MSI MPOWER MAX Z87 03/04 Debug LED

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Casey Dennis

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Mar 12, 2013
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So I just got a MSI MPOWER MAX Z87 and I'm getting mostly the 03 post code readout (power on north bridge initiation. It only occurs after I put my computer into sleep mode so I guess it's a power up issue waking from sleep but I don't know where to go. I RMA'd my CPU so I know it's not that and I also took the GPU out and tried internal graphics. The problem still existed. So with the CPU & GPU out of the equation I guess it's the motherboard but the motherboard heat syncs are painted and MSI won't take it back.



Specs:

CPU: 4770K
GPU: MSI 660Ti PE
PSU: Seasonic 750w Gold
Mobo: Z87 MSI MPOWER MAX
OS: fresh install of 8.1


Any help would be great
 
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Casey Dennis

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Yeah, never using MSI again, back to ASUS or GB
 
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feelingtheblanks

feelingtheblanks

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03 is the North Bridge initialization before microcode loading

and

04 South Bridge initialization before microcode loading

Depending on the type of sleep/hibernations it's normal the LED is showing 03 or 04 code.

If your PC hangs there. Then it's better to check RAM and try running with 1 stick, and also check ssd or hdds and also the usb devices if there is any.

Especially the 04 code is pretty common with almost all C1 stepping z87 boards for every brand that effects the system if they using certain USB 3.0 devices in deep hibernation settings. The problem caused by Intel since they gave a buggy chip to manufacturers. That particular problem is fixed with C2 stepping boards.

03 code is probably caused by the ram sticks. But it also might be about the PSU that's not suitable for Haswell's energy saving procedures. First, try using one stick of ram and integrated gpu for a while. Also it would be better if you could find another pack of ram from a friend or someone, also a different psu would be nice. If the problem persists then try updating the BIOS to see if there's a change. If BIOS update doesn't help then you could try contacting the MSI support to ask how to maintain the stability in deep hibernation.

And don't be prejudiced about MSI. Just check the main page for the ocean of Asus mobo problems. Well, problems in electronics could happen and it is pretty common. But if you want real numbers instead of some bullcrap experiences from a biased so-called moderator; here are RMA rates for z77 chipset. MSI is 1.33% followed by 1.66% ASUS, Gigabyte and ASRock 1.96% to 2.38. Im pretty sure it's not very different this time around.
 
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Tradesman1

Tradesman1

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Jun 5, 2013
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And these numbers come from where? You can go to half a dozen places supposedly having RMA rates that are supposed to be 'the rates', but actually most I.ve seen are rather consistent with GB and the Rock having the lowest where MSI and Asus are the highest...

http://news.softpedia.com/newsImage/French-Website-Publishes-HDD-SSD-and-Motherboard-RMA-Statistics-5.png/

http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?act=url&depth=3&hl=en&ie=UTF8&prev=_t&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=fr&tl=en&u=http://www.hardware.fr/articles/893-2/cartes-meres.html&usg=ALkJrhiUuPtHjEDov6J3V5fPpHm0r-9MgA

http://www.play3r.net/news/gigabyte-motherboards-have-the-lowest-rma-rate/

and from what little I've seen on Z87, it's been GB has the lowest, the the Rock, Asus, and MSI at the worst
 
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feelingtheblanks

feelingtheblanks

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If you read further on that second link you gave you'll find out where my numbers came from? You didn't even read it i guess. Those are the latest RMA rates for z77 boards.

So as you can see there's no need to bash any brand here. Yes MSI made some big quality mistakes before, especially in their early batches for new chipset generations. Going into hardcore notebook market was a little bit overkill for their motherboard bussiness for sure. But they upped the quality a lot in recent years... I'm not sure if you know they halfed their size of motherboard bussiness after entering high-end notebook market. Before that they were shipping even more than Gigabyte you know. Well and for the first quarter of 2014 they seem to be at 3rd place again since they start upping their capacity and ASRock keep missing their shipping targets with big margins (after that z77 disaster it's normal though).

But on the other hand, ASRock still keep using unreliable D-pak mosfets even in their latest mid-range boards. And they even keep going further by false marketing. They claim that Extreme3-4-6 and some other boards are using digital pwm. But NO! They are actually using analog pwm since Intersil is an analog brand. It's somekinda fraud! But did our mighty omniscient Tradesman1 aware of it? Of course no since he's acting like a one man bashing crew in the world's one of the most popular enthusiasts forums, without no actual data, and first-hand experience of course. Just some wild rumors and unprofessional, unethical false claims.

I understand that dumb MSI US sales guy didn't give a flying fudge about you and you still feel very sad. But that's life, get over it already.
 
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feelingtheblanks

feelingtheblanks

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You are giving the minimum information and waiting for us to somehow magically guess what the problem is? :p

What's your system? gpu, psu, memory brand&model&freq, storage devices etc...

Are you using deep hibernation settings of Haswell? If yes then unplug your usb devices if any and try running with one stick of ram. Try clearing cmos... Also your psu might be the problem here if it's not fully support Haswell's energy saving features. If problem still persists then try updating BIOS.
 
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Mirakledba

Mirakledba

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My specs are

i5 4670k 3.4Ghz | Sapphire Toxic R9 280x | G.Skill Ripjaw X SERIES 1600mhz 8GB RAM | MSI Z87 G65 Motherboard | Corsair H100i | XFX 750 80+Gold Fully Modular | Seagate Barracuda 1TB HDD | Corsair Air 540


My PSU is 130$ so im sure it supports haswell. I also have my energy set on high performance.
 
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feelingtheblanks

feelingtheblanks

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When you getting these codes exactly? During the cold boot or while waking up from the sleep mode? And does it always hang and not booting to windows?

There should be a little clear cmos button on the back panel. You can also check the manual to see how to clear cmos.

To update BIOS you can either use MFlash utility from the BIOS or use the MSI forum bios flash tool (https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?topic=172772.0) But updating the bios is last resort.

And yes your psu is a very good one.

Did you try testing with 1 stick of ram and see if the problem persists?
 
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Mirakledba

Mirakledba

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I'll check. But I turn my PC off every night. These come after a cold boot and it stays on until i turn it off and back on. But it can change randomly. If i turn it off now and back on, it will probably say A0 which is good, right? I dont think its the ram. Sometimes I get 03 and 04...only those. And a clear CMOS button on which back panel? What exactly does that bottom do? Is it on the motherboard? Are any of these codes really bad for the PC?
 
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feelingtheblanks

feelingtheblanks

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A0 means everything is OK.

So what happens when you get 03 or 04 code? And when you get these codes?

Clear cmos button is on the back pannel of the motherboard. Should be just below the top PS/2 socket and 2 usb ports. It basically resets the BIOS to its default settings. Sometimes it helps to overcome the stability problems since some of the components might make some changes on BIOS. So that helps to restore the optimal settings. Like I said, you can always check the manual to see how to do this.

Basically 1- you need to power off your system 2- disconnect the main AC power by either shutting off the power button on the back of your power supply or simply pulling out the power cable. 3- wait for a minute to let the capacitors discharges (you also can hit the power button to discharge them) 4- hit the cmos clear button for a few second and wait for a minute to make sure cmos has cleared. It's easy.

If that doesn't help with your problem then try running with 1 stick or ram like I said and also without gpu. It's always easy to troubleshoot a problem as barebone.
 
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Mirakledba

Mirakledba

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Nothing happens when I get these numbers. Computer seems to work fine. When my download is done I will do what you told me to. Ill remove the PSU cable, hit the button, hit power button to discharge and bla bla. Ill do that :) Ill let you know what happens! Expect it tomorrow.
 
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feelingtheblanks

feelingtheblanks

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What you mean by nothing happens when you get these numbers? If there is no hang or something then it's completely normal. 03 and 04 are not errors... They show that your pc is initializing south and north bridges.
 
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feelingtheblanks

feelingtheblanks

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Dude, sorry to say that, no offense, but you are really bad at explaining your situation. All I could do is just sit here and try to magically guess what problem you having...

If everything works OK you don't need to be worried. I thought you are having some stability issues, random BSODs or hangs.

On the other hand, if the led keep showing that 03 or 04 debug code even minutes after you boot to windows then it's probably a random bug. Cmos clear or a bios update would fix it. But since everything works ok and you are not having problems you don't particulary need a bios update. But if you want to try you can clear cmos.

But its normal to see 03 and 04 debug codes for a while, since it's a normal procedure. Then it becomes A0 which means everything is fine. Newer GD65 bios is showing cpu temperature instead of A0 though.
 
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feelingtheblanks

feelingtheblanks

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Yes. If your pc booting up fine and works ok nothing to worry about. Your motherboard is probably C1 stepping. Like I said above; Intel delivered buggy chipset to manufacturers which messed up the south bridge, especially usb 3.0 ports. Then they fixed these issues with C2 stepping but that took a while. Actually other manufacturers had much more serious problems with C1 stepping, but since MSI not using extra controllers on most of their motherboards their C1 boards are mostly fine.
 
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