Trouble booting new Hero IX board, getting A2 post code, no display

[bfollowell]

Ok, I've assembled my new build, but I can't get a display on boot. I really took my time and tried to avoid any of the stupid, rushing problems that I've ran into in the past. I don't think I've missed anything, but I won't swear to it. I'm not getting any crazy rebooting or short cycling, so I don't suspect any major issue, but I can't do much without anything on the display. I see all sorts of codes bouncing around on the post code display as the system comes up but once it gets stable I see a steady A2. I've unhooked pretty much everything from the board except for CPU and RAM at this point. I'm using only onboard graphics for initial setup, just to minimize potential issues.

Any ideas?

Also, anyplace we can get a list of these post codes and what they mean?

Thanks in advance for any assistance.

[Nate152]

Hi bfollowell

Try clearing the cmos and/or updating the bios.

The codes are found in the motherboard manual.

Code A2 = IDE Detect

Try another monitor cable, are you connecting to a monitor or TV ?

Could try installing a pcie gpu.

List your pc specs.

[bfollowell]

In the manual? Really?! Who looks at manuals?!

Seriously, I guess I'll need to look through a little better.

As far as updating BIOS, not to sound funny or smart alec, but how the heck can I do that if I can't see anything?

Anyway, I'm connecting to my monitor, but I'm using a new, longer cable, so I'll verify with a known, good cable.

Here's my system specs, and don't laugh at the 1050 GPU. It's just a placeholder from another system until I get my 1080, large storage HD and SoundBlaster AE-5 around Black Friday/Cyber Monday:

CPU: Intel - Core i7-7700K 4.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (Purchased For $306.89)
CPU Cooler: NZXT - Kraken X61 106.1 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (Purchased For $126.89)
Motherboard: Asus - MAXIMUS IX HERO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (Purchased For $214.99)
Memory: G.Skill - Trident Z 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (Purchased For $145.51)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (Purchased For $157.99)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1050 2GB OC Video Card (Purchased For $99.99)
Case: Corsair - 750D ATX Full Tower Case (Purchased For $142.42)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (Purchased For $114.62)
Optical Drive: LG - WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer (Purchased For $52.90)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit (Purchased For $32.76)
Case Accessory: NZXT - Aperture M Card Reader (Purchased For $35.79)
Monitor: Asus - PG279Q ROG Swift 27.0" 2560x1440 165Hz Monitor (Purchased For $570.95)
Keyboard: Logitech - G710 Plus Wired Gaming Keyboard (Purchased For $139.30)
Mouse: Logitech - G602 Wireless Optical Mouse (Purchased For $63.57)
Headphones: Kingston - HyperX Cloud Pro Headset (Purchased For $83.45)
External Storage: Western Digital - My Passport Slim 1TB External Hard Drive (Purchased For $89.00)
External Storage: Western Digital - My Book 3TB External Hard Drive (Purchased For $128.39)
Other: Nzxt GRID+V2 AC-GRDP2-M1 12V Digital Fan Controller with Molex 4-Pin connector (Purchased For $29.99)
Other: NZXT Internal USB Hub (Purchased For $18.49)
Other: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Purchased For $139.99)

[Nate152]

Thank you

That's a nice gaming pc as it is, the 1080 will definitely be a nice addition. 🙂

You can use the bios flashback feature to update the bios, all you need is an empty usb flash drive formatted to .FAT32 and power to the motherboard.

Check with a good cable first and try with the GTX 1050.

[bfollowell]

Will do later. The wife and I are finally getting around to seeing War for the Planet of the Apes. I'll tinker with it when we get in tonight or tomorrow afternoon.

Thanks very much for your help. If I'm lucky, I'll post back here with what I find. If not, I'll come dragging back here with my tail between my legs for advice.

[bfollowell]

OK, the wife is still getting ready, so I had some time to play.

Everything is looking good now. I've verified that the old and new DisplayPort cables are good, but I can still see nothing from them as I'm booting. Once I connected an HDMI cable, voilà, there's my boot screen. I suspect everything will be fine now.

Come to think of it, I ran into this with the system I'm replacing. Just a month or so ago, I finally added a second monitor by replacing my aging 1080p Asus with an Asus PG279Q, the older monitor is secondary and is connected by HDMI, the newer monitor is connected by DisplayPort. Whenever I booted that system, all pre-Windows boot screens would display only on the secondary monitor, and the primary monitor, the PG279Q, would only display once Windows started. Is it normal that you can't see post/boot screens with a DisplayPort monitor? Because, this is the second computer now, that seems to have issues displaying boot screens through anything but HDMI or DVI.

Thanks again for your help.

[Nate152]

Ok sounds good

Hopefully it's just a faulty cable, you can try different cables too HDMI, Displaport, DVI.

I'll be looking forward to some good news.

[Nate152]

You're welcome

I'm not sure, I'm using a displayport cable with no problems.

What exactly do you mean when you say boot screens ? Do you see the press DEL or F1 to enter the bios and the ROG logo during start up ?

Could maybe be the bios boot configuration or the multi monitor configuration ?

[bfollowell]

Basically, this is two computers in a row now that don't see boot screens using a DisplayPort cable. By boot screens I mean any pre-Windows screen. So, nothing until Windows loads.

[Nate152]

But you get the boot screens with an HDMI cable ?

I do find that strange, other than checking the boot configuration I'm not sure what to suggest. Maybe a monitor setting ?

Even though you don't get the boot screens with the DP cable, are you able to enter the bios if you tap the DEL key during start up ?

Is it the same with the GTX 1050 ?