P5A won't post

[Alex]

Got a P5A mobo, with a K6-2/400 CPU, stuck it in an ATX case, set up the jumpers, connected the cables, put in a 256MB PC133 stick (double sided, 16 chips with "4BLC16M8A2" written on each), display card, etc.

When I turn the power on, the machine immediately starts beeping (a short beep every 2/3 of a second) and that's it. No video signal.

I disconnected the floppy and IDE drives, removed all the rest of the cards - no change.

Same reaction whether the display card is PCI, AGP or missing.
Same reaction if I move the memory to a different slot or remove it altogether.

I even tried removing the CPU (well, it stopped the beeping but this cannot be considered a solution).

Please help me find the cause of the problem!

Thanks,
Alex.

 

[Alex]

Got a P5A mobo, with a K6-2/400 CPU, stuck it in an ATX case, set up the jumpers,

connected the cables, put in a 256MB PC133 stick (double sided, 16 chips with
"4BLC16M8A2" written on each), display card, etc.

When I turn the power on, the machine immediately starts beeping (a short beep every 2/3
of a second) and that's it. No video signal.

I disconnected the floppy and IDE drives, removed all the rest of the cards - no change.

Same reaction whether the display card is PCI, AGP or missing.
Same reaction if I move the memory to a different slot or remove it altogether.

I even tried removing the CPU (well, it stopped the beeping but this cannot be considered
a solution).

Please help me find the cause of the problem!

Forgot to mention, the memory was tested in a friend's PC so it should be physically good
(at least it was a week ago when I tested it).

Thanks,
Alex.

 

[BoB]

a.. Supports 8/16/32/64/128 MB DIMM Module

Got a P5A mobo, with a K6-2/400 CPU, stuck it in an ATX case, set up the jumpers,
connected the cables, put in a 256MB PC133 stick (double sided, 16 chips with
"4BLC16M8A2" written on each), display card, etc.

When I turn the power on, the machine immediately starts beeping (a short beep every 2/3
of a second) and that's it. No video signal.

I disconnected the floppy and IDE drives, removed all the rest of the cards - no change.

Same reaction whether the display card is PCI, AGP or missing.
Same reaction if I move the memory to a different slot or remove it altogether.

I even tried removing the CPU (well, it stopped the beeping but this cannot be considered
a solution).

Please help me find the cause of the problem!

Forgot to mention, the memory was tested in a friend's PC so it should be
physically good
(at least it was a week ago when I tested it).

Thanks,
Alex.

 

[Egil Solberg]

Got a P5A mobo, with a K6-2/400 CPU, stuck it in an ATX case, set up the

jumpers, connected the cables, put in a 256MB PC133 stick (double sided, 16
chips with "4BLC16M8A2" written on each), >display card, etc.

When I turn the power on, the machine immediately starts beeping (a short

beep every 2/3 of a second) and that's it. No video signal.

I disconnected the floppy and IDE drives, removed all the rest of the

cards - no change.

Same reaction whether the display card is PCI, AGP or missing.
Same reaction if I move the memory to a different slot or remove it altogether.

I even tried removing the CPU (well, it stopped the beeping but this cannot

be considered a solution).

Please help me find the cause of the problem!

I took a look over at Crucial.
http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.asp?model=P5A&DetailMB=Y&cat=RAM
Seems as 256MB modules should be fine, but they need to be organized in a
certain way.
On the other hand, when one tries with modules with the higher "density",
usually the PC will find 1/2 your RAM, so this brings me into doubt.

Take a look here as well:

http://www.asuscom.de/support/FAQ/faq045_cacheable_area.htm

If your mobo isn't of the right revision, your L2 cache will not cahe more
than 128MB of installed RAM, so you might not get the performance you want
with 256MB installed.

Which BIOS revision do you run? It might be too old to properly set up your
CPU. This is latest. Can you try the board and RAM with a different (and
less powerful) CPU to see if this fixes it?

http://www.asus.com.tw/support/download/item.aspx?ModelName=P5A&Type=Latest

Are you 100% sure your CPU is K6-2 400 and not K6-3?

 

[JAD]

if you are certain of the cpu speed Identity... I would pull the plug clear the cmos at the jumper 2 minutes reset the jumper
reboot

Got a P5A mobo, with a K6-2/400 CPU, stuck it in an ATX case, set up the jumpers, connected the cables, put in a 256MB PC133 stick
(double sided, 16 chips with "4BLC16M8A2" written on each), display card, etc.

When I turn the power on, the machine immediately starts beeping (a short beep every 2/3 of a second) and that's it. No video
signal.

I disconnected the floppy and IDE drives, removed all the rest of the cards - no change.

Same reaction whether the display card is PCI, AGP or missing.
Same reaction if I move the memory to a different slot or remove it altogether.

I even tried removing the CPU (well, it stopped the beeping but this cannot be considered a solution).

Please help me find the cause of the problem!

Thanks,
Alex.

 

[Alex]

a.. Supports 8/16/32/64/128 MB DIMM Module

Downloaded the manual and it says:

This motherboard uses only Dual Inline Memory Modules (DIMMs). Sockets are
available for 3.3Volt (power level) unbuffered Synchronous Dynamic Random Access
Memory (SDRAM) of either 8, 16, 32, 64, 128MB, or 256MB to form a memory
size between 8MB and 768MB. One side (with memory chips) of the DIMM takes up
one row on the motherboard.

So 256MB should be OK.

 

[BoB]

If that wasn't enough, a lot of pc133 doesn't work in 100mghz mobo's.
That's why I keep extra sticks to "plug and Pray"!

a.. Supports 8/16/32/64/128 MB DIMM Module

Downloaded the manual and it says:

This motherboard uses only Dual Inline Memory Modules (DIMMs). Sockets are
available for 3.3Volt (power level) unbuffered Synchronous Dynamic Random
Access
Memory (SDRAM) of either 8, 16, 32, 64, 128MB, or 256MB to form a memory
size between 8MB and 768MB. One side (with memory chips) of the DIMM takes
up
one row on the motherboard.

So 256MB should be OK.

 

[Alex]

jumpers, connected the cables, put in a 256MB PC133 stick (double sided, 16
chips with "4BLC16M8A2" written on each), >display card, etc.






I took a look over at Crucial.
http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.asp?model=P5A&DetailMB=Y&cat=RAM
Seems as 256MB modules should be fine, but they need to be organized in a
certain way.
On the other hand, when one tries with modules with the higher "density",
usually the PC will find 1/2 your RAM, so this brings me into doubt.

That's what I understand as well.

Take a look here as well:

http://www.asuscom.de/support/FAQ/faq045_cacheable_area.htm

If your mobo isn't of the right revision, your L2 cache will not cahe more
than 128MB of installed RAM, so you might not get the performance you want
with 256MB installed.

The K6-2 has an internal L2 cache so that's not an issue.

Which BIOS revision do you run? It might be too old to properly set up your
CPU. This is latest.

Can't flash the BIOS if the board won't POST, can I?

Can you try the board and RAM with a different (and
less powerful) CPU to see if this fixes it?

Have a Pentium 200 MMX. Will try it as well.

http://www.asus.com.tw/support/download/item.aspx?ModelName=P5A&Type=Latest

Are you 100% sure your CPU is K6-2 400 and not K6-3?

That's what etched onto the metal plate on top of the CPU.

 

[Egil Solberg]

The K6-2 has an internal L2 cache so that's not an issue.

K6-3 has. Not K6-2 as far as I know.

 

[Alex]

K6-3 has. Not K6-2 as far as I know.

My mistake, the K6-2+ has it, not the K6-2.

However, the bug that prevented caching more than 128MB on the P5A was fixed in revision 1.06 (they removed the external tag ram and used a newer Ali chipset with internal tag). See http://tinyurl.com/rszj

Since the mine is 1.06, it should be fine in that respect.

 

[mdp]

Could that be why the K6-2+ (and K6-3+) run painfully slow on Rev 1.06 and
later?

K6-3 has. Not K6-2 as far as I know.

My mistake, the K6-2+ has it, not the K6-2.

However, the bug that prevented caching more than 128MB on the P5A was fixed
in revision 1.06 (they removed the external tag ram and used a newer Ali
chipset with internal tag). See http://tinyurl.com/rszj

Since the mine is 1.06, it should be fine in that respect.

 

[Alex]

Could that be why the K6-2+ (and K6-3+) run painfully slow on Rev 1.06 and
later?

No idea. I understand that these CPUs can use the MB cache as L3 but I can be mistaken.

 

[Alex]

Some more testing revealed that the repeated beeps (every 2/3 of a second) and failure to POST only happens when using bus speeds above 83MHz (the CPU multiplier setting does not matter).

This is a bit strange, as the K6-2/400 supports 100MHz bus speed.

Maybe there is a problem with the RAM after all. Although it has a PC133 sticker, it may not support these speeds.

There are 16 chips on the DIMM which look like: (use fixed font)

+---------------+
| 0140 1-1 |
| MT 4BLC16M8A2 |
| TG -75C |
+---------------+

Any info on these ICs?

Or could it be another problem with the board or CPU?
I removed all the cards and disconnected the IDE and floppy cables to make sure they are not affecting the issue.

Thanks,
Alex.

Got a P5A mobo, with a K6-2/400 CPU, stuck it in an ATX case, set up the jumpers, connected the cables, put in a 256MB PC133 stick (double sided, 16 chips with "4BLC16M8A2" written on each), display card, etc.

When I turn the power on, the machine immediately starts beeping (a short beep every 2/3 of a second) and that's it. No video signal.

I disconnected the floppy and IDE drives, removed all the rest of the cards - no change.

Same reaction whether the display card is PCI, AGP or missing.
Same reaction if I move the memory to a different slot or remove it altogether.

I even tried removing the CPU (well, it stopped the beeping but this cannot be considered a solution).

Please help me find the cause of the problem!

Thanks,
Alex.

 

[BoB]

I had several K-6 III(that's how at post you tell if the tri-level
cache is supported) cpu's. In their day they were great,
my 400's oc'd to 450 were roughly equivalent to a PIII 600 slot
cpu. At least that's how all the bench's rated mine, however the key issue
was how much L3 the mobo had. 1/2 meg sucked!
My daughter who was into adobe photoshop had no problem running
384 megs of ram and cacheing it!

Could that be why the K6-2+ (and K6-3+) run painfully slow on Rev 1.06 and
later?

No idea. I understand that these CPUs can use the MB cache as L3 but I can
be mistaken.

 

[BoB]

ctspd
http://www.overclockers.com/tips448/
for that ram, put back in your buddy's computer and run the program!
really wish there was an equivalent program for ddr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Some more testing revealed that the repeated beeps (every 2/3 of a second)
and failure to POST only happens when using bus speeds above 83MHz (the CPU
multiplier setting does not matter).

This is a bit strange, as the K6-2/400 supports 100MHz bus speed.

Maybe there is a problem with the RAM after all. Although it has a PC133
sticker, it may not support these speeds.

There are 16 chips on the DIMM which look like: (use fixed font)

+---------------+
| 0140 1-1 |
| MT 4BLC16M8A2 |
| TG -75C |
+---------------+

Any info on these ICs?

Or could it be another problem with the board or CPU?
I removed all the cards and disconnected the IDE and floppy cables to make
sure they are not affecting the issue.

Thanks,
Alex.

Got a P5A mobo, with a K6-2/400 CPU, stuck it in an ATX case, set up the
jumpers, connected the cables, put in a 256MB PC133 stick (double sided, 16
chips with "4BLC16M8A2" written on each), display card, etc.

When I turn the power on, the machine immediately starts beeping (a short
beep every 2/3 of a second) and that's it. No video signal.

I disconnected the floppy and IDE drives, removed all the rest of the
cards - no change.

Same reaction whether the display card is PCI, AGP or missing.
Same reaction if I move the memory to a different slot or remove it
altogether.

I even tried removing the CPU (well, it stopped the beeping but this cannot
be considered a solution).

Please help me find the cause of the problem!

Thanks,
Alex.

 

[Stephan Grossklass]

Some more testing revealed that the repeated beeps (every 2/3 of a second) and failure to POST only happens when using bus speeds above 83MHz (the CPU multiplier setting does not matter).

This is a bit strange, as the K6-2/400 supports 100MHz bus speed.

PCI divider issue perhaps? Or maybe the BIOS doesn't handle PC133 memory
correctly yet, which might be worsened by a sloppily programmed SPD
EEPROM.

Maybe there is a problem with the RAM after all. Although it has a PC133 sticker, it may not support these speeds.

There are 16 chips on the DIMM which look like: (use fixed font)

+---------------+
| 0140 1-1 |
| MT 4BLC16M8A2 |
| TG -75C |
+---------------+

That is nominally 7.5 ns stuff, i.e. PC133 CL3. "16M8" points to 16Mx8
chips, those should work.

If you get the board to work stable at 66 MHz, flash the latest BIOS
(from the Asus Germany FTP, for example; ASUS' WWW pages usually suck),
maybe that helps.

Stephan

 

[BoB]

Hello Stephan,
Has there ever been an update that would work with DDR to CTSPD?
It was a wonderful utility in it's day!
TIA
Dumb Yank

second) and failure to POST only happens when using bus speeds above 83MHz
(the CPU multiplier setting does not matter).

 

[Alex]

Thank you all!

The problem was with the RAM. Swapped the Micron for an Infineon and voila! - works OK.
Even seems to work at CAS2 (the memory is PC133-7.5) although I have not tested it extensively.

Now I just have to figure out why my SB16 ISA (Actually a Vibra16 + Wave Blaster) is not recognized...

Best regards,
Alex