Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

[Roadkill203]

I had this board for years, bought it brand new, and it never gave me any problems. Yesterday, I was trying to see if it would still POST because I was contemplating selling it on Ebay. Well, I did something stupid! I set it up with an Athlon 2200, an AGP video card that I use just for testing, a 256 stick of ram (DDR), and a 250 watt power supply, just to see if it would POST, but I forgot to plug in the 4 pin connector near the CPU! The CPU fan spun for about ten seconds, and then it stopped; the board and the power supply won't work, everything else does (memory, CPU, video card - I tested them out afterwards on my A7N8X Deluxe board). The power supply I could care less about, but I wanted to know if the board was worth salvaging, and where exactly would I start testing it. I tried a new power supply (connected right this time) with the CPU, video card, and memory, but neither the CPU fan nor the power supply fan spin; nothing happens except the nVidia Nforce 2 chip gets hot, to the point that I smell it burning. Is the board trashed? Thanks in advance for everybody's input.

[PCBONEZ]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

Check for burned traces coming from the ATX power connector.
Without the 4-pin connected +12v power may have tried to feed from the 20/24-pin through the traces on the board and may have burned the traces open.
Traces aren't intended for that much current which is why the 4-pin exists.

.

[370forlife]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

Hmmmm, I don't think not plugging in the extra p4 connector would have anything to do with it. It really should have just kept running, but gave you a beep code or something. Sounds more like A short, or the psu blew your board.

[acstech]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

Did you try clearing the CMOS afterward? I did something similar a while back; for some reason it screwed up the BIOS so it wouldn't post. After smacking my forehead, plugging in the 4 pin connector, and resetting the bios it came back up and worked like nothing had happened.

[kikkoman]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

if you have that 4-LED MSI-specific panel installed, it'll give you an error code. don't know if it's as detailed as beep codes or a port80 card.

[gdement]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

Hmmmm, I don't think not plugging in the extra p4 connector would have anything to do with it. It really should have just kept running, but gave you a beep code or something. Sounds more like A short, or the psu blew your board.

It shouldn't be a problem if the connections are actually kept on separate circuits, but that might not be the case here.

The main connector only has 1 wire/pin for +12v, and the 4-pin connector adds 2 more. So by leaving that disconnected it tripled the current going through the remaining pin. Pretty serious if the board makes heavy use of that rail.

Maybe there's a fuse, but I fear there probably isn't. If it burned it'll probably be easy to tell.

[Roadkill203]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

I looked at the board closely, front and back, but I can't see any burn marks. The board itself is black, so it makes it difficult to see any burn marks, but I looked at it on an angle to the light (kind of on it's side, minus a few degrees), but it looks pretty pristine. I'm gonna try clearing the CMOS tonight (duh, why didn't I think of that!), and then I'll set it up again to see if it will POST...

Thanks for all of the replies, I'll keep you all POSTed on what happens.

[370forlife]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

It shouldn't be a problem if the connections are actually kept on separate circuits, but that might not be the case here.

The main connector only has 1 wire/pin for +12v, and the 4-pin connector adds 2 more. So by leaving that disconnected it tripled the current going through the remaining pin. Pretty serious if the board makes heavy use of that rail.

Maybe there's a fuse, but I fear there probably isn't. If it burned it'll probably be easy to tell.

IDK, all of the p4 motherboards that i have worked with don't blow up when there is no p4 connector on it. Not to mention, this is a socket 462, I have never seen a socket 462 that needed a p4 connector. Seems like it could run without it, if so many others can. My intel OR840 requires a additional AT connector to provide additional 5v and 12v. BUT, I don't have it connected, and it hasen't blown up yet.

[PCBONEZ]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

370forlife, you got lucky a few times and you are treading in dangerous waters drawing conclusions from it.

The whole reason for multiple connectors is to reduce the current through each conductor by adding more conductors. (Spreading the load.) That includes spreading the load in both the PSU wires and the traces on the mobo.
If that wasn't necessary they'd just use one BIG freakin' wire for each rail.

Some boards have the 4-pin and 20/24-pin connected through the board and others don't. The ones that are connected have traces between the PSU connectors making them electrically the same.
(Like a 1 rail PSU vs a 2 rail PSU only in the mobo instead of in the PSU.)
You can check that by taking a resistance reading between +12v pin on 4-pin and +12v pin on 20/24-pin. I've found P4 that are connected and others that aren't.

The 4-pin goes to CPU.
If you don't connect the 4-pin 'and' the board has the interconnections then you are powering CPU through the 20/24-pin pins and through traces in the board that aren't intended to handle that much current.

And as gdement brought up you are also exceeding the current ratings of the 20/24-pin +12v connector pins and the associated PSU wires.

~~

With new PSU and fans not spinning at all that suggests an open circuit or a ground in +12v somewhere.

.

[Roadkill203]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

Well, I had the CMOS battery out all day, tried to get the board to POST just before, nothing happened, although you can fry an egg on the nForce chip! That's the only indication that I'm getting power to the board, that chip gets too hot to touch. Is the board fried? I'm pretty sure that it is, I just need one of you 'doctors' to call it... Anyway, it was a good board while it lasted - thanks for humoring me guys!

[bgavin]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

Sorry to hear about your loss. I have a few of these in service, and they perform well... until they get murdered by cheap power supplies. The nForce chip glows almost red hot on the dead boards I have. Pity... Bestec are the supplies that have killed the boards I have.

I have one of those running on my primary workstation. Great board.. I run a Sempron 2600+ at 400 FSB, and 200 MHz DDR. CPU runs around 37C, up to 40C during the hot months.

[Scenic]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

umm.. the nForce2 chipset on my old Socket A board gets so hot that you'll burn your fingers if you touch the heatsink. and this board (Asus A7N8X) is working fine o.O

[Roadkill203]

Re: Advice on my board, MSI MS6570E, Socket 462, Version 1.0

Sorry to hear about your loss. I have a few of these in service, and they perform well... until they get murdered by cheap power supplies. The nForce chip glows almost red hot on the dead boards I have. Pity... Bestec are the supplies that have killed the boards I have.

I have one of those running on my primary workstation. Great board.. I run a Sempron 2600+ at 400 FSB, and 200 MHz DDR. CPU runs around 37C, up to 40C during the hot months.

It was an Antec power supply that did it in. Oh, and my stupidity too! Thanks for all of the input, it's really appreciated. I'm sad to let this board go, but it's going to the dumpster.