please help

hardc0re_tid · 10 Dec 2010 at 22:34

my just built my new setup

rampage 3
i7 950
6gb corsair dominator 1866 ram triple ch
ocz vertex 120GB SSD

boots up fine. when i go to install vista, tell it what hdd to install to, click next, the system turns off, then back on. i cannot install vista

do i need to setup the hdd to anything in particular

how do i setup my ssd drive to be the main boot drive, its not listed, would it be called 'removeable drive' in the bios?

Atomfix · 10 Dec 2010 at 22:38

hardc0re_tid said:
my just built my new setup

rampage 3
i7 950
6gb corsair dominator 1866 ram triple ch
ocz vertex 120GB SSD

boots up fine. when i go to install vista, tell it what hdd to install to, click next, the system turns off, then back on. i cannot install vista

do i need to setup the hdd to anything in particular

how do i setup my ssd drive to be the main boot drive, its not listed, would it be called 'removeable drive' in the bios?

Have you got any options to change the storage configurations to AHCI from IDE? maybe you also need the AHCI drivers?

cmndr_andi · 10 Dec 2010 at 22:42

Hi there,

If you go into the BIOS, the "removable drive" part is just the type of drive (ie hard drive, CD drive, floppy etc.) as the BIOS sees it. You will want to set this up to CD/DVD as the priority at the moment to install the OS. There should be a separate section called "Hard Disk priority" (or similar) where all of your connected storage drives should be listed (including the SSD). As you want the SSD to be be the boot drive then you will want it to be the 1st priority.

If you are having problems while installing the OS, my first suggestion would be to give the DVD a good clean.

That said, since you have clearly spent a lot of money on your system you may want to consider picking up an OEM copy of Windows 7 64 bit. This OS will allow you to run your SSD as it was meant to be run (ie with a TRIM command) and generally the user experience with 7 is a lot better than vista imho.

hardc0re_tid · 10 Dec 2010 at 23:20

i have tried setting the SATA to AHCI and IDE and i get the same problem. the bluray drive is the primary boot drive, then the ssd drive is the second drive in line.

the disk is clean and ive never had bother installing vista before

hardc0re_tid · 11 Dec 2010 at 00:49

Ok so i got the ssd drive formatted and put it back into my new system. Now I can format in the vista setup and make a start to install vista, but then the pc randomly restart's itself. Even in the bios screen it can restart.

Any idea why my system just randomly restart's? Have tried using 3 sticks of ram. 1 stick of ram. Sata set to IDE. Then set to ahci. Checked all power connections and they are secure. All sata connections. They too are ok. Ive NEVER had so much bother with setting up a new pc.

cmndr_andi · 11 Dec 2010 at 00:52

Yea, that does sound like you have a hardware problem if you experience crashes in the BIOS.

Have you tried each RAM stick individually?

Also, you will want to ensure that the CPU cooler is properly mounted and that the CPU temperature shown in the BIOS is sensible.

hardc0re_tid · 11 Dec 2010 at 01:10

The CPU temperature is less than 30 degrees. Cooler is a meghalems with 2 140mm fans. Push pull. I'll have another check tomorrow with regards the random restarting. I THINK it happened in the bios. May be wrong. Is there anything that needs setup on the board itself.

Power supply is a ocz modxstream 780w. Should I be using all 4 of the 4pin power connections beside the CPU? What about the 4 pin molex that is below the four 4pins. Should that be used?

May be of some help.... Graphics card is an ati 5870. Two 250gb seagate 7100.10 and 2 500gb seagate 7100.11. Samsung Blu ray drive.

Essexraptor · 11 Dec 2010 at 01:36

page 2-46 of your manual

• Do not forget to connect the 8-pin EATX12V power plugs; otherwise, the
system will not boot.

plugs as in plural

to answer your second question about the molex connectors

Connect the 4-pin EZ_PLUG_1 and EZ_PLUG_2 power plugs to ensure
sufficient power supply when you install multiple graphics cards.

If you have more than 1 Graphics card fitted

hardc0re_tid · 11 Dec 2010 at 12:45

so it turns out i do need all 4 4pin power connections for this to work, thanks asus! for blanking off 2 of the 4 sockets as default but dont tell anyone that you need to use all 4 (unless you read the manual of course) but what i don't understand is why blank off two of them?

thanks for your help guys!