Issues with AMD 965 BE/Radeon 5770 build

[crznazn991]

I will try to be as thorough as possible. First, my system:

AMD Phenom II X4 965 BE (CnQ is confirmed working)
Gigabyte GA-790XTA-UD4
4GB (2x2GB) A-DATA 1600 MHz DDR3 1.55-1.65V
ASUS Radeon 5770 CuCore
500GB Western Digital Caviar Green
IDE DVD + IDE DVDRW
Antec Basiq 550 Plus

Before the problems, I will say that the BIOS is updated (F3 Rev.), all drivers are updated (Catalyst 10.5), and all power supply connections are solid. Temperatures are not abnormally high or low. I can game all day with few or no issues. Memory and power supply have been replaced previously as troubleshooting, but problems persist.

1) System will not POST when RAM is installed as dual-channel. The motherboard exhibits continuous beeping, though I am unsure whether it is either short beeping (indicative of a power error) or long beeping (indicative of a graphics error). It occurs when installed as DIMM1&2 or as DIMM 3&4. However, warming up the computer allows system to POST occasionally, though system will not be stable (sporadic BSODs). Installing as single-channel fixes the issue entirely (ie DIMM1&3).

Steps I've taken: Replaced Antec EarthWatts 650 with Antec Basiq 550 Plus, no change. Replaced 4GB (2x2GB) Kingston HyperX T1 2000 MHz with 4GB (2x2GB) A-DATA 1600 MHz, no change. Running RAM at recommended timings and voltage, tried both Auto and Manual settings, no change. MemTest86+ showed no errors with either set of RAM. Again, only thing that fixes issue completely is running in single-channel.

What I'm thinking: Bad processor? I know memory controller is now integrated onto the processor die. Could the motherboard be at fault?

2) Full-screen Flash video causes BSOD or immediate system reboot. BSOD (when it appears) shows error 0x01E (0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00), which points to a hardware fault.

Steps I've taken: Installed latest Flash Player (10.1, even tried RC 7), no change. Re-installed 5770 drivers straight from ATI website after using Driver Cleaner, no change. Disabling hardware acceleration did not help (though it would be a less than ideal solution).

What I'm thinking: Bad video card and/or related to problem 1? I did a bit of Googling, and someone fixed a similar problem by going with Nvidia. There is no similar part to the 5770 that Nvidia currently offers (price, DX11, power consumption), so I'm trying to stick with the 5770. Playing other videos (SD, HD) in Windows Media Player or watching TV (Windows Media Center) do not cause this issue. Again, games work flawlessly.

3) Intermittent loud static from external speakers upon reboot/shutdown (occurs before POST but after OS is shut down). Not a huge issue but I thought it could help pinpoint a problem.

I bought all these parts from a B&M store, and all parts were sealed (they were not returns). I still have about 1 week left to do any returns/exchanges. I've been through the Gigabyte motherboard sticky, and nothing appears to apply to my situation.

Any help or insight is appreciated! Please reply if something I didn't consider crosses your mind. Thanks in advance!

 

[swifty_morgan]

Sounds like you tried to eliminate everything but didn't eliminate the mother board as the culprit.

The boards have an 8pin 12v connector. Are you using an 8pin or did you just put a 4pin in because that's all you had ?

Did you uninstall ALL ati drivers and start from scratch ?.... if you did an express install you also installed the ati sound drivers along with the video driver. This can cause problems..... IE: ati and on board sound drivers installed. Try and advanced install and choose NOT to install the sound drivers.... or just down load the video drivers only package from AMD.

 

[swifty_morgan]

You also need to get a grip on the beep codes..... long, short, how many and for how long ? are there long and short together ?

 

[crznazn991]

I am using the provided 8-pin power connector.

I did indeed start from scratch and reinstalled all ATI drivers. The problem still persists. I believe I did indeed install the ATI HDMI sound driver. I will try uninstalling that and post back after more testing.

I am currently trying to resolve the flash video issue by turning up the 2D clock from 157/300 to full tilt, 850/1200. I have tested for about half an hour now with no reboots. I am following the instructions and discussion thread >here<. Again, I will post back after more testing - YouTube playlists are great for this purpose.

Regarding the beep codes: The beeps are always the same continuous beeping when the RAM is installed as dual-channel. I can best describe it as short beeps, continuous (beep beep beep beep beep etc.). The manual describes "continuous short beeps" as being indicative of a power error; however, I have already ruled out the power supply as being the culprit.

I do not really mind not being able to run RAM in dual-channel, but I believe that it should work anyway...

Other than the flash video and dual-channel RAM issues, the computer works fine otherwise.

 

[swifty_morgan]

did you try this ?

http://techreport.com/discussions.x/19062

also, completely pull the mother board and have a look for a high solder joint or if something would be coming in contact with the case... shorting ... reinstall.