EPoX "EP-9NPA+Ultra" NVIDIA nForce4 ULTRA Chipset Motherboard

[chieftang]

You'll like the 9NPA+ Ultra. I love mine.... 3700+ Sandy running 2.85GHz every day for 3 months now. I'll stick with EPoX for the forseeable future... Of course I did just get an ASRock for an economy server, but the EPoX is still nicer!!

Enjoy.

 

[Azkarr]

In the past 2 days, my PC with this board is not shutting down right. The screen would go blank, the power and hard drive LEDs go off, and the red LED display on the board would show "F5". All of the fans keep on running, including case, CPU, PSU, and GPU. My fan controller also stays on. When its booted up, it runs fine. I'll have to hit the hard power switch now to turn it off. There is no OC on anything. This just happened randomly when I notced the fans were still spinning after everything else has shut off. I tried turning the BIOS to default, but it didn't help. Has anyone have had a problem like this?

 

[Mem]

I finally got all my parts today,very smooth install and setup no problems so far,just getting all the xp updates then some game testing later.So far I really like this Epox board.

 

[vtor]

I built my (first) system about 10 weeks ago and have had lots of disk problems. System is:
EP-9NPA+Ultra
AMD X2 3800+
Antec Sonata 2
ASUS/Radeon 128 (don't need much graphic power)
Cheap (forget which one) DVD R/W+
(2) Corsair DDR400 512MB
(2) Maxtor 300GB SATA 6L300S0
(2) Maxtor Diamondmax 80GB (IDE)
(1) WD 250GB IDE

I initially had the 2 300GB drives in a mirrored RAID config, but lost that when I upgraded the BIOS to 9npa5a18.bin and didn't update the settings after flashing :-(.

My consistent problem has been disk problems with the 80GB IDE drives that I was using as the boot drives. First drive crashed hard; reinstalled windows; crashed again; made sure I wasn't using NForce IDE drivers; flashed new BIOS; reinstalled windows; crashed again; installed on different 80GB drive; crashed again today. I'm leaving out a few crashes - about 4-5 times so far. Each time, I get hard disk errors that hang the system, and the windows installation ends up corrupted and requires a clean install.

Any advice? When working, the system is awesomely fast even without trying any OC, but it has been so unreliable that I'm still using my incredibly slow 6-year-old Dell laptop for everything critical.

 

[Azkarr]

Originally posted by: vtor
My consistent problem has been disk problems with the 80GB IDE drives that I was using as the boot drives. First drive crashed hard; reinstalled windows; crashed again; made sure I wasn't using NForce IDE drivers; flashed new BIOS; reinstalled windows; crashed again; installed on different 80GB drive; crashed again today. I'm leaving out a few crashes - about 4-5 times so far. Each time, I get hard disk errors that hang the system, and the windows installation ends up corrupted and requires a clean install.

I had a problem like that before. After a hard crash, the hard drives literally seemed to be broken; every install of windows would get disk errors, and a disk check found thousands of corrupted and orphaned files. Booting into windows also caused crashes. What I did was install windows on a good hard drive, and booted into that copy of windows and reformatted the "broken" hard drive inside of windows. Afterwards all was alright. You can also try reformatting the boot drive in another computer.

BTW anyone know what's causing my pc to shutdown incorrectly (I mentioned it in an earlier post)? Thanks.

 

[vtor]

This wouldn't explain my problem, since I had the same symptoms on 2 different drives, and I made sure that the 2nd drive was clean and error-free before I installed onto it.

 

[vryadly]

Do 7800 video cards really block one of the IDE slots on Epox 9NPA+ Ultra?

 

[Mem]

Do 7800 video cards really block one of the IDE slots on Epox 9NPA+ Ultra?

I'm only using the secondary IDE port,however you can use the first primary IDE port,with my Leadtek 7800GT it is very close but just enough room so you can use it.

 

[Azkarr]

Originally posted by: vtor
This wouldn't explain my problem, since I had the same symptoms on 2 different drives, and I made sure that the 2nd drive was clean and error-free before I installed onto it.

Try using one of your other hard drives, and install windows on there. Then open up my computers and reformat the 80 gb drives while you're inside of windows. If you install windows on you 250 gb or 300 gb drives and still have the same problem, then I don't know anything else I can suggest. Good luck.

 

[vryadly]

Originally posted by: Mem
I'm only using the secondary IDE port,however you can use the first primary IDE port,with my Leadtek 7800GT it is very close but just enough room so you can use it.

Great, thank you.

 

[SnoMunke]

I doubt many have tried this, but this is what I am doing...

I have a rig set up (see sig below) that will soon be my NAS. I am using 3x 2-port PCI-E (x1) RAID controllers (Silicon Image 3132) with 2 HDD to each card for a total of 6 HDDs set up in a RAID 10 format. Motherboard is using latest BIOS; all RAID controllers are using latest BIOS. Processor and memory are at stock speeds and voltage.

The problem I am having is as the computer BIOS posts, the first two RAID controllers are being detected and the third one is not. Instead I get the message

"Warning: Have Option ROM can not be invoke (Vendor ID:1095h, Deivce ID:3132)"

This has been seen on a DFI board as well...

http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/showthread.php?p=57323

http://forums.amd.com/lofiversion/index.php/t50269.html

Some of the time I can still get it to boot into Windows, but most of the time after I get the message the screen just stays black.

All controllers are good. I have tested them individually in different PCI-E slots...no problems.

If I only install 2 controllers, I can get the system to boot in to Windows with no problems; if I install 3 controllers--no joy.

Guessing that this is probably an IRQ conflict, I have gone into the BIOS and shut off everything that I don't use so as to free up some IRQs. Still not luck.

Anybody have any other suggestions before I contact Epox?

 

[DrewCU]

A few things:

1) The 7800 GT fits beautifully (I have it) and only is a nuissance if you have the NV silencer and hope to easily reset the CMOS (ie, the jumper is covered). The GTX, on the other hand, will cover the first IDE port but apparently you can still use it with the right cabling.

2) To the person with drive issues, I don't think this is the same problem but when I installed Nvidia's IDE drivers I kept getting paging operation errors and when I got rid of them all was good.

3) To all those people who have USB 2.0 freezing issues as I did, I finally got a beta bios from Epox (9npa5b07) that seems to be working. They said to disable "USB park mode" which I did and things seem fine so far (AHEM!). The only trouble for me was that my computer wouldn't post after updating the BIOS (it'd freeze after locating my HD's), but fortunately for me reseting the CMOS seemed to work out (even though it was a pain to do so since I had to physically take out my 7800 GT/NV silencer!).

In the spirit of the holidays, I'd be happy to email it out to those who are interested. There is another Beta version floating around "9npa5b11" which I only found on a website and although that seems newer it is from 11/1 according to some people while the one I have is from 11/7, and the one I have is direct from an Epox techie. Their tech support is quite bad, but at least they acknowledge there are issues and are working on solutions.

PM me if you would like the beta bios, but keep in mind that I take no responsibility for issues, and also a new version could be coming out soon (I hope!)

Andrew

 

[DrewCU]

Actually forget that about the beta bios working! I just froze and switched back to USB 1.1!!!!!!!!!!! So do yourself a favor and don't PM me looking for the Beta bios, it isn't worth it!

Can't believe something so simple and fundamental like USB doesn't work with an enthusiast's motherboard! But I guess USB 1.1 is fast enough for most things; I mean my wireless internet speeds are the only thing I care about, and I don't think that 12 mb/s makes much difference from 480mb/s since I can't download at 12 mb/s anyway over the cable modem (I think).

ARGGGG!

 

[Mem]

All working great on my PC,I'm also using a 7 port external USB 2.0 hub.Using latest official BIOS (flashed via alt+f2 method nice and simple)and did not install the Nvidia SW IDE driver.

 

[gfngfgf]

Originally posted by: DrewCU
Actually forget that about the beta bios working! I just froze and switched back to USB 1.1!!!!!!!!!!! So do yourself a favor and don't PM me looking for the Beta bios, it isn't worth it!

Can't believe something so simple and fundamental like USB doesn't work with an enthusiast's motherboard! But I guess USB 1.1 is fast enough for most things; I mean my wireless internet speeds are the only thing I care about, and I don't think that 12 mb/s makes much difference from 480mb/s since I can't download at 12 mb/s anyway over the cable modem (I think).

ARGGGG!

I just tried something, and so far, it seems to be working very well. I changed the S3 USB jumper (the one by the PCIe 1x slots) to cover pins 1-2 (the pins closest to the power connector). I've been copying files to my external drive for the last ten minutes and no crashes yet. Of course, I might be wrong, but I'm curious if other people have the S3 USB jumper on 1-2 or 2-3.

 

[DrewCU]

My S3 jumper is on whatever it was when I got the board so I guess S3 disabled? Keep us posted though as to whether you encounter any problems!

Thanks

 

[gfngfgf]

Yeah, I just crashed about 20 minutes ago, so no, the s3 jumper setting doesn't seem to matter. I just got a bit too eager, that's all. Sorry if I got anyone's hopes up

 

[DrewCU]

haha, I started reading about the S3 jumper and its implications, but as far as I can tell it only is necessary if you Suspend to RAM via Standby in XP, so most likely it wouldn't do much otherwise. But a valiant effort, nonetheless! The people at Epox speak very bad English or use very bad translators and don't seem to have a clue for the most part about their own products! They still say that the USB problem can be solved by this magical patch by MS for Windows XP SP1, but don't seem to realize that SP2 includes all of these patches and just because you install Windows XP with SP1 and then apply the patch, doesn't mean you are any better off than someone who just installs a fresh copy of XP slipstreamed with SP2.

I wish more people would complain to them so that maybe they actually figure something out. There has to be something to the fact that these devices work fine at USB 1.1 speeds but freeze the computer at USB 2.0 speeds. I don't have a problem with most of my devices such as game controllers, printers, mouse, etc, which don't transfer great amounts of information and also are inactive for the most part (except for the mouse I guess). It is my wireless network card at USB 2.0 speeds that seems to cause the freezing and my guess is that the BIOS is to blame for the problems in transferring the data from the device to the HD, but who knows I guess!

Can anyone else report freezing issues with a highspeed data device connected to the USB 2.0 port of this EPOX motherboard, and Windows XP SP2 who hasn't reported it?

Thanks...

 

[Mem]

Update on my Epox 9NPA+ ULTRA.

I decided to try the Nvidia SW IDE driver which works great,however it does appear to look stuck at the windows loading screen(on first reboot after SW IDE install)it is not,what it is doing is updating registry files etc and it does take 3 or 4 mins or so, just wait and let it finish until it loads to desktop.


All reboots after this are fast and fine.

Btw all my USB.1.1/2.0 devices still working great.

 

[DrewCU]

Mem - what USB 2.0 devices do you have plugged in and what Bios version and what version of Windows (with what service packs)? Any USB 2.0 Harddrives or network cards?

Thanks.

 

[Mem]

DrewCU:

7 port external USB 2.0 Hub is connected to my PC(running USB1.1 mouse,Keyboard,joypad off that),USB 2.0 Canon printer connected directly to the Epox board.

Also USB 2.0 external DVD burner(Lite-On) connected to the hub.

I'm using latest official BIOS,plus WinXP Pro and SP2 which I had a slipstreamed CD , all updates installed after,no network cards plugged in but onboard LAN works great since I'm typing this at the moment and gaming is fine,only PCI card I have installed is Audigy 4 ZS.

BIOS 9npa5a18.bin download link for latest official BIOS .

 

[DrewCU]

Mem

Thanks for the reply... sounds like we can take the element of different versions of XP and BIOS into the problem. Either the fact that you use a 7 port external hub has something to do with your ability to use USB 2.0 or it may be that since you don't use a device like a HD or wireless card, you don't transfer copious amounts of info across the bus (I think that's what happens). I had no troubles when using my game controller, mouse, printer, but just with my network card. I'm guessing the DVD burner isn't troubling since you only have to transfer info for a short time or something, but maybe not. I thought I read somewhere that faster devices connected to a hub which has slower devices, can only go as fast as the slower devices, but someone can correct me if I am wrong. So since you have USB 1.1 devices connected to that hub, it may be that the DVD burner can only go at USB 1.1 speeds...

I'm not suggesting that everyone must have this USB 2.0 issue with this board, but I would imagine it is probable if they have the same components (ie, large data transfer USB devices). Since more than one person has this problem of freezing, it is most likely not just a bad board sold, but a problem that people with these devices will encounter with USB 2.0. As I said before, there must be something to the fact that at the slower USB 1.1 speeds everything is fine, but at the higher speeds of USB 2.0, the issues begin....

Ideas?

 

[Mem]

I thought I read somewhere that faster devices connected to a hub which has slower devices, can only go as fast as the slower devices, but someone can correct me if I am wrong. So since you have USB 1.1 devices connected to that hub, it may be that the DVD burner can only go at USB 1.1 speeds...

Read this?

When it comes to USB hub compatibility between USB 2.0 and USB 1.1, here some facts:
A powered hub is always preferable to unpowered.
USB hub ports are not as capable or flexible as real PC ports so it's best not to expect the world of them.
USB 1.1 (obsolete) hubs will work fine on USB 2.0 ports, but they cannot utilize USB 2.0 capabilities. They will default to slower speeds.
Hi-Speed and Full/Low-Speed USB devices can coexist nicely on USB 2.0 hubs. Connecting such a hub to a USB 2.0 port is recommended.
USB 2.0 hubs can be used on older USB 1.1 computers.
Although it is said that you can "cascade" up to 4 hubs, problems may start to arise after two hubs, it's best to minimize hub usage if possible.
Many USB devices don't work well on hubs. Cameras, scanners and especially USB drives are known to have problems with hub connectivity.
Remember that "active USB extensions" are really just one-port hubs.

Link .

FYI mine is self powered USB 2.0 external HUB( comes with PSU).

 

[Mem]

DrewCU :

I tried changing USB devices just to see if I get USB problems,still working great.

I tried this, USB 1.1 mouse and keyboard plugged into PC,rest of my gear including printer and USB 2.0 DVD burner into USB 2.0 hub,I'm still getting fast burn speeds still,so USB 2.0 hub is working at full 2.0 speed with my USB 2.0 DVD burner.

No problems to report,I love this motherboard .

 

[DrewCU]

Mem,

I know you still have sucess, and would rather not find out that the motherboard is flawed, but since I want Epox to quickly fix the problem, I am hoping (sorry) that you will eventually run into problems. Couple things you could try (you can always go back to your original config if you do freeze) would be plugging in your USB 2.0 devices directly into the motherboard, or if you have a wireless network card or ext. harddrive, you could try using those in the motherboard's USB 2.0 ports. I still have to say that unless you use your DVD burner 24/7, chances aren't great that you will have issues even if it is a possibility. As I said, most of my USB 2.0 devices work fine with the motherboard, it's just a select type such as HD or network card...

I don't really need USB 2.0 speeds considering my devices, but I dislike the idea of having a problematic motherboard for future considerations.