New mobo for Socket 775

Phuncz

2[H]4U
Joined
Apr 12, 2009
Messages
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After having used my current setup (see signature) for years without much problems, lately I have been having SATA-controller issues. When I connect all 5 drives, my system will probably not boot. It doesn't matter which of the 5 drives, by the way. Buying a PCI or PCI-e 1x (only slots available) controller is also out of the question, as most are host-based anyway (lousy performance) or terribly expensive.

Anyway, because the system itself is still very powerful in my opinion and is more than enough for my needs, I'd like not to throw everything in the waste bin because the world seems to have given up on Socket 775. In my search for a replacement motherboard (note that I live in Europe) I have found nothing useful.

Most replacement micro-ATX Socket 775 motherboards are equiped with 2 RAM slots (I have 4x 2GB), 4 SATA-connectors (I have 5 drives, but not really an issue) and almost no decent selection of ports available, like only a few USB-ports. Also, almost all are G31 or G41 chipsets which are just so basic it's stupid.

The better chipsets are X38 and X48 but I have found no-one ever produced a micro-ATX motherboard with those chipsets. The P45 is a decent alternative but they are also not sold anymore. The only SFF systems which had X38 or X48 chipsets are Shuttle, which have a nice package but are also impossible to find or cost upwards of € 350,- for 3-4 year old tech without warranty.

I've come to terms that it's time to move on to a newer platform (Socket 1155 probably) but I don't want to throw this stuff away just yet because it still works and it's still powerful enough for virtualization, gaming or any other higher end stuff.

So my question is, what can I do with my Core 2 Extreme Q6850 and 4x 2GB DDR2 RAM ? I've looked on eBay and local second-hand sites but it's very rare that I see something useful. I still have an empty Silverstone SG02B-F lying around.
 
That's just it: I need mATX. My current case is mATX and my old case (which I still have somewhere) is also mATX.
 
Just a thought, did you try to upgrade your bios? Or has the SATA controller met its match?
 
The BIOS hasn't had an update in years as hasn't been a BIOS update in years
.
The only thing I changed before this stuff happened was adding an Intel Gigabit networking card about 3 weeks ago. But soon after that my SSD (Crucial m4 256GB) failed, it didn't work on ANY computer anymore, but my PC ran fine for weeks after replacing it with a Samsung 830 SSD.

The reason why I suspect the SATA-controller or atleast the north bridge, is that the only real solution seems to be disconnecting a few hard drives. The problem first started when I got BSOD's trying to boot Windows 7. That has never happened on this system. After looking up the error, I saw it was related to bad memory, RAM to be precise. So I used Memtest, which reported all my memory failing. I couldn't believe 4 sticks of RAM suddenly quit on me and remembering this board is particularly finnicky with RAM and the settings (overclocking it more than 5 MHz = no POST), I went to the BIOS to manually set safe settings and it proceeded to get past the BIOS POST without a problem.

But then the "Missing boot device" and "NTLDR missing" (both at random) started showing up. I first thought the SSD was fried again but that would be almost impossible. So I disconnected everything that wasn't needed (joypad, non-boot hard disks) and the system booted. I began adding all the hard disks and it still booted. I added USB devices (joypad, USB sound card) and the errors came back. At first I was guessing a USB device was causing these problems. But after 2 days, the errors came back, without those suspected USB devices being connected. I proceeded to unplug a few disks (two 1TB JBOD disks) and it has been stable running games, movies and Photoshop for days now.

The only thing I can think of is that my north bridge or the SATA controller is the cause. I could also suspect the PSU but since it works under stress (games) I'm not making it my prime suspect.

I could power the two drives with an external PSU, I have an AC/DC brick with a Molex plug that is meant to power external drives, it might be an option to test. The only problem is, that crap Lian-Li V352 is a horror to troubleshoot: I have to remove 12 screws and 7 thumb screws just to do about anything. To get to those disks I'll have to disconnect some fans and a bunch of cables thanks to the "well thought design" (sarcasm).
 
The problem with that is that I live in Europe. Shipping to EU is what makes it expensive or even impossible. I'd also not like an ATX-case, I don't have anywhere to put it and I don't want to buy a large case when I still have a perfectly good SG02B-F.

I did find a motherboard I'm interested in, the Intel DG45ID. It has 4 memory slots, PCI-e 1x before the PCI-e 16x slot (so I can install a card behind the graphics card), 5 SATA-300 ports, plenty of USB and a decent I/O chip (ICH10R). It's almost as good as the Maximus II Gene but without the rarity and cost. Although ~90-100$ isn't cheap, it's better priced than the Asus Maximus II Gene.
 
After a few days of testing, I'm guessing the problem isn't the motherboard but the PSU. after connecting the two disconnected hard disks to an external power supply, it has worked without a hitch for days.

Speedfan reports, without those two drives connected, 11.46V on the +12V rail, which is somewhat below the minimum. I guess with those two disks connected, it'll probably dip even lower, causing the erratic behavior.
I've ordered a Seasonic G-550 PSU which has a good reputation, an 80+ Gold rating and modular cables. It'll probably save some money on the electric bill too, with about 6-8 hours a day of use.
 
After replacing the PSU, I noticed it booted "faster", with the previous PSU the system would be stuck booting at the Windows Logo and my USB devices would go off an on at random until all were on. So maybe a 5V issue ? Until now I hadn't had a problem since.
 
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