ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

[jbonetwo]

I'm trying to fix this brand new board that won't post. I can't RMA it as the cost of shipping the board is twice the price of the board itself.

After initial assembly, the board wouldn't post, no video, no beep codes. If I unplugged the gfx card, i get 5 beeps. If i tap F2, I enter BIOS with full video, and discarding changes from here would give me an ordinary 'Hard Disk Boot Failure' Message.

The problem, I believe was a short occurring due to one of the following:
1. The rubber feet of the ultra cheap PowerCool PSU had come off.
2. A screw was wedged between the PSU and motherboard tray.
3. A motherboard pillar may have been in contact with the board.

In trying to narrow down the problem, I powered it on ~10 times, and now i don't even get the beep codes when nothing but the cpu and power are connected outside the case. cmos reset by popping the battery did nothing.

I can find no visibly bad caps. I checked the caps with an ohm meter and did not find any close to 0 ohms or >100 M ohns.

Any help in salvaging this new board would be appreciated.

[Philly Cheese Steak]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

I'm trying to fix this brand new board that won't post. I can't RMA it as the cost of shipping the board is twice the price of the board itself.

After initial assembly, the board wouldn't post, no video, no beep codes. If I unplugged the gfx card, i get 5 beeps. If i tap F2, I enter BIOS with full video, and discarding changes from here would give me an ordinary 'Hard Disk Boot Failure' Message.

The problem, I believe was a short occurring due to one of the following:
1. The rubber feet of the ultra cheap PowerCool PSU had come off.
2. A screw was wedged between the PSU and motherboard tray.
3. A motherboard pillar may have been in contact with the board.

In trying to narrow down the problem, I powered it on ~10 times, and now i don't even get the beep codes when nothing but the cpu and power are connected outside the case. cmos reset by popping the battery did nothing.

I can find no visibly bad caps. I checked the caps with an ohm meter and did not find any close to 0 ohms or >100 M ohns.

Any help in salvaging this new board would be appreciated.

One suggestion, swap out the PSU Ultra cheap. Swap out every part you can, see if it works.

[jbonetwo]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

ive tried using another cpu and another psu both of which ive tested to be working on another pc. no luck.

ive tested every other component and found them to be working as well on another board- cpu, ram, gfx, psu, case.

i know 'cheap psu' sounds bad but thats exactly why i bought an 850w for a 550w build.

ive found several of the smaller caps around the pci-ex slot on the board give a 0 reading with the ohmmeter function of my multimeter. These are 100uf 16v (or 1.6v) caps. does this suggest bad caps?

[Philly Cheese Steak]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

ive tried using another cpu and another psu both of which ive tested to be working on another pc. no luck.

ive tested every other component and found them to be working as well on another board- cpu, ram, gfx, psu, case.

i know 'cheap psu' sounds bad but thats exactly why i bought an 850w for a 550w build.

ive found several of the smaller caps around the pci-ex slot on the board give a 0 reading with the ohmmeter function of my multimeter. These are 100uf 16v (or 1.6v) caps. does this suggest bad caps?

I'm not sure how to test the caps, it doesn't sound like your testing it correctly. They wont show voltage when powered off, they will show like a high number then slowly change to lower if I recall correctly. Try switching your leads, adjusting the Ohms setting till you get a ready. Try a higher Ohms setting on the Multi meter, you should get something............start low setting then adjust up one at a time till you get readings. They have a positive and negative side, try both.

[shovenose]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

Just because it claims to be more wattage doesn't mean it will run efficiently or output clean power to your components.

That said, just RMA the motherboard. Don't try to fix it because the warranty will be void.

Make sure you used standoffs correctly.

[jbonetwo]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

it costs $65 for the board, ~$150 to send it via intl. shipping plus $40 to get it back via intl. shipping. so yes this would make absolutely no sense.

there is a single ohms setting on my multimeter. these 3 tiny caps all charge for a split second and then give a zero reading even if i reverse the probes.

got a capacitance meter and a post analyzer card in the mail to look into this.

edit: and yes i installed only the needed standoffs and tightened them with nose pliers.

[momaka]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

The POST card *may* reveal something (though I've never had luck with any of them showing me anything useful).

The issue you have is likely NOT capacitor-related, so don't waste your time measuring caps. If you think the case did damage to the board, then check all of the board traces - especially around stand-offs. This is a black board, so you will need lots of light and probably need to spend quite a bit of time checking traces to make sure everything is good. Any scratches on the motherboard, anywhere, can be the source of trouble.

If you have compressed air, blow some under the CPU socket, Northbridge, Southbridge, and any other BGA chips. If this issue is caused by metal shavings or something similar from the case, hopefully this will clear the issue.

Cheap RAM can also cause many "mysterious" issues. Try testing with a single known good-quality stick of RAM - and by that, I mean either genuine Samsung, Micron, Hynix, NANYA, or Infineon. Kingston - maybe. Everything else, don't waste your time.

What about thermal compound under the CPU? Do you have the right ammount? Too much or too little can cause CPU to overheat and not co-operate.

Finally, the PSU: what brand and model are you using? An "850W" power supply does not mean anything. Could be an "850W" PowMax for all we know.

Sorry if these seem like stupid questions/suggestions. I'm just trying to make sure we are on the same page and the issue is not something simple that we are overlooking.

[jbonetwo]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

Well momake, it seems you were absolutely right on several points.

- The POST analyzer was inconclusive at best. Since it doesn't show any kind of reading whatsoever apart from the power leds, it either means its completely refusing to initiate the POST, or that it "is not compatible with the BIOS version" according to the Manual.

- The cap tester showed these 'suspect' caps to be around the rated 100uf so no problems there. Will go over all of the caps when I get a chance.

- I had done a thorough compressed air cleaning exactly as you said in anticipation of some metal bits causing a short (I've built a lot of pc's and laptops over the years). It didn't solve anything this time unfortunately.

- Thermal paste is something I am quite familiar with, and rest assured it is a minimal layer of mx-4 without using too little. I took some high res pictures of the cpu pins to make sure there was no gunk in there before I installed it the first time. I've been interchanging 2 amd 955 BE's on 3 motherboards and the results all point to this one mb being faulty.

- I don't have any of the brands of RAM you recommended, but it would be incredibly lucky if my Crucial 1333Mhz RAM was the problem: It WAS booting into bios (F2) several times before, and it WAS giving me 'no VGA Card' beep codes, but it has failed to do either, or even 'no RAM installed' beeps in over 15 tries. The RAM also works splendidly on another board. However, will try switching out with Corsair 1333 value RAM which really is the only thing that comes close to compatibility friendly RAM that I have lying around.

- The PSU is a PowerCool 850W, that has been tested with a PSU tester, tested to run another system altogether, and additionally, a Gigabyte PSU (I know theyre nothing special) that is used on a daily basis on another system failed to boot this board.

- Will try to go over the traces with a flashlight tomorrow, along with switching out the RAM.

Apologies for the large reply, but as you said, we need to be on the same page here.

[momaka]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

Apologies for the large reply, but as you said, we need to be on the same page here.

No need to apologise here. In fact, the "extra" information is always appreciated as it removes some quessing on our part.

The Crucial RAM should be alright, as well as Corsair. I don't regard them as highly as the OEM manufacturers I mentioned above, but most of the time they are okay, and certainly much better than "no-name" RAM.

Still skeptical about the PSU, but I find it unlikely that this is the problem too (open it and post a picture of its insides if in doubt).

By the way, anything getting extra hot on the motherboard when you power it on? (you will have to run your finger through some of the chips and MOSFETs/regulators to notice this).

[shovenose]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

No need to apologise here. In fact, the "extra" information is always appreciated as it removes some quessing on our part.

The Crucial RAM should be alright, as well as Corsair. I don't regard them as highly as the OEM manufacturers I mentioned above, but most of the time they are okay, and certainly much better than "no-name" RAM.

Still skeptical about the PSU, but I find it unlikely that this is the problem too (open it and post a picture of its insides if in doubt).

By the way, anything getting extra hot on the motherboard when you power it on? (you will have to run your finger through some of the chips and MOSFETs/regulators to notice this).

Crucial is Micron. Good quality RAM either way you look at it.
Corsair isn't great but should be fine. This honestly doesn't sound like a RAM issue - sounds like a bad board.

The most cost effective option in this case might be to purchase a new motherboard. And not incorrectly install it this time.

[jbonetwo]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

Well the Corsair didn't work either. And I couldn't find anything odd on the pcb. Nothing burnt or scratched or untoward. There's even an insulating sticker that has a 'dont remove' label on it that's meant to protect against shorts from standoffs.

Will try to see if any of the mb components are too hot to touch when i get a chance. Would testing it without a cpu, or anything else other than power be alright? it would certainly be a lot easier for me to post responses quicker if all i had to do was connect some power cables as opposed to migrating the cpu, ram and video card to the faulty mb and back.

One thing thats worth mentioning, now that i think of it, is that I did install the rather large and heavy thermalright ifx-14 in the first assembly (~850g incl. the 2x140mm fans). i had it working great on my older asrock m3a770de board, and i took a chance on testing the new board without the stock hsf. The stock hsf was only dug up and restored after initial troubleshooting failed, although i was still getting beep codes for a while after this was done. the thermalright still works great on the older motherboard despite all it's weight.

Perhaps it somehow put too much stress on this new board and damaged the area around the cpu socket. This would be consistent with no boot, no beep, no video. As mentioned before, the cpu itself has been ruled out by testing it on another 2 boards.

The money really doesn't matter to me. It's always been in my nature to go to large extents to try and fix pc's and other electronics. This particular case is my motivation for delving into resurrection rather than diagnosing and replacing faulty components. Admittedly my first venture looks to be far more complicated than soldering on a couple of caps.

If I can get the parts, tools and knowledge I need to fix it, I am going to try to do so even if I'm sure to fail. this is more about learning than anything else.

[momaka]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

Will try to see if any of the mb components are too hot to touch when i get a chance. Would testing it without a cpu, or anything else other than power be alright?

On some (or most?) motherboards, the power regulating modules might not work properly without CPU and RAM, so your test will likely be inconclusive without CPU and RAM in there. So you do need them.

One thing thats worth mentioning, now that i think of it, is that I did install the rather large and heavy thermalright ifx-14 in the first assembly (~850g incl. the 2x140mm fans)
...
Perhaps it somehow put too much stress on this new board and damaged the area around the cpu socket. This would be consistent with no boot, no beep, no video. As mentioned before, the cpu itself has been ruled out by testing it on another 2 boards.

I'm not familiar with AM3+ CPU HSF retention mechanism, but if it's similar to Socket 939 and AM2/AM2+, that could be the problem too. I find that the stock backplate on socket 939 and AM2 motherboads often warps the board quite a bit. I can definitely imagine that a heavy heatsink or one with very strong springs to warp the board quite a bit.

On my socket 939 motherboards, I always modify the stock backplate so that it exerts all of its force right under where the CPU socket BGA is and not elsewhere. This completely eliminates warping on the board.

Another thing you can try is to lay the motherboard flat outside of the case and put a heatsink over the CPU without tightening the retention mechanism at all (I usually do this when I quick-test motherboards). Then turn it on and see if it works. If this is the problem, hopefully the lack of tension from the CPU HSF would allow it to boot.

The money really doesn't matter to me. It's always been in my nature to go to large extents to try and fix pc's and other electronics.

Welcome to badcaps, then!

I myself have done more than a dozen of "worthless", "for glory only" repairs than I care to remember. IMO, worth every penny, though.

If I can get the parts, tools and knowledge I need to fix it, I am going to try to do so even if I'm sure to fail. this is more about learning than anything else.

Well, for a CPU socket reflow, you will need something equivalent of a reflow machine (or ideally, a reflow machine). I say equivalent, because there are many ways to reflow big boards without a reflow machine. To get good results requires a bit of experience, though. But nonetheless, at the very minimum, you will need a thermometer and probe (eBay search TM-902C), flux for the reflow (Kingbo is good), a heatgun, and a stove with electric burners (gas won't work). Also some aluminum foil and aluminum tape to cover areas with caps so that you don't overheat them. But setting up for a repair like that is worthy of a whole new thread.
...
And we don't even know if that is the problem or not yet.
But maybe worth trying if nothing else works and you don't plan on selling the motherboard. I mean, if it's dead, it's dead, right?

[jbonetwo]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

Welcome to badcaps, then!

I myself have done more than a dozen of "worthless", "for glory only" repairs than I care to remember. IMO, worth every penny, though.

Glad to find a forum with like minded people

Well, considering a short is less likely (motherboard was always insulated against bad standoffs; screw wedged between psu enclosure and mb tray and no rubber feet between psu enclosure and bottom of case unlikely to cause a short), the cpu socket is the top contender at this point.

I would like to proceed with resocketing the cpu socket, if that is what you are describing. Google doesn't produce any good how-to's so help on doing this here would be greatly appreciated.

As I work at a refrigeration company, I have everything you descibed at my disposal, except an electric stove which i could borrow from someone easily enough.

Gonna check fleabay for a cheap and used am3 cpu for testing purposes.

[RJARRRPCGP]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

the cpu socket is the top contender at this point.

Definitely, on 775.....

On AM3+, not as likely.....

[jbonetwo]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

Definitely, on 775.....

On AM3+, not as likely.....

It is more likely than anything else at this point. Considering the weight of the cpu cooler. And considering the greater than safe amount of pressure that was required to release the hsf from the cpu when the thermal paste had not had time to cure. it took a good 5 minutes of tugging and smearing to coax the hsf off the cpu on several occassions.

mx-4 creates a very strong bond that is difficult to break when the cpu has not had time to run hot for a few days.

[jbonetwo]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

started a new thread here

[tmiha71]

Re: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2 won't post

What CPU was used, what gfx was used ???
This board looks suspicious... Usually you can see groups of capacitors, with group size of at LEAST two caps, this one has groups with group size of ONE capacitor...
If board is OK (no dead components), you'll need VERY GOOD PSU (top-notch) -> search Internet for combination of that mobo and PSU...