Is your cache even real cache ?

Please post a picture of your board - could be that you have "progressive" writeback srams...

Had the same with the M919 mainboard. Had to move the SRAM chips to the other bank to make it boot.

What's your cache configuration actually?

Here is a pic of the cache. Not even sure if the chips are real. Supposedly they are supposed to be, but who knows. I am unable to find any information on the Eagle chips.

Messing around with it a bit more and got it to go past the initial POST screen but then locks at the system info screen.

I removed and reinstalled all the SRAM chips and the tag chip and reinstalled them. I figured maybe it was a bad connection.

Now it will get to the info screen every once in a while and says that it has/is set for 128KB cache.

It still won't go past the info screen with the L2 cache enabled in the BIOS.

I also tried a couple different sets of RAM just in case. Could it be something with EDO compatibilty? Going to try some FPM and see if that changes anything.

According to this:
http://www.elhvb.com/mobokive/Archive/Oldman. … hips/memory.htm

you can not have 128 kb cache with both banks filled. The installed tag ram and the jumpers suggest that the board was running with 256kb L2 cache. Probably the previous owner took the SRAM chips out and installed some other chips he had no use for...

Ok, so getting somewhere.

I had actually installed the cache jumpers incorrectly for 128KB instead of 256KB when I was messing around with it trying to get it to work.

I can now get it to boot with it set to 128KB, but not set to 256KB.

I am guessing that the SRAM is just really crappy or faulty and I need to get some new SRAM chips.

With the current SRAM, it will work like this:

25Mhz FSB (auto RAM settings in BIOS) with FPM 72-pin RAM.

33Mhz FSB (manual RAM settings in BIOS) with FPM or EDO 72-pin RAM.

I haven't tried messing with a longer delays for the RAM or cache in BIOS to see if I can get it to work set to 256KB.

Thanks for that link, that is very helpful.

Well, I have 2x 256K dual bank sets and 2x 256K single bank sets (so I can make a 512K set) on the way. All are 15ns instead of the 20ns that I currently have in all boards.

If all of that works, it should give me enough SRAM to put 512k in this board and 256k in the other 2 boards I have.

cyclone3d wrote:

Well, I have 2x 256K dual bank sets and 2x 256K single bank sets (so I can make a 512K set) on the way. All are 15ns instead of the 20ns that I currently have in all boards.

If all of that works, it should give me enough SRAM to put 512k in this board and 256k in the other 2 boards I have.

It should work, at least it worked on mine, but the board that i have is the v1.7

you can not have 128 kb cache with both banks filled.

16kx8 SRAMs do exist, but I've only ever seen them used as tag RAMs. I wonder if any boards actually supported them in a 128kb dual bank configuration.

Anonymous Coward wrote:

you can not have 128 kb cache with both banks filled.

16kx8 SRAMs do exist, but I've only ever seen them used as tag RAMs. I wonder if any boards actually supported them in a 128kb dual bank configuration.

I highly doubt it.
I once thought the GA-486VS did support former mentioned arrangment but it seems the manual is not as strict in its description as it should be... the 128K option seems to be the usual single bank setup.

The 2x 256k double bank sets I ordered came and I replaced the stuff that came with the board with one of the sets and it now boots properly with it set to 256k and it also works with the bus speed set to 40Mhz as well with 2 VLB cards installed. I hadn't tried 40Mhz before but I really doubt it would have worked with the flaky 20ns cache chips.

Anonymous Coward wrote:

you can not have 128 kb cache with both banks filled.

16kx8 SRAMs do exist, but I've only ever seen them used as tag RAMs. I wonder if any boards actually supported them in a 128kb dual bank configuration.

I was quoting from the manual. The board does not support that configuration.