X370 Killer SLI/ac will not POST or boot

Building a new budget gaming system with a X370 Killer SLI/ac, a Ryzen 5 3400G, and 16 GB (2x8) Corsair Vengeance DDR4 3000, and the system will not boot, no video (using built-in HDMI), and only pulses the red LED lights on and off slowly. The power supply clicks about every 30 seconds, which makes me believe it's in a boot loop.

The monitor never gets any signal, and from what I can tell, never POSTs.

I Reseated all the cables, cleared the CMOS, confirmed the CPU alignment.

I tried each of the sticks of RAM in every configuration, (currently I have a single 8gb stick in A2). The RAM model number is not on the QVL, but I other sticks from the Corsair Vengeance line are.

The CPU is on the QVL, but needs the newest BIOS. It seems likely to me that the motherboard needs a newer BIOS, but would that prevent me from POSTing? I would expect the CPU to be backwards compatible enough to allow me to limp along enough to get to the point where I can flash the BIOS.

Finally, the only old component in the mix is the power supply - it's an older Rosewill 450W, but the power shouldn't be an issue until I start adding more components, right?

Any ideas? Is there an easier way to troubleshoot than randomly buying new components until I get something that works?

What video card do you have installed? I did not see anything about one. The Asrock system boards do not have video chips on them, and the CPU you are using does not have that function in it either. So if you are connecting the monitor to the system board video out connectors, this is expected behavior. If you have a spare PCIe video card available, install it and connect the monitor to it.

Jake

My son has a video card ready to go, but we thought we'd leave it out until we get the system working properly.

Frankly, your post confuses me a bit. AMD Ryzen "APU"'s has a built-in Radeon Vega 11, which is why AMD calls it an "APU", instead of just a "CPU". The motherboard has an integrated HDMI port. [URL=https://gizmodo.com/amds-newest-processors-are-so-good-you-can-skip-the-gra-1822920100]This link on gizmodo [/URL] says that we can "skip the graphics card" because the the Ryzen 2000 series has a decent video capabilities built in.

[URL=https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/amd-ryzen-5-3400g-review,1.html]Guru3d [/URL] says the 3400G is essentially an overclocked 2400G, and doesn't need a dedicated graphics card.

ASRock's website for the motherboard has a section dedicated to [URL=https://www.asrock.com/mb/AMD/X370%20Killer%20SLIac/index.asp#Specification]graphics in the specifications tab[/URL].

That being said, I will still try throwing the dedicated graphics card in and see what happens.

rmcgarry wrote: The motherboard was bought brand new from newegg. Box was not sealed, but there weren't any stickers to break, and all the parts were there. The motherboard was zip-tied in foam tubing. Nothing is installed, we just bought it, but thanks for the warning about the drivers. I would like to know if it's the BIOS before I pay $100 to a pc shop and it doesn't fix the problem. (Might as well pay for the chip outright then) Thanks

if it was new(old stock) it will have very early bios circa ryzen launch
and in no way will suport the 2200/2400/3200/3400 g apus
it will have a sticker on the bios chip on the board to show what version the factory shipped it with expect something like 1.6 on the sticker
meaning ...yes you guessed it version 1.6

its a small chip and will 'probably' be near the pcie x16 slots

ignore the above post that you need a gpu , your correct the 3200g has its own vega cores inside (this is the actual idea for the 'g' type ryzens)

as for cost to flash bios
local pc shop should be more like 20-30 bucks (and if its a decent one would do the job for free ,afterall this is how you build a business customer base ,flashing a bios that dosnt cost you anything may net you years of custom and recommendations )

or plan b grab a second hand ryzen 1200 or 1300 flash it then resell it on ebay

plan c is the worst option
amd will send you out a loaner cpu to flash it with ,but you have to raise a support ticket, send in proof of purchase and wait for one to be shipped


one last 'thought' the x370 killer is at least 2 years old now , im surprised newegg had one sat there for that time , what we can conclude from that is anyones 'best' guess......... was it ex-display that got lost in a stock room?, was it an old return? it just seems very unusual that in two years they didnt just discount it to move stock if it was on a shelf

datonyb wrote: if it was new(old stock) it will have very early bios circa ryzen launch and in no way will suport the 2200/2400/3200/3400 g apus it will have a sticker on the bios chip on the board to show what version the factory shipped it with expect something like 1.6 on the sticker meaning ...yes you guessed it version 1.6 its a small chip and will 'probably' be near the pcie x16 slots ignore the above post that you need a gpu , your correct the 3200g has its own vega cores inside (this is the actual idea for the 'g' type ryzens) as for cost to flash bios local pc shop should be more like 20-30 bucks (and if its a decent one would do the job for free ,afterall this is how you build a business customer base ,flashing a bios that dosnt cost you anything may net you years of custom and recommendations ) or plan b grab a second hand ryzen 1200 or 1300 flash it then resell it on ebay plan c is the worst option amd will send you out a loaner cpu to flash it with ,but you have to raise a support ticket, send in proof of purchase and wait for one to be shipped one last 'thought' the x370 killer is at least 2 years old now , im surprised newegg had one sat there for that time , what we can conclude from that is anyones 'best' guess......... was it ex-display that got lost in a stock room?, was it an old return? it just seems very unusual that in two years they didnt just discount it to move stock if it was on a shelf

Thanks.

It was discounted a decent amount. In hindsight yes, we probably should have paid another $35 for the X450 Master motherboard instead, but between our budget and Newegg's return policy, we're stuck with this motherboard.

The sticker BIOS version was released in November 2017, so it was manufactured at most 2 years ago. Given the source, the condition of the box, the lack of dust, the intact packing materials, and all the loose bagged parts and materials still inside the box, I am pretty sure it was just sitting on the shelves the past 18 months. I honestly have no reservations about buying an older motherboard for the price we got it at. It's still going to be a lot faster than what it's replacing.

The local PC shop said they'd flash it for $25. I've instead bought a Ryzen 1200 for a bit more than that, and we will use it to flash the BIOS tonight.   

Thank you for your help so far.