KT7A-RAID quality is lacking.....severely

[therapture]

Well, luck of the draw! TWICE! I simply can't load Win2k at the default speed of 10x133 (33 pci) no matter what voltages or ram timings I load. I have now gotten two defective or inferior KT7A-R's....I started suspecting my new 1.33 AXIA, but we popped it into another machine and it performed perfect all the way to 1425 at stock voltage! So the CPU is not the issue.

So I think, ok something I did on my rig is causing the problem. I started over, left everything out except for mobo, ram, and vid card and one hard drive. ALL default settings. NADA! NOTHING! It will post at 1333 but as soon as it tries to load windows it BSOD's or gives an error that the ntoskrnl is corrupt. This IS a fresh install of Win2k, I had to run the machine at 1ghz just to load the OS. RAM is Kingmax pc150 that I used in my last Intel board (CUSL2) at 146mhz CAS2 and also in my previous KT7 mobo at 133+ CAS2 (see the old rig at http://therapture.is.dreaming.org ).

I finally managed to get it to run at 12x110 but stability is a sore spot. Random crashes, freezes, and BSOD's. I tried lower multipliers and even higher bus speeds, but anything over about 115fsb is a no go! At 7x140 it posted but then crashed....

So we get another mobo....SAME FREAKING CRAP, again. I am hard up and pissed off about the lack of quality control on these mobo's. So pissed in fact, that this junk is going back to Newegg, and an Iwill KK266A is replacing it. I have had it with Abit's lack of quality control, I also had an Abit BX133 RAID that would not run a CeleronII 566 at 850. That particular cpu ran at 850 for months in an old Soyo 6vba133 mobo with never a hang or crash. Abit has screwed me too many times now.

They are getting no more money from me. Iwill, here I come.

Any success stories on these KK266's?

 

[tim]

I had different experience; I had both Iwill KK226 and Abit K7A and had much luck with Abit... While wishing to keep the Iwill KK226, due to its performance vs K7A, I had difficulty with High FSB, 133+ and High Multiplier on the KK226 and regretably returned the Iwill. Just wish that Iwill will have some solution to it; like new Bios or something

 

[Hoot]

If it's not imposing, before you return the mobo, could you ease off the Northbridge HSF, wipe off the measly bit of white grease and describe the chip? Is it plastic or does it have a metal top, or metalized sticker on the top? Also, what bios revision did it come with? Thanks

Hoot

 

[therapture]

Hell, I would be HAPPY if my KT7A would just RUN the DEFAULT RATED speed of 133fsb.....thats just plain ridiculous, not even having the stability to run at what it was desgned for....

Glad to hear something is working for you. I happen to be one of those unlucky types, if there is a bad one in the warehouse, I'll be the one to get it...!!!

 

[therapture]

Hoot (Apr 21, 2001 07:42 p.m.):
If it's not imposing, before you return the mobo, could you ease off the Northbridge HSF, wipe off the measly bit of white grease and describe the chip? Is it plastic or does it have a metal top, or metalized sticker on the top? Also, what bios revision did it come with? Thanks

Hoot

Well, I did regrease the Northbridge, and it had a plastic top I am almost sure....but I might look again. And it also came with the YH bios....

The thermal paste they had was only on one side and very thick, almost dried out looking.

I tried cooling the Nbridge too with a 60mm fan, just hoping...but no bueno!

Iwill, here I come ....Tuesday I am hoping....

 

[Hoot]

A little more history. My first KT7A refused to run above 133 FSB. Tried everything under the sun. One of the things i did was remove the Northbridge HSF, lap it, apply some arctic silver, but it did not help. While the HSF was off, I noticed the chip had what appeared to be a metal top or metalized sticker on it. Not knowing any better, I continued troubleshooting another week and then threw in the towell. NewEgg was very nice about it and sent me another one. Before I sent the old one back, I did not want them to think/know i had been monkeying with the hardware, so i took the unlapped HSF off the new one with the intention of putting it on the old one before I sent it back. Lo and Behold, the Northbridge chip was different. It was all plastic like the southbridge. This discovery set me to wondering if Abit, in a production crunch, remarked some non A chips and stuck them on some boards. I was lucky, in that my second board ran 150 FSB right out of the box. Hopefully you will do better on the third try also.

 

[therapture]

WELL now that sounds VERY plausible. This boards acts just like a plain KT7.....to a T. 110fsb no prob, but ANYTHING higher and trip out time.

You know I even looked at the markings on the board to make sure it said KT7A ???? Hahaha...I bet something like this happened.

Sure acts that way.......

 

[JEFF]

ok now ive got to check mine.it post at 133/33 even 140/34 or whatever it is but get windows protection error any higher than 133.by the way i had so much trouble with the old 98 from another machine i got 98 se off internet installed and my tems dropped 10c wtf?also my fans sometimes run even when shut down,,,,,,,,anyone else?,,was running at 42c at idle now 32c .i dont get it.

 

[therapture]

Yeah, sure seems something odd is going on.....

I am going to check that Northbridge again and write down any markings, and make sure what type it is whether plastic or metal capped...

I'll post it here in a few when I get it.....

 

[therapture]

OK..I pulled the HSF, and it has these markings on it, and it is made of a hard plastic....

Northbridge: (under the heatsink fan combo)
VIA VT8363A 0104CD TAIWAN 2IAI008881

The Southbridge is marked: (to left of CMOS battery)
VT82C686B 0106CD TAIWAN 13B003100

 

[jgaud]

JEFF (Apr 21, 2001 08:23 p.m.):
ok now ive got to check mine.it post at 133/33 even 140/34 or whatever it is but get windows protection error any higher than 133.by the way i had so much trouble with the old 98 from another machine i got 98 se off internet installed and my tems dropped 10c wtf?also my fans sometimes run even when shut down,,,,,,,,anyone else?,,was running at 42c at idle now 32c .i dont get it.

more strange stuff, after installing 4 in 1 drivers idle dropped to 26c this was strange strange strange strange

 

[Budzman]

I had two different kt7a-r boards both had the silver metallic sticker on the northbridge chip. Both would not run over 142 fsb stable no matter what i tried.

 

[QSW]

Hoot (Apr 21, 2001 07:54 p.m.):
A little more history. My first KT7A refused to run above 133 FSB. Tried everything under the sun. One of the things i did was remove the Northbridge HSF, lap it, apply some arctic silver, but it did not help. While the HSF was off, I noticed the chip had what appeared to be a metal top or metalized sticker on it. Not knowing any better, I continued troubleshooting another week and then threw in the towell. NewEgg was very nice about it and sent me another one. Before I sent the old one back, I did not want them to think/know i had been monkeying with the hardware, so i took the unlapped HSF off the new one with the intention of putting it on the old one before I sent it back. Lo and Behold, the Northbridge chip was different. It was all plastic like the southbridge. This discovery set me to wondering if Abit, in a production crunch, remarked some non A chips and stuck them on some boards. I was lucky, in that my second board ran 150 FSB right out of the box. Hopefully you will do better on the third try also.

I am about to order a KT7A-raid from Newegg.com, and their product description says that the board is Revison 1.1. I hope that is the version with the `better' northbridge. I have a 1.33 running at 10.5x150 on a K7T266 now. The KT7A wil be a temporary home for my 1.33 until a better and bug-free KT266 board appears.

 

[Nagorak]

All I can say is there is a reason I no longer continued to purchase ABIT boards after my B(*tc)H6.

 

[b1bwso]

I just finished leaving a post on the viahardware site with a suspiciously similar problem. I was beginning to think I'd gotten a 200FSB Athlon by "mistake" and that was stopping my post/boot. Now I'll have to check my Northbridge to see if it's plastic or metallic or busted.

Thanks for the info!

 

[Hoot]

In the interest of fairness, this suspicion of mine is just a suspicion. Just too many unexplained inconsistencies, from one persons KT7A to another, to write off as coincidence, lately.

Hoot

 

[b1bwso]

Simple question - How does the fan disengage from the Northbridge?

 

[Hoot]

That's the pain about it. You have to remove the motherboard from the case. The retainer pin has two lips that grip the edge of the hole. you squeeze them together and out pops the pin. Gently...

Hoot

 

[b1bwso]

Hmm, I think I'll see if TC Comp will swap first before I break something...it's only been at my domicile for 4 weeks.

Thanks for the good info!

 

[therapture]

Well, definitely for me Abit has totally turned me off their product. Out of the last 4 mobo's I have had from them, three have been problematic. (BH6, BX133 RAID, and two KT7A RAID's).

A 75% problem rate is fuggin ridiculous, and they are notgetting any more of my money. My new Iwill KK266 will be here Tuesday, and hopefully everything will work fine. Being without my main gaming rig for 4 or 5 days is driving me nuts.
This machine I am on is my NT 5.0 Server box. Celery 566 oc'ed to 750mhz, with 384mb ram, a V3 2000 vid card, SBLive, and two 20gb ATA66 7200rpm Western Digital drives in RAID 0. Based on a BX133 RAID board.