GA-H55M-USB3 problem

[Dark Mantis]

Hi

Firstly I take it that the motherboard is revision 2.0 as you have only just purchased it so there shouldn't be any problem with CPU compatibility with the BIOS as it is covered from F7.

Try clearing the CMOS as I think sometimes old data is left on there from testing that might not be correct with your setup.

Remove the power cable from the mains supply and then press the power switch on the case for a few seconds just to drain any residual energy in the PSU capacitors.

Once done remove the motherboard battery for at least ten minutes before replacing it.
 
Next plug back into the mains supply and boot.
 
You will now need to enter the BIOS by pressing DEL and load Opimised BIOS Defaults.

Make any other changes to the BIOS settings to suit your self and then press F10 to save and exit.

[problemobo]

Hey Mr. Dark Mantis.
Thanks again for the advice.
I shall follow your wise directions as usual.
And hopefully things will work.
Will post back soon.
Cheers

[problemobo]

Hello.
Sorry to bother you again.
But have tried what you said.
Reset the CMOS.
And the board continued to reboot.
I held down the Delete key while it was constantly rebooting.
And this did actually make the pc boot into a settings menu. but not the proper BIOS menu.
The menu gave me the option to either reboot with default settings or reboot using last settings.
I choose the Default.
Which made the PC boot and search for a bootable object.
But because I had not yet plugged in a hard disk (blank or with an operating system on)
I was unable to make the PC boot up.
I then turned off the PC by turning the PSU off.
The PC then returned to rebooting with out reason.
Could turning the PC off in the way that I have cause the reboot that I am now experiencing?
Sorry to be a pain.
Cheers

[Dark Mantis]

Hey let's just get it straight ..this is not a pain!

Connect the DVD drive up and see if it will try and boot from it. You will have to press F12 while POSTing to select the drive. If it still refuses to access the drive than I think we should see if we can get the Backup BIOS to take over form the Main BIOS as it might have got corrupted.

You can kick in the Backup BIOS by shutting down the PSU from the wall, then hold down your case power button in and then turn on the power supply button, a few seconds later the board will start, shut off the power supply then.  
Then you can turn on the power supply again and power up the board normally and DualBIOS will kick in.

[problemobo]

Hello Dark Mantis,
.
sorry to not have answered your message yesterday.
I was off line for a while as I had to move my PC parts back to my own house, where I had no spare computer to use to access the internet with.

However, I stayed up to 2am, working on the PC and after following your good advice, I was able to install Windows VIsta successfully.
.
I did have some problems initially trying get the PC to boot using the onboard VGA output. I think that this may be because the monitor that I was using was a really old CRT which may draw too much power?
.
I also had some problems installing Vista on a 500 GB hard drive which I had split into 3 partitions so that I could later install Ubuntu and  Mac OS X on.
.
I remedied this by deleting the 2 extra partitions, unifying them back into 1 primary partition, which I formatted during the installation process.
.
The hard disk then was able to take the installation.
.
I think that it would be a great idea for Gigabyte to include with each of their motherboards a reset jumper. As, although it is possible to use any jumper or even a screwdriver to reset the CMOS via the CMOS reset terminals,
.
it is safer to use a specifically designed tool to do so.
.
I also wonder if it is possible for Gigabyte to add a BIOS reset button feature to their Motherboard. which deletes past configuration settings such as factory tested settings that prevent the motherboard from booting after installing a new system.
.
This would certainly help prevent dumb ass's like me from spending a few days in confusion and frustration trying to get the PC working.
It would also prevent dumb ass's like me damaging the motherboard (socket 1156 for example) during the problem solving process.
.
I also think that Gigabyte should also include a Gigabyte sticker with their motherboards, as its nice to have pretty stickers.
I would imagine it would make some geeky customers very happy.
.
Otherwise. Thanks again for all your help.
Cheers

[Dark Mantis]

Hi

Happy to hear that everything seems to be working right now and that yo can finally get on with using your system rather than ripping it to bits.

Actually Gigabyte does have a button CMOS reset feature on a lot of the newer boards so that it can be done without even opening the case but this sometimes isn't as effective as doing it the way I suggested to you.

All the best

[problemobo]

Sure, Thanks for the info.

Hopefully, when I have more money. I will be able to buy a higher end Motherboard from Gigabyte.

Incidentally.

I forgot to mention, that when the PC did not boot when plugged into an old VGA CRT monitor.
I unplugged it and then plugged it into my Hannspree 32 inch HD Flatscreen LCD TV using the HDMI input.

The PC then booted no problemo.

And did it look good! Compared to my old 15 inch CRT monitor.

Ideal monitor if you have the money (£250-ish ebuyer).

Although, I am probably going to have to use an old 15 inch flat screen for now for music.
Until I have more money.

However, when I get the returned Motherboard.
I plan to build a similar system for the sole purpose of using it as a Media Centre / Internet Terminal.
Cool.
Thanks again Mr. Mantis.
Big help dude.
Cheers

[problemobo]

Hello.
I return again I am afraid.

Not sure if I should start a new thread,
as have discovered a new issue with the motherboard
that I think has been the original cause of the fault
in the first place.

Yesterday, I plugged in the working Motherboard after fitting the additional 2 GB OCZ RAM Stick
and the board again would not boot.

So, I removed the original RAM stick, replaced it with the newer Stick and attempted to reboot.
The system did not boot.

I then shut unplugged and swapped the better RAM stick back, and rebooted.
as the night before. I was able to get the board working with just 2 GB RAM however after 10 minutes the system shut itself down.

After rebooting. I did a search on possible causes for such problems and Memory problems did come up.
I thought this was unusual as the RAM that I had brought WAS on the recommended Memory Support List for that particular model.

However, after running the diagnostic tool (system stability test) known as Prime95.
According to the Prime95 support forum, the test results that my system returns basically said that the problem was the RAM.

I then did a search on the exact model of RAM and exact model of motherboard to see if others had experienced problems and how others had resolved the problems.

Now, the RAM model is as follows:
OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Dual Channel (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) [OCZ3G1333LV4GK]
- 1333MHz DDR3
- CL 9-9-9-20 (CAS-TRCD-TRP-TRAS)
- Gold Z3 XTC Heatspreader**
- Lifetime Warranty
- 1.65 Volts
- 240 Pin DIMM

I realise that the RAM's voltage is 1.65v, which is higher than the ideal RAM voltage of 1.5v
however, as the RAM was still on the official recommend memory list, and I wanted a bit of extra speed to the system,
I thought that this configuration would be acceptable.

Now.
During my search I discovered that some people had attempted to resolve the problem by adjusting the settings in BIOS,
specifically the settings for the RAM.

In essence, these changes to the settings overclock the RAM slots, which although not ideal, is advertised as a feature of this specific board.

I have not yet followed this same approach, as I am not keen with messing with the settings.
Please could  an official Gigabyte Support representative advise me as what to do with this RAM.
If i need to adjust the settings on the BIOS. please can you give me advice as to the correct settings for this RAM configuration.

I using this RAM causes the system to be unstable, please can someone advise me as to what to do then, as I do not want to run an unstable system.

How do I stand with regards to getting a refund or alternative replacement for the RAM from the retailer?
Or is it's Gigabyte's responsibility to refund or replace the RAM because they are the party that officially recommended the RAM as being compatible with their Motherboard in the first place?

I would also like to add, that the original mother board was sent back to be repaired due to damage caused to the board during fault finding. If the RAM had been completely compatible in the first place and the system had booted with out problems straight out the box.
I would not have had to endure the fault finding process and the minor damage (if caused by me) would not have occurred.

Please help. Really, I not being funny. I am a very reasonable guy. However, I really think that I have a legitimate and reasonable argument here.

Please help.
Thanks

[Dark Mantis]

PLease do not double post!

I have answered your other post so continue with that one please.

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[problemobo]

Sorry Mate. I replied to this post first.
But then I realised that the issue was different to the first one.
I started a new post so that any one who experiences the same problems in the future,
using the same configuration, can find the information easily.
Sorry to be a pain to you mate.
Not intended to cause you any trouble.
Cheers

[Dark Mantis]

It is just that things get a bit messy and everyone forgets where they are with multiple posts.