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Thread: AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0

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    • PC Pilot's system
      • Motherboard:
      • AA8XE - 3rd Eye (V1.0) - BIOS 26
      • CPU:
      • Intel P4 3.73 GHz Extreme Edition
      • Memory:
      • 4 GB Crucial Ballistic (2 X PC2-8500/2 X PC2-5300)
      • Storage:
      • 1 X Samsung 1TB SATA 3 Gb/s/1 X Caviar Black 750GB SATA 3 Gb/s
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Leadtek PX6800 GT TDH 256MB DDR3
      • PSU:
      • Dark Power Pro BN074 - BQT-P7-PRO 650W
      • Case:
      • Antec P160
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
      • Monitor(s):
      • Samsung SyncMaster 710s
      • Internet:
      • Linksys AG241 V2 - ADSL2 Gateway and Router

    AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0

    Hi,

    Hope that somebody can assist me with this frustrating issue which continues to perplex my limited computer system knowledge

    To offer brief background this system was my primary PC until Jan 2010 prior to replacement with a custom built i7 system. Prior to this new setup I was having to leave the system powered 24/7 as it had become a struggle to reboot successfully from cold However, once booted the system would function flawlessly and happily reboot/restart at will until switched off and a cold restart attempted.

    Following a Motherboard failure resulting from a blown PSU on an unrelated Gigabyte spare system I deceided to utilise and upspec memory and PSU on the AA8XE system as a replacement. NB. At this stage the system has no OS or HDD's installed just CPU, memory and floppy/IDE optical drives.

    Once again the intermittent cold boot issue has arisen always resulting in a post code fail at 9.0 with no display. Several Power Off attempts/restarts later and I can successfully boot to FF and Disk Boot Failure (no HDD's installed remember!). Subsequent reboots/restarts are a breeze........until next 'cold' start of course.

    I have removed all memory and still have the same issue excepting when successful restart fails at C1. Memory sticks replaced and swapped one at a time to eliminate bad memory and no issues found problem persists.

    Once booting normally CPU is recognised all memory (including above test configurations) recognised correctly and IDE optical drives recognised.......even boots off an OS cd!

    As the issue is intermittent and relates only to a start from cold I suspect that it is related to the motherboard and wonder if it is possibly a problem with the BIOS chip?

    Would welcome any advice to resolve this issue.

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    Unhappy Re: AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0

    According to Abit post code (http://www.abit.com.tw/faq/code.html), post 9.0 means -
    Description: Complete µGuru initial process AWARD BIOS take over booting job.
    Symptom: (1) Power on -> Stop at 9.0. (2) 0.0.-> 8.3. -> 9.0.
    Cause: Award BIOS initial stop processing. (1) OC too high. (2) BIOS dead.
    Action: (1) Clear CMOS. (2) Restore default setting for BIOS. (3) Replace BIOS chip. (4) Send to RMA at last.

    Seeing as you can (eventually) boot right thru to completion I would think there is a problem on the board somewhere between the boot BIOS and the Award BIOS - Possibly a dry joint??
    The Award BIOS can't be completely naffed otherwise it would always fail 100% but that isn't the case here.
    If it's a replaceable chip, try re-seating it after cleaning the pins. I've done this in the distant past by gently pushing the chip into a clean eraser a couple of times to remove any build-up of oxidisation.

    Other than that, I think it's time for an RMA. Abit won't be terribly fast on this unless you bought it from a retailer that just might have a spare mobo or knows where to get one.
    Worst case scenario - buy a different mobo or buy another AA8XE from eBay.

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    • PC Pilot's system
      • Motherboard:
      • AA8XE - 3rd Eye (V1.0) - BIOS 26
      • CPU:
      • Intel P4 3.73 GHz Extreme Edition
      • Memory:
      • 4 GB Crucial Ballistic (2 X PC2-8500/2 X PC2-5300)
      • Storage:
      • 1 X Samsung 1TB SATA 3 Gb/s/1 X Caviar Black 750GB SATA 3 Gb/s
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Leadtek PX6800 GT TDH 256MB DDR3
      • PSU:
      • Dark Power Pro BN074 - BQT-P7-PRO 650W
      • Case:
      • Antec P160
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
      • Monitor(s):
      • Samsung SyncMaster 710s
      • Internet:
      • Linksys AG241 V2 - ADSL2 Gateway and Router

    Re: AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0

    Hi Freedomdwarf,

    Many thanks for the rapid response....truly impressed !!

    My suspisions were some sort of component failure perhaps and dry joint does seem very plausible....where to look though?? Any ideas as to which portion of the board may be likely suspect for such a failure.....or components to consider?? .....any techies worked on similr issues with this board???

    Will try to dislodge then clean as suggested the BIOS chip/seat and re-seat to see if this resolves.

    What is the RMA process since Abit's demise as motherboard manufacturer....and how long does it take? Wasn't even aware this still possible... always remember the excellent UK support available through Mickey and Sean in Stevenage they were always very helpful when my limited troubleshooting hit the buffers

    Missed an AA8XE in Brighton in November by 3 days......went for £16 ....but non on ebay since

    Greatful for any further assistance ....from anybody

    Many thanks again Freedomdwarf

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    • PC Pilot's system
      • Motherboard:
      • AA8XE - 3rd Eye (V1.0) - BIOS 26
      • CPU:
      • Intel P4 3.73 GHz Extreme Edition
      • Memory:
      • 4 GB Crucial Ballistic (2 X PC2-8500/2 X PC2-5300)
      • Storage:
      • 1 X Samsung 1TB SATA 3 Gb/s/1 X Caviar Black 750GB SATA 3 Gb/s
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Leadtek PX6800 GT TDH 256MB DDR3
      • PSU:
      • Dark Power Pro BN074 - BQT-P7-PRO 650W
      • Case:
      • Antec P160
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
      • Monitor(s):
      • Samsung SyncMaster 710s
      • Internet:
      • Linksys AG241 V2 - ADSL2 Gateway and Router

    Re: AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0

    .......fogot to add have already tried CMOS reset and I am running BIOS defaults at this stage save 'graphics initialise PCIx' rather than default 'PCI' ......not currently overclocked.

    Seem to recall that RAM voltages at AA8XE default were wrong (.....only a distant memory so may not be correct on that) if so might this cause a 9.0 and this issue??

    Thanks again.........

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    • PC Pilot's system
      • Motherboard:
      • AA8XE - 3rd Eye (V1.0) - BIOS 26
      • CPU:
      • Intel P4 3.73 GHz Extreme Edition
      • Memory:
      • 4 GB Crucial Ballistic (2 X PC2-8500/2 X PC2-5300)
      • Storage:
      • 1 X Samsung 1TB SATA 3 Gb/s/1 X Caviar Black 750GB SATA 3 Gb/s
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Leadtek PX6800 GT TDH 256MB DDR3
      • PSU:
      • Dark Power Pro BN074 - BQT-P7-PRO 650W
      • Case:
      • Antec P160
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
      • Monitor(s):
      • Samsung SyncMaster 710s
      • Internet:
      • Linksys AG241 V2 - ADSL2 Gateway and Router

    Re: AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0

    Further update I have noticed that when the cold boot 9.0 fail occurs the Graphics Fan does not spin up at boot however when the full boot sequence initiates the Graphics fan comes immediately to life as soon as the power button is pressed. NB. I have tried reseating the graphics card but it has made no difference.

    Also the power button will not power off the system when at 9.0 fail......though I suspect this is because the system boot sequence has not fully initiated?

    Hope this extra info is of some use......

    PC Pilot

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    Re: AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0

    Code 9.0 relates to a CPU fault. By that I don't mean that your CPU is faulty but when the uGuru chip passes over to the BIOS the CPU fails to post.

    This can be caused by one of the following:
    - Faulty CPU. (Try another CPU, if have one)
    - Faulty PSU. (Intermittent 12v power to the CPU would cause this problem, try another PSU)
    - Faulty motherboard. (Maybe a few caps on the motherboard starting to fail or failed. Hard to fix unless you can see any blown caps on the motherboard)

    I doubt it is anything to do with the BIOS. If the BIOS was faulty you wouldn't be able to post at all.

    Hope this helps.

  7. #7
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    • PC Pilot's system
      • Motherboard:
      • AA8XE - 3rd Eye (V1.0) - BIOS 26
      • CPU:
      • Intel P4 3.73 GHz Extreme Edition
      • Memory:
      • 4 GB Crucial Ballistic (2 X PC2-8500/2 X PC2-5300)
      • Storage:
      • 1 X Samsung 1TB SATA 3 Gb/s/1 X Caviar Black 750GB SATA 3 Gb/s
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Leadtek PX6800 GT TDH 256MB DDR3
      • PSU:
      • Dark Power Pro BN074 - BQT-P7-PRO 650W
      • Case:
      • Antec P160
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
      • Monitor(s):
      • Samsung SyncMaster 710s
      • Internet:
      • Linksys AG241 V2 - ADSL2 Gateway and Router

    Re: AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0

    Hi Sean,

    Thanks for your helpful reply, ..........just wondering are you the same Sean formerly working out of Stevenage with Mickey??? If so we have conversed on a number of occasions re this board (....and an earlier BH6) up to 2006!!

    It would appear from your reply that the CPU is most likely cause? Interestingly, ....and perhaps unrelated?.....one of our last conversations concerned the loss of normal CPU temperature data output to the 3rd Eye as I recall it was registering minus figures whilst all other temperature read outs/fan speeds were still normally displayed on the 3rd Eye. I learned to live with that one but now wonder if this is maybe linked to the cold boot issue?

    Of the other cause noted, I have used 2 PSU's on this system a (P4 Ready) Enermax Noisetaker II at 600W and the current BeQuiet Dark Power Pro 650W Modular (tested on an i7 System!) so think the PSU is least likely.

    In respect of the caps, which capacitors are most likely to be involved with an issue of this sort?? Just to help me narrow down the troubleshooting....

    Other posters here and forums elsewhere suggest the BIOS chip and note that the uGuru 9.0 issue with this board is not uncommon. Clearly you feel this is unlikely here, is this an altogether separate issue with different syptoms to those reported by me then? See the following thought offered:

    [I
    ]"this seems to be a well known issue with this board and the common answers are replace bios chip or rma the board.

    on a warm boot (reboot) the GURU Power On Sequence isn't used because it's assumed the voltages are already stable (the psu is already in use) so only the AWARD sequence is processed and it does no voltage checking -- if there were a power problem though it would still be evident due to the system crashing.

    so it would appear the problem is confined to the GURU Power On Sequence code of the post code (which is processed for the cold boot only).

    your observation that the graphics fan is unpowered when there is a 90 failure would indicate there is a problem when initializing the PCIe power controller IC resulting in no PCIe voltage which would lead to a failed voltage ready state and thus the Power On Sequence fails.

    if it were a code error then a bios update could have corrected it, so it's likely a circuit design error or component failure.

    the odd thing about this is there are two solutions -- suggesting two problems -- one being there is a problem with (some) bios chips and the other being (some) boards have circuit (and/or signal) issues."[/
    I]

    Returning to the CPU, I will try another P4 550 3.4GHz CPU originally in the system at build (and very little used) so will give that a try. Just a thought... could such an issue (and/or the temp readout error) be caused by breakdown of the Artic Silver Thermal compound?

    Your further advice much appreciated.......

    PC Pilot

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    • PC Pilot's system
      • Motherboard:
      • AA8XE - 3rd Eye (V1.0) - BIOS 26
      • CPU:
      • Intel P4 3.73 GHz Extreme Edition
      • Memory:
      • 4 GB Crucial Ballistic (2 X PC2-8500/2 X PC2-5300)
      • Storage:
      • 1 X Samsung 1TB SATA 3 Gb/s/1 X Caviar Black 750GB SATA 3 Gb/s
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Leadtek PX6800 GT TDH 256MB DDR3
      • PSU:
      • Dark Power Pro BN074 - BQT-P7-PRO 650W
      • Case:
      • Antec P160
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
      • Monitor(s):
      • Samsung SyncMaster 710s
      • Internet:
      • Linksys AG241 V2 - ADSL2 Gateway and Router

    Question Re: AA8XE - 3rd Eye - Intermittent Cold Boot - Post Code 9.0



    Hi again Sean.....and everybody

    Still trying to resolve this M/B issue with my AA8XE 3rd eye and hope this further info will help you to point me in the right direction!!

    1. As suggested, have tested with second (technically now 3rd!) PSU (a Be Quiet Dark Power Pro 750W) same result....

    2. No evident damage to capacitors or other components.....that I can see on close visual inspection!!

    3. As suggested I have swapped the CPU for the 3.4 GHz P4 550 also same result but.....


    4. CPU fan speed apeared to be making random adjustments, sounded like it was revving almost like hunting for a comfortable speed. Checked out connections etc no obvious defects. Applied very gentle pressure to the corner of the fan/heatsink assembly (slight board flex?) fan immediately sped from 1440 rpm to 3240 rpm, relaxed pressure and the rpm reduced once more!

    5. Whilst seeking to address the reving CPU fan (3.above) I also noted that the issue of the CPU temperature reading is seemingly related as it records whilst applying the very gentle pressure to the CPU heatsink/fan assembly on its corner nearest the cpu fan 4 pin plug. As with the reving fan, relaxing the pressure results in the guru clock/abit EQ readout in bios again recording 0 degrees C....

    6. Booted to Mini XP(Hiren's Boot CD) and ran CPUz which shows the UGuru monitor is getting a consistent undervoltage reading from the ATX +3.3V DUAL regulator. It has been suggested to me (by wiser head than mine ) that this is likely to produce a fail on uGuru POST 8.C. 3VDUAL voltage ready

    CPUz Reports:

    3.4 GHz http://www.techsupportforum.com/foru...0&d=1294882645

    3.73 GHz http://www.techsupportforum.com/foru...4&d=1294918723

    Any thoughts on this???

    7. Things have currently progressed (rather regressed ) further as I no longer have an intermittent boot fail rather a consistent boot fail at Post Code 9.0. Also, the PCI Express fan invariably fails to start, however as before it can be started after many random boot attempts but this no longer coincides with the initiation of boot sequence. NB. Once the board has started this Graphics card fan it will easilly start on subsequent (now warm?) boot attempts (much as was the case with previous intermittent OS boot) but now cannot get past the 9.0 fail

    I have also noticed that the CPU temp reading is now absent on the guru clock (cannot now get to BIOS so cant give an Abit EQ observation off the Uguru menu) for BOTH CPU's but still records when exurting slight pressure between the CPU Fan socket and its nearest CPU Heatsink mounting screw. Coinciding with the latest fail state, the Guru clock is no longer providing a readout of the CPU frequency in respect of either CPU. NB. This was always displayed prior to the permanent fail being experienced.

    Interestingly the CPU fan hunting has also disappeared but it is now running permanently at the lower speed of 1440 ish rpm which I suspect is rather too slow. The board flex no longer varies it either

    I believe these issues must be linked in some way, does the uGuru chip control cpu fan speed for example, does it use the voltage/temperature readings as reference data whilst posting??

    7. I am keen to make use of the 925XE chipset offered by this board (64 bit ready 3.73 GHz CPU 1066 FSB if you recall) and should this issue not be possible to resolve to a particular component(s) can you advise how I might seek to RMA the board and how long this might take? NB. Non available on ebay!!

    Many thanks again for your input, I await your thoughts on the above observations with keen anticipation!!!

    PC Pilot

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