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Have to redo setup,time,date,cpu, ect.after half hour or so? 4

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lordgalla

Technical User
Apr 1, 2005
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Hi;Epox 8RDA3+ motherboard,Athlon 2600+xp 333mhz fsb. Barton chip.I have to do setup every so often,when left off for a while.when I go to boot up it defaults to 100mhz at post,and not showing as a 2600+cpu,and time and date defaults to july,ect.Run setup again and set all of these and It works ok.Then sit's and default's again..Is 166mhz what it should be in bios for a 2600+...I thought the battery was good in this board??but what else could it be.?
 
The easiest test is to change out the battery.
check all the capacitors for leaks.and inspect for broken connections and/or bad solder joints
here is an idea pull the MB out of the computer case and put the MB on a piece of cardboard and rehook the power supply and power switch and the video card and boot then wait the time it takes to default.
it may be a grounded MB to the case.

if that does not work then you have a bad MB.
 
Is the Clear CMOS jumper set correctly?

TazUk

[pc] Blue-screening PCs since 1998
 
Yes it is ,I even put it on clear cmos a couple of sec.then back to normal,and went into setup,setup all settings and let boot up,booted up fine and ran fine.shut off for half hour or so,restarted and all is at default again..trying to find a new battery at this time.Will get back.as soon as I find one.Any other thing it could be??Thanks
 
local drug store will have that battery....it is a very common battery
 
May be a nickle size battery. Lithium cell, usually marked CR2032. although 2025 and 2016 will fit, but with shorter life.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.
 
YOu can now also get them at the $1 stores!
It sounds like your battery is dying. YOu can test it with a simple battery tester, should be at 3 volts.

If its not the battery, then i wonder if you could have recently installed some utility program that is causing this?
Otherwise, in the end, if you've tried everything else, then firewolfrl's suggestion is the only way to go.

How old is the power supply and how good is it? Can you get another spare power supply to test on your pc?

How good is the power at the plug? I know my area is terrible. If i didnt use a UPS for my pc's i would be losing parts left and right. Of course a lot of use dont now our power at the wall is bad, I didnt til i found out.


Good advice + great people = tek-tips
 
Sounds like the battery is dead. Some hold up for 10 to 15 minutes with no power applied. That is why you need to force the reset on some rather than just pull the battery.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.
 
ok,I have a real old 420 power supply,I'm getting a new power supply this weekend,and a new battery I hope.And I'll get back to you all,Later this weekend to let you know how I made out.Thankyou all for now for all the suggestions.
 
Some, like ECS, you need to do even more to reset the bios, so its best to check the manual for the motherboard.


Good advice + great people = tek-tips
 
What do you mean ECS? My manual on this Epox 8RDA3+ motherboard say's there's a jumper JCMOS pin 1-2 Normal and Pin 2-3 Clear CMOS.Put jumper on 2-3 for a few seconds,then replace onto the 1-2 position.Turn on system hit Del to enter bios setup.That all works ok,It just won't hold it if I shut it off,all goes back to default..Like I said have a new power supply and motherboard 3v battery comming this weeked.Will get back to you,sun.Thanks,any help here is greatly appreciated.
 
can't do much more than wait till the new battery is in....keep us posted on your status
 
Sorry, lordgalla, i didnt re-read your first post, and i didnt realize you specified your motherboard. I was referring to ECS motherboards (a Pc Chips brand). Their bios reset is different from standard. I was referring to the fact that some are different, so you must read the manual to make sure. In your explanation above, you didnt mention pulling the battery as well as moving the jumper, but if your bios is re-setting the way you are doing it then all is well and you can ignore the ECS comment.
Sorry about the confusion.





Good advice + great people = tek-tips
 
Hi all;Finally got a new battery,and guess what.It works.Funny thing is the old battery measured 3v with a meter,but if you left it there half hour or so,voltage dropped out...Wierd,like a shorted battery.Didn't expect that.Put the new battery in,ran setup and left overnight,and all is well.I just want to say Thankyou to all that helped,and all the fantastic advice I got here.I will do the same for someone else if I can help,and If I need help I know where to go.I have a new Antec 520w Power supply coming also.Much better than the 420 in it now.Thanks again,Cheers.
 
Great fix that only costs a few bucks!

Good advice + great people = tek-tips
 
Not a shorted battery, just one that was probably overloaded by the meter.
They put out somewhat over 3V when new and it starts falling off as they age. Still will show near 3V when they are dying.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.
 
I will have to watch out for this in the future. In the past, whenever i suspected a battery problem, it tested below or well below the 3 volt level. Learn something new every day here!

I like pointing out to people that you can get these at the $1 store. Actually the $1 store near me sells a card with 3 standard 2032 coin batteries for the $1. Its better than paying $4.95 at bestbuy or walmart for just one. And i find the name brand and quality are the same. They arent inferior batteries.


Good advice + great people = tek-tips
 
LOL.....I have at least 60 or 70 of those batteries ... anytime I get a crap computer I pull the screws, powersupply and the batteries out of them then I donate the computer to the all mighty dumpster god.
Oh! I forgot I pull the HD's apart and use the magnets (kids and fridges).....at one time I kept the shell of the cases for sheet metal projects....anymore I just toss the bulk of it away (Wife won the coin toss that I get rid of the towering pile of dead computers....I think it was rigged).

don't get me started on laser printers.....lol
 
How about re-cycling? Better than the dumpster.
Some of mine end up in the trash, but the boards get to a company that has disposal capabilities, the metal gets melted down, and even the lithium batteries get to somebody that can use them.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.
 
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