GA-P35C-DS3R rev.1.1: Boot recycle problem

[VirtualSurfer]

Hi,

I have faced the so-called "Boot recycle problem" with my P35C DS3R. This problem has shown up and is being discussed already at different forums, for example, at TweakTown.

P35C-DSR3 Cycle Reboot Problem
http://forums.tweaktown.com/showthread.php?t=25290

GA-P35C-DS3R problems
http://forums.tweaktown.com/showthread.php?t=25051

In short, one day your computer won't start anymore since it stays on (only about three seconds) in an endless loop of powerup, reboots and shutdowns without never reaching the bios or POST test. This is really an annoying issue since it's not clear what is causing it.

In my case the problem showed up first time after I updated the bios (using the Gigabyte @BIOS utility with the Internet Update function in Windows Vista) to the version F2. Before that everything had worked wonderfully for a couple of months since I bought my new computer. One day when I shut down the computer and restarted it immediately again (cold boot) it didn't start anymore but started recycling boots in an endless loop (powers up, tries to boot, shuts down, powers up...etc). In order to stop that recycling I had take off the power cord. Then I noticed that I had to wait 5 minutes every time after a shutdown before I could start my computer normally again. However, the soft boot worked normally with this bios update.

I sent my computer to be examined and they fixed it by resetting the bios. However, the same problem returned after a couple of days and I decided to fix it by updating the bios to the version F6. Unfortunately, after the update the problem got worse and I had to wait a day after I could start my computer again normally without the recycling. Now the soft boot didn't work anymore and resulted also in the recycling so the F6 update messed up that thing nicely.

Then I sent my computer again to the dealer to be fixed and this time they found out that the recycling was caused by the memory and with the different memory brand everything worked normally. I had bought my new computer with the A-Data DDR2 1066 Mhz memory and this memory had worked without problems until I updated the bios to the version F2.

So it looks like that in my case the recycling problem was caused by bios updates which for some unknown reason broke the memory compatibility with the A-Data memory. And this is a serious problem for Gigabyte if they are releasing buggy bios updates.

What do you think guys?

 

[MasterKabs]

Hey virtualsurfer
I'm so glad to hear somebody else is having the same problem as i am, i have a ga-p35 dq6 mobo and am using corsair 2gb pc8500 ram, i'm at the point of dropping my machine from a great height. so frustrating!!!!!!! What ram will work properly with this mobo???

 

[VirtualSurfer]

I just got the following answers to my problem from Gigabyte:

"Please first select "Load Optimized Defaults" in the BIOS menu.

Then check what voltage your memory wants. If it wants more than the standard 1.8v you'll have to change the settings to give them some extra voltage. Please double check that you select the correct voltage for your memory as damages caused by too high voltage settings are not covered by warranty." => Done, no help.

"As for the reason to the problem my guess is that the default memory settings in newer BIOSes don't fit your memory so it keeps restarting with different memory settings until it finds the correct settings for your memory. If an earlier BIOS version works better for you then you could jut use that version." => So Gigabyte guesses that they may have actually messed up their bios updates

My computer is still in repair at the dealer and I'll have to wait and see what they are going to do with the motherboard. It is a good thing if the motherboard is ok and the bios update is the only reason for the problem. But I don't want to update my bios back to the older version in order to make it work. I may need to update the bios in future to get a support for penryn processors or something else.

 

[Evilonigiri]

Lol have the same mobo. I bought it 4 months ago, and I never new about this problem until recently. I'm hoping it doesn't happen to my pc so I researched it. I think the problem lies in the ram. Basically Crucial ram doesn't work for some reason...

I wonder how much longer before this happens to me...

 

[tomhanks]

I am having a similar problem with my ds3r, after update the bios I can´t even try to install windows it restarts and keep restarting, and I see no solution anywhere, I´ve already contacted gigabyte but no answer so far.
Anyone got a solution for this so far?

 

[tomhanks]

Did anyone got a solution for this problem?

 

[VirtualSurfer]

In my case the problem was solved by using other memory brand. But I didn't accept it as a solution since it didn't tell reason for why the motherboard worked flawlessly for a couple of months with the A-Data DDR2 1066 memory. And that's why my mob is still in repair at the dealer => I have already bought a new motherboard from Asus (Asus Maximum Formula SE) and decided not to buy Gigabyte mobs anymore.

Since the problem showed up for me first after a bios update it may be that we are dealing with buggy bios updates which break compatibility with some memory brands. I have also read that the act of overclocking your memory with bios settings may result in the same problem. Since the DDR2 1066 memory speed is an overclocked speed by the specification of this mob you may expect problems (by the way Asus claims that my Maximum Formula mob has native support for the DDR2 1066 Mhz speed and actually the DDR2 1200 Mhz speed is the overclocked speed for this mob ). I have now got the image that GA-P35C-DS3R is not very good at handling overclocked speeds but it may be that only God knows what is the problem with this mob.

 

[Evilonigiri]

I have my Q6600 at 3.15Ghz, so far no problems. Ram is @ 700mhz.

All I can say is that the Gigabyte has some serious problems with so many people encountering them.

 

[Gigabit XL]

Hello fellow gigabyte owners...


It's good to know I'm not the only one facing these troubles..

But ofcourse, it is sad all the same. I have a GA-EP45-DS5 and I'm also experiencing the same strange 'boot loop'.
At the moment I only have the PSU plugged in (24P and 4P-12V) and the CPU and cooler ofcourse. No memory, no videocard and no peripherals. When I turn on the PSU it immediatly starts with trying to boot and all the 6 fase leds come up and the blue CPU led alltogether with the green/yellow dimm overvoltage leds. I've tried to remove the cmos battery for a while and shorted the clear cmos pins but with no luck! I just can't get it to boot again. Furthermore, I've tried to put back the memory and tried two different videocards.

As soon as I have solved this I will post again, and, if you got some helpful tips, you're more than welcome!

Greetz from Holland!


p.s.: I've also tried a 700W Fortron PSU with an 8P-12v CPU connector, but nothing....

p.s.s.: Leaving the clear cmos pins shorted when it tries to boot, the motherboard stays on, but alas, no screen!

p.s.s.s.: Disconnecting the 4P-12v CPU connector results in a stay-on condition but again no post screen and the blue CPU led
stays on permenantly.

 

[bilbat]

First of all:

"Now ya see here son, this is what we call a dead thread, it died as no one was interested or no one had info for it, or the author found the info and decided to let the thread die.

So we buried it, gave it a funeral and let it lie in peace.

Now what ya have done here is Necrothreaded it back into the living realm, disturbing its grave and its peace! Why boy, why? The poor thread has suffered enough! Let it rest!!"


There are two varieties of GB re-boot loop; in the first, the board appears to 'power-down' between boots - this one is usually caused by one of three things: a mis-seated locking pin on the HSF, a cracked locking pin, or a poor application of TIM; the symptom is caused by the CPU powering up, being unable to 'spill' heat properly to the HSF, and triggering PROCHOT, sending it into thermal shutdown (and it's very surprising just how rapidly this can happen!); the cure is (assuming you're pretty confident in your paste application technique) to 'flip' the MOBO, and carefully examine the pin seating arrangement, to be sure they are all intact, and fully locked. Several people have shown up here, certain that they installed the HSF correctly, and then sheepishly reported back "you know what - there was a &^%$ cracked pin!" It is easier to 'work your way around' the pins, but the correct method is to seat and lock diagonally opposite pins first, and then follow up with the other pair...

The second syndrome keeps the board powered up throughout the reboot cycling, and is most often caused by an 'errant' USB device; GBs are known to be peculiarly 'picky' about the USB ports - any slightly out-of-spec device can trigger this problem... I have written this as an example:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261902-30-gigabyte-tale
and you might want to read this one, too:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/260350-30-gigabyte-ep45-problemo
The reason I assume these devices are 'out-of-spec' is that the individual cases are often caused by random older devices that date back to the days when if two out of three USBs you plugged in actually worked, you considered yourself lucky! They often come in 'spates', with several people reporting difficulties with similar devices - the last 'spate' was with WD external 1 and 1.5 Tb backup drives; the previous one was one manufacturer's USB DVD drive - and that one was fairly promptly fixed by a new firmware release for the drive... Try pulling everything out of your USB ports, except the keyboard (I have never heard of a keyboard causing this, but I won't venture that it couldn't happen!), and give 'er a rip... Then, put the USBs back, one at a time, rebooting after each insertion, to find the offending gizmo... (and if you're using a USB desklamp, or a toy missile launcher - I don't want to hear about it - I get embarassed for the entire race! )

There are occasional other problems that can cause this; in this case, you want to do two things; first is to hold the power button depressed for as long as it takes to 'stifle' the loop and cause the board to shut down; then, switch the PSU switch off for a couple minutes (or unplug it, if you have the rare PSU with no switch...); reset the CMOS by shorting the pins for a few seconds (and all the blather about removing the battery, and shorting the pins for two minutes is just that - blather - web 'old wive's tales' - it only takes a second or two to reset any modern (made since, say, '05) MOBO. Power back up, and if you can get to the BIOS, do a "Load Optimized Defaults", and you should be back in business.

Second is a bit more work - The standard 'strip-down':

Power down at PSU switch
remove everything except
CPU and heatsink/fan
one stick of RAM, in slot closest to CPU
video card and monitor connector (if more than one PCIe slot, again, in slot closest to CPU)
all power plugs - 20+4 or 24, 2x2 or 2x4 ATX power, graphics card power
case speaker and power switch connectors (and, if you don't have one, this would be a good time to consider getting one: http://www.cwc-group.com/casp.html )
keyboard (don't need a mouse at this point)
place jumper on RST_CMOS pins
remove jumper from RST_CMOS pins
power up at PSU switch
power up by depressing case power switch
If you get video, enter BIOS with <DEL> (may need a <TAB> to get to POST screen, if 'splash' screen is enabled)
Select and execute "Load Optimized Defaults" - save and exit, reboot
power down
reinsert other components, one at a time, testing each time after addition

Good luck, and feel free to post back if still troubles (just kidding about necrothreading :lol: )

Bill

 

[wongk]

doesn't work for me, I tried both pinned the cmos and taking the battery out, I'm still getting boots loop, I'm so regret to buy this crap.,

 

[bilbat]

Ok - some more info - has this thing been working? Is it a new build? Try the procedure above, re 'holding' the FP power button 'till it stops, followed by the exact procedure in the 'sticky', under the section entitled ...to break a 'boot-loop'; also read the section above the procedural part, titled 'Boot Loops', to ensure you don't have another hardware 'cause'...

 

[SiggeLund]

I have a Gigabyte S-Series GA-EP445-DS5 mobo and can confirm the strip-down solution.

I removed all memorypacks but one, removed the battery, moved the GPU to the slot closest to the CPU, and used the reset pins for five seconds.

This fixed the bootloop-problem, the mobo launched once, shut down again, then booted normally. Thank you so much for the help!

/SiggeLund, Sweden

 

[bilbat]

Always

!

 

[NanoBear]

Hi guys I'm running an GA-EP45-DS5, getting the same issue.
I was in the process of combining a couple of PCs to make a better one. The board had been running fine with generic RAM, and still does, but when I try the Crucial RAM it gets stuck in the loop. Would seem to lend credibility to this board just not liking Crucial. Running a few more checks, but I shall be off to get some new RAM soon to get it running properly again.

Unfortunately I don't know what rev my bios is.

edit
Got the new RAM, some generic brand from the only store I could find that was open on a Sunday. Works like a charm. Would seem it just doesn't like Crucial.

 

[captaink1]

I think the change of brand was coincidence. Probably you had installed DDR3 which can be done on this mobo but requires you to make some changes before it will run with the DDR2. I think your dealer just changed you back to the DDR2 your system looks for on BOOT unless you set it up to look for DDR3 instead.

Hi,

I have faced the so-called "Boot recycle problem" with my P35C DS3R. This problem has shown up and is being discussed already at different forums, for example, at TweakTown.

P35C-DSR3 Cycle Reboot Problem
http://forums.tweaktown.com/showthread.php?t=25290

GA-P35C-DS3R problems
http://forums.tweaktown.com/showthread.php?t=25051

In short, one day your computer won't start anymore since it stays on (only about three seconds) in an endless loop of powerup, reboots and shutdowns without never reaching the bios or POST test. This is really an annoying issue since it's not clear what is causing it.

In my case the problem showed up first time after I updated the bios (using the Gigabyte @BIOS utility with the Internet Update function in Windows Vista) to the version F2. Before that everything had worked wonderfully for a couple of months since I bought my new computer. One day when I shut down the computer and restarted it immediately again (cold boot) it didn't start anymore but started recycling boots in an endless loop (powers up, tries to boot, shuts down, powers up...etc). In order to stop that recycling I had take off the power cord. Then I noticed that I had to wait 5 minutes every time after a shutdown before I could start my computer normally again. However, the soft boot worked normally with this bios update.

I sent my computer to be examined and they fixed it by resetting the bios. However, the same problem returned after a couple of days and I decided to fix it by updating the bios to the version F6. Unfortunately, after the update the problem got worse and I had to wait a day after I could start my computer again normally without the recycling. Now the soft boot didn't work anymore and resulted also in the recycling so the F6 update messed up that thing nicely.

Then I sent my computer again to the dealer to be fixed and this time they found out that the recycling was caused by the memory and with the different memory brand everything worked normally. I had bought my new computer with the A-Data DDR2 1066 Mhz memory and this memory had worked without problems until I updated the bios to the version F2.

So it looks like that in my case the recycling problem was caused by bios updates which for some unknown reason broke the memory compatibility with the A-Data memory. And this is a serious problem for Gigabyte if they are releasing buggy bios updates.

What do you think guys?

 

[jsc]

Please do not resurrect dead threads. This one was born 5 years ago. It is well past its "Use By" date.