Motherboard or cpu fail?

Oh man! Ad-blocking software has been detected! :'(

This website is run by the community, for the community... and it needs advertisements in order to keep running. Blocking our ads means your killing our stats!
Please disable your ad-block, or become a premium member to hide all advertisements and this notice.

I have a biostar mcp6p-m2 motherboard, these run with a bios from award (more specs to follow).

A couple of months ago, the board started emitting a siren sound. This turned out to be a fault with a RAM slot. Ever since Ive been running the pc with ram in the sole working slot (not had the money to replace the board), However, I was looking at codes on the internet and a siren is meant to indicate a cpu problem. Didnt think anything of it.

So the other day, the board failed and started emitting another code. This time the beeps are a second long with a brief pause in between. No set amount, continuous. Again, the standard for this says that its missing or bad memory (going on repeating endless loop). I have tried using some known good ram but still the same.

So Ive disconnected the dvd drive and hard drive, taken the ram out, taken the video card out but still get the same beep. Ive also taken the cmos battery out for 30 secs to try and clear the memory. Ive also tried with the ram back in.

I was originally 100% certain it was a mobo failure. However, I e-mailed biostar support and they have said its either the mobo or the cpu. Now seeing as the memory has been taken out, what are the chances the codes are wrong and its a cpu failure, or is it more likely the mobo is dead.

Ive ordered another mobo which is on its way, but I just wanted other opinions as Im a little worried after biostars e-mail.

Its an amd athlon dual core processor, 2,1ghz. will post other spec details if needed but Seeing as they are the only parts left dont think I need to post the other things.

 

Oh man! Ad-blocking software has been detected! :'(

This website is run by the community, for the community... and it needs advertisements in order to keep running. Blocking our ads means your killing our stats!
Please disable your ad-block, or become a premium member to hide all advertisements and this notice.

Maybe you would get the RAM beep codes if there was no RAM in the slots.

It's hard to say whether the problem is CPU or MOBO as really the only way to find out it to eliminate one of them by replacement.

The most likely is the MOBO, as that is far more common failure than a CPU.

 

see what happens with no ram installed, could be that you have bad ram.

Is your board ok with running ram as single channel? some boards dont like it and require to be run in dual channel.

Also CPUs vary rarely fail, AMDS are more prone than intel but the chances of a cpu failing is very remote whilst a board failing is more common.

 

Ok, just a quick update. Just to answer your questions about the ram, I had tried with the ram out and in. Interestingly enough, when I put the ram in to the failed slot to see if that would affect the post, I still got the same beep code, didnt get a siren like before.

Now, the new mobo arrived today. Different model but still biostar.

Installed it, put the cpu in, no beeps. New mobo doa? Maybe.

However, while I had my pc apart I powered on my old mobo without the cpu in. It emitted no beep code. Would it be safe to say that if it was a mobo problem it would still emit the beep with/without cpu installed? Would make sense if the beeps are switched for whatever reason.

 

The cpu not being in the mobo should create a beep code obviousley you would not see anything on screen though. Do you here the drives spin? does the psu fan spin? can you try another psu or do you have a multimeter to test the psu? also what make and model is the psu?

What model Biostar motherboards are they? I have heard of Biostar motherboards having problems this is why I always advise Gigabyte or Asus for motherboards.

Power supplies can do funny things to a system when they do not work correctly.

 

Yeh I know I wont see anything before post.

Do you here the drives spin = Yes
Does the psu fan spin = Yes
Can you try another psu or do you have a multimeter to test the psu? No sadly
What model Biostar motherboards are they? = The original one that I think has failed was the mcp6p-m2. The one I got through today was the mcp6p-bm2+

 

Looking around on google both of your boards seem to have a lot of problems.

Is the first board the version with onboard video? if it is then there are problems with the driver for the onboard gpu. This can be fixed by updating the driver or by a BIOS flash.

The second board has problems with the onboard LAN driver and this needs to be updated, but since the second board will not boot I would RMA it.

 

To be honest the mcp6p-bm2+ came through in error, I originally ordered a direct replacement for my m2+

I think Im gonna just return the bm2+, get an Asus board and see what happens. I only went for a direct replacement so I wouldnt have a problem with xp, I have an oem disk/licence so if I change too much I have to get another licence.

The m2+ does have onboard video, but I cant get the thing to load to flash the bios.

I was thrown by the fact that the board didnt emit a beep code when there was no cpu in it, and the new board didnt even emit a beep code, didnt do anything which normally indicates a total board failiure.

Im still certain its a mobo problem, just wanted other peoples opinions as well. At the same time I didnt want to muck around sending the old board to biostar when its the cpu, might as well as the ram slot has failed anyway.

Ive seen all the biostar problems on google, would you believe that the bm2+ is the 4th biostar board Ive had a problem with? I only got the mp6p-m2 as it came with a bundle, lesson learned.

 

If you have no CPU on the motherboard, there is a good chance that nothing will happen as the CPU is a vital component.

 

Bundles are not really what they seem cracked up to be, they usually include a crap make of power supply that wont last long or has just enough amperage to run the system you ordered. As soon as you add any hardware to the system then you usually start getting problems.

I always find it best to review all components first before ordering to make sure they are good so I can get the best hardware for my money.

 

So I thought Id post an update.

I decided to go for a diffierent mobo rather than replace it with a like for like. I went for the Asus M2N68-AM plus.

I put it in and connected it up, pressed power, nothing. Although something new happened though - there was a high pitch whine from my psu.

Going on advice from above, and from research on the net, I finally resigned myself to the fact that it must have been the psu all this time.

Today, I bought a brand new Evo labs 700w psu. This psu makes the same noise!

Why would a new mobo make a psu make that noise? Ive tried disconnecting all my peripherals to no avail.

 

So I managed to find what was causing the short, got it to power on. On a side note, the old psu wasnt working properly, could tell by the power light on the board.

Then.................NOTHING!!!!!

So Im going to replace the cpu as soon as I can afford to.

Will post an update soon as I have it.

 

What was causing the short?

 

The short was caused by one of the screw risers (for want of a better description) on the underneath of the board.

Im not sure why though. Either way the board is working, I was worried at first it was another dead board!!

 

Ok, well.. you may have damaged the power supply by shorting out one of it's supply rails.

 

The psu seems ok, the fans come on when I power it on. It just doesnt boot after that.

Given that I've replaced the mobo and the psu, and have pretty much the same problem as before, it leaves just the cpu.

 

CPUs very rarely fail so it is likely the psu,ram or motherboard. Since it seems to boot then I would discount the ram but just because lights come on on the motherboard doesn't mean the motherboard is ok nor does it mean the motherboard is getting correct power. Also just because some fans come on on the psu does not mean it is ok.

If you can get into the BIOS post the temperatures and voltages.

 

Just thought Id answer greenbrucelee -

It doesnt get as far as the bios (it didnt on my old or the last biostar board I had, nor on this one)

Ive tried RAM that I know works and it doesnt boot
I have a brand new 700w PSU

Ive just thought that Ive not tried the new psu on the old board. The new processor arrives tomorrow. Ill try the new psu with the old board tonight and the new cpu tomorrow and let you know what happens.

 

Just because its 700w doesn't mean its a good psu.

I have seen plenty of 800w power supplies and they make one the worst power supplies you can get which are prone to failure. It would be extremely bad luck to have two bad boards and more unlikey that the cpu is damaged unless it has been damaged by misuse.

 

gbl is a big advocate of having good PSU's and I agree with him quite a lot on this. He is also correct in that the CPU is often the least likely component to malfunction.

It's been a while, but back in 97-99 when I worked at a mom and pop style computer repair, it was was the motherboard that ended up being the most oft malfunctioning part of any pc repaired. PSU did have a very large part in ending up on the rubbish heaps, mind you, and I believe the mobo's have probably considerably picked up in quality over the past ten years of course.

Ram was one of those borderline things... I think back in 97-99, it kind of went like this:

Most prone to malfunctions -> Least prone to malfunctions
mobo -> psu -> ram -> cpu

Video cards occasionally had bugs, but it was something around the ram/cpu zone, as were network cards (even less likely to crap out in immediate use).

Anything mechanical like harddisks and disk drives/floppy drives, were something between the mobo-ram zone, i.e. it really was hit and miss on the manufacturer with some drives having great failures rates, and others lasting years...

I guess in the past few years, PSU's have become the weak link in the PC build. It's good to have the feedback of those who regularly fiddle with computer components nowadays as they see the latest trends in computer failures.