Trouble with first time build

[rcd0220]

Hello this is my first attempt at building a computer and I am beginning to find the process very frustrating. I installed the motherboard, hard drive, psu, and optical drive along with 2 sticks of ram. On initial boot the fans and led came on but no image came up on my monitor. At first I thought it was fine and checked all the wiring and I believe that it was fine. Once I checked the wiring I tried to start it up again but this time neither the fans nor the led lights lit up.
I would appreciate any help I could get thank you.

My computer contains
ECS Black Series A785GM-M AM3 AMD 785G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

AMD Athlon II X2 240 Regor 2.8GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Processor

Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600)

COOLER MASTER RS-600-AMBA-D3 600W ATX12V V2.3 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

Sony Optiarc Black 2X BD-ROM 8X DVD-ROM 24X CD-ROM SATA Internal 2X BD-ROM Model BR-5100S

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive

And the case is XION Solaris XON-403 Black with Green LED Light Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

[rcd0220]

Update: The fans and led lights came back on but still no screen appeared. I tried to correct the problem again. Now My motherboard has a red blinking dot on it. This happened after I took out one of the sticks of ram, disconected the hdd and disconected the optical drive. I had read somewhere to try a boot this way. I am really frustrated and have little money to just buy new pieces so I am hoping that there is something that can be done. Thank you for your help

[pam123]

This is how you do an out of the case check to troubleshoot a new build : Having problems with a new build? Try this.


If it works you've been shorting out somewhere and need to double check the stand-offs and look for any stray metal that might be impinging on the motherboard.

That red light is diagnostic so grab the manual and check what it's indicating.

Post back and we can take it from there depending on what you find out.

You don't just buy new parts; you return the non-functioning ones, that is what an RMA is for, to be replaced either by the vendor or under warranty by the manufacturer.

[rcd0220]

Thank you. I assembled out of box with only one stick of ram and got the same result. The cpu fan turned on a red and yellow light were on and what looked like the letters FF were on an led on the motherboard. No display came on the monitor. I checked and made sure everything was seated properly. Is there anything that I am missing? Thanks for the help.

[systempat]

A couple of points that may help. You have a monitor connected I assume. IF you can plug into the VGA connector to keep it basic. Right now you only want to see the POST screen and the BIOS. Windows and HD or DVI come later.
Get a look at the manual for the motherboard. It most likely is on the CD since they don't print manuals half the time anymore. Look up what you can for the lights that you describe. Find out what they may be indicating. One of them is probably only a power-on light that just shows the board is connected to the Power Supply. The display with the hex codes is giving the status on the power-on test that the MB goes thru every time it starts up. There will be a table for that in the manual.
Be patient and careful so you don't break anything by forcing it to do something that it was not made to do. Did all the power plugs go into the board with reasonable force or did one of them have to be "mashed" into place. I once connected the 4-pin CPU power plug the wrong way. It did not take that much force, the difference between the D shape and the square shape on the plugs is not that much. The clip should orient to the matching bracket on the connector on the board.
If it can be identified what is wrong, you are at least half way there. If one of the components is bad, that happens sometimes. That is when you go to the return process with where you bought from. Did you buy from an online store or somewhere local? Most are good on dealing with new items under warranty. Good Luck!

Pat

[pam123]

Originally Posted by rcd0220 Thank you. I assembled out of box with only one stick of ram and got the same result. The cpu fan turned on a red and yellow light were on and what looked like the letters FF were on an led on the motherboard. No display came on the monitor. I checked and made sure everything was seated properly. Is there anything that I am missing? Thanks for the help.

FF is normally a configuration/boot error or a faulty board but without the manual I can only go by what I know from other boards.
My next step would be a CMOS re-set, follow the manual's instructions for that, but I would suggest you contact ECS tech support.
DOA components aren't rare, unfortunately, so you may have to RMA the board for replacement.
If you bought the board from newegg within the last 30 days they'll replace it without giving you a hassle.

Just now I'm waiting for the PDF of manual from the ECS site to download so I'll post when it does.

[pam123]

Well reading the manual didn't help at all and a search turned up some information, including the fact that on some motherboards FF is considered to mean the boot sequence is completed!

Here's what I would do, since you're sure you've got all the connections correct, the 8 pin +12 v connector, the cpu fan in the correct header and the processor properly seated, I would push that clear CMOS button following the manual instructions.

Your other possible culprit is the power supply .
Cooler Master has an excellent reputation but you should test the power supply before you rma the board, even the best companies have the occasional dud.

This is a long shot but check the cpu for bent pins, I know you're careful but it does happen.

[rcd0220]

Thank you. I checked the pins but did not see anything that looked off. I was told by a friend (who has a degree in computer science) to take out the battery on the motherboard to attempt to reset the board. I have not tried this because the battery does not seem to want to come out with ease and I am affraid of breaking something. Is this a route I should take? I plan on calling ECS thursday. I really appreciate the help without reading other threads and getting responses from ya'll this whole process would have turned into a bit to much for me. Also im just wondering if both of sticks of ram could be the culprit? I have been using one for the boot but changed them out to make sure. Is it possible that they are stopping my display and if so is there any way to test that?
Once again thank you for your help I will post again when something new comes up.

[pam123]

Look you really have to read that manual, you do not pull the cmos battery on that board.
They give specific instructions .

If you've misplaced the manual then download it as PDF from the ECSUSA site here : http://www.ecsusa.com/ECSWebSite/Pro...ID=145&LanID=9

Let us know what you hear from ECS tech support.

[rcd0220]

Sorry it has taken me so long to respond. ECS was very slow in support over the internet and i tried to avoid a long distance phone call. They told me that FF means that the board is malfunctioning and I am returning the item to Newegg. Thank you for the help. I hope that a new board will be the answer to my problems.

[Khalil]

How long ago did you buy this ECS garbage motherboard?
If there is anyway you could return it I highly recommend you do so. Get an Asus and forget about it!