Chaintech CT-7NJL6 not booting properly

[kam311]

I just purchased the Barebones kit from TigerDirect with the Chaintech
7NJL6 mobo(w/ AMD Athlon XP 3000+) and added a 250GB HD, 1GB PC3200 +
512MB PC3200 RAM with a Chaintech GeForce FX 6600 video card. It has
a 500watt modular PSU, but it will not boot. It powers on and the
fans all spin, but there is no display at all. The memory is firmly
seated and I have tried disconnecting everything but the memory and
video card, but still it doesn't display. Any ideas? Thanks.

 

[JAD]

reset the CMOS

 

[kam311]

Tried that. I reset the CMOS, still nothing. I stripped everything
off the board except the CPU, and there were no system beeps or
anything. I reseated the CPU(AMD Athlon XP 3000+) and heatsink, but
to no avail. Running out of ideas here...(I even tried unplugging
the CPU fan to see if I got system beeps, but didn't get any).

 

[JAD]

that was going to be my next question (beeps). no beeps and the speaker is
connected properly, usually ends up being the MB or the CPU

 

[kam311]

Yeah, I decided it was 1 of the 2. Both are brand new, it's
frustrating to think TigerDirect would send a defective part. I've
had great success with them before. I'm currently testing to see if
the heatsink warms up when it's on for awhile. Have you found this
to be an accurate test of the CPU? If not, I've got another 3000+ in
my other PC i guess i could test with. Thanks.

 

[kam311]

Update: I put my CPU (identical one) in the new PC. Still nothing.
The CPU is about a year old and in perfect condition. I put the CP
in question in my PC and it boots fine. I guess the issue must b
with the mobo. Any suggestions or ideas as to why it may not b
running post or beeping, know that it is the mobo? Thanks

 

[Bob M]

Update: I put my CPU (identical one) in the new PC. Still nothing.
The CPU is about a year old and in perfect condition. I put the CPU
in question in my PC and it boots fine. I guess the issue must be
with the mobo. Any suggestions or ideas as to why it may not be
running post or beeping, know that it is the mobo? Thanks.

Remove one of the memory chips and see if it will boot.

Bob

 

[kam311]

Tried that several times. One of the first things that came to mind
anyway...no such luck

 

[JAD]

PSU voltage selector is set properly?

 

[John P. Dearing]

I just purchased the Barebones kit from TigerDirect with the Chaintech
7NJL6 mobo(w/ AMD Athlon XP 3000+) and added a 250GB HD, 1GB PC3200 +
512MB PC3200 RAM with a Chaintech GeForce FX 6600 video card. It has
a 500watt modular PSU, but it will not boot. It powers on and the
fans all spin, but there is no display at all. The memory is firmly
seated and I have tried disconnecting everything but the memory and
video card, but still it doesn't display. Any ideas? Thanks.

There have been several reports (here and elsewhere) of a large number
of failures with the Chaintech 7NJL6 motherboards. The failures have
ranged from what you describe (no POST) to unstable/erratic operation.

I teach an A+ class and we used (or tried to use) those motherboards
with disastrous results. We wound up sending them all back.

My personal recommendation would be to get an RMA# from Chaintech and
then call TigerDirect to make arrangements to ship the motherboard back.
You *don't* want an exchange. You want something from a different
manufacturer. We used MSI.

It appears that *some* of the 7NJL6 motherboards are OK. If you get a
good one, consider yourself lucky. If you get a bad one, dump it right
away and get something else.

Hope this helps.

John

 

[kam311]

Thanks, I've already ordered a new mobo. This isn't my PC, but I'
going to try a Gigabyte board. Apparently's it's gotten goo
reviews. Personally, I'm a big fan of Soyo and Epox. Just a hassle
is all...Thanks again

 

[JAD]

HEY! you have the same darn video card that another poster used, he failed
to hook up the power to the vidcard....you too?

 

[kam311]

Nope, hooked the power to the card fine. Not an issue

 

[nthums1]

Have you checked to see if all voltages are getting to the board
You should be able to back probe the MOBO connector. For pinout, yo
can search, or find one in the ULTRA PS forum. It also shows what t
jumper to fire up the PS while disconnected
Do a double check of all jumpers, connectors and make sure MOBO i
properly screwed to case. I came across someone saying they used th
plastic washers for the standoffs. Pretty sure their case use
different holes on the MObO for mounting, as I needed them not
On jumpers, I'd remove, visually check and reinstall. Could b
something as simple as the USB jumper in the wrong position for you
hardware and getting an immediate hang.
Also if you have the green switch in addition to the power, I'd jus
disconnect temporarily. Also master slave jumpers on HDD & C
etc. I've made that mistake and not gotten anything on a differen
machine
Start with Bios reset once you are satisfied everything is correct
per manual. Boot to bIOS and set optimum defaults. Try booting to O
install disk. Note, I have some install disks, SE upgrade from 9
only, and ME upgrade that will do nothing unless I manage to get int
some DOS first. Have to have bootable CD, unless you have floppy driv
and use startup disk. If using WD drive, their CD is bootable

 

[nthums1]

kam311wrote
I just purchased the Barebones kit from TigerDirect with th
Chaintech 7NJL6 mobo(w/ AMD Athlon XP 3000+) and added a 250GB HD
1GB PC3200 + 512MB PC3200 RAM with a Chaintech GeForce FX 6600 vide
card. It has a 500watt modular PSU, but it will not boot. It power
on and the fans all spin, but there is no display at all. The memor
is firmly seated and I have tried disconnecting everything but th
memory and video card, but still it doesn't display. Any ideas?
Thanks
Just noted the modular PS. Another area of my suspicions. I have a
Ultra 400?. This is twice as many power connections to not mak
properly. And their connectors didn't exactly follow the AM
origianal, maybe patent licensing. Result is the pins/sockets don'
float in the jack/plug. And they are not gold plated. If tinned pins
they usually contain some level of lead as in solder and it easil
gets a dark oxide coating that doesn't conduct well. (Look at ca
battery terminals, not the fluffy stuff but the dark) This is easil
removed with scraping action or plugging and unplugging a few times
To prevent it from coming back, I used a stiff silicone greas
intended for automotive bulb sockets. It is a white transluscen
grease but slightly thicker than that silicone tuneup grease. I
uncertain about conductivity, check a dab of it with a meter set t
high resistance scale. You want it non-conductive. Place or smear
small amount into/onto each contact. Make connection a few times t
help spread it and coat the contact surface. Also the main powe
cable is quite stiff and depending upon your layout is likely to pu
an inordinate amount of lateral pressure to the connections. Try t
preform the cable to relieve this strain and in my case that include
a single loop midway. That outer plastic casing molds better wit
warmth.
Also I read of some cases having shorts in the front jacks. Leav
temporarily disconnected

 

[kam311]

Thanks for the advice, but I've installed a new mobo, and it post
fine and boots. The new issue is CPU heating. The blower fan fro
thermaltake didn't do the job, so i tried the ht-101 heatpipe and fa
combo from aerocool. Even worse, it got up to about 160 in a minute.
Thermal grease, good contact on the die of the CPU an
everything...couldn't figure it out. I used my Jet 7+ from m
personal PC and it kept it under 130 at full power. This is still
little high fo my tastes, as my PC stays at about 120F at low fa
speed setting and full CPU utilization.
Any recommendations for an AMD XP 3000+ that would keep it cool, an
ideally, fairly quiet? Keep in mind, I don't quite have th
clearance for a Jet 7 blower fan in this case unless I make some mod
to the duct work on the side panel. Thanks