Maximus X Hero (wifi) 8700k - Code 00 After Shutdown-No Post Unless CMOS Reset (AO)

[carvinman]

Gear:
Maximus X Hero (Wifi) w/ Bios Version 1704 (going to try a flash/reload with the renamed bios file tonight)
8700k w/ Cooler Master Hyper Evo 212 CPU cooler (ordered the Noctua to try a swap)
2 x 8g Hyper X 2133 (ordered 4 x 8g Trident GSkills 3200)
GTX 1070 w/ display port cable (have tried HDMI on a different monitor)
1 x 250g SSD Samsung w/ OS (updated drivers and tried different ports)
1 x T HDD generic (tried plugged in and unplugged)
Rosewill Glacier Series 850W Modular Gaming Power Supply

HI there,
First time posting to much of anything so thank you for the chance to seek help within the community and apologies for any missed jargon. My situation seems similar to a lot of other peoples' threads but I haven't been able to diagnose and or fix the problem, well a permanent fix that is. I've been using the 8700k with the Maximus X Hero (wifi) mobo for a while now at default and it's been working perfectly until I thought overclocking would be fun >.< I followed some guides on how to achieve higher numbers but realized some of these settings were unstable and/or my cpu cooler wouldn't be able to handle it. Once I settled on 4.7/4.8 clock speed and was able to play games smoothly I thought things had worked...wrong. I didn't notice it at the time but I'm pretty sure that's when my qcode started displaying "00" after ever shut down of Windows 10. I'm afraid I've caused damage while changing voltages because now even on default settings I'm unable to get my computer to act as it once did. When I start it up on a cold boot the "00" code goes away and the computer goes through a number of different codes before landing on "AO" but with no display. Sometimes the code will display "40", which I know isn't an error, but "A2" will also show up and they both have the same outcome of no display. I will point out that "A2" shows up a couple times during the cycle of codes but usually switches to "A0"....either way there still isn't an image. I've taken the GPU out to use the onboard graphics and tried an HDMI cable rather than a DP cable but to no avail. There have been random boot ups where it didn't behave like this: A couple times after I disconnected the power chord and made sure all the lights were off the mobo and couple other times where I left everything plugged in and the RGB lights running and the QCode "00" still showing. On the attempts where I disconnected the power chord I got the splash screen and then the Windows logo....thumbs up but eventually reverted back to not posting on cold boots. On the other hand when I left everything plugged in and I had a successful boot I wouldn't see the splash screen but rather the first thing I'd see was the loading wheel for Windows and then the login screen....thumbs up? It seems random when it wants to work but never consistent. Just last night was a break to my streak of another couple successful cold boots The work around for me every time has been to reset the CMOS by taking the battery on the MOBO out. After I reset the CMOS the display will work whether I'm using my GPU or the onboard graphics. Except for last night, when resetting the battery didn't work on the first attempt. Oddly enough the MEM Ok button got it to post and show the splash screen. I've taken the memory out and tried 1 stick or both sticks in either of the two slots suggested to use in the manual (I actually have new memory on the way to swap in 4 x 8g Trident Gskill 3200) but the MEM Ok button hasn't shown to work in the past which is why I'm scratching my head on that now...I was just in a WTF mode and was willing to try anything. I even did a memory test with Memcheck and all 4 passes were good with the 2 x 8g sticks. I will note that in my OC attempts XMP was tested but no where on my ram does it show xmp (dumb i know), well on the Memcheck test it recognized my ram with the correct mhz but said XMP...? maybe that's irrelevant. I've also noticed during boot up that the lights on my keyboard and mouse sometimes reset/reboot like it lost power. I'll be sitting at the login screen with the lights on my keyboard/mouse but the buttons are unresponsive. After 15 seconds or so everything works again and windows recognizes my clicks or button presses bringing up the password field to actually log in. I've even logged into Windows and had this happen on the desktop but after it loads up correctly it doesn't happen again until I cold boot.

CPU Tests:
-15 min Real Bench default test (not a viable test length but other attempts were showing failure well before the 15 min mark)
-Resitting the CPU chip

RAM Tests:
-MEMCheck test (appx 2:30:00 test) pass
-Different stick combinations (will try different slots tonight and with the new GSkills)

GPU Test:
-Doesn't seem to matter whether the GPU is plugged in or not to get a successful post
-Tried DP cable and HDMI

SSD/HDD Tests:
-Updated driver/firmware for SSD w/ OS
-Tried different slots 1 or both
-HDD unplugged doesn't change the results

I can provide pictures and exact voltages upon request but currently everything is on default or auto to my knowledge. Funny thing is I'm going to have to reset my CMOS most likely to even start working on the beast tonight. It would be another luck of the draw if things posted without a hiccup. I'm looking forward to getting to the end of this and hope some experts here can shine some light on the matter. At this point if it's not something I can fix with one of the replacement parts I've ordered I'm afraid that I hurt my motherboard in my sloppy attempts at overclocking.

Regards,

[HiVizMan]

Right that is good news.

When you next boot up, start hitting the del key from power up this will get you into the bios. There are other ways of getting into the bios but this is quick and pretty painless.

Now you can change stuff in the bios. First thing is (if you want that splash screen) to enable that feature. Many folks don't like it as they want the fastest boot into OS from power up possible. Me I never power my system down. Sleep is all I use. Once a month I do a power down and reboot.

Will check back later.

[carvinman]

HiVizMan wrote:
Right that is good news.

When you next boot up, start hitting the del key from power up this will get you into the bios. There are other ways of getting into the bios but this is quick and pretty painless.

Now you can change stuff in the bios. First thing is (if you want that splash screen) to enable that feature. Many folks don't like it as they want the fastest boot into OS from power up possible. Me I never power my system down. Sleep is all I use. Once a month I do a power down and reboot.

Will check back later.

Yal are wonderful!
So I tried booting up this morning (default settings from last night) but I still got the BlackSOD and proceeded with removing the GPU and booting up...BlackSOD, retried w/ hitting delete and no GPU...Blacksod w/ A9 qcode....at that point I hit MEM OK and i was finally able to see the Splash screen again. I hit F2 then hit F1 to go into setup. I'm not sure what the deal is with the MemOk button but it seems to be the trick right now to get anything to show up on my screen. So i shut down and put my gpu back in and no problem booting up again and now i'm in Windows with a code A0. Would this be a Bios Setting? but if at default what then?

[carvinman]

Back again with the same issue this morning. I'm sorry if I'm not providing the right information for everyone but this morning's boot dilemma:
1st cold boot brought up BlackSOD with qcode 40 and DP cable coming out of my Gigabyte 1070
i hit reset on the front of the case and got a BlackSOD with qcode A0
I hit reset again and hit delete to bring up Bios (w/ the BlackSOD) then the A9 showed up
I hit MemOk and still got no display but with the cqode A2
I then removed my GPU and tried to boot up
Everything booted up
I put my GPU back in and it booted up like a charm without having to reset the CMOS (which is a first and a step in the right direction).

So....I think there's something wrong with the MOBO fully recognizing the GPU on a cold boot. Is there a setting I can check to ensure everything is set the way it should?

[HiVizMan]

Hello mate - let me recap and see if I have understood you correctly.

You have untold issues with the VGU installed in your system. With it out using the on board graphics you boot no problem?

Right two things to try, well possibly three.

1. Swap out your PCIe lanes that you are using for the VGA. So if you are in slot number 1 use one of the other slots.
2. Swap out your VGA with a know working VGA and see if that is the issue.
3. Check the PSU cables to the VGA often those little metal connectors come loose in the six or eight pin plugs. Check (this is the possible thing to try)

[carvinman]

HiVizMan wrote:
Hello mate - let me recap and see if I have understood you correctly.

You have untold issues with the VGU installed in your system. With it out using the on board graphics you boot no problem?

Right two things to try, well possibly three.

1. Swap out your PCIe lanes that you are using for the VGA. So if you are in slot number 1 use one of the other slots.
2. Swap out your VGA with a know working VGA and see if that is the issue.
3. Check the PSU cables to the VGA often those little metal connectors come loose in the six or eight pin plugs. Check (this is the possible thing to try)

Well it seems to be narrowed down to that, but after that first successful boot i'm able to reinstall my gpu and everything works to my knowledge. I'm trying to reinstall my graphics driver and VGA driver from the NVIDIA and Gigabyte website. To be honest I'm a little confused by instructions:

1. Does swapping PCIe lanes mean taking the GPU and trying the PCIe slot below it on the MOBO? (my GPU actually won't fit without some work on the HDD mounting system)? sorry if that's really obvious haha
2. Is this the same thing as a GPU? VGA = GPU
3. I will check this and replace the cable if I see any signs of corrosion etc.

thank you for the help.

I've tried using an HDMI with a different monitor from the same GPU but didn't get any different results

Nothing different this morning. If swapping GPUs is the next step I'll have to give it a go when I get home. I have a very small gpu in another computer I can try

[Silent_Scone]

Do you have another monitor you can try with? The QCODEs you're seeing are simply resume from sleep states and normal operation. Try what Hiviz has suggested above and see if you can replicate the problem on another panel, even if it's a TV.

[Raja]

Silent Scone@ASUS wrote:
Do you have another monitor you can try with? The QCODEs you're seeing are simply resume from sleep states and normal operation. Try what Hiviz has suggested above and see if you can replicate the problem on another panel, even if it's a TV.

If using a display port connection (especially with an aftermarket cable), switching to HDMI should help narrow things down.

[carvinman]

Raja@ASUS wrote:
If using a display port connection (especially with an aftermarket cable), switching to HDMI should help narrow things down.

Some steps in the right direction for sure!
I got home took out my super low end model GPU from ASUS put it into my gaming machine with a hdmi cable and it fired right up.
I took my 1070 and put it into my streaming machine and it fired right up with HDMI
I took the 1070 back out and couldn't get it to show anything on my DP cable connection with my Maximus X Hero...tried the Alien Ware DP cable too. Switched to HDMI on the 1070 and the display fired right up. Which is how i'm even typing this out for you now. My next question would be how do I utilize the Monitor's GSync and high refresh rate capabilities but still be able to boot up no problem without switching cables or what not...side note...how does my 1070 go from liking a DP cable to not?

Thank you for the help i feel the fix is near

[HiVizMan]

Another thought came to me. Cables too mate. Check the cables.

[carvinman]

Thanks again for the replies

So if this smaller GPU works on the first try in either PCIe slot I use does that mean there is a hardware malfunction with my 1070?
and
If it doesn't work in one or the other, or both, does that mean its a problem with the MOBO?