ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

**Th3_uN1Qu3** · 01-09-2011, 01:39 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

The BIOS could have gotten corrupted. But first, try a PCI video card, as i've seen dead PCI-E slots on one of those.

**pfrcom** · 01-09-2011, 05:51 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Generic 300W PSU may also be the problem

Could you buy or borrow a replacement, to see if that fixes it

**jtg** · 01-09-2011, 05:54 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Thank you for setting aside some time to read my post and helping me with is problem Th3_uN1Qu3.

PCI video card is a really good idea, but sadly I don't one or know anyone who has one. I've though about the BIOS too, but I wasn't flashing it. The computer was connected to the internet and frozen when I came back. Now when I press the power button, the CPU and case fans spin and that's about it. The red HDD LED light stays on solid. I don't hear any beeps. I also tried taking everything out of the case and setting it on a cardboard box with just the CPU w/HS & fan, video card, and one stick of ram, but it's still the same.

It's either the motherboard or the CPU, but I don't have any extra CPU or motherboard to test it out. Is there any other ways to find out which part is bad? Thanks

**jtg** · 01-09-2011, 05:58 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Originally posted by pfrcom

Generic 300W PSU may also be the problem

Could you buy or borrow a replacement, to see if that fixes it

Yes you right. The Generic 300W PSU may be the problem. My friend was kind enough to let me borrow his Ultra V-series 500W PSU from his gaming computer and it's still the same. I also tested my PSU on his computer and it works perfectly.

Thank you for your help. I really appreciate it.

**seanc** · 01-09-2011, 06:00 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Reset the CMOS as stated earlier.

If still dead, take the northbridge heatsink off and see if it's cooked.
Make sure to re-attach it properly.

**jtg** · 01-09-2011, 06:12 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

I cleared the CMOS and it's still the same.

Here's an online picture of the motherboard that I have:
http://www.productwiki.com/upload/images/asus_m2n_e.jpg

I'm not sure where the northbridge is. The SouthBridge is the square piece right? So from the picture, the northbridge is "to the north" of the CPU socket? Also, how can I tell if it's cooked or not?

Thank you for your help. I really appreciate it.

**seanc** · 01-09-2011, 06:18 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Oh yes, this is an AMD board. My bad.

**jtg** · 01-09-2011, 06:20 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

You're just trying to help. It's cool. Anything helps.

**pfrcom** · 01-09-2011, 06:28 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

If yours is identical to the picture, it does have a removable BIOS chip, in a socket just to the left of the SATA connectors

That gives you the option of easily trying a replacement BIOS chip, especially compared to a BIOS chip soldered direct to the board

**Th3_uN1Qu3** · 01-09-2011, 06:29 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

If you don't have a PCI video card or a way to borrow such a dinosaur, mark the board "dead" and call it a day.

A friend had a M2N-E SLI that had its PCI-E slots fried by a shorted video card. Would work with PCI video. I got it with plans to use it for a game server. At least till i decided to update the old buggy BIOS... big mistake. The new BIOS prolly contained some code that detected the faulty slots and prevented the board from powering up at all.

**yyonline** · 01-09-2011, 06:30 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Nvidia chipsets don't always have a separate northbridge and southbridge. In this case, you should look at the chip under the square heatsink. The fins near the CPU socket are cooling off the VRM.

One symptom of a bad chipset is that it will get very hot. Gently touch the square heatsink and see if it gets very warm very quickly. Careful not to burn yourself. A properly functioning chipset will get warm as well, but will usually do so gradually. Unfortunately, Nvidia chipsets are not the most reliable out there. If you do decide to take the heatsink off to visually inspect the chip, be very careful not to bend the heat pipe. They are not very thick copper and often bend with very little effort.

Finally, it looks like that board has a socketed bios chip. It would be easy to swap it out if the bios was corrupted by the power surge. A power surge can damage the bios chip even if you were not flashing it at the time. It's rare, but it happens. A pre-flashed bios chip can be found on ebay for less than $10 if you're in the US. If you are, let me know and I can recommend a seller I've used in the past with good results.

**jtg** · 01-09-2011, 07:56 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Thank you for everyone's input. I really appreciate your help.

Th3_uN1Qu3

I'm curious to know, did the video card that shorted out the PCI-E slots still work in another computer? My video card is tested and is confirmed to be working. When I power it up in my motherboard, for a minute or two, it feels a little warm.

pfrcom : Thank god that this board has a removable BIOS chip. I'll get it replace and see what happens.

yyonline

Powering on my board for two minutes, I touched the square heatsink and it doesn't feel warm at all, so I guess it's okay. What should I look for when I remove heatsink?

Yes, I'm in the US. Please recommend me the seller that you've used in the past with good results.

**pfrcom** · 01-09-2011, 09:02 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

If you're going to try swapping BIOS chips, I'd recommend getting a proper PLCC extractor to pull the chip

You can lever it out with a fine jeweller's screwdriver, but it's easy to crack the socket if you're not uber-careful

If the socket's cracked the BIOS chip will then make erratic contact, and you'll then have a permanent, most likely unfixable, problem

**yyonline** · 01-09-2011, 09:41 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Originally posted by jtg

Powering on my board for two minutes, I touched the square heatsink and it doesn't feel warm at all, so I guess it's okay. What should I look for when I remove heatsink?

Look for any burned or dark spots which could indicate the chip is damaged. That said, more often than not, there will be no visible damage. The "excessive heat test" can only prove that it's bad. Just because it doesn't get hot doesn't necessarily mean that it's good.

Originally posted by jtg

Yes, I'm in the US. Please recommend me the seller that you've used in the past with good results.

Ebay ID: biosdepot

http://cgi.ebay.com/BIOS-Chip-ASUS-M...item588665346a

In my experience, I've never had to return anything I've ordered from that seller. As others have mentioned, I'd recommend getting a proper chip puller. It can be done without one if you're very careful, but it's always better to have the correct tool for the job.

**jtg** · 01-09-2011, 09:48 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Thanks for the heads up. I didn't know that there could be unfixable consequences. Does the PLCC extractor pulls the entire chip straight out of the socket? And when I put the BIOS chip in the socket, are there procedures I need to follow? Or is it straight forward, just pushing in the chip?

**PCBONEZ** · 01-09-2011, 10:10 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Vote #3 for a bad power supply.
.

**Th3_uN1Qu3** · 01-09-2011, 10:25 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

Originally posted by jtg

I'm curious to know, did the video card that shorted out the PCI-E slots still work in another computer? My video card is tested and is confirmed to be working. When I power it up in my motherboard, for a minute or two, it feels a little warm.

No, somebody asked my friend to test that video card as his computer wouldn't start with it. My friend found out the hard way that the card was fried.

You could try swapping the BIOS i guess. The only BIOS swap i did was on a ECS board where the dumbasses who run the site found it funny to post the wrong BIOS update.

**mockingbird** · 01-09-2011, 10:54 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

You have a defective nForce northbridge. Chuck the motherboard in the trash.

**PCBONEZ** · 01-09-2011, 11:28 PM

Re: ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

This one suffered a power surge and then froze - AFTER SOME USE.
If power surge got the Chipset there wouldn't have been 'some use' after the surge.

Sounds a lot more like cheap surge protection & input filter in PSU allowed PSU damage but just enough for one more boot.
.
.

ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

ASUS M2N-E no POST, no video, no beeps

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