AMD all screwed up!

[Nox1]

Well, my first day and a half with my first AMD chip is a total DISASTER!

My system:
1.4 AMD
EPOX 8k7a
Maxtor 30gig HD
256 Micron DDRram
Asus GeForce3 Deluxe
Creative Live!
Netgear 10/100 ethernet
Ataptec 2906 SCSI

After a setup of Windows, I finally got it to run properly in WinME...and it was great at first BUT...

1.)One moment, everything seemed to be going super fast, then super SLOW the next!
2.)The mouse kept hanging then it would come back...then it would hang again etc etc...
3.)ZIP drive was only partly accessable and NO file could be opened, file names were turning into garbled mess (looked like machine code). Trying to explore it hangs the machine.
4.)Strange chunky pauses in quake/mechwarrior4 (only games I tried)
5.)USB mouse and keyboard usage GONE sometimes on Windows entry (could only hit reset button to do anything).
6.)Rebooting the CPU clock set puts itself to 1gig (constantly changing it back to 1.4...checked the chip it IS a 1.4 AYHJA)
7.)Award bios check tells me I've DANGEROUSLY OVERCLOCKED my chip...I never overclock...the chip was/is not overclocked....AND the "overclocking" message said the chip was at 1gig..hmm my 1.4 overclocked "dangerously" at 1gig (?????). FYI, A bios flashed fixed this problem.
8.) Kept finding "new hardware" on every 3 Windows restarts...not sure what it was..the name of it was an all garbled mess!

SO, I took out the motherboard/chip/ram and replaced it with my old P3-650/ABIT BE6-II and placed all the cards back in it (at once) and rebooted back into Windows ME. After a few reboots (because it was reinstalling everything), ALL the problems were GONE....it was like I never had the AMD.

Don't get me wrong...**I WANT to like this CPU/motherboard!** If somebody can give me advice on how to fix this system, I'll keep it. I'm not going to mess with it too much though.

In my expirence, if it doesn't start up right the first time or I have to fight with it, then THAT's how it's going to be for the time I own it. And it's NOT something I want. There are no "challenges" to be conquered when it comes to my business/home machine.

 

[HellRaven]

Standard questions:

Do you have the latest Via 4-1 drivers?

Latest drivers for all devices?

 

[TunaBoo]

First off you are using WindowsME, which is sure not helping your system stability.

Second off it looks like you either forgot to install your 4 in 1 drivers or DMA is not enabled.

I dont get this "In my expirence, if it doesn't start up right the first time or I have to fight with it, then THAT's how it's going to be for the time I own it. And it's NOT something I want. There are no "challenges" to be concered when it comes to my business/home machine."

If you want something without the hassle, get it built by someone else. If you want to carefully customize and work through the problems of your computer, then build it yourself. But dont build it yourself and be mad it takes work.


Edit, if you dont like the hassles of it I will buy it off of you

 

[AthlonMan]

Did you get the right chip the REV C 1.4 266 mhz FSB or a 1.4 ghz 200 FSB.

 

[bigshooter]

You should have mentioned whether you installed the newest VIA 4 in 1's and whether you downloaded all the microsoft updates. I haven't used win98 for over a year now, so I don't remember if there is anything on windows update that fixes VIA problems. Also try installing things one at a time to try to narrow down the problem. That's all I can think of until I go out and get a blue ox, or take a nap.

 

[S0me1X]

Your system should be running Windows 2000.

I'd personally avoid USB keyboards (dos compatibility, slower response time, no real use)

 

[Insane3D]

This is an Epox 8K7A, so you need two sets of drivers for it to work properly. First you need the latest Via 4 in 1 drivers. These are available here. Unzip the zip file to a folder, then run the Setup.exe file. Install all the drivers except the AGP driver. Next, you need the AMD AGP Miniport drivers. You can get them here. Install that driver, reboot, and you should be all set. You really might want to read the manual first next time, because it clearly tells you what drivers you need to install and when...preferably before you install any video card or sound card drivers...

 

[TunaBoo]

<< This is an Epox 8K7A, so you need two sets of drivers for it to work properly. First you need the latest Via 4 in 1 drivers. These are available here. Unzip the zip file to a folder, then run the Setup.exe file. Install all the drivers except the AGP driver. Next, you need the AMD AGP Miniport drivers. You can get them here. Install that driver, reboot, and you should be all set. You really might want to read the manual first next time, because it clearly tells you what drivers you need to install and when...preferably before you install any video card or sound card drivers... >>



Or he could have got them off the big CD that said EPOX on it.

 

[AthlonMan]

USB Keyboards work fine, and there is nothing with them, they respond better in books, in they aint on the ISA bus.

DOS who F**KIN cares, and as long as you got the BIOS controling your keyboard not the OS the USB keyboard works fine in DOS.

 

[T2T III]

<< AMD all screwed up! >>


Your subject alerted me...then, I realized it really wasn't AMD that was screwed up, but it was YOUR system that was screwed up.

The others have given you some great advice. The only other thing I'd suggest, is that you get your other cards with the exception of the video card pulled out of your computer. Test the stability and then slowly add your cards back in - testing after each installation - to see if stability has been maintained.

Good luck!

 

[Nox1]

Yes, I do have the 4-1 drivers. I made sure to check for all the updates and try every solution I could find or think of before asking for help.

I was actually running XP at first and loved it (I do prefer the stability of Win2000...unfortunately, I'm a gamer as well), then all the problems started and I thought the OS was the problem. So, I booted up ME.

Another thing...I'm not mad at this system...just a bit disappointed. I didn't write this message angry. I just want you all to know what I went thru quickly without being too long winded.

The DMA is one I might have forgotten...I have to check into that. It might be the cause.

 

[LXi]

A reformat/clean install will probably help.

 

[TunaBoo]

I am a gamer, win2k works great.

 

[TunaBoo]

<< USB Keyboards work fine, and there is nothing with them, they respond better in books, in they aint on the ISA bus.

DOS who F**KIN cares, and as long as you got the BIOS controling your keyboard not the OS the USB keyboard works fine in DOS. >>



Respond better in books? I don't get what you mean?

I dont know how... but if u time from keystroke till it is on the screen ps/2 will be faster. Same with mice. Ps/2 is faster, and uses LESS system resources than USB. Until there is something better, you are better off using ps/2 (buy converters for your USB devices).

This topic has been beatin like a rotten stepsister. USB keyboards/mice are not good.

 

[Nox1]

Wait...my mistake, I installed all the drivers on from the Motherboard in the order as the the User's Manual stated.

After that didn't work I went to AMD and grabbed their driver pack.

Is this 4-in-1 for my chipset? I know the 8k7a has the AMD 761 and the VIA 686B.

I'll give them a try and keep you all posted if you'd like.

 

[LXi]

4-in-1 is for you chipset, but specifically, only for your southbridge, you need NOT to install the AGP driver in the 4-in-1. And get AMD's AGP driver.

 

[Budman]

I dont think you mentioned what power supply you are using,is it an amd aproved power supply for that 1.4gig chip?

 

[Insane3D]

Good point Budman...

 

[Nox1]

Ah! It's not AMD approved and I knew this.

I had an issue with this too from the place where I ordered it from.

But the salesman assured me that they tested every motherboard/cpu combo that leaves the store to be sure it worked properly.

The PSU was only something like $40 I think...so I thought if it don't work I could always buy another without feeling as if I lost a lot of money, so I took it.

***edit***

It's a Deer CSATX300

Deer is approved on the AMD site, but not this model. What exactly are the symptoms of a PSU not fit for the AMD?

 

[LXi]

There is no symtom for a non-approved PSU. But PSU is crucial to stability, I highly recommend you to get at least a 340/350W power supply for your system, look for brands like Enermax, Sparkle and Enlight.

 

[Bakwetu]

Your netgear nic is not FA311, fa312 or fa313 is it? These three models are incompatible with the AMD 761 chipset

 

[Nox1]

I'll look around locally for a PSU. If there aren't any &quot;amd approved&quot;, would a 350-400 generic be okay? It would definately be enough power.

I'm actually not to clear on what makes a PSU to be approved by AMD. I always thought a PSU was a PSU.

So does everyone think this is the problem? Not enough power by non-approved PSU? I did notice that when I had 5 USB hardware connected I'd freeze on booting...but when I disconnected one of them Windows started up fine (but then dragged while in it).

***

My Netgear is the FA310TX. I actually never had a problem with it at all in the AMD setup.

 

[Rankor]

I'm sure that a 350-400 W PS'll do the trick. However, it'll be to your benefit to have one that is Amd-Approved. You're not buying for any of (our) systems, this one's yours.

It's one less thing to worry about down the road should a problem arise.

I personally don't have a Duron or T-Bird (still have a Amd K6-3+ 450 that runs great). In the future, when this system feels slow for the Productivity/Work Applications that I use it for, rest assured that I'll be purchasing whatever Amd'll have to offer.

But that's my 2 cents.

Amd-Approved power supply; 350-400 W if you want.

 

[Dean]

I had nightmares trying to get WinME to take on my AMD machine. Nomatter what i did, it would remain unstable. Now i'm happy with a dual boot between Win98 and Win2k. They both installed and run perfectly.

 

[Buddha Bart]

take out any IDE, scsi, and pci items you dont absolutely need.
install and apply your driver patches.
That should do you. I've seen a crummy Maxtor drive tank a BX system in a very similar manner to what you're describing.

bart