unknown cause to my problem (boot failure)

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tastegw

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here is the problem i have.

my new rig does not boot up every time i try.
when it does not boot up, it hangs at a checkpoint (2A)
i have tried to get info about this checkpoint, with no luck
when it does boot up, and checkpoint 2A clears, everything works fine.

I have rebuilt the pc, checked all the connections, and everything else that i could think of.

this does not occur after a restart, only an initial boot up when the pc has been off.

all of my temps appear to be fine, cpu idles 28-31C. the onlyl temp that was out of wack was my gpu when the driver didnt recognize the card but that was breif because i fixed that asap.

my video card has no official driver for it yet and im running the only known driver that i can get to run with it witch is 8.6 (9.4 sucks with this card)


my specs just to be clear:

intel core i7 920
biostar tpower x58A
sapphire 4770
ocz xmp ddr3 1600
ocz fatality 700w (ruled out as not the problem already)
lite-on dvd writer
WD Caviar Black 640GB sata 3.0


the manual stats this with the 2A checkpoint (" Initializes different devices through DIM, See DIM Code Checkpoints section of document for more information ")
but there is no section on this subject.

I emailed biostar about this problem, and only to hear this back.
"Sounds like memory issue. Try one memory stick at a time, ensure the memory is in A2 slot, not A1."

They confused DIM with DIMM? really? forget it...

anyways,

im suspect on two componets...
either my motherboard or my hard drive.

reason hard drive is suspect is, it does nothing until A2 checkpoint is cleared

if anyone with a good knowledge base could help me, it would be much appriciated, because taking 2-3 minutes just to turn on my rig is not cool ;)
 
Does this happen on stock clocks?

Are you running the most current bios version?

i did not feel the need to check bios version since this mobo was just released a few weeks ago, maybe i should,

and ya, it does it on default clocks and overclocks, so overclocking isnt the issue.

edit: just checked, there is only 1 bios avaible with this board, and i have it already.
 
Just to rule it out I would test the memory with memtest.

have you changed memory settings in bios?

when i overclocked ya, set them to run at rated clocks
and the bclk brought them up to speed with the correct multi set. 1600 @ 8-8-8-24

right now everything is back to default, but eithe way, i get the same results.

i have only had one BSOD and that was totaly my fault, as i did not set my uncore to double my ram speed the first oc session.
other than that, zero BSOD's
 
checkpoint 2a
Initialize different buses and perform the following functions: Reset, Detect, and Disable (function 0); Static Device Initialization (function 1); Boot Output Device Initialization (function 2). Function 0 disables all device nodes, PCI devices, and PnP ISA cards. It also assigns PCI bus numbers. Function 1 initializes all static devices that include manual configured onboard peripherals, memory and I/O decode windows in PCI-PCI bridges, and noncompliant PCI devices. Static resources are also reserved. Function 2 searches for and initializes any PnP, PCI, or AGP video devices.

http://www.ami.com/support/doc/AMIBIOS8_Checkpoint_and_Beep_Code_List_PUB.pdf

Do you have any other expansion cards installed besides the vid card. If so take them out and try
 
checkpoint 2a
Initialize different buses and perform the following functions: Reset, Detect, and Disable (function 0); Static Device Initialization (function 1); Boot Output Device Initialization (function 2). Function 0 disables all device nodes, PCI devices, and PnP ISA cards. It also assigns PCI bus numbers. Function 1 initializes all static devices that include manual configured onboard peripherals, memory and I/O decode windows in PCI-PCI bridges, and noncompliant PCI devices. Static resources are also reserved. Function 2 searches for and initializes any PnP, PCI, or AGP video devices.

http://www.ami.com/support/doc/AMIBIOS8_Checkpoint_and_Beep_Code_List_PUB.pdf

Do you have any other expansion cards installed besides the vid card. If so take them out and try

yes, i do have a wireless network card that i do need to upgrade, as i have been using it for the past 3 years (works fine, but vista limits its speed by 50%)
netgear wg311t

i need to look into a usb adapter because the card currently is blocking my 2nd pci-e slot if i wanted to put a 2nd in there.

i will try tomorrow and take it out and test the boots on it to see if it boots right up every time without the wireless card in there.

do you think maybe since i have no proper driver for my 4770 that this could be the cause or no?
because i have the proper driver for my wireless card.
 
ok, ran some tests.

took out the pci wireless adapter and it booted right up 3 times ....but the 4th and 5th time tries were not the same.

still getting hung @ the A2 checkpoint.

can this a defective mobo by any chance? I would hate to have to RMA my board.

but here is what is ruled out so far:

pci wireless card
psu
bad connections
unsafe temps
ram (ran memtest86 for 30+ min no errors)

this leaves these suspects:

cpu and or cooler (highly doubtful)
motherboard
hard drive
video card (witch has its own set of problems via driver issues)
cd/dvd drive (highly doubtful)
 
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