Can you boot using Safe Mode (F8)? Also, if you want to enter the BIOS and use Q-Flash, you should be tapping the Delete key as soon as the Gigabyte splash screen appears which is well before the verifying DMI pool message.
Since this is a new build, are you booting from the Windows CD? Did you set the CD drive as the first boot device? Which Windows by the way?
I can't get the thing to run long enough to get anything done. I get to the gigabyte splash screen, but it won't look at any drive for the flash except a nonexistant floppy drive. It supposedly recognizes my hd and cd.
It seems to turn off at different points depending on how long it has been sitting without being booted. I wonder if it is recognizing my ram? I have found out that without the bios update that the board will only deal with a precious few brands.
Here are some customer reviews of the board from people with similar issues.
Cons: DOA. The board I got would power up for ~5sec then enter a reboot loop. Gigabyte's tech support told me it was probably a component issue so I swapped out everything, including cpu, and it still does it. I also tried clearing the CMOS and everything else I could think of before I decided to RMA the board and get something else.
Other Thoughts: Gigabyte tech support sucks. No phone number to call for support, have to submit questions via website.
Thanks for the valuable feedback you provided!Buyer beware
Reviewed By: slickdawg on 9/3/2008 Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 day to 1 week
Pros: The board has many features that I want from a motherboard - USB ports galore, firewire, RAID via ICH10, supports up to 8GB of ram.
Cons: BIOS appears to be a major issue with several reviewers. The board will not stay on long enough for me to even flash the BIOS. It powers on for a few seconds, then resets itself. I can not get through a post. Its been extremely frustrating. Q6600 processor, tried OCZ, Kingston and PNY ram, no dice.
Other Thoughts: It appears to be a hit and miss, some people are lucky and have great success with the board while others are having major issues. Too bad I am one of those unlucky ones.
Did you find this review helpful?
Thanks for the valuable feedback you provided!rock solid
Reviewed By: Romuluz on 9/2/2008 Tech Level: somewhat high - Ownership: 1 week to 1 month
This user purchased this item from Newegg
Pros: With proper setup and OCed quad-core with FSB 450-500 any task looks like a breeze.
Cons: if AHCI mode is enabled for SATA controller - SATA DVD-RW does not work and system refuses to go beyond "verifying DMA pool..". Had to use regular IDE DVD-RW drive. BIOS recognized only one kind of usb flash drive, i tried 3 different ones while attempting to flash BIOS
Other Thoughts: Be careful with USB headers. First pins marked black, which doesn't mean it's for black wire. You will fry your usb devices if connected in opposite direction.
Brand GIGABYTE
Model GA-EP45-DS3R
Supported CPU
CPU Socket Type LGA 775
CPU Type Quad-core / Core 2 Extreme / Core 2 Duo / Pentium
FSB 1600/1333MHz
Chipsets
North Bridge Intel P45
South Bridge Intel ICH10R
Memory
Number of Memory Slots 4×240pin
Memory Standard DDR2 1200
Maximum Memory Supported 16GB
Expansion Slots
PCI Express 2.0 x16 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, running at x16
1 x PCI Express x16 slot, running at x8
(The PCIEx16 and PCIEx8 slots support ATI CrossFireX technology and conform to PCI Express 2.0 standard.)
PCI Express x1 3
PCI Slots 2
Storage Devices
PATA 1 x ATA100 2 Dev. Max
SATA 3Gb/s 6
SATA RAID 0/1/5/10
Onboard Audio
Audio Chipset Realtek ALC889A
Audio Channels 8 Channels
Onboard LAN
LAN Chipset Realtek 8111C
Second LAN Chipset Realtek 8111C
Max LAN Speed Dual 10/100/1000Mbps
Rear Panel Ports
PS/2 2
USB 8 x USB 2.0
IEEE 1394 2 x IEEE 1394a
S/PDIF Out 1x Optical, 1x Coaxial
Audio Ports 6 Ports
Onboard USB
Onboard USB 4 x USB 2.0
Onboard 1394
Onboard 1394 1x 1394a
Physical Spec
Form Factor ATX
Dimensions 12.0" x 9.6"
Power Pin 24 Pin
Packaging
Package Contents GA-EP45-DS3R
Driver Disk
User Manual
Rear I/O Panel Shield
IDE/PATA Cable
FDD Cable
SATA Cable
eSATA Bracket
eSATA Cable & Power Cord