Need another set of eyes...what am I misssing?

[SiliGoose]

I'm having problems with a new mobo install and hoped you guys might suggest something I'm overlooking.

Background:
I killed my Abit KG7 (static, I think) and replaced it with a Soltek SL-75DRV2 (Via KT266A chipset). Got a new case and heat sink while I was at it. Here's what I've got in the box right now:

WinXP Personal
Athlon 1.4
Soltek SL-75DRV2 "Purple Ray" KT266A
512 MB Crucial PC2100
Lian-Li PC-60+USB Case
Elsa GeForce 3
30 GB IBM 75GXP
TDK VeloCD CDRW Drive
3 Com Nic
Swiftech Copper MCXC370
Enermax 431w Whisper PSU

I'll add the rest of my hardware once I've got those listed running smoothly.

WinXP install went well. I can run all the apps included in Windows perfectly. I'm surfing the web, sending email, all that basic stuff is no problem.

Downloaded SciSoft's Sandra to see what my memor scores were like. Ran fine, no problems (got a 756/906, BTW).

Downloaded 3DMark2001 and the trouble began. The system reboots within 60 seconds of running the 3DMark2001 benchmark.

Hmmm...wonder what happens if I try a game?

Well, installing games turned out to be a major hassle. I tried Tribes 2, Unreal Tournament, and Black & White. While installing each game the system rebooted while extracting data from the install CD. Very odd.

Finally, I managed to get Black & White installed but the system reboots as soon as the game engine starts. The other two games would not install...system restarts kept occuring while extracting data.

Alright guys, give me your best guesses. I'm willing to try anything.




-Sili

[Bing Fung]

Memory stick location? Sometimes it just likes different slots.

Memory Timing? Maybe set too aggressive.

Graphics card Divers?

Bios? Maybe an update.

Via Drivers? Maybe an update.




Bing

[Trevor Schell]

Siligoose.

How do you know that you killed your KG7 with static.
What specifically happened.?

Thanks,




Trevor
My HomeTheater S.E.
Sonically Enhanced
C5

[SiliGoose]

Trevor,

One day it was fine...the next it didn't work. All other components were tested and worked fine.

Static is really my best guess. I had been inside the case and the environment had been very dry (that plus the fact that the PC was on carpet). I never (until now) wore an anti-static wrist band.

Bing,

All very good suggestions. I installed the newest Via 4-in-1's and I was able to complete 3 runs through the 3DMark2001 benchmark and play Unreal Tournament. That may have been it though something just doesn't feel right just yet.

I need to run a burn-in program (perhaps the 3dMark looped) to see how it reacts.

Thanks,




-Sili

[JonMarsh]

Siligoose,

My experience has been that late model VIA chipsets (KT266A) are VERY sensitive to 4in1 driver revision; had a lot of problems with 4.36 on my own systems and a friends; only cleared up with 4.37. I even had a SB Live Platinum 5.1 acting screwy, started distorting (after I'd found I was underclocking the FSB, 100 MHz, put it up to 133, plus installed another DVD player, then sound went to h*ll.)

Any way, I almost pulled the SB Live, cause I couldn't get it to quite distorting very badly once it had booted. The 4.37 and a driver re-install was the cure.

I've found some times that Xp has this habit, of when it runs into a critical error, of simply stopping whatever it's doing and rebooting. Sounds like your situation with the 3DMark, until you got the new drivers in.

Regards,

Jon




Earth First!
_______________________________
We'll screw up the other planets later....

[Lex]

Did you try adjusting the mixture? Maybe it's running to lean. It's difficult to get maximum performance from an engine running lean. Oops, wrong forum, sorry.

Sili, ever get it resolved? Whew, maybe I shouldn't be as casual about working inside mine as I have been.

Lex

[SiliGoose]

Things appear totally fine on the surface but I am getting restarts in games. I played Unreal Tournament two days ago and now the machine crashes the moment the game engine starts. The only change is that I downloaded all the official Unreal updates...I'm guessing XP doesn't like one of those updates.




-Sili

[Bing Fung]

Keep at it Sili.... It'll smooth out, and then it'll be time to upgrade again!




Bing

[SiliGoose]

It appears the final piece to my puzzle was my memory settings in bios. I had to back the cas latency down to 2.5 with my current overclock. I'm now running the mediocre Castle Wolfenstein just fine.

Thanks guys!!




-Sili

[Bing Fung]

Good Stuff Sili!




Bing