# Asus P4C800-E No Post - Boot problem



## AmarikenGothyk (Jul 16, 2003)

Hi, I just bought a new system, build from scratch. I assembled it, and nothing. The fans will power up, one hard drive, and floppy, but nothing else. No POST, no beep, anything. system is as follows.

Asus P4C800-E Deluxe Motherboard
Intel Pentium 4 / 3.0CGHz 800 MHz FSB CPU
SAPPHIRE RADEON 9800 PRO 256MB
Viewsonic G220fb 21" Monitor
1 GB CORSAIR MEMORY XMS , Low Latency (Twin Pack)
Logitech Z-680 5.1 Speaker 500Watt 
Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Platinum Ex
Thermaltake Xaser III V1420A Chassis (480 watt Power Supply)
Western Digital Raptor 36GB SATA WD360GD
Plextor 52x32x52 PlexWriter Premium CD-RW Drive
2 - WD WESTERN DIGITAL SPECIAL EDITION 120GB 7200RPM EIDE HARD DRIVES MODEL # WD1200JB
US Robotics USR5610B 56K V.92 Internal PCI Performance Pro FaxModem 
Zalman CNPS7000-Cu Pure Copper CPU Cooler
SONY DDU1612/B2 BLACK 16X DVD ROM Drive
Logitech BLACK Elite Keyboard
Microsoft Optical Wheel Mouse


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## BlueBoy (Jul 18, 2003)

Perhaps it comes from the Graphiccard, so i hear that it gives Probs with ATI-Cards and the ASUS-Canterwood-MBs. On Otherside i had the sam Prob. with the Soyo P4i875p with (an ATI Card) AND the GForceFX-Card AND two Kind of DDR-Rams!?

PS: Do you have NO Monitor-Pic ??


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## Guest (Jul 18, 2003)

Welcome AmarikenGothyk

Did you install one stick of ram in DIMM A1 and one stick in DIMM B1


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## AmarikenGothyk (Jul 16, 2003)

Tried 1 ram, 2 ram dual channel.

And no, no monitor pic at all, the monitor powers up, then goes into standby.


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## clarket (Jul 18, 2003)

Hey AmarikenGothyk!

I assembled my pc as well and guess what! Same thing as you. Fans start, cd-rom starts, harddisk starts but no post. My screen just stayes black. I thought it might be my 300W power supply being to low, but I see you have a 480W.

Have you found a solution for your problem already, if yes then I would really like to know cause I didn't.

Regards,
Tammo

See also my post: http://www.techsupportforum.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6233&forumid=15


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## LonDon (Jul 25, 2003)

I experienced the exact "no boot" problem. In my case the problem was due to 1 stick of the Corsair TwinX PC3700 memory. I read somewhere on motherboards.org that this memory is not validated for the Asus P4C800-E. It is also not on the qualified vendor list in the user guide.

Anyway removing 1 memory stick allowed me to boot. But overall I would say that this mobo is too new and flaky: currently mine hangs on reset and restart. I have to powerdown in order to reboot. Furthermore, in rebooting, I get an "Overclock failure" message, and have to go into the BIOS, escape and discard in order to boot!


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## PenDragoN (Jul 13, 2003)

try another RAM.
Since the later BIOSes, the BIOS boot sequence initiates the RAM before the VGA Bios initiates. SO bad Ram causes the BIOS to stop booting.

If not so - try another VGA-card...

Greetz
Pen


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## neosundile (Aug 18, 2003)

I just bought the Exact system, and im having the exact problem...... Any word on how to fix it?


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## Guest (Aug 18, 2003)

This is for all the above! If your installing your motherboard into your old case.

Try This 

Remove everything off of the motherboard. 

Take the motherboard out of the case and lay it on a phone book or something non conductive. 

Clear the CMOS.

Re-Install the CPU, Heatsink and Fan.

Hook up the following items only. 

Hook up the wire that comes from the power button on the front of the case to the correct header, See manual. 

Hook up the the power supply to the motherboard. 

Insert one stick of ram. 

Insert the video card all the way. 

Hook up the monitor. 

Hook up power to computer. 

Turn on the monitor. 

Turn on computer. 

You should have video on the monitor. 

This sounds like a lot of work but it narrows down the devices to a few. 

Try this and post back with the results.


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## neosundile (Aug 18, 2003)

Tryed all that, and still no go, i put some older PC2100 Azen ram in the system and a old radeon 8500 in there motherboard and it still does the same thing so im a little puzzled... HELP!!!


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## etr9j (Aug 21, 2003)

*Same problem but different*

I've had the same problem, but the two times I've had it happen I re-seated the cpu/fan and then it worked again. Both times have been within a week of each other. I too have an asus p4c800 - deluxe and a p4 2.6 (800 MHz). So I'm thinking since everyone else is having this same problem (mostly with ASUS motherboards) it has got to be related to the mobo - I'm going to blame ASUS. I've been all over the boards out there and no one solution seems to solve this issue so it must be more complex than thought. Some replace the mobo and that works, some replace the CPU and that works, and some replace everything and nothing works. I'm at a loss at what the deal is, but I thought I would at least add my thoughts since even though I got it working again (twice) since I am worried it will happen again and I will not be able to bring my system back.

E


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## Guest (Aug 21, 2003)

Welcome to the forums etr9j............. 

And thanks for the input on this. It seems this series of Asus boards didn't get enough R&D or something.


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## etr9j (Aug 21, 2003)

*Testing a theory*

I don't know everyone elses configuration, but I had in my machine upon construction a super old A: (floppy) Drive screwed in with questionable screws. It didn't work. Then upon closer inspection I saw one of the pins in the back was bent. Fixed that, then it worked - sort of. Couldn't complete a simple disk format... gave a weird error. Though after I "fixed" the A: drive about the same time my no-boot-but-fans-on problem started. So the time came when I actually needed the floppy drive to work so I bought a new one and screwed it in with good screws. Some techs I know said a short from old equipment can cause a problem like that - and that's how I started on my A: drive idea.

So after my system was unable to boot (again for the 3rd time) I took everything out and put everything back in the case with a new A: drive. My computer came on and booted. I know I haven't waited to see if the A: drive shorting out my gear was to blame, but rather than forget to post what I'm doing later (if this works out and the problem stops) I'd thought I'd share what those techs have said to me.


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## clarket (Jul 18, 2003)

(See previous post up)
Well, after testing all separate components I have send back my mobo and the returned one worked right away. Thanks for all the tips!
Tammo


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## PenDragoN (Jul 13, 2003)

...that's also a way to solve a problem.
But you should consider the amount of hardware that is returned to manufacturers only because the self-appointet PC techs didn't get it to work the right way.
Up to now the most recent issue of the P4C800-Series is the memory management in dual mode, followed by problems with the integrated gbit NIC.
I don't think it is really good to tell the people: ASUS is bull**** - change your mobo if it doesn't work.
Don't get me wrong - in your case this this was probably correct, but in several other cases the descrition of the symptoms is the evidence for well-known issues missunderstood by so-called specialists...and I do not undersatand why those "specialists" are not able to get more information why their hardware doesn't work the way they want it to.
As we always say: Most of all times the only problem exists between keyboard and chair. I often see people returning hardware which "is bull**** and doesn't work, this piece of scap" as they claim, but haven't even read the manual or checked the jumpers before mounting their hardware.
As said: clarket - don't get me wrong.This is not dedicated to your post or any statement you left here. i only wanted anoyone here to understand that most of the problems do NOT derive from defective hardware (at least not BEFORE mounting) or a lack of quality by teh hardware manufacturers. It's most of all cases the USER that converts his mobo ( or other hardware ) to a piece of scap, simply because he didn't act the way it is claimed to get the hardware working correctly.
So to be fair: I have to admit that I also had my prejudices as I found out that the P4C800 deluxe didn't work the way I expected it to do...but a little surfin' in the web and some questions in the right forums and some feedback from my hardware reseller tought me to keep real and find out what was the real error.
Conclusion: always try and get more information before returning hardware to your vendor - in 80% of all cases the effort is worth it, because your vendor only gives you new hardware - but you'll never find out what the real error was.

Keep it real, people.

Greetz
Pen


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## etr9j (Aug 21, 2003)

*I figured out my problem*

I'm putting this here for the record since I hope if someone has my "intermittent" issue (descibed by me above), they can read this. I found an electrician class notes posted on-line saying this:

--"Bad Power Supplies
1. “Easy”: Power supply is dead. Fan doesn’t turn, nothing happens. No voltage present. Verify you have good AC power first, and then replace the power supply.
2. “Hard”: Power supply is slowly dying, but not dead yet.
a) Failures are generally intermittent.
(1) Failure to boot
(2) Error codes
(3) Intermittent crashes
b) Power supplies causing intermittent failures will generally show good voltage, because the supply only sometimes causes a small sag or spike in the voltage that is too quick to be seen even by a multimeter."

...

"Because a large portion of PC failures can be related to faulty power supplies, from loss of CMOS data, loss of hard drive data, and intermittent failures, etc., you must be able to test the power supply."--

So, the CMOS can can be re-set (i.e. loss of CMOS data). On occasion, after I got my machine running I would have to set up the BIOS again meaning data was released. Soooooooo...

I bought a new power supply (Vantec 400W) and my computer has worked fine ever since. Re-cap: My power supply was going bad - replaced it - and everything functions normally.

E


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## clintfan (Sep 4, 2003)

I had similar problems with my Asus P4C800-E Deluxe on first powerup, but I got past all that. I think people have since figured out most of these dead-board problems are being caused by a solder bridge.

1. First problem I think was I had the mouse and keyboard ports reversed (silly me).

2. Second, I was hitting DEL (on the numeric keypad, like they told me in so many docs), to try to enter Setup. WRONG.... they meant the "Delete" key (just underneath "Insert"). But at least for me, I was getting beeps, from the DEL key I was pressing; I thought it was the beep-code for No RAM Detected; I nearly screamed!

To get the mobo working, you really need to get into the BIOS and set stuff up. So that was first order of business.

3. But next I found the mobo and the video card (Matrox P750) don't play well together yet at boot time: the logo screen and Setup screen are nothing but horizontal colored hash (everything else --POST, DOS, and XP outputs-- are all fine). Swapping in an old temporary PCI video card allowed me to get through Setup (although this same issue still remains, even with latest 1010 BIOS on the Asus and 1.2-10 on the P750). (I started a new reference thread about the P750 here).

4. Next problem was the Boot Device Priority was wrong in my Setup. I needed it to be CD-Floppy-HD for proper operation, I think I had it as HD-CD-Floppy or some such.

5. Finally, the "magic" boot floppy I was using for bringup, was made way back on Windows 95, and wasn't playing well with the newer H/W. I cut a new one off Windows 98SE, and then I could boot fine.


Really make sure your fan connections are correct. I've read somewhere that the mobo won't boot at all if it thinks critical fans aren't rotating. 

And make sure the fiddly stuff on the System Connector (bottom right) and your case's USB lines if you have them, are all correct, i.e. you're not grounding something out by accident.

Hope this helps,

-clintfan


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## sddukat (Sep 22, 2003)

*Consider power supply features...*

Hi fellas,

I had the same problem described above with a P4C800 Deluxe. The solution to my problem was to replace my power supply, as others have mentioned, BUT NOT FOR THE SAME REASON.

The reason was my old power supply (only 6 months old) did not have the 4 prong, square configuration, connector required to run P4 systems. The fan would spin, but no POST or boot. Look for a power connector on your board, it is square and has 4 sockets surrounded by the typical white plastic found in all atx power plugs.

If you don't have something connected to it, connect the lead from your ATX PS that can fit there. If you don't have that lead, buy a new power supply that says on box "P4 compliant".


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## George Safford (Sep 1, 2003)

*Not just ASUS!*

I had the same problem with my MSI Neo2-s. In my case it ended up being a bad CPU which was running in the 60's in the bios hardware monitor.


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## DemonYoshi (Oct 10, 2003)

I have pretty much the same problems, it was working fine for about a day while I tried to iron out some IRQ conflicts
I tried to install the chipset inf update... it died, only fans, and drives start up now, no post.
I have:
P4C800-E deluxe
2.4c
1gb xms 4000 pro
Radeon 9700 Pro
SB live platinum
antec true power 430
WD 45gb UltraATA
WD 120GB Ultra ATA
Plextor 8/4/32A
Pioneer DVD drive

I've tried pretty much everything, other hardware, geforce 2, mushkin ram (pc 3000), trying the monitor on another PC, clearing cmos, remmoving everything... nothing works. any ideas?


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## etr9j (Aug 21, 2003)

*It's the mobo.*

Even after all I said I did (above) it kept happening. Even the intermitancy of my issue changed with components installed. I gave up and I took it in to my local real computer store (where people know what they are doing and talking about) and they switched out the motherboard and that was the deal.

So, As ASUS seems to have quality issues, my advice is that the P4C800 (E or not) is the problem. If you can return your mobo and get an exchange go for it. Because it is an AWESOME motherboard (when it works).

E


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## Luck (Oct 4, 2003)

Hey nothing wrong with exchanging the part. Pendragon seems to think the manufacturer is going to be out some money by this. Not so. If it works they will test it and repackage it. It is up to the manufacturer to make sure their motherboard works when you connect it.I wouldn;t waste too much time trying to fix it with settings if it won't go to bios setup using the same parts that you used in another system ,and you know function,it is a bad part. At least exchanging can help eliminate the part as the culprit.


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## ingvar (Nov 11, 2003)

This may be of interest.

I have:
ASUS P4C800-E Deluxe
P4(HT) 3.2Ghz 800MHz FSB
Intel Heatsink
1GB Corsair TwinX PC7300
160GB SATA Seagate Drive
Antec TruePower 480W
Gigacube 256MB 9800Pro (DDR-II)
DVD R/RW
Audigy

When the system was first put together it was quite unstable (note it was not overclocked). During 3D games the game would suddenly terminate after some random time (5mins, 20mins, 30mins etc.). Then it very occassionally reset the machine. A few more days and it occassionally switched itself off. After the last time it switched itself off (not the M/B standby light was on) it would start up and shutdown before getting through the boot process, finally it would switch on for less than a second.

I changed the Antec TruePower 480W supply with another Antec TruePower 480W I have in an different and older machine. Since then I have had NO problems what so ever, it has been completely stable.

This may be of no significances to anyone, but if you have access to an alternate and powerful supply I suggest this as a relatively painless experiment.


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## nickml007 (Jul 4, 2004)

*Similar issues.*

I'm having / have been having issues with the 

Asus P4C800-e Deluxe

I'm convinced that 

A) the board totally sux.

B) I have some unknown compatiblilty issue with the hardware I have.

3.2 P4 800 FSB
Corsair CMX512-4000pt twinx (1 gig matched pc4000)
Antec true power 380w

This is my 4th P4C800-e Deluxe.
2nd PSU
2nd CPU
3rd RAM

the 1st two boards wouldn't post.
3rd one, and IC on the board started smoking, but it at least posted.

the 4th board actually went to bios when I had 1st powered it up on its box it came in.

So i put the computer together, and of course no post.

I took it all apart, isolated it down to MOBO, CPU, thermal right copper heatsink sitting ontop of CPU (not screwed down as to elimanate any grounging out possibilities), GPU, and keyboard.

Now all i get is a post code of 1 long beep and 2 short beeps.

Which in the AMI beep post codes that came with the manual for the MOBO, 3 beeps mean "main memory IO error"

but looking on the internet, the 1 long and short beeps mean video error in other bios post codes.

So I tried both sticks of ram, tried my friends pc2100, tried mutiple GPU's, to no avail.

So, I'm stumped. 

I'm considering ordering a MOBO from another manufacturer, simply so that I can test the ram and CPU.

That seems cheaper than buying more ram, or a CPU.


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## PenDragoN (Jul 13, 2003)

oh boy oh boy oh boy...

always the first thing to write is : this board sux.

What Graphics card did You use when you installed the mobo?
You should be aware that if you used a 3,3 V Graphics card - the mobo will not only deny work, but most likely damage your mobo.

Second - you said you had a post screen. What really makes me wondering is the fact why you hear "beeps" on that board. It has a speech post reporter which tells you what is wrong and what to do. Besides it won't do anything.

Sorry, but when I reead things like that:


> This is my 4th P4C800-e Deluxe.
> 2nd PSU
> 2nd CPU
> 3rd RAM
> ...


the problem definitely exists between keyboard and chair.

Up to now I built up about 48 Systems with this motherboard (respectively the little brother with the i865 "Springdale") and 
I've never heard of anyone who screwed up 4 (in words: FOUR) ASUS mainboards and 2 psus cpus and rams. NEVER.
Upp to now I had exactly one damaged board where the P20378 chip ( Promis raid chip) on a P4C800-E deluxe got damage after 6 weeks of use. **** happens...but what happened to you can no longer be considered as the fault of ASUS.

and just besides: you PC4000 ram is really needless for this machine as long as you do not want it to be oc...

So my advice for you: screw up another few mainboards from another few manufacturers , buy a K6-2 machine and be happy.

Greetz
Pen


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## nickml007 (Jul 4, 2004)

*Oh Boy*

I'm cleary frustrated with this board. When IC's are smoking on the board, its not a problem between the keyboard and the chair.

All of the RMA's is out of frustration and extrapolation of what the problem may be, since this is for the most part a completely new build, I don't have spare components to test with.

I've tried multiple AGP / PCI cards, all within spec.

Yes the board went to bios once, when it was sitting ontop of the mobo box to test initially when I had recieved this round of RMA's.

When I put my PC together, no post.

Put it back on the MOBO box, post error. 

To elminate "extras", i'm using a PC speaker, instead of a sound card, which is where the POST codes are coming from.

Up to now I've built a few systems, mostly with ASUS and never had a problem. This is unprecedented for myself. 

the PC4000 is exactly for that, OC'ing, should this computer ever decide to work.

Also if this board is so error free, why are there so many forums dedicated to this board's issues?


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## George Safford (Sep 1, 2003)

*CPU 4 pin power connector?*

If you do not plug the direct power connector to the CPU 4 pin on the board everything will power up except the CPU!
upper right hand corner! In my Pic!


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## nickml007 (Jul 4, 2004)

*12V 4prong connector*

I know the board won't POST if the 4 prong isn't connected. It is posting, with 1 long beep, 2 short.


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## Harry (Sep 25, 2003)

Any USB devices connected? You get a short beep for each one.


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## nickml007 (Jul 4, 2004)

*No USB, only POST Beeps*

I repeat I have nothing connected except for 

cpu
heatsink / heatsink fan
1 ram dimm
ps2 keyboard
GPU / monitor cable
PSU
PC speaker

the MOBO is sitting on its box, so it isn't grounded out by anything.

I have ordered an Abit IC7-MAX3 to test with, should be arriving in a week.


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## tehsaint (Jul 15, 2004)

*Puzzle*

I have the exact same problem;

P4C800 Deluxe
P4 2.6Ghz 800FSB
1Gb 3200 DDR (2 x 512Mb)

I've taken EVERYTHING out of the mobo, apart from PC speaker, power switch, and CPU.

You'd expect 3 beeps, right? Wrong - I get nothing.

This is mounted in the case (using brass stand-offs), and outside the case (just on the floor).

Now for the really cool thing - 1 in a million times, it'll work!!!

If I keep switching it on and off for around 20 minutes - I'll get 3 beeps ("Memory Error" - which is as expected).

Switch it off again - it dies.

The reason for the motherboard move is I've just got a new case/PSU.

Has the mobo been static fried? Have I broke it in transit? It worked fine in the old case 20 minutes ago - now it won't work in new or old!

Surely, if I've fried the mobo, or just broke it somehow, it wouldn't work at all - why does mine work once per hour?

Anyone got any ideas?


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## Márton Károly (Jul 15, 2004)

*Same problem with an ASUS P4S800*

Hello!

I have a similar problem, but with an ASUS P4S800 motherboard... 

This is what I sent to ASUS tech support:

"I bought a completly new set of hardware yesterday, which included this motherboard. 

My problem is, that it is doesnt work (or at least this is what I think). When I switch the computer on the motherboard, the HDD and my DVD Rom gets electricity for sure but the monitor (Dimarsion 17", worked fine with my old computer few hours earlier) doesnt show anything (despite the blue "NO SIGNAL" message) and I dont hear any boot up noise either (for example: the beep from the CPU). There are no beep warnings from the speaker. Although my Smart Card reader (USB) gets electricity my mouse (USB) and my keyboard (PS2) dont. The blue "NO SIGNAL" box disepears for a second, when I push the power button on the computer, but it reapeares in a moment later.

What I have tried already: pull out every card and HDD, DVD which are not necesary for the boot up part. I tried other memory cards and graphich cards (even a PCI one) from an other computer and I tried my new ones too in an other system (they works fine). I also cleared the CMOS, but I dont believe that the problem is with that one, since this is a first time boot up.

The only thing which I can think about (despite that my motherboard or/and my CPU are bad) is that my CPU (iPentium 2,8Ghz 800FSB 1Mb Cache) has 1Mb cache while the manual of your motherboard sais that the ASUS P4S800 support only (?) CPUs with 512/256Kb Cache.

Can this be a problem, or do you have any other idea which I can check up?

Thank you in advance!"

After I read your posts I also tried to connect the motherboard to my brothers computers power supply (400W as my new one, but other vendor (mine has no name on it)), the problem remained... Now I dont really know what to do... I have to know if I have a problem with my CPU or with my motherboard (or with something else) if I would like to take it back to shop where I bought them... Do you have any idea?

Thank you in advance!

Márton Károly


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## twajetmech (Jul 1, 2004)

*PenDragoN, I'm with you !*

I wonder, one, did any of you bother to wear an anti-stat strap and take anti-stat precautions. two, Corsair memory and this mobo don't seem to like one another....the memory timings for this mobo tend to have to be inputed manually in the bios, since the mobo posts, I tend to think this is a bios setting issue or memory related....3 beeps is a memory read/write error per Asus manual pg 3-1.
Did anyone look to make sure the mobo is not grounding to the case. I'd set the mem timings to 3-4-4-8 @ 2.75V and see if that helps. While the mobo (read 875 chipset) is finicky The majority of problems related to the mobo are not mobo problems, very few in fact end up RMA'd most of the time its error setting the thing up or poor component selection. Its also likely that after 4 mobo's the CPU might be at fault here. A well known issue with the mobo is a weak CMOS battery. Make sure all the standoffs are in their correct position and installed correctly, all cables, (80 pin) are in good condition and installed correctly, memory is well seated etc. I find 4 mobo's bad out of stock hard to believe, unless your supplier is opening them up for inspection and not taking any anti-stat precutions, I suggest if you decide to return the mobo for another one, bring your CPU and memory with you and let them test it right in front of you, my supplier always does that as a matter of curtesy and I've never had a bad Asus mobo. Another reason why there are so many places you'll find people posting about this mobo is because they are not as forgiving as the older PII/PIII mobo's, the Bios is much more sofisticated and the chipset is also much less forgiving than in the past, in comparison to my old P2B-F it would be like pitting a 707 against a 777.
twajetmech


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## Legendus (Jul 1, 2004)

*Work with us*

Would you people please list all of the parts you are using, include the bios version, MB revision #, PSU brand & size, etc.... Please be as detailed as possible and the other forum members may be able to help you. Right now all we have here is a B*T*H session.

:thmbup:

PS: you may try reading some of the success stories on the working ASUS P4C880-E thread.

Oh yeah! by the way the blue no signal box on the monitor is generated by the monitor itself if you are not getting a video signal.


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## tehsaint (Jul 15, 2004)

*Puzzle*

I'm not putting ASUS down - so any ASUS employees can calm it.

In my case, it's just confusing.

True, I didn't wear an anti-static wrist strap - however I did earth myself before hand - like I've done with many successful builds before.

RAM isn't an issue - it's not in the motherboard!!! Nothing is in the motherboard about from CPU, headsink, and the small cable that runs from the power switch (ofcourse, both ATX power cables too)

CPU - Intel P4 2.6Ghz 800FSB

Even with the motherboard OUTSIDE THE CASE (which means no - it's not a "grounding issue") it still doesn't work!!

The confusing part is - if I sit there for 20 minutes switching it on, and off - it'll work once!! It will give the 3 beeps (and YES, I know what that's for, so don't give me any manual page referances).

I'd appreciate some advice as to what could be wrong - lose transistor? Broken solder link?

I'm not stupid. This isn't the first PC I've put together, but it is the first one that's behaved this way.


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## twajetmech (Jul 1, 2004)

Since you are running the same CPU as myself, list your bios settings, maybe then we can see what is going on as to why its not working. "Earthing" youself is hit or miss...it cost TWA sveral tens of thousands of dollars back in 1998 because QA was doing the same thing to PC cards for the aircraft smoke detection system, after seveal letters and a few yelling matches with QA I finally got them to follow proper procedures in the stores dept., and all the bad out of stock issues went away....its so important Boeing even has pouches for straps all over the E/E bay ! as well as grounding recepticals to plug into ! No one is questioning whether or not you are stupid, you wouldn't be asking questions if you were. Having no idea what your skill level is I usually refer to the manual, since a lot of people tend not to want to read it sorry if that offends you. Take the mobo back to where you purchased it and have them test it in front of you with their CPU etc...if it works then have them put in your CPU etc and see, that way you could narrow down which device is a problem, without having to spend any money. And, I don't work for Asus.


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## tehsaint (Jul 15, 2004)

I'm pretty sure it's not the BIOS which is causing problems, as A) I've cleared it twice, and B) I don't think it's getting that far.

Sorry to sound ungrateful - this is really stressing me out.

I just can't understand how it sometimes works - albeit 1 in 100 times I switch it on.

Surely, if it was broken, it wouldn't work AT ALL - why 1 in 100?


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## twajetmech (Jul 1, 2004)

No sweat, I've had that kind of fustration myself....if its posting intermittantly then I'd look at several things....it's possible the switch on the new case is bad or miss-wired, faulty cpu, faulty powersupply or inadequate one ( I know this is the second one you've tried, but) or faulty memory. 
Double check the wiring on the case to the switch and mobo. sometimes the case has a quick disconnect that gets loose on the wires leading from the front of the case.
I'd also look at the cpu and make sure none of the pins are bent or broken.
And I'd try the one dimm in different memory sockets.
And maybe, just maybe the psu isn't working right, if you can check it with a DVM.
If all of that you've done already, let the store you bought it from check it out with their components and yours....something is not working either one of your components or the mobo
Wow, if Asus really did give you 4 faulty mobo's I'd raise all holy hell with them (maybe you'll get something from all of this.)
One last thing, is your CPU a Presscott, and if so, what version of the bios came installed on the mobo (if you can get it to post that far) Prescott's require 1016
I sure hope this helps a bit, it really is an awesome mobo !
twajetmech


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## tehsaint (Jul 15, 2004)

Finally fixed...kind of...

The only thing I hadn't done - during my exploits of removing the motherboard from the case, testing it on the table, putting it back in the case, etc, etc - was remove the heatsink and CPU.

When I removed the heatsink, the CPU came off with it (without the socket locking arm being up)! I had a look, cleaned the VERY dusty heatsink, applied some thermal solution, and re-assembled.

We now have beeps!

Installed all other hardware, and got into the BIOS.

Next problem: the machine switched off after 2-3 minutes.

So, into the BIOS I go to check temperature - 95 degrees - not good.

Switched off machine and ensured heatsink was screwed down firmly.

And there we go - it now works.

Only one problem left - sometimes if I switch the machine off completely, I can't get it back on without opening the case, and pressing down on the heatsink - I'm guessing somewhere there is a poor contact.

At the moment, it'll do - atleast until I can afford to buy a new motherboard, CPU, and heatsink.

Hope this experience helps someone!


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## twajetmech (Jul 1, 2004)

Wow, at no time should the heatsink and cpu be able to come off with the locking arm still locked down......make sure there are no bent pins on the cpu and/or the heatsink is not hitting something and trying to pull the cpu up when you screw it down. If the ZIF socket is faulty have Asus replace the mobo.
twajetmech


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## Moses19 (Jul 17, 2004)

George Safford said:


> If you do not plug the direct power connector to the CPU 4 pin on the board everything will power up except the CPU!
> upper right hand corner! In my Pic!


Thanks, this solved my problems with my P4C800 installation. This was definitely a situation where the problem was between the keyboard and monitor. I really don't know why or how I totally ignored that wire and connector...it's kind of important and all...


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## George Safford (Sep 1, 2003)

*Don't feel Bad!*

On my first P4 board I totally ignored it too.


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## clintfan (Sep 4, 2003)

Newest posts were split into a new thread p4c800-e deluxe and 9800 pro issues  as suggested, to keep this one focused.


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## nickml007 (Jul 4, 2004)

*Update - Solution (sort of)*

I ended up RMA'ing my Asus P4C800-E for a full refund to Newegg. I replaced it with an Abit IC7-Max3 which worked perfectly with the exact same components. I was thinking of purchasing a cheaper board to simply test with, but I realized if it worked I would want to use the new board, so I picked one that had most of the features I was looking for (except IDE RAID (it has SATA Raid)).

Which again leads me to believe:

1) This particular board sucks, or the batch I was RMA'ing from sucks.


2) The PC4000 Corsair doesn't agree with this board.


Just thought I would follow up to let people know what my "fix" was.


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## houblon (Jul 26, 2004)

I put together a system with a P4P800E deluxe, intel 2.8, antec 380W true power PSU. I had the same problem - fans spinning, no beep. When I connected the external speakers, I got the "system failed cpu test" message. I tried everything, removing, re-seating, etc. Finally I replaced the PSU with a generic compusa 400W (starlogic), and now it works fine.

I searched the internet and found several threads that mention an incompatibility with antec PSUs and asus boards. Several people reported that upgrading to a higher Antec PSu does not help, only switchin to a non-antec. The Antec PSU specs of my 380W are actually higher than the Generic PSU.

Needless to say, instead of my quiet sytem (Antec Sonata) I have a noisy sytem now. The Antec PSU is much quieter, better quality. 

Is the problem with antec or asus? Can anything in the bios or in the PSU be changed so the guys will work together?

I noticed that the 4pin CPU plug is hard to put in, could the problem be the plug?


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## George Safford (Sep 1, 2003)

*Rule out the 4 pin connector!*

If you really want to see if it is the CPU 4 pin connector. They make a cable that converts any PSU flat 4 pin to a square used for the CPU. Check it out!


www.micer.com/viewItem.asp?idProduct=453054877&ref=pricewatch


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## nickml007 (Jul 4, 2004)

*Psu*

With board # 3 I tried a generic known working PSU and that didn't help, however that board did post with both PSU's (Antec and generic).

However while it was posting the an IC on it was smoking, so needless to say I returned it. 

Point is with #3 the PSU didn't seem to be the issue.


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## Orbitize (Aug 18, 2004)

ok, first of all, I'm a real noob, so please excuse any 'noobiness' i prolly will say.

Second, I'm kinda asking in the wrong thread. Reason; I dont have this motherboard, but I have a very similar problem with another one.

Ok my problem:

My machine is about 4 years old, and I wanted to update my graphics card.
My old card was a GeForce2 MX 400 32MB and the new card a ATI Radeon 7000 64MB. My computer has worked very nicely since I got it, with no big problems I couldnt solve. This one however is really making me pull my hair out. After inserting the radeon card, and turning power on, nothing. No boot. Fans run, HD and CDROM leds light up for a few secs, but nothing more. No beep, just black screen. A point of interest is that the monitor is getting signal (led is green with signal, orange without, and it is green with the radeon). 

My mobo is Abit KT7A-RAID. I've tried changing some options in the BIOS which I reckoned to be "safer". I set AGP aperture size to 64, disabled all shadowing, set 'assign irq to vga' to enable, and disabled palette snooping.

Unfortunately I do not have another system to test the graphics card, so I do not know if it is defect or it is a compatibility issue. 

If anyone could help me out here I'd be really grateful!

And sorry if this post is malplaced.

Orbitize


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## nadav (Nov 1, 2004)

*New P4C800-E Deluxe won't post won't beep*

Hi,
I'm facing a problem of the same kind, no beeps no post. I haven't yet tried all the suggestions in this forum. I have one question before I go back to my trials and errors.
Would the board give any signal if nothing is mounted on it? No CPU no memory etc., of course the power cables and speaker are connected. This way I can add one component at the time and see what causes the problem.
Thanks...


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## PenDragoN (Jul 13, 2003)

nadav said:


> Hi,
> I'm facing a problem of the same kind, no beeps no post. I haven't yet tried all the suggestions in this forum. I have one question before I go back to my trials and errors.
> Would the board give any signal if nothing is mounted on it? No CPU no memory etc., of course the power cables and speaker are connected. This way I can add one component at the time and see what causes the problem.
> Thanks...


I'm not sure if the P4C gives signal w/o CPU installed - but if installed and any other device (graphics/ram/etc) fails it will surely indicate this.

Is the green LED on the MoBo on? Is the CPU-Fan turning?

Try installing the CPU and check out what's happening...if there's any difference in the state w/o CPU and installed CPU add the other components...

GReetz
Pen


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## nadav (Nov 1, 2004)

*Still no life in my board*

Thank you PenDragoN for the quick response.

I took the board out of the box and put it on a wooden surface.
I shortened the CMOS as the ASUS rep. advised by flipping the battery over in it's place for 30 seconds. I took out everything but the CPU, and left only the power-switch wire and speaker connected. (I disconnected the reset wire, the led wires etc.) There is a green light and the fan does turn. I'm using a P4 2.8 Prescott CPU (SL79K) and a coolermaster fan. I tried taking out the CPU and putting it back in and removed the fan clips to avoid extra pressure to the board. But still no sound of life... :dead:


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## PenDragoN (Jul 13, 2003)

nadav said:


> Thank you PenDragoN for the quick response.
> 
> I took the board out of the box and put it on a wooden surface.
> I shortened the CMOS as the ASUS rep. advised by flipping the battery over in it's place for 30 seconds. I took out everything but the CPU, and left only the power-switch wire and speaker connected. (I disconnected the reset wire, the led wires etc.) There is a green light and the fan does turn. I'm using a P4 2.8 Prescott CPU (SL79K) and a coolermaster fan. I tried taking out the CPU and putting it back in and removed the fan clips to avoid extra pressure to the board. But still no sound of life... :dead:


Aww shXX - I just read you're using a prescott cpu...I know there are some issues concerning this mobo/cpu combination. 
First of all: which board revision do you have? If the revision is <2 please change the mobo immediately at your reseller - this rev won't work properly with any Prescott P4.
The second step would be to find out if the bios us up to date - all biso versions < 1016 do not run quite stable with the Prescott series cpu. (Or at least there are some issues listed...)

So try the following: 
first check out the board revision (to be found between second and third pci-slot) - if < 2 -> go to your hardware vendor and change it. This is too old.
second: normally the bios revision is somewhere around 1012 and 1014 - try to get this thing flashed with the ezflash utility. (Damn!I think normally you'll need a running CPU for that.A vicious circle!) - if this won't do as you want it to do (insert CDrom with a bios rom file on it and press f2 to start flash utility - this requires a graphics adapter to be installed so you can see what's happening.) just take the mobo and let your hardware vendor flash the board - after all he sold you this combination and should be aware of such problems.

If you have further questions you may also contact me via ICQ or email 

Greetz
Pen


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## nadav (Nov 1, 2004)

*Board rev 2.00*

My board revision is 2.00
I am assembling the PC myself, so I can't blame the seller.
One other thing is that I bought all the parts on ebay. So the board and CPU have a very limited warranty against DOA.
I would like to try out any idea before I addrees the local lab with this problem.
Thanks...


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## twajetmech (Jul 1, 2004)

Bios revisions 1016 + support the prescott without a problem. You can NOT use EZFlash above revision 1011...you need to use AFUDOS or LiveUpdate (latest version) to flash the bios with. Known issues with the presscott are only for prescotts 3.2 and above, where the bios will recognize as a 2.8 instead, this seems to be true for all 875P mobos not just Asus. Try booting up with cpu, vidcard, and one memory dimm installed in he A1 slot and see what happens, even if the post fails you should at least get into the bios holding down del as post begins. Make sure the cpu has no bent pins and is installed with proper orientation. Make sure the clr cmos jumper on the mobo is present and in normal position....all power leads connected (there are 2 for a P4) and memory seated properly. and please adhere to proper ESD precautions when handling the cpu, memory etc (wear a ground-strap). Do NOT attempt to run the mobo while it is on the anti-stat bag ( although you said you used a piece of wood ) its conductive and can short out the mobo.


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## nadav (Nov 1, 2004)

*Still no post no beep*

Thanks twajetmech,
I'm not able to get any beep or anything. I don't think I'll be able to get into bios. Besides that I've done everything you said with no luck...


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## GreenBaron (Nov 2, 2004)

Does anyone know if you can mix a 266MHz FSB CPU (1.8GHz Williamette P4) with DDR400 Ram (Kingston Value RAM). I have this combo in a new P4P800-E Deluxe mobo and it won't boot or post.

It does post if I take the memory out with "No memory found" or some such.

Thanks!


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## twajetmech (Jul 1, 2004)

Hmmm, the mobo should post...even if it fails, are you sure you have both power connectors on, one is a 20 pin connector the other is a 4 pin square connector, both attach to the mobo. Can you return the mobo or cpu or better yet try a northwood to see if it will post...I don't think you should be having post problems with a 2.8 prescott....did you install the cmos battery correctly and what psu are you using and vidcard...also make sure there are no usb devices attached while you are doing all this. let me know how it goes


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## GreenBaron (Nov 2, 2004)

Thanks for the reply!

After plugging everything in, it wouldn't boot or post so I unplugged all components and then started adding components one at a time.

Nothing - "No CPU detected"
Added CPU - "Failed memory test"
Added memory - no post!

Verified that both power connectors are in correctly. I also switched the DDR400 RAM with the DDR333 RAM in my P4PE board - the P4PE worked fine with the new RAM and the P4P800-E still didn't work with the old RAM. That rules bad memory out.

I'll try a different PSU (currently an Antec) but returning the mobo is an option so I may just end up doing that.

Thanks.


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## twajetmech (Jul 1, 2004)

While it doesn't completely rule out your memory as an issue, a better psu is a good idea, stay away from Antec for one. PC power and Cooling, Fortron, Sparkle or Enermax of 480W or better is highly recomended. If you do decide to return the mobo, might I suggest the P4C800-E Deluxe....keep us posted !


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## mysterywalrus (Nov 4, 2004)

I had the same problem when I first built my comp 2 summers ago. My mobo is the P4C800 Delux. I couldn't get it to post with the Antec TruePower, I think it was 380 Watts. I tried another identicle PSU and it still didn't work. I bought a generic 450W from Comp USA which worked just fine...
Until now. Yesterday I was working on my computer when it randomly rebooted, but didn't post. Since then I have not been able to get my computer to post, and it behaves as if the square 12 volt connector is not in, even though it certainly is. I've tried disconnecting and reconnecting it several times. I've also tried taking out my Corsair RAM, which didn't make any difference. Any ideas? Also, I don't have a PC speaker, so I can't tell if it's trying to beep at me.


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## ericbass (Sep 24, 2008)

Had the same problem with a P4C800-E Deluxe - could not get the thing to boot from floppy, hard drive or CD. POST would sometimes work and sometimes not.

I hadn't used this PC for 6 months - and when I plugged everything in, I used a DVI cable for the monitor connection (the only video cable I could find). 

I almost gave up with what looked like a dead PC - but then I connected my monitor with a VGA cable and everything worked!

So, if you're having this problem and are trying to boot with your monitor plugged into the DVI output of your graphics card - try using the VGA output!

Cheers,
E


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