Abit IP35 Pro + Corsair PSU = bad ?

[aphotic]

First off hello

I've posted this on forum.abit-usa.com/showthread.php?t=129460 too (can't post links yet here), and since I'm from Sweden(EU) I thought maybe I'd post here aswell, bit "closer to home".
Alot perhaps are on several forums and I think atleast BUFF here is the one that has answered me on the USA-forum already.
I apologize if this was a bad idea posting on both but I really want as many as possible give their input on this matter, and maybe a few aren't on both/have had the same experience with my setup.

Specs first:
Abit IP35 Pro
Intel Q6600
Corsair Dominator PC8500
Corsair HX620W
Powercolor 2900 Pro

Initial setup went great and vey smooth, installed all and got it running without problems for one whole day with reboots etc. Shut down at night and next morning it was dead, only LED showing '87'. Tried all CMOS-resets but nothing. Took everything apart, re-assembled to no avail several times.

Began to search online for similar problems and that's when I ended up here and read the threads regarding specific psu's in conjunction with this mobo giving similar issues. Weird but good enough, I RMA'd both parts in agreement with the store (although I kinda feel they'll test the parts and come up with no problem at all unless they use the same parts I have and not just hook up to some testing station).

I've read alot of people use the exact same parts in their computers, working totally ok. What I would like to know is if I'm as "doomed from the start" for choosing these exact parts as I feel ?

Worst thought atm is that the store won't find anything wrong with the parts themselves -> I'll have to pay them investigating what seems ok. I don't have other parts to just "try with" so I'm abit frantic atm.

So with these conditions set, is it really more stroke of luck if you get it to work with a Corsair PSU+mem and a abit IP35 Pro or ? Should I aim to exchange the psu first, or the memory, or perhaps the mobo?
Which part exchanged would give me the best chance of getting a working computer again.

Posting some replys I've already got;

Originally Posted by Master of None

The power supply is a real potential problem, but the chances of two not working are lower with Corsair, if it was Antec the chances of two not working is much higher.

In the grand scheme of things the IP35 series isn't really picky about memory. The Corsair memory should not be a problem, all their memory should boot with 1.80v, the worst case would be you need to boot with one stick. But I haven't seen that with Corsair, mainly OCZ.

Originally Posted by furballi

1. Assemble only CPU/CPU cooler, GPU, mouse, keyboard, one stick of RAM, and boot HDD on non-conductive surface. Zero fill HDD if it contains old data. Use Master/Slave jumper if two devices are connected to IDE.

2. Disconnect power from PSU and hit power switch on motherboard to discharge caps. Reset CMOS.

3. Boot into windows and manually adjust RAM voltage and timing per the mfr's specs. Change USB keyboard and mouse support from OS to BIOS. Change memory divider to 1:1 (FSB speed = RAM speed). Set optical drive (name of drive near the bottom of the list) as 1st boot, HDD as 2nd boot, and disable boot support for ALL OTHER DEVICES. Hit F10 to save BIOS.

4. Install OS. Upon completion, load Intel chipset, sound, and LAN drivers from CD. Make an image file of this partition if you have DriveImage, Ghost, BING, or TI for safe-keeping.

5. Test system for boot problem. If you still encounter startup problem, then swap out the PSU with an Antec Earthwatts 500 at Staples.

Originally Posted by BUFF

because we have seen a few (very few in the grand scale of things considering how many of these mobos & PSUs have been sold) people having problems with the IP35/HX combo. There are plenty of people runinng them fine together but a few definitely have issues. abit, Corsair & Seasonic are all aware of it & are looking into it.

If anyone got something to add, have a similar/same specs working or any other clue as to what I should try, think of or similar plz reply. Any help is very welcome/appreciated and needed !

Today I got an email from the store saying they've recieved my RMA, so I'll be on the edge of my seat now until I get word from them again

[Elessar_VPR]

I've got pretty much the same specs (mobo, cpu, psu, 2900xt) and been running without problems for a couple of months now. My memory is some Corsair XMS2 6400 rather than the dominator stuff though.

Not sure why the memory should effect things if the problem you are having is CPU voltage related though so would look at the psu or mobo first, but I'm by no means an expert.

[aphotic]

Originally Posted by Elessar_VPR

I've got pretty much the same specs (mobo, cpu, psu, 2900xt) and been running without problems for a couple of months now. My memory is some Corsair XMS2 6400 rather than the dominator stuff though.

Not sure why the memory should effect things if the problem you are having is CPU voltage related though so would look at the psu or mobo first, but I'm by no means an expert.

What I could gather from the LED-code is that somehow either the mobo thinks the cpu don't get the voltage it should, or the psu <-> mobo communication gets mixed up and one doesn't know what the other is doing. Something like the mobo feeling the cpu is in place, but at the same time not feeling the cpu is fed the voltage since the psu don't understand/get the signal the cpu is there..err

I'm just rambling thoughts atm, dunno if I make any sense at all

On a sidenote, your 2900XT, how did you connect power to that one ? Did you use both PCI-e outputs/cables from the Corsair PSU, i.e you got both the 8 -pin and the 6-pin connected now?

[aphotic]

Just wanted to update this, I got email today saying they're returning the motherboard to me as it was, it had surpassed all stresstests and installations they tried without any problem.

When testing the PSU they had experienced a problem, I don't know the exact problem but it got returned back to Corsair in norway and I'm getting a new one from there, one that hopefully won't give me any similar issues...ever again.

I'll bring an update when I get it and can move over to my new shiny computer, hoping to report flawless behaviour

[Elessar_VPR]

Yeah hopefully will work fine, they're good PSU's maybe you just got a bad one.

By the way for the 2900Xt I'm using 2x6pin PCIe connectotrs as I don't have the 8Pin.

[aphotic]

Ok, yes I read earlier that it's supposed to be atleast 2x 6-pin connected to those gfx-cards, always good to be re-assured ty =)

[Alaza]

I can report that I've had the same PSU and mobo with a Q6600 and Super Talent RAM for two days now without any issue of this kind... Hope it stays this way.

[mykro]

same here. corsair 620w psu and ip35 pro mobo (with g-skill memory). all fine.

[PeteG@Scan]

Just to add mate. Someone mentioned above that you should set the memory to the voltage recomended by Corsair. The voltage that those sticks need to be stable is somewhere in the region of 2.1v's (most boards Default to 1.8) and if you haven't changed it, will be quite sporadic in it's posting. You may find it works fine for a few weeks but then nothing.

Clear the cmos, reinsert one stick (or put some cheep generic memory in, if you have it) and set your bios up before putting all four sticks back in. It's quite a common problem with high performance memory and high end motherboards (680 / ip35's)

May not be your issue, but something worth trying.

[aphotic]

A reeeally slow update from me, but here's how it panned out in the end. I got the psu exchanged, the mobo returned was my own and wasn't exchanged due to it not being faulty at all according to the support.
I put it all back in and it's been running flawless since then, which is a good indication I guess, since I made this thread quite some time back =)

So I can write this off with me having bad luck in getting a bad psu from the start. The memories however are still running at the bios default 1,8V.
Actually hadn't thought about changing it until I saw this post again(got an email when replied to), refreshing my memory, and atm it feels like I'll just leave it as it is since it's working just fine, CPU running at 3GHz.
Maybe it's more important to increase voltage with more sticks, dunno. But if it works, don't fix it eh