Some people have reported problems with combining the 1400C with revisions 1-4 of the K7S5A. It is certain that some of these failures were caused by mixing generic RAM and using underpowered PSU. Some others were probably genuine failures in the board.
Well waddaya'know. A $65 board has some problems! Hold the front page! Class action now!
The 8KHA+ has voltage issues, allegedly.
The Shuttle has voltage issues, allegedly.
Enermax power supplies are unstable, allegedly.
Every hardware website forum is full of tales of faulty components and people threatening the manufacturers with class actions. With more poeple trying to build their own computers than ever before and with manufacturers pushing the envelope, is it surprising that there are a lot of failures. As a percentage however, the failures are statistically low.
Bottom line is that if you're going to offer your chip with a mobo, you'd better check it works before you sell it. Easier to just sell the chip, IMO.