OK, first thing's first. This is my first build, but I've been putting parts into computers for a few years now, and felt completely comfortable installing this new motherboard. I'm also not one to ask for help for anything, but I've researched and attempted many different fixes, and still that red light glares at me evilly from behind the DIMM slots. More on that problem in a bit...
So, specs. You want 'em, I got em.
Asus M5A97 R2.0
AMD FX 8350 4.0GHz
EVGA Geforce GTX 960
XION 700w PSU (Recently changed to Corsair RM650w)
All kinds of different RAM to play with (x2 2GB, x2 4GB, all at 1600 MHz, and another 4GB@1333)
What's happening: Before even attempting this, I took pictures of my old motherboard (Asus M4A77TD with AMD Phenom II 965 3.4GHz, blue screen issues, hence my decision to do this), all connections to the board, which SATA cable was hooked to which slot, etc. Everything was carefully looked at and compared to the new board (both are pretty similar) before I attempted anything. Everything (including myself) was properly grounded. I pulled everything apart, dug out the old board, carefully placed the new one in place, ensuring no wires were underneath, and commenced to hooking up everything in it's proper place. All connections were snug (including that new gigantic video card...upgraded from a GTX 750, quite a difference!) and everything seemed to be hooked up where it needs to be. After checking it over roughly 5 times, decided it was moment of truth time. I plug 'er in, fire 'er up and it seems like all is well...the SB Power light is shining green, all fans turn on and seem to be working well. But there's a red light on the upper-right...the good ol' DRAM LED. It's staying solid and not doing anything. And there's no signal to the monitor. So, after turning it off, I ran searches on what the causes were, why it wasn't working, and what fixes to try (minus seeing how far I can throw the tower, motherboard and all...hey, it's still mostly under warranty!). I'll list what I've done so far (hopefully I don't forget anything) and maybe, just maybe, someone can help me get this figured out.
Here we go:
-Read the manual
-Secured all connections (especially the ATX power connectors)
-Tried (and still am trying) the "one stick of RAM" trick. With every one of my cards.
-Held down the MemOK! button. Light flashes slowly at first and gradually speeds up (assuming it's some type of power cycling, as the fans all seem to speed up as well)...after it's done flashing, nothing but the solid red light.
-Checked to make sure the processor was seated correctly...with this board setup, I would think that it'd be rather difficult to screw that part up, but still...
-Checked the processor for bent pins.
-Tried placing my video card into the other PCIe slot (there's 2 on this board, one at x16, the other at x4. x16 is what's recommended, I guess)
-Tried using both the HDMI and DVI-I ports, on both slots. There's no VGA on this card.
-Tried using my old video card
-Tried using the new processor on my old motherboard (hey, I was desperate!)
-Tried a bare-bones start-up of the board (CPU w/fan, 24-pin and 8-pin connected only, short-starting the case power switch)
-Checked compatibility of the CPU (it's good)
-Replaced the XION 700w PSU for a Corsair 650w RM650
-Returned the motherboard, processor, and video card for the same new ones (I just got this stuff yesterday!)
-Posting these same issues on other forums
-I'm sure I'm missing other things I've tried...
Now, one solution I tried that I hadn't seen posted anywhere is that there are several spots to hook up the cooling fan. I remember replacing the heat sink on my old board and hooking that fan up to one of the "extra" plugs...and it crashed. When I plugged it into it's (apparently) proper place, it worked fine. So, that's another thing I tried doing, with no success.
Folks, that red demon light is leering deeply into my mind, threatening to drive me mad and send my soul screaming to hell...unless I can convince one of you exorcists to throw around some holy water or...whatever it is you do to get PC's up and running.
I've been at this for 3 days now, and Micro Center isn't the closest place to be running back and forth to, trying to get this stuff taken care of. I've tried every solution I can find...other than a hammer. I've taken plenty of photos, so if you need to see anything, let me know.
And thanks for reading.
So, specs. You want 'em, I got em.
Asus M5A97 R2.0
AMD FX 8350 4.0GHz
EVGA Geforce GTX 960
XION 700w PSU (Recently changed to Corsair RM650w)
All kinds of different RAM to play with (x2 2GB, x2 4GB, all at 1600 MHz, and another 4GB@1333)
What's happening: Before even attempting this, I took pictures of my old motherboard (Asus M4A77TD with AMD Phenom II 965 3.4GHz, blue screen issues, hence my decision to do this), all connections to the board, which SATA cable was hooked to which slot, etc. Everything was carefully looked at and compared to the new board (both are pretty similar) before I attempted anything. Everything (including myself) was properly grounded. I pulled everything apart, dug out the old board, carefully placed the new one in place, ensuring no wires were underneath, and commenced to hooking up everything in it's proper place. All connections were snug (including that new gigantic video card...upgraded from a GTX 750, quite a difference!) and everything seemed to be hooked up where it needs to be. After checking it over roughly 5 times, decided it was moment of truth time. I plug 'er in, fire 'er up and it seems like all is well...the SB Power light is shining green, all fans turn on and seem to be working well. But there's a red light on the upper-right...the good ol' DRAM LED. It's staying solid and not doing anything. And there's no signal to the monitor. So, after turning it off, I ran searches on what the causes were, why it wasn't working, and what fixes to try (minus seeing how far I can throw the tower, motherboard and all...hey, it's still mostly under warranty!). I'll list what I've done so far (hopefully I don't forget anything) and maybe, just maybe, someone can help me get this figured out.
Here we go:
-Read the manual
-Secured all connections (especially the ATX power connectors)
-Tried (and still am trying) the "one stick of RAM" trick. With every one of my cards.
-Held down the MemOK! button. Light flashes slowly at first and gradually speeds up (assuming it's some type of power cycling, as the fans all seem to speed up as well)...after it's done flashing, nothing but the solid red light.
-Checked to make sure the processor was seated correctly...with this board setup, I would think that it'd be rather difficult to screw that part up, but still...
-Checked the processor for bent pins.
-Tried placing my video card into the other PCIe slot (there's 2 on this board, one at x16, the other at x4. x16 is what's recommended, I guess)
-Tried using both the HDMI and DVI-I ports, on both slots. There's no VGA on this card.
-Tried using my old video card
-Tried using the new processor on my old motherboard (hey, I was desperate!)
-Tried a bare-bones start-up of the board (CPU w/fan, 24-pin and 8-pin connected only, short-starting the case power switch)
-Checked compatibility of the CPU (it's good)
-Replaced the XION 700w PSU for a Corsair 650w RM650
-Returned the motherboard, processor, and video card for the same new ones (I just got this stuff yesterday!)
-Posting these same issues on other forums
-I'm sure I'm missing other things I've tried...
Now, one solution I tried that I hadn't seen posted anywhere is that there are several spots to hook up the cooling fan. I remember replacing the heat sink on my old board and hooking that fan up to one of the "extra" plugs...and it crashed. When I plugged it into it's (apparently) proper place, it worked fine. So, that's another thing I tried doing, with no success.
Folks, that red demon light is leering deeply into my mind, threatening to drive me mad and send my soul screaming to hell...unless I can convince one of you exorcists to throw around some holy water or...whatever it is you do to get PC's up and running.
I've been at this for 3 days now, and Micro Center isn't the closest place to be running back and forth to, trying to get this stuff taken care of. I've tried every solution I can find...other than a hammer. I've taken plenty of photos, so if you need to see anything, let me know.
And thanks for reading.
