Need Help before Asus drives me insane with stupidity

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DoggyDaddi

Gawd
Joined
Sep 10, 2002
Messages
783
For Over a week their website has been running like crap, not letting you log in for forum use or technical requests. I completed a new build / upgrade and like ALL the other new boards, it has onboard audio and video. To be honest, the onboard is rather exceptional, but not as good as the X-Fi Elite Pro I'm trying to install.

I'm not a newb... been doing this for almost 20 years.. but can't get the card to install. Ive updated all the other chipset and drivers first, tried disabling both onboard video and audio (in case one of them uses a priority that my sound card needs), Gone thru and disabled or attempted to delete ANYTHING that's loading in Vista 64 Ultimate that's related to the onboard features I've disabled...

Nothing works though. Anything I delete reinstalls itself automatically the second I delete it. Disabling items in Device Manager has no effect.

I plug the card in, and install the first of 3 packs for the card, 1st is Driver set, 2nd is console, 3rd is Alchemy to fix EAX and multichannel gaming.

Pack 1 goes to about 90%, and as I hear the drive winding up to the final 'Updating Windows files/drivers' (this is the last stage after the registry changes and general file installation).. it always hard locks and I have to hit the reset button.

Logging back into windows after getting past the 'safe-mode' choice.. everything is the same, but device manager reports the driver is installed, and IS the most up to date driver, but the item is not active.

I made the mistake of booting into safe mode, and installing the drivers there, then rebooting. Hehe.. had to reformat my RAID-0 array and reinstall after that little idea. Trying to delete and uninstall items in safe mode then rebooting into regular windows just had them reinstall themselves the second I got in.

And WHAT does Asus have to say? generic reply letter:

Dear Sir/Madam

Please make sure this is not a carry over operating system.

Carry over operating systems are any operating system not installed to your hard drive while directly connected to your motherboard, if your operating system was installed to your hard drive while it was connected to a previous system or you are ghosting ,doing a network install or using an upgrade disk without formatting out your previous operating system we cannot guarantee the stability of your system. Before any troubleshooting can be done with you , you will need to format and do a clean install of your operating system to your hard drive while it is connected to your new ASUS motherboard. If there is any data you do not want to lose then you will need to either back this data up or do an install of your operating system to an alternate hard drive and keep your original drive as a slave to the new hard drive. When installing your operating system we do recommend that you install all software in the following order after the OS has been installed:

1) Install your chipset/motherboard drivers (VIA 4-in-1s for VIA chipsets, Intel INF Update and Application Accelerator for Intel chipsets, etc.). Do this BEFORE loading any other driver!

2) Install the latest version of DirectX.

3) Install your video card and the latest video drivers. Add any other video cards (one at a time) at this time, as well.

4) Install any SCSI/ATA cards and drivers.

5) Install any LAN/NIC cards and drivers, or install drivers if using an onboard device.

6) Install your modem and the latest drivers.

7) Install any other cards or devices and their drivers, except for sound.

8) Make sure to install your sound card and its drivers, or just the drivers if using an onboard device, LAST.

If you are unwilling to do the above steps then all we will be able to do for you is direct you to the manufacturer of your OS i.e.:Microsoft,Linux,Sun, etc.... to seek resolution to stabilizing your system. If you have done the above steps and you are still having a problem please contact our tech support office at the number given below.

Please do not respond to this email. If you need further assistance please have your case number ready, then contact Technical Support at 812-282-ASUS (M-F 8:30 AM - 12:00 AM EST).

Best Regards,

Tim P.
Lead Tech Support Engineer
ASUS Technology

Dear Sir/Madam????

Suggestions for intel chipsets????

HE didn't even READ my damn letter.. he just copy and pasted a form.. wtf????

Their tech request form makes you tell them EVERYTHING in detail about your system... there CAN'T be any questions as to what I might or might not have.. and if there were, couldn't they have asked them???

Anyways.. I need help

The obvious solution would be to buy a AM3/AM2+ board with no onboard video or audio.. preferably one with 3 16x PCI-e slots... unfortunately, there is no such board in existence :(
 
the system:

CoolerMaster Stacker 830
4in3 HD block
5x Scyth S-Flex SFF21D 800rpm Silent 120mm Fans
Corsair HX 620W Modular PS
ThermalTake PurePowerExpress 250w in-bay Graphics PS
Asus M4A78-E Motherboard (rev 1.01G)(BIOS 0701)
AMD Phenom II X4 940 Deneb 3.0Mhz
Thermalright True Copper 120 Ultra w/2x Scyth S-Flex SFF21D
8gb (4x2gb) G.Skill DDR2-1000 PC2-8000 CL5-5-5-15
Asus EAH3870 TOP in blue PCI-e 16 slot (Catalyst 9.3)
Asus 'datacard' in Black PCI-e 16 slot (to enable 16x in blue slot)
2x Maxtor DiamondMax20 SATA II 250gb = 500gb RAID-0 (for OS)
2x Maxtor DiamondMax9 SATA II 160gb - 320gb RAID-0 (for file sharing/Short Term Storage)
1x Maxtor IDE ATA100 300gb (Long Term Video Editing Storage)
1x Maxtor IDE ATA100 250gb (Long Term Audio/Graphics Editing Storage)
SATA II HD/Blu-Ray player/burner
Arris unlocked Cable Modem
Belkin F5D8231-4 N1+mimo wireless router
Benq G2400WD 24"LCD (Primary/Center Monitor)
Sceptre X20G-NegaIII 20.1"LCD (Secendary/Left Monitor)
KDS XF-9e 19"CRT (Tertiary/Right Monitor)
Microsoft Natural Multimedia Keyboard
Logitech MX-1000 Mouse
HP PhotoSmart C5240 All-In-One Printer
Creative Labs Inspire P7800 7.2 Speaker System (7 Satellites w/stands, 2 Subs)
APC Back-UPS 1200 (Tower+Monitor1+Monitor2)
APC Back-UPS ES 725 (everything else)
Windows Vista 64 Ultimate (fully service packed & updated)
All newest chipsets, onboard drivers installed.

Only problems with the build:
1)CPU Cooler is too tall to install Stacker's 4x 120m fan wall rack that goes inside the case door.
2)Creative Labs X-Fi Elite Pro drivers wont complete installation process, and I have no way of generating a realtime log to find out what driver or what conflict is causing the hard lock
 
It sounds like you need to reinstall windows and start fresh. I read you whole post and all I see is references to windows problems (drivers). How are you so sure it is the mobo (hardware) and not a software problem?
 
Start with the basics too, you haven't checked/tested any other hardware? You say the install keeps locking up...
 
i have the m4a79 deluxe w/ the elite pro working as i type....
vista 64 ultimate also...
borked up windoze install me thinks....
I had all win updates and drivers for every thing more or less in thier order they suggested....
pc working perfect ok
then shut down and install card...
reboot install drivers......whalllllaaaaa
i used the newest drivers from creatives website...
 
3 installs, tested all the other components too. I've tried disabling pretty much everything I can, and did the installs same way they suggested. For some reason I jsut can't get it to install. Problem doesn't happen till I try to install the driver set. I heard back from Asus again, he said it sounded like windows updating was actual 'Windows Update', and I should disable it and try again... *sigh*
 
I'd go back and redownload the driver from Creative's site. It sounds like a driver issue. I've had the same thing happen before. Double check you got the right driver for your OS and card. Their menu makes it easy to grab the wrong file.
 
DoggyDaddi said:
I'm not a newb... been doing this for almost 20 years.. but can't get the card to install. Ive updated all the other chipset and drivers first, tried disabling both onboard video and audio (in case one of them uses a priority that my sound card needs), Gone thru and disabled or attempted to delete ANYTHING that's loading in Vista 64 Ultimate that's related to the onboard features I've disabled...

Nothing works though. Anything I delete reinstalls itself automatically the second I delete it. Disabling items in Device Manager has no effect.
Click to expand...
i'm confused.

What, exactly, are you trying to delete that reinstalls itself automatically. and What items are you disabling in device manager which seem to have no effect. You shouldn't have any onboard items in device manager right? you disabled those in bios right?
 
several ATI, Intel HD Audio, and a few other items kept loading. I decided to go hard core and try something a little different.

New install, DIDN'T install the LAN driver, and as soon as Vista finished installing, I tried installing the driver pack clean. Everything was off in BIOS, and NOTHING had been installed aside from the most BASIC drivers. The ONLY additional was the RAID support drivers, which HAD to be installed, as the OS gets installed to a RAID-0 array.

It hung in the exact same place.

Mind you, I've upgraded the Motherboard, CPU+Heatsink/Fan, and the Memory. Everything else is exactly the same. I was using a Asus A8R32 MVP Deluxe, Athlon X2 939 4400, and a matched set of 2gb (4x512mb) Corsair TwinX DDR. Was the same OS install, with same peripherals and equipment.

I honestly don't know what else to do.. so I just fired up the box one last time, and restored my entire system from the backup I made yesterday. You have no idea how much this sucks... my X-Fi Elite pro has been the holy grail of computer audio for me.. and to have to set it aside is kind of exhausting.

It's enough to make me want to give up on computing all together and just put the box in the closet. I've never actually failed to install or configure something the way I wanted....hard concept to wrap my head around.

Asus says to call their technical support a call, but we both know the first thing they are going to tell me to do is reinstall in certain steps that I've already tried. Unless someone else gets this EXACT board, and tried to install the same card... nothings going to get fixed or changed
 
For right now, forget the card.

Can you install the OS with everything working normally without the X-Fi installed? (I mean not plugged into the mb)
 
There is another possibility, but unlikely as it may be, it happened to me. It could just be that your soundcard/driver set for whatever reason doesn't like you motherboard, similiar to how some people have trouble using OCZ ram with Asus motherboards. I'm saying this from my own experience. I few years back I had a P4 setup with an IC7-MAX3 motherboard. I had an audigy 2 soundcard and it worked great. I then installed the X-fi and that's where my problems began. The drivers installed fine, but i could no longer play games, I would get BSODS, black screens, ect, but just browsing the web would be fine. These only started after the X-fi install. I lived with it for a while and tried newer drivers as they came out with same result. By then my system was getting a bit long on the tooth, and I built a new one. The thing is, I used the exact same X-fi card with the exact same driver version with my new setup and had 0 problems with it. Plus, I put the audigy 2 back in my old system and it works perfectly fine again so i'm positive it had something to do with the soundcard/drivers. Just wanted to let you know.
 
caniba said:
For right now, forget the card.

Can you install the OS with everything working normally without the X-Fi installed? (I mean not plugged into the mb)
Click to expand...

Yup.. everything else installs beautifully. I just despise the 'tinny' flat and distorted sound I get from the onboard Audio..

It has to be one of the onboard chipsets that are used on this board, since my X-Fi installed just fine on my previous Asus, and that was using the same drivers I'm using now.

SERIOUSLY considering an RMA and getting the M4A79 Deluxe
 
It almost sounds like part of the problem is the HDMI sound output on your video card. That was a little tricky for me, you have to download the driver from Realtek. That still runs off the HD Audio bus IIRC.
 
Hmm.. will go to Realtek and see about getting the HDMI & general Vista Drivers.. maybe salvage this after all!.. I'll let you know how it went.
 
DoggyDaddi said:
Hmm.. will go to Realtek and see about getting the HDMI & general Vista Drivers.. maybe salvage this after all!.. I'll let you know how it went.
Click to expand...

IIRC, I searched for ATI on the Realtek website and it gave me what I was looking for. That was for WinXP though. Not sure how it works with Vista.
 
Welp... I gave it my best shot....

Still no go though.. so I completed my RMA and the replacement is on the way.. went with the M4A79 Deluxe. Someone else said they had the X-Fi Elite installed on it, and it uses different chipsets then my current.

I am now 100% convinced there is some basic chipset incompatibility with the newest drivers for my sound card, and really don't feel like waiting a year for enough people to complain about it so they fix it. Thanks for the input guys....Wish we coulda fixed it.

Anyways, since this DOESN"T have the benefit of onboard graphics it gives me an excuse to order up a couple more cards and to some crossfire again ;) I figure Asus 3870's are going to come WAY down when the new stuff hits the shelves.. looking forward to that. Just wish they would go single slot with more efficient cooling.
 
For that matter you can go with 4830's or 4850's and be in the same ballpark pricewise as the 3870's.
 
OK I had a similar issue with drivers and my ASus P5B Deluxe. MY problems were solved when I removed the RAID array from the equation. It is possible that may be the issue.

try installing on a single drive...
 
Here's a thought, do you have PnP OS enabled in bios? Regardless of what it's set to, try switching it. Also, have you tried putting the soundcard in a different slot on the motherboard? Sometimes there's weird IRQ sharing between certain slots and certain onboard devices.
 
tried swapping the PnP setting, didn't help,hung at the exact same spot again :(

New board MAY arrive tomorrow morning
 
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