Asrock Conroe 945g-dvi - dead?

[pulck]

Up till today my computer worked fine. Now it won't boot - it just freezes on the first POST screen on the line "Dual memory mode".
I've tried unplugging all devices, unplugging sata hard-drives, disconnecting PCI devices, swapping RAM, even re-seating the CPU... all to no avail.
Does this mean my motherboard is dead? It must only be about 3 years old at most.

 

[Mongox]

Problems like this are so hard to solve without the ability to swap out parts. It could be the power supply, or the motherboard, or even the CPU. One thing you can do is to try with a single stick of RAM, each piece in turn. Clear the CMOS with the jumper on the motherboard. At some point, I'd try pulling the board from the case and setting it up with just PSU, CPU, video and RAM.

Try the CMOS/BIOS clear for sure.

 

[pulck]

Thanks mongox. I tried resetting cmos and i'd already tried single sticks of ram. Still nothing. I don't have another cpu or psu to try, but i had previously tried a bare bones setup to see if it was any of the drives or pci boards causing it. So it looks like i'm going to have to get at least a new motherboard to get up and running again. Any suggestions?

 

[Mongox]

For a new motherboard? In general terms, I like Gigabyte and Asus boards for their quality and informative and easy-to-navigate websites. Don't know what you have in the way of existing hardware, especially RAM brand/model or CPU. If you can retain those two items, MB replacement can be very inexpensive. But of course then you're limiting your choices a lot by going with older tech in MB and other HW.

When I faced had what I thought were RAM problems with my old board, I bought 3 sticks of DDR 1GB for it. Those three sticks cost almost $150. Didn't fix my problem, which was MB, but showed me how nice and fast the 3GBs was. So I chunked all 3 items, MB, CPU and RAM and replaced for about $250 with the items in my sig. Of course, got a few other things along the way eventually - I think I'm enjoying my tri-color Antec LED case fans the most! LOL.

But now my whole system is ready to last another 3 yrs, not just my motherboard. Anything else you have can fail at any time now - you're at the reasonable lifespan of many components.

 

[pulck]

Thanks. I'm thinking of the Asus P5k se/epu. I believe it will fit my cpu and ram. (Also i want to instal Osx86.) Looks like a reasonable board, although I'm definitely going to get a different cooler - my last one (scythe) was a bitch to install.

 

[Mongox]

LOL, my Scythe went in easy. But then, I pulled the PSU just for easy access and wouldn't have minded pulling the MB from the case. Heck, for me, putting on the cooler is a one-time thing, might as well do it right.

Good luck on future items. Sorry the old board is getting the boot but you did get some good life outta it. I sold computer for 25 yrs, and I've always said if you can't justify the cost of it over 3 yrs, you shouldn't buy. In your case, you're only doing what amounts to required maintenance, just replacing some worn-out parts.

 

[pulck]

LOL, my Scythe went in easy. But then, I pulled the PSU just for easy access and wouldn't have minded pulling the MB from the case. Heck, for me, putting on the cooler is a one-time thing, might as well do it right.

I went for the Asus P5K SE in the end. I did pull the board out and it made life a lot easier with my cooler/fan.

The new board works fine. Only thing is when I boot up my old Windows XP installation, the USB connectors seem to be unpowered. This is strange as the keyboard is definitely working at the POST screen/boot selector.

I haven't swapped motherboards before. Do I have to do a fresh XP installation now that I've installed a new board?

Thanks.

 

[peterkkk]

change the cmos battery. (At the same time, I replaced the jumper with cd-jumper but I guess the battery out more right)

u can check out the place of it below the file. Good luck!!

ftp://europe.asrock.com/manual/conroe945g-dvi.pdf