A7M266 stability issuses

[Nuthouse]

I would LOVE to overclock my 1.4 AMD but I want to get it stable at 1.4Ghz. I heard that Prime95 was a great tool to check a computer's stability, so I got it and ran it. There are 2 things that the program would usually do, it would either stop because my computer made an incorrect calculation, or my computer would restart. Both of these errors are telling me that my system is not stable. I recieved my mobo with bios version 1004a, and each consecutive version up to 1006 has the same problems. What else could be the problem? I'll list my specs:

Windows 2000 pro sp2
In-Win Q500 case
Powerman 300W PSU
3X 38cfm case fans
A7M266 mobo
AMD athlon 1.4 Ghz 266fsb 48C using onboard sensor and v1006 bios
Thermoengine w/ black delta
1X Crucial 256MB PC2100 non-ecc non-buffered
2X IBM Deskstar 60XP 60GB(master and slave on IDE1)
Pioneer 16X DVD(Master IDE2)
Plextor Plexwriter 16/10/40(Master IDE1 on promise ultra 100 pci
card)

PCI and AGP card(s)
Winfast GF2 Ultra
3COM Etherlink 10/100 PCI NIC w/ 3XP processor
Win2000 Promise Ultra100TX2 IDE Controller

That's about it. Any reasonable suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[Jon]

Welcome to the forums!

If I were to make one suggestion, it would be to replace that wimpy power supply. The restart you stated happening is a sure sign that it's not enough to power all you have going there.

I wouldn't get anything less than a quality 350W to run everything you've got going there. Antec 400W would be a good choice.

Welcome once again!

 

[Christoph]

Hey there Nuthouse. I'm glad you decided to give our forums a try. You'll find that we lack only in flames and humility (and sometimes we're even humble).
As for replacing the PS, you ought to check your voltages with somethng like MBM5 while you're stress-testing. If your voltages drop significantly when you start to run prime95, it's a bad sign. The ideal situation would be if you could monitor what happened to the voltages right before your machine reset, but that wouldn't be very easy to do.
You could also take a screenshot of the MBM window (alt+printscrn) while at idle and another in the middle of a torture test and post them both here (in .jpg format please) for us to pick at.

Edit: I'm careful about recommending that you change your PS because I've spent too much money on parts that didn't need to bo replaced. "Measure twice and cut once."

 

[Yodums]

Welcome to the forums!

If I were to make one suggestion, it would be to replace that wimpy power supply. The restart you stated happening is a sure sign that it's not enough to power all you have going there.

I wouldn't get anything less than a quality 350W to run everything you've got going there. Antec 400W would be a good choice.

Welcome once again!

Your absolutely right. I have the same A7M266 w/ a 300watt, and if I go too high it'll reboot myself too much because my 5v rail is plunging to 4.76. AMD will eat ALOT OF POWER. I'm getting the Enermax 431 watt. That board is a good board, stablity and overclocking wise, so it shouldn't be the board.

Yodums

 

[Nuthouse]

I installed MBM5 and I saw that the vcore had a low of 1.71 and a high of 1.78 when running prime95. MBM added 10 degrees to my cpu temp, so that while running Prime95 the temp was max @ 63 degrees C. The reason why I am not including pics of the dashboard is because I can not start windows. I get the error:

"The ACPI BIOS in this system is not fully compliant with the ACPI specifications."

This error isn't new to me, usually when I would restart my computer I would be able to start windows. Well now I get this Blue screen EVERY time I try to start windows... geeez >(

And I noticed in my BIOS hardware monitor that my +12 volt is running @ 11.67...??? I don't know if this helps or not.

 

[Yodums]

I installed MBM5 and I saw that the vcore had a low of 1.71 and a high of 1.78 when running prime95. MBM added 10 degrees to my cpu temp, so that while running Prime95 the temp was max @ 63 degrees C. The reason why I am not including pics of the dashboard is because I can not start windows. I get the error:

"The ACPI BIOS in this system is not fully compliant with the ACPI specifications."

This error isn't new to me, usually when I would restart my computer I would be able to start windows. Well now I get this Blue screen EVERY time I try to start windows... geeez >(

And I noticed in my BIOS hardware monitor that my +12 volt is running @ 11.67...??? I don't know if this helps or not.

What's your 5v rail? I think your PSU is too weak to load everything up @ startup.

 

[Nuthouse]

VCORE is @ 1.76
5V rail says it is holding steady @ 4.99
3.3V is @ 3.23
12V is @ 11.67

I was running my BIOS on V1006, and I flashed it back to 1004a, which is what it came with originally. Then I disconnected my Ethernet card, Promise IDE controller, slave Harddrive, and CD Burner. When I booted using this configuration, it actually got into windows for a second, then the system restarted and the same old ACPI error occured every boot after that What the heck, is something on my Motherboard messed up, or has my Power supply just gone bad?

 

[Yodums]

I think it's the heat, try a case fan blowing over the heatsink.

Yodums

 

[Christoph]

Try taking the FSB down to 100 and see i you still can't boot. To lower the temps, try opening up your case.

 

[jbell]

hello and welcome I read your issue and then I ran the rest of this thread and find myselfin in agreement it has to be your PSU -you *need* a 400 watt but I was able to get 1.5GHz out of my 1.333 stable... so I am guessing your PSU is not AMD certified.

Secondly, your temps... WAY too high!!! ESPECIALLY for the 1.4 T-bird! if that in fact is a black delta then your Heatsink needs to be replaced I may recommend the Cooler Master ''HEATPIPE'' it is only 40$ and argueably one of the best ever for the money - that should drop your temps to about 40C or 100F under load.

*additional note - can you install a fan to blow on your HDDs? the ibm 60xp tend to run on the warm side from what I have heard - that would help lower your ambient tmeps in the case and help further more on cooling your cpu.


Good luck

Joe

 

[Yodums]

Sometimes if I clock too high, and the temps sky rocket, thats the exact message I get upon a reboot. I know it is the temps because, when I tried opening my window, it rebooted fine, stable system, at night all hell broke loose.

Yodums

 

[Nuthouse]

First I reapplied my heatsink, then I lowered my fsb down to 100. The BIOS v1004a hardware monitor reported my cpu to be @ 31C after about 10 mins just sitting there idle. I got into windows and everything seemed to be fine, then I ran Prime95 and my system restarted. I looked @ the cpu temp in BIOS and it was @ 34C. I tried roobooting but I keep on getting this damn ACPI error

I set up MBM incorrectly, that's why I thought my temps were so high. I choose the asus 2(CUSL2) instead of Asus 2. What is the asus 2(CUSL2) sensor sensing???

I opened up the side of my case and put a 10" fan 2 feet away blowing cold air towards the case. After about 10 mins the Idle CPU temps was 36C.

Ok, so the moral of the story is that I need a 400W powersupply.

 

[Christoph]

Looks like it. Keep the old one around, though. You neve now when it'll come in handy.

 

[Nuthouse]

I had my system working for a couple of hours, then I decided to try to play Return to Castle Wolfenstien... BAD IDEA!!! I got an error like,
"Page fault in nonpaged area"
And now I keep on getting the damn ACPI error again. I want to break something MIght my crucial memory be bad?

 

[Yodums]

I had my system working for a couple of hours, then I decided to try to play Return to Castle Wolfenstien... BAD IDEA!!! I got an error like,
"Page fault in nonpaged area"
And now I keep on getting the damn ACPI error again. I want to break something MIght my crucial memory be bad?

Look in the manual, your going to have to add more voltage to that ram

 

[Nuthouse]

I am going to buy an antec SX1040B which comes with a nice 400W PS. I wish I had bought that case in the first place, oh well. I figure if an antec 400W PS costs the majority of the price of a new case, HEY, why not just get a new case, eh? I'll follow up on this thread after I get everything installed into the new box. THanks for your help guys.

-Nuthouse

 

[Nuthouse]

Update:

I got back my stick of memory which I had lent to a friend. I replaced the stick I was using with the new stick I just got back and VOILA! no more errors! I can play Wolfenstien now, and run Prime95 without any errors. Just one wierd thing. The first boot after installing the new stick of ram Bios couldn't detect my master drive! I wiggled around the cables and disconnected the slave drive, and my computer seems stable now... wierd eh? well I am 20 busck away from my bew case and PS, thanks for all your help.

-Nuthouse

 

[Yodums]

Glad it's working now. All this help paid off from all the members after all!

 

[Christoph]

Update:

I got back my stick of memory which I had lent to a friend. I replaced the stick I was using with the new stick I just got back and VOILA! no more errors! I can play Wolfenstien now, and run Prime95 without any errors. Just one wierd thing. The first boot after installing the new stick of ram Bios couldn't detect my master drive! I wiggled around the cables and disconnected the slave drive, and my computer seems stable now... wierd eh? well I am 20 busck away from my bew case and PS, thanks for all your help.

-Nuthouse

<sniff>I love happy endings!</sniff>
Y'all come back now, y'hear?