A7V333 Shuts Down During Powerup

I am building a new device based on the Asus A7V333. During power-up
no video displays and then after about 10 seconds it shuts off. Why
would it do this?

The CPU fan is connected real snug to the CPU (an Athlon XP 2100) and
the CPU fun is wired through the board (not the power supply
directly).

I don't hear any beeps, then again, lazy guy that I am, I don't have
the speaker connected. Do I need to do this so that I can "count
beeps" to diagnose a post message?

LRH

Update, sorry for the confusion.

I did connect the speaker so I could listen for "post beeps." I also
removed all hard drive and CD/DVD connection (IDE in other words), all
PCI devices, left only the AGP video card. I also alternated between
that and even removing the AGP video card and substituting with a PCI-
based one.

I also removed all memory chips except one 256 megabyte.

No matter what combination, at this point what I am getting is this:
it fires up, CPU fun operating, but nothing comes to the video screen
at all, no beeps at all. Also, unlike before, it STAYS that way, it
does not shut down after 10 seconds. It basically just does nothing
(other than making the CPU fan whir).

Any tips?

LRH

larrytxeast@gmail.com wrote:
> Update, sorry for the confusion.
>
> I did connect the speaker so I could listen for "post beeps." I also
> removed all hard drive and CD/DVD connection (IDE in other words), all
> PCI devices, left only the AGP video card. I also alternated between
> that and even removing the AGP video card and substituting with a PCI-
> based one.
>
> I also removed all memory chips except one 256 megabyte.
>
> No matter what combination, at this point what I am getting is this:
> it fires up, CPU fun operating, but nothing comes to the video screen
> at all, no beeps at all. Also, unlike before, it STAYS that way, it
> does not shut down after 10 seconds. It basically just does nothing
> (other than making the CPU fan whir).
>
> Any tips?
>
> LRH

According to the manual:

"C.O.P (CPU Overheating Protection): With AMD Athlon XP installed,
the motherboard offers automatic CPU Overheating Protection to prolong
the life of the entire system. If the CPU temperature exceeds the set
criteria, the PCI shuts down automatically."

That could account for the shutdown within 10 seconds you were
originally seeing.

No beeps now, means there is the possibility that no BIOS code is
being executed any more. A burnt or chipped CPU might do it
(prolonged exposure to extremes has been known to "cook" a processor,
so anything is possible).

Use of a PCI Port 80 card, plugged into the PCI slot #1, is one
way to get additional information. But I have yet to see a user
get real intelligence, from the usage of such a card, so it may
not represent money well spent. If the display on such a card
stays at "FF" or "00", then that suggests no BIOS code was
executed. And you already have an inkling of that anyway.

I'd start with a thorough visual inspection. Check and wiggle DIP switches,
and make sure they're set in a way appropriate for the CPU being used.
That board might also have jumpers for voltage adjustments. Also
look at the capacitors around the CPU socket, for bulging tops.
Also make sure you don't have a motherboard standoff which is
shorting to something underneath. (You can test the motherboard
sitting on a cardboard phone book, as a way to avoid that. Just
be careful, because there is nothing holding up the AGP card! )

http://www.badcaps.net/images/caps/kt7/image004.png

With processor present, and no memory, I would have expected to
get some beeps. Check that there is a BIOS chip in the socket.
(There is no way to visually determine whether good code is
stored in the BIOS chip. If, for example, the previous owner
erased it by accident while attempting a BIOS flash.)

The C.O.P. feature may be implemented by a small eight pin chip,
and not need any BIOS code. So the original shutdown after 10
seconds may not require any "intelligence" at all. Beep codes
is one way to determine whether there is BIOS code and at least
partially good CPU.

(Some jumper info - check the manual also)
http://www.lostcircuits.com/motherbo...a7v333/5.shtml

With no P4 ATX12V 2x2 power connector, the processor power flows
through the main power connector. The board might draw most
of its power from the +5V rail. You could check the voltages
on your PSU, while the board is running, and see if all voltages
are present on the main connector (+3.3V, +5V, +12V, -12V, +5VSB).
Voltages should be within 5% when measured with a multimeter.

http://www.lostcircuits.com/motherbo.../a7v333-1a.jpg

Paul