Official GIGABYTE Forum
Questions about GIGABYTE products => Motherboards with Intel processors => Topic started by: DerStrom8 on March 20, 2013, 10:19:40 pm
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Hi everyone.
I tried the instant help with one of the gigabyte customer service people, and their suggestion did not help at all, so I'm going to start a thread here.
To start off, I recently bought a used desktop machine from a friend that's about 4 years old. It has the EX58-UD3R Gigabyte motherboard, 16GB of RAM, the CoolerMaster V8 CPU cooling system, two Hydravision 4650 (?) video cards, and a CoolerMaster 650W power supply. A while ago I started having an issue with it shutting down randomly without warning when it was in use. It would restart automatically, and just shut down again, and it would continue this cycle until I would press the power button after the phase LEDs turned off after the POST. At the suggestion of a friend of mine, I unplugged the USB ports (connected to the front of the case--A CoolerMaster GLiTE 430) in case they had a short, and things seemed to work fine after that (for about a month). However, just today it started doing the same thing. I've reseated the RAM, checked for viruses, cleaned the fan in the V8, and disconnected any hardware that wasn't absolutely necessary, and it still continues to shut down during use. I've entered the BIOS and let it sit and it doesn't seem to do anything abnormal, and the core temperatures are fairly reasonable (~40C). I even tried booting from a Ubuntu Live disc to eliminate the possibility of an operating system issue, and it still turned off when I was trying to use it. Likewise, when I booted into safe mode (with networking and with command prompt), it would do the same. I checked the voltages on the PSU output and they were all good, though I haven't been able to hook them up to a scope yet to see if the output is clean or if there's noise.
I'm wondering if you might know what is wrong, and how to fix it? This has really begun to annoy me, and it's important that I get this machine back up and running the way it should be, as I have important work to do on it. Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Many thanks!
Matt L.
EDIT: I forgot to mention--
When the computer begins to POST, I hear a single, loud beep, which from my research means everything is ok. However, I also just noticed that sometimes, right before it shuts down, I can hear two extremely quiet long beeps. I'm not sure if this is an alarm of some sort or what, but I thought I should mention it, just in case.
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You say the cpu is not overheating but could one of the video cards be doing it.
Try running with one card and try running with one stick of memory. But do one at time not together.
It could even be the hard drive doing it too. I had a SSD that would just disappear and reboot the computer.
If you turn off the computer by the power switch on the PSU and than turn it back on the computer would fine.
So it could be almost anything and you will have try each part in the computer. One at a time till you find out which one is the problem.
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Thanks for the suggestion. I did try one video card at a time just in case there was something wrong with one of them. This mobo has two slots, and I've got two video cards, and I tried one at a time in each of the slots, and both installed in both configurations, and it made no difference.
I did the same with the RAM, and even swapped it out with some different sticks (the one that came with the machine, actually) and again, it made no difference.
I thought it might be the hard drive, perhaps it was going bad--it's not a SSD, it's a 500GB Seagate--so I ran a few tests through the command prompt. I tried chkdsk and sfc, but nothing turned up. I've been struggling with this problem for actually more than a month, with a couple weeks break when it worked fine, and just now it started acting up again. I'm completely stumped. :P
I appreciate the response. If you've got any other suggestions, I would greatly appreciate hearing them.
Thanks guys.
Cheers,
Matt
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If you have a spare hard drive try installing Ubuntu on it and see if that will take care of the problem.
Plus have you try to reseat the cpu too. And look at all the pins in the cpu socket.
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Unfortunately I don't have a spare hard drive, which is why I haven't tried that yet. As I mentioned I did try running from a ubuntu live disc, but I don't know if that runs completely independently of the hard drive or not (not quite that advanced with computers, to be honest ;))
I was hoping to avoid reseating the CPU because I don't have any thermal compound to replace the old stuff. If you think it might be the problem, I suppose I could try to source some, but it's a bit more trouble than I was hoping for. I suppose if it's necessary, though....
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Hello again folks.
I have determined the problem definitely isn't the hard drive. It also isn't the power supply, because it does not fail at all when sitting in BIOS. If there was power fluctuation, I'm thinking it would shut down regardless of what the computer is doing. I have narrowed it down to either the sata cables (which means both are damaged since it doesn't work with either one), the sata ports (the look okay, still firmly attached to the board, etc, but I'm not sure what all to look for), the SATA chip on the mobo (I feel a little uneasy about re-seating it since my soldering iron is not designed for SMT chips) or a heat issue. I would actually like to know where exactly the heat sensor is on the CPU. I have set the alarm to go off if it reaches the lowest "high-temp" range in BIOS, and it does not sound at all. Unless the sensor is not working properly, I'm not convinced it is a heat issue. Any thoughts? I'm getting rather desperate as i need this computer for work, and my laptop really isn't enough.
Thanks for any more suggestions you have.
Best wishes,
Matt
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One thing you haven't said what bios are you running and have you tried to update it.
Plus make sure you have the right version board. There is 3 of them 1.0, 1.6, & 1.7.
The version is in the bottom left corner when looking at it in the computer.
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One thing you haven't said what bios are you running and have you tried to update it.
Plus make sure you have the right version board. There is 3 of them 1.0, 1.6, & 1.7.
The version is in the bottom left corner when looking at it in the computer.
Oops, sorry, don't know how I forgot that. The board is Rev 1.6, Bios version is FB. Haven't been able to update it because the machine doesn't stay turned on long enough for me to do anything. Usually it starts booting (shows the windows logo and startup progress bar) then shuts off.
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Can you get into safe mode. If you can do safe mode with networking. Download the bios unzip it and put it on a flash drive.
boot into the bios and do a Q-Flash. Than just find the flash drive and update it. Download FK bios. That might fix the problem maybe.
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Can you get into safe mode. If you can do safe mode with networking. Download the bios unzip it and put it on a flash drive.
boot into the bios and do a Q-Flash. Than just find the flash drive and update it. Download FK bios. That might fix the problem maybe.
Unfortunately, no--it even shuts down in safe mode. I do have a laptop though, so I may be able to do that. I'll just need to find the most recent bios version. Not exactly sure where to start looking to be honest. Thoughts? Links?
Many thanks!
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I take that back, I believe I just found it here on the site :)
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Okay, well I have it on a flash drive and I entered BIOS, pressed F8 to get into the Q-Flash menu, but it's not finding the flash drive. Does the flash drive have to be specially formatted for this? i.e. as NTFS? If so, I think I need to go back and change that.....
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Hmm, no luck. Still not finding the flash drive.
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I have one of those and I just did it with no problem.
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Did you unzip the file and then copy and paste all three files?
It will not show a USB Drive it will show it as HDD
1. f8 - y - enter
2. Update from drive
3. floppy or HDD 1-0
4. HDD 1-0
5. .. DIR & EX58UDERFK
6. EX58UDERFK
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Once you get done doing the update shut it down and clear the cmos.
Then go back into the bios and set it to the default setting save and exit.
Then you can go back in setup the bios to how you had it running.
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Thank you very much. I got to the point where it was reading it (It wasn't reading the flash drive for a while--only the non-existent floppy drive), but eventually it started reading it. Right now I have the FK version on the flash drive, but the Q-Flash utility is complaining about an incorrect file size. I think it's looking for 1MB when the file actually is 2MB. The download claims it's only 1MB but the size is twice that once finished. Not really sure what to make of it....
I guess I'm not the only person to have had this issue. Some research here on the forum turns up this thread: http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php?topic=9005.0
I didn't think my mobo supported hyperthreading, but I"ll take another look and disable it if I find it. I'll try again after that.
Cheers,
Matt
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Sorry for so many consecutive posts. I went through my BIOS and couldn't find anything about hyperthreading. However, I did notice that the previous owner set the "performance enhance" to "turbo", rather than "standard". If this didn't work right, could that cause the machine to just shut down? It would explain a lot, if that's the case!
Matt
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It in the first one MB intelligent tweaker and it is under advanced CPU features then it will say CPU multi-threading
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It in the first one MB intelligent tweaker and it is under advanced CPU features then it will say CPU multi-threading
Thank you. I found it and disabled it, but now it's shutting off instantly--it's not even giving me the chance to enter bios. It starts up, then after a second or so shuts down, and it keeps repeating the process.
EDIT: I have since cleared the CMOS so at least now it's back to the way it was. Is multi-threading different from hyper-threading?
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If you look to the right it will tell what it is for when you are in there. There is one other thing and that it could be a ubuntu thing and not computer thing.
Have you tried to re-install ubuntu. because you said you ran it from the disk with no problems right.
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I never installed ubuntu, only ran it from the live disc. And even then the machine still shut down.
I see that under "multi-threading" it says "enable for CPU hyper-threading" etc. Not very descriptive though. I plan to try again this afternoon when I get home from work.
By the way, I currently have windows 7 x64 installed on the HD. It seems to be working at this point, but before it would work for a little while, and then stop working for a while after that. I won't be able to tell you if changing the "performance enhance" setting actually helped or not for some time.
I still hope to update the BIOS though. That is if I can successfully disable hyper-threading. I'll keep you posted.
Thanks!
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Sure enough, it died again today.
Tried disabling hyperthreading again and, just like before, it started shutting down immediately, rather than waiting until it actually started to boot. I'm beginning to think it's the motherboard--Rev 1.6 if I didn't say before--or perhaps incompatible RAM. None of my checks complained about the RAM though, but they're Corsair Vengeance DDR3, 4 4GB sticks, 1600MHz v. 5.12. Not sure if that helps or not.
Any more ideas?
Cheers,
Matt
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One last thing before you shoot the thing. Check all the heat sinks on the board to see if one is getting really hot. If one of the heat sinks is over heating than it could be the problem.
I know this has nothing to do with the problem but the MB will run the memory that way. But that board Supports 3 channel DDR3 you run it with 3 sticks or 6 sticks. You could try different memory too.
Here is very last thing that I can come up with is can you run ubuntu without the HDD. I know you said that you don't have another drive but does your friend have one just to try if you need it to run ubuntu with a drive.
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One last thing before you shoot the thing. Check all the heat sinks on the board to see if one is getting really hot. If one of the heat sinks is over heating than it could be the problem.
I know this has nothing to do with the problem but the MB will run the memory that way. But that board Supports 3 channel DDR3 you run it with 3 sticks or 6 sticks. You could try different memory too.
Here is very last thing that I can come up with is can you run ubuntu without the HDD. I know you said that you don't have another drive but does your friend have one just to try if you need it to run ubuntu with a drive.
Okay, I'll check the heat sinks as soon as I get home today.
I've tried all different configurations of RAM, it only has 4 slots so it won't take 6 sticks. Tried running with one, three, and all four. It doesn't seem to change anything. I've also tried a different type of RAM (different size, different company) and made no difference.
I ran ubuntu from the live CD with the hard drive completely disconnected and it still crashed. I'll see if I can borrow someone's drive though. I have a few friends who are computer nuts and might have a spare one lying around somewhere.
Thanks very much for the suggestions. I'll get back to you as soon as I learn something.
Regards,
Matt
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I went back and check and that is the only board in the x58 family that is like that only 4 slots.
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Well the heat sinks all seem fine (warm, but not hot). Computer also crashed when I was starting up the ubuntu disc, so I can't install it on a different hard drive. I did, however, manage to update the bios to a slightly older version than the latest, and it fixed the hyperthreading issue, but it still wouldn't let me update the bios to the newest version--still had the size complaint.
I don't know what else to try.
Matt
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The one last thing to try is re-install windows on it. Or try and get another hard drive. I still think it is the hard drive.
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The one last thing to try is re-install windows on it. Or try and get another hard drive. I still think it is the hard drive.
I definitely ruled out the hard drive when I disconnected it completely and ran the ubuntu live CD. It still crashed, without the hard drive even connected to the PC. That is definitely not the problem.
However, I did have a friend over here the other day. He proposed that it might be a damaged core. I went into the BIOS and only enabled core 0 and 1, 2 and 3 are disabled. I haven't seen it reset since last night when I disabled the other two cores, but only time will tell. I did try to bump it up to 3, but it shut down, so I'm beginning to wonder if it's core 2 that's the problem.
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Nevermind, it's crashing with only the first two cores enabled. I think I'm going to have to give up and buy a new motherboard.
Thank you very much for all your advice though. You've been a huge help. Even though you weren't able to solve the issue, I've still learned a lot, so a +1 to you. I really appreciate your patience to stick with this topic :)
Best wishes,
Matt
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The hard part of this is yes the people here try to help. But some times it would be easier to be sitting in front of the computer when you are trying to help some body. The other thing is when you are limited on parts where you can't test them on a MB or in another computer too.
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The hard part of this is yes the people here try to help. But some times it would be easier to be sitting in front of the computer when you are trying to help some body. The other thing is when you are limited on parts where you can't test them on a MB or in another computer too.
I hear you. Believe it or not I am actually fairly experienced with computer repair and other types of electronics. I've been repairing computers for several years, and somehow never came across an issue like this before. I tried everything I could think of at first, but when that didn't help I turned to you guys. Anyway, my point is that I've had to try to help people over the internet too, and it's very difficult. It is definitely easier to be there in person. That's exactly why I am thankful you stuck with me this long ;)
The amount of spare parts were definitely a limiting factor in this.
Anyway, thanks again.
Matt
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I don't suppose your friend has a spare CPU that you could try. You try to disable all the cores you are allowed to and see if that works. If it does work the enable each core seperately until you find the bad core then just leave it disabled
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I don't suppose your friend has a spare CPU that you could try. You try to disable all the cores you are allowed to and see if that works. If it does work the enable each core seperately until you find the bad core then just leave it disabled
Hi GMDemo. Yup, that's exactly what I did with mine. I disabled all but two (The OS doesn't seem to want to even start up when running on only one core). I ran it on 2 for a while and then it crashed. It doesn't even begin to run on just the 1, so either core 0 or 1 are damaged, or there's a different problem. I ordered a new mobo for $100 (much cheaper than a new processor--no way I can afford that) and I'll have to see if that fixes it. I'm not sure if my friend has an extra processor or not. I would tend to doubt it, as he usually uses boards with different socket types.
I'll post back here when the new motherboard arrives and I can test it out.
Cheers,
Matt
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I don't suppose you can just enable core 0 and 2 leaving 1 switched off. I'm afraid the problem you are having sounds like a problem with the CPU, As it doesn't appear to be a heat problem perhaps reseating it would cure the problem
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I don't suppose you can just enable core 0 and 2 leaving 1 switched off. I'm afraid the problem you are having sounds like a problem with the CPU, As it doesn't appear to be a heat problem perhaps reseating it would cure the problem
Nope, I can't. In the bios it gives me the option to run on 1, 2, 3, or 4 cores. It doesn't let me choose which ones. If I say 3, it'll use cores 0, 1, and 2. If I say 2, it'll run on cores 0 and 1, etc.
I reseated it but do not have any thermal paste to reattach the cooling fan assembly. I'm assuming that would need to be replaced every time I separate the fan and the CPU.
Matt
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If you are really careful and don't touch any thing you can take them a part and put them back together.
All the thermal paste does is fill the holes in the heat sink and CPU. To stop the air from getting caught in there.
Plus if you got it a part make sure you don't have any bent pins too.
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Yes, don't run the computer without the thermal paste. I have seen CPUs over heating when the paste hasn't been applied correctly let alone none whatsoever. Hmm perhaps that would be interesting.....No don't try it.
BTW since I started this post someone else has posted and I do agree with what is said. KEEP an eye on the temperature, if you can enable the warning in the BIOS for the CPU temp that would be good.
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If you are really careful and don't touch any thing you can take them a part and put them back together.
All the thermal paste does is fill the holes in the heat sink and CPU. To stop the air from getting caught in there.
Plus if you got it a part make sure you don't have any bent pins too.
Good to know. I always learned to just get rid of all the old paste and apply all new any time you remove or replace the fan. If you're sure though, I'll think about it. By the way, I looked at it and it is not a pin-type processor. It's the pad type, so I don't think bending pins is an issue.
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Yes, don't run the computer without the thermal paste. I have seen CPUs over heating when the paste hasn't been applied correctly let alone none whatsoever. Hmm perhaps that would be interesting.....No don't try it.
BTW since I started this post someone else has posted and I do agree with what is said. KEEP an eye on the temperature, if you can enable the warning in the BIOS for the CPU temp that would be good.
I'm not a newbie when it comes to repairing computers, trust me ;)
I'm WAY ahead of you--I monitored the temperature in BIOS and set the alarm to go off at the lowest temp (40C). No alarms, so I don't think it's an overheating issue.
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The pins are in the CPU socket on the board. Yes if you just take it a part and put it back together with out touching either the heat sink & CPU you should be fine.
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The pins are in the CPU socket on the board. Yes if you just take it a part and put it back together with out touching either the heat sink & CPU you should be fine.
It's the ball and pad type, no "pins" in the traditional sense, that can be bent. I did not touch anything with the thermal paste on it.
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Yes they are not really pins in the since that you would call them that. But that is how we all call them that.
In all the CPU's that I even had I only had one that was bad.
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Hello again everyone.
Yesterday I had the chance to start disassembling parts of the board (removing heatsinks, etc) and found that the primary D-pak FETs were getting a lot warmer than usual. Some of the heatsink pads were not properly covering one or two of them, and it appears some of it was actually melted. I'm going to have to test some of the FETs, but I'm going to have to figure out the best way to test them in-circuit. Any thoughts or suggestions?
Thanks,
Matt
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Here's an image of the devices I'm concerned about:
(http://oi45.tinypic.com/2dhfpdd.jpg)
The label appears to say K3918, but I cannot seem to find a datasheet for them. Might someone have an idea of what they are, and a good way to test them? I've already tested their resistance between each pin, and they seem to vary. I'm not exactly sure what resistances are normal and what are not though. Hoping someone can fill in a few blanks :)
Thank you!
Regards,
Matt
EDIT: My apologies, I did not realize the photograph was so big.
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Well guys, my new motherboard arrived the other day, I installed it yesterday and the computer was running fine. Until today. It just shut off randomly again. So apparently it wasn't the motherboard after all.
Any thoughts? The last remaining possibilities I can think of are possible issues with the video cards (intermittent shorts, perhaps) but it would have to be on both of them. I've tried all combinations of the video cards, both single and both inserted, and still had the same problem. Going to have to find someone who can lend me a video card to test it. If it's not the video cards, the only remaining possibility is the processor, which is another $140 down the drain.... :(
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More likey it isn't the CPU. It could be the PSU and yes you tesed it but it could be over heating too to a point that it shut down.
The chance that both video doing the same. I would try another PSU if you can some body to give one to try.
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More likey it isn't the CPU. It could be the PSU and yes you tesed it but it could be over heating too to a point that it shut down.
The chance that both video doing the same. I would try another PSU if you can some body to give one to try.
The reason I didn't think it was the PSU was because I'd tried another one already. Granted it was only 400W, but should be able to handle it.
I just booted without the video cards installed and it still shut off, so it definitely isn't the video card. And again, I've tried other PSUs. I might have one more *old* one to try, but we'll have to wait and see. I'll hack apart that desktop later today.
The CPU seems to be the last remaining thing I haven't been able to test.
Matt