new pc keeps rebooting

[edp33]

I've just put together a pc with the following spec

e5200
akasa 965
Gigabyte GA-EP31-DS3L motherboard - Revision 1.0 with F4 Bios
2x2GB Corsair 5-5-5-18 DDR2 RAM
Force3D 4830
Corsair 450VX PSU
Coolermaster 330 case

and after installing Windows XP with SP1 it has a habit of rebooting alot, sometimes it does get to windows. It also didn't turn off on shut down but rebooted, but seems to shut down ok now. It has the wrong multipler in the default bios settings, placing the e5200 at 1.8ghz, i've changed it to 200fsb x 12.5 = 2.5ghz but it doesn't seem stable. I tried installing the chipset drivers but it ended up hanging. Bios seems to be the latest one(excluding the 5a beta release) and the box says it supports 45nm cpus. The cpu temperature starts at around 18 and idles around 27C, system temperature is around 35C at the moment.

Could it be because dual core's aren't supported under XP SP1?, should I install SP3 before installing other drivers, or could it be that the default bios settings are set up incorrectly, possible the volts? and they need sorting?

If anyone can tell me what the bios settings for a stock e5200 should be including voltages etc that would be great.

[chuckskull]

Here's the specification page for your CPU http://processorfinder.intel.com/det...px?sSpec=SLAY7

Short version 1.3625v, 12.5x multi and 200mhz FSB.

SP1 supports dual cores but it's a long way from perfect, and has no support for power management in dual cores. Try disabling all the power saving features of the CPU, if SP1 is the problem your system should be a lot more stable(speedstep and C1E, be in the BIOS somewhere).

Another thing to check is RAM voltages and timings. The voltage should be displayed on the packaging if not, 2.0v is a good place to start and run Memtest. Also worth checking it's seated properly or switching dimm slots. Some motherboards also require a slight boost in northbridge voltage for 4GB RAM. This normally only for 4x1GB, still worth a shot.

[edp33]

After my last post the motherboard refused to boot, so I cleared the cmos, then chose load fail safe defaults, it seemed to keep the 200x12.5 settings and seemed stable. I managed to install XP SP3 and all the drivers. Memory is set by SPD which matches the 5-5-5-18 spec by corsair, though it is running at 1.8v, corsair seem to recommend 1.9v ? - http://www.corsair.com/_datasheets/T...096-6400C5.pdf
CPU vcore is 1.22500V should that be higher ?

I ran furmark to check the graphics card was ok and that ran fine, max temperature was around 70C after 10 minutes, average was around 50c.

However I went to install S.T.A.L.K.E.R clearsky game that came with the graphics card and it took literally over 30 minutes to install, it seemed to take ages copying files across, I have a SATA Samsung drive. Anyhow it finally installed and the game played fine.

I have my sata drives configured in the following order
HDD0 master - Empty
HDD1 slave - DVD
HDD2 master - Samsung HDD
HDD3 slave - Samsung HDD

This morning went to copy some files across from one HDD to another and it forced a reboot.

Any ideas?

[chuckskull]

Your voltages are a little low. Set your CPU vcore to 1.36v and your RAM to 1.9v.

TBH this is sounding like a RAM problem. Hopefully the voltage boost will fix it. Once you've done all that it might be worth running a stability test like Orthos http://sp2004.fre3.com/beta/beta2.htm

SATA drives no longer worry about master/slave as there's only one drive per cable. The problem copying files sounds more like ram than HDD atm.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I would also set the RAM timings manually!! Set them to the loosest settings you can get them to!
I would also set the frequency manually to 800mhz or the divider which corresponds to it. You can use CPU-Z to check the settings of your RAM in windows and your CPU speed and voltage.

I would also move the RAM to the other set of coloured slots too. Some motherboards have preferences for the slots used.

If there is an option for ECC RAM in your BIOS disable it(I doubt there is one as your chipset does not support it IIRC).

[edp33]

Just checked the cpu support list for the motherboard and it seems that e5200 is only supported from beta bios f5a?
http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/M...ProductID=2779

I have f4 at the moment, not keen on updating the bios as I have heard lots of horror stories !

[chuckskull]

Just checked the cpu support list for the motherboard and it seems that e5200 is only supported from beta bios f5a?
http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/M...ProductID=2779

I have f4 at the moment, not keen on updating the bios as I have heard lots of horror stories !

Looks like you'll have to update it. Do NOT use any of the windows based utilities with an unstable computer. It's called @BIOS for gigabyte iirc. I can't stress that enough, don't flash from within windows.

You will need to use the Q-Flash utility from the POST menu http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/FileList/...ech_qflash.htm Read all the instructions a couple of times, take your time and you should be fine.

EDIT: Double check which revision you have too, there's 3 version of that board according to the website.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Looks like you'll have to update it. Do NOT use any of the windows based utilities with an unstable computer. It's called @BIOS for gigabyte iirc. I can't stress that enough, don't flash from within windows.

You will need to use the Q-Flash utility from the POST menu http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/FileList/...ech_qflash.htm Read all the instructions a couple of times, take your time and you should be fine.

EDIT: Double check which revision you have too, there's 3 version of that board according to the website.

Very good advice!! If your computer is unstable do not use a Windows based BIOS flashing utility as you could FUBAR the motherboard!! Also check the revision of your motherboard too as there seems to be three as the previous poster has stated!!

[edp33]

yep it says revision 1.0 on the motherboard, strange as I only got it two days ago thought I would get the latest revision !

Will try flashing it this lunch time

[edp33]

Thanks for the advice so far. It upgraded to f5a ok, thanks for the tip on qflash instead of @bios

However, it still takes ages for win xp to load, gets stuck on that progress bar screen, then when it does come up, if I try to select anything from the hard drives it takes a long time, though it didn't crash this time.

I tried changing the on-chip sata from auto to enhanced as that is for sata only devices apparently, and it finishes the progress screen much quicker but then reboots itself before I get into windows.

I'm thinking I should reinstall windows again, as changing the on-chip sata setting may have conrupted my installation?

I also increase the memory voltage to 1.9 but still no luck I haven't increased the cpu vcore yet.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Manually set the timings in the RAM and do not rely on the SPD. Try a looser setting like 7-7-7-21 for example.

Also set the speed manually. You could try 667mhz instead of 800mhz.

[sadbuttrue]

It could simply be a dying hard disk. In my experience, when windows NEEDS a file located on bad sectors it has a habbit of never giving up in its attempt to read.

[chuckskull]

You hard disk problem might be caused by it crashing when you were installing the chipset drivers. Try uninstalling and reinstalling(get the latest ones off the web).

If Enhanced mode causes problems, switch back to auto in the BIOS(before installing the drivers again).

[edp33]

Hi

It is finally working The memory was in slots 2 and 4, so change it to 1 and 3. I also changed on chip sata to non combined, which I think is sata only and that seems to have done the trick

Amazing how fast win xp is now, really happy thanks for your help

Might look into how to reduce fan speed now as it seems a bit noisy, though the cooling is excellent, 30C average GPU temperature idle and 25 CPU. Or look into overclocking, however it seems pretty nippy as it is, it is an upgrade from a single core 939 with 6600GT though

[edp33]

spoke to soon Went to add the printer and scanner and the drivers kept coming up as corrupted, so I thought perhaps it was the files on the website and tried elsewhere same problem. Every file I try to download won't run it comes up as corrupt. Ran avast anti virus - no problems, also running full HD surface scan now.

[blueball]

If you now have the hardware stable I would suggest that you reinstall windows. It may not be handling your hardware properly now that you have changed things around in the BIOS.

Additionally I had a nightmare with Corsair memory on two different gigabyte boards and ended up ditching the memory and buying Geil. No more probs.