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Soyo Dragon P4S & GF4 Issue

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scr3wdriver

New Member
Joined
Apr 27, 2002
Location
Sou CA, USA
First off, HELLO EVERYONE! I know it says this is my first post but just to let you know, I am not a complete newb .

I just bought the SOYO P4S Dragon and do not know what to do. This is my first SiS chipset I have bought in ages but in reviews it handles much better than the i845 with the slower DDR ram.

I guess there is a couple revisions (version A & B) of my board already and want to know if anyone has any clue on what to do. Does anyone know what the difference is between the two and/or if the B version will fix my problem. I don't even know if I have an A or a B.

I've only have had my board for 11 days and started having issues from day one, so I can still return the motherboard. This board does have a lot of features and potential but is it worth the wait!??


After reading my msg's below, which way should I go!?

1.) Return my SOYO and get a ASUS P4S3333 (the sis 645dx board), and spend a little bit more money since I got my SOYO & 1.8A in a package deal.

2.) RMA my Soyo product to SOYO and wait to get the new version of the board from them.

3.) Return my motherboard and try to buy the same board and hope it has the newer B version. (Does anyone know how to tell the difference!???)

4.) Deal with my problem and forget ever using my GeForce 4 cards in my system ... I shoud just stick to my GeForce 2 MX and only check emails and forums.


****** Msg I sent to SOYO *******
Motherboard: P4S Dragon - 04/08/02
BIOS Version: 2BA3 (Tried 2BA2 Also)
CPU: P4 1.8A
Memory: Mushkin 512mb DDR2700 - (also tried Consair DDR3000 256mb x 2)
VGA Card: VisionTek Geforce 4 Ti4400 (Currently using Asus GF2mx since the GF4 won't boot 100%)
Other peripherals: Plextor 40x CD-R
Toshiba 16x DVD
Maxtor 40GB ATA100 7200RPM

Tried 2 Power Supplies:
Enermax P4 465W
Turbolink P4 420W

Also :
Video Cards tried:
Asus Geforce 4 MX 460
Asus Geforce 2 MX
VisionTek GF4 Ti4400
Operating System: Windows XP

Problem Description:
Soyo Dragon will not boot safely to any GeForce 4 card. Both Ti4400 and Geforce 4 MX460. The GF4MX will not even post without a lot of scamble on the screen. The Geforce 4 will boot on only after hitting reset over and over. After awhile the GeForce 4 Ti4400 will post and boot into WinXP but the system is unstable. I have to use the Geforce 2 MX in order to get a stable operating system.

I have tried 2 different "STRONG" power supplies and they both do the SAME exact thing. Also, I tried to increase the voltage for the APG/CPU a tad bit with no success. I did run the hardware monitoring system you provide, "SMART GUARDIAN 2.5a" and I do see an error. The VCORE voltage is reading WAY low.... it is at 1.44V stable with both different power supplies.

What can I do to make my system work with my geforce 4. I bought this motherboard after setting up my brother with the SOYO k7 PLUS and reading the strong reviews of this board. Please satify my customer support needs so I can finally finish my pc.

Thanks.

****** End of My MSG to Soyo *****
****** Return MSG From SOYO ****
Please go to www.soyousa.com/rma.html. Download the form for end user, fill it up and just follow the instruction written in the form.

You need to get a RMA to rework the incompatibility between the GE Force 4 and the P4S Dragon Ultra.

Your case no. is AM****-**. (Removed for my purpose)

Thank You! Have a Nice Day!

Regards,
SOYO Technical Support Team

For FAQ & Technical Questions
Http://www.soyo.com.tw/faq.htm
Http://www.soyousa.com/support.html
Http://www.soyo.com.tw/support.htm
********** End of MSG from SOYO ********

** note, I have since returned my VisionTek and got the Abit GeForce 4 Ti4400, the Abit comes with the Heatsinks so I can try to OC my card to the Ti4600 specs.

Thanks for reading the post and sorry if I made it way to long. I know I have posted here in the past as "krazyme" (old gaming alias) but don't know what happened to my username/pass.
 
Thanks for the reply.

I saw the ASUS P4S333 for $119.99 retail over here in Sou Ca at the overpriced PC CLUB. I was thinking of giving it a try and see if everything will work fine.

Any other suggestions!???
 
Pricewatch.com or googlegear.Com or newegg.com

Asus 533 seems to be impressing a lot of folks, although you could get the 333 and flash the bios to 533 version to get the different clock ratios. check in the Intel Motherboards/Asus section for more info (although I'm pretty sure you've already done that).
 
** UPDATE **

I just returned the SOYO P4S Dragon due to incompatibilities with my Geforce 4 and my ability to overclock! I loved building my brothers K7V Dragon last year, it was my first AMD system in a while and went flawlessly. Building that system gave me lots of respect for AMD again and in SOYO.

The Dragon P4S is a great board if you are looking to build a regular (non-overclocked) ATI Radeon system.

Currently, I bought a whole new mobo and I am VERY happy with it, the only prolem are the lack of hardware.

Asus P4S533
P4 1.8A @ 2.4 (w/ 1.625V) w/ TT Dragon Orb on Medium & Artic Silver 3
512 MB Mushkin Ram CAS2.5 (SPD Timing)
Abit's Siluro Geforce 4 Ti4400
Raid-0, WD30GB ATA100 on Highpoint 370 v2.3
Plextor 40x CDRW, Toshiba DVD


I love this motherboard. I only wish they had a deluxe version of this board with on-board ATA133 Raid (promise), and have the SPUID 5.1 audio connection in box. I dont even know where to get this "optional" piece of equipment! :X

The motherboard is a great motherboard, one of the best for overclockers in the market today. The only problem is the lack of toys and "gadgets" that come with the motherboard, but overall I give it a 9.5.

-Thanks for the replies and best of luck if you decide on one of these two motherboards.
 
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