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So no one has any advice?

I just looked at the prices for DDR RAM and theyre are f'in ridiculous. I can get a 1GB stick of DDR2 for £8.99 but a 512MB stick of DDR is £19.99!?

I have noticed that on my motherboard, in the BIOS the RAM speed is limited to 200MHz, I think its a limitation of the system. My actual RAM speed is supposed to be 400MHz but it isn't supported.

So I suppose it could be the RAM. But the prices are shocking.

Could be RAM.

How about BIOS reset jumper?

RAM can some times fry your mainboard if it is the wrong type.

if it was me u might actually be better off with a ddr 2 m board in the long run as makes it easier and cheaper to upgrade your pc rather than buying a new one

Slow down Partner. I have been away a few days researching and getting myself up to date on ACPI and guess what, I think that is where your issue lies. Let me make sure I understand your senerio. You state that the systems runs, but gets no video and you can get video up, but you have to go into the bios to do it?

Ok, there are two possibilities these days. One the Windows Kernel uses a process (OSPM) to engage power management features in Windows. This is usually done with the driver whereas unlike the old APM which the kernel would directly access the BIOS and let the BIOS do the work.

The BIOS ACPI uses NVRam. NVRAM is a type of Random Access Memory (RAM) that retains its information when power is turned off. The NVRAM is a small 24 pin DIP (Dual Inline Package) integrated circuit chip and is thus able to obtain the power needed to keep it running from the CMOS battery installed in your motherboard. The point I am making is that this NVRAM can get corrupted and from time to time needs to be cleaned by removing the battery or jumpering the CMOS clear from the motherboard.

I would suggest following the suggestion of reseting the NVRAM and if it works, consider flashing your BIOS to fix the problem that caused the corruption.

Remember, just because you flashed the bios doesn't mean that the NVRam was really cleared as the only way to do that is to stop supplying power to it.

EDIT: Also note that the GPU has a BIOS and from time to time that needs to be flashed. I am taking it that was the firmware you were referring too. Also do you know if you use the same driver, it might not change anything even if you remove the device from device manager. With stubborn systems I like to remove the PCI bus from system devices. You will see that it prompts you that all entries from the registry will be stripped.

The reason this is being asked is when did you flash the BIOS after removing the battery(ies)? If so it could have been for nought.

Here is a test. Pull the PCI Bus driver and reboot the system. See if No driver makes a difference. If not then it will definitely be a hardware issue, only the kind you won't like. It will be an issue with the BIOS on the motherboard. From what I've read, the ACPI is also integrated with the south bridge on some boards, so you may need another motherboard. But before you go goofing on that proposal, let me verify that and post the links for you to read.

How do I "Pull the PCI Bus Driver"?

And I can get video on the PC. I have video on it now. The problem is that for some reason after a restart I lose video, but everything else runs. After shutting down, no matter how many times I turn it on, I get no video until about ten minutes later.

It does appear that the NVRAM is losing information. And the motherboard does have ACPI (sp?).

The RAM is compatible BTW, I used the Crucial memory tester and bought it from Crucial.

So you think I should use the CLR CMOS jumper? Isn't that the same as removing the battery? I've already removed the battery but does CLR CMOS do a more complete clear?

I do have another DDR2 PC but the thing is I want to get this one working so I can give it to my cousin.

I flashed the BIOS to the latest version with the battery in. Did the same when I flashed it to its original version. I updated it because the problem was worse with the original firmware.

The BIOS is a ASUS Santiago one, if that helps. Full specification is in the link in my first post.

I'll check back tomorrow. Thanks

Ok, here is the good, the bad, and the ugly...

ACPI

This will give you the ACPI Specifications 3.0b

The ACPI in integrated with the Chipset, so yes, this incorporates the motherboard.

Take a look at these sections as to they describe what you are doing..

15.1.4.1 Operating System-Initiated S4 Transition
Talks about why your state changes back in the bios.

A.6.5.2.3 DVI Full Screen Devices
Changing the display frequency might do something.

Hope this helps, it may just be me going off on something new I am learning, but my sixth sense says ACPI is the issue.

To pull the PCI BUS open device manager, go to system devices and it will be PCI Bus or PCI Bridge is some more rare cases.
NOTE: This may require additional drivers to be available on hand (such as NIC) so be prepared.

If you flashed the BIOS and didn't remove the battery or jumper the CMOS clear since that time, then you still may have corrupted NVRAM.