Hey everyone! I've built quite a few PCs over the years, but it's been about five years since my last one. I recently put together a new rig featuring a Gigabyte X870E AORUS Master motherboard with an AMD 9800X3D CPU and an Aorus Master Geforce RTX 5090 GPU, aiming for a pretty powerful setup. I decided to skip custom cooling since I'm not super comfortable with that yet. Here's what I've done so far:
1. Installed the CPU and liquid cooler on the motherboard.
2. Added two SSDs (a Samsung 990 Pro and an EVO Plus).
3. Installed the RAM in the recommended slots.
4. Placed the motherboard in the case, set up the radiator, and connected it with my fans (using a few controllers but got everything linked correctly).
5. Installed the GPU and sound card.
6. Connected the power supply and all necessary cables.
When I try to boot it up, only the memory lights up, and that's it. I've done some troubleshooting, like resetting the CMOS and reseating the components, but no luck. I've also considered removing the CMOS battery, but it seems a little tricky to access. I'd appreciate any help or hints on what I might be missing. I'm invested in this build and really want to get it running!
2 Answers
I had similar issues with a setup like yours. My VGA light stayed on because my older HDMI cable wasn't compatible. Switched to a 4K HDMI, and it booted right up! Also, check the boot code on your motherboard—it might give you clues about what's going wrong. If you see a '00' error, it could mean an I/O detection failure. Good luck!
Make sure to give it some time when you power it on. Sometimes the initial memory training for AM5 can take a few minutes. If you haven't already, try reseating both memory sticks just to rule out any issues there. Also, if your cooler is too tight, it can cause all sorts of memory issues, so loosening it a bit might help. And for the CMOS reset, you can just use the button on the back I/O; it's definitely easier than removing the battery!
Great tip on the HDMI cable! Sometimes it's the simplest things that trip us up. And yeah, looking at the boot code can really help pinpoint the problem. Definitely worth checking!