I'm not sure what's wrong

[Calitri]

So far i've put this in the box

ASUS M4A87T AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s ATX AMD
AMD Phenom II X4 975 Black Edition Deneb 3.6GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
Antec EarthWatts EA-500D Green 500W
HD6870

I've everything together in the box put everything into place, wires from the box to motherboard etc. Now i'm just trying to see if this stuff can post, minus the hard drive read you can do that supposedly. My 1st build in about 10 years, so i've forgotten how to do it. But i'm not getting any beeping or motherboard flashscreens nothing, that indicates it's actually doing something. The case fan runs and the processor heat sink runs, but that's all i've seen so far. So is something not working, or is the hard drive required for post?

 

[pjmelect]

The hard drive is not required for post. Have you tried resetting the CMOS memory?

 

[Calitri]

That's the mem ok button? Or something else.

 

[Xenturion]

Alright. So, a few things to try:
1) Reseat the 20/24 Pin PSU connector on the motherboard.
2) Reseat the 4/8 Pin CPU connector on the motherboard.
3) Remove all but one RAM Stick.
4) Ensure the 6870 is in the slot and properly powered by the PCIe power connectors from the PSU.
5) Power the system on with only these devices connected.

Resetting the CMOS usually means removing the flat, watch battery from it's spot on the motherboard. It is about the size, shape, and appearance of a quarter. You take it out, wait a couple of minutes (latent energy in the capacitors) and then put it back in. It'll reset the board to factory default settings which are most POST friendly.

 

[bigj231]

I think it's usually a jumper on the board. Your manual should tell you exactly how to do it.

 

[Calitri]

I'll give this all a try thank you.

 

[bigj231]

Alright. So, a few things to try:
1) Reseat the 20/24 Pin PSU connector on the motherboard.
2) Reseat the 4/8 Pin CPU connector on the motherboard.
3) Remove all but one RAM Stick.
4) Ensure the 6870 is in the slot and properly powered by the PCIe power connectors from the PSU.
5) Power the system on with only these devices connected.

Resetting the CMOS usually means removing the flat, watch battery from it's spot on the motherboard. It is about the size, shape, and appearance of a quarter. You take it out, wait a couple of minutes (latent energy in the capacitors) and then put it back in. It'll reset the board to factory default settings which are most POST friendly.

To actually use the battery trick, I believe you also have to unplug the power supply.

If you aren't seeing anything at all on the screen, then the video card might either be dead or not installed properly. If you try booting without a video card power connector installed (the 6/8-pin PCI-E) it will usually flash lights and/or display a message on the screen complaining about a cable not being connected.

If there is a bad RAM stick, my motherboard (gigabyte) will complain about it , and will display a message about bad RAM on the screen.

 

[Calitri]

Video cards fine, I put it in the computer i'm using right now and it works without a problem. I'm wondering if I either got the processor or maybe even the motherboard DoA, you can't get the motherboard splash screen without the processor installed right? I'm still trying to figure out how to get the cmos battery out, manuals sitting at work.

 

[delluser1]

So far i've put this in the box

ASUS M4A87T AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s ATX AMD
AMD Phenom II X4 975 Black Edition Deneb 3.6GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
Antec EarthWatts EA-500D Green 500W
HD6870

I've everything together in the box put everything into place, wires from the box to motherboard etc. Now i'm just trying to see if this stuff can post, minus the hard drive read you can do that supposedly. My 1st build in about 10 years, so i've forgotten how to do it. But i'm not getting any beeping or motherboard flashscreens nothing, that indicates it's actually doing something. The case fan runs and the processor heat sink runs, but that's all i've seen so far. So is something not working, or is the hard drive required for post?

Many here breadboard before putting the components into the case

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/262730-31-breadboarding

PS;
CMOS battery; use a small screwdriver or your thumbnail to depress the clip and it should pop out

 

[Calitri]

Well if the motherboard is DoA i'll make sure to do that, in any case I just popped out the CMOS. I'll plug it back in when I get home from dinner.

 

[bigj231]

Video cards fine, I put it in the computer i'm using right now and it works without a problem. I'm wondering if I either got the processor or maybe even the motherboard DoA, you can't get the motherboard splash screen without the processor installed right? I'm still trying to figure out how to get the cmos battery out, manuals sitting at work.

Interesting question. I have an old box here that is destined for the local museum (they take old computers to let kids tear them apart) I will have to pull the processor and see if I can get to the splash.

Removing the CMOS chip should most certainly erase it... you might want to check for a CMOS jumper or button while you are looking around on the motherboard anyway. It's nice to know where it is if you have a bad OC'ing session.

EDIT: It appears that the CMOS switch is on the IO panel.
http://support.asus.com/Troubleshooting/detail.aspx?SLanguage=en&p=1&m=M4A87T&s=24&hashedid=ujMSNAZU9bVBkzh0&os=&no=1722

EDIT 2: Maybe not... It's either a button somewhere or a jumper. I've never had to remove a CMOS battery except to replace it.

 

[Calitri]

k tried everything listed so far, can't get the splash screen. Or beeps or anything

 

[bigj231]

Sounds like something's DOA.
You said the fans spin? That leads me to believe that the PSU is working, since there is power going somewhere.
If the fans are powered by the motherboard, then that means that the motherboard is correctly routing power to the fans. To hear any beeps, you have to have a speaker hooked up to the motherboard, unless it has an onboard one.

With those things most likely working, it sounds like a processor problem.

 

[Calitri]

I'm inclined to agree, I might just try to return both the processor and motherboard to be on the safe side. Unless newegg can walk me thru something to tell me something to tell which is DoA.

 

[Calitri]

Best answer selected by Calitri.