppleID whereas the original OS is tied to the computer, not an AppleID.
My guess is, that if you launched the Recovery HD, erased the drive using Disk Utility and re-installed the OS, Lion would be installed.
Be interesting to see what others say.

I deactivated ps9 as I bought ps12, new owner of ps9 say they cannot install as product code has been deactivated, thought I had to do this to enable installation on another pc! How does new owner get ps9 installed?

Can anyone tell me how new owner of my ps9 can install on their computer? I deactivated it but they say it cannot be installed as product code says it has been deactivated but thought i had to do this to enable install on another pc?

You'll need to visit the Photoshop Elements forum where the experts there can better answer your questions.

Z68A-GD80 Lucidlogix Virtu upgrade from version 1.1.101 downgrades to Evaluation

I am posting this because I have lost hours for searching for a solution and assume that other people may have this problem.
I recently bought motherboard Z68A-GD80 mainly because of it's Virtu support. Upon installing Virtu from motherboard CD (version 1.1.101) a notification popped up for new version of Virtu being available. I upgraded to latest Virtu version 1.2.103 and went on to use the Virtu Control Panel. It became clear that something was wrong because of disabled features. I realized in 'About' tab that Virtu was in 'Evaluation Copy' mode!
I went on in MSI's website to download the Virtu driver from their site (assuming a possible version problem). So went on and installed version 1.2.102 facing again the same problems.
Only after deciding to try the CD version (1.1.101) I was able to have a working version of Virtu without the Evaluation restrictions. It is one of the rare cases where an upgrade is actually a downgrade!
This is wrong and probably MSI has overlooked this based on the fact that their website has a version that causes Virtu to not read the license of motherboard properly (and revert to Evaluation). I would appreciate feedback on people that use Virtu and possibly if they faced the same problem upon upgrading Virtu's driver version. I am going to ask Virtu support if they can give an explanation about it.
In summary I am going to treasure the CD version 1.1.101 because I thing it has disappeared from the internet.

Maybe something in this thread will be of some interest; https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?topic=148838.0 The 'as shipped' BIOS & the same on the Global Website, v17.0 is what I have, & Virtu worked as advertised right off the start with just using the utilities & drivers from the supplied install disk. Virtu seems to work fine with the install disk version, so no need to update to the newest driver far as I can see.
Quote
This is wrong and probably MSI has overlooked this based on the fact that their website has a version that causes Virtu to not read the license of motherboard properly (and revert to Evaluation). I would appreciate feedback on people that use Virtu and possibly if they faced the same problem upon upgrading Virtu's driver version. I am going to ask Virtu support if they can give an explanation about it.
Any follow up on this? A ticket in with MSI Tech Support is also a good thing to do; http://support.msi.com/
Have you downloaded from the MSI Global Website the downloadable 'Quick Guide' v1.3?

How do I set EFI mode in Z68A-GD80-B3 BIOS?

I am trying to install Windows 7 64-bit onto a Seagate 3TB drive on a brand-new MSI Z68A-GD80-B3 motherboard but Windows keeps insisting on using an MBR style partition. When I connected the drive to another computer and used the Seagate utility to create a GPT partition, Windows refuses to install to it because it thinks the BIOS is in BIOS mode and not EFI mode.
There is a complicated guide to force the EFI installer bootstrap here http://www.insanelymac.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=184349 but having to do all this seems ridiculous for a motherboard UEFI BIOS that is advertised as having 3TB+ support.
So where is the setting (as I have seen on some other motherboards) that tells the bootable DVD/USB device that the BIOS is EFI and not legacy? Thanks!

Putting the system into RAID mode wasn't too bad since I was only experimenting with the setup anyway. However, after doing some research on how to use the EFI console it appears it is currently not possible to boot into a GPT disk when the ICH controller it set to RAID mode. :(
I tried wiping the drive, I tried installing the GPT boot and then installing Windows to it. Interestingly, the error message isn't a showstopper - it is merely a warning unlike the other error messages. If you click on the GPT partition and say install Windows will indeed go ahead and install to it. But when the BIOS tries to boot to it, it cannot. My investigation with EFI console shows that when the controller is in RAID mode the hard drive doesn't even show up in the list of available devices in the console. Also when using the console to list the available EFI drivers, they only have 2 IDE drivers (one Intel, one Marvell) and 2 AHCI drivers (same deal) - no RAID.
Furthermore, we appear to no be alone. I also have a Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 for evaluation and it too has the same problem, both confirmed by my own tests and a message thread much like this one that states the EFI BIOS manufacturers have not written the EFI RAID driver for the Sandy Bridge architecture yet. (I don't know if this is true for any other mobo manufacturers besides MSI and Gigabyte.)
Anyway, I'm giving up for now on GPT and have formatted the 3TB drive as MBR. I am then using a special driver from Seagate that makes the remaining space appear as a separate drive. I suppose it would still be possible to combine this space if one were to create a spanning volume in Windows or Linux and combine the real 2TB volume with the virtual drive that contains the remaining space. But I'm going to just leave it as a separate volume.
The only troubling thing is when or if MSI finally releases a BIOS with an EFI RAID driver I'll feel compelled to format the whole system as GPT and start again. *grumblegrumble*
Isn't being on the bleeding edge of tech fun?

Z68A-GD80 new owner questions

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for