Can I check a new build for problems without booting into an OS?

[Chris935]

Hi guys, I was the guy who was asking about using fewer than 4 DIMMS in X99 about a month ago. 

 

I'm building a new PC and have all the parts decided on, and most already ordered. I'm still not decided on the boot SSD and I wouldn't mind spreading the cost of that (plus windows) over another week or so.

 

The system is an X99 Sabertooth with a 5820k, 4X4GB of Vengeance LPX 3000 and an R9 390. 

 

I don't want to leave it too long after the parts arrive to get the system working so that I know if I need to return anything that might be dead / damaged. I could build the system at this point and get into the UEFI which would report all the hardware, temperatures, clock speeds etc. but are there any potential hardware issues that this wouldn't expose?

 

Thanks,

 

Chris

[TheKDub]

If it posts, then everything should be in working order. (Basically just plug all the shit in correctly, power it on, if a screen shows up, then good job.)

[The Cool n00B]

There's no speaker on the mobo.

[ThomasD]

About the only thing it might not detect is deep memory issues. 

 

Though, if you need to be 100% retentive you can boot into Memtest86 from a USB drive to do a full stress of the RAM. 

[brandishwar]

Many Linux distros can be run from a USB stick to allow you to boot into a full operating system without having to first install it on your system. Several include Memtest86 as well -- Ubuntu comes to mind on that one. These "live" distros may allow you to also pull down drivers for your hardware -- specifically your graphics card -- so you can run Unigine Heaven or Valley on it (yes there's a Linux version) along with Prime95 or something else to stress your CPU. This will allow you to test your hardware, but won't give you a clear indicator of how well they'll perform in games on Windows.

There's no speaker on the mobo.

There should be pins for a speaker though. And depending on where you live, you might be able to find a speaker that plugs onto those pins for only a couple dollars.

[The Cool n00B]

Many Linux distros can be run from a USB stick to allow you to boot into a full operating system without having to first install it on your system. Several include Memtest86 as well -- Ubuntu comes to mind on that one. These "live" distros may allow you to also pull down drivers for your hardware -- specifically your graphics card -- so you can run Unigine Heaven or Valley on it (yes there's a Linux version) along with Prime95 or something else to stress your CPU. This will allow you to test your hardware, but won't give you a clear indicator of how well they'll perform in games on Windows.

There should be pins for a speaker though. And depending on where you live, you might be able to find a speaker that plugs onto those pins for only a couple dollars.

ik, I was just pointing out that hearing a post beep was cost a little extra.

[Chris935]

Many Linux distros can be run from a USB stick to allow you to boot into a full operating system without having to first install it on your system. 

There should be pins for a speaker though. And depending on where you live, you might be able to find a speaker that plugs onto those pins for only a couple dollars.

 

Thanks for all the replies. Somehow I'd forgotten about booting Linux off a flash drive, I used to do that quite regularly. Sound engineering is my main thing, (the main reason I needed a new PC is to do acoustic simulation of PA systems actually, some FFT analysis too) so I'll be able to sort out the audio if it's available on the mobo pins. Can the motherboard not use it's own on-board audio for this function though? It would seem sensible to have it's own basic driver to let it do this...

 

Chris

[Chris935]

It lives. 

 

The 850 Pro will be arriving in a few days so I'll know for sure then, but I highly doubt there are any issues. I'll spend a couple of days playing with fan profiles until then. 

 

Chris