3 LEDs Bad Memory

[~LynX~]

Hello,

 

Got a strange problem which has been pestering me for quite a while now.

 

I currently have the DFI lanparty UT NF4 Ultra-D mother board and for some unknown reason it won't boot. When I turn it on everything powered up and the diagnostic LEDs begin to cycle through their startup checks. They are supposed to go from four red LEDs to three, then two ... to nothing. However, when I power on the system I receive a loud beep every five seconds and the LEDs get stuck at three.

 

My system will power up if I continue to try and turn it on for about 2 hours time. And I cannot predict when this will happen. Therefore I have merely been keeping my system on for the past several months. Today, we just had a power failure while I was at work and my system now refuses to start once again.

 

I tried to talk to DFI tech support but I can't find the number and their emails merely suggested I run memtest86 to see if the memory really is bad, however I ran the program for about 20 hours and not a single error so I don't know what to think. Anyone have similar problems? More importantly a solution?

thanks

[madu]

SInce your system was running fine for months and also you pass memtest for 20 hours, your psu could be a good testing point.

when you system finally starts to power up, does it work fine then?

Maybe the power failure messed your psu?

3 leds mean a ram problem, but since you pass memtest t hat would not be the case too.

what you could try is, clear cmos (its always better to do it), put only one ram stick in slot #2 and try to boot with the EZ switch.

Is there anyway you can try another psu?

[red930]

The first thing i would do is make sure you use the orange slots rather then the yellow. The next thing i would do is take one of the sticks out and make sure you have just one in the orange slot furthest to the processor. I would try to boot that way and go into the bios "DEL" key and into the "GENI MENU" all the way down to enable memtest. Now make sure you look over everything with the proper adjustments of voltage speed and timing for your processor and memory before you save at that point. When you do save and exit let it go through and it will go right into Memtest before anything else (which shouldn't since you haven't even gotten the chance to install the operating systems yet). Let the memtest run for about 2hrs if it even boots if not and you're having problems booting then take out that stick and put in the other stick only. Make sure you have all four power connectors connected as well. I hope this helps

[~LynX~]

Thanks for the reply guys. i am still haveing problems though, when my computer eventually starts (it still hasn't and i'm puching 8 hours now and tempers are flareing) th os works great the ram works like a charm and i can do rebo0t my system perfectly as long as the power is not shut off. as i said i let it run for months and it worked fine as long as i didn't turn it off.

Power failure can't be the cause of it because the problem has been there for almost 4 months now.

i'm not particularly savvy with bios settings and the dfi models have alot of settings in them which i prefer not to disturb since i was not the one who OCed it.

 

I'll give the one stick of ram in the orange slot a try.

 

and unfortunately i don't have access to another PSU.

[scyphe]

If you get into bios, change the startup voltage to 1.500 volts. If it's a severe case of cold-boot bugginess that may help. Kick up the voltage for the RAM one notch as well. And drop the LDT ratio to 3x.

[~LynX~]

I tried to switch the ram out so that only one stick of ram was in the mother board. (i had to use the slot next to the CPU because the thermaltake x-120 is a HUGE heatsink and i couldn't get it out of the socket without removing the Sink) however, my system STILL won't power on. i can't get the bios and can't get zip.

i still don't think this is a memory issue. however, i can't come up with an alternate solution. DFI want's me to RMA it. and i am trying to contact Enermax to see if i can get any support for the PSU. any other suggestions?

[~LynX~]

could it be a compatablity issue with the ram? maybe it just doesn't like to overclock. however, it was working in the past

[~LynX~]

Hey guys i tried to switch the ram from the first orange slot to the second (one farthest from the cpu) and it still won't boot at all.

[madu]

If you put your ram in slot #4 (nearest to the cpu) it will definitely not work. slots #3 and #4 are for dual channels. That means if you want to use slot #3 you need to have a stick in slot #1, or if you want to use slot #4 you need to have a stick in slot #2. So if you are running with one stick, you have to put it in either slot #2( most prefarable) or slot #1.

 

what you could is, strip out your rig and start from the initial build with minimum hardware. Do a long cmos clear. And if you get into bios load optimized defaults. try to boot without your vid card and see if you and get to one red led. If still no go, I suggest you test your cpu and memory in another rig to make sure they are fine. Since you are getting 3 leds, maybe you can assume the cpu is fine. Test your ram, since 3 leds means a ram problem. Or get another stick of working ram and stick it in.

P.S. Make sure all power cables are properly plugged. Take out vid card and check.

[~LynX~]

If you put your ram in slot #4 (nearest to the cpu) it will definitely not work. slots #3 and #4 are for dual channels. That means if you want to use slot #3 you need to have a stick in slot #1, or if you want to use slot #4 you need to have a stick in slot #2. So if you are running with one stick, you have to put it in either slot #2( most prefarable) or slot #1.

 

what you could is, strip out your rig and start from the initial build with minimum hardware. Do a long cmos clear. And if you get into bios load optimized defaults. try to boot without your vid card and see if you and get to one red led. If still no go, I suggest you test your cpu and memory in another rig to make sure they are fine. Since you are getting 3 leds, maybe you can assume the cpu is fine. Test your ram, since 3 leds means a ram problem. Or get another stick of working ram and stick it in.

P.S. Make sure all power cables are properly plugged. Take out vid card and check.

 

 

i followed your directions to the letter. i removed everyother device on my board except for the CPU and RAM. i removed the battery and set the jumper to clear. then i hit the start button to clear the capacitors. (the PSU was unplugged) i left it this way for about 6 hours. i then plugged in a ps2 keyboard and moved the jumper to the save position. then i replaced the battery. i made sure i had once stick of ram in th DIMM #2 slot (second farthest from the CPU orange slot not the yellow.) then i turned on the PSU held the insert key and powered on the system. again, i got the 3 LEDS of death and it wouldn't boot. i tried again with the video card and i still got the same result. now i am really stuck. i know my ram is good i tried it in another system and it worked like a charm. however, i still have no real way of testing the PSU. i have a voltage meter but i don't know if i can read the voltages starting up becuase it's not under a full load. any other tips?

 

Thanks again for the help

[scyphe]

Time to RMA the motherboard methinks.

[red930]

Try the 24 hour clear before moving forward...

http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/showpost.p...04&postcount=24