Asus P5K Premium black pearl ED very strange issue!!

[Crylon]

the strange thing though is that at first my pc ( with stock settings) ran perfectly fine(with 4gbram) until I started oc'ing the system.The problem didnt arise immediately after oc'ing ...., it just started boot failing after some time.

[pg53]

Seems like the P35 is just borderline with 4GB of certain types of ram - mine worked fine for 1 day but then would just never boot. I think basically it's out of spec in some subtle way and the one time it worked was just a fluke. So I caved in and bought 4GB OCZ as 2x2GB ( PC2-8500C5 1066MHz Dual Channel Platinum Series DDR2 OCZ2P10664GK) and now it works 100%, rock solid, overclocks like a good un. (Course, I only get 3-and-a-bit GB with 32 bit, but my intention was to use this machine as my 64-bit try-out. But now the i7 is out there . . .)

[tony37]

My computer unexpectedly powering off without warning. My mother was typing a long Christmas e-mail when it happened also !! This sometimes follows by an immediate pc 'restart' or 'shut down'. Am also getting error messages during POST saying 'Over clocking failed !!' Please press F1 to run setup or press F2 to load default values. I have to reset the mains extension switch as well as the psu power switch to get the pc running again. Initially I blamed by 650 Watt Be-Quiet Dark Power Pro Modular PSU and replaced it with a BFG 800w PSU.

Problem still the same, computer keeps powering off at all stages of running up the pc, Before POST, After POST, during Windows run-up and whilst in windows. Its 'INTERMITTENT'. ASUS Techs said to update BIOS or reset battery for 10 seconds. The motherboard manual says you don’t have to reset the battery 'ANYMORE' with this new Motherboard. Updated to latest 2008 bios version via the Taiwan website - BIOS Version 08.00.12 date: 06/19/08. Problem still the same.

PC Tech at PC World said to check that the thermal compound paste has 'COMPLETELY' covered the 'ENTIRE' surface (CPU Die) of the CPU. Fan removed, used 2 solvents and a lint free cloth to remove and polish CPU die and underside of fan. Re-applied Arctic Silver thermal compound paste to entire surface area of cpu using a card tool. Checked to make sure there’s no holes (no compound) as you can get sharp heat spikes in causing pc to shut off. Problem still the same.

Completely stripped down pc leaving only BFI psu and chassis fans in the case. Checked motherboard and all cables for any short circuits i.e. anything that could be touching the earth. All o.k. Problem still the same.

Changed the DRAM frequency from the forced option 'DDR2 1066MHz' back to Auto as the book says to do this if system becomes unstable. Problem same.

Temporarily replaced mouse, keyboard and monitor data cable to rule out they are sending power spikes to the ports at the rear of the motherboard. Problem same.

Have narrowed problem down to motherboard by 'Process of elimination'. Have pressed F2 on BIOS error message to clear fault, but not happy with this as have turned off onboard audio and firewire. I will increase the memory voltage as my last resort. I was about to buy a new motherboard when I came across this site via Google search, and read some of the sad stories of people waisting dosh on new motherboards. The ASUS P5K is a great motherboard from the reviews. I'm a bit pissed off with the 'Rollercoaster Ride' I've had to go through, considering most of the parts in my machine are all recommended in the custom pc magazine.

Here's my hardware spec:

800 Watt BFG PSU ATX 2.2
OCZ PC2-8500 Reaper HPC Edition OCZ2 RPR 10662GK (2 x 1 GB) DDR2 Memory
ASUS P5K Premium - Black Pearl Edition Mainboard
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Case fan - Supplied with CPU!!
ANTEC Sonata Case
Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Sound Card
Samsung SpinPoint F1 HD753LJ 750GB Hard Drive
PowerColor 512MB GDDR5 Dual DVI Cross Fire X HD 4870 Graphics Card

I think its the Intel P35 chipset problem now as what a lot of folks have said. Have seen that OCZ is 'NOT' in the table of ASUS Recommended Memory Suppliers. I have used a total of 2 GB in my system and 'Not' 4 Gb like what most folks have used and still having problems. Hope this helps many folks having similar problems.

[synaesthesia]

Had a fair few issues with numerous P35 boards with 4x1gb sticks with systems I've looked at in the past. I typically chose Asus P5k-e boards for higher end and Gigabyte DS3 boards for more budget end - however on balance the Asus seemed to be that little bit more choosey with it's ram, something that can be seen easily on the Asus community forums. Not just the amount and configuration but the brands and specs in some instances.

[tony37]

At present, I have set the DRAM Voltage to 2.1 Volts and has helped. With this, I can hear some electrical clicking sounds on switch on and after switch off. I cannot pin point the source of this. It's not the psu as its brand new and had same problems with my old one.

My PC is stable so far as I have made one new hardware configuration change. My new ATI Radeon HD 4870 manual doesn't mention this and the Motherboard manual only mentions this as an option!! Here goes folks:

I am refering to page 2-31 of the P5K Premium Black Pearl Edition User Guide under the heading 'ATX power connectors' reference to the 2 x 4-pin EATX12V . I used a watchmakers flathead screwdriver to *** carefully remove the cap on the EATX12V connector. I removed the 4-pin ATX12V power cable from the 4-pin connector and used the 8-pin ATX12V power cable from my BFG power supply instead ***. It does mention on the next page of the manual that system may become unstable or may not boot up if the power is inadequate. I have found that by using the full 8-pin ATX12V configuration helps.