what happenes if i insert a new bios chip the wrong way?

[JamesUK]

what happenes if i insert a new bios chip the wrong way?
is it instantly broke, or should it still work if i then put it the right way?

i had powered on the system with it in.

thanks

[Áedán]

If you actually managed to get the chip in the wrong way around, then it's quite likely that you'd destroy it. The sockets seem to be polarized, so it'd require forcing in.

If you powered the system up with the BIOS the wrong way around, then you'd get no activity, and just "FF" on the P80 LEDs (no cycling)

If you powered the system up with the BIOS the right way around (and it works correctly), then you'd get something happening on the P80 LEDs, even if it's just a "C1".

[JamesUK]

its ok my system is working fine now

[Uncle Bob]

Actually old blind Uncle Bob's done it at least several times! I have never lost a board or chip from it, but I'll tell you it's just been the luck of the Irish or something! I'm sure if it were left in for very long it would be curtains. I do know this: the chip gets extremely hot in short order! When I hot flash, I always mark the squared off corner so I put it back in correctly! I got one so hot the plastic label became discolored! Be glad you dodged a bullet and pay attention!

[JamesUK]

hiya

well at the moment my systems quiet slowish compared to when it was ok, but then again am not running with 512mb corsair 3200 (in dual mode now)

am running sum unbranded 256mb pc2700 ram, i have noticed quiet a significant performance drop, my games r stuttering a bit and things are responding a bit slower, i dont mean my systems nearly ded or anything just is a little slower, would i notice this difference in performance with the ram i had to what am using now? or could it be because i inserted the bios chip the wrong way and have done something?

thanks

p.s am just a bit consirned thats all, i wanna get sum twinmos 3200 (winbond) but i wnana make sure this performance drop is cause of this crap unbranded ram am using and not a fault bios chip.

[Holst]

I dont think a bad bios chip will slow performance.

A bad bios will tend to make a machine stop working, not just slow it down...

You can easily kill a bios chip by putting it in backwards, you can also blow your board up.

[JamesUK]

everythings sorted now, not sure how or why to be honest, i put me corsair ram back in and now its just working again, i really dont understand it wouldn't allow me to run it before thats why i got the new ram, and now its ok again on turbo itas very strange